I am currently a senior in high school, and am very interested in studying Medicine. I have to decide which college to go to in May and it’s so nerve-wracking!
So I have been accepted into the U CLA (University of Minnesota College of Liberal Arts) and UMR (University of Minnesota Rochester) and I was wondering, which is a better college of choice for a pre-med student? I am aware that UMR focuses on Health Science, and it’s right next to the Mayo Clinic (how convenient!), but the U is pretty well known across nations and that would greatly affect my chances of work?
So anyone who have prior knowledge or went through this dilemma, please help clarify or shed any lights to which college would best suit me. Thank you!
My cousin attends UMR and she continually raves about the opportunities you have as a UMR student. You are literally in the heart of the Mayo Clinic, so many of the students at UMR volunteer with the Mayo Clinic. Based off of what I could gather from my cousin’s perspective and friends who attend, UMR only offers one major: Bachelor of Science in Health Sciences. Most people say that this major is sort of like a stepping stone major because most people who attend UMR are aiming to become doctors, nurses, pharmacy technicians so they will go to med school/grad school etc they also say that people who go to UMR don’t stop their education once they get their degree since a Bachelors in Science won’t do very much in relation to other degrees. If you are certain you are headed on the medical route I would DEFINITELY pick UMR over U-CLA.
Keep in mind that each graduating class within UMR is 100 or so students (give or take) so it’s a lot more of a tighter knit community whereas the UMN serves a broader population. If you are still debating on your future career plans and would like to experience different types of courses beyond the medical track, UMN-TC is a good place to start.
UMR’s classes are all medical based from math to leadership development etc everything is medical based so I often overhear many students complaining that they get burnt out so easily from all the science-related courses. It’s also very hard to transfer from UMR to UMN-TC because some of the credits don’t easily transfer, versus it being easier to transfer from UMN-TC to UMR.
I would also suggest touring both campuses if you haven’t already done so. UMR students vs UMN-TC are very different so both campuses will give you different vibes.
I would also note that you shouldn’t decide solely on the fact that “The U is pretty well known across nations and that would greatly affect my chances of work.”
Ultimately this decision is your decision, but I would factor in the campus vibe, your future career goals, how confident you are in pursuing those career goes, location, opportunities, etc. UMR and UMN-TC are both very great schools, so it will definitely be a hard decision and I wish you the best.