@compengineer1 - so the question for your D is what is her priority and her degree of risk tolerance? if the UG “college experience” is the priority, then an IVY/Stanford/CalTech is reasonable. if the academic excellence/research is the priority, then as @srk2017 mentioned, may have to identify which IVY has the strength for that particular area along with Stanford/CalTech/JHU BME. it’s a valid point as well that a little bit less stress (not ‘no stress’) going to a BSMD program where the requirements to matriculation to the medical school are lower than the traditional applicant may allow one to enjoy one’s UG experience better (e.g. taking courses that interest them, joining clubs/activities that they wouldn’t normally do vs focusing on those that may be looked upon more favorably on their med school application, allowing a little more leeway in one’s GPA (not necessarily >3.8) or MCAT (if required), etc.). if one is pressured to get every last point on an exam/paper for GPA (in engineering no less), join multiple meaningful activities/volunteer services, publish in a medical journal, prepare adequately for MCAT, go through application process again in a few years, then that has the potential to not leave as much time to enjoy other aspects of the UG experience. but for many i do understand that the pursuit of academic excellence, volunteer service, and research is rewarding in and of itself. but certainly other factors should be considered as well (cost, location, etc.).
HaHa.
You should be astrologer!!
I consider IVY etc. education although great, a big hype and way overboard- But who am I? D thinks it great.
Not sure in medicine, but in Engg., I have seen folks from avg. school do well at IBM or Intel etc. whereas MIT PhDs going nowhere (although in most cases they do well but many dont).
So same trend perhaps with IVYs.
So you think D should take JHU full ride or SBU BME full ride followed by inexpensive good SBU med school over Columbia as of now?? $$ from Columbia not known yet.
How about SBU med with SBU UG BME full ride vs JHU BME full schol??
Yes UPenn is very highly regarded medical school and It is not surprise on gap years which is becoming a trend for getting all top med schools including Harvard
True, but all can be doable with proper planning. My S chose quality/innovation over quantity when comes to ECs (and probably one reason schools like Chicago which prefer ton of service hours didn’t offer interview) and that gave him enough time for fun. He even learned dancing and performed in 3 out of 4 cultural showcases (Indian, Japanese and Latin). He had no dance interest in HS. Two summers he spent abroad and visited several countries in Europe by himself. It all comes down to individual student and I say all this not to brag but to tell fellow parents, please realize potential of your kids and let them explore if they want. If kid wants to go for BSMD and relax and go full force in medical school (like my nephew) that’s OK too, but kids should be making the decision.
No offense to IITians but in general I find them to be extremely stubborn (and arrogant) and not open for debate 
I never said Ivy leagues give best education in every field but again branding has lot of weightage. For premed, that could be the difference between 517 vs 523 in MCAT.
Work performance is totally different from book performance. I have seen lot of top tier students having no common sense and performing poorly.
If your D thinks she can survive JHU BME grind I would go with JHU BME (given full scholarship) without a doubt.
Let us stick with Ivies and BSMDs.
AIR 1 go to Caltech- Undisputbale!!!
Think many here will need to make decisions after IVY day on IVY vs. BSMD.
Perhaps healthy debate may help ( or perhaps confuse) Seniors. D seems tilting towards Columbia whereas I prefer SBU med- But who am I. She will make the decision.
Does D have full-ride at Columbia ? SBU seems a solid choice for a MD aspirant.
$$ not disclosed ( it is likely with Egleston Scholarship) -After IVY day. Dont think will get full ride. SBU UG BME is full ride with med and JHU also. Few others like GT etc. partial and Harvey Mudd interview today for full ride.
As of now I prefer SBU full ride with med whereas she Columbia.
On a lighter note- This applying out discussion is of no use! While lot of folks think they want to apply out and get into excellent med school, most end up not doing it. Its analogous to that many of us wanted to go back to native country after few years in US, but don’t see a good reason to that even after many years 
It is true that most will have no appetite to go through another grueling application cycle even with great UG GPA and MCAT score, IMO.
Every year, 60% of applicants are not getting into a medical school is a fact.
Every year, 40% of applicants are getting into a medical school is a fact.
Numbers: ~52K applicants (this number is expected to up by another ~10K this year, but we won’t know until official data or current cycle publishes later this year)
Matriculants: ~22K
Not accepted any SOM: ~30K
It doesn’t mean 60% of 3.8 GPAs are not getting into med schools.
When you apply to UGs, one expectation is to get multiple acceptances and that is common outcome. Think for a moment how many UGs are there in the country (1000s?) vs how many professional programs colleges are there for each industry like law, finance, medicine (100s?).
Hence professional programs are more competitive to get admission to than UG, thus acceptance rate for a professional school seems very low. Only 8% of applicants in traditional route are getting more than 1 acceptances and generally those are rock stars and become industry leaders.
You will be surprised to see how many apply to med schools who have no business with medicine at least on paper. It is like how many more apply to Harvard this year even though they know they aren’t going to admitted to Harvard compare to previous years (we all know the reasons) and it is expected to dip acceptance rate to all those colleges this year once dust settles for current cycle.
@compengineer1 - the full ride for SBU is for both UG and med school? i think that’s great. SBU is very respectable UG, med school, and university hospital. congrats!
No No. Full ride to UG BME only in WISE- That decision was earlier. Med school was few days ago. No mention of $$ but is in-state for us.
She did research in Alzheimers etc. and knew professor in Neurobiology/Cancer medicine etc. She was also selected to their flagship Simons program that was cancelled. Think all that helped in fast- track her applications.
On other hand she was rejected TCNJ think- not invited for interview either.
SBU UG is avg. school and many NY kids go there. So top students dont like going there. Happend in my sons case also for CS. He didnt want to go with full ride and ended up somewhere else where he is struggling and barely has 3.0 GPA.
I have been to SBU and talked to many professors in multiple dept- Seem pretty good to me but could not convince son few years ago. D has stayed there for a month so knows.
Sorry my friend, I know it will sting you since I vaguely remember your credentials. Treat that as friendly jab and you know I don’t do generalizations.
UT Austin Vs Rice which is better overall and for chances to get into Med School? Thanks
Just like tiny percentage going back it could happen. Our beloved @GoldenRock’s D did that too from a full ride school.
I would say Rice, tough to get GPA and research opportunities at state flagships. However consider costs also.
Thanks @srk2017. Cost is not a factor.