I was just accepted into both UCONN’s Special Program in Medicine and the Union/AMC program. I was wondering if anyone could give some insight or advice when it comes to choosing between the two? Whether it be cost, better residencies, area, opportunities, overall atmosphere. I know Union is much more expensive that Uconn, so I guess I also want to know is Union/AMC worth the extra money?
@linda99 Suggest post in this year thread also since more people are active there and you may get response. There was a student last year who got U/AMC and also higher ranked program (CWRU) but got Presidential Scholarship in Union. But I believe even then it is not that much ($20k or so). May be some other reason for his decision. So you can PM him. Some general factors you can consider are, the location, and feel and like for each school. Both are cold places but Albany is not that great but no idea about UConn city. Since you are going to spend a good amount of time 8 years, you should like the place and school more than anything. Since you attended in person interviews, you should recall your experience and reach out to folks in both schools. Union no need for MCAT and UConn MCAT needed but that should be a deal breaker. Did you get any scholarship in these 2 places?
UConn is rated much better than AMC for Medicine and you can confirm that their match list reflects the same. If we had to make the choice, we’d choose UConn.
Congratulations to you! My daughter applied to both programs as well but was not accepted into Union’s program but was accepted to UCONN SPIM. She was accepted to Union College undergrad with a nice merit scholarship award. We are going to both admitted students days. Here is my take on the two programs - UCONN undergrad is a huge school/program. Will you do well in that environment? UCONN medical school is much better than Albany. If you go to Union you do NOT need to take the MCAT to go to Albany Medical School but at UCONN you still need to study and take the MCAT and pass in the 80th percentile. So if you aren’t a great test taker Union may be better. If price is an issue 8 years at UCONN cost the same as 4 years at Union College for CT resident. The UCONN cohort is small and faculty and staff work hard to make sure they are all successful in the program. Finally, UCONN has 99% placement in med students’ first choice for residencies. I don’t know the stats for Albany. Good luck!