No clue which school to choose
I am having a really difficult time choosing between a few md programs and with the deadline to hold only one acceptance approaching soon, I wanted to ask for some advice.
For background, I’m interested in oncology, though not sure between radiation or medical oncology yet. I’m out of state for all 3 schools(2 are private so it doesn’t matter tuition-wise). I am interested in persuing research either over the summer after M1 or at some point during my med ed.
The schools are Drexel, Quinnipiac, and University of Vermont. I’ll be taking loans to cover tuition fully, and these schools all cost me roughly the same (~5-10k/yr variance)
Drexel and Quinnipiac don’t have a university hospital associated with the program, and that’s one of the downsides for me compared to UVM, but I’m not sure exactly how much weight I should give that when it comes to making a decision since all of the schools have clinical affiliates for rotations. All three schools operate on a p/f curriculum, but UVM is the only one that’s p/f all 4 years. UVM is the furthest from home for me (over 10 hr drive) and that’s also tipping the scale back towards the other two programs which are slightly closer.
I was hoping for any advice from either students that go to any of these schools, or anyone that has navigated the same process of choosing between programs where you don’t favor one strongly over another (waitlisted at my dream school). I’m from the east coast but have never been to these states, so commentary about the life in these cities is also welcome. If anyone has advice on what red flags to be looking for when choosing a program, and what aspects of a program often have overlooked importance, please feel free to share.
Posted Apr 2, 2026, 10:41 PM UTC