Hi all, hope you are doing well!
I recently got accepted to Stony brook University Scholars program and the Macaulay honors program at Hunter College. I will be a Pre med student in college. I was wondering if you guys could please help me choose between the two colleges.
The Macaulay Honors program offers me:
A full tuition Full Undergraduate Tuition Scholarship
New laptop (currently the MacBook Air)
Opportunities Fund grant to support global research, service, and internships ($7,500)
“Professional mentoring and career preparation with leaders in government, business, science, and the arts”
Cultural Passport which provides free or discounted entry to hundreds of New York arts and cultural venues
Free housing for the first two years
***NOTE: no meal plan, and would have to find housing or live at home for last 2 years of college
Stony brook Scholars program provides me the following:
Priority registration
Specialized sections of courses
Personalized academic advising
Opportunities to participate in special symposia, trips, and other co-curricular activities
Housed together in the residence halls (more information below)
***NOTE: i would have to pay about $19000 for stony brook
Once again, i am definitely planning on gonig to medical school after Undergrad. And i want to know which of these programs would have better opportunities for me as a premed.
I would greatly appreciate it if you guys could help me decide between these two colleges. Also, if you have ever attended one of these programs, or know someone who has, please let me know about their experience.
Thank you guys so much! 
stony brook has a very good reputation
Macaulay is too good to pass up
If you’re going to Medical school, it will be a lot of money. I would suggest going to Macaulay because you will be going for free and you can save up for Med school then.
I also found online that Macaulay will pay for two classes if you want to take summer courses or winter break courses too
If you’d have to take on loans, or your parents have a budget of 15K and below, I’d go with Macaulay. Even if you have to pay for 2 years of housing, it’s still cheaper than 4 years of R&B at Stony Brook. However, IF your parents have a 20K budget for you (out of pocket, NOT from loans) then Stony Brook would be a good choice: totally within budget so no debt, and the full experience at a top-notch science program.
Macaulay is not only significantly more affordable, allowing you to save for med school (or put off loans until then), but it offers even much bigger benefits than what you listed – all the benefits of living in NYC!! Stony Brook is kind of in the middle of nowhere and students take a long train ride to NYC for entertainment and internships and such. You will be in the heart of everything at Hunter. Congrats for getting such a great offer with Macaulay! You should jump on it.
I would also consider NOT asking your parents to spend available money for undergrad if you have an opportunity not to spend a dime at a very good school. I’ve noticed that most of the prestigious award winners from CUNY–including people in your field–are coming from Macaulay Honors College. Many of them also seem to end up in stellar graduate programs, including the Ivies. By saving yourself and your parents a lot of money now, you can hit them up for assistance in medical school…telling them to keep on saving until then! Good luck.