Harvard vs. Combined Med Programs

Colleges & Universities Harvard University
1

<p>Who knew getting into Harvard would be the source of so much hand-wringing and headaches? Right now, I must decide amongst:</p>

<p>USC Bacc/MD (Keck School of Medicine)
Brown PLME (Alpert Medical School)
Harvard</p>

<p>Financial considerations: USC Bacc/MD is giving me half-tuition. I have to pay (or borrow) the full ticket for Brown PLME and Harvard. My family makes ~210k/year… so unfortunately, no financial aid.</p>

<p>I want to note that I have a strong interest in the visual arts as well as neuroscience and medicine. I have been painting and drawing for most of my life, and now I am afraid that the “traditional” premed route might rob me of time and energy for art. Along these lines, Brown allows cross-registration with Rhode Island School of Design, which keeps PLME’s attractiveness in spite of its hefty pricetag. Keep in mind though, my plan is to go into medicine, not art. Ideally, I would like to major in neuroscience and minor in art.</p>

<p>On the other hand, I have heard amazing things about the Harvard environment, boundless opportunities for research, and the influence of being surrounded by incredible students. At the risk of sounding irrational, I admit this: I’m afraid that I might be “missing out” if I don’t attend Harvard. Please correct me if I’m terribly mistaken.</p>

<p>So basically, what it boils down to:</p>

<li>Guaranteed admission to medical school following an “upper-middle tier” undergrad, which would allow more artistic freedom and less stress</li>
</ol>

<p>OR</p>

<li>To take the traditional, artistically-limiting premed route through a more academically intense and prestigious undergrad school with a phenomenal student body.</li>
</ol>

<p>I know to some people the answer is grossly obvious (“You got into med school; shut up and take it” or “You got into Harvard; shut up and take it.”). I also realize that by posting in the Harvard forum, I’m probably going find more responses from people who strongly support Harvard. However, I would greatly appreciate any honest opinion about Harvard premed life, chances of getting into med school, as well as any pros and cons of combined med programs at Brown and USC. Thank you. </p>

<p>(I apologize for redundancy if you have already seen this posted on the Multiple Degree Program board; I’m looking for opinions from both sides of the matter.)</p>

2

<p>I would go to Brown. It seems like the best of both worlds in your case</p>

3

<p>Very tough call - but you have some great choices.</p>

<p>Some data that might help you out:
~90% of med school applicants at Harvard get into a med school
I know of two Harvard professors (Shahram Khoshbin and Jeremy Wolfe) who are neuroscientists with an interest in art (and the overlap of the two fields)
Harvard VES is definitely not RISD, but has some great studio classes
Harvard premed life is pretty laid back. MCATs are definitely no fun, but premeds tend to work together on homework in all of the premed classes.<br>
If you concentrate in something like Neurobio, you’ll end up doing almost all of the premed classes as requirements, giving you space for electives (or a secondary field) in Art.</p>

<p>Brown seems like a fantastic place to go for undergrad - but I’ve heard the med school isn’t that great (I know nothing about med school rankings though… so correct me if this is wrong). I’m not a big fan of USC for undergrad, and I have no idea how their med school is.</p>

4

<p>Brown Combined Med Programs worth than Penn State’s combined which ranked really low. I would not considered it out of the three.</p>

5

<p>Just to throw in my two cents, I’m a junior pre-med here at Harvard and I would say to weigh very carefully what your long term medical goals are. If you want to go into private practice, as opposed to academia, then where you go to medical school is of less importance. As someone about to take the MCAT on Saturday, I would say that it would have been really nice not to have to stress about testing, GPA, and applications, so PLME would have been nice.</p>

<p>If, on the other hand, you want to go into academia, then Harvard would probably give you a better chance to get into some really top medical schools. That is, of course, provided that you kick some serious butt in the pre-med classes here.</p>

<p>Also, doesn’t PLME let you apply to other medical schools if you want…</p>

6

<p>As musch as I like Harvard, if you really want/plan to be an MD, I recommend taking the guaranteed BS/MD program over the tradtional BS–>MD program at Harvard. Not having to take the MCAT and compete for med school slots would be a huge burden lifted.</p>

7

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8

<p>I know of someone who got into Brown PLME, the RPI/Albany Med program, and Harvard undergrad a few years ago. She chose Harvard, and after 4 years, she went onto Harvard Medical School…</p>

<p>Still, she was a really amazing student. It’s really hard to get into medical school these days, so I think that a BS/MD program is quite advantageous. Personally, if I were you (and I was sure I was going to be a doctor–if you aren’t sure, you might want to reevaluate things), I would pick Brown PLME. It is possible for you to transfer out (should you want to go to a better medical school like John Hopkins or Harvard), but if you end up not doing as well in college, you can still become a doctor. If you go to Harvard and then try for medical school, keep in mind that you’re going to have to work to keep up your GPA and take the MCATs.</p>

9

<p>A colleagues’ daughter went to Brown’s PLME, graduated about a year, maybe two-years ago, now is doing her residency at a top radiology program.</p>

<p>I am not in a position to give you advice about what you should choose though.</p>

10

<p>I can’t advise you, but I can assure you that half the Harvard pre-meds I knew were majoring in things other than science. A number of them were very talented and active musicians. One of the other posters is right that VES is not RISD, but it is there, the professors are often pretty respected artists. </p>

<p>I know a few people who did the fast-track med programs and were very happy with the results.</p>

11

<p>as someone who did the brown plme and now advises pre-meds at harvard, i think the plme wins out if you have this option available to you</p>

12

<p>As someone who did the Northwestern HPME program and now advises elsewhere, I’d also advise you strongly consider Brown’s program. While the medical school is not known for strength in basic research, your interest in neuroscience does overlap a focused strength at the university as a whole. The opportunity to pursue your artistic side at RISD sounds wonderful. Your undergraduate years, as mentioned by other posters, will be much less stressful and potentially much more well-rounded and fulfilling. Having said this, go to Harvard if that’s where you feel you really belong and fear regrets in years to come.</p>

13

<p>Keep in mind though that Brown Med just got a HUGE donation of $100 million, which will be flowing in and seriously improving it in the years to come. Brown is on the serious up and up, and it’s pretty hard to get in as a non-PLME. My vote, as much as I love Harvard, is to go to Brown - SO LONG AS YOU ARE SURE YOU WANT TO BE A DOCTOR</p>

<p>I really can’t emphasize the last line enough. You should be shadowing your little butt off in the next few weeks (skip school if necessary) to make sure you’re secure in your choice.</p>

14

<p>You’d be absolutely crazy to choose something over a guranteed Med School admission. What is the point in wasting all of your time worrying about your gpa, mcat, research and SPENDING MORE TIME in college. Think about it, the longer you are in college the more you aer paying and missing out on worktime, meaning if you spend an extra 3 years in school you could cost yourself close to 500,000 dollars! That is something to take into consideration. I don’t see any reason to choose Harvard, the only reason to choose Harvard is to be able to brag to be people, and trust me… no one really cares :D</p>

15

<p>“doesn’t PLME let you apply to other medical schools if you want”
They don’t even let you take MCAT</p>

16

<p>you can definitely apply out to other medical schools if you feel it is in your best interest and a handful of plme’s take the MCAT to keep this option open (though the main reason for switching medical schools is to be closer to home). Brown DOESN NOT restrict you from taking the exam–that would be both absurd and illegal.</p>

17

<p>up to last year, if you take MCAT, you loss the med school spot. I don’t know now.</p>

18

<p>that was never the case. you always have been able to take the MCAT and reserve your spot in the PLME med school class. i even know PLME’s who have enrolled at harvard law school (deferring med school) and still kept their spot in the med school class</p>

19

<p>I can’t find the words about the PLME binding in Brown web any more, but found this:<br>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/brown-university/2390-plme-binding.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/brown-university/2390-plme-binding.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;
"“Note: Students who expect to apply to other medical schools should not apply to the PLME which is an eight year educational continuum.”</p>

20

<p>USC or Brown are much better than Harvard undergrad if you are sure that you want to practice medicine. Sorry, but like post #14 implied, Harvard should not even be under consideration if you have other outstanding options which guarantee your admission to medical school. Why throw yourself into intense pre-med competition at one of the world’s best schools, when you have a guaranteed option without taking the MCATs? USC or Brown.</p>