Yale vs U of Michigan

[AstoriaWaldorf]

Yale (~$60k/yr scholarship)
Pros

• Yale System: seems very relaxed with lots of time for ECs
• Pass/fail clinicals
• Great match list in the specialties I'm interested in
• Yale name/prestige especially for non-medical folks
• Long train ride or short plane ride from family and friends
• Smaller class size (~100)

Cons

• Very heavy research focus, required thesis and majority of students take a research year and I am not really interested in research
• New Haven < Ann Arbor
• Did undergrad in Connecticut and want to try something new
• Am a nontrad and seems to skew younger
• Worried that the Yale System might be too chill and I might slack off

Michigan (full tuition scholarship)
Pros

• 1yr preclinical, which gives lots more time for exploration and ECs in year 3 and 4 (very psyched about this)
• Great vibes from students, feel like I fit in a little better
• Very warm and organized vibe from admin thru admissions process
• Ann Arbor seems awesome with lots of options for outdoor activities, great restaurants, etc..
• Lots of love for nontrads
• Also great match list for specialties I'm interested in
• Focus on mentorship and community building

Cons

• Plane ride from family and friends
• Required capstone, but seems to be more chill than Yale's thesis requirement
• 1yr preclinical could be stressful or super packed
• Larger class size (~170)
• H/HP/P/F clinicals

Ultimately, I see myself wanting to focus on clinical skills and knowledge during medical school. I'm also very interested in working with underserved populations and finding opportunities to study and address health disparities in the community. I'm definitely not interested in the most competitive specialties like derm, ortho, ophtho, or surgery of any kind, but I want to keep my options open for residencies around the country.

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[orangestar9]

You seem much more excited about UMich and it seems like you prefer the fit there. Better fit + better financial package with similar prestige for your interests makes me say UMich no doubt!

 

[brown_skin_girl]

Congrats on your choices. I have a similar decision. It sounds like you are more excited for Michigan. I would encourage you to visit campus, but it sounds like Michigan is a better fit financially and socially.

 

[crimson-cat]

Go blue

 

[doctorBsquared]

Most of the people I know here at Yale are nontrads, so maybe you just met with a small group that isn't representative. There is a big focus on research for sure, but that research does not have to be your usual bench-side or clinical studies work. You can do projects on medical education (one of my friends is doing medical simulation research which is all about clinical skills and how to help students acquire them) as well as outreach-style projects/observational studies with the underserved either locally or through global health opps. The boundary for 'research' is a lot broader than you might think. There are also plenty of optional quizzes and workshops and assessments to gauge how you're doing if you're afraid of falling behind in the flexible system.
But with all that said, if you are still confident you will be happier in Ann Arbor, Michigan is also a fantastic med school!

 

[AstoriaWaldorf]

Most of the people I know here at Yale are nontrads, so maybe you just met with a small group that isn't representative. There is a big focus on research for sure, but that research does not have to be your usual bench-side or clinical studies work. You can do projects on medical education (one of my friends is doing medical simulation research which is all about clinical skills and how to help students acquire them) as well as outreach-style projects/observational studies with the underserved either locally or through global health opps. The boundary for 'research' is a lot broader than you might think. There are also plenty of optional quizzes and workshops and assessments to gauge how you're doing if you're afraid of falling behind in the flexible system.
But with all that said, if you are still confident you will be happier in Ann Arbor, Michigan is also a fantastic med school!

This is super helpful, thank you! It's hard to get a thorough impression of a school just from talking to a handful of students.
If you don't mind answering a direct question -- how have you found the faculty? I only talked to two, and both seemed much more interested in and focused on their own research than they did on seeing patients and teaching clinical skills.

 

[doctorBsquared]

This is super helpful, thank you! It's hard to get a thorough impression of a school just from talking to a handful of students.
If you don't mind answering a direct question -- how have you found the faculty? I only talked to two, and both seemed much more interested in and focused on their own research than they did on seeing patients and teaching clinical skills.

You're welcome! Happy to answer questions. I don't have any data on this, but I think you would find that at most academic centers, the vast majority of the faculty are involved in research, and only a few are more directly involved in teaching clinical skills. Yale has more than 4 faculty for every medical student (Mich is probably similar, IDK), so only a small sliver of total faculty are directly involved in teaching clinical skills. I can say that the faculty tend to be passionate about whatever they do. The ones that I have spent time with in the hospital during clinical experiences and the ones that have taught courses on interviewing patients/clinical skills all seem to love teaching and value being a good doctor as opposed to just a good scientist.

 

[traveler15]

congrats on two great acceptances! I would say Michigan. It is a great school and you will have no debt! You also seem more excited about Ann Arbor, and it is four years of your life so pick the better city for you, especially since they both are top tier schools.