Hello!
I am a senior in high school and I (by good luck and the grace of God) have been accepted to Case Western Reserve University and the Oxford College of Emory. The May deadline is approaching and I’m finding it really hard to make a decision.
Background info about me:
I want to pursue a degree in the STEM fields on a pre-med track
Extracurriculars are important to me- A student-run EMT service, bhangra team, and band would be nice
Which school is best for a pre-med student? It’s hard to get advice from people around me because I live in the south so everyone has a bias towards Emory (especially because some of them don’t know what Case Western is:(
If you do premed from Oxford College… will you get the same opportunity like the premed students from Emory College. These include availability of doc shadowing, clinical hours, research hours and volunteering. Emory has a better overall ranking than CW but the ranking of the respective medical schools are similar. I know quite a few kids doing premed at Emory College. As expected, competition among themselves and among peers are intense. For premed students, getting the best GPA and the best MCAT prep PLUS the abundance of EC to beef up the application (and set you apart from the whole bucket of look alike students on paper is critically important. You should visit both schools and talk to premed students there and see what they say. Oxford college definitely is smaller and you will not have 200-300 kids in the Freshman biology/chemistry classes as with CW. CW is right at the center of multiple hospitals and facilities (right on campus or within 5 minute drive) and with a medium size student body and no other significant competitions nearby for premed, finding a doc to shadow or have many clinical hrs will be a breeze. It is a balance, all comes down what do you want. Cleveland is cold and snowy in winter, so there will be adjustments for those not familiar with the weather there.
Congratulations on two great choices! I don’t see a “wrong” choice here; go with the one you prefer. Emory is terrific and you know all about it. CWRU is also terrific, including for all the reasons listed in Post #1 (research hospitals/opportunities). I’d personally prefer to be on the main campus all four years, if possible, and all other things are equal. CWRU is in a nice area of Cleveland with lots of places to go (Euclid Ave., Little Italy, museums, etc.) that are walkable. It is cold and gray. Ask yourself, will I roll out of my freshman dorm room and walk 15 minutes to make it to a Calc or Chem class at 8:30 in the morning, when it’s 10 degrees outside, and there’s snow and ice all around? If yes, then certainly choose CWRU if that’s where you want to be. If, um, maybe not, then you might want to stick with Emory. Most importantly, make your own choice (if money is not an issue). You’re the one who will be living and learning there for the next four years. Good luck!
Oxford is much smaller and less competitive than Emory. You’ll take the first two years of premed classes (Intro Chem, Orgo, Bio) at Oxford then switch to Emory for junior/senior year.
Weather could be a factor for you - are you prepared for winter? Is cost an issue?
Either school will give you a good pre-med program. CRWU is near hospitals. Emory is too along with CDC HQ, but not Oxford.
The Oxford campus is connected by a shuttle to the main Emory campus and Oxford students can do summer research at the Emory hospital which is located on the Emory Campus along with the CDC - so once you are a junior the hospital is right there. Oxford campus is only for freshman and sophomore year, after that you move to the main Emory campus.