<p>Physician here. Started reading posts then needed to reply regarding where physicians went to undergrad et al school. The only disadvantages of attending “podunk U” as an undergrad when applying to medical school are less weight given by admissions and possibly less learned compared to a top flagship or other good college- but that only may affect the ease in learning the basic sciences in medical school. Most physicians will have attended the schools they were accepted at- their state schools. The person who graduated last in his/her medical school is a physician as much as the top grad. All practicing physicians have to pass the required tests for licensure. The post graduate residency/specialty training is where differences come in. They tightened up on training programs decades ago so junky ones are long gone. The top medical schools do not always have the best residency programs in all specialties and different programs have strengths in different areas. This means that for certain subsets of medical problems the top experts will come out of program X, whereas for a different problem program Y will have the top experts. Ongoing/continuing medical education is required to keep a state license. Board certification in one’s specialty is an indicator of having met knowledge requirements at the time of certification. Experience also counts- it is called the practice of medicine for a reason.</p>
<p>The short answer- don’t get hung up on the schools a physician went to, their peer recommendations count more. Dr. X from country Y could be a much better physician than a local grad.</p>