UTRGV vs UTMB choosing which school...

[tarynnoelle]

I'm in Texas and was accepted to two PA schools here in state. I live in Austin and eventually want to move back here and practice here but there aren't any PA schools close to Austin. I got accepted to UTRGV (in the valley - Edinburg, TX - about five hours south of Austin) and UTMB in Galveston (3 and a half hours south of Austin). I am conflicted. 

 

I had a much better experience at my UTRGV interview. The program director and faculty were absolutely amazing and were incredibly present and available during the interview process. They revamped their curriculum about 5-6 years ago and PANCE rates went from 75% to 95% the last few years. But, I'm not super excited about the location - it's going to be a huge culture shock, completely different than Austin. Tuition is about 12k/year here. Length is 28 months

I had a somewhat not so good experience at my UTMB interview. I was a little put off by some of the faculty and the things they said. The program director wasn't even present at the interview. However, their facilities and their med school in general are well known and respected. But, they also just came off probation this year (they are fully accredited currently). Because of probation, they have a brand new director, brand new faculty, and will be changing the curriculum for the year that I start. This sounds messy and worries me a bit. I would prefer the location and the campus in Galveston to the valley though. Tuition is about 20k/year here. Length is 26 months 

 

What is everyone's thoughts? I just found out about my second acceptance today and only have a week to decide before I lose my potential seat at UTMB... Finances are a big deal to me because I'm already in a decent amount of student debt from undergrad. That alone is making me lean towards UTRGV. I just don't know how important it is to go to school that "looks good on paper", cause UTMB definitely is well known in the state as a great medical teaching facility. The doctor I work for as an MA now was actually a preceptor for their med students in the past haha..

[tarynnoelle]

11 hours ago, markou said:

Choosing between two schools is a great situation to be in! But also tough. I think there’s pros and cons with both from what you wrote, so I suggest making a pros and cons list and comparing those. Personally, I know more people at UTMB, and they have all had wonderful experiences, despite getting a new director and the probation period (which I was told it was solely due to losing their previous director, not a reflection the program curriculum itself). Go with your gut.

Thank you so much!

[GetMeOuttaThisMess]

You'll miss the clinical exposure of the medical complex.  To this day I can remember individual incidents of my time at UTMB.  Fem stick w/i first day or two of EM rotation, which was my first rotation, snake bites from the dunes on the beach, burns at Shriners while on Surgery, CPR cases out the wazoo on IM along with the most jaundiced patient that I ever saw (single parent of young child/ren that later died), baby deliveries every time the ferry arrived, sick kids out the ying-yang with sickle cell and IDDM on Peds, all types of viral infections that you need to see on FM rotation.  Off campus rotations, not so much.  I'd prefer that you not see a patient bail out their John Sealy window like one did.

Edited November 14, 2019 by GetMeOuttaThisMess