Duke Premed vs. BU 7-year med program

Colleges and Universities A-Z Duke University
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<p>Sorry guys, I know this sounds similar to a recent thread, but it's a different subject. I also posted my problem on the med-programs section, but I wanted to get some input from some Blue Devils. </p>

<p>I don't know which one to choose, I'm split in the middle. I don't want to go to BU undergraduate, but the med school is really good, it's a top 30 school, and I'm already in. Also looking at where Duke students have gone for medical school and where they have applied, 97 kids from Duke applied to BU medical school, and only 5 got in. But then I'm afraid that missing out on the Duke undergraduate years will hurt me in the future. </p>

<p>BU is also giving me more money, and combined with the fact that I don't have to go for one year, I'm saving about 80,000 dollars by going to BU. </p>

<p>My heart is set on Duke, but my mind tells me BU is better for my future. Thoughts, please?</p>

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<p>I don't know, that is a hard decision. I have a friend back home who's deciding between Brown PLME and Duke who is thinking the same thing (he is in love with Duke), though of course Brown is a little different from BU. BU is a VERY different school from Duke. If you think you can be successful here then there's no doubt you'll end up at a good medical school. The kids I know who are premed seniors are off to med schools like Columbia, Penn, and Duke--I don't think you'll have a hard time getting into medical school if your heart is set on it, after all you've already gotten in to one! There's also the issue of money. I really don't know what I would do in your position, but I really wouldn't want to spend four years at BU as an undergrad, as much as I love Boston...</p>

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<p>The kids that you know who are off to those med schools, did they work really hard at Duke? Do you know? I just want to compare life as a premed at Duke vs. life as a guaranteed BU med school student.</p>

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<p>They work hard of course but they also have a life, and I know them through extracurriculars so they do stuff other than academics.</p>

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<p>5 were accepted, or 5 attended? I suspect the latter. The other 92 probably went somewhere else.</p>

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<p>surprisingly, d-dad, only 5 were accepted into BU medical school from Duke. the 5 went elsewhere, but the fact remains that so many kids from Duke applied there, with an amazingly small percentage getting in, and I already have a seat at BU reserved for me.</p>

<p>anymore thoughts/suggestions?</p>

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<p>That is surprising. Maybe BU knows from experience that Duke students they accept usually turn them down and go elsewhere, so they don't bother accepting them. Just a guess.</p>

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<p>I'd say you should go with your heart and have a kick-ass time at Duke.
But if your heart for medicine is bigger than your heart for Duke, and you don't think you could get into a med school from Duke, then I'd go with BU.
It's sounding like Duke though.</p>

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<p>If you're smart enough to get into Duke, you won't have any trouble getting into medical school. (I got in from UF).</p>

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<p>raj, BU medical school is for some reason very popular come application time. I once saw a table, can't remember where, that showed the applicant numbers and acceptance rates for all medical schools. BU had one of the highest applicant numbers with around 10,000 students. That would explain the low overall acceptance rate for BU med- somewhere in the 2-3% range I think. So don't think that Duke students are on the whole incapable of getting into a med school like BU...that school just happens to be flooded with apps.</p>

<p>If you really really love Duke, you should go there. Just know that you will have to work very hard and continue the stuff you did in high school and more in order to get into a med school of comparable quality. As long as you're willing to accept this, you should be fine. No regrets, k? :)</p>

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<p>It doesn't matter much where you go to med school, so long as it is accredited and in the U.S. What matters more is where you do your residency or fellowship training. A friend of mine went to UF undergrad and med school, Lenox Hill for residency, Mass. General (Harvard) for fellowship training, and now is in a great private practice. Another friend went to Harvard undergrad, Pitt med and residency, now in a fine private practice as well. There are many paths to a medical career - I wouldn't worry too much about rankings of schools. Just my opinion.</p>

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<p>I agree with your points completely. I loved Duke, I visited, stayed there this weekend, and talked to many people. I had the time of my life at the beautiful campus with the great weather. I want to go there so badly, but my heart is torn, and I think I'm going to go to the BU med program. In the past month, I've talked to doctors who have gone through programs, doctors who have gone the traditional way, and just about everyone and their grandmothers. </p>

<p>I've worked hard for the past few years, and I think that I'd like to go somewhere where I can study what I want, without the constant pressure of trying to get at least a 3.7 or so. I don't know if I can continue high school (and more, as d-dad pointed out) for another 4 years and go through the application process again. True, it might not matter where you go for medical school, but the most important thing is residency placement, and for that, your med school does matter to an extent. Ultimately, it matters on your efforts, and this I do agree with. </p>

<p>At Duke, about 40% of the entering students are premed, and this does quickly drop down. The usual reason is the difficulty of science classes. In high school, science was not really my forte. I liked applied science (I even did stem cell research this year), but the actual lectured classes were not my best. If I don't do well in one class, it might affect everything at Duke. I might have to take a year off, take an extra class, or something to that extent. It’s not that I doubt I’d be able to get into a med school, but I doubt that I’ll be able to get into a med school as good as BU. </p>

<p>BU is not the most perfect program, don’t get me wrong. I’ll have to have a “medical sciences” major and won’t be able to use all my AP’s, but these are a few sacrifices, amongst others, that I’ll have to make. The tradeoff is worth it. I might double major or just do a minor in what I want to do. I know that whichever path I think, there will be points in both lives that I’ll look back and wish I went to the other, but it’s something I’ll have to deal with. </p>

<p>I want to thank you guys for helping me out, all your comments were important to me, and I took into account everything that you’ve said. You’ve made me go back and forth for the past month, but I’m glad I’ve now made a decision. I sincerely thank you guys for your support.</p>

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<p>Good luck and I'm sure you'll do fine. What area of medicine are you interested in?</p>