Hello, everyone. I feel super fortunate to have gotten two acceptances to medical school this year, to the University of California Riverside, and the University of Colorado Anschutz.
Since I am a southern California native, I thought going to UCR would be an easy decision if I were to get in. But after doing some research, I have started to consider Colorado more seriously. I am very torn, and would greatly appreciate any input that current medical students from anywhere would be able to give me. Here is a brief Pros & Cons list I have gathered. Please feel free to comment on whether you think any of these points are more/less important than others, important points I might have missed about either school, or general advice. Thank you so much!
UC Riverside
Pros:
- P/F Pre-Clinical Grading
- Close to home/friends/family
- In-State Tuition is HALF THE PRICE of CU!
- UC system funding and affiliation (possibly helpful for residency matches?)
Cons:
- Newer school with perhaps less resources
- Lower ranked/less prestigious?
- Less research funding and opportunities
CU Anschutz
Pros:
- P/F Pre-Clinical Grading
- Very well funded research labs
- Several Home Residency Programs including competitive ones like Plastic/Derm (possibly helpful for residency matches?)
- Higher ranked/more prestigious? (possibly also helpful for residency matches?)
- Close to Denver, with a seemingly nice mix of urban/outdoorsy culture
Cons:
- Again, DOUBLE the price
- Far from home/friends/family
- Apparently has an overwhelming amount of required in-person sessions (Reddit, 2021)
PS: reposted from the MD thread not knowing about this one. Discussion at the moment is whether or not Home Residency programs at CU provide a match advantage (for an extra $200k)
Since I am a southern California native, I thought going to UCR would be an easy decision if I were to get in. But after doing some research, I have started to consider Colorado more seriously. I am very torn, and would greatly appreciate any input that current medical students from anywhere would be able to give me. Here is a brief Pros & Cons list I have gathered. Please feel free to comment on whether you think any of these points are more/less important than others, important points I might have missed about either school, or general advice. Thank you so much!
UC Riverside
Pros:
- P/F Pre-Clinical Grading
- Close to home/friends/family
- In-State Tuition is HALF THE PRICE of CU!
- UC system funding and affiliation (possibly helpful for residency matches?)
Cons:
- Newer school with perhaps less resources
- Lower ranked/less prestigious?
- Less research funding and opportunities
CU Anschutz
Pros:
- P/F Pre-Clinical Grading
- Very well funded research labs
- Several Home Residency Programs including competitive ones like Plastic/Derm (possibly helpful for residency matches?)
- Higher ranked/more prestigious? (possibly also helpful for residency matches?)
- Close to Denver, with a seemingly nice mix of urban/outdoorsy culture
Cons:
- Again, DOUBLE the price
- Far from home/friends/family
- Apparently has an overwhelming amount of required in-person sessions (Reddit, 2021)
PS: reposted from the MD thread not knowing about this one. Discussion at the moment is whether or not Home Residency programs at CU provide a match advantage (for an extra $200k)