<p>I am trying to decide on what college to go to and would appreciate any advice that anyone has.</p>
<p>Colleges: So far I have been accepted to Georgia Tech, MIT, UVA, Virginia Commonwealth University and the University of Alabama at Birmingham. I applied to the GMED (Guaranteed Admission to Medical School) Program at VCU and UAB's EMSAP (Early Medical School Acceptance Program) but did not receive an interview for either. I have also applied to Johns Hopkins, Duke, and Drexel and am waiting to hear back on admissions decisions.</p>
<p>Scholarships: I did not receive an interview for GT's President's Scholarship. I applied early enough to be considered for VCU's Presidential Scholarship (varying monetary levels up to a full ride). I have already received UAB's Blazer Elite Scholarship ($15000 renewable over 4 years) and am likely going to be a National Merit Finalist (which gives me full tuition, fees, and housing for 4 years plus a one-time $2500 stipend). I am in the process of applying for a Naval ROTC Scholarship.</p>
<p>Future Plans: I will major in biomedical engineering wherever I go (except MIT which technically doesn't have a biomedical engineering major. I would major in mechanical engineering with a focus in biomedical). I am specifically interested in prosthetics design and implementation. After undergrad, I hope to be accepted to an MD/PhD program (I want to have both the research and surgery sides of prosthetics). I have already confirmed with multiple ROTC officers that it is possible (but not guaranteed) to get an 8 year educational delay (for an MD/PhD program).</p>
<p>Other information: Ignoring money, MIT and Georgia Tech are tied for my first choice school. They are both fantastic schools and I absolutely loved their environments. However, they are definitely too expensive for me to go to without a scholarship (or multiple scholarships). UAB is my third choice (I haven't yet visited there but plan to do so soon).</p>
<p>Pros and Cons of MIT: It is a fantastic school with a great reputation, which I feel would help me in both getting a job and getting into grad school. Also, I would be a mechanical engineering major applying to medical school, which would probably help my application. MIT has an NCAA rifle team that I could compete on (I already shoot rifle competitively). However, I would have to go there on a ROTC scholarship, meaning I owe service time after graduating, which could possibly delay going to grad school.</p>
<p>Pros and Cons of GT: Another great school with a great reputation. I also have friends who already go there and family that lives 45 minutes away from there, which would make the high school to college transition easier. However, as with MIT, I would have to go there on a ROTC scholarship.</p>
<p>Pros and Cons of UAB: I have a full ride scholarship and will not owe anything back when I graduate. It is likely that I could keep my GPA higher here than at somewhere like MIT or GT, which seems to be important in medical school admissions. However, it does not have the prestige or academic rigor of MIT or GT.</p>
<p>Basically my decision comes down to this: do I choose to go to a fantastic school like MIT or GT and owe service time afterwards or do I go to a school that is not as highly ranked, like UAB, but not owe anything after graduating?</p>
<p>Any advice on this would be much appreciated!!</p>