We are considering our options. Kiddo is a good student (yes every mom thinks so ) and really wants to pursue MD in future. We are from Cal and are torm between all these choices.
- What the top 2 choices and why
- Should we visit all or just our top 2 or 3 univ
- Cost - is a matter of consideration, but we are hoping he will secure scholarships
- what should be other considerations
Kiddo applied based on ranking, reviews from friends/seniors who were applying to the same universities. My requirement for out-of-state was a major airline hub nearby and some industry within the vicinity for summer jobs.
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What are the top two choices - that’s personal - and can factor money, location, size, fit, religion
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Should you visit all - yes, unless you can eliminate one due to other considerations up front. Of course, visiting all costs money and time but if you can, absolutely - so you can walk the campus, surrounds, eat in the dining hall, talk to kids, etc.
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You would have gotten your scholarships from the schools by now. It’s unlikely one will get significant outside scholarships.
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Other considerations - it depends - religious (Baylor), do you want a campus or to be in an urban zone (BU), do you want large (BU) or mid size (CWRU)? Do you want better weather (better meaning warmer - Cal Poly). Do Sports matter - Baylor?
As far as your requirements - you can lose SLO (unless you drive) and Baylor - because while both have flights, neither is an airport hub.
Case Western has easy flights as will BU.
If it were me and I was full pay, Cal Poly would win out. Great school, has everything you could want - and it’s not $90K+ like BU.
But these are all good schools - and only you can decide what matters - but don’t forget med school is going to require four more years at $100K a year - so save up now or have to borrow more later.
Good luck.
Congratulations! Lots of good choices!
What’s your budget?
What’s net price at each?
Net price = (tuition fees room board) -(scholarships, grants)
Do not subtract any loan.
Most premeds change their minds or are weeded out, so you want a college where switching out of Biology for a more marketable major OR where adding a data science or statistics minor to the biology major is easy.
With that respect, CWRU is the most flexible, you can choose any major as long as you complete the pre-reqs.
On the other hand, if you live in CA, Cal Poly SLO is probably the best value - great education and great instate price (and being admitted to one of the Biological Science majors is really hard so congratulations ) However it’s very difficult to switch majors depending on the admission threshold so look into it very carefully.
BU has a reputation for grade deflation and weeding out in the sciences but it offers lots of majors and is very urban (heart of Boston/no campus).
Wrt Baylor it’s a terrific choice if you’re a Southern Baptist or a strong Christian believer and love football! If you’re neither, any of the others is just as good 
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I agree with others. CPSLO hands down
- $32K vs $90K
- STEM focus, hands on approach
- Small class size to know the professor well, who will write you LOR for medical school
- Good reputation among employers
- Good weather all year
- Nice college town
Good Luck
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That is something I was thinking also. Did any schools indicate that scholarship information is still to come?
The large majority of students who start university thinking “premed” end up doing something else. However, for a student who is considering medical school, you should budget for a full 8 years of university. Even doctors do not make enough to make it easy to pay off the cost of medical school. Frankly the guess above of $100,000 per year for medical school might be optimistic. Some schools are getting very close to $100,000 per year now, and four or five or six years from now costs will have increased.
If your child is already accepted to these four schools, then they are a very good student! Perhaps you might be a proud mother, but you are also correct!
I think that you are comparing very good with very good with very good with very good. IMHO which of these very good schools your child attends is not likely to have any significant impact on their chances to get accepted to medical school. Perhaps this leaves fit and budget as things to consider.
One more thing that I might mention since you might not think of it living in California but I live up in the Northeast of the US. For the schools that you are looking at that are relatively northern, snow does happen, and sometimes coincides with the beginning or end of Christmas / New Year’s vacation. Cancelled flights are a realistic likelihood. Also, being close to home can be helpful if something goes wrong.
And if you save a few dollars in the college fund to pay for medical school, and if your child decides to go a different way, those dollars can still be helpful for other graduate work. Master’s degrees are rarely funded, and even if a student is studying in a fully funded PhD some parent help can still make the multi-year marathon easier for the student to deal with.
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Just a note to add (Baylor alum here) that while it is religiously affiliated, it’s not Southern Baptist or uber conservative. If anything, it’s much more moderate. And from the perspective of OOS travel, DFW/Dallas Love Field are both major airline hubs and about an hour and a half drive from Waco.
That said, we live in Colorado now, and neither of my kids have any interest going back to TX for college, even with the lure of scholarships, great food and family.
Baylor is well known for their medical school placement. But are you saying he didn’t get any merit there? 84% get merit and over 90% get financial aid. You should have those by now.
Also Baylor is not Southern Baptist. It is associated with Texas Baptists. Baylor is most definitely religious and conservative, but not on the level of say Liberty.
Have you looked at the med school placement for the others?
Also since you are in state for Cal Poly SLO, I would choose that.
Thanks all for the information. Kiddo is mostly Cali bred. We are socially conservative if that helps and all kids are big on sports therefore kiddo wants to be a sports doc. Here is the final list we are juggling:
- Baylor
- CWR
- Cal Poly SLO
- BU
- UCD - wait
- UCSB, UCR, UCM
- UMich
If the airport matters, why Baylor ? You have to cut somehow.
If costs matter, why Michigan or BU ?
Again you need reasons to cut.
In the end, you can be a Dr from anywhere. As an example, I’ve been posting this list - it’s the 1st and 2nd year radiation residents at Vandy - a top hospital.
Makes you wonder - how important is that undergrad name really ?
Since you have criteria, it should be easy enough to narrow it down somewhat. It looks like it’s as it was.
Good luck.
Auburn
CWRU
Florida A&M
Florida State
Fordham
Lipscomb
Luther
Murray State
Northern Illinois
Pitt
Princeton
Tulane
Tuskegee
U North Carolina
U Puerto Rico
U Tennessee
Vandy (2)
Baylor is 90 minutes from either DFW or AUS. Shuttles go to either. DFW is one of the best hubs they have to choose from.
Yes but OP said
90 minutes is not nearby. One could fly from waco technically.
In the end, you have to cut schools. So if that’s a requirement, it’s a plausible reason.
Waco is an entire metro away.
The reason for mentioning Airport was to see if the area has good job/internship prospects locally. My observations is that most places that have large industries / hospitals etc are closer to major airports - therefore the mention of airport. It is not the deciding factor but one that can potentially sway if everything else is same.
It’s 2025 and the job search has really changed. Jobs are found on the internet, indeed and can be anywhere from anywhere. Finding jobs has really changed - in part due to Covid.
My Alabama kid had offers all over but has been out west. My Charleston kid is going to Denver after graduation.
Schools that list source - even an Ivy like Cornell - that’s how it’s happening, more and more every day.
To each their own but I would not use airports in that way.
Ask Baylor and everyone for a placement report if they don’t list it online.
Except half of the schools on your list are not near major airports. I only see 3 — Michigan, BU and CW.
Baylor students will get internships in Dallas, Austin and Houston but also anywhere and everywhere.
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