<p>So I'm stuck, as many people are, with a life altering decision now. College choice will undoubtably greatly affect the rest of your life, so choosing the right thing is important. I've narrowed it down right now between Duke and my state school University of Maryland College Park.</p>
<p>I am pretty much 100% certain that I will study bio, and (hopefully) go to medical school after that. Stopping with an undergraduate degree is not something I want to do, so I'm seriously all about going to medical school. With this in mind, I initially decided to go to Duke from my choices of Cornell, Duke, Brandeis, and Johns Hopkins. But then today I found out that Maryland gives me full scholarship, along with $12,000 Cash i can get for another scholarship for staying in a Maryland school. Keeping in mind that I will receive no financial aid at any school, my choices are:</p>
<p>Duke: $160,000+
Maryland: They pay me $12,000</p>
<p>Now, while I initially wanted to go to Duke, given the stellar atmosphere, academics, and everything like that, the $172,000 dollar savings at MAryland is very, very enticing. I'm unclear on the impact this undergraduate degree in Bio will have on my prospects to getting into Medical school. While it seems stronger to come out of Duke, the Honors program and Gemstone program at Maryland are not too bad. I'm really stuck as to what to do. I suppose the best way is to visit both places and see which I like better, but I would appreciate any feedback or advice anyone else might have. This is often seen as a big debate, whether to go to the expensive, prestegious school, or go to a cheaper (in this case, free), worse school, and its impact on your graduate studies.</p>
<p>I've also been offered that Banneker-Key scholarship to umd, and I'm from Bowie. I always wanted to go to Georgetown, but its just so expensive and that's really getting to me right now. I'm starting to settle in on the fact that maybe the big name ideal school isn't as important as what you personally make of your college experience, wherever it may be. i'm hoping that as long as I can find a smaller community or activity group within the huge UMD student body, i'll fit in and make the most of my 4 years. I also anticipate going to med school to become an orthopedic surgeon at this point, and i'ld like to have the $ to pay for it!
Let me know what you decide, and I'll keep ya posted on my decision.</p>
<p>My philosophy is to choose a college not based on the scholarship offered, but by the education offered by the college. Between UMD and Duke, Duke provides the better overall college experience and has excellent medical school placement percentages. In fact, in Duke's BME program, 100% of applicants were accepted into medical school (20 students).</p>
<p>If you're a good student you shouldn't have a problem getting into med school with a degree from MD. On the other hand, the loans you'll have hanging over your head from attending Duke will amount to $1,700 a month if you only go 10 years out on the loans. At only 5%, the total amount you'll end up paying back will exceed $200,000. If you lengthen the term of the loan, the monthly payment will be lower but the total cost will be even more. Add to that any money you'll need to borrow for med school and pretty soon you're talking some real money.</p>
<p>UMD isn't a poor school or even an average school... it's pretty darn good and getting better each year. Also consider the "big fish small pond" versus "small fish big pond" concept where you will be able to truely excell at UMD where you may be just middle of the pack at Duke. I have two friends at Duke and they love it. They both are extremely bright but just do okay. IMO, take Maryland if you don't mind the school.</p>
<p>Here's the deal IMO: If you have to take out loans to go to Duke, definitely take the free ride at UMD. If your parents make a seven figure income and want you to go to Duke and will pay, then go. It's the in between (which I suspect you fall) that makes the decision tough. You can definitely get into med school if you do well at UMD. Keep in mind that med school will cost more $$$$ for an additional four years and that physician salaries have been on a downward trend (except certain specialties). Gather up all the facts, visit the schools, make your decision and don't look back!</p>
<p>My S has to make a decision between Duke, JHU, Berkley (all want 40K+), and Case (he gets 24K merit based scholarship money). His heart is to go with JHU/ Duke, but like you, he understands, we are talking difference of 150K. He is not sure of Med School and may consider BME as career, in which case JHU or Duke are at least better on paper. If you are sure that you will do Medicine, UMD is the way to go. Like macattak says, believe me, it does take a decade to get the loans off your head, and that's after you have become an orthopod.</p>
<p>UMD is rapidly becoming one of the top public colleges in the country, so long as you work hard, you will not have a problem getting into med school.</p>
<p>This decision would be a lot harder if you lived in state that doesn't have good public colleges. But UMD-College Park, especially their Honors Program is fantastic. I know people who would pay a lot to go there and you would be getting paid for it.</p>
<p>At UMD, you're saving money that can then be used for grad school (remember, it is expensive) and getting a fantastic education. Duke just can't match this win-win situation.</p>
<p>UMDCP honors program skimmned 5 of the top 10 at my S's high school last year ( a class of 400+ - the other 5 went to Ivy's and top NE LACS) - they all got big aid and will, no doubt, fare quite well there and later on in life as they are extremely bright, motivated, and ambitious. Am beginning to believe BS degrees are kinda cheap these days as most students need to move on to the Masters or even Ph.D. - do well at UMD, stay out of debt, and get into a good med school - that'll be expensive enough to pay for weithour burdening yourself with undergrad debt.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the input from everyone! I'm slightly leaning towards UMD at the moment, but I just really have to do alot of research regarding the strength of their honors programs and the such. I know MD has great business and compsci schools, but I'm not really sure about the Bio. </p>
<p>For Duke, my parents have enough money such that I would not have to take out the loans, but its no 7-figure income, and 172,000+ is still a crapload, even for relatively well-off families. </p>
<p>I guess the real decision comes after the visits to both places.</p>
<p>I would tell you to go for UMD no questions asked, but since you haven't visited both places I think you should wait until you've carefully taken a look at each school. At UMD, you'll want to spend as much time as possible with the honors program people to see the actual kind of experience you'll be getting rather than just as a regular student in the school. </p>
<p>Some important questions to ask: How many honors classes are offered? How many can you take per semester? How many students allowed per class? Are there any research centers set up you could participate in? Any special honors dorms or living/learning options? Ask them specifically about how well honors students tend to do in med school admissions. All these questions are crucial since the experience of an honors student will definitely differ from that of an average student at the school. </p>
<p>Usually, honors programs do a very good job in recruiting top students by rolling out the welcome mat when you visit so be sure to coordinate your visit through them. They might even help you meet the professors who teach honors classes in your area of interest. </p>
<p>I'm pretty sure that UMD can offer you just as good of an education with a much higher quality of life than Duke. With no loans to worry about, you'll be much less depedent on your parents for money and can use the extra cash to fund study abroads or trips to research conventions.</p>
<p>Btw, my position is very similiar to yours and I have already decided on the state school with an excellent honors program over the highly-ranked school.</p>
<p>LOL... if you haven't visited yet Duke will definitely score better than UMD in that dept. Some say UMD has a nice campus some do not... it's just very different from Duke. </p>