Vote for Illinois school of your choice!!!

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Which IL school would you choose?

  • Rosalind Franklin

    Votes: 16 5.7%
  • Feinberg

    Votes: 87 30.9%
  • Pritzker

    Votes: 78 27.7%
  • Rush

    Votes: 16 5.7%
  • Southern Illinois

    Votes: 7 2.5%
  • Stritch

    Votes: 41 14.5%
  • University of Illinois

    Votes: 33 11.7%
  • I wish there was an 8th school!!!

    Votes: 4 1.4%

  • Total voters
    282

sekem

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If you had a choice to choose any of the IL schools which one it would be???

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I grew-up in Springfield, thus I don't know why the hell anyone would want to go to Southern
 
i had a choice of a few...and i chose loyola.
 
lotsa people like feinberg's location next to downtown, but what you gotta consider is that they have *no* subsidized student housing. you'll get a better deal in housing from schools in manhattan.
 
Hmm, Feinberg.
You can get into the MD program from the MBA or vice versa.
That alone makes it tops.
 
I grew-up in Springfield, thus I don't know why the hell anyone would want to go to Southern
That wasn't necessary. I don't mind that you don't like the Springfield or stating that you don't like the school, but you don't need to be disrespectful.

I had a choice between several programs and chose SIU...I'm glad I did, I love it.
 
I would go to Pritzker but I haven't even interviewed :laugh:

As of now, I'm going to RFU :D
 
lotsa people like feinberg's location next to downtown, but what you gotta consider is that they have *no* subsidized student housing. you'll get a better deal in housing from schools in manhattan.

wrong. There are lots of subsidized housing options for med students in chicago.
 
Feinberg, hands down. It's my dream school.
 
Pritzker is by far better. MUCH more respect for their clinical years.

More reputable for one, also if you want a dual degree they are probably one of the best in helping you get one (for an MBA, you can automatically go to their grad school of business which is more reputable than wharton, where as if you go to penn its still hard to dual MBA and get into wharton)
 
wrong. There are lots of subsidized housing options for med students in chicago.

i was talking about nwu feinberg in particular. the person i know who goes there spoke to me as if there were no subsidized housing. i just looked myself, and it is not *technically* true, but the subsidized housing (abbott hall) is offered with priority to families:

http://www.northwestern.edu/gradhousing/accommodations_chicago.html

so maybe it's just so hard to get that most single students have to find unsubsidized apartments. it's also not cheaper than housing at weill cornell or nyu, to address my bigger point.
 
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Pritzker is by far better. MUCH more respect for their clinical years.

More reputable for one, also if you want a dual degree they are probably one of the best in helping you get one (for an MBA, you can automatically go to their grad school of business which is more reputable than wharton, where as if you go to penn its still hard to dual MBA and get into wharton)

i agree. feinberg's big draw is its location within chicago. you will have a better 'single' lifestyle living around feinberg compared to living around pritzker, but you will pay about twice as much in rent for this.

pritzker draws a more indigent patient population that will allow students more involvement with patient care. and not only can you do the mba at pritzker, but the business school is a few blocks away. all other degree programs are within a few blocks. at nwu, the business school, like many other degree programs, is in evanston (a suburb about 10 miles away).
 
I'm pretty sure the MD/MBA at NU is not open enrollment... you have to apply to Kellogg separately, which is really difficult for those without previous work experience. Much easier at U of C.
 
kellogg school of business, the mba program for northwestern, is located next door to the feinburg school of medicine. the law school is on the same block as well....
 
kellogg school of business, the mba program for northwestern, is located next door to the feinburg school of medicine. the law school is on the same block as well....

the *part-time* mba program is located next to feinberg. the full-time mba program is in evanston. the part-time program takes longer, and according to the website

"The Part-Time MBA Program is designed for the working professional. Since the program coordinates with a student's career path, students must be employed full-time in a career enhancing position and reside in the Chicagoland area to be eligible for application and enrollment in the program. Once accepted into the program, students are required to maintain full-time employment during all quarters they are enrolled."

http://www.kellogg.northwestern.edu/tmp/index.htm

it doesn't sound as though med students would qualify for the part-time program in chicago.
 
Feinberg :)

Location, location, location
 
kellogg school of business, the mba program for northwestern, is located next door to the feinburg school of medicine. the law school is on the same block as well....

Negative, the main Kellogg program is with the undergrad campus up in Evanston.
 
Feinberg :)

Location, location, location

i can't disagree that they're the top dawg in chicago when it comes to location. for me, it's just that you have to pay more to get that location. so when it came time to apply, i substituted manhattan schools with cheaper subsidized housing for feinberg.
 
i can't disagree that they're the top dawg in chicago when it comes to location. for me, it's just that you have to pay more to get that location. so when it came time to apply, i substituted manhattan schools with cheaper subsidized housing for feinberg.


I did both :)

still waiting on manhattan
 
:confused:

It is certainly a tough call between University of Chicago and Northwestern. Being in the middle of Chicago is nice but, let's face it, doing anything in the heart of downtown is exceptionally expensive. If that isn't an issue for you then I think it comes down to individual specialties; I'd go with whatever one has the more renown specialty that I had interest in hopes that I learn somem of the "tricks of the trade" so to speak. Also, if something like Emergency Medicine is your thing... chances are U of C would be better for you because their emergency room is on the edge of a pretty nasty neighborhood and they undoubtedly see a lot more trauma.

If cost is a factor, however, I think UIC takes the cake hands down.:thumbup:
 
i was talking about nwu feinberg in particular. the person i know who goes there spoke to me as if there were no subsidized housing. i just looked myself, and it is not *technically* true, but the subsidized housing (abbott hall) is offered with priority to families:

http://www.northwestern.edu/gradhousing/accommodations_chicago.html

so maybe it's just so hard to get that most single students have to find unsubsidized apartments. it's also not cheaper than housing at weill cornell or nyu, to address my bigger point.

not true actually...many students(medical and physical therapy and residents) live at worcester house. damn cheap rent considering the building is steps away from the lakefront. i am not sure why it is not listed in that link that you posted.
 
Not a tough call. Pritzker > Northwestern in facilities, research, and reputation.

If I go to Pritzker I will just live in the North side, or the south loop :p .
 
Not a tough call. Pritzker > Northwestern in facilities, research, and reputation.

If I go to Pritzker I will just live in the North side, or the south loop :p .[/QUOTE

Hmm, I have seen so many polls like this. Is there a reason why the majority of people will pick Feinberg over Pritzker?
 
Not a tough call. Pritzker > Northwestern in facilities, research, and reputation.

If I go to Pritzker I will just live in the North side, or the south loop :p .[/QUOTE

Hmm, I have seen so many polls like this. Is there a reason why the majority of people will pick Feinberg over Pritzker?

As you can see from the poll, it's pretty close. People probably pick Feinberg because they prefer the location and curriculum.
 
Not a tough call. Pritzker > Northwestern in facilities, research, and reputation.

If I go to Pritzker I will just live in the North side, or the south loop :p .

I encourage people to make their own distinctions about these two institutions. I mean, both are world-class institutions in their own right. You will not go wrong by attending one or the other. However, someone saying that one school is better in "facilities, research and reputation" is full of it. Reputation in which circles? Research in what fields? Have you seen both school's facilities? In fact, in some specialties NEITHER UofC or Northwestern are the best institutions in the city. Take such judgments with a grain of salt and make your own decisions when you visit each program.
 
I prefer U of C...a little biased I am...but I love Pritzker and I plan on being there next year...I am really looking forward to it. The reputation and facilities and more importantly students, faculty and Deans are top notch and so nice.
 
Also, if something like Emergency Medicine is your thing... chances are U of C would be better for you because their emergency room is on the edge of a pretty nasty neighborhood and they undoubtedly see a lot more trauma.

RFU and Rush have Cook County affiliated with them, which sees way more trauma than UofC. UofC does have a great program, but they are sent to another hospital (Mt. Sinai) for trauma exposure.
 
RFU and Rush have Cook County affiliated with them, which sees way more trauma than UofC. UofC does have a great program, but they are sent to another hospital (Mt. Sinai) for trauma exposure.

u of chicago only takes peds trauma and sometimes adults with extremity woundss. trauma is overrated. it's not the most medically interesting stuff. unless you're the trauma surgeon, it's a pretty scripted routine for the other docs.

edit: but they do get boatloads of poor pts from the area.
 
u of chicago only takes peds trauma and sometimes adults with extremity woundss. trauma is overrated. it's not the most medically interesting stuff. unless you're the trauma surgeon, it's a pretty scripted routine for the other docs.

edit: but they do get boatloads of poor pts from the area.

I agree...just getting the Chicago facts straight. :thumbup:
 
I encourage people to make their own distinctions about these two institutions. I mean, both are world-class institutions in their own right. You will not go wrong by attending one or the other. However, someone saying that one school is better in "facilities, research and reputation" is full of it. Reputation in which circles? Research in what fields? Have you seen both school's facilities? In fact, in some specialties NEITHER UofC or Northwestern are the best institutions in the city. Take such judgments with a grain of salt and make your own decisions when you visit each program.

I guess I'm full of it. I have seen both schools' facilities, and was accepted to both. It was an opinion poll, so I gave my opinion. Here is what my opinion is based on:

Research: Pritzker has more than twice as much NIH funding per faculty member, and is ranked higher on the research rankings.

Facilities: Look at the US News, or any other hospital ranking system, and compare them. NU is better in Peds, but UofC is ranked higher in pretty much every other category.

Reputation: I was just going by the US News ranking, which is admittedly flawed.

People should take my opinion with a grain of salt. But I'm certainly not as biased as someone who is attending one of the institutions, like the above poster.
 
I guess I'm full of it. I have seen both schools' facilities, and was accepted to both. It was an opinion poll, so I gave my opinion. Here is what my opinion is based on:

Research: Pritzker has more than twice as much NIH funding per faculty member, and is ranked higher on the research rankings.

Facilities: Look at the US News, or any other hospital ranking system, and compare them. NU is better in Peds, but UofC is ranked higher in pretty much every other category.

Reputation: I was just going by the US News ranking, which is admittedly flawed.

People should take my opinion with a grain of salt. But I'm certainly not as biased as someone who is attending one of the institutions, like the above poster.

I admitted I was biased at least!
 
the interesting thing about chicago is there is no school/hospital that is really above the others, unlike SF, LA, Boston, etc. I'm sure there are plenty of cases to go around wherever you go, and don't forget that going to one school does not mean you have to live there or even do your summer research there. I won't say which one I voted for, but coming from the area and having friends at each school I have yet to talk to somebody that is unsatisfied.

On the issue of dual degrees, though, I'd say it's infinitely easier to do any dual degree at Pritzker. They take a lot of pride in that opportunity. NU does have some cool streamlined programs though, like their MD/MA program. So if you know you want to do one going in, NU might have something cool in place for you.
 
I guess I'm full of it. I have seen both schools' facilities, and was accepted to both. It was an opinion poll, so I gave my opinion. Here is what my opinion is based on:

Research: Pritzker has more than twice as much NIH funding per faculty member, and is ranked higher on the research rankings.

Facilities: Look at the US News, or any other hospital ranking system, and compare them. NU is better in Peds, but UofC is ranked higher in pretty much every other category.

Reputation: I was just going by the US News ranking, which is admittedly flawed.

People should take my opinion with a grain of salt. But I'm certainly not as biased as someone who is attending one of the institutions, like the above poster.

I never said my institution was better than UofC.

I just think that its not fair to say one institution is "better" than another unless you qualify it(regardless of what US news or NIH dollars say) thats all.

You just didn't seem to qualify your statements. I mean reputation is such a subjective thing to assess. You even admit yourself that US news is flawed. Furthermore, I did not know that US News ranked facilities. They must not have seen the mahogany chairs, oil paintings, private rooms w/fold out beds for guests, flat panel tv's, and talking elevators we have at northwestern.

It comes down to personal choice. For you, and your personal criteria(which seems heavily swayed by us news) in deciding which is a "better" program you have decided that UofC is indeed "better."

I mean...take my school out of the equation...who is to say that UofC is a "better" program than Rush? or that UofC is "better" than Loyola? Are UIC medical school graduates somehow inferior to UofC grads? I am certainly not claiming that Northwestern is "better" than any of the other chicago programs, let alone UofC. And if I did, I would qualify what exactly made it "better."

If you are gonna claim that UofC is "better" just clarify what exactly it is "better" in. And you in fact did that in your post that I am quoting now by claiming that UofC does better in US News. Thats fine. USnews rankings certainly don't mean much to me...but hey, for those that it does I openly admit that UofC does "better" in US News. I also agree that UofC has more NIH dollars. If that is on your list of criteria for a "better" school, then UofC is once again, "better." You get a hand shake from me and a glass of milk with a side of cookies.
 
I am biased! Not afraid to admit it. NU totally rubbed me the wrong way, in almost every way. I was shocked that, in their interview process, the goal was more often to ask strange questions to "confuse" applicants, rather than to learn about them. I got asked what type of animal I wanted to be, what my favorite color was, how many hours I sleep at night, etc. I was asked more questions of this type than I was questions about medicine. My friends interviewing there had similar experiences. I thought it was totally disgusting for this to be an institutionalized policy of the university.

I don't care about the US News school rankings. The amount of NIH dollars that Pritzker and NU have per faculty member has nothing to do with US News. The hospital rankings, which place UofC above NU, can be found anywhere, including US News' hospital rankings (nothing to do with the school rankings). Granted, the "reputation" factor was from the US News list. But you could just as easily derive reputation from research dollars and hospital prestige.

I don't think that oil paintings and mahogany chairs have anything to do with most facility rankings. They have to do with the quality of the healthcare, not how pretty the buildings are.
 
I am biased! Not afraid to admit it. NU totally rubbed me the wrong way, in almost every way. I was shocked that, in their interview process, the goal was more often to ask strange questions to "confuse" applicants, rather than to learn about them. I got asked what type of animal I wanted to be, what my favorite color was, how many hours I sleep at night, etc. I was asked more questions of this type than I was questions about medicine. My friends interviewing there had similar experiences. I thought it was totally disgusting for this to be an institutionalized policy of the university.

I don't care about the US News school rankings. The amount of NIH dollars that Pritzker and NU have per faculty member has nothing to do with US News. The hospital rankings, which place UofC above NU, can be found anywhere, including US News' hospital rankings (nothing to do with the school rankings). Granted, the "reputation" factor was from the US News list. But you could just as easily derive reputation from research dollars and hospital prestige.

I don't think that oil paintings and mahogany chairs have anything to do with most facility rankings. They have to do with the quality of the healthcare, not how pretty the buildings are.

I have been reading your posts and have been shocked at how you have been bashing the school. All this is because you did not like the panel interview format? There is a reason they ask these questions, they are trying to see what kind of personality you are and what your interests are outside of medicine. It is no reason to say all kinds of negative things about a school. JMO
 
I have been reading your posts and have been shocked at how you have been bashing the school. All this is because you did not like the panel interview format? There is a reason they ask these questions, they are trying to see what kind of personality you are and what your interests are outside of medicine. It is no reason to say all kinds of negative things about a school. JMO

I too have been reading the posts...I dont think Towlie was bashing the school...I personally think both schools are great and you cant go wrong by choosing any of the schools in chicago...but persoanally I found U of C to be my favorite for many of the same reasons mentioned by towlie...this thread was an opinion thread on which one would be chosen and why...towlie has mentioned why U of C and not Northwestern
 
I too have been reading the posts...I dont think Towlie was bashing the school...I personally think both schools are great and you cant go wrong by choosing any of the schools in chicago...but persoanally I found U of C to be my favorite for many of the same reasons mentioned by towlie...this thread was an opinion thread on which one would be chosen and why...towlie has mentioned why U of C and not Northwestern

He said U of C is better in everyway which shows extreme bias.
 
He said U of C is better in everyway which shows extreme bias.

Well someone needs to represent how Northwestern is better...mainly for those who are trying to decide between the two schools...the only big plus I have heard for Northwestern is the location and niceness of the facilities
 
Well someone needs to represent how Northwestern is better...mainly for those who are trying to decide between the two schools...the only big plus I have heard for Northwestern is the location and niceness of the facilities

None is better than the other in my opinion. They are both excellent institutions and it is just a matter of how you think you fit based on interviews and second look visits.
 
None is better than the other in my opinion. They are both excellent institutions and it is just a matter of how you think you fit based on interviews and second look visits.

I concur...but the thread was about choice not better or worse...people choose places for different reasons...does not mean one is "better" than the other...like I said before you can not go wrong at any of the schools
 
I have been reading your posts and have been shocked at how you have been bashing the school. All this is because you did not like the panel interview format? There is a reason they ask these questions, they are trying to see what kind of personality you are and what your interests are outside of medicine. It is no reason to say all kinds of negative things about a school. JMO

Bashing the school? Not really. Just stating my opinion. Saying that UC has more research dollars per faculty members and higher ranked facilities isn't really bashing NU.

What I would bash is NU's interview process. They want to learn about "interests outside of medicine"? How does what ANIMAL I would want to be, how many hours I sleep at night, or what my favorite color is have ANYTHING to do with that? The questions are useless, and meant solely to confuse and intimidate the interviewees. I found the whole process offensive.

I think that there are many great things about NU. The area in Chicago is absolutely beautiful. The curriculum seems to give students a ton of free time to pursue other interests. However, as a school, it just wasn't for me. I don't think that you can say that any schools is truly "better" than another. But schools can be superior in certain areas, and I was merely pointing out areas that are important to me in which UC seems to be superior to NU. I didn't mean to bash NU at all.
 
Bashing the school? Not really. Just stating my opinion. Saying that UC has more research dollars per faculty members and higher ranked facilities isn't really bashing NU.

What I would bash is NU's interview process. They want to learn about "interests outside of medicine"? How does what ANIMAL I would want to be, how many hours I sleep at night, or what my favorite color is have ANYTHING to do with that? The questions are useless, and meant solely to confuse and intimidate the interviewees. I found the whole process offensive.

I think that there are many great things about NU. The area in Chicago is absolutely beautiful. The curriculum seems to give students a ton of free time to pursue other interests. However, as a school, it just wasn't for me. I don't think that you can say that any schools is truly "better" than another. But schools can be superior in certain areas, and I was merely pointing out areas that are important to me in which UC seems to be superior to NU. I didn't mean to bash NU at all.

Fair enough, but it seems that you are basing most of your arguments on US news rankings. This is not good because these rankings change all the time. Heck, Emory was no 20 a year ago and it dropped 6 spots. So, in a case like this when you are comparing schools ranked #17 and # 20, it is not good to make a choice based on just a slight diff in rankings. Who is to say that NU will not move up or down the rankings? Choose where you feel you can see yourself spending the next 4 yrs and be truly happy. Just my 2 cents
 
Fair enough, but it seems that you are basing most of your arguments on US news rankings. This is not good because these rankings change all the time. Heck, Emory was no 20 a year ago and it dropped 6 spots. So, in a case like this when you are comparing schools ranked #17 and # 20, it is not good to make a choice based on just a slight diff in rankings. Who is to say that NU will not move up or down the rankings? Choose where you feel you can see yourself spending the next 4 yrs and be truly happy. Just my 2 cents

Um, I'm not talking about the US News School rankings. I could care less about those.

I'm talking about the US News Hospital rankings, in which UChicago and NU hospital systems are not even close.

I'm talking about NIH dollars, which has nothing to do with the US News rankings.

I can't stand the US News school rankings. I wish they didn't exist. But the fact is, they do exist, and they do have a bearing on school prestige.
 
In fact, in some specialties NEITHER UofC or Northwestern are the best institutions in the city.

yep...some examples would be the cardiology department at loyola and the ortho department at rush... :thumbup:
 
Um, I'm not talking about the US News School rankings. I could care less about those.

I'm talking about the US News Hospital rankings, in which UChicago and NU hospital systems are not even close.

I think it is weird that you abhor one set of US News rankings and have absolute faith in another. Don't you think the flaws in one might carry over to the other? I'm sure the U of C hospital system is better than NU, I just found this to be a strange argument considering your previous posts.

And like a previous poster said, Towelie, you do seem to go after NU pretty hard. It is not even about the content of your posts, it is just in your tone. I've read all of yourp osts on the subject and I am not really sure why you feel the need to go after a school just because you had a poor interview experence. I had schools I didn't like too (like everyone has) and I don't post on their threads with such a negative furor.

I realize it is all your opinion, but it is awfully harsh, IMHO.
 
I think it is weird that you abhor one set of US News rankings and have absolute faith in another. Don't you think the flaws in one might carry over to the other? I'm sure the U of C hospital system is better than NU, I just found this to be a strange argument considering your previous posts.

And like a previous poster said, Towelie, you do seem to go after NU pretty hard. It is not even about the content of your posts, it is just in your tone. I've read all of yourp osts on the subject and I am not really sure why you feel the need to go after a school just because you had a poor interview experence. I had schools I didn't like too (like everyone has) and I don't post on their threads with such a negative furor.

I realize it is all your opinion, but it is awfully harsh, IMHO.

You are right. Maybe I should tone it down.

Let me try to explain where I'm coming from with my negative tone. To me, the interview experience is a reflection on the school as a whole. It's not that I had a bad interview (I did get an acceptance); it's that I loathe their policy of asking "trick" questions to mess with the interviewees. They hardly asked a question about any of our personalities, or our motivations to go into medicine. Instead, it was just these stupid, random questions that have nothing to do with anything. I feel like it was a waste of my time and an insult to the intelligence of everyone on my panel. The fact that it is NU POLICY to carry out their interviews like this is an absolute disgrace, IMHO.

FYI: There are a lot of hospital rankings, all of which show a pretty big separation between NU and UC. But your point is taken. I should look into the US News hospital rankings' methodology more carefully.
 
Why does Towelie have to defend himself. Its his opinion.

He actually visited both schools and was accepted at both.

I'm almost certain most of you here have visited one school of both and are supporting that one, or have visited neither and are supporting one based on hearsay.

From what I've gathered, Pritzker is much more reputable than Northwestern. I believe they have the highest rate of physicians going into academic medicine in the country. They don't kill the boards but they have a Harvard-caliber 3rd and 4th year clinical (I have a friend who went to UChic and who is now at Mass Gen, and thats what he told me).
 
I'm almost certain most of you here have visited one school of both and are supporting that one, or have visited neither and are supporting one based on hearsay.

From what I've gathered, Pritzker is much more reputable than Northwestern. I believe they have the highest rate of physicians going into academic medicine in the country. They don't kill the boards but they have a Harvard-caliber 3rd and 4th year clinical (I have a friend who went to UChic and who is now at Mass Gen, and thats what he told me).

"Hey, kettle, why are you so black?"

"I don't know, pot, good question."


Honestly, I am not defending either school, I really don't care. Things like the above just amuse me.
 
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