SquirmyHermy123
New Member
- Joined
- Jan 3, 2023
- Messages
- 8
- Reaction score
- 7
Hey all! Posting (again 
) after hearing back from some more schools. I am now deciding between Vanderbilt, UPenn, and Yale (WL). I am interested in psychiatry and am excited about research, community health, the environment, and the humanities. My thoughts are below, thanks for any advice!
Vanderbilt
Pros
+++Amazing sense of community. I have really loved my conversations with every student who I talked to. They have been kind, driven, brilliant, and just easy to connect with. The same goes with faculty
+++75% tuition scholarship
+++Great curriculum. P/F preclinical and rotations. 1 year preclinical, so plenty of time to explore. Built in research tme
++Good psychiatry department. I got to talk with the psychiatry chair and reallly enjoyed the conversation. The department has a focus on psychosis, which I am especially interested in
++Huge catchment area. People come from all over the region to get care at Vanderbilt, so I would get to learn from such tough/unique cases
++Nashville is a fun city, not too big, and has good access to nature
++Small class size (95 people), which I prefer
++Cool health equity certificare, opportunities to work with underserved populations at the Shade Tree Clinic
++Med school is right next to the undergrad campus and you can do interdisciplinary research
Cons
---not great for my significant other's career, so we'd likely face some long distance in the future. She does like Nashville, though, and would live with me for at least the first year of school
--I like cold weather, which I won't get much of in Nashville...
-Graded electives, but I'm not too worried about this. Students say electives are manageable and if you work hard you will get honors.
UPenn
Pros
+++Mind blowing resources. They have research in anything I could ever want to study. Plus super cool clubs and community initiatives
+++The name. Students say people take note of Penn's reputation during the match process--and Penn students match at incredible places. I don't want to choose a school just because of the prestige, but this is hard to ignore as a factor..
+++Connected with the undergrad campus, so lots of cool humanities, business, and other opportunities
++I have liked the students who I have talked to
++Very cool areas of concentration within the curriculum, like spirituality and health
++Built in research time
++Students have good things to say about faculty mentorship
++Philly is in a great location, and is good for my S.O.
++Tons to do in Philly
Cons
---Graded rotations. Students admit that this can be stressful, though it is manageable and I would have to work hard regardless
--Less friendly vibes. Students are nice, but have a competitive edge. This is partly because they are very ambitious, which is good, but overall it seems like there are less chill people. Students also say that there is 'less hand holding'. In general, less of a supportive atmosphere than Vandy
--I'm not a city person, and Philly is definitely a city
-Money? I have not gotten a scholarship yet, but I emailed the financial aid department telling them about my offer from Vandy. Students I've talked to say that UPenn tends to match offers from other schools, so fingers crossed
Yale
Pros
+++Huge, incredible psychiatry department. Amazing research
++Great name and reputation
++Super chill Yale system. No grades
++Funded year off to do research
++Good location for my S.O.
++I went to school in Rhode Island and love New England
Cons
--New Haven is meh and boring
--No merit scholarships, and I do not qualify for significant financial aid
Overall, I feel very lucky to be in this position. I know that I would be happy at all of these schools. I feel like it comes down to a choice between community/comfort and resources/prestige. I have spent less time researching Yale because of the WL, so it's kind of a sleeper choice. Thanks for any feedback!!
) after hearing back from some more schools. I am now deciding between Vanderbilt, UPenn, and Yale (WL). I am interested in psychiatry and am excited about research, community health, the environment, and the humanities. My thoughts are below, thanks for any advice!Vanderbilt
Pros
+++Amazing sense of community. I have really loved my conversations with every student who I talked to. They have been kind, driven, brilliant, and just easy to connect with. The same goes with faculty
+++75% tuition scholarship
+++Great curriculum. P/F preclinical and rotations. 1 year preclinical, so plenty of time to explore. Built in research tme
++Good psychiatry department. I got to talk with the psychiatry chair and reallly enjoyed the conversation. The department has a focus on psychosis, which I am especially interested in
++Huge catchment area. People come from all over the region to get care at Vanderbilt, so I would get to learn from such tough/unique cases
++Nashville is a fun city, not too big, and has good access to nature
++Small class size (95 people), which I prefer
++Cool health equity certificare, opportunities to work with underserved populations at the Shade Tree Clinic
++Med school is right next to the undergrad campus and you can do interdisciplinary research
Cons
---not great for my significant other's career, so we'd likely face some long distance in the future. She does like Nashville, though, and would live with me for at least the first year of school
--I like cold weather, which I won't get much of in Nashville...
-Graded electives, but I'm not too worried about this. Students say electives are manageable and if you work hard you will get honors.
UPenn
Pros
+++Mind blowing resources. They have research in anything I could ever want to study. Plus super cool clubs and community initiatives
+++The name. Students say people take note of Penn's reputation during the match process--and Penn students match at incredible places. I don't want to choose a school just because of the prestige, but this is hard to ignore as a factor..
+++Connected with the undergrad campus, so lots of cool humanities, business, and other opportunities
++I have liked the students who I have talked to
++Very cool areas of concentration within the curriculum, like spirituality and health
++Built in research time
++Students have good things to say about faculty mentorship
++Philly is in a great location, and is good for my S.O.
++Tons to do in Philly
Cons
---Graded rotations. Students admit that this can be stressful, though it is manageable and I would have to work hard regardless
--Less friendly vibes. Students are nice, but have a competitive edge. This is partly because they are very ambitious, which is good, but overall it seems like there are less chill people. Students also say that there is 'less hand holding'. In general, less of a supportive atmosphere than Vandy
--I'm not a city person, and Philly is definitely a city
-Money? I have not gotten a scholarship yet, but I emailed the financial aid department telling them about my offer from Vandy. Students I've talked to say that UPenn tends to match offers from other schools, so fingers crossed
Yale
Pros
+++Huge, incredible psychiatry department. Amazing research
++Great name and reputation
++Super chill Yale system. No grades
++Funded year off to do research
++Good location for my S.O.
++I went to school in Rhode Island and love New England
Cons
--New Haven is meh and boring
--No merit scholarships, and I do not qualify for significant financial aid
Overall, I feel very lucky to be in this position. I know that I would be happy at all of these schools. I feel like it comes down to a choice between community/comfort and resources/prestige. I have spent less time researching Yale because of the WL, so it's kind of a sleeper choice. Thanks for any feedback!!
