Wisconsin vs. Michigan vs. Columbia / Pitt (WL)

[synapsis123]

Wisconsin
Pros

• In-state tuition (40k/year), potential scholarship but haven’t received any more info yet
• Close to family
• Have guidance from current and former medical students here so it might be easier to find cool/good opportunities
• Familiar with Madison and know what to expect in terms of lifestyle

Cons

• Don’t particularly like Madison or Wisconsin for that matter
• P/F for first year but quartile ranking for class in later years
• Have to do rotations outside of Madison which requires a car
• Lower ranked than Michigan and the WL schools I’m interested in
• Would prefer to be on the East Coast long term, likely NYC
• Weather

University of Michigan
Pros

• 1 year preclinical seems like it’ll give me a lot of free time in later years so I can make sure to do research for a specialty
• M1’s here seemed incredibly happy in interviews and activities … but seemed almost too good to be true
• Community seemed really strong in regards to counseling / faculty mentorship etc
• Higher ranked (~15th vs ~25th at UW)
• Might be easier to move out East after given match list(?)

Cons

• Out-of-state tuition (68k/year)
• M1 seems stressful but flex testing anytime from Friday to Sunday might mitigate that.
• Seemed like a lot of the class is full of resume-stackers/gunners based off my interview experience
• Moving to a brand new city could be a challenge
• Might have to do rotations outside of Ann Arbor as well, not sure
• Weather

I’m also at the waitlist at a couple of schools (Pitt, Columbia, Kaiser, etc), my favorite of which is Columbia and where I’ve sent a LOI saying that I’ll attend if taken off the waitlist…but that’s a longshot likely…I’ve also been waitlisted at Pitt which seems great because of their 5 year research programs and location but I’m not sure if I should sent a letter or do anything like that there?



Columbia (WL)
Pros

• Top choice, love NYC, went here for undergrad
• Currently work here, have research and mentorship opportunities already set up
• Close to friends

Cons

• Out-of-state tuition (65k/year)
• NYC can be difficult to live in sometimes
• Not sure how much waitlist activity there is here

Summary: Is it worth it to go to a slightly higher ranked med school in light of recent changes in residency application process like P/F Step 1? Wisconsin or Michigan?

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[Shunsui]

nope. that difference in COA is absurd. I really don't think prestige of a medical school makes that much of a difference when matching programs unless you're looking at a top tier academic program and comparing a T10 to a low tier MD. I don't believe the difference between UMich and Wisc is worth the difference in COA. More important to have a strong in house program at your school for the specialities you're interested in imo

 

[Banco]

Both Wisconsin and Michigan are highly regarded schools, with Michigan edging it out a little bit. You will be successful at both. I don't think you will have issues coming to the east coast/NYC from either of those schools come residency time.

Sounds like you like Michigan more. Only you can decide if 110k+ is worth the difference in prestige/opportunities/fit. It's not unplayable per se as an attending, but it just depends on your financial situation. At the current moment though I would lean Wisconsin. Maybe wait to see if you get more financial aid from either school.

 

[synapsis123]

Yeah I agree with both of you so far it seems...especially given that everything has been online so far, I don’t really have super strong feelings towards any school in particular, so it might make sense to go with the “best at the best price” option with Wisconsin and try to match into residencies on the east coast later. Would y’all say the same thing for Wisconsin vs. Columbia if I happen to get off the waitlist? It feels more worth it bc of the higher rank and ability to stay in NYC for another four years.

 

[cc2425]

If I were you I’d pick Wisconsin over Michigan because saving over 100k (more including loan interest) should make up for the stuff you don’t like about Wisconsin. In terms of location and prestige they’re not different enough to go to Michigan in my opinion. That being said, I’d see if Columbia could give you some good aid if you got in because I think it would be worth it to go there.

 

[Putkernerinthehall]

Between WI and MI, I'd go Wisconsin in your case. If you are accepted to Columbia, I'd probably go there based on your post. Are you leaning toward a particular specialty?

 

[mellex17]

I agree that between Michigan and Wisconsin I would probably take Wisconsin because of the cost difference.

One thing to note though (and idk if it would affect your decision) is that UMich tuition is only 68k for the first 3 years and then drops to 45k for the 4th year because of how they organize terms. If you divide the cost equally among the 4 years it's closer to $62,500 per year OOS.

 

[lanadelgay124]

I came here to say Michigan before I saw the cost difference; the ranking difference between the two (WI and MI), imho, is not significant enough to warrant a 110k price tag. That's steep.

 

[catnip12]

I’m a Phase II Wisconsin student. Feel free to shoot me a PM if you have questions.

 

[crimson-cat]

Hard to weigh in without further idea of how much you don't want to live in Madison and what your other interests/goals are. Michigan is in the top 10-20 in pretty much everything it touches, so it has strong research and brand recognition in most things if you are looking for specific research / non-clinical things. It's also supposedly the school with the student's best prepared for intern year and they match quite well. Also something to keep in mind as a premed looking at rankings, is people care about historic strength, lobbying driven variations in USNews. The residency director rankings are a bit more in line with what people who matter think. As you can see Michigan ranks higher than any other school on your list.

That all being said, 110k cheaper and living near family is nothing to take lightly. I'm sure you'll succeed in either place, but just wanted to share a little more info that could be useful in making your decision. Best of luck

 

[9blade]

Honestly, it would depend on what you want to do career wise. If you want to do something competitive and you get off the waitlist at Columbia, I would go with Columbia obviously. Now between Wisconsin and Michigan, I know both are regarded highly, but Michigan has a lot of residency programs ranked really high. If you want to do something like say neurosurgery, I might be inclined to take the Michigan offer even though it's more expensive. That's just my opinion though. Now, after having said that, 100k is still 100k. That's a lot of money. Michigan is usually good at matching FA. Have you contacted them about matching?

 

[BritainKittenMittens]

Honestly, it would depend on what you want to do career wise. If you want to do something competitive and you get off the waitlist at Columbia, I would go with Columbia obviously. Now between Wisconsin and Michigan, I know both are regarded highly, but Michigan has a lot of residency programs ranked really high. If you want to do something like say neurosurgery, I might be inclined to take the Michigan offer even though it's more expensive. That's just my opinion though. Now, after having said that, 100k is still 100k. That's a lot of money. Michigan is usually good at matching FA. Have you contacted them about matching?

I agree with this. An extra 25k a year to go to your dream school over one you're much less excited about is a no brainer, so Columbia if you can get off the WL. Between Wisconsin and Michigan, many people have said go with Wisconsin. That makes sense if you prefer it for location, but Michigan has a considerably better medical reputation that could warrant an extra 25k a year, depending on goals. Also curious where OP got that the students seem gunnery from the interview experience. It's so hard to tell over limited virtual interviewing, but generally, Columbia is known to have more of the gunner vibe so it's kinda ironic.

 

[synapsis123]

In all honesty, I’m not sure about specialty...that’s something I’ve been trying to think about lately...right now I’m considering things like EM, Gen surg, or plastic/reconstructive surgery possibly. All speculation just based on the things I found interesting when shadowing. I am definitely looking for a field with a good work-life balance and interesting research though, which seems like it tends to be the competitive ones. Given that I don’t know, that’s why it’s been hard to justify Michigan over Wisconsin definitively. Where can I find information on residency rankings? As much as I understand, it seems like having a good department in the field you want to go to is important so I can get rec letters for residency right, so that’s where these rankings would matter? And in regards to Columbia, yeah I would definitely pay more for it I think, it really seems like my dream school in regards to location, connections, etc. Does anyone know how much WL movement there is there or at other schools like it? In regards to the gunner vibes, you’re right in that I can’t really know because of online interviews, and I’m basing that solely off my interactions with M1s during interviews, which is probably hugely different from the vibe in reality. I know Columbia is intense/gunner though, and I’m okay with that given it’s my ideal school, more concerned with that when it’s Wisconsin vs Michigan...I don’t want to pay more and then also be in an environment where I also have to work 2x as hard to get to the resources I need.

 

[BritainKittenMittens]

People are referring to and

Also, Michigan recently fell from T10 but many still consider it to be because historically it has been around there 2020-2021 Columbia VP&S

 

[BullBearMan]

People are referring to and

Also, Michigan recently fell from T10 but many still consider it to be because historically it has been around there 2020-2021 Columbia VP&S

Wow, interesting that Feinberg has the highest step1 and 2 averages