Hi, I posted this in another thread, but I really need some advice before I make a decision so hope it’s okay!
I have been given two great opportunities, but I am having trouble picking a college and I need to make a decision within 4 days. I have been accepted to Washington University in St Louis and UT Austin Plan ii. I am really torn because both schools are fantastic. I am a premed biology student. For UT my pros are that I have personal attention considering there are only 170 plan ii students, my total undergraduate costs will be around 30,000, I will be able to research both freshman year and senior year due to the freshman research initiative and honors thesis, and they will accept most if not all of my 30 college credits. For Wustl, they will not accept the credits except for three but most classes are smaller because at UT I still will be in a lot of regular ut classes versus honors classes, the have a well regarded and fantastic premed program, the campus is amazing, and the people on campus are known for being collaborative and friendly. Because of my scholarships, WUSTL would cost me around the same for UT the first year maybe a 1,000 or 2,000 more but I am worried that because my parents’ incomes fluctuate that they can change it and I would have to way more one than the previous. I feel my parents want me to go to UT but at the same time both have given me great experiences when I visited. Overall, I feel like WUSTL would prepare me for a top medical school because of the premed curriculum versus UT’s, which is why I believe that the average WUSTL class would challenge me more than an average UT class. Please post any opinions would help a lot! Thank you!
If you are serious about medical school, whichever place will leave you with the least debt, and will leave your family with the most money to help toward medical school costs, is where you want to study. For that particular goal, UT looks to be the best. Med schools really don’t care where you went to college. The pre med courses are essentially the same wherever you study. There isn’t anything magical about the pre med program at WUSTL.
Depending on the number of credits that UT ends up accepting, you could save up to a full year of college tuition and fees, or get into more advanced courses sooner, or simply have more flexibility in your choice of courses. That will buy you a lot more options than at WUSTL.
If the financial aid from WUSTL is need-based, then it will most likely change with changes in your parents’ income. For details about those potential changes, ask the aid office at WUSTL.
I would say go for UT. UT will most definitely prepare you for med school, I wouldn’t worry too much about that, and it sounds like it gives you a little more wiggle room financially. The research opportunities and honors classes are also nice perks. In the end, I think it comes down to whether you think the drop dead gorgeous campus at WashU is worth it.
Congrats, you have two (and probably more) awesome options. Take heart in the fact that no matter which you pick, you can’t go wrong.
Big fan of Plan II here. A friend’s dd did Plan II then medical school. I don’t know a lot about WUSTL so I can’t say that oe is better than another; I just know that Plan II is a great choice.
I would also add that GPA is king to MCAT’s queen for Med School admission. I suspect you are talented enough to excel at both schools, but I bet your GPA will be higher at UT.
Good luck!
Either school will be a good academic choice for you. Go with the financial best choice. Possibly getting your degree in less time is a huge timesaver and money saver.
Frankly, UT may be better because there will be so many students taking classes because they want them for their major, not because they are premed. I’m a woman physician who majored in chemistry at my top flagship and inlaw’s kids went for premed at Wash U- they got merit scholarships and were above the crowd. Also- doesn’t UT outrank Wash U overall in many reports? You will find top students at UT.
Remember that you may change your mind, not get into medical school. Choose a field that truly intrigues you as a possible career path. You may find yourself getting better grades because there are fewer premeds gunning for grades. You may also find more than one intro course in various needed fields- not all students are stuck in the same course with the majors in that subject. Wash U may be good for premed but so are so many other schools that also have top notch nonmedical fields.
Your best chances for medical school are instate and a top instate public will definitely be good in the eyes of the instate admissions committees. Save your money.
Disclaimer. I’m a fan of public U’s, especially when they outrank private schools. You are lucky to be able to attend a top flagship plus be in a special program (know nothing about it but it will give you the extra edge).
If you do go to Medical School, then which college would allow you to have to best GPA?
If you don’t go to Medical School, which give you the most opportunities?
You’d have personal attention at WashU too just because of the smaller size and the pretty extensive advising system at the school.
WashU does have a lot of opportunities for research and MedPrep (shadowing physicians at the med school) is pretty popular. The pre-med students I knew have done pretty well for themselves.
wis75, UT is a fantastic school, but it generally doesn’t outrank WashU (I’m sure there are measures where it does, but there are also measures where WashU outranks UT by a bit).
OP, you have two fantastic options. I’d say if you are going to WashU, make sure you talk to the financial aid office just to get a sense of how the fluctuating income would work. I know there were often many self-employed families at WashU, so the financial aid office does have plenty of experience with that sort of situation.