I’m interested in Medical School after college, but I also really enjoy business. Right now my top two choices are Penn and Duke, but after talking to some people, both of those seem very cutthroat and would be hard to stand out in. My other top choice which I knocked down a little was Tufts, but since I live half an hour away it seemed too close for me. Any opinions on where I should look to apply?
These are three top schools which draw students from all over the country so yes, standing out is going to require a great deal of hard work and no, one isn’t going to be easier than the other, especially if you are seriously pre-med. You will work just as hard at Tufts as you will at Penn or Duke.
Pick the place that you think you’ll enjoy most (without going into debt if possible because med school and biz school are both expensive).
If you are really serious about pre-med, remember that med schools are relatively prestige insensitive. They care about GPA and MCAT scores, first and foremost. So your State U, or a good but less well known liberal arts college where the elbows are less sharp, would serve you just as well as a top school.
Of course, business is an entirely different matter… Connections, location, and prestige matter more. And you’ll be done after 4 years of college (unless you want an MBA - so another 2). It’s a much easier route than the MD route (speaking as an MBA with an S in med school.)
Assuming you do not have infinite financial resources:
If you want to go to med school, its better to spend less on undergrad so you have that money for medical school.
Also, med school is all about GPA and MCAT…so you want a school where you can maintain a good GPA but still be prepared for the MCAT. Ivy League schools will have many many smart kids to compete with for GPA and are expensive (unless you are very poor). Also they are very difficult to get into. You don’t want to go to Podunk U either…you need a good value school.
I agree with @bopper; I want to go the med school route as well, and advice that I’m hearing overall is that going to a smaller/not-Ivy might be better in the long run…
The only contradiction there is that I would love to go to an Ivy…