I’m trying to decide where to attend this coming fall and I aspire to go to medical school to become a doctor. I’ve read numerous articles and gotten tons of advice from counselors, teachers etc. Unfortunately, it is often very conflicting. The question I’m wondering is would I be better off going to a larger research university in a bigger city where I could do research, maybe publish a research paper, volunteer/shadow at hospitals and utilize other pre-med resources, while I wouldn’t get as good of faculty relations and intimate classes. Or is it better to go to a liberal arts schools, that may be in a rural setting and lack, hospitals, research opportunities and pre-med resources, because of the professor relations and opportunities that come with a smaller college? I’m aiming to go to a top 20 medical school and I just want to set myself up in the best way possible so I can ultimately achieve my goal. Has anyone had a similar dilemma? or have people been through this process and would you be willing to share your take on the whole thing?
Here are my school options (I’ve been accepted to all of them):
Small liberal arts options:
Macalester
Hamilton
Carleton
Allegheny
Middlebury
Bowdoin
College of Wooster
Bigger research Universities:
University of Washington
Boston College
University of Vermont (Honors College)
Emory University
Carleton is in a small town but there is a hospital there as well a clinic that provides care to those who do not insurance or can’t afford their co pays. Student do volunteer there. Macalester in an urban area and you could uber to hospitals if the bus line doesn’t go there. There are also a large number of medical device companies that take interns if your interests change at all.
My take is that if you choose your summers wisely you will be able to fill out the what ever gaps you feel there is in your application. Personally, I don’t think there really will be any just by attending a LAC. Lots of students go from them to med school.
I would choose Middlebury, Carleton or Bowdoin, depending on which I preferred for other reasons. The better LACs place a larger percentage of their students into medical school, and you acually have great access to research because you have no grad student competition for the research spots.
As you spend time in your respective choices’ science buildings you may – and, with luck, will – develop a sense of where you would feel most at home over the next four years.