<p>Basically:
My parents want me to transfer to an Ivy League school after one year because they think going to UVA will hurt my chances at going to a top ranked medical school.
I’m not exactly sure why they think this way. I’ve tried telling them that it’s not what school you go to but what you achieve there that makes all the difference, but I’m guessing they think that: going to an Ivy League school will INSTANTLY give me better opportunities–meet better professors to do research with, make it easier for me to get top internships, etc because of the name of the school.</p>
<p>I for one do NOT want to transfer. UVA is a great school and I’ll probably have a great time there. And thinking of entering a whole new school after one year and trying to find new friends/adjust academically seems kind of a nightmare to me.</p>
<p>Does anybody have any stories/stats that would give my parents peace of mind?</p>
<p>Tip of the hat to you, sir, for being so mature about your decisions. I don’t feel comfortable sharing my personal story (not as tragic, though), but I wish you the best of luck.</p>
<p>uva is actually very competitive for medical school admissions, ivies would be much worse even. you would have the best chance going to a podunk school and being ranked #1. just trying to be honest here.
maybe this info will be useful to you? [Links</a> | Alpha Epsilon Delta Gamma Chapter at UVa](<a href=“http://student.virginia.edu/~premed/links.html]Links”>http://student.virginia.edu/~premed/links.html)</p>
<p>Does anyone have any idea or better yet, statistics on UVA grads vs acceptance to med schools ? Duke claimed 90% when we visited 2 yrs ago. William and Mary claimed a high rate, too. Secondly, does UVA allow all students who want to apply to do so regardless of GPA/MCAT? Drexel claimed 60% acceptance but qualified it with the statement that they allow every student who wants to apply to do so while other school do not (will not write letters of recommendation).</p>
<p>The retention rate at UVA is something like 97-98 percent. People love it here and it shows. Come to Charlottesville, take good classes, meet great people, and after four years of hard work you’ll end up in a fine Medical School.</p>
Any school citing numbers up in the 90s must be doing something along these lines. Duke’s stats seems impossibly high to me.</p>
<p>The last time the stat was thrown around at UVa, the number was in the 70s (in the 90s for law school interestingly). It’s been a few years, though. Let me check around today to see if the pre-professional advising folks have new stats.</p>
<p>Hazelorb is right on the money. If you’re absolutely certain that you want to go to med school, the key to admissions is NOT to attend a MORE competitive undergraduate school school than U-Va; to the contrary, you should go to a LESS competitive undergraduate school – preferably in a university that also has a medical school, many of which have admissions policies and programs that favor their own undergraduates. Virginia Commonwealth University is an excellent example: </p>
<p>You’re probably getting this advice too late, but still, I’d tell your parents that there’s no reason to compound the error by transferring to the Ivy League.</p>
<p>I totally agree with the other posters. I’ll just add a couple of things.</p>
<p>I read on another thread that going the pre-med route at an Ivy is so competitive that some students who thought they wanted to go to medical school burned out and switched to another field.</p>
<p>Also, I’m not under the impression that it is that easy to transfer into an Ivy these days, meaning it might be harder to transfer in than to get admitted in the first place.</p>
<p>If you like UVA it would be a big mistake to transfer.</p>
<p>Am in a similar position: parents want me to accept a better-ranked school, but I am ABSOLUTELY IN LOVE with the university of virginia. But honestly, if you feel best at uva, then that is where you’re going to perform the best. the ranking or statistics a school boasts does not matter NEARLY as much as your compatibility with the school. you might want to take a stab at explaining that to your parents.</p>
<p>by the way, Duke’s rate of seniors being accepted to med school last year was 83%, which is not far off from uva’s 77% (a 2005 stat, the only one I was able to find)</p>
<p>To be honest, just tell your parents the truth. Tell them after visiting UVA you fell in love with the campus and school and know its the right school for you. I feel bad for you that your parents are pushing you into a school you do not like as much as UVA. Lucky for me everyone in my family (including my parents) have dreamed of attending UVA and it’s my goal! GL anyways</p>
<p>What do YOU want? Would UVA’s medical school appeal to you? Or MCV? Do you want to attend Harvard Medical? I never really understood parents that constantly push, regardless their reasons. UVA is one of THE best schools in the country. It’s not an Ivy but in many ways, much better experience. If you are happy here, and are thriving, why in the world would anyone want you to transfer?</p>
<p>if your parents are so concerned about the name difference of an Ivy vs. a public school like UVA, tell them that UVA was offered to be an Ivy league school, but they turned it down. if they don’t believe you, pull up the research on it–it was fairly recent, I’m sure there’s news articles on it. Maybe that will make them realize what a fantastic institution UVa is, and that it is well within academic rigor of most of the Ivy’s.</p>
<p>There’s an old joke: “What do you call the guy who graduates last in his class from the worst medical school in the country?” </p>
<p>Answer: Doctor</p>
<hr>
<p>Actually, I think it is horrible to try to pressure a student to leave an excellent college where they are happy for a slightly better college just to get into a “top” medical school. If you were attending a different college where few students get into any medical school, then I would understand it.</p>
<p>UVa has a long history of placing many students in good med schools. I attended UVa a number of years ago, but of my 30 closest friends, about 20 became doctors. All but one of the people I knew from UVa undergrad who were serious about attending med school were able to successfully complete med school. One had to take an extra year of coursework before he got into med school because he screwed up in college. One person who decided he wouldn’t make it into med school is a very successful dentist instead.</p>
<p>Many of these UVa grads attended med schools that were not “top 10.” However, they all live in much much nicer houses than I ever will.</p>
<p>You need to fight your parents with good data about acceptances to med schools by UVa grads.</p>
<p>Most people think that the schools that are “Named” Ivy league are done so because of the year in which they were founded which must therefore make them more prestigious. Once while on a tour at Georgetown University we were told that the only thing keeping Georgetown from being an Ivy was that there was some kind of error in the recording of the date that they were founded. In actuality the reason the “eight” were dubbed ivies was due to the Athletic Conference with which they compete and they were supposedly dubbed so by sports writers. I am not taking anything away from those institutions they are all top notch but their “ivy” status seems to come strictly from the athletic conference. Consider that Cornell was founded in 1865 while Rutgers 1766; William and Mary 1693; Georgetown 1789; UVa 1819. Honestly can anyone give another reason why the “eight” were choosen as “Ivies”?</p>