I realize how this sounds but truly appreciate any help as I am crashing out over this 😭

I am highly undecided on specialty (thinking urology, ophtho, derm, psych, IM) and am over the moon to be receiving full COA at both due to a combination of aid and external scholarships! Interested in the academic medicine route as well as innovation/entrepreneurship. First-gen in college and medicine, if that affects anything.

Icahn SOM at Mount Sinai

Pros:

- Could spend my mid-20s in freaking NYC! In UES no less, with highly subsidized housing (~$700-800/mo. I believe)

- Dorm-style housing for community

- 5-year MD/MS Clinical Research program (would need to apply in M1)

- Huuuge health equity focus as evidenced by EHHOP, faculty research, community engagement opportunities

- Very possibly the most diverse patient population in the country

- Innovation/entrepreneurship ecosystem of NYC & THRIVE program

- H/P/F clerkships, no AOA, no MSPE adjectives

- Fairly chill exam schedule (and weekend take-home exams)

- Have a few good friends in NYC + Boston, Philly

Cons:

- less affordable day-to-day expenses

- Have heard clerkships can be rough as an NYC hospital due to labor unions

- Probably not trying to match in NYC due to the above

- Slightly younger class due to FlexMed (median age 23) — I’m somewhat non-trad so unsure how that vibe will be

- Less well-regarded by PDs, although that data is from Sinai’s old curriculum (later clerkships). No match data yet from students in the new curriculum.

Northwestern (Feinberg)

Pros:

- Chicago is also lit & possibly more manageable (and cleaner and friendlier!!) than NYC

- Slightly better regarded than Sinai (?) by PDs and peers, but maybe the latter is just my social bubble.

- Biggg fan of ECMH

- Structured research via Area of Scholarly Concentration & potential 5th year via RISE

- Many opportunities re: health equity via research and community engagement, even if not as central to the mission as Sinai

- Slightly more diverse match list

- Would love to match at Northwestern

- One of my best interview and post-acceptance experiences overall tbh - my faculty interviewer really took an interest in my background and connected me to relevant faculty long before the A

Cons:

- H/HP/P/F clerkships AND AOA AND MSPE adjectives ?!

- Less of a support network in terms of friends already in/near the city

- Less diverse patient population

- 2-year preclinical :/

Thank you!!