Hi all - I am a current M4 student applying to anesthesia. I just finished up interviews and am working on my match list. For various reasons I am hoping to move to Chicago and I am having trouble ranking these programs. I was wondering if anyone could share their thoughts on UC, Loyola, Cook, and Rush. I didn't interview with Advocate, NWU, or UIC. There are some threads similar to this but most are at 5-10 years old.
My initial thoughts:
U Chicago - Obviously this is the most prestigious of the programs, and on some level feels silly to not rank #1. They have a great mix of very complex surgical cases and more bread and butter trauma, OB, etc. I like the people and the program here, and certainly the name will go far for any jobs or fellowships I might wish to do. The location in South Chicago and the patients that come with it is a positive for me, as I love working with the poor...which leads me to....
Cook County - This program seems like an extremely unique opportunity and one I should not easily pass up. They don't do transplants or other super high end cases, but they make up for that by having an extremely sick and diverse patient population. I am a little scared of going here as I have read mostly negative things about the place online, however the residents seemed really cool and like they knew each other well. Its not a fancy prestigious place like UC, but most residents reported that potential employers/fellowships had an attitude of "if you can work at county you can work anywhere". I am interested in doing something like Doctors Without Borders down the line, so this may be a great choice.
Loyola - Since I am so torn between UC and Cook, Loyola keeps coming up as the option that offers balance between the two. It has the sick, poor patients like Cook, but they also do a ton of transplant and cardiac cases and have stronger academic culture than Cook. I'm not sure what their name is worth for future applications, but their clinical training seems extraordinarily strong. As I've alluded to I'm into "social justice" and such, so their location in Maywood and the hospitals Jesuit culture are definite positives for me.
Rush - I was not a huge fan of this place. The interview day was a total mess and they have failed to respond to questions via email. They don't have any transplant or trauma. Seems like an excellent place for pain, but I am more likely to end up in CT or ICU than pain. That said the residents seemed happy and I will rank the program somewhere, and if I end up here I will be totally fine.
My other options are UCLA, UPenn, Columbia, Irvine, UNM, Mayo. Am I a total fool for thinking of ranking these Chicago places higher than those?
My initial thoughts:
U Chicago - Obviously this is the most prestigious of the programs, and on some level feels silly to not rank #1. They have a great mix of very complex surgical cases and more bread and butter trauma, OB, etc. I like the people and the program here, and certainly the name will go far for any jobs or fellowships I might wish to do. The location in South Chicago and the patients that come with it is a positive for me, as I love working with the poor...which leads me to....
Cook County - This program seems like an extremely unique opportunity and one I should not easily pass up. They don't do transplants or other super high end cases, but they make up for that by having an extremely sick and diverse patient population. I am a little scared of going here as I have read mostly negative things about the place online, however the residents seemed really cool and like they knew each other well. Its not a fancy prestigious place like UC, but most residents reported that potential employers/fellowships had an attitude of "if you can work at county you can work anywhere". I am interested in doing something like Doctors Without Borders down the line, so this may be a great choice.
Loyola - Since I am so torn between UC and Cook, Loyola keeps coming up as the option that offers balance between the two. It has the sick, poor patients like Cook, but they also do a ton of transplant and cardiac cases and have stronger academic culture than Cook. I'm not sure what their name is worth for future applications, but their clinical training seems extraordinarily strong. As I've alluded to I'm into "social justice" and such, so their location in Maywood and the hospitals Jesuit culture are definite positives for me.
Rush - I was not a huge fan of this place. The interview day was a total mess and they have failed to respond to questions via email. They don't have any transplant or trauma. Seems like an excellent place for pain, but I am more likely to end up in CT or ICU than pain. That said the residents seemed happy and I will rank the program somewhere, and if I end up here I will be totally fine.
My other options are UCLA, UPenn, Columbia, Irvine, UNM, Mayo. Am I a total fool for thinking of ranking these Chicago places higher than those?