Hi guys I need some advice (on the age old "which school should I go to" topic).
I have an acceptance from my state school, which is one of the best state schools in the country - Univerity of Colorado. It has a brand new campus at the Anshultz medical complex in Denver (the newest and one of the biggest medical complexes in the US) and is ranked by US news (for what that is worth) as the 27th best research and 4th best primary care school in the nation. It really is an incredible school by any standard and I would be proud to go there.
I am also on the high priority waitlist (top 1/3... very good chance of acceptance) at Albert Einstein in NY. Einstein is ranked by US news (again - for what it is worth) 36th in research and 26th in primary care. I loved my interview day at Einstein, I really liked the attitude and vibe of the students and the staff at the school, it is 100% pass fail and unranked (just an indication of the attitude - I still plan to kick a$$!!!). I liked the fact that the student body is so diverse, and I like the opportunities that they seem to offer in getting really involved in international opportunities, research (if you are interested) including grants for research and community and international opportunities, and community outreach. Overall I really loved everything about AECOM.
On top of this I really love New York City - my wife and I are city people, we really do not take advantage of the outdoors opportunities that Colorado offers. Denver is a great place but not really that exciting of a city (my wife and I have lived here for 5 years so we know. We have no family ties here though, they all live on the east coast). We are much more into going to a small art gallery and then a hole in the wall vietnamese joint or a few beers at some dive bar than going skiing or climbing (though I like all of these things Plus my brother is going to be living in London, and many of my best friends live in the UK etc. and are much more likely to make a weekend trip to NYC than to Denver. (I know I will be really busy, but my wife has a life too!)
My heart says go for Einstein and NYC (it really does), but staying in state will probably save me $100,000 over 4 years!!! That is an absolutely totally ridiculous amount of debt! $100,000!!!!!!!! (especially in these days of declining physician renumeration) Ouch!!!
What it comes down to is that I believe that I would get a first rate education at either school - Einstein probably offers more exposure to urban populations and a mixed patient population, which is where I see my future practice, and I would have a better chance at matching into a residency in NYC, but CU is an unbelieveably good school and for a relatively bargain price as an in-stater.
I am terrified that I am going to make a stupid decision either way - either I get in to way too much debt and it constrains my getting a house, matching into a specialty of my choosing (either one with too low of an income or too long a residency) or something else .... On the other hand if I do not move to NY now I might regret THAT for the rest of my life - 4 years is a long time, and then my chance of getting a residency in NYC or the east coast would be much lower at CU - so really it could easily be a 7+ year decision...
Any advice would be really helpful! I know that only my wife and me can make this decision (and that at least 1/2 of you are going to think I am mentally challenged for even considering the extra debt) but I am just really stuck trying to think this one through....
Thanks!
I have an acceptance from my state school, which is one of the best state schools in the country - Univerity of Colorado. It has a brand new campus at the Anshultz medical complex in Denver (the newest and one of the biggest medical complexes in the US) and is ranked by US news (for what that is worth) as the 27th best research and 4th best primary care school in the nation. It really is an incredible school by any standard and I would be proud to go there.
I am also on the high priority waitlist (top 1/3... very good chance of acceptance) at Albert Einstein in NY. Einstein is ranked by US news (again - for what it is worth) 36th in research and 26th in primary care. I loved my interview day at Einstein, I really liked the attitude and vibe of the students and the staff at the school, it is 100% pass fail and unranked (just an indication of the attitude - I still plan to kick a$$!!!). I liked the fact that the student body is so diverse, and I like the opportunities that they seem to offer in getting really involved in international opportunities, research (if you are interested) including grants for research and community and international opportunities, and community outreach. Overall I really loved everything about AECOM.
On top of this I really love New York City - my wife and I are city people, we really do not take advantage of the outdoors opportunities that Colorado offers. Denver is a great place but not really that exciting of a city (my wife and I have lived here for 5 years so we know. We have no family ties here though, they all live on the east coast). We are much more into going to a small art gallery and then a hole in the wall vietnamese joint or a few beers at some dive bar than going skiing or climbing (though I like all of these things Plus my brother is going to be living in London, and many of my best friends live in the UK etc. and are much more likely to make a weekend trip to NYC than to Denver. (I know I will be really busy, but my wife has a life too!)
My heart says go for Einstein and NYC (it really does), but staying in state will probably save me $100,000 over 4 years!!! That is an absolutely totally ridiculous amount of debt! $100,000!!!!!!!! (especially in these days of declining physician renumeration) Ouch!!!
What it comes down to is that I believe that I would get a first rate education at either school - Einstein probably offers more exposure to urban populations and a mixed patient population, which is where I see my future practice, and I would have a better chance at matching into a residency in NYC, but CU is an unbelieveably good school and for a relatively bargain price as an in-stater.
I am terrified that I am going to make a stupid decision either way - either I get in to way too much debt and it constrains my getting a house, matching into a specialty of my choosing (either one with too low of an income or too long a residency) or something else .... On the other hand if I do not move to NY now I might regret THAT for the rest of my life - 4 years is a long time, and then my chance of getting a residency in NYC or the east coast would be much lower at CU - so really it could easily be a 7+ year decision...
Any advice would be really helpful! I know that only my wife and me can make this decision (and that at least 1/2 of you are going to think I am mentally challenged for even considering the extra debt) but I am just really stuck trying to think this one through....
Thanks!