Here’s a hypothetical. Based on what happens in late March I’ll have to decide between these schools. I have MIT, waiting on the other two.
Between Columbia and MIT, I don’t know which is better for pre-meds. MIT is definitely the “better school” but the difficulty makes me feel like there are better options out there. Columbia would give a well-rounded education with the Core, but honestly I’m concerned about the about the time-consuming Core classes and the pre-med classes might not be easier than MIT.
As for GW BA/MD, I made it past the interview stage. I love the location (close to home), 7 year schedule, merit scholarships, and guaranteed med will take a lot of stress off. I guess the question is, do these benefits outweigh the undergrad education at an ivy or MIT? I’m confident I’d be able to do well in any school but the stress/security factor is a consideration.
What is your goal with an MD? If it is to be a “normal” practicing physician, going to MIT/Columbia will not matter. If you want to go to one of the top few med schools to get a MD/PhD, going to MIT/Columbia may help. The fact that you applied to the BS/MD program that you did implies that are not interested in high level research.
MIT has only about 1/3 the number of students that actually apply to medical school vs Columbia.
Don’t underestimate the quality of the student population at a place like MIT. The worst student is likely better than the best student at the vast majority of high schools for last 10 years.
As an MIT alumni, I do not think that “better school” is the right term. MIT is academically very challenging. You have to be sure that you want to do it. If you want to work very hard in tough classes and learn an enormous amount, then MIT is a good place to do this. If you want to achieve a “medical school worthy” GPA, I am not so sure. When I applied to graduate schools, they did seem to adjust my GPA to account for the rigor of MIT (at least at the school I actually attended for graduate school). However, I do not know whether or not medical schools do the same.
But then, “work very hard in tough classes and learn an enormous amount” might describe medical school also.
Cost is a very important consideration here. If you want to attend medical school, then you need to be able to fund 8 years of university without taking on too much debt.
Yes.
I agree with this. My daughters were not premed, but they both at more normal universities had majors that overlapped a lot with premed classes, and therefore knew quite a few premed students. It sounds like some of their “also premed” classes were challenging.
I do agree with the responses that suggest that you consider where you would be happier if you decide not to be premed. You also want to find a university that would be a good fit for you.
If you are certain of MD path, then I would say to go for Guaranteed med, if not MIT or Columbia is the best choice. My son is in GW Guaranteed med program now. He started 2021.
Thanks for this. So is the implication that, if I got a 3.6 GPA then I’m already good enough to get into medical schools elsewhere, making the “guaranteed med school” part unneeded?
For me, costs are relevant but they won’t be a deciding factor. With the 7-yr GW program, I’d probably get a merit scholarship with about $25000 a year. Additionally, one less year of school saves about 70k and it also leads to one extra year of making doctor money. Let’s say I make 300k, the net gain would be 370k. Is that a proper way to think about this?
Kind of, you can think that way. And GW takes majority of your AP credits, so the 3 year UG is not that hard and you have more freedom to study for major and minors
Agree but my question came from my S20’s friend. He turned down an Ivy for our state flagship with a full ride, honors and GAP to med school. He changed his mind after freshman year. He’s doing very well in his new path so he’ll be fine.
Not exactly. A 3.6 college GPA is merely what will avoid getting an automatic rejection by some medical schools. But many medical school applicants with 3.6 college GPA still get shut out because there are many other aspects that medical schools consider. Also, the usual process to apply to medical school is time consuming, stressful, and expensive.
It is still better to have an assured place in medical school with a 3.6 college GPA than having to apply competitively with a 3.6 college GPA. But getting a 3.6 college GPA is a lot harder for most students than getting a 3.6 high school GPA.
The key question is how much debt you have to take on to pay for college and med school. Many regular posters on CC (including me) know people who paid off the last of their school (UG + Med) just as their children are starting college! Obviously, it can be done- but there are meaningful sacrifices and limitations in choices on that path.
Also, don’t kid yourself about “making doctor money” anytime soon: after your 7/8 years of schooling you have have internship (~$35K/yr?) & residency (~$50 going up to ~$70k/ yr for up to 5 years?)(other posters can weigh in but that’s what the numbers look like in our state) before you start making “doctor money”. You will be paying student loans all through that time- while trying to build your adult life, with car/house/partner/offspring/etc.
^^This. Residency pays poorly. $45-$65K/year is typical (before taxes, insurance, social security, etc–expect to take home only 2/3rd of your salary). Residency lasts for a minimum of 3 years and up to 7. if you decide to sub-specialize, then tack another 1-3 years of low pay during fellowship training.
Med school loans are all unsubsidized. This means interest begins to accrue immediately upon reimbursement. While med students/residents/fellows can defer repaying their loans until they finish training, interest will continue to accumulate, increasing the loan basis every year. Over the 7-11 years of med school +residency, the initial loan amount can easily double.
Residency pay is not that poor compared to personal income overall in the US (median is around $36k per year). However, that is after eight years of expensive schooling with $400k debt that will be difficult to start paying off much on residency pay of $55k per year ($41-45k per year after income and payroll taxes, depending on state and local). Perhaps if you continue to live a student lifestyle on $20-25k per year through residency and for many years beyond (while earning “real physician pay”), you may be able to pay down the $400k debt more quickly than most new physicians.
You have to go through the low-paying years of residency and internship regardless of which path you choose. So, I agree with you that you’ll be adding one year of “doctor money” to your lifelong career if you choose GW.