Would anyone turn down Harvard?
Started by glinkov
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Its not so much of the name recognition but the great things that they have to offer the medical students that attend.😳It all comes down to the applicants circumstances and whether or not they feel the medical school would suit them in achieving their dream.Apparently for your friend they felt more comfortable at WashU.There is nothing wrong with turning Harvard down if you feel that its not the place for you.But for those of us who want to attend HMS some day its mind boggling.
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Agreed. I for one believe you can get a fine education at schools that don't have a name such as JHU, Harvard, Wash U. I want a school where I can see myself as one of the students and will enjoy my time there. I think there are so few medical schools, that everyong in the medical community has at least heard of every school and knows of some very successful and some not so successful people who have graduated from them.
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whoa, old thread. It always weirds me out to see a thread title I don't recognize, but I says I've posted in it.
So much Harvard hate... Seriously though, Harvard (the med school and the university in general) is a great, great place, with lots of great people and lots of not-so-great people too (still def not a snobby as many ppl think!), but undoubtedly one of the best places to get a stellar education. I think many ppl overestimate how much happier they think they would be at certain places and assume that they would be significantly less happy at a place like Harvard. I'll point out that it offers much, much more than just prestige, and most importantly, IMO, a stellar body of students, teachers, and colleagues among whom to learn how to be a doctor and develop your career. I'm just gonna lay it all out, I love Harvard.
That being said, it is not for everyone. In my personal circumstances, I would without a doubt select an MSTP over an MD-only acceptance at Harvard. There are also certain schools that I would consider quite strongly over the Harvard MSTP due to my specific research interests. Mind you, these schools are also excellent, so there is very little lost in terms of the quality of the education. One of my very good friends also turned down Harvard Med due to geographical/personal concerns. So it really comes down to individual preferences and circumstances, and what your choices are. I don't think it's a terribly big deal to turn down Harvard for WashU or Hopkins or Stanford. Perhaps a bigger deal for a school that is ranked much lower.
And as much as it's nice to have a big H on the diploma on your wall, remember, you can't eat prestige...
That being said, it is not for everyone. In my personal circumstances, I would without a doubt select an MSTP over an MD-only acceptance at Harvard. There are also certain schools that I would consider quite strongly over the Harvard MSTP due to my specific research interests. Mind you, these schools are also excellent, so there is very little lost in terms of the quality of the education. One of my very good friends also turned down Harvard Med due to geographical/personal concerns. So it really comes down to individual preferences and circumstances, and what your choices are. I don't think it's a terribly big deal to turn down Harvard for WashU or Hopkins or Stanford. Perhaps a bigger deal for a school that is ranked much lower.
And as much as it's nice to have a big H on the diploma on your wall, remember, you can't eat prestige...
I would go to mayo and stanford over harvard.
i would venture that the top two schools that people choose over harvard are ucsf and stanford. washu would probably be #3, but only because they have to resort to bribery 
I met a med student that turned down Harvard, Yale, and Columbia to go to Cornell.
To each their own.
Personally, I would chose UCSF or an NY school (Cornell/Columbia) over Harvard. I did my time in Boston. Not a fan. I'm big on location if you can't tell.
To each their own.
Personally, I would chose UCSF or an NY school (Cornell/Columbia) over Harvard. I did my time in Boston. Not a fan. I'm big on location if you can't tell.
I've not yet applied, so I can't say this definitively but I would LOVE to go to Harvard. I have a very specific reason for wanting to go there though, namely their social medicine program/faculty and their combined MD/PhD (med anthro) program. The only school that could sway my decision if I were insanely fortunate enough to be accepted to both would be UCSF for similar reasons, though I find it doubtful that I'd turn down Harvard even in this situation. Alas, I probably will never find myself having to make that decision 🙁.
If I don't want to do MD/PhD I'm much less concerned with which school I go to and would probably go to the cheapest appealing med school in a decent area.
If I don't want to do MD/PhD I'm much less concerned with which school I go to and would probably go to the cheapest appealing med school in a decent area.
Unless Harvard offered me a full-ride, I would choose Baylor over Harvard.
less debt and i just really like Baylor👍
less debt and i just really like Baylor👍
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Harvard was off the chain, imo (and I am not referring solely to the name/prestige factor). It's definitely in my top 5.
Without visiting, I'd say I'd turn in down for Hopkins in a heart beat....but since neither opportunity will be arising, the point is moot for me.
yep, i know someone who chose UCLA over harvard, based on location alone.
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Seriously. Why bring this back?
I've met and know quite a few kids at HMS who said they would or could turn it down while they were waiting for decisions...but now they are there. No scholarships and they're freezing their butts off. I've also met a bunch who did turn it down for relationship and money reasons, as well as the feeling that it wasn't a good fit.
I don't think any of us can really say what we'll decide about ANY school until we're all holding letters in our hands. Might as well not jinx it by pretending to know right now.
I don't think any of us can really say what we'll decide about ANY school until we're all holding letters in our hands. Might as well not jinx it by pretending to know right now.
Id go to Columbia/Cornell/NYU over Harvard.
Could I turn down Harvard? Honestly yes, but it would be very tough.
For example, if I got into both Duke and Harvard and I found that Duke would cost $70,000 with financial aid and Harvard would cost $150,000, I would be packing up for North Carolina.
Spending four years at Harvard Medical School would be an incredible life experience though, I think. I would get to see what all the hype is about. Harvard is reputed to be so amazing, and I would like to experience what it is like firsthand.
So basically yes, I want to go to Harvard. I find it difficult to believe everyone here who says that they do not (post-decision cognitive dissonance reduction, anyone?). I don't like the weather or the traffic, and I believe I would learn everything I need to know and do very well from any school, but I would only get the Harvard Med experience at Harvard.
For example, if I got into both Duke and Harvard and I found that Duke would cost $70,000 with financial aid and Harvard would cost $150,000, I would be packing up for North Carolina.
Spending four years at Harvard Medical School would be an incredible life experience though, I think. I would get to see what all the hype is about. Harvard is reputed to be so amazing, and I would like to experience what it is like firsthand.
So basically yes, I want to go to Harvard. I find it difficult to believe everyone here who says that they do not (post-decision cognitive dissonance reduction, anyone?). I don't like the weather or the traffic, and I believe I would learn everything I need to know and do very well from any school, but I would only get the Harvard Med experience at Harvard.
So, my question is...is Harvard medical school that amazing? Or is it good solely based on the fact that they have great research faculty doing research in ground-breaking fields. I fail to see how discovering a new type of bacterial secretion process or that female mammals regenerate eggs result in better doctors?
Great research is done at many places. I think it's more the wealth and abundance of resources besides just research that set it apart. There are many opportunities to mingle and network with students at other Harvard professional schools, so the relationships formed there are with other future movers and shakers of the world. It's certainly a unique place.
I would advise not discounting Harvard because you feel you have to pay much more than other medical schools. This is just not the case. HMS has great financial aid and offer a ton of grants. In the end, I would recommend that you go to a medical school that you love, regardless of the price...because 2 years out of residency, you would be able to pay it all back. Harvard, in the end, has resources for its students that are not available at other schools and it does have the benefit of having other large professional/graduate programs that are highly ranked. If your interest takes you to public health, policy, administration, or education, the resources are endless. And...your classmates are pretty awesome too. 🙂
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It wasn't me who bumped it.
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Of course there are situations where I'd turn it down.
hell, there are even schools I'd probably pay twice as much to attend than Harvard. some things are more important than where you get your degree from.
hell, there are even schools I'd probably pay twice as much to attend than Harvard. some things are more important than where you get your degree from.
Like paying too much for the degree? LOL I don't think I'd pay anyone 600K for an MD, but you can feel free.
I'm sure the education at 95% of the medical schools (statistic pulled completely out of my ***) is almost identical, with the variations being very trivial. Whether you want to believe it or not, most schools will provide the same education from the same textbooks as any "World Class" school. The faculty may be more respected at Harvard, but they are still teaching content from the same fundamental textbooks and concepts!
It doesn't matter what accredited school you attend, human beings still have the same biology and the medicine used to help them is still the exact SAME! Diseases don't work differently at Harvard than your state school.
The only real difference is the atmosphere and possibly the research opportunities and most schools offer comparable opportunities.
It depends. And if no money was offered that would be a no probably. Although I'd rather freeze up north than continue to burn down south. But the price has to be right and the atmosphere. I'd turn down the school in a heartbeat if I didn't get a good feeling from it
I would be careful with the assumption that you're getting the same education at every school. Every school does have its particular emphasis. Some schools are detail-oriented, others are clinically oriented, some focus on research. These differences will impact your experience tremendously. Harvard teaches anatomy in 7 weeks, focusing on the large picture and clinical scenarios. Vanderbilt has 4-month-long anatomy that focuses on anatomical minutia. Neither one is better than the other, but it depends on your interests. There is also focus on social medicine, ethics, and policy at Harvard. Not everyone likes it, but it's a very holistic approach to medicine. Harvard also has over 12 affiliated teaching hospitals, from among the largest in the world to community clinics in one of the most diverse areas in the US. Just things to consider when making choices. NOTE: Interview days are awful ways of assessing what a school is like.
you still read sdn too?? bad us! go learn about craniopharyngiomas!
and to all you current applicants--there are so many different things that make a school right or wrong for a given person. only you know what's right for you... and i wish all of you the best in finding your own dream schools!
(ps med21 is right-- my hms classmates ARE pretty cool 😉 )
Why ARE you on the pre-med thread anyways? I guess it's cooler than the med thread...
I'm amazed at the passion on this thread, either for or against attending HMS. The great irony is, most of the posters here will not have the choice to turn it down anyway, assuming they're awaiting a decision.
Does Harvard cost $300k all of a sudden?
I was referring more to if Harvard offered me a scholarship which would make it 1/2 the cost of another school, i.e. Harvard = $80,000 , Vanderbilt = $160,000
Oops. I overestimated a little. I think overall its about 60k per year, so 240 total give or take.
And, unfortunately for us both, HMS doesn't do scholarships for admissions, though I hear there are ways to get merit scholarships as a med student there.
Yes, some medical school curriculum can vary greatly and I understand that. But Harvard's curriculum is not exclusively greater than another school solely because it IS Harvard! Certain curriculum work for certain people (ie someone who wants to do research, or a PBL school, or primary care, etc. etc.) which is reinforcing my point. Harvard might be an inferior choice for someone who is more worried about xx instead of yy in a curriculum.
I honestly can't turn down HMS...I loved the curriculum and I have friends there who love it so much. I can tell you for sure I liked many med. schools I interviewed at and making decisions will be tough. So anyway, I won't turn down HMS
well I'm not going to be getting an offer of admission from HMS anyway, it's all theoretical.
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I second that, bcat85! 😀
yes--on the med thread they talk about medicine, which is what i'm procrastinating from in the first place! and there are all of, like, 7 posts a day.
ok, i'm leaving now. qbank here i come! really....
Yeah, OP was really presumptuous to think Harvard is "everyone's dream."
I for one, had never wanted to go to Harvard. It's a great school, but why would anyone go to Harvard when there exists UCSF/Stanford/UCLA/UCSD.
California is awesome.
I for one, had never wanted to go to Harvard. It's a great school, but why would anyone go to Harvard when there exists UCSF/Stanford/UCLA/UCSD.
California is awesome.
I think I'd go to Johns Hopkins over Harvard. I'd have my bag in Baltimore before I'm there
Harvard is so world known and the most "elite" in name as far as schools in anything. Regardless of numbers, just say Harvard and people will prance like a poodle. And with that I don't think I would get a good feeling from it. I know actual perception is different but I don't even think I've even try and apply just for that fact
Harvard is so world known and the most "elite" in name as far as schools in anything. Regardless of numbers, just say Harvard and people will prance like a poodle. And with that I don't think I would get a good feeling from it. I know actual perception is different but I don't even think I've even try and apply just for that fact
