Which Western? Case Western vs. Northwestern

[tredreal48]

I keep going back and forth arghhhhh. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I'm interested in OB/GYN, maybe Peds, and want to get my MPH during med school.

Case Western
Pros:
-more free time to fill with your own research, studying, fun, etc.
-PBL seems to be well received
-seemed like a really good community w/ amazing new facilities and mentors
-Cleveland is a low cost of living!

Cons:
-has less prestige than Northwestern
-maybe less research opportunities in OB/GYN?
-need a car

Northwestern
Pros:
-better reputation, esp in OB
-also amazing facilities
-incredible research opportunities, specifically in the areas I am interested in

Cons:
-higher cost of living
-students seemed more stressed compared to Case, and I felt less of a community vibe on interview day (and no second look to verify this feeling)


Any additions to this list or advice would be appreciated!

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[m1redsox]

Seems like the big difference for you is prestige at NW vs interview day vibe/low COL at CW— in which case you might as well just go to the better school! NW gets my vote!

 

[Marr97]

If it helps at all, I was also accepted to Northwestern and didn't get a stressed-out vibe at all from any of the students. Out of all the schools I interviewed at, Northwestern actually seemed to have the biggest emphasis on student mental health and wellness. They also have a great 4-year MD/MPH program!

 

[Engrailed]

The Best Western = Northwestern

given what you wrote here, NW seems to align better with your career goals. Their research capabilities and reputation/connections will be advantageous in helping you secure more competitive residencies.

I also wouldnt put too much weight on how you felt on interview day. Ive heard it’s not always an accurate representation of the actual student body.

 

[seeinghowitgoes]

Unless you know you want to be in Chicago long-term (in which case go Northwestern because they take a ton of their own across the board), I don’t think it matters at all. The recent OBGYN and Peds matches are pretty similar between Case and Northwestern, and people here tend to overestimate the resources of schools with more public name recognition. Truthfully Northwestern’s research vs the combined resources of Case/CCF is probably not all that different (and the latter may have more when pooled, which is appropriate to do given Case’s school is literally on Cleveland Clinic property), and even if they were both are so far above the threshold at which it matters for Med Students that it’s a silly thing to even think about comparing institutions on.

Perhaps most importantly, differences in residency program directors’ opinions between these two programs is small and, more importantly, likely not meaningful. PD rankings have Case at 3.7 and Northwestern at 4.1 (out of 5, less than 10% difference and I promise the confidence intervals would overlap knowing likert scales and the sample size they have). Furthermore, across specialties they match students to the same hospitals, so while some might argue surrogate measures of prestige (like the PD rankings) suggest Northwestern offers something above Case, the actual metric that matters (where people can go for residency) suggests it probably does not.

So if you want to feel better telling people you go to Northwestern because it has better public brand recognition, go for it. If you want to save money and go Case, go for it. Really no wrong answer, I’d just caution you about believing the prestige difference between these two particular schools is going to matter in ~4 years when you’re applying to residency.

 

[MD34289403]

Cleveland is a much more relaxed city to live in since you would have to live in downtown Chicago at Northwestern. I think research shouldn't be the factor for you here since Case Western also has great research opportunities. The difference in prestige is not enough in my opinion to sway your choice, and Case Western has the beautiful new building where you will spend much of your time!