Community College and Transfer vs. UC

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I am an incoming freshman who intends to major in Biology/Biological Sciences and later apply to Medical Schools within the U.S. I am trying to decide whether I should attend UCR, where a medical school is set to open in about two years (so more research opps will be available) or attend a community college and then transfer to UCI or UCLA after two years. </p>

<p>UCR has:
- more research opportunities
- only 1.4% of UCR students who apply to medical school actually get in</p>

<p>Community College has:
- less cost, won't have to dorm
- can transfer to another university, such as UCI, which has a better med school acceptance rate
- may or may not be able to enroll in classes required for transfer
- may have to stay in school for additional year before going to grad school</p>

<p>Based on the facts above, which school would you suggest I choose?
(FYI I have already gotten admission into UCR)</p>

2

<p>UCR is a very good choice for premed. </p>

<p>Btw, I don’t believe that only 1.4% of UCR students get into med school. I wouldn’t even believe 14% if you misplaced the decimal. </p>

<p>The national rate is ~ 50% that you’ll get accepted to at least one. But be sure to have a lot of coverage of not only CA med schools but also ones that are oos. </p>

<p>UCR is fine…</p>

<p>But if you want to save money by attending cc, go to one that will allow you to enter its honors/scholars program, so you can get classes more easily, many times, preferred enrollment.</p>

3

<p>Thank you so much for the reply.</p>

<p>The statistic of 1.4% was actually given to me by one of deans of the College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences at UCR. I guess admission into medical school has gotten way more competitive these past few years.</p>

<p>Thanks again! :)</p>

4

<p>Also, I was wondering where you came across the statistic that the national medical school acceptance rate is 50%? Thanks!</p>

5

<p>I remember seeing it at the UCSD [website]( <a href=“Pre-Medical Data”>http://career.ucsd.edu/undergraduates/thinking-about-grad-school/pre-medical-data.html&lt;/a&gt;) for career services. The rate for 2009 and 2010 has been 46%.</p>

<p>It’s also at the [aamc](<a href=“https://www.aamc.org/download/159590/data/table7-facts2010summary-web.pdf.pdf”>https://www.aamc.org/download/159590/data/table7-facts2010summary-web.pdf.pdf&lt;/a&gt;)site, with numbers instead of percentages. The top line would be the denominator, and a few lines down, the acceptances, would be the numerator. Somewhere at the aamc site, they probably just do the math for you. I just find it easier to look at the UCSD website.</p>

<p>UCSD’s rate has been low 40%'s. I’m guessing that UCR’s has to be signficantly higher than 1.4%. Maybe the dean was referencing that 1.4% of UCR grads attend med school. </p>

<p>The acceptance rate of 46% is the number of those who receive at least one acceptance / the total persons who applied. But of course, if someone received one acceptance from the total 25 med schools to which he/she applied, he/she is chalked up as an acceptance. </p>

<p>The acceptance rate based on total of frosh med-school spots / total no. of applications sent is undoubtedly incredibly low. Perhaps this is possibly what the dean meant, but it doesn’t sound like it. So be sure to have good coverage.</p>