<p>I agree with what MiamiDAP said regarding how every individual’s choice is different. At the end of the day, whether undergrad (Harvard vs. state school) prestige matters in med school admissions is up to the individual and every person will have a different opinion on this. There are both a yes and no. Undergraduate prestige matters when you face a med school admissions committee with a majority of them sharing the same views as you. Undergraduate prestige does not matter when you face a med school admissions committee with opposite views towards undergrad prestige as you. </p>
<p>Therefore, it is up to the individual to make his/her own decision about undergrad, taking into account his/her own separate experiences (includes hearing what others have said, reading CC posts, looking at raw med school data) to decide whether or not undergrad prestige matters for med school when selecting a college. </p>
<p>Personally, I believe it matters and I have my legitimate reasons for believing so. Others may disagree and they have their legitimate reasons for not believing so. I had to pick between going to JHU or to U Maryland Gemstone (gemstone covers full tuition, room board, etc) and I chose JHU because I believed that the ~55k/year is gonna be worth it come time for med school admissions. A good friend of mine was faced with a similar situation, but instead, it was Duke or U Maryland Gemstone and he chose gemstone because he didn’t think the ~55k/yea was going to be worth it. We both have our legitimate reasons for making our own decisions. It’s all up to whether or not the admissions committee adcoms who review your application think the same way as you. Some do and some don’t.</p>