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[commander_bae]

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[Toutie]

Save the money and

Help me...

I got accepted into USC, UCLA, UCI, and Northwestern.
I don't want to leave SoCal, so Northwestern is most likely a no-no.
UCI is a great school and I felt very comfortable there, but I think I would thrive more at USC or UCLA.

So now it comes down to USC vs. UCLA.

The reason I'm considering USC is because of its LA County hospital, alumni, the fact that it is a private institution, and possibly more staff/faculty support.

The reason I'm considering UCLA is because of its lower price tag (almost half of USC), higher ranking status, and a good location.

I will probably be about a half million in debt with USC, and about a quarter million in debt with UCLA (fml haha)
Money is important for me, but if USC education is really worth the extra quarter million, I am willing to choose that instead.

Can anyone please tell me your experiences/input?
I'd really appreciate it...

Save the money and go to UCLA. UCLA is already the better school...so there is no way USC is worth $250K MORE than UCLA.

 

[Iceandmedicine]

With your list of reasons, DEFINITELY choose UCLA. It has an excellent reputation - the private/public thing doesn't really matter in med school (cases in point: UCSF, UCLA, UMich).

 

[watermelon master]

UCLA for sure

 

[Radiata20]

This should be a fun thread Apparently some across take our rivalry rather seriously.

Did you have a chance to come to our revisit weekend and USC's revisit weekend?

I'm sure you'd be fine here or there. But you're not really giving us too much to go off of aside from the financials, so unless you have a really substantial reason--such as fit with school mission, or if you for some reasons hated it here when you came for Second Look--to choose to take an extra 250k in loans (which turn into double that, depending on interest and loan repayment plan), I doubt you'll find anyone here even among USC students/alumni who will say you should go into that much extra debt without having a compelling reason.

 

[coffeeandcodeine]

UCLA, no question. Half a million in debt shouldn't be taken lightly, no matter what your parents think, especially when it will be accruing interest throughout med school and residency. Factor in UCLA's superior reputation and arguably better clinical training/research, the decision should be a no-brainer. I don't think the anecdotal evidence that USC students are better supported holds much weight. UCLA students match very well, and have all the resources they need to succeed. Seriously, don't go into half a million dollars of debt.

Edit: I know it can be really hard to disregard your parents' opinions, but this is a huge decision, and one you should make for yourself. It seems pretty obvious (given the debt) that UCLA is the best choice for your future -- I'm sure your parents will come around eventually.

 

[Lawpy]

UCLA hands down.

 

[mw18]

Not to pile on, but I clicked the thread expecting the opposite situation. I was expecting USC throwing money at you and that giving you pause. But UCLA and less debt seems pretty simple to me.

 

[Radiata20]

I'm not sure why your parents think USC will take better care of its students. I have had no issue here with support from the administration nor mentorship from faculty, nor have any of the upperclassmen here I've talked to. As mentioned above, our match list is a wonderful testament of how well you will do here. Again, this year we had 7 derm, 7 ophtho, 4 ENT, 3 uro etc. etc. to largely UCLA Health & affiliates, UCSF, and Stanford. Which, if you know what matching into those is like, means our senior class did, quite frankly, absurdly well.

As for parents, it might be worth talking to them more to explain the full story, to at least attempt to get everyone on the same page before you make the decision. And the full story has been written countless times in countless places online, so I'll just repeat some of the highlights that make an extra $250k of loans before even accounting for interest nothing to sneeze at:

• $0 income x 4yrs of med school
• $60-80k x 3-9+yrs of residency +/- fellowship, before you ever see an attending's paystub
  
• If interested in primary care or similarly lower-compensating specialty, then lower income than what they're probably thinking of
• If interested in academic medicine, then lower income than what they're probably thinking of (unless you eventually make chair/dean)
• If interested in settling down in a high cost of living area--say, Palo Alto if working at Stanford Healthcare--then lower disposable income than what they're probably thinking of
  
• Double the loans = ~double the number of years that, say, $5k/month disappear before you ever see it from that paycheck

Hopefully you can get a better offer from USC with your negotiations! Otherwise, see you here in July

 

[byaaaaaaah23]

UCLA is affiliated with the other 2 county hospitals (Harbor and Olive View) and you will likely do at least part of your rotations at one of them. LAC-USC has the name when it comes to county (what a concept haha) but Harbor is basically the same thing. Still sees a ton of trauma. Olive View less so but still has a similar population. UCLA's affiliations with so many different types of hospitals (Reagan, Cedars, county x2, Kaiser) is a major strength (I know USC goes to a few others like Huntington, Santa Barbara Cottage), so don't put that in the positive column for USC esp at a much higher price tag in your case.

 

[Autotoxicus]

UCLA is affiliated with the other 2 county hospitals (Harbor and Olive View) and you will likely do at least part of your rotations at one of them. LAC-USC has the name when it comes to county (what a concept haha) but Harbor is basically the same thing. Still sees a ton of trauma. Olive View less so but still has a similar population. UCLA's affiliations with so many different types of hospitals (Reagan, Cedars, county x2, Kaiser) is a major strength (I know USC goes to a few others like Huntington, Santa Barbara Cottage), so don't put that in the positive column for USC esp at a much higher price tag in your case.

I would agree, from what I understand USC has fewer affiliated hospitals- which I personally think has less breadth and depth of exposure for clinical training than UCLA. I also would not necessarily say that USC has any advantage in resources as a private institution. With the same class size, you are essentially paying private school tuition for a "public school" education... not saying this is bad, It's just not necessarily better than UCLA.

All things equal (which they are not...), I would still recommend UCLA since you seem to be concerned with cost. I think the only reason why you should pick USC over UCLA is if you felt like you fit better and will be significantly happier at USC.

Disclaimer: I'm accepted to UCLA, no interview from USC.

 

[libertyyne]

UCLA
1. Higher ranked school.
2. Cheaper school.

Case closed.

 

[yungspleen]

Have your parents seen the area USC is located in? UCLA hands down

 

[CbasCoC2016]

Just a quick update!
I'm going to UCLA DGSOM haha
I feel really good about it and excited to start in July
Thank you so much for all the great comments/inputs/opinions.
(You're all amazing people <3)

I'm pretty new into this forums but would you mind saying the EC you did? I'm also planning in applying for both schools. And congrats for getting into both!