WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO BE NUMBER #37? 38 IS JUST A NUMBER AND 39 NOBODY REMEMBERS!

[DZT]

Tufts and USC are my top realistic schools and they have affiliations w/ my college. I hear that tufts slipped in USNews rankings to #37, and though USC is not ranked in the top 50, it is really picking up the pace from what I hear. What would you guys choose?

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[DarksideAllstar]

Man, I thought I had a realistic shot at USC, too. I guess what you discover is that there are no "realistic" schools. For me, location (SoCal) and weather (warm, sunny) win out, I would go with USC.

 

[Jalby]

USC is actually number 36. It was 43 last year. I would actually choose it over Tufts for the sole purpose in that they are trying to get better. They recently recieved a 110$ million gift from KECK and have been using it to build research buildings, which would bring up it's rank. Their teaching isn't as good as Tufts, but the clinical that you get at County-USC is unmatched. To bad that is not factored into the rankings at all.

Besides, you can't beat the weather at USC (maybe UCSD or the florida schools) and the environment of LA (not where USC is, but where YOU will live)

 

[gel1]

I would choose USC. I have heard that Boston is a great place to live, but how could it possibly beat that SoCal weather? I am biased; I lived in the Inland Empire for a few years.

I also think that working at county would be amazing. Obviously, both schools are expensive and have their issues. But you asked for a personal preference, and mine is USC. Good luck!

 

[Forensic Chick]

Even though USC is in the heart of the LA crime district, I would choose USC due to it's location and clinical reputation of allowing med students to perform advanced procedures and to see such a variety of cases. I'm also biased as a native Californian cuz I'd love to stay in-state. I don't rely on the rankings because it's all in what you want.

 

[El Jefe]

Everyone says that USC's clinical is unmatched, and I would really think so, considering the overwhelming experience to be had at County. But why is USC's reputation rank by residency director's so low then? If we are really learning so much and training so well, I would think that residency directors would know and appreciate that. Anyway, that's the only thing bugging me about USC's ranking. Other than that I think they really are on the rise (they did jump 7 spots this year after all; not that rank really matters).

 

[Jalby]

I think the individual makes the doctor, but rank in a small way helps the person choose the location that they want to practice. That being said, I agree with Jefe that I'm a little dissapointed in the residency directors rank. I think that might have to do with the quality of teaching that you get there. Also I'm guessing that even though you get a lot of experience in County, they don't have much time to actually do the teaching.

Temple is in a similar situation that USC is in in that they have great clinical, but they are understaffed so the medical students get tons of experience. he told me that residency directors tell him that Temple students are better than other students the first few months of residency because they know their way around more and know more methods. But the problem is that they didn't have time to read papers and study during Temple's 3rd and 4th years, so they are not as cutting edge as the other students and eventually the other students catch up and pass the Temples students because of this.

So that is one theory about why USC could be ranked low by the residency directors.

 

[TommyGunn04]

I know ideally this shouldn't really enter into your decision, but could you really AFFORD to attend Tufts? The "financial aid" they gave me wasn't all that helpful. They basically told me to borrow about $57,000 per year, and only about $8,000 was governmentally subsidized. For some reason their tuition is one of the highest in the country, and living in Boston isn't cheap either. Just something to think about...