Hi everyone, I’m grateful for the acceptances and thank everyone here for all the help throughout the cycle. I’m waitlisted at my dream school, so currently choosing between Georgetown and UICOM.
As context, am interested in surgery (or anesthesia).
Georgetown (Tuition: $67k/yr)
Pros:
+++ Pass/Fail for first two years AND core clinical rotations, tiered grading for the last phase, no AOA: I am super neurotic about 3rd year. I’m introverted, so it may take me time to get comfortable performing during rotations, and a whole year without worrying about subjective evaluations would be such a relief
++ 1.5 year preclinical: early clinical experience is a plus
++ match list for ortho and anesthesia was insane (18 people into each, and many more in other competitive specialities)
++ MedStar is a big hospital system, well known in east coast
++ students during second look mentioned that school name helped a little, especially since Step 1 is pass/fail
++ research is accessible for most specialties
++ students mentioned that the class is tight knit
+ would be nice to live in new location after being around Chicago all my life
+ very beautiful surrounding neighborhood
+ feel like I really connected with others during second look day
Cons:
- - - higher tuition and cost of living
- - - not near Midwest, where I want to match
- - exams are in-house
- the inside of the buildings seem really old/ugly
UICOM (Chicago) ($47k/yr)
Pros:
+++ in the city I want to match in
+++ cheaper tuition
+++ near family and friends
++ lots of research, especially considering Rush is a block away and two other schools nearby as well
++ NBME style exams the first two years
++ may get accepted to IMED Scholarly Concentration (innovation focused) related to my computational background
++ UI System is also gigantic
+ newer, better, and more modern buildings (and a really nice simulation lab)
Cons:
- - - tiered grading for third year and AOA, makes it seem more stressful (I’d rather do research and get a higher Step 2 score to stand out)
- - there is a chance my family would want me to commute from home, and I’d be miserable driving 40min-1hr through Chicago traffic
- - not as many people match into surgery
- didn’t connect as well with students on second look day (this could be my own fault)
- I tried joining a NSGY lab this month, got invited to one of their weekly meetings and then got ghosted afterwards so it left a bad taste (I know this is probably not a big deal)
I will comment more if I remember anything. If there is anything I missed, please let me know.
I’m also on the waitlist for Carle and Stritch which have a lot of waitlist movement, but I am unlikely to choose these two (unless someone mentions a good reason to highly consider them in the case I get accepted).
As context, am interested in surgery (or anesthesia).
Georgetown (Tuition: $67k/yr)
Pros:
+++ Pass/Fail for first two years AND core clinical rotations, tiered grading for the last phase, no AOA: I am super neurotic about 3rd year. I’m introverted, so it may take me time to get comfortable performing during rotations, and a whole year without worrying about subjective evaluations would be such a relief
++ 1.5 year preclinical: early clinical experience is a plus
++ match list for ortho and anesthesia was insane (18 people into each, and many more in other competitive specialities)
++ MedStar is a big hospital system, well known in east coast
++ students during second look mentioned that school name helped a little, especially since Step 1 is pass/fail
++ research is accessible for most specialties
++ students mentioned that the class is tight knit
+ would be nice to live in new location after being around Chicago all my life
+ very beautiful surrounding neighborhood
+ feel like I really connected with others during second look day
Cons:
- - - higher tuition and cost of living
- - - not near Midwest, where I want to match
- - exams are in-house
- the inside of the buildings seem really old/ugly
UICOM (Chicago) ($47k/yr)
Pros:
+++ in the city I want to match in
+++ cheaper tuition
+++ near family and friends
++ lots of research, especially considering Rush is a block away and two other schools nearby as well
++ NBME style exams the first two years
++ may get accepted to IMED Scholarly Concentration (innovation focused) related to my computational background
++ UI System is also gigantic
+ newer, better, and more modern buildings (and a really nice simulation lab)
Cons:
- - - tiered grading for third year and AOA, makes it seem more stressful (I’d rather do research and get a higher Step 2 score to stand out)
- - there is a chance my family would want me to commute from home, and I’d be miserable driving 40min-1hr through Chicago traffic
- - not as many people match into surgery
- didn’t connect as well with students on second look day (this could be my own fault)
- I tried joining a NSGY lab this month, got invited to one of their weekly meetings and then got ghosted afterwards so it left a bad taste (I know this is probably not a big deal)
I will comment more if I remember anything. If there is anything I missed, please let me know.
I’m also on the waitlist for Carle and Stritch which have a lot of waitlist movement, but I am unlikely to choose these two (unless someone mentions a good reason to highly consider them in the case I get accepted).
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