Deciding if I should consider transferring out of BS/MD program

Pre-Med & Medical School Multiple Degree Programs
1

Hello, I need some help in deciding whether transferring out of a BS/MD program is the right choice for me. (I don’t know if this is the right place to post, so please forward me to the right forum if this is not the right place. Thanks.)

I was accepted and enrolled into the RPI-AMC Physician Scientist Accelerated Medical Program. I will be starting classes in late August. However, RPI offered me not as much financial aid as I had hoped for. I am currently paying around 42k per year. This was after I appealed to them to lower it from 45k.

I turned down a near full ride at my state school for this program, and I feel like an idiot for doing so. I would have been out of undergrad in less than 10k in debt, whereas I will be 150k in debt at RPI. My parents want to support me through my college education, and they do have the money to do it, but it would be coming out of their retirement savings. They don’t have an actual retirement plan. And, on top of this, they are supporting my sick grandfather in India. I can not, in good conscience, allow them to pay this much for me. I feel selfish for making a decision like this. My parents explained to me that it would be like an investment, and the reward would be that I would have an MD.

However, I feel like the reward can be achieved without this much financial risk. I decided to take the BS/MD route because I was afraid of not being able to get into medical school. But I feel like that is a better alternative than having my parents pay 150k (that too, only for undergrad; Albany Medical College is one of the more expensive med schools, at around 56k a year). I could complete my undergrad at my state school and go to a cheaper medical school, or perhaps even a more prestigious one, if I do well enough.

Others have explained to me that I am essentially paying 150k for peace of mind. But how do you quantify “peace of mind?” And why should peace of mind be a factor when I am preparing to enter a stressful career? And, I can use that 150k to donate to charities, contribute towards the building of schools and hospitals, and do things that propelled me into medicine in the first place. Paying this much for myself (and my “peace of mind” seems counter-intuitive to my reason to enter medicine, which was to dedicate myself to the service of others.

I have significant research experience (close to 1000 hours by the end of this summer) and credits from 11 AP classes. RPI will not accept most of my AP credits because most of them are 3s. However, UAlbany (my local state school where I got the near full ride) accepts 3s, allowing me to save thousands of dollars and complete my prerequisites in three years, like RPI. But I am not against 4 years of undergrad, either. Anyway, this, coupled with a high GPA and MCAT, should allow me to get into a decent medical school while saving a lot of money. I am pretty sure Albany Medical College will take me back in if all else fails in 3-4 years.

Anyway, is it worth paying 150k for “peace of mind” and guaranteed acceptance into an unranked medical school, or should I take my chances and go the traditional route, while saving a lot of money in the process (and perhaps even get into a T40 med school)? I don’t know enough about life after med school to know what the right decision is, so I was hoping some of the more senior members could give their two cents. I don’t want to burden my parents, and I hope the risking med school acceptance is worth the financial reward. I would definitely continue with the BS/MD program if it was not this expensive, but at the moment, I am not sure if the expense is worth it.

Please let me know what you think. Sorry for the long post.

2

Before you do anything, I’d double check that the near full ride offer at your state school still exists. If so, I’d probably head that route knowing that oodles of pre-meds actually change their minds in the process so you could do this at lower cost if desired rather than feeling “stuck” because you “paid for it.” Then too, most accepted into BS/MD programs have what it takes to get into med school, so if you opt to continue that route, you should be fine as long as you put the effort in at college.

One thing that gives me pause is actually the 3s on AP exams. A 3 is equivalent to a C. You can’t get many Cs in your actual college classes and still be very competitive for med school. Be sure you can get a high enough GPA at any college you attend. (It’s only a “pause” because many AP scores reflect the teacher more than the student. If there are plentiful 5s and 4s from your class, I’d worry. If a 3 is a top score among your peers, I’d be more suspect of the content of the courses you had.)

3

@Creekland Thank you for your response. I’ll definitely check with the state school to see if the full ride still exists. If not, it’s only 6k a year, so 24k total in undergrad, which is still much, much better than 150k.

The 3s on the AP exams have more to do with the effort I put into test prep. I regret not caring enough about AP scores, but I was definitely capable of scoring more 4s and 5s. I had better grades than some of my peers in the same classes, but they ended up doing better on the exams because they put more effort into preparing for the exam. Lesson learned, I guess. I don’t know if it means anything, but I had a 34 ACT and a 4.0 in high school. Would that correlate better with my performance in college?

UAlbany is likely easier than RPI, so I shouldn’t have too much of a problem getting a 3.8-3.9. Most people in the RPI-AMC program have 3.7-3.8, and that is while taking the hardest classes and combating RPI grade deflation.

4

You haven’t started yet, so this isn’t a transfer. This is a question about deferring enrollment while you re-think things, or cancelling enrollment entirely and studying somewhere else. You don’t want to start, shell out a boat-load of money and then transfer out to a “cheaper” place because the good merit aid goes to freshmen.

Your instincts are correct. This is too much debt to take on for your undergrad program. Finishing up your BS/MD with something approaching 500k in debt will absolutely control what you can do with your life. Not to mention how ugly your financial situation could be if you should change your career goals mid-way and be saddled with 150k or 200k for just a bachelor’s degree.

Defer or cancel and take a gap year. Reconsider all of your options. The cheap state U could work well for you. If your grades and test scores got you into the BS/MD program, they also are likely to land you serious merit money somewhere else if you start at that other place as a freshman. There is a whole thread at the top of the Financial Aid Forum on the topic of automatic merit scholarships that is worth reading through.

5

@happymomof1 Thanks for your response. For the first semester, RPI is charging 34k. The payment is due on August 3. I do have some merit scholarships that will bring it down to around 26k, but that is still a lot. You are right–spending that kind of money in the first semester seems ridiculous, but I don’t know if I have another choice, especially since I don’t want to take a gap year/semester. I would rather start immediately. I don’t know if UAlbany will allow me to start in August, but I will try to see if it is an option. However, I will say that I am 100% committed to medicine, and I am unlikely to change my career goals.

6

Same issues about cost and debt were discussed in your previous thread:
http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/2073571-please-help-me-decide-between-bsmd-program-and-state-school-p1.html

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@ucbalumnus Yes, I remember this thread quite well, but I realize that I’ve made a big mistake, especially when that bill came through yesterday. Trying to see if I can reverse the situation.

8

A 34 and 4.0 definitely shows you are capable compared to your AP scores. Chances are the BS/MD program assumed (as I would have from that combo) that it was course content that affected your scores (rather than work ethic).

I’d swap in your position. It’s a lot of money. If you put the work effort into college and ECs that med schools want to see, you should do just fine and save a ton of money in the process. Your folks can assist med school costs instead if they want to.

Do NOT assume you’ll have it easy at UAlbany just because you’ve done well so far. There will be others with high stats also attracted by the lower cost as they head to med school. Be smart and set grades/studying as a top priority while still allowing time for ECs (continuing your research, volunteering, clubs you enjoy, etc). For many successful students, this means partying ends up pretty low on the list rather than a “minor.” You could, of course, already not be interested in partying (much), but one never knows on a message board and that’s the advice I give all IRL med school wannabes I know anyway, so nothing “personal” except best wishes on your journey!

9

@Creekland Not much of a partyer, but I don’t mind the occasional social gatherings :slight_smile: Thanks for your kind words, I’ll keep your advice in mind.

10

@coolcool07 Nothing at all wrong with social gatherings, clubs, or even the occasional celebration. What “gets” kids is the sudden freedom to do too much thinking they can study at the end right before a test instead of regularly, after all, high school was often “easy” with no or very little studying required so they assume college will be the same. It’s usually not.

This can happen with any EC considering ECs are FUN and studying? Not so much. Add in alcohol or similar things (regularly) and the brain can lose whatever reasoning it had - along with after effects making studying even more difficult. I wouldn’t warn about it if I hadn’t seen it happen too many times to college freshmen. Couple that with med school and it can be a serious game changer since GPA really matters.

Enjoy your ECs and friendships. Life would be stressful and dull without them, plus, med schools want to see you involved anyway - not closed in your room studying every free hour. Just make a schedule for studying and stick with it. Use study groups and/or offered tutoring/help sessions even if you don’t think you need them (great friendships if nothing else). Then enjoy the journey.

11

Would you be commuting?

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@mom2collegekids Yes, the commute to UAlbany would be about 25 min, but it is well worth it. I could also commute to RPI, but they have a policy where I am required to stay on campus for 5 semesters. RPI is so expensive

13

@coolcool07 : Although I can clearly see your dedication to medicine, you are not a good tester based on your chances thread. In fact, you are quite weak in STEM. You think you made a big mistake a few months earlier. Are you sure you won’t come back a year later to say you are sorry you threw away your opportunity for your BS/MD opportunity? Of course, RPI is no easy school either. If you flunked out of there (meaning below 3.4 GPA), all your tuition investment is gone. Nobody knows how well you will perform in college. You will have to honestly evaluate yourself and make a decision. You said you are “Indian Male NY (live near RPI and AMC) Income around 190k”. It looks like your parents support your education. Why are you talking about “you will be 150k in debt at RPI”?

14

Call Albany and find out if you still get a scholarship or not.

You clearly don’t want to go to RPI, so don’t.

15

Call Albany. Find out it they will still take you for this fall. If you find that you need to wait, take the gap year. There ar no advantages to rushing in to college, and plenty of advantages to waiting. For one, you could go visit that ailing grandfather in India and. Spend as much time there as you want.

16

Call SUNY Albany.
However, it’s likely the full ride no longer exists (has been given to someone else) and it’s not even certain they will admit you for Fall. And of course no certainty as to your spot in the honors college w which is very important for pre-med (most honors classes aren’t weedout since the honors college has done the weeding already + they’re more in depth = better preparation for higher level classes… In short really important for pre-meds).
If your family can afford the costs without scholarship and Albany allows you to register in the Fall, see if you can afford to dorm just your first year so that you’re fully immersed in what the college offers (there should still be spots open on the quiet floor or substance free floor, even if the honors dorm is full <= do check just in case).
For a good example of how to take advantage of what a university offers, check out the tumbler by Afrenchie36. I think he allows comments so take advantage of that opportunity.

The reason the BS/MD students at RPI have this GPA is that they’re culled from the program if their GPA dips - did you read the fine print, all the conditions on the “guarantee”?

Even if SUNY Albany offers lots of credits for your APs, I would recommend you not take them for math, science, and English. A score of 3 typiflly means you don’t have enough preparation for an upper level college class.
What exact APs have you taken and what scores did you get?

If you can’t start in the fall, DO NOT take any college class anywhere as it’d jeopardize your freshman status.

17

@coolcool07 Did you consider attending Fall semester at RPI and then transferring out to another school, not sacrificing a year. You may finish BS in 3 years with your transfer and API credits. You may be admitted to Honors college as a transfer student at another school. Your API score does not appear on the transcript only the credit for the equivalent course awarded by the school. DD transferred two years worth of undergraduate credits from Summer College classes and AP credits taken during high school. FYI, you will not be able to borrow 150k for RPI on your own. You will need a co-signer for the debt. A co-signer is an equally responsible party for the debt in case of a default.