and thank you ..
withdrawing from UCSF for Yale? [taken from pre-allo]
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He he, I'm laughing because I went through a little bit of the same thing. It's your dream to go to a medical school and then when you get into one, you start second guessing yourself and which school would be slightly better and where you'd be happier.
Bottom line is both are great schools. Go where you want. You're going to be successful no matter which one you decide to go to. My advice to to pick one (I'd go with my gut feeling but I'm not very familiar with American schools so I can't really figure out which is better) but make peace with your decision and enjoy your last summer before you start becoming a doctor!
That's what keeps hitting me - I applied with crappy stats and got into 1 school and I keep thinking if I wait another year I could get into a lot more schools and have more choices. Then I slap myself and realize how happy I am to be in a school and how miserable I'd be for the next year if I turned this down.
I think as med students, it's in our nature to be competitive and always want the best and I think that's a good thing. For myself, I just try to take a step back once and a while and realize how good I have it and how happy I am with what I got. Always wanting more is a mixed blessing at best!
PS: I know what you mean about rambling.... don't worry about it! Sometimes it really helps to think about things objectively when you write things down and get them out in the open.
Bottom line is both are great schools. Go where you want. You're going to be successful no matter which one you decide to go to. My advice to to pick one (I'd go with my gut feeling but I'm not very familiar with American schools so I can't really figure out which is better) but make peace with your decision and enjoy your last summer before you start becoming a doctor!
That's what keeps hitting me - I applied with crappy stats and got into 1 school and I keep thinking if I wait another year I could get into a lot more schools and have more choices. Then I slap myself and realize how happy I am to be in a school and how miserable I'd be for the next year if I turned this down.
I think as med students, it's in our nature to be competitive and always want the best and I think that's a good thing. For myself, I just try to take a step back once and a while and realize how good I have it and how happy I am with what I got. Always wanting more is a mixed blessing at best!
PS: I know what you mean about rambling.... don't worry about it! Sometimes it really helps to think about things objectively when you write things down and get them out in the open.
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Mentoz,
Both are great schools. You'll receive all the necessary support and teaching at both places in order to become the type of physician you want to become.
I do think that, if family and friends are very important to you, you should take your social support system strongly into consideration when making your decision. Medical school can be difficult and there can be days when you don't want to be around anyone in the medical profession. My family is all back east, but I am very glad that I have close friends who aren't in the medical profession in the Bay Area.
The financial factor is an important one for many, including myself.. If saving a large amount of money is important to you, then you should you should prioritize it in your decision. However, if it is only 20k difference over four years or something like that, then I wouldn't really ponder the difference too much.
Bottom line is that you have to go where your gut is saying to go. Go where you'll be excited to go. Go where you'll be happiest living. It is one thing to imaging living at Yale, but it is another thing to actually experience it. That can be good or bad, just as it could be here in San Francisco.
I personally do think that UCSF is a special place. I like that it isn't attached to a larger university. I like that it is growing, expanding, and young. I like that it isn't an Ivy League school and that the only people who appreciate where I attend medical school are those in the health care community. I also like the huge diversity of clinical experience that we receive as we rotate through the VA, Moffit-Long, and SFGH. I also like that we take boards in March/April and have a 4th year that is entirely 12 months long. There are certain things that struck me about UCSF when I was in undergrad and applying that provided me with a gut instinct. But these aspects that provide me w/ strong reasons to want to be here may not be so crucial to your decision.
I highly recommend that you calm yourself, limit your imagination for a minute, and honestly ask yourself where you want to be. Once you get an answer, take it and don't look back.
Best of luck and as I said before, contact me (see my last reply to your PM) if you have questions.
Both are great schools. You'll receive all the necessary support and teaching at both places in order to become the type of physician you want to become.
I do think that, if family and friends are very important to you, you should take your social support system strongly into consideration when making your decision. Medical school can be difficult and there can be days when you don't want to be around anyone in the medical profession. My family is all back east, but I am very glad that I have close friends who aren't in the medical profession in the Bay Area.
The financial factor is an important one for many, including myself.. If saving a large amount of money is important to you, then you should you should prioritize it in your decision. However, if it is only 20k difference over four years or something like that, then I wouldn't really ponder the difference too much.
Bottom line is that you have to go where your gut is saying to go. Go where you'll be excited to go. Go where you'll be happiest living. It is one thing to imaging living at Yale, but it is another thing to actually experience it. That can be good or bad, just as it could be here in San Francisco.
I personally do think that UCSF is a special place. I like that it isn't attached to a larger university. I like that it is growing, expanding, and young. I like that it isn't an Ivy League school and that the only people who appreciate where I attend medical school are those in the health care community. I also like the huge diversity of clinical experience that we receive as we rotate through the VA, Moffit-Long, and SFGH. I also like that we take boards in March/April and have a 4th year that is entirely 12 months long. There are certain things that struck me about UCSF when I was in undergrad and applying that provided me with a gut instinct. But these aspects that provide me w/ strong reasons to want to be here may not be so crucial to your decision.
I highly recommend that you calm yourself, limit your imagination for a minute, and honestly ask yourself where you want to be. Once you get an answer, take it and don't look back.
Best of luck and as I said before, contact me (see my last reply to your PM) if you have questions.
Here is what happend to me and how I see your situation....
Last year I was deciding between Baylor and Hopkins...Baylor was my dream school: I had a full ride, it was close to home, etc. but I got good vibes from Hopkins and thought that I would have more opportunities there.
It was really hard making my decision...I talked to my family about it...I was so sad after turning down Baylor, but you know, life is kinda funny...I don't think you can really make a mistake in deciding between UCSF and Yale...I think you will end up where you are supposed to be somehow...just send in your final decision and hope for the best!
Good luck!
Last year I was deciding between Baylor and Hopkins...Baylor was my dream school: I had a full ride, it was close to home, etc. but I got good vibes from Hopkins and thought that I would have more opportunities there.
It was really hard making my decision...I talked to my family about it...I was so sad after turning down Baylor, but you know, life is kinda funny...I don't think you can really make a mistake in deciding between UCSF and Yale...I think you will end up where you are supposed to be somehow...just send in your final decision and hope for the best!
Good luck!
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First, deep breath. Now, respond to my pm. Take it easy, nothing is as serious as it seems to you right now, all of these fears and apprehensions will be replaced by even more daunting ones very, very soon. Will I be happy or not? Get a hold of yourself. The freakin' city isn't what makes you happy, your friends or your favorite pizza place don't make you happy - you make yourself happy. You can't plan things out so well, you can't make every decision right now (residency, and whatever). And forget what your gut tells you. If you've already gone back on your first instinct, you're not going to be satisfied with any decision you make using your "gut".
They're both good schools. You'll get into great residencies from both. The dorm will help you make friends, or it can make you a weirdo loner if you keep freaking out like this.
The fact is, this is a much more mechanical decision than you, and the rest of us, would like to think. You see, SF has sunshine and New Haven has snow, but it won't matter to you because you'll usually be inside studying. You'll get the hang of dorm life if you do it, and you'll also be just fine if you grow old never having lived in a dorm.
Financially, Yale is a plus.
SF is closer to family/friends.
Yale gives you a year off.
Most importantly, UCSF is structured and Yale is not. If you can deal with the pressure of guiding yourself through your first two years go to Yale. If you're gonna freak out over all of the decisions (Which book should I use? How much should I study? We don't have tests so how do I know what I need to know?) then go to USCF.
The last point is the primary one, it should be the crux of your decision. Clinical years work about the same, first two years is where the difference is. Do you want structure, or free-falling? This should be an easy choice. Do you want the reassurance of tests and grades, and the prodding of competition, or do you want the relaxation and ease of no grades? That's it, no spazzing, no freakin' out, no place of maximum potential happiness. Do you want to be told what to study, or figure it out yourself?
They're both good schools. You'll get into great residencies from both. The dorm will help you make friends, or it can make you a weirdo loner if you keep freaking out like this.
The fact is, this is a much more mechanical decision than you, and the rest of us, would like to think. You see, SF has sunshine and New Haven has snow, but it won't matter to you because you'll usually be inside studying. You'll get the hang of dorm life if you do it, and you'll also be just fine if you grow old never having lived in a dorm.
Financially, Yale is a plus.
SF is closer to family/friends.
Yale gives you a year off.
Most importantly, UCSF is structured and Yale is not. If you can deal with the pressure of guiding yourself through your first two years go to Yale. If you're gonna freak out over all of the decisions (Which book should I use? How much should I study? We don't have tests so how do I know what I need to know?) then go to USCF.
The last point is the primary one, it should be the crux of your decision. Clinical years work about the same, first two years is where the difference is. Do you want structure, or free-falling? This should be an easy choice. Do you want the reassurance of tests and grades, and the prodding of competition, or do you want the relaxation and ease of no grades? That's it, no spazzing, no freakin' out, no place of maximum potential happiness. Do you want to be told what to study, or figure it out yourself?
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Where would you prefer to live? New Haven or San Francisco?
New Haven is a cool city with lots of cultural activities and social life, but it's no San Francisco. True that NYC and Boston are in close proximity, but you won't be spending that much time there (maybe one weekend per month).
Yale's system is unique by not having formal written exams (they do require USMLE now) and requiring original research leading to a thesis for graduation. The Yale facilities are nice (one of the larger libraries in the world, including the world's largest historical medicine library). The hospital is decent, and you can expect to be busy during your clinical years.
You are welcome to PM me if you have any specific questions about the system or the area.
New Haven is a cool city with lots of cultural activities and social life, but it's no San Francisco. True that NYC and Boston are in close proximity, but you won't be spending that much time there (maybe one weekend per month).
Yale's system is unique by not having formal written exams (they do require USMLE now) and requiring original research leading to a thesis for graduation. The Yale facilities are nice (one of the larger libraries in the world, including the world's largest historical medicine library). The hospital is decent, and you can expect to be busy during your clinical years.
You are welcome to PM me if you have any specific questions about the system or the area.
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just choose one and stick with it. be a man. either decision is going to be fine. this isn't like choosing which baby gets to live and the other has to die. this is about which top 10 school to attend. also, you already asked yale to reconsider and they gave you back an acceptance. you gotta be some sort of ungrateful person to play around with a school like that. i say go to yale.
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I agree w/ automaton - asking to be reconsidered after withdrawing is a big step IMHO.
It would look bad if you turned down Yale at this point. Besides if you were so happy w/ UCSF, then you wouldn't have sent that email, right?
UCSF is a fantastic place but it seems as though you would like to go to Yale. You might be scared about it but it seems as though Yale would be a better experience for you.
It would look bad if you turned down Yale at this point. Besides if you were so happy w/ UCSF, then you wouldn't have sent that email, right?
UCSF is a fantastic place but it seems as though you would like to go to Yale. You might be scared about it but it seems as though Yale would be a better experience for you.
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bigbaubdi said:
Agree. In thinking about it, I would think that it would be terribly inconsiderate to turn down Yale, ask them to reconsider, and then turn them down again. You should go to Yale and enjoy yourself. There is always residency if you truly want to live in SF eventually.
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ok first off there are bigger problems in the world ...just be happy you got into a medical school, so u can become a doctor and help people... cause it is about helpin people...so y dont u focus on that instead of 10 pages of your rambling 😴
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I think you should go to Yale. Ask yourself two questions:
If I went to Yale would I regret not having gone to UCSF?
If I went to UCSF would I regret not having gone to Yale?
Your answer lies therein.
If I went to Yale would I regret not having gone to UCSF?
If I went to UCSF would I regret not having gone to Yale?
Your answer lies therein.
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feena527 said:
why such hostility feena527? this is a forum for med students. so what's wrong with a prospective student asking for advice about schools. obviously there are more important problems in the world but does that mean the op shouldn't worry about which school fits her best?
