Hey Everyone! I previously picked VCU for medical school but I was just accepted to the University of Wisconsin off of the waitlist and am looking for advice. I would love people's opinions especially former students of these schools!
VCU
Pros
Cons
Pros
Cons
Summary: VCU is near "family", has a great curriculum and great weather, but the COA is high and the school seems disorganized. UW-Madison is highly ranked, may have better research opportunities and more helpful staff, but the weather seems rough, there is likely lower diversity and I didn't have the chance to visit for a "vibe" check. I would love all y'all's thoughts as I try and decide!
VCU
Pros
- Curriculum seems intuitive/systems-based which I like
- Dedicated Step prep time (6wks for Step1, 4wks for Step 2)
- Home hospital
- Has 3+3 program where you can do 3 years of medical school and then match into VCU's residency for certain specialties (I am thinking IM).
- Slightly cheaper COL (plus give more $/year for living expenses)
- Have friends from grad school who recently moved to the area and kind of a 2nd family type support-system here
- More diversity (student and patient-population wise)
- Weather (I hate humidity/heat but after summer it's like Fall weather year-round)
- P/F for pre-clinical
Cons
- Students seemed more into the city-life and I would likely live about 20 min out
- Sounds like med students do more of their own thing vs do stuff with each other
- Have heard mixed reviews about their remediation policy (not sure how it works exactly).
- Staff via email are not as responsive and sometimes come off unfriendly.
- School seems kind of disorganized (website doesn't show up correct, mixed capitalization in emails, etc)- I know it's minor but wondering if it is a theme
- VERY expensive ($384K total).
Pros
- Highly ranked (T50)
- Staff seem very responsive and kind (not sure if it's indicative of other things)
- May be able to get a scholarship
- P/F for pre-clinical
- Slightly higher step scores
- Have a couple of friends within driving distance
- May have better research opportunities
Cons
- Less diversity both within the class and patient population (I am Hispanic so I worry about it).
- COL is slightly higher than VA
- Was unable to visit so not sure how I feel about the area and never got to interact with other admitted students
- Snow/Winter
Summary: VCU is near "family", has a great curriculum and great weather, but the COA is high and the school seems disorganized. UW-Madison is highly ranked, may have better research opportunities and more helpful staff, but the weather seems rough, there is likely lower diversity and I didn't have the chance to visit for a "vibe" check. I would love all y'all's thoughts as I try and decide!