Input on school choice

[pantalaimonslabyrinth]

I'm starting med school this fall and am very happy (but stressed) to be holding acceptances to two schools:

School A is a pretty well-regarded public school. It's relatively small but has a strong reputation for pedagogy and solid clinical training, and is well-recognized for primary care (the field I'd like to go into). It's been my top choice throughout the admissions process; the interview day confirmed that both the curriculum and the community are an excellent fit. It's also located in my hometown (let's call it Town A).

School B is a private school with an extraordinary reputation, the kind where just saying the school's name is enough to roll out a dozen red carpets. I almost didn't apply, expecting to find the atmosphere intolerably arrogant and competitive. At the interview day I was pleasantly surprised to find that the students and faculty were friendly and down-to-earth, and was astounded by the resources and opportunities there. It's located in City B.

The curricula have similar features, although School A's is better established; School B's is newer and I get the impression that they're still working out some kinks. In terms of clinical experience, I'd see more zebras at School B but probably get more access and hands-on experience at School A. School B has a more diverse patient population. The School A students that I spoke with were very happy with the clinical training that they got; folks at School B said they wished they'd had earlier clinical exposure, although it seems like the school is implementing big changes in that area. Research opportunities at School B are in a completely different league, but my interest in research is pretty low-key so for my purposes it likely doesn't matter. As far as I can tell from match lists + talking to students, graduates of School A are well-positioned for residencies.

The name factor for School B is HUGE. It would open a ton of doors. The question I'm still trying to figure out is whether those are doors that I care to go through. I don't necessarily want to claw my way into the most competitive position in the most competitive specialty that I can possibly get into; I suspect I'd be happy to be a big fish in a small pond at School A, do my residency at Hospital A, become an attending there, then a department chair, and retire a few decades later with a broom closet or something named after me. In other words, School A would be enough. But when I tell people that I'm thinking of turning down B for A, they universally respond as though I'm delusional -- and frankly, it's hard not to agree with them.

Really, the sticking point is my attachment to Town A. My family has always lived here; I'm dating someone here who would not move to City B with me; most of my closest friends are here. It's a great community with wonderful quality of life. It's very clear to me that this is where I'd ultimately like to settle down, raise a family, and practice medicine.

City B is significantly larger and has a different culture. I do have friends there and enjoy visiting, but the thought of relocating there for four years makes me cringe. When I moved to new places after college, I had a hard time landing on my feet and struggled with depression (now managed very well). Since moving back to Town A, I've had a strong support network and have felt genuinely happy and well-adjusted. On one hand, it seems short-sighted to throw that away, and moving to City B feels like a big risk. On the other hand, I can't help but wonder if I'm letting my mental health history limit my professional aspirations -- that I'm afraid to reach as high as I could because of how it may destabilize my personal life, but maybe down the road I'll regret having turned down those opportunities.

Still waiting on financial aid packages, so it's hard to compare costs. But let's assume that if there is a significant difference, I'd be willing to take out the extra loans for whichever school is more expensive, if it is otherwise the better choice.

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[rednote]

I suggest you just name the school A and B so people who know about the schools or goes to the respective schools can chime in

 

[D2D]

I would say to put your mental and physical health first and foremost. If you are extremely confident you will thrive at school B, then go there... however the words you used to describe the school and the city aren't very positive at all except for the "opens doors" part. So my suggestion would be stick with your hometown and maybe learning to manage your health even better you could move elsewhere for residency.

 

[JMMTB]

Definitely sounds like you like school A more and that it fits your overall goals. It also sounds like you have a better support system there as well.

 

[felixfelicis]

Just based on what you said, I think going to school A is the clear winner. It's easy to think that you need to always choose the most prestigious option at every fork in the road, because that's what most people do for undergrad and med school. I think the self-aware person can think critically about each fork rather than diligently (but perhaps blindly) follow the powerful temptation of prestige. Life is but a mist already, but to spend %5-10 of it in a predictably miserable condition does not sound very rational. You need not fear wasting your talent. Med school will be challenging. And if you do decide to want to travel for residency, you can match in a specialty and location of your choice so long as you work to be a "big fish." You write like a very intelligent person so I don't think that is an unreasonable condition.

It's also worth noting that this is not the last time you will have to make a decision that forces you to rank your priorities.

Ultimately though I think you should talk to older med students, residents, and physicians.

 

[occams_razor]

School A! It sounds like you will be much happier there and that's where your support system will be.

 

[pantalaimonslabyrinth]

Thanks for the thoughtful advice, everyone. It's really hard to say no to a big name, but I am much more strongly attached to School A. It's validating that even within the pressure cooker that is SDN, folks seem to agree that that is the clear better choice and I would not be passing up an unmissable opportunity by going there.

I suggest you just name the school A and B so people who know about the schools or goes to the respective schools can chime in

I didn't name the schools because I'm not really looking for a factual comparison between them. I think I have a pretty good idea of how they stack up, and am more interested in general input on which factors to weigh in the decision-making process -- I wanted to see how people would respond without being influenced by the specific schools in question. But, for what it's worth, School A is University of Vermont and School B is Harvard.

 

[crimsonmd2019]

Disclaimer: I am a student at HMS. That said, I am not someone who believes HMS is far and away the best program in the country. I do think, however, that it is one of the best in terms of affording opportunities, providing great clinical training, and supporting its students. I have felt incredibly at home here, and I'm sure you would get that at both schools.

Here's the extra kick HMS provides: you have the opportunity to train (and invariably will train) at two top ten hospitals (BWH and MGH) and one of the top pediatric hospitals. Even in first year, the amount of amazing faculty I have had the opportunity to work with has been really awesome. Our match list is pretty outstanding year-after-year, and it's a testament to both our students and our advising. That said, I'm sure UVM would give great opportunities too, I'm just not as familiar so I can't speak to it.

I can say you should take some of your career goals into account when making this decision. HMS matches almost exclusively to some of the best residency training programs in the country, and after speaking to some residents I knew last year, I made my decision based on that fact. There is a lot of talk on SDN about medical school name not mattering in the residency process, but frankly that just isn't the whole truth. Top programs have connections that allow their students to consistently match at top residency programs. Compare HMS' IM match list (or Stanford's, or Penn's) and you'll see that this holds true. It's not that every student at these schools destroyed Step 1; there is unfortunately a large degree of connections that goes into this process. If you are looking to match into a really competitive residency, HMS and other top programs simply have an advantage.

My best plug for HMS, though, is this: we get tons of applications every year, and the admissions staff can construct basically any class they want. They wanted you for the class, and you were very intentionally picked over other qualified candidates. They believe you have something special to offer the class (especially if you aren't the standard stellar GPA/99.9th percentile MCAT all star), and I know they truly want you to be a part of it (they tell us students how much effort they want us to put into recruitment, because they really want all of you to come). I was considering a few top 5 schools, and more than any HMS students had less of the cookie cutter feel than the others - they clearly want a wide array of diverse students. They also believe you can be successful here, and they will support you in every way they can across your journey - I can personally attest to that having had some mental health problems last semester. Feel free to reach out to any current students to air your concerns - also message me if you want more info! Congrats again!

 

[ERDOC555]

Thanks for the thoughtful advice, everyone. It's really hard to say no to a big name, but I am much more strongly attached to School A. It's validating that even within the pressure cooker that is SDN, folks seem to agree that that is the clear better choice and I would not be passing up an unmissable opportunity by going there.




I didn't name the schools because I'm not really looking for a factual comparison between them. I think I have a pretty good idea of how they stack up, and am more interested in general input on which factors to weigh in the decision-making process -- I wanted to see how people would respond without being influenced by the specific schools in question. But, for what it's worth, School A is University of Vermont and School B is Harvard.

Haha! At first I thought it was silly not to name the schools, but honestly that does influence the opinions you will get. Few people will ever tell you to turn down Harvard, so a school A vs B is likely to be much less biased. Congratulations on both though! I would go wherever you will be happiest and where you will take on the least debt (hopefully these are the same)!