VCU vs. Georgetown

[soccerfan12]

Hello everyone!

I am having a hard time deciding between VCU and Georgetown. I would really appreciate your help and suggestions. Basic info that may help: CA applicant, URM, attended George Washington for undergrad so familiar with the DC area, currently interested in pursuing a primary care specialty (but that may change in med school so going in with an open mind), cost is essentially the same for both. My goal is to match back to CA for whichever specialty I decide on. Another minor note: VCU does not have a second visit day but I will be attending GT’s later this week, but since it is pretty close to decision day I am trying to get input beforehand.

VCU:
Pros:

• Brand new facilities and amazing simulation center. Not sure how often students get to use this or how important this is though.
• The students seemed happy to be there and VCU has a reputation for having a pretty collaborative student body (although I have heard mixed things about this).
• Student body is very diverse.

Cons:

• Location: Richmond seemed like an okay city but not as much to do compared to DC.
• Didn't seem like they were affiliated with any strong hospitals.
• Lower rank/reputation (not sure how important this is though)

Georgetown:
Pros:

• Strong reputation/prestige.
• Amazing match list year after year.
• Location (DC is a great city with lots to do and I am familiar with the area since I lived here for undergrad).
• Excellent clinical training.

Cons:

• Student body is not diverse (not sure why since DC in general and even George Washington are so diverse -- any thoughts?)
• Has a reputation for being less collaborative (but I have heard mixed things about this) and also they changed to Pass/Fail (just last year) so not sure if that changed things.
• Switching to a new curriculum beginning this fall and there is not much info available yet. My class would be the first one to try it out.
• Old facilities.

Summary: I loved both schools and am very grateful to have been accepted to both. Would appreciate any input on which you would pick/why and also if I missed any other important things to consider. Would also appreciate any advice from others considering either (or both of these schools), current students at both places, and @Goro, @gyngyn, @LizzyM, @gonnif! Thank you all for your help!

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[libertyyne]

Gtown is higher ranked, However honestly the prestige at that ranking is not going to buy you a lot of leverage. Are both of the schools cost neutral? Gtown last i checked was really expensive. I suppose it depends on your career goals I would look towards the home residency programs of both institutions and see if they have something you are interested in.

 

[WedgeDawg]

VCU's hospital is one of the best in Virginia, and it's also affiliated with INOVA back in northern VA, which is also a strong hospital.

Richmond is a great up and coming city and is close enough to D.C. that you could go there for a weekend if you want.

Ranking difference is negligible.

 

[soccerfan12]

Gtown is higher ranked, However honestly the prestige at that ranking is not going to buy you a lot of leverage. Are both of the schools cost neutral? Gtown last i checked was really expensive. I suppose it depends on your career goals I would look towards the home residency programs of both institutions and see if they have something you are interested in.

VCU's hospital is one of the best in Virginia, and it's also affiliated with INOVA back in northern VA, which is also a strong hospital.

Richmond is a great up and coming city and is close enough to D.C. that you could go there for a weekend if you want.

Ranking difference is negligible.

Thank you both for your input! @libertyyne yes both are pretty close in terms of cost, but VCU may be slightly cheaper. You're right about Georgetown's ranking itself not giving more leverage for residency, but I heard that Georgetown's name/reputation actually does help since it is well known/respected nationally. It also does seem that way based on how competitively they match students into top programs/specialties. Do you think that might be due to other factors? (fyi the average step scores for both are about the same).

Also, @WedgeDawg, I heard that the affiliation between INOVA and VCU has ended and that they were going to reduce the class size for this year as a result (I think I saw this in another School X vs. Y thread).

Anyone else have any suggestions? Also for those of you who voted, it would be awesome if you could briefly describe your reasoning! Thank you everyone!

 

[WedgeDawg]

Oh really? Well ignore me then. I'm outdated!

 

[libertyyne]

Thank you both for your input! @libertyyne yes both are pretty close in terms of cost, but VCU may be slightly cheaper. You're right about Georgetown's ranking itself not giving more leverage for residency, but I heard that Georgetown's name/reputation actually does help since it is well known/respected nationally. It also does seem that way based on how competitively they match students into top programs/specialties. Do you think that might be due to other factors? (fyi the average step scores for both are about the same).

Also, @WedgeDawg, I heard that the affiliation between INOVA and VCU has ended and that they were going to reduce the class size for this year as a result (I think I saw this in another School X vs. Y thread).

Anyone else have any suggestions? Also for those of you who voted, it would be awesome if you could briefly describe your reasoning! Thank you everyone!

Interpreting match lists is an impossible task. It is possible that there Re more prestige chasers at gtown resulting in " prestigious matches" I would also caution you in placing a lot of weight in match list prestige considering theyay look prestigious from the outside but are not to the medical community. Look to the home programs.

 

[Hendeaux]

Is Georgetown med located in Georgetown? This is a particularly expensive area of D.C., which might be worth taking into consideration.

Both would be pleasant places to live. Richmond has a very cool vibe for a city of its size, and I think it would be a great place to spend four years. It's also very inexpensive. You can likely pay half as much in rent compared with D.C. but still have a great food scene/music/art/[whatever urban appeal you're interested in]. Public transit is worse, but there are great housing options within walking distance from the med school.


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