What's wrong with UCSD?

[BAM!]

so there's been a lot of talk...students are unhappy at UCSD. Why specifically UCSD? san diego seems like a pretty cool place to live...

Any unhappy/happy ucsd students out there?

cheers

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[derf]

so there's been a lot of talk...students are unhappy at UCSD. Why specifically UCSD? san diego seems like a pretty cool place to live...

Any unhappy/happy ucsd students out there?

cheers

they actually give out grades instead of pass/fail, and this adds to the tension and anxiety of med school. At least that's what I hear from those guys.

 

[Long Dong]

I have a friend who is a second year and he tells me they have class on Sat. and lectures 8-5 mon-fri or something like that. I'd be unhappy too if I still had to compete for grades and spend that much time in class.

 

[dr_stinky]

I have a friend who is a second year and he tells me they have class on Sat. and lectures 8-5 mon-fri for something like that. I'd be unhappy too if I still had to compete for grades and spend that much time in class.

after reading this I don't feel quite as bad for being 'on hold' there.

 

[constructor]

they actually give out grades instead of pass/fail, and this adds to the tension and anxiety of med school. At least that's what I hear from those guys.

they don't give out grades... it's pass/fail first quarter and honors/pass/fail thereafter.... where are you guys getting this information from??

 

[53948]

they don't give out grades... it's pass/fail first quarter and honors/pass/fail thereafter.... where are you guys getting this information from??

i'm wondering the same thing... my roommate's sister went to ucsd for med school and she said honors/pass/fail as well...

 

[calstudent]

they don't give out grades... it's pass/fail first quarter and honors/pass/fail thereafter.... where are you guys getting this information from??

yah, UCSD changed a few (4 or 5) years ago, to h/p/f ( i'm not sure if they have honors/p/f)

 

[secretasianman]

whenever i walk by med students i recognize, they always look so tired and out of it..

 

[Long Dong]

they don't give out grades... it's pass/fail first quarter and honors/pass/fail thereafter.... where are you guys getting this information from??

H/P/F is grades, only a certain percent will get honors. If I had honors at my school I would be trying to get them and trying to memorize every bit of minutia.

 

[constructor]

H/P/F is grades, only a certain percent will get honors. If I had honors at my school I would be trying to get them and trying to memorize every bit of minutia.

that's the most ******ed thing i've ever heard from a medical student. no, h/p/f is not grades and in fact most schools have honors/pass/fail. so all of these schools are on grades? yale and stanford are the only two schools i know of ucsd's overall caliber that have p/f all 4 years. no offense, but you honestly sound like a typical sdn troller who's bitter about not getting into a certain school.

 

[Long Dong]

that's the most ******ed thing i've ever heard from a medical student. no, h/p/f is not grades and in fact most schools have honors/pass/fail. so all of these schools are on grades? yale and stanford are the only two schools i know of ucsd's overall caliber that have p/f all 4 years. no offense, but you honestly sound like a typical sdn troller who's bitter about not getting into a certain school.

Dude your tripin if you're saying I'm bitter, are you even in med school? What do you know about schools that have H/P/F? How do you think they give out those honors, they have a cut off on how many people get them. And guess what it is the people who performed the best who get them, so how is that any different from grades. Like I said I have a friend at UCSD he wishes he went to my school, not the other way around.

Now if you wanna make some more personnal attacks go ahead. Cause I think yo papa's ******ed, yo mama's ******ed with her one glass eye, yo sista is ****** with her wooden kickstand leg, and yo cat is ******ed.

 

[53948]

that's the most ******ed thing i've ever heard from a medical student. no, h/p/f is not grades and in fact most schools have honors/pass/fail. so all of these schools are on grades? yale and stanford are the only two schools i know of ucsd's overall caliber that have p/f all 4 years. no offense, but you honestly sound like a typical sdn troller who's bitter about not getting into a certain school.

uuuhhh... uuuhhh... why would you want to go to UCSD if you go to UCLA???

 

[constructor]

Dude your tripin if you're saying I'm bitter, are you even in med school? What do you know about schools that have H/P/F? How do you think they give out those honors, they have a cut off on how many people get them. And guess what it is the people who performed the best who get them, so how is that any different from grades. Like I said I have a friend at UCSD he wishes he went to my school, not the other way around. Now if you wanna make some more personnal attacks go ahead.

obviously they have cutoffs... what's your point? most schools have honors so your criticism of ucsd based solely on that fact can be extended to almost every other medical school.

 

[constructor]

uuuhhh... uuuhhh... why would you want to go to UCSD if you go to UCLA???

because they're both ranked about the same for research and ucsd is ranked way higher for primary care? because ucsd's bioengineering program is number one in the nation apparently.. i don't know...

 

[53948]

because they're both ranked about the same for research and ucsd is ranked way higher for primary care? because ucsd's bioengineering program is number one in the nation apparently.. i don't know...

hmmm it's ok if you haven't been informed about small details about USNEWS rankings yet... primary care rankings don't mean much compared to research rankings and don't tell me i'm wrong cause that's something that's well known... check it out yourself: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=155977&highlight=primary+research

 

[constructor]

depends on what you want to do... they're both about the same for research according to us news (however, ucsd gets more funding so i'd argue that they have an edge in research) and as i said, ucsd's bioengineering program is the best in the country. but i'm sure ucla has its strengths too. you said why would anyone want to go to ucsd over ucla... i've given you some compelling reasons that are relevant to plenty of students. and not to mention the good-looking girls in san diego...

 

[Jeffy]

hmmm it's ok if you haven't been informed about small details about USNEWS rankings yet... primary care rankings don't mean much compared to research rankings and don't tell me i'm wrong cause that's something that's well known... check it out yourself: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=155977&highlight=primary+research

In general, I wouldn't ever try to prove a fact about medical schools based on the opinions of a handful of SDNers. It may sound right, but in the end the thread you refer to is more opinion than anything else.

 

[Jeffy]

and not to mention the good-looking girls in san diego...

I'm sorry, but all UC's have roughly the same ****ty percentage of good looking girls. If the it's simply the city of San Diego you're talking about, then yeah, its the same as LA and Orange Co. as well.

 

[53948]

In general, I wouldn't ever try to prove a fact about medical schools based on the opinions of a handful of SDNers. It may sound right, but in the end the thread you refer to is more opinion than anything else.

yeah i totally i agree with you but cmon now... considering the topic of the debate i think we can believe em this time cause they're all swinging in the right direction haha

 

[53948]

I'm sorry, but all UC's have roughly the same ****ty percentage of good looking girls. If the it's simply the city of San Diego you're talking about, then yeah, its the same as LA and Orange Co. as well.

geez you've been to all the uc's?

 

[Jeffy]

geez you've been to all the uc's?

Yes, yes I have. All of them.

 

[sdnstud]

No dude...not all UCs have roughly the same % of good looking girls. I think the girls at berkeley are average at best. Sure, there are some cuties at berkeley. But, on average, I wouldn't say berkeley has as many hot girls as UCLA or UCSD.

I'm sorry, but all UC's have roughly the same ****ty percentage of good looking girls. If the it's simply the city of San Diego you're talking about, then yeah, its the same as LA and Orange Co. as well.

 

[53948]

No dude...not all UCs have roughly the same % of good looking girls. I think the girls at berkeley are average at best. Sure, there are some cuties at berkeley. But, on average, I wouldn't say berkeley has as many hot girls as UCLA or UCSD.

i agree!!! haha

 

[constructor]

I'm sorry, but all UC's have roughly the same ****ty percentage of good looking girls. If the it's simply the city of San Diego you're talking about, then yeah, its the same as LA and Orange Co. as well.

of course i'm talking about the city... i made it pretty clear. but i have to say that when you put things in perspective, ucsd med students are not bad relative to most other medical schools.

 

[BAM!]

I'm sorry, but all UC's have roughly the same ****ty percentage of good looking girls.

heh, you should visit UC Berkeley sometime.

i think it's ranked ~10 worst somewhere.

 

[BAM!]

Now if you wanna make some more personnal attacks go ahead. Cause I think yo papa's ******ed, yo mama's ******ed with her one glass eye, yo sista is ****** with her wooden kickstand leg, and yo cat is ******ed.

Check out this guy's link

Click it, to learn more about the Dong.

what a tool!

 

[Jeffy]

No dude...not all UCs have roughly the same % of good looking girls. I think the girls at berkeley are average at best. Sure, there are some cuties at berkeley. But, on average, I wouldn't say berkeley has as many hot girls as UCLA or UCSD.

The point isn't so much that they have the exact same % of good looking girls. It's the fact that they all have an equally depressing number of good looking girls.

If the only defense for LA or SD is "well at least it ain't as bad as berkeley!," people are obviously ******ed and completely missing the point. So if you are ******ed and want to drag out the "**** > ****tier" argument, be my guest.

 

[Jeffy]

of course i'm talking about the city... i made it pretty clear.

Umm, actually no. No you didn't. Not at all.

 

[constructor]

Umm, actually no. No you didn't. Not at all.

i said san diego. i didn't say ucsd. maybe the fact that you went to pomona college (don't even know what that is or where it is) has something to do with your not understanding what i said.

 

[Jeffy]

maybe the fact that you went to pomona college (don't even know what that is or where it is) has something to do with your not understanding what i said.

LMAO!! Pomona is one of the best liberal art colleges in the nation, a la Amherst and Swarthmore. Coincidentally, I turned down offers from Georgetown, UCSD, UCLA, and Berkeley to go there. Go away, toolbag.

 

[UCLAstudent]

i said san diego. i didn't say ucsd. maybe the fact that you went to pomona college (don't even know what that is or where it is) has something to do with your not understanding what i said.

Pomona is actually VERY respected and well-known.

 

[Newquagmire]

so there's been a lot of talk...students are unhappy at UCSD. Why specifically UCSD? san diego seems like a pretty cool place to live...

the M1 class is quite chipper, as is the M2 class. come see it for yourself.

what imho gives ucsd an edge over ucla in the research arena (as already alluded to) are the resources within walking distance from campus: primarily the salk and the scripps. also, med students are pretty desirable to a lot (but not all) of these labs.

use your common sense; med students at any school are going to look tired. it seems ridiculous to me to pick a school based on "how tired students look." although that would be a fun USNews ranking criteria...

 

[constructor]

Pomona is actually VERY respected and well-known.

i went to high school on the east coast and i assure you nobody there has heard of it, although many have heard of swarthmore. on the other hand people all over the country know of cal and ucla. jeffy, i was just kidding about your understanding of what i said being a reflection of where you went to school. you're hating on the cali girls so much that i have to figure you're somewhat of a bitter person - i can't think of any other reason for your misrepresentation of the girls here. many of the girls at my california school are super hot and i'm willing to bet they're well out of your league. don't hate so much, i don't care what small, prestigious liberal arts college you went to.

 

[secretasianman]

i said san diego. i didn't say ucsd. maybe the fact that you went to pomona college (don't even know what that is or where it is) has something to do with your not understanding what i said.

girls in san diego are hot. just not the ones in ucsd.

 

[UCLAstudent]

i went to high school on the east coast and i assure you nobody there has heard of it, although many have heard of swarthmore.

Interesting. Well, Pomona is ranked 5th by US News for liberal arts and Swarthmore is ranked 2nd, so there isn't much of a difference. It must be more of a west coast name.

 

[billybama]

i went to high school on the east coast and i assure you nobody there has heard of it, although many have heard of swarthmore.

you seriously have not heard of the claremont colleges?
Pomona College, Scripps, Claremont McKenna, Harvey Mudd, Pitzer? Pomona is the highest ranked of the bunch. they are HIGHLY selective (average SAT is 1450) and very well respected throughout the country.

 

[BananaSplit]

Im too lazy to read all the posts, but when I was interviewing there they were in class forever! And what the hell was the saturday class thing about? Also they force a research thesis/project out of you- which isnt bad unless you want fam practice or something where research doesnt really benefit you in.

Wow, so much mis-information about UCSD. OK, let's clear some things up.

On Mondays, classes DO go from 8-6, but the breakdown is actually not too bad.
Lecture 8-11
Lunch break 11-1
Lecture 1-2
Conference 2-3 (the conference is an optional session where a professor answers questions about previous lectures. If there are no questions, conference ends early)
3-4 Break
4-6 Clinical Correlates (usually a clinician will give some background on a disease like diabetes mellitus or breast cancer...and then the second hour is dedicated to a patient or two patients who have the condition and we ask them non-medical questions about the disease (eg. how their family copes with their condition, the financial cost of treatment, etc). A lot of people choose to skip this section, but I actually enjoy it because 1) it requires very little brain power and 2) it's nice to be reminded of why I went into medicine in the first place. This section is not graded.

So, on Mondays, we really only have 4 hours of testable lecture.

On Tuesdays, we have lecture from 8-11

On Wednesdays, we have class from 8-11, lunch from 11-1, and reading group from 1-3. Reading group sounds good in theory but really it's a total waste of time. This is the only part of the curriculum I dislike. The premise is that some day, a patient will walk into your office with an article from the lay press and ask you about it. Your job is then to read the relevant scientific papers and report back to your patient. This class is supposed to prepare you for that by making each student present two papers. The powerpoint presentations take forever to make! On three Wednesdays of the quarter, we have a short lab from 3-5. The labs are pretty easy and interesting...performing a karyotype of your own cells, running gels on your hemoglobin, testing your LDL levels.

Thursdays, we have SBS from 8-11, which is a touchy feely class that explores sexuality, hospice care, etc. It is part lecture, part seminar, part small group. This past week, I went to a seminar on Guide Dogs for the Disabled and I got to pet the cutest golden retrievers.

On Fridays, we have lecture from 8-11, lunch 11-1, lecture 1-2, conference 2-3.

On Thursday or Tuesday afternoons, students can choose to take an elective like shadowing a doctor or take medical Spanish or ASL.

OK, the Saturday class thing. So far, we have not had any CLASS on Saturday. Three Saturday mornings, we visit one of the hospitals in the area and practice interviewing patients. We pair off and each student conducts a 30-40 minute interview...while the other observes (looking for good body language, sensitive question phrasing, good rapport, etc.).

The ISP....yes, UCSD students are required to complete an independent research project, but it doesn't have to be a basic science project. Your project could be almost anything medically related...like devising an outreach program for underprivileged high school kids interested in medicine, or establishing a CPR program for deaf patients...whatever you're interested in. So I don't think the ISP is necessarily a bad thing...and even people interested in family practice (to use your example) could benefit from it.

I don't really know what other med schools' schedules are like, but I would imagine that most medical schools have pretty rigorous curricula. I hope the above information helps you make an informed decision about UCSD. I think my classmates are awesome, friendly, down to earth people despite being quite accomplished. And I hope that the upcoming class will be the same. ^_^

 

[Jeffy]

i went to high school on the east coast and i assure you nobody there has heard of it, although many have heard of swarthmore. on the other hand people all over the country know of cal and ucla. jeffy, i was just kidding about your understanding of what i said being a reflection of where you went to school. you're hating on the cali girls so much that i have to figure you're somewhat of a bitter person - i can't think of any other reason for your misrepresentation of the girls here. many of the girls at my california school are super hot and i'm willing to bet they're well out of your league. don't hate so much, i don't care what small, prestigious liberal arts college you went to.

a) nice job trying to insult my intelligence. your plan coulda worked if i in fact went to a ****ty school. the best part was when you acted like you were just joking to cover for the fact that you're a douche.

b) lots of people have never heard of pomona college, even in socal. not like i didnt know that before i turned down every other school that offered me acceptances. still, its funny when dumb little pricks from usc for example try acting all high and mighty in front of me 'cause they go to usc.

c) i don't hate cali women, i love them. but i will try to dispell rumors that we're stacked with hotties around here. other places i've been to (penn state, and iu come to mind) have even more hotties. and don't even get me started on cape town.

d) i can assure you that i date women with eating disorders, low sel-esteem, fake boobs, and plenty of make-up. seriously, you shouldn't hate.

 

[Quynh2007]

i thought USCD got an A for hotlooking girls (well, undergrad at least) from collegeprofile i think? i forgot exactly where they said this

 

[uproarhz]

I can't believe you guys are picking your medical schools based on the "hotties" in the school!!! I doubt any girl does it based on the guys! Just a chic's perspective...

And to Berkeley's defense, I know plenty of my guy friends who actually claimed they can't study at cal cause there are too many cute girls. So maybe the Berkeley chics are just not your type!

 

[JMC_MarineCorps]

Let's get back to the OP's original post: What's wrong with UCSD?

Well, they put me in the acceptable pool and left me there to drown! But I still got love for my favorite city in the whole wide world.

 

[constructor]

a) nice job trying to insult my intelligence. your plan coulda worked if i in fact went to a ****ty school. the best part was when you acted like you were just joking to cover for the fact that you're a douche.

b) lots of people have never heard of pomona college, even in socal. not like i didnt know that before i turned down every other school that offered me acceptances. still, its funny when dumb little pricks from usc for example try acting all high and mighty in front of me 'cause they go to usc.

c) i don't hate cali women, i love them. but i will try to dispell rumors that we're stacked with hotties around here. other places i've been to (penn state, and iu come to mind) have even more hotties. and don't even get me started on cape town.

d) i can assure you that i date women with eating disorders, low sel-esteem, fake boobs, and plenty of make-up. seriously, you shouldn't hate.

****e, you're just an idiot, man - just a complete tool. how can i possibly have any respect for pomona after interactions with people like yourself? seriously, you can't blame me now, can you?

so those are the kinds of girls that come to mind when you think hot? and how DO you date those kinds of girls at a liberal arts school... i thought you just had all the fat hippie chicks that love to have study dates and talk about history, politics, and literature all the time.

i just think you're complaining about the girls because that's the real situation at your school. cali girls are beautiful and hot. they're also very independent and have great personalities, and i love that. maybe the weather is responsible for everything, i don't know... as a varsity athlete, i'm proud to say that i get the best pick at my school. i've always dated other athletes and at my school they're smart, caring, and have great personalities. hell, even if i didn't have the best pick i would be perfectly content with the plethora of good-looking girls we have over here at my school. and i've heard that socal's even better than the bay area... but of course, you don't have real athletes at liberal arts colleges, so maybe it's tough then if you aren't into fat hippies.

i pity your situation and truly empathize with you. i hope you have better luck at temple or wherever you go next year. in any event, i promise it will be an eye-opening experience, literally as well as figuratively...

 

[Mongo]

Bad hours, grades (Yes Honors/pass/fail is grades. And it's a percentage of the class who get honors, not a set grade (i.e. 90%), so you are competing against them and not yourself), required research project, 4 weeks to study for step one (your second year summer vacation), and requirements to complete step 2 before you apply to residency, so if you do well on step one, you are forced to do well on step 2 instead of putting it off, not a single black female student in four-five years running.

Good things: Great research oppurtunities, location cannot be beat, the women on campus and in the med school that I have interacted with are extremely good looking.

 

[firebody]

Check out this guy's link

Click it, to learn more about the Dong.

what a tool!

coming from the ****** sporting a he-man avatar. dude, from the looks of it, this guy gets more coochie than you'll ever get in your life. we know some of those pictures are mostly for humor, and the dude obviously knows how to laugh at himself.

you on the other hand.... are president of all gardening shears

 

[WatchingWaiting]

Bad hours, grades (Yes Honors/pass/fail is grades. And it's a percentage of the class who get honors, not a set grade (i.e. 90%), so you are competing against them and not yourself), required research project, 4 weeks to study for step one (your second year summer vacation), and requirements to complete step 2 before you apply to residency, so if you do well on step one, you are forced to do well on step 2 instead of putting it off, not a single black female student in four-five years running.

Good things: Great research oppurtunities, location cannot be beat, the women on campus and in the med school that I have interacted with are extremely good looking.

I believe UCSD is the only Cali school that is H/P/F the first two years (not sure about Irvine). This is THE reason the student body is considered overworked and suffering. Med students are hard-working, and even at schools that have outright A/B/C grading, the overwhelming majority get As and Bs, so H/P/F is, in fact, the same as being graded (ie: A=H; B=P; F=hard to get). Don't confuse having H/P/F during the third-year (which is the case pretty much everywhere except Stanford), with H/P/F during the first two-preclinical years, which has been abolished at all UCSF, UCLA, UCD, Stanford, Yale, Harvard, and a ten or fifteen other (mostly top) schools.

 

[BananaSplit]

not a single black female student in four-five years running.

[\QUOTE]

FYI, there are 2 African-American women in our class this year and one that I know of in the class before us. Still pretty dismal, but not as bleak as you paint it.

 

[constructor]

what's your point? a class can't be complete without an african american female?

 

[Jeffy]

****e, you're just an idiot, man - just a complete tool. how can i possibly have any respect for pomona after interactions with people like yourself? seriously, you can't blame me now, can you?

so those are the kinds of girls that come to mind when you think hot? and how DO you date those kinds of girls at a liberal arts school... i thought you just had all the fat hippie chicks that love to have study dates and talk about history, politics, and literature all the time.

i just think you're complaining about the girls because that's the real situation at your school. cali girls are beautiful and hot. they're also very independent and have great personalities, and i love that. maybe the weather is responsible for everything, i don't know... as a varsity athlete, i'm proud to say that i get the best pick at my school. i've always dated other athletes and at my school they're smart, caring, and have great personalities. hell, even if i didn't have the best pick i would be perfectly content with the plethora of good-looking girls we have over here at my school. and i've heard that socal's even better than the bay area... but of course, you don't have real athletes at liberal arts colleges, so maybe it's tough then if you aren't into fat hippies.

i pity your situation and truly empathize with you. i hope you have better luck at temple or wherever you go next year. in any event, i promise it will be an eye-opening experience, literally as well as figuratively...

Too funny. I'll simply respond by saying that you are far too dense if you seriously thought that I look for "women with eating disorders, low self-esteem, fake boobs, and plenty of make-up." Holy ****! I guess I shoulda expected that from a [cue the entrance music]varsity athlete Get over yourself. You obviously have a UC-boner that is far too large to ever be convinced that better looking girls could possibly exist outside of this state's schools.

 

[constructor]

i don't have a uc boner... my boner is actually far superior to the uc boner. and this is the first time someone has insulted me for being an athlete. i'm willing to bet my numbers are better than yours, and i could say the same for almost all of the premed athletes applying from my school.

 

[BananaSplit]

I believe UCSD is the only Cali school that is H/P/F the first two years (not sure about Irvine). This is THE reason the student body is considered overworked and suffering. Med students are hard-working, and even at schools that have outright A/B/C grading, the overwhelming majority get As and Bs, so H/P/F is, in fact, the same as being graded (ie: A=H; B=P; F=hard to get). Don't confuse having H/P/F during the third-year (which is the case pretty much everywhere except Stanford), with H/P/F during the first two-preclinical years, which has been abolished at all UCSF, UCLA, UCD, Stanford, Yale, Harvard, and a ten or fifteen other (mostly top) schools.

I am neither overworked (well, not overworked compared to med students I know at other med schools...med students are pretty busy as a group) nor suffering. To my knowlege, none of my classmates are suffering either. I do study quite a bit and I have to manage my time, but I think most med students (regardless of the school) have to do the same.

Goodness gracious, it's NOT THAT BAD here. Regarding the honors thing. The first quarter is P/F without Honors. Yes, it's true that rest of the quarters have H/P/F, but I don't see this as a big deal. Some people are going to do quite well and get H in a few classes here and there. A few will rock most of the tests and get lots of Hs. Big whoop. You're still going to pass regardless of whether those people get H's or not, if you put in some effort. P=MD is just as important at this school as any other.

For those of you who have upcoming interviews, I hope you will come to UCSD with an open mind and determine for yourself whether this will be a good place for you. Talk to a few students, sit in on a few classes, come to a small group (if you're here on a Thursday), and explore SD a bit if you have the time. ^_^ Good luck with the application process!