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[quote=Anonymous]Dollars aside, the question is not so simple (I can't get a clear picture on the net out of pocket comparison that the OP is making as it is not as simple as "I have a full ride" versus "no merit dollars" because need-based aid in the form of grants not loans at places like Stanford can be very meaningful).  It is also not as simple as, "where you go undergrad really doesn't matter."  If you held this view you wouldn't apply to Stanford in the first place.  If your end-state ambition is to be a doctor, then where you go the medical school and where you do residency clearly matter more to your success.  They trick, however, is getting onto that path.  Places like Harvard and Stanford medical school take a significantly higher percentage of students from their own undergraduate programs.  This is a little known fact and can be material.  When I was at Harvard Medical, my class of 160 was drawn 40 from Harvard Undergrad, with the next highest representation from Yale and Stanford at roughly 10 each.  I am not saying that Harvard is the only good medical school in the country and in many ways the state medical programs (UMichigan and UCSF for example) are also outstanding. But these schools too had a disproportionate number of undergrads from fancy places like Stanford and Harvard.

You do not have to be in the top 5% of your class at Stanford to get into a phenomenal Medical School.  My wife is on the admissions committee at a prominent Top 10 east coast medical school.  The candidates that she sees and accepts from highly competitive undergraduate programs tend to be in the top quarter of their class.

Taking a cheap shot at Ivy athletes should not provide any comfort.  People with proven commitment to things that are hard - and being a division I athlete is hard - are very attractive to medical schools.  A team captain with a good GPA and strong boards will often trump an academic grinder with little else.  My two football playing roommates from undergrad, one of whom is a chief of neurosurgery and the other leading a major orthopedics surgery group, would disagree very strongly with the assertions made by some on this board.

The best way to increase your chances for success is to chose a school where you believe you will fulfill your academic potential.  This is not entirely  measured in GPA or class rank. I would include access to research opportunities, a rich and varied curriculum, superior faculty, and stimulating and challenging peers as a part of a winning formula.  If you are fearful that you will not rise to the challenge of a place like Stanford, then you are probably not going to distinguish yourself sufficiently at a lower ranked school to get into one of the better medical schools.  [/quote]

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