<p>My daughter was fortunate to get accepted to Stanford and USC with a Trustee Scholarship. Money is not a major issue, but she maybe interested in premed and high GPA is essential for medical school admissions. I think it might be harder to get a higher GPA in Stanford than in USC because of the tougher competition. She visited both universities and likes them both. Does the school prestige give her any edge in premed? Any advice?</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/pre-med-topics/1122176-bluedevilmikes-ten-step-guide-picking-premed-school.html”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/pre-med-topics/1122176-bluedevilmikes-ten-step-guide-picking-premed-school.html</a></p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/pre-med-topics/1484178-if-you-high-school-please-read-before-posting.html”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/pre-med-topics/1484178-if-you-high-school-please-read-before-posting.html</a></p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/pre-med-topics/1331981-new-pre-med-students.html”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/pre-med-topics/1331981-new-pre-med-students.html</a></p>
<p>Please read these stickies, they should help. Feel free to ask more questions.</p>
<p>Kat</p>
<p>There wouldn’t be too much difference between the two. They are both private schools, so both have a good amount of grade inflation, You can google charts that compare top private schools to public schools to see this for yourself.</p>
<p>Both schools have a medical school and extensive access to clinical shadowing, and clinical research. </p>
<p>Stanford really does not inflate grades, it’s actually one of the few privates that don’t. I’d go with Stanford, prestige does make a difference, but if she thinks she’d do much better academically at USC then that’s the better choice.</p>
<p><a href=“http://tusb.stanford.edu/2010/02/grade_inflation_exists_it_suck.html”>http://tusb.stanford.edu/2010/02/grade_inflation_exists_it_suck.html</a> Article from Stanford Newspaper admitting grade inflation</p>
<p><a href=“UC Berkeley may combat grade inflation through new system”>http://www.dailycal.org/2013/03/11/uc-berkeley-may-combat-grade-inflation-through-new-grading-system/</a>
^^^
Article that contains a graph comparing the average GPA in Stanford relative to other Ivies, and Berkeley. It’s evident that there is grade inflation, at least relative to Ivies. I am not sure about how it compares to USC.</p>
<p>^Huh, thanks for that, it’s definitely not what I’d read/heard before. </p>
<p>It is quite silly to look at University averages and proclaim there is grade inflation and so it should be fine for one to assume they can get into med school.</p>
<p>People don’t understand that a 3.4 GPA for a premed who is a California resident can get them into an MS program in some school, but their chances of a med school are between slim and none and slim has left town. So if someone is pinning their hopes on getting into a med school with 3.4 by looking at the average on a chart, then they probably have no clue what it takes to get into one.</p>
<p>About 700 kids show up at Stanford each year claiming to be interested in medicine. Many forget that part by middle of sophomore to early junior years when they figure out they are being weeded out of the premed requirement classes but it is also true to say many find other passions while they are at S. Several premed requirement classes at Stanford are curved around a B or B- which means half the students are going to get a 3.0 or less in those classes. These kids are cream of the crop in the nation before they got there but half of them now have to settle for a B because that is how the classes are graded. </p>
<p>OTOH, a 3.8 and a 37-38 MCAT (50 in future?) from Stanford will make them eligible for pretty much any med school in the nation. I am certain that there are not too many coming out of Stanford with both those numbers although 200-300 move on to medical schools each year.</p>
<p>^ @texaspg would you agree that it is relatively less tough to get a higher GPA at USC than at S., provided that the same student puts the same amount of work? I don’t know if the harsher curve at USC (B-/C+) would cancel out the advantage of the less competitive students at USC.</p>
<p>My D decided on USC with scholarship over S (and other HYPS) full pay for pre-med, has worked very hard, done extremely well, saved us 100K, and is well positioned to apply to med schools in June. While there may be some “less competitive students” at USC, they generally are not pre-med hard core science students from what I have heard from D. Most have had AP everything, high test scores, and are very motivated. Like most schools, those who are not serious or willing to work end up dropping very soon. The gen bio and gen chem series are filled with pre-meds and about 1/3 drop out during these courses. Another 1/3 seem to drop during the Ochem and Physics series. </p>
<p>@mramadan - I believe USC should be competitive also and premeds usually have to work for their grades at most well regarded schools. I agree with camomof3 that most premed students at USC also work hard for their grades. I have been told as much by someone who went there with a combined BS/MD admission (they no longer exist) but is currently in med school in Texas. He used to complain about how hard it was to get an A in English for someone who is not considered an English major while pretty much every friend of his at UT was getting that A.</p>
<p>If you can afford to pay for both undergrad and med school, you should let your kid pick the school. If finances have to be considered also for med school, it is hard to pass up a trustee.</p>