What should I use to really decide?

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spaminacan85

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So I've interviewed at 6 schools, and a lot of them I really liked. I've already gotten into UMD and VCU, and waitlisted at EVMS. Money's not an issue for me. (HPSP will pay). I was just wondering if I could get some advice on what really matters in choosing a Medical School, preferably some that comes from a relatively new doctor. I guess I just want some guidance on how much I should consider various factors such as quality of life at the medical school, quality of education(how different is this from school to school really?), prestige and all that jazz.
Thanks for all your help.
 
Things that matters to me:
1) Are the students there happy?
2) Does the curriculum prepare me for Step1?
3) Are there a lot of coffee shops/restaurants in the city? (it's where I study)
4) How well do the students match? Where do they match?


Edited response to PlayMe: HSPS is the arms forces scholarship.
 
health professions scholarship program...... i think
 
4 more years in the navy for them paying for med school. For the rest of you out there thinking about it, know there is a $20,000 signing bonus.

Any other recommendations on what are the significant differences between different medical schools or what is most important among those differences.
 
I'm also kind of wondering how much I should factor proximity to my girlfriend into the decision.
 
I'm also kind of wondering how much I should factor proximity to my girlfriend into the decision.

Thats up to you

Curriculum, Step 1, and Match seem to be the most important

What is important to you? We cant really tell you what to look for in a school....everyone looks for different things.

I wanted to be around nice people, nice environment around the school, lots of places to go shopping and have fun

Talk to students at each of the schools. Ask them about pros/cons and why they chose to go that school.
 
See, my issue is that I don't know what differences are actually significant. I'm not a statistic. Whether I pass or fail step one is ultimately up to me, not the school statistic. Same with match. And I'm wondering if I can really even have a significant handle on the social interaction and learning atmosphere after just one day at these places.
 
Curriculum, Step 1, and Match seem to be the most important

While I agree with you on curriculum, I would suggest that Step 1 and the match are actually the least important things to be using.

In terms of Step 1, you won't find accurate numbers anyhow, but honestly it is an individual endeavor. No school is going to get you a better or worse score. That is based on your own work ethic and memory and aptitude. Everyone covers the same material in classes, and everyone uses the same First Aid and board review books and qbanks. Heck, at some schools you will find folks who don't even attend lectures and claim the absence helped their grades and scores. There tend to be huge ranges at every school (from top scores to failures). But bottom line is that it is the students who do well on the boards, not the schools. If a school does better than another, that battle was won or lost in admissions, not by any value added by the school, in most cases. Plan to work really hard and you may do well coming from anywhere.

In terms of match, it is nearly impossible to interpret a match list as a premed (there have been a TON of threads on this). That a school doesn't have a lot of people going into, say, ortho, might mean that the school isn't good at preparing folks for ortho, but more often it just means nobody was interested in ortho or that the school was effective in exciting students about other fields. Folks pick programs for family reasons, geography, lifestyle choices, etc. Without knowing why someone picked something, you can't assume they didn't get something else. You just can't know. So counting up the number of folks who get derm and rads and ortho and optho is a waste of time. It isn't like undergrad where you go to the "best" you get into. You actually have to choose what you like when it gets to residency time, and some people simply are going to like peds, psych, neuro, IM, even if they have top stats and could get derm. And further, you can't possibly know which programs are better than which in the various specialties. It doesn't go by the US News rankings, and is totally different for every specialty. Some hospitals you have never heard of may be best in the world in certain specialties, while the Ivies you know from med school rankings are actually pretty middling in certain fields, or may be known to have a malignant program (residents unhappy, constantly in trouble for violating the 80 hour limitation, etc). You find out which programs are good versus malignant when you are applying in the beginning of 4th year, and get the scoop from an advisor or mentor in the field. This is very word of mouth.

But the short answer is that you can get into pretty much any field from any allo med school. Again it is the students board score and rotation grades and research etc which will drive this train, not the med school.

So things to use to decide are:
1/ Geographic location,
2/ curriculum,
3/ grading system,
4/ technology (schools with streaming or AVI lectures, and good integration of coursework online are going to offer certain advantages rather than the pen and paper and attend every lecture ilk).
5/ cost
6/ infrastructure (how nice are the lecture halls, library, hospital -- you will spend a ton of time there; does the school have ample cadavers, etc)
9/ research opportunities if you want them
10/ students who seem happy -- your vibe about a place will tell you a lot
 
See, my issue is that I don't know what differences are actually significant. I'm not a statistic. Whether I pass or fail step one is ultimately up to me, not the school statistic. Same with match. And I'm wondering if I can really even have a significant handle on the social interaction and learning atmosphere after just one day at these places.

I think you got it down as far as boards and the match go, you determine how well you do, not your school. So you never want to pick a school just on prestige and the quality of what you get is really good anywhere (It has to be really good, otherwise they would not be accredited).

Tangibles I look at are:

1) The clinical network: What hosptials does the school use? Are they urban, suburban, rural? Are they new private hospitals which turn away patients? Are they run-down county hospitals that look like war-zones and accept everybody (In my opinion these offer the best training, but not for everybody). How many hospitals are in the network, are there a wide range of the above? Are they level 1 trauma centers? How diverse is the pathology I will see?

2) Curriculum's Fit: Which curriculum best suits my learning style? PBL, Traditional lecture, organ/system based, subject based? How often do they test? Which school's curriculum fits me best and thus helps me maximize my potential on the boards?

3) Research: (If you're into this, like me!) How much research goes on? Do they have areas which interest me? How accessable are the labs to medical students? What specific programs do they like?

4) Atmosphere: Do they have a lot of extracurricular programs? Student government? Places to volunteer? Is it in a big city or close by? Yeah, it's hard to guage the level of social interaction after a day interview, but these qualities can help you determine that. Plus, there is social interaction everywhere, it is more about who you surround yourself with than anything.
 
Looking back, the things I found important were:

For the pre-clinical years;

1) No mandatory attendence. People learn differently, and sometimes it's at a coffee shop, with a book, lecture powerpoints, and wireless access.

2) Plenty of time at the end of the 2nd year for step I prep. Some schools give you a week or two. Some places, a month. Having to study for step I while on a rotation sucks.

3) You will not find that many schools that 'teach to step I'. Certain professors are well-known in their fields, but med school isn't Kaplan. Though if Kaplan opened a med school, I'd apply.

4) An administration that is receptive to student input and willing to change things as needed for the students.

5) Lecture materials available online, and in different media - i.e., lectures recorded in audio or audio/video. Powerpoints avail for download.

For the clinical years:

1) A solid base hospital for a good grounding of medicine for your third year. Third year lays the groundwork for how well you are prepared for your subinternships and audition rotations, and if you take shelf exams for each rotation, feedback you can use in preparation for step II.

2) Tremendous flexibility in scheduling elective and away rotations. The more electives/away rotations you can schedule, the more places you can rotate at. Makes sense.

3) If you already have some idea of the specialty you would like to pursue, attending a school that has a well-regarded residency or department in that specialty will pay off when it comes time for LORs and also prepping for audition/away rotations at other programs.

4) You mention that you are HSPS, so geography probably will not play as much. But if you wanted to do residency in the East Coast and your school is in Cali, that's a lot of flying back and forth for audition rotations and interviews. Adds up fast. I'd pick one coast and stick with it.
 
I would suggest that Step 1 and the match are actually the least important things to be using.

Very true. I find it laughable to see those ninja gunners ask about a school's scores and match results during interviews. It's almost like they think they'll do well if they attend a school full of people who've done well.
 
Very true. I find it laughable to see those ninja gunners ask about a school's scores and match results during interviews. It's almost like they think they'll do well if they attend a school full of people who've done well.

That's good to know. I had no idea.... everyone I talk to make it seem like it's SUCH a big deal. I always see folks arguing about step 1 and match results... so I assumed it was more important than I initially thought it was. But I only got one acceptance so I was like... oh well
 
Very true. I find it laughable to see those ninja gunners ask about a school's scores and match results during interviews. It's almost like they think they'll do well if they attend a school full of people who've done well.

I don't know if this is the reason people want to go to top schools. I would think it's more about the atmosphere and access to incredible faculty and research opportunities (basic, clinical and social). At the very least, those would be my reason for looking at the "top" schools.
 
I don't know if this is the reason people want to go to top schools. I would think it's more about the atmosphere and access to incredible faculty and research opportunities (basic, clinical and social). At the very least, those would be my reason for looking at the "top" schools.

Ditto, but I think a lot of pre-meds (and most are not on SDN) are just not as well informed. I've known a lot who think that the name of the school will pull them a good residency. I'm sure there are a lot of pre-med advisors who "advise" along these lines as well.
 
everyone I talk to make it seem like it's SUCH a big deal.

It's a big deal for the wrong reason. Everyone wants to get a great score and match well. But you can't extrapolate your success based on the students at the school.

I don't know if this is the reason people want to go to top schools. I would think it's more about the atmosphere and access to incredible faculty and research opportunities (basic, clinical and social). At the very least, those would be my reason for looking at the "top" schools.

I totally agree. The things you mentioned are much more important. But some of those things can seem so abstract that some premeds need to look for something tangible to measure success like step 1 scores and match results.
 
So I've interviewed at 6 schools, and a lot of them I really liked. I've already gotten into UMD and VCU, and waitlisted at EVMS. Money's not an issue for me. (HPSP will pay). I was just wondering if I could get some advice on what really matters in choosing a Medical School, preferably some that comes from a relatively new doctor. I guess I just want some guidance on how much I should consider various factors such as quality of life at the medical school, quality of education(how different is this from school to school really?), prestige and all that jazz.
Thanks for all your help.

Where do you want to physically study medicine? Where would you be happiest so that you can do your best work? Which medical school do you like so well that when you are writing out that loan repayment check (HPSP doesn't cover everything), that you feel you got the best deal for your money? Where do you feel that you fit in best and the best academic environment (curriculum, study areas, etc) so that you can perform your best?

Prestige is meaningless if you are unhappy, can't get along with your classmates, have to live in a "cardboard box because housing is so expensive, don't feel safe on campus, hate the curriculum etc. Any medical school in this country, provided you can do well, can prepare you for any career in medicine. It doesn't matter much how your school is ranked if you are "ranked" at the bottom of the class.
 
HPSP doesn't cover everything.

They pretty much do actually. They will pay for tuition, books, equipment (steth etc), and your health insurance. On top of that, the monthly stipend is $1900 starting in the fall.

I seriously considered it (part of the reason I applied to so many OOS schools) and talked extensively with a recruiter.
 
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