<p>I have applied to several Ivy Leagues and may not be asking for aid aid in the hope that it helps me survive the rejection pile. My parents have been infinitely kind in saying that the money can be there if I need it and that it's important that I get into a top school early on.</p>
<p>This being said, is it really worth it? If I plan on getting into medical school, will it really make a difference?
If it won't, in what does graduating from an Ivy League at undergraduate level help you with if you have yet to enter medical school or any sort of professional school afterwards?</p>
<p>I'm stumped. And I have about an evening left to decide what I want to do.</p>
<p>About 70% of ADMITEES to the top colleges apply for financial aid -- it doesn't seem to hurt their chances. I believe you're an international right? Some of the Ivies are need-blind admissions to Internationals -- meaning that your file is evaluated w/o connection to FA or no-FA. You should definitely FA apply to those.</p>
<p>Remember: med school isn't cheap. My HYP classmate turned down a 4-yr scholarship at her state school to attend our Ivy. Afterwards she went back to the state school for Med School. She said she wished she had done it the other way around: go free to undergrad and pay for Ivy med school. Instead she had huge debt both times.</p>
<p>As for what benefits will graduating from a "name" school mean for Med School afterwards? It's really the student more than the college, IMHO. But you should go to the med school forum for more discussion there</p>
<p>There are plenty of very good public universities that can boast of a relatively high rate of success in their percentage of students being accepted into Medical schools. While it is very prestigious to graduate from an Ivy league, will you be able to maintain a high gpa while doing it? Medical Schools do place a strong emphasis on gpa. In addition, after paying $50,000/yr for undergraduate school, will there be money left to finance your medical school? Graduating from an Ivy does not guarantee acceptance into a Medical school.</p>
<p>You might as well send in the application to the Ivy school and see what happens. In the meantime, read through some of the threads on CC regarding Pre-Med and Medical school. You will notice that many students choose to save money on their undergraduate education so they can better afford the more prestigious school for their post-grad. studies.</p>
<p>Whether it's really worth it is a personal decision based on many factors.</p>
<p>If you have really looked at all the possibilities and have ascertained that you really want med school--know what it takes to get in and have a realistic high chance--an ivy won't matter much for you.</p>
<p>However, the majority who enter college believing they'll be doctors don't become doctors. Some flunk out of pre med track classes, some better understand the realities of being an MD in a Country moving towards socialized medicine and opt out, many find new passions in college and many just can't get into a med school.</p>
<p>So going to a top college leaves more options open. College does matter for business, law and other areas. So the advantage of the ivies is leaving more options open.</p>
<p>Well, I'll say "not really" and "it depends."</p>
<p>A lot about college and post-graduate opportunities comes from what YOU do in college. Yes, the name a prestigious college will help you in some fields, but I won't say that you have MORE options going to an Ivy League university or another top college than a student from a lesser-known colleges does; it's just that Ivy League students may have more access to the networks that will tell them about those options/opportunities than their counterparts at less selective schools.</p>
<p>hmom5 is right in the sense that most students who want to go to medical school when they are high school seniors don't actually go to medical school for various reasons. In addition to the reasons she mentioned, some people find that they simply can't afford it, especially after they've shelled out so much money for their undergraduate degree. In addition, a LOT of students change their mind! There are so many careers out there; a lot of 18-year-olds want to be doctors because that's the most prestigious career they can think of that still makes a lot of money and allows them to "help people" in some abstract way. But once they get to college, they realize there's such a wide variety of careers that will allow them to do the same things, or that will satisfy them.</p>
<p>So my advice: don't pick a college because you think it will lead you to a specific career; pick what's the right fit for you, what feels right, and what you and your family can afford. It's true that if you go to a professional or graduate school after college, your undergrad degree matters less. If you want to work at a Wall Street or other prestigious firm with just your bachelor's degree, your undergraduate degree matters more. In the majority of other cases, where you went is less important than what you did there, what opportunities you took advantage of while there, and your grades.</p>