Hi all,

I had planned to enroll at University of Rochester, but just got off the waitlist at USF MCOM in Tampa and now I'm in a bit of a pickle. Going down to visit next week but in the meantime I wanted some opinions.

University of Rochester

Pros:

• True P/F preclinical
• reputation of great, laid-back culture, students seem genuinely happy and eager to help
• more holistic education? (emphasis on humanism and developing outside the classroom/hospital)
• close to my support system (I’m from Buffalo NY). Plus I grew up here so I feel more familiar with the area
• love the CRG (climbing gym) location there
• quieter but major cities nearby (toronto, NYC)
• school seems to be organized, communicative, and takes care of their students
• residency programs like to draw from their own students (idk how much it matters since I want to go IM→ID)

Cons:

• WNY weather–I kind of hate it, seasonal depression and lots of snow/cold every year+long winters; love the summers though
• location–Rochester feels like a gray and empty town
• Future projection: seems like UR is stable at best, going to somewhat decline at worst
• looking at the schedule, there doesn’t seem to be many breaks at all

USF Morsani

Pros:

• great weather, great nature (I LOVE the local ecology in FL). This is really important to me, as sunshine really boosts my energy levels, mood, and general life resilience, and I am okay with high heat/humidity.
• location-always loved Florida, and it’s been a dream of mine to live there;. Tampa in particular seems to be booming. Everyone living there I’ve spoken to loves it
• people in Florida seem more energetic and vibrant, which I appreciate and helps my mental state as well
• future projection: school is climbing in rank, strong upwards trajectory, lots of funding coming in
• TGH seems like a top-tier, high-volume hospital
• stronger in ID and tropical diseases, which I’m interested in
• fun “houses” students get sorted into, with athletic competitions which I feel excited about
• seems like they give a very healthy amount of school breaks (6 in the first year alone, not counting summer break)
• Universal studios nearby! (love that place)

Cons:

• graded preclinical
• reputation of toxicity and competitiveness (I have felt a lot of neuroticism even in the info session lobbies)
• Red state, state of healthcare maybe not so great in most of Florida (seems good in Tampa though)
• no support system–basically everyone I’ve ever known in the US lives in NYS lol
• Tampa seems to be kind of crowded and congested (and SO expensive!), and I’ve never lived there long term so I don’t know what to expect. I wonder if I will miss the four seasons
• communication from school was okay, not sure what support for students will be like
• doesn’t seem to like to match their own students as much
• local CRGs have no rope routes, boulder only 😞

Both seems to be excellent schools with solid match lists; tuition is lower for USF (57k OOS vs 80k), but the COL is so drastically different that the COA ends up being similar anyways. My parents are paying my tuition, but I’d like to save some costs either way. That depends on if I will qualify for residency in FL, though.

Thanks for reading and if anyone has any experience at either of the schools, your input is greatly appreciated!