Is it better to go to a lesser school if you are went to be premed

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My sister and I were pre-meds at so-called second tier Ivies. I almost finished the course load before switching to poli sci and winding up at law school. My sister completed pre-med courses and went to Cornell Med.

We both felt that Ivies do not want to graduate classes where pluralities are going to med school. Ivies want to impact society (and generate big alumni donations later, LOL), and doctors don't do that (unless they invent a stent and then buy the LA Lakers). As a result, the curves in the weed-out classes are pretty tough, perhaps tougher than they would be at other colleges.

Pre-med courses are tough anywhere, and aspiring doctors have to run a gauntlet of coursework at any college. But at an Ivy or an Ivy+ it is indeed more difficult, IMO. The LAC pathway seems better to me.

That is how it used to be not how it is! Harvard and Duke have medians of A-, the other ivies have medians of B+ but then A- for upper level stem. Overall median GPA for premeds is the same as the overall school: about 3.75-3.9 depending on the colleges. Med schools know the peer group is hard , they know the current median at each school, and they generally let a slightly below average GPA slide because that group, below avg, will still knock out a 512-514! Average is usually 516! Are the kids super smart yes but also the classes really prepare well for MCAT.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Look into BSMD programs

In my oldest kid's class, there was a boy who was great in all ways. In short, most people believed he will go to Harvard. He ended with a school out of Top50. It is a BSMD program with big merit aid. Later when I saw how many students struggling on the way to med school, I realized how great his choice was.

If he had gone to an ivy he could have gotten into a better med school AND gotten merit. Aid is huge at med school now

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For the two previous posters above, can you please name the Ivy? I'm thinking there are varying experiences at, say, Brown v. Princeton or Cornell v. Harvard. It would be helpful for me to know. Thanks.

Penn and Columbia, huge boost! Research, clinicals, lots of top med schools!

[Anonymous]

https://www.collegetransitions.com/blog/from-pre-med-to-md-understanding-the-pathways-to-medical-school/

Top feeders to med school
1. JHU
13. Upenn
17. Emory
23. Cornell
46. Columbia
48. Georgetown
60. BU

Comparing Emory to BU for pre-med of all things is an insult. It's one of the best.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:https://www.collegetransitions.com/blog/from-pre-med-to-md-understanding-the-pathways-to-medical-school/

Top feeders to med school
1. JHU
13. Upenn
17. Emory
23. Cornell
46. Columbia
48. Georgetown
60. BU

Comparing Emory to BU for pre-med of all things is an insult. It's one of the best.

The winner is the kid that graduated from University of Iowa at a fraction of the cost attending the same medical schools. It's pre-med folks.

[Anonymous]

I have a pre-med kid at UVA and a second one at an Ivy. The medical school matriculations from the two are very different. UVA sends primarily to state schools, Ivy sends many to top10 med schools. UVA kids almost all take gap years, the Ivy kids generally do not.

We're both in medicine and realize that an MD is an MD. But it's nice that places like Yale and Penn medicine are in the conversation from the Ivy undergrad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you are choosing between Harvard and Emory, definitely go with Harvard.

Op here. I’m thinking schools like Columbia, Johns Hopkins, Cornell, UPenn vs Boston University, Emory, Georgetown.

Johns Hopkins and Cornell are supposedly great for premed but I know so many guys who went there and did not make it to medical school. Have heard Columbia is cutthroat.

My kid really liked BU’s campus.

The second tier schools you listed are not easier. Emory for example has a 68% premed to medical school acceptance rate. Georgetown has a small cohort of premeds. Premed is premed, it's hard. Many guys who went to Emory also did not make it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a pre-med kid at UVA and a second one at an Ivy. The medical school matriculations from the two are very different. UVA sends primarily to state schools, Ivy sends many to top10 med schools. UVA kids almost all take gap years, the Ivy kids generally do not.

We're both in medicine and realize that an MD is an MD. But it's nice that places like Yale and Penn medicine are in the conversation from the Ivy undergrad.

Over 85% of Ivy students take a gap year today including at Harvard.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Look into BSMD programs

In my oldest kid's class, there was a boy who was great in all ways. In short, most people believed he will go to Harvard. He ended with a school out of Top50. It is a BSMD program with big merit aid. Later when I saw how many students struggling on the way to med school, I realized how great his choice was.

Which one?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My sister and I were pre-meds at so-called second tier Ivies. I almost finished the course load before switching to poli sci and winding up at law school. My sister completed pre-med courses and went to Cornell Med.

We both felt that Ivies do not want to graduate classes where pluralities are going to med school. Ivies want to impact society (and generate big alumni donations later, LOL), and doctors don't do that (unless they invent a stent and then buy the LA Lakers). As a result, the curves in the weed-out classes are pretty tough, perhaps tougher than they would be at other colleges.

Pre-med courses are tough anywhere, and aspiring doctors have to run a gauntlet of coursework at any college. But at an Ivy or an Ivy+ it is indeed more difficult, IMO. The LAC pathway seems better to me.

Which university did you attend? Big difference between Cornell and Brown, for example, when it comes to grade deflation in weed out classes

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Look into BSMD programs

In my oldest kid's class, there was a boy who was great in all ways. In short, most people believed he will go to Harvard. He ended with a school out of Top50. It is a BSMD program with big merit aid. Later when I saw how many students struggling on the way to med school, I realized how great his choice was.

If he had gone to an ivy he could have gotten into a better med school AND gotten merit. Aid is huge at med school now

merit aid is not a median outcome for ivy league premeds.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a pre-med kid at UVA and a second one at an Ivy. The medical school matriculations from the two are very different. UVA sends primarily to state schools, Ivy sends many to top10 med schools. UVA kids almost all take gap years, the Ivy kids generally do not.

We're both in medicine and realize that an MD is an MD. But it's nice that places like Yale and Penn medicine are in the conversation from the Ivy undergrad.

Don't believe this premise, but regardless, doesn't matter anyway.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid is pre-med at an Ivy. Their thoughts:
-the pre med classes aren't impossible and peers are not a crowd of geniuses.
-the medical school results are really good. The seniors my child knows personally this year are going to Yale, UVA, Mt. Sinai, and Hopkins. All top tier med schools. No gap year.

I went to a very small private university that doesn’t usually send a lot of kids to med school. Maybe a few from the bio program a year. One of my friends got into Harvard med school, and she said it was so easy. Said they had pass/fail and the only way to fail was to quit. She also had straight A’s in her science classes and an excellent MCAT score.

[Anonymous]

Holy Cross is a powerhouse in placing kids in med school and has been hot over 100 years. Grads include Nobel Prize winner, AMA President, countless med school deans, and Dr Fauci. No other SLAC is close.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I vote for SLAC’s for your pre-med kid but I’m biased. The main thing about being pre-med is that the kid has to want it badly enough and be interested enough to get through the gauntlet of med school admissions and training. Pre-med students can be successful at all kinds of schools.

This. If child is really committed to going into medicine, getting through those math, biology and chemistry classes are going to be key. And it can much harder at a larger university.