Factors that go into picking a school

[Nontradvet89]

Hey all, so here's the thing. I want to know not only what are important factors that people considered before picking a medical school (and the schools they applied to) but how to find the variables that affect those factors.

For instance, I've seen a lot of people mention that schools they consider have residency programs they want nearby or that clinicals for the program are nearby. I've done research into schools I can afford that have programs I want to attend for in areas that I wouldn't mind living. I need to make sure my list makes sense for other reasons, too, though. I want to know what factors other people considered when picking schools so that I can ensure I'm considering every angle.

So, anyone have ideas on how I find residency programs near schools? Or other factors dealing with this? I'd like to attend a school where I can settle down with my family nearby afterwards. So, anyone else ask these questions and find answers? I'd appreciate pointing me towards them, too.

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[Gurby]

Sent primary app to 40 schools without really researching at all. Completed the easy secondaries and those for schools I cared more about. At the end of the day I'll probably matriculate at the school that offers best value in terms of prestige/cost. Haters gonna hate.

 

[libertyyne]

Hey all, so here's the thing. I want to know not only what are important factors that people considered before picking a medical school (and the schools they applied to) but how to find the variables that affect those factors.

For instance, I've seen a lot of people mention that schools they consider have residency programs they want nearby or that clinicals for the program are nearby. I've done research into schools I can afford that have programs I want to attend for in areas that I wouldn't mind living. I need to make sure my list makes sense for other reasons, too, though. I want to know what factors other people considered when picking schools so that I can ensure I'm considering every angle.

So, anyone have ideas on how I find residency programs near schools? Or other factors dealing with this? I'd like to attend a school where I can settle down with my family nearby afterwards. So, anyone else ask these questions and find answers? I'd appreciate pointing me towards them, too.

A few things.
Focus on making a strong app.
Med school choice is illusory for all but the super lucky or the people who have awesome apps.
Most likely you will end up applying to schools where you are a competitive.
You should apply to all your state schools.

Once you have acceptances in hand, then these finer details can be used to decide the school, but more often then not other more practical concerns like cost of education, curriculum style and strength of clinical rotations will end up playing bigger roles in the selection.
You may end up with multiple acceptances where this may even be a problem,but it is not a problem that most people have.

Factors
Accepted me
Cost
Location
Clinical rotation strength
Mandatory Class





Prestige

 

[sazerac]

Geography can be huge, too. Sometimes people want to be near family, or someplace where an SO can get a job. Sometimes people just fall in love with a city!

The LCME runs a pretty tight ship, and at the end all the schools honestly started to look the same to me.

 

[libahli]

In order of priority for me:

1. Fit
2. Location
3. Cost
4. Reputation (aka ranking)
5. Non mandatory attendance

 

[Nontradvet89]

Thanks for the responses so far.

Sent primary app to 40 schools without really researching at all. Completed the easy secondaries and those for schools I cared more about. At the end of the day I'll probably matriculate at the school that offers best value in terms of prestige/cost. Haters gonna hate.

This has been how I felt for sure. I created a list with all my state schools, and all public state schools, as well, plus a few others. I came up with a list of about 29 schools that I would be counted as an "in-state" student with the GI Bill. I planned on just shotgun blasting it and picking up the pieces that accept me at the end. lol

A few things.
Focus on making a strong app.
Med school choice is illusory for all but the super lucky or the people who have awesome apps.
Most likely you will end up applying to schools where you are a competitive.
You should apply to all your state schools.

Once you have acceptances in hand, then these finer details can be used to decide the school, but more often then not other more practical concerns like cost of education, curriculum style and strength of clinical rotations will end up playing bigger roles in the selection.
You may end up with multiple acceptances where this may even be a problem,but it is not a problem that most people have.

Factors
Accepted me
Cost
Location
Clinical rotation strength
Mandatory Class


Prestige

This is a very good point. I appreciate it. It brings me back to where I need to be in the sense of just preparing to apply and go and not worrying about where I'll go until I actually get accepted somewhere, schools I wouldn't ever actually attend notwithstanding.

In order of priority for me:

1. Fit
2. Location
3. Cost
4. Reputation (aka ranking)
5. Non mandatory attendance

I don't know what Non-mandatory attendance is. Could you explain this a bit more for me?

 

[libertyyne]

Thanks for the responses so far.



This has been how I felt for sure. I created a list with all my state schools, and all public state schools, as well, plus a few others. I came up with a list of about 29 schools that I would be counted as an "in-state" student with the GI Bill. I planned on just shotgun blasting it and picking up the pieces that accept me at the end. lol




This is a very good point. I appreciate it. It brings me back to where I need to be in the sense of just preparing to apply and go and not worrying about where I'll go until I actually get accepted somewhere, schools I wouldn't ever actually attend notwithstanding.




I don't know what Non-mandatory attendance is. Could you explain this a bit more for me?

Non mandatory attendance is where lectures are recorded and available over the internet. You do not have to go to class and could watch them at 2x speed in your underwear eating Cheetos. Some people tend to love this , others not so much. Some schools say they are non mandatory attendance yet they will dock points in the form of quizzes and such. On the opposite end of the spectrum is mandatory classes with dress code, and team based learning with mandated classes in excess of 27 hours per week. The proponents of the last approach claim there is evidence in its efficaxy.

 

[libahli]

Non mandatory attendance is where lectures are recorded and available over the internet. You do not have to go to class and could watch them at 2x speed in your underwear eating Cheetos. Some people tend to love this , others not so much. Some schools say they are non mandatory attendance yet they will dock points in the form of quizzes and such. On the opposite end of the spectrum is mandatory classes with dress code, and team based learning with mandated classes in excess of 27 hours per week. The proponents of the last approach claim there is evidence in its efficaxy.

Yup, this exactly. Not that I plan on skipping lectures (at least not at first!), but at one of the schools I interviewed, the students were required to attend all classes for pretty much a full day, everyday. The whole interview day looked and felt like high school to me. No thanks. Plus, less free time to look at and mull over the new info on my own is a huge negative for me because that's usually when I can cement the info into my brain cells more permanently than just hearing it in lecture.

 

[Nontradvet89]

Non mandatory attendance is where lectures are recorded and available over the internet. You do not have to go to class and could watch them at 2x speed in your underwear eating Cheetos. Some people tend to love this , others not so much. Some schools say they are non mandatory attendance yet they will dock points in the form of quizzes and such. On the opposite end of the spectrum is mandatory classes with dress code, and team based learning with mandated classes in excess of 27 hours per week. The proponents of the last approach claim there is evidence in its efficaxy.

Thanks for this explanation. I honestly didn't even know that was an option, but that is awesome. I think that I would likely prefer to sit in a classroom in front of the teacher, but definitely having the option to be able to just view the lecture online or whatever would leave open the option of being able to navigate with a family. This is exactly the kind of outside factors I was looking for: those that I didn't know existed.

 

[HMtoDO]

Look up the Choice Act Section 702. It deals with residency requirements for vets. One amazing part is if you were honorably discharged within 3 years of attending the school, and they accept veterans benefits, then they have to offer you in state tuition if applicable. Really helps for most public schools (will save me over $120K in tuition alone). Best of luck!

I came up with a list of about 29 schools that I would be counted as an "in-state" student with the GI Bill. I planned on just shotgun blasting it and picking up the pieces that accept me at the end. lol

I don't know what Non-mandatory attendance is. Could you explain this a bit more for me?

Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile

 

[Goro]

My advice is get into medical school, and then worry about residency.

If this is an issue, then attend a medical school in a large city.

Hey all, so here's the thing. I want to know not only what are important factors that people considered before picking a medical school (and the schools they applied to) but how to find the variables that affect those factors.

For instance, I've seen a lot of people mention that schools they consider have residency programs they want nearby or that clinicals for the program are nearby. I've done research into schools I can afford that have programs I want to attend for in areas that I wouldn't mind living. I need to make sure my list makes sense for other reasons, too, though. I want to know what factors other people considered when picking schools so that I can ensure I'm considering every angle.

So, anyone have ideas on how I find residency programs near schools? Or other factors dealing with this? I'd like to attend a school where I can settle down with my family nearby afterwards. So, anyone else ask these questions and find answers? I'd appreciate pointing me towards them, too.

 

[QofQuimica]

Assuming we're only talking about accredited American medical schools here:

If you're single, the first, second, third, and fourth considerations should be cost. Go to the cheapest school you can get into, and take out the fewest loans possible.

If you're married, and assuming you wish to stay married, then there are two chief considerations: cost, and what makes your spouse happy. Go to the lowest cost school that accepts you in a location that your wife or husband is agreeable to live in. If the two conflict, then my advice is to pay more so that your spouse can be happy, unless you're willing to risk your marriage falling apart.

The rest of that BS? Ignore it. Ten years from now, you will not care one whit whether your school had mandatory attendance, or about its reputation, or the clinical/research facilities, or any other nonsense that premeds are wrongly led to believe is so important. Over the long term, by far the most relevant factors are cost, and if applicable, keeping your spouse happy/marriage strong. Nothing else even comes close.

 

[Nontradvet89]

My advice is get into medical school, and then worry about residency.

If this is an issue, then attend a medical school in a large city.

Assuming we're only talking about accredited American medical schools here:

If you're single, the first, second, third, and fourth considerations should be cost. Go to the cheapest school you can get into, and take out the fewest loans possible.

If you're married, and assuming you wish to stay married, then there are two chief considerations: cost, and what makes your spouse happy. Go to the lowest cost school that accepts you in a location that your wife or husband is agreeable to live in. If the two conflict, then my advice is to pay more so that your spouse can be happy, unless you're willing to risk your marriage falling apart.

The rest of that BS? Ignore it. Ten years from now, you will not care one whit whether your school had mandatory attendance, or about its reputation, or the clinical/research facilities, or any other nonsense that premeds are wrongly led to believe is so important. Over the long term, by far the most relevant factors are cost, and if applicable, keeping your spouse happy/marriage strong. Nothing else even comes close.

The combination of these two ideas has pretty much been my current focus. I appreciate the reinforcement of them. I was hoping to ensure that there wasn't any factors additional that affected others' decisions. I've pretty much gone the route of looking at as many public schools as possible in large cities that would be covered by GI Bill (I intend to enter school during the 3 year time period post-ETS where you an "in-state" student for tuition costs) and then just asking my wife if she'd consider living there. I'll apply to all of them, then ask my wife where she would like to live amongst the choices of places I get into (hopefully get int0). So, since nothing special has come up, I'll stick with the current plan.

 

[backside_attack]

The rest of that BS? Ignore it. Ten years from now, you will not care one whit whether your school had mandatory attendance, or about its reputation, or the clinical/research facilities, or any other nonsense that premeds are wrongly led to believe is so important. Over the long term, by far the most relevant factors are cost, and if applicable, keeping your spouse happy/marriage strong. Nothing else even comes close.

I will say SOME of this does come into consideration when you think of "what will make your spouse happy". For example: daily schedule. I picked a school that has a much different daily schedule than another one to which I was accepted because the mandatory/not-mandatory activities and time spent on campus was less --> I get to see my spouse more. Also it's conducive to spending my day studying and my evenings being a normal married person. Just a thought.

That said, I totally get what you're saying and you're right that none of that stuff really matters.

 

[libertyyne]

Is there a way we can know before applying what schools have a dress code & 27 hours of mandatory attendance? Dress code sounds a bit lame to me.

Yeah msar sdn boards. If they say team based learning or PBL you should assume lots on classroom time. DO schools tend to be the ones with strict dress code.

 

[Froggy25]

1. Cost of Living / housing
2. Quality of local public school districts
3. Quality of Life
4. Tuition Cost
5. Potential to stay in the area for residency

Clearly, I have kids.

 

[Eccesignum]

I made my original application list strategically. Mostly based on my stats, with MSAR help. Some based on their secondary questions, if there was something I felt there were specifically looking for that was a strength of mine. And a sprinkling of YOLOs.

When it came down to the final selection, cost was the most important cut factor in the end. I turned down my first choice because their financial aid package was terrible. Broke my heart at the time, but going $300k in debt when I had cheaper options just wasn't a smart decision. I got a bit lucky in that my second choice raised their aid offer to match an offer I had elsewhere, or else I wouldn't be there now.

So for me it was cost >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> location >> overall fit. "Reputation" wasn't enough to affect my choice, though I know it's important to some people. Looking ahead to residency didn't matter much, since there's no guarantee you'll be able to stay in your school city for residency.

I don't have kids, so that didn't factor in for me. YMMV.

 

[GluteMajor]

A lot of the things I'm seeing here are reinforcing my own thoughts. I've currently been accepted to two schools, one in-state and one out-of-state. Although the out-of-state school is more 'prestigious', the tuition alone is $40K more than the in-state. Pretty tough to rationalize what parts of that education make it that much more valuable, considering that at the end of it all, I'll most likely have learned the same things. Cost and proximity to spouse and family will be large factors for me.

 

[banana_phone]

I am lucky to be at accepted at 4 schools that I really loved at my interview days. Agonizing over the decision already. Especially as my, and my SOs, top choice in my home state won't let me know until April.

Midwest weather is actually something I am considering in my decision. I love the 2 schools in Chicago I was accepted to, but after living in MN for 3 years now, the thought of 4 more Midwest winters SUCKS. Just got accepted to a (very expensive) school in California. I have extended family there. It's a school I've loved for a long time.

However, SO's current company has an office in Chicago, and we have some very good friends who live in that city. Tuition is slightly (not significantly), more affordable at these schools. Chicago seems like a no-brainer but the horrible weather, and considering the logistics of walking our pooch in the weather, I get forlorn thinking about enduring 4 more harsh winters.

Is it just idiotic to include weather in my choice? Someone talk some sense into me.

 

[QofQuimica]

I am lucky to be at accepted at 4 schools that I really loved at my interview days. Agonizing over the decision already. Especially as my, and my SOs, top choice in my home state won't let me know until April.

Midwest weather is actually something I am considering in my decision. I love the 2 schools in Chicago I was accepted to, but after living in MN for 3 years now, the thought of 4 more Midwest winters SUCKS. Just got accepted to a (very expensive) school in California. I have extended family there. It's a school I've loved for a long time.

However, SO's current company has an office in Chicago, and we have some very good friends who live in that city. Tuition is slightly (not significantly), more affordable at these schools. Chicago seems like a no-brainer but the horrible weather, and considering the logistics of walking our pooch in the weather, I get forlorn thinking about enduring 4 more harsh winters.

Is it just idiotic to include weather in my choice? Someone talk some sense into me.

No, it's not idiotic. I wouldn't like to endure four years of Chicago winters either. However, I willingly went to medical school (and residency) up North, because heck yeah, I got a totally full ride to med school in a cold place, and the residency program that I liked best was also in a cold place. There is no doubt in my mind that attending that med school was by far one of the best decisions I have made in my entire life. They basically paid me $300,000 to endure all those cold winters while earning my MD; I'm now semi-retiring at the age of 42; and who knew? They have apartments that come with free central heating up North. (I even had radiator heat, something I had never experienced before and absolutely came to love.) Too bad you can't get free central AC in the South. :-/

If I, coming from the Sunshine State, could spend eight years in a cold climate and be fine, then there's no doubt a Minnesotan like you could hack it. That being said, I didn't even stay to attend my residency graduation; that's how badly I wanted out of New England. So if you want to go to Cali and enjoy some sun (totally understandable, IMO), no problem. Do your residency there, and/or get an attending job there. FWIW, if you do end up in Cali, you'll be even gladder you took out fewer loans for med school, b/c living (and practicing) in Cali ain't cheap.

Congrats on all the acceptances, and keep your options open as long as you need to so that you can make the best possible decision. Meaning, don't let anyone pressure you into giving any of your acceptances up before you hear from the U of MN and/or Mayo.

 

[libertyyne]

Assuming we're only talking about accredited American medical schools here:

If you're single, the first, second, third, and fourth considerations should be cost. Go to the cheapest school you can get into, and take out the fewest loans possible.

If you're married, and assuming you wish to stay married, then there are two chief considerations: cost, and what makes your spouse happy. Go to the lowest cost school that accepts you in a location that your wife or husband is agreeable to live in. If the two conflict, then my advice is to pay more so that your spouse can be happy, unless you're willing to risk your marriage falling apart.

The rest of that BS? Ignore it. Ten years from now, you will not care one whit whether your school had mandatory attendance, or about its reputation, or the clinical/research facilities, or any other nonsense that premeds are wrongly led to believe is so important. Over the long term, by far the most relevant factors are cost, and if applicable, keeping your spouse happy/marriage strong. Nothing else even comes close.

Excellent Advice. The best school I have been accepted to is in a city my spouse is not hot on, I have also been accepted to a school that would be minimal issues for my spouse but it is 40K total more expensive and is a new school with rotations that are not the best. On top of that the school has excessive mandatory attendance 25+ hours /week which would cut into my ability to study independently. A bit of a pickle. I hate the cold, but I unfortunately was only accepted to a really expensive DO school in a warmer climate. 40K is a lot of money.decisions, decisions.

 

[banana_phone]

I REALLY should have taken better notes on the amounts of required class and EC time at my interviews. Is there a way to gain more info on this post-acceptance? Would it be appropriate to enquire? Not sure who I would even reach out to.

Another pickle: One of my top choice schools I've been accepted to is transitioning to a new curriculum next year, so its likely that nobody could answer that question well!

 

[libertyyne]

I REALLY should have taken better notes on the amounts of required class and EC time at my interviews. Is there a way to gain more info on this post-acceptance? Would it be appropriate to enquire? Not sure who I would even reach out to.

Another pickle: One of my top choice schools I've been accepted to is transitioning to a new curriculum next year, so its likely that nobody could answer that question well!

The new corriculum is hard. I would go to the school specific thread and ask if there are any current students that can help. I did that and was put in touch with some students who were super helpful. If you also go to the second look you can ask around and find that info. My top choice is also transitioning to a new corriculum next year. Growing pains always exisit, even in the most well oiled of machines.