<p>REMS is a great opportunity, but I would go with Yale. I think the undergrad experience you would have at Yale (even with the stress) would definitely be worth it.</p>
<p>hmmm, you’re from connecticut. you don’t think you’re slightly biased? lol.
i don’t know anything about REMS, but i know i would choose HPME over yale. maybe it’s just personal preference.</p>
<p>haha nah, not too biased…leaving CT for TX next year! not too reluctant to move away =P</p>
<p>I would pick REMS cause Univ Roch med school is great and best of all, no mcats!</p>
<p>I’m probably going to try and apply out (you can do so without losing your spot), so is it still a good idea to take REMS?</p>
<p>I would say no - not if you’re going to try and apply out later. In that case, Rochester med becomes more of a safety net…and I wouldn’t compromise your undergrad years just to have one. Applying out means stressing all over again, and granted being in REMS will reduce that to a degree, but I think it would be better to stress at Yale than at Rochester (in terms of undergrad). But then again, that’s just me!</p>
<p>^ i agree… i mean the safety net’s good, but if u really wanna go apply out for a better med school, i think the ivy league would be a better choice for opportunities to excel in</p>
<p>even though i’ve already made my decision, i wonder how many of you would have chosen penn st/jefferson 6 year over MIT?</p>
<p>it depends… i saw that you want to explore in ur undergrad years… esp medical research… those who are definitely sure they want to be doctors, i think, should choose psu/jefferson over an ivy or a prestigious school like MIT</p>
<p>i chose psu / jefferson over brown/columbia/upenn/northwestern HPME</p>
<p>i definately want to become a doctor…but MD/PhD is what i’m shooting for 
good luck at psu/jeff - sucks that i won’t be your classmate but, who knows, maybe we’ll collide at some point during our academic careers (hey i might even end up applying back to jeff in a few years if the MD/PhD doesn’t work out for me)</p>
<p>ya i see your perspective street and we both have different circumstances</p>
<p>gl at MIT… my cousin goes there and is pre-med… so if you ever come across a Derek Chu, that’s him ha</p>
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<p>Here is how I see it: it appears that you will accept REMS over an Ivy so that is one decision that you have made. You also want the flexibility to possibly apply out and REMS would permit this option - and you would still have the safety of the med school at REMS.</p>
<p>So - based on the above - the only reason to opt for the Ivy over REMS would be if you can achieve a level of performance at the Ivy as well as MCAT, which would place you at a significant advantage over the undergrad program at REMS when it comes to applying to med schools. If you went that route you’d be giving up the safety net that REMS provides.</p>
<p>IMO, if you are already committed to REMS over the Ivy, then I don’t know that I would discard the safety that REMS provides in the hope that your prospects would be better after going to an Ivy.</p>
<p>do u think it’d be very difficult to get into a prestigious med school from Rochester undergrad?</p>
<p>I think that it would be a challenge to get into one of the top med schools irrespective of the undergrad school - even if it were an Ivy.</p>
<p>This is the reason why I have been quite unambiguous in my responses to those who have asked about attending schools like Rice/Baylor or Northwestern HPME that they should accept the slots in these programs even over HYPS.</p>
<p>REMS is an excellent program and the ability to apply out without losing your place offers an added advantage.</p>
<p>wouldbemd, I thought that you had always stuck by the position that if you’re good enough to get into a program, you’re good enough to get into med school the regular route. Have you changed your mind at all, or am I misinterpreting what you’re saying?</p>
<p>just curious, where did you end up deciding to go?</p>
<p>aster, I believe that I have always contended that if it is a choice between a top rated undergrad program versus a mediocre combined program, one is better off going with the former assuming that one is willing to accept the pressures that are inherent in the former course of action. </p>
<p>OTOH, if one has an option of entering a top rated combined program then there would not be much point in turning it down since the best one can hope for if one attends an Ivy is to end up in such a school.</p>
<p>I hope that the above clarifies where I am coming from and if you review my prior postings I think you will see that my approach has been consistent with what I outlined above.</p>
<p>As to what I will be doing, I am trying to decide between Harvard and Stanford. I need to come to a conclusion in the next couple of days.</p>
<p>aster, another criterion that should be given importance is the undergrad program that is part of the combined program. In other words, if an applicant’s stats were such that one would not accept a place in the undergrad program that is an integral part of the combined program then it would be a disservice to accept a place just because one is guaranteed a place in the medical school.</p>
<p>This approach endorses programs such as Rice/Baylor, Northwestern, Brown and a few others. </p>
<p>This whole thing has been a tremendous learning experience for me. One of my first posts was that I had applied only to GW’s program. This was a mistake. If I had the chance to do it again, I’d have applied to several of the top rated programs. There is no assurance that I would have been accepted but, based on my stats, I think I would have had a decent chance.</p>
<p>I understand now. Thanks for the clarification, and good luck wherever you end up going!</p>
<p>wouldbe - why would it be such a disservice to " accept a place just because one is guaranteed a place in the medical school?"</p>
<p>that is the whole point of these programs, that they offer a spot at a medical school and allow the student to be more flexible in their undergrad years, to relieve stress, and lift off the burden of applying to other medical schools</p>
<p>i mean, yes i would not go to penn state just for their undergrad, i chose to go there b/c i’m was accepted into the program affiliated with Jefferson Medical… if you are sure about going the combined program route and becoming a physician, the medical school is what should matter the most, and the prestige of the undergraduate should not matter so much, UNLESS you plan to apply out, in which case i don’t think it’s the best idea to even go into a combined program if u want to apply out…</p>
<p>that said , i also chose PSU/Jefferson over Northwestern HPME b/c of cost/proximity to home, the program’s foundation and connections affiliated with one of the longest running combined degree programs dating back to 1963, and for the fact that i can honestly say that I felt like I would fit in better at PSU, for its social and athletic opportunities over Northwestern, and also i think i will flourish academically there just as well as i would anywhere else</p>
<p>this is nothing against northwestern, it’s a great undergrad school, it’s just that with my circumstances, PSU was a better choice in my opinion</p>
<p>mistaippa – why dont you feel it’s a good idea to go to a program if one is applying out?</p>