Northeastern vs. BU vs. UMass Amherst Pre-med programs

I’ve visited all three schools and have had a fairly good impression of all three of them. However, I really don’t know much about how their premed programs fare when compared to each other.

BU costs ~39k/yr
NU costs ~38k/yr
UMass w/ honors costs ~26k/yr

My main concern is finding internship opportunities during my time in college. I really want to be able to have the opportunity to intern at places like Mass General Hospital and so proximity to Boston is important to me, however the cost disparity is undeniable and one of the main reasons why UMass is still a contender. Is there anything in particular about any of the schools that makes their premed program stand out?

Thanks a ton for your guys’ help in advance!

To me umass is as good a school as the other two as long as med school is what you want to do for sure. If you are top 10% of the class umass will get you to any med school you wish.

@artloversplus

This is a gross exaggeration. Can you site the source for this claim? A college does not get you into med school, you get yourself into med school.

So in total, the cost of each would be:

NEU/BU: 152-156K
UMass: 104K

Will any of that be loans? If so, go UMass all the way. If you can afford BU/NEU loan free, can you say the same for med school? How confident are you in going to med school?

Between Northeastern and BU, NEU wins out in the category every time. One of the top career centers in the US, one of if not the best co-op program in the US as a whole, and a great location for what you want to do with Boston and the medical hub there. The question is if it’s worth it over UMass, which depends on the above questions.

It will definitely include loans. I dont know how much experience you may have with this and perhaps it’s my naiveness showing, but how feasible would it be to be able to pay for at least a good portion of tuition?

I’m confused as to what you’re asking, but I think this info will be relevant:

  1. Given that you have to take out loans for undergrad already, and med school will be even more, go with UMass Amherst.
  2. You should look up the specifics, but you can only take out loans for about 6K a year or so on average, with more allowed slightly in later years and less in earlier. After that, all other loans will have to be cosigned with your parents. These are known as parent+ loans. Make sure to look into all of this before committing. Good luck!

How useful exactly is the proximity to Boston’s medical hub that NU and BU offer? How much difference is there in what a college student realistically can get involved in (ie through volunteering, internships, coops) towards advancing their premed resume in Boston vs. UMass Amherst’s surrounding area?

Thank you so much for the help @PengsPhils !

I can’t say for UMass Amherst as I simply don’t know - being in Boston gives a lot of opportunity, but UMass Amherst could and likely does offer some good ones as well. Spending summers in Boston is always an option too. Again, I really would not add nearly 50K more of loans onto school before medical school even. If you really want to take that long-term risk in the loans, going for Northeastern/BU could be the right choice, but it doesn’t sound like you have your head around the financials here yet. Sit down and figure out exactly how much you’re going to borrow and how, and then look into paying it back too. Don’t forget the price of grad school either.