I have been admitted to Lehigh, Villanova, Trinity (CT), American, and Colby. I am thinking of majoring in Psychology on the Pre-med track. In terms of financial aid, Colby gave me the most money BY FAR and I would graduate with no debt. Villanova has always been my top choice, but they barely gave me any money and I would be taking out 22k in student loans over 4 years. The other three schools all gave me decent aid packages that wouldn’t require loans on my part, but would be a bit more expensive for my parents. Please give advice based on what college is best for pre-med in regards to pre-med reputation, available internships, etc. Thank you!
What are your net costs at each of these colleges? Remember, if you do end up in medical school, your aid will be loans, loans and more loans. Try to keep your undergrad debt to a minimum.
If you really want one of the other schools, you can ask for them to match Colby’s fin aid package. Keep in mind that any money your parents had saved for you, or can contribute now, needs to be directed towards medical school.
Remember, all you need to get into med school is excellent grades in your premeds, and high MCATs, plus a good GPA overall, and some kind of work or volunteer exposure to clinical medicine. You can get this at many schools. So work the fin aid game, and go where you get the best deal that you can, at a school you want to go to.
For Colby, my net cost is $19k. For Trinity, my net cost is $25k For Lehigh, my net cost is $32k plus $7,500 in loans. For American, my net cost is $33k plus $5,500 in loans and a $2,000 work-study. For Villanova, my net cost is $41k plus $5,500 in loans and a $3,000 work-study.
Colby sounds like a bargain at that price, cheaper than a lot of state schools, with Trinity not far behind. If I were in your shoes, I’d limit my choice to those two. They’re different enough that you can probably find the right fit for you in one or the other.
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Colby easily the best school on the list, AU easily “not the best” - but Colby is small and in Maine and AU is “near” DC - a 15 minute walk to Tenleytown and a 10 minute subway ride to the action.
Colby is elite - and Trinity and Lehigh are both great.
Most pre-med never sniff med school - so I’d go for pedigree, prestige, and lack of debt - Colby assuming you are ok with a small, isolated town and cold weather - because fit absolutely matters.