Choosing a medical school is an enormous life decision. And many applicants wonder if the medical school they choose will affect their career prospects in the future. We’ve compiled some of the most important factors to consider:
Does it Matter What Medical School You Go To
The medical school a student is affiliated with can certainly affect future opportunities, but this is of most concern if the school is international. For American students attending accredited American medical schools, the specific school a student attends has less effect on future opportunities. But there are still some important factors to account for when making this decision. Read the 3 most important things to consider when choosing a medical school here. And read more about medical school rankings and prestige (and whether these things even matter) below.
Medical school rankings
Many pre-meds and medical students focus way too much on medical school rankings. But few students understand exactly what these rankings mean and what criteria are used to make them.
The most popular medical school ranking list is by US News. But this list focuses primarily on research, using NIH research funding as the primary metric. Because most medical students are interested in clinical practice rather than research, this ranking list would be somewhat irrelevant.
Similarly, residency program rankings are often equally arbitrary and usually determined by subjective survey data.
Ultimately, ranking lists are hardly an objective measure of anything that would be relevant to students. And residency program faculty are likely not even aware of their own institution’s ranking on the US News list, let alone an applicant’s medical school’s ranking. So pre-meds and medical students should not rely solely on these “rankings” when making major decisions about their careers.
Impacts on if students match
The primary concern for medical students is where (or if) they will match for a residency. And some students wonder if the medical school they attend will affect that. The answer is yes and no.
For American students attending accredited allopathic medical schools in the US, residency match rates are approximately 95% with little variation from school to school. For American students attending international medical schools, like Caribbean medical schools, residency match rates are closer to 50%, but there is much more variation in match rates between schools.
So for American students at accredited allopathic US medical schools, where you go to medical school will likely not affect whether you match into a residency program. But it may affect which residency program you match into.
Impacts on where students match
Residency programs can have a preference for alumni from the medical school the residency program is affiliated with. Attending that medical school would also have given the applicant the advantage of networking with faculty affiliated with that residency program and department throughout their four years of study as well as affording them the opportunity to obtain letters of recommendation from that institution’s own faculty.
So while residency programs usually prioritize USMLE scores, letters of recommendation, and other factors before an applicant’s medical school, if all else is relatively equal it is possible they may prefer a student currently or previously affiliated with the program’s institution.
However, students not affiliated with that medical school can still find similar opportunities through away rotations and acting internships during their third and fourth years of medical school.
Final Thoughts
A student’s USMLE scores and clinical experiences will likely have more impact on residency and other future opportunities than where they went to medical school. But which medical school a student is affiliated with can affect future opportunities. This is more true for international medical schools, and less true for American medical schools. However, whatever advantages are afforded to students affiliated with a specific program, namely the professional connections and networking, can also be obtained by students from other schools.
Away rotations and acting internships are a great way for students to build connections with their residency program, institution, or hospital of interest, even if they don’t attend the affiliated medical school. Read more on choosing a medical school here.
If a student is not happy with the medical school(s) they were accepted to, they can always consider pursuing a masters or other pre-med post-bacc program first to make them a more competitive applicant for the next application cycle. They could also consider gap year opportunities to gain more research or clinical experience. It is not uncommon for students to take a gap year before medical school and students who were not accepted to the school they were hoping for can always apply again.
