<p>I am a senior from TAMS (Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science) and am planning to go premed. Not sure what I am going to major in--something in bio. I really love research also..have been researching for the past 2 yrs. </p>
<p>At Rice I have been offered the Trustee Distinguished Scholarship (54K) and Century Scholarship (15K). I will also get credit for the TAMS classes I have taken, so i can finish undergrad in 3yrs prob. So with scholarship money Rice is pretty much paid for...with Baylor right across the street its really great for premed students</p>
<p>MIT--I love boston, i love the research opportunities that i can get there..whitehead institute is amazing. Though I know MIT is not the best for premed I know it will really prepare me for medschool, MCATs, etc..</p>
<p>So I am at a dilemma..is it worth paying 150K more for the opportunites at MIT? My parents are telling me to choose where I want to go to and not let finance get in the way. A part of me really wants to go to MIT, but another part is going crazy for even considering MIT.</p>
<p>Obviously both schools are excellent... but if you are getting that much money from Rice, IMO the choice is clear. Rice is probably the superior school for pre-med anyway (not sure, but I think so). You will have amazing research opportunites at Rice. You will be near one of the best med centers in the world. You will be well prepared for med school, MCAT, etc. Plus, I think you'd have more fun/social life at Rice. AND you're getting money from them! That money saved will help you graduate from med school with little or no debt. You should visit if you haven't already... several people on these boards have said the accepted students weekend is incredible, and for some, the deciding factor.</p>
<p>Assuming you've visited both schools, met students from both places, etc.:</p>
<p>If you were sick, and needed to choose a team of doctors, would you want the kids you met at MIT, or the kids at Rice?</p>
<p>Now, I know this is harder to do with undergrad - with medical school it's actually a very easy standard to apply - but try to answer it, and consider how that will impact your own premedical studies.</p>
<p>"My parents are telling me to choose where I want to go to and not let finance get in the way."</p>
<p>My parents told me the same thing. I listened to them, but now I regret it. I would have been fine at the one that was less expensive and wouldn't be worrying about student loans at the end of four years.</p>
<p>That aside, everyone I know who has attended MIT has told me that it is ridiculously competitive; many of them transfered out of MIT as a result. Boston's cool, but if you don't like the university you are at (especially if you have a lot of work), then the city won't make up for it.</p>
<p>[on second look mary.loves.you said a lot of the same thing I think...]</p>
<p>Rice is a great school. You can easily graduate in 3 years. Not only that, but there are a lot of opportunities in Houston as well. Not only are you located right next to the Med Center and Baylor, but Rice also has tons of opportunities for students to work in labs. </p>
<p>Did you apply for/get accepted to that Rice/Baylor fasttrack program?</p>
<p>I agree with evil. Think about it, do you want to go to MIT for the name. Rice has a better pre-med school, your getting it pretty much paid for, and you will get the grades you disserve. I know having a flashy name means alot but it is really where you attend graduate shcool that really matters.
God bless and good luck,
Tony</p>
That aside, everyone I know who has attended MIT has told me that it is ridiculously competitive; many of them transfered out of MIT as a result.
[/quote]
That can't possibly be true. In the first place, MIT is incredibly not competitive -- everybody works together on problem sets and helps each other study for tests. Difficult, but not competitive. In the second place, almost nobody transfers out of MIT; MIT has a single-digit transfer acceptance percentage because nobody transfers out and there are no open spots.</p>
<p>If you love MIT, then go there. Odds are 3:1 that everything will work out fine.</p>
<p>You must remember that the admissions rate for applying premeds is not the only indicator of how good a school is as a place to be a premed - after all, some schools may deter their students beforehand from applying, whether through rough grades or a restrictive letters policy.</p>
<p>Remember, half the kids who take the MCAT don't apply to medical school at all. There's a very high dropout rate, nationally speaking.</p>
<p>Probably the better indication is this: "Among the students we have who are admitted to medical school, what GPA do they have?" Then, "How hard is it to get that GPA?"</p>
<p>MIT's required GPA is quite high - if I recall correctly, it's in the 3.75 range (compare to Duke's 3.54). It is also very tough to earn such a GPA at a place like MIT.</p>
<p>With that said, remember that it is also partly about preparing for medical school, too, as well as learning everything you need to know to take adequate care of patients. If MIT is the best place for you to do that, then it's worth taking some hit to your admissions ability - because it makes you a better doctor.</p>
<p>Remember, your goal isn't just to become a doctor, your goal is to become a great doctor. MIT might well be a great place to do that.</p>
<p>3.74 is insane. I think it's around 3.52 (around the same as Princeton's or Duke's). Sakky's pt. was that MIT's students were not given a break on the GPA in med school admissions.</p>
<p>Still, MIT premeds do pretty well for themselves -- they get accepted to some pretty</a> good medical schools, and at about twice</a> the overall rate or more (at least for the top ten, which were the only ones I checked).</p>
<p>I wasn't sure myself, which was why I went back and double checked. I seem to recall your catching me some other time when I was wrong - always grateful for the accountability. :)</p>