Is UT is good choice for premed?

[Guest hp18]

I am 2nd year premed student at UTM. Understand it is harder as compared other universities (York/Ryerson etc.)

 

I do not know if it would have been better to go to easier schools and hence get better GPA.

 

Any views!!!!

[Guest pmcv]

You could have done underwater basket weaving at Hollywood Upstairs Medical College, but I'm not sure if it's an accepted postsecondary institution for Ontario schools. Wouldn't help you at Western anyways since it's not an Honours program...

[Guest grandmellon]

It is well known that UofT is a very difficult school in certain programs. My wife went to that school and I found that the marks were a lot lower than other uni's. They also have less consideration for appealing marks. I wouldn't recommend not going to UofT as they are a great school with outstanding profs. But it may be true that your GPA will be lower than other schools. I think the main thing schools will look at will be your mcat scores... so preform well on that and your marks are less significant.

[Guest peachy]

I think the main thing schools will look at will be your mcat scores... so preform well on that and your marks are less significant.

That's completely untrue within Ontario. All the schools which consider the MCATs (U of T, UWO, Queen's) look at them in a very particular way, such that as long as you get past the cutoffs your score makes very little difference. An extra-high MCAT will never compensate for grades that are too low.

[Guest pmcv]

It is well known that UofT is a very difficult school in certain programs. My wife went to that school and I found that the marks were a lot lower than other uni's. They also have less consideration for appealing marks.

 

I have a hard time swallowing that UofT is any more or less difficult than any other school for comparable programs - care to share these 'well-known' cases? I think UofT has a large class size in most programs which means there's plenty of people who won't do well, but propotionately, I think the people who are going to do well will do just fine at UofT.

 

In short, to the OP, so long as you're studying what you enjoy, I doubt very much if you would do any better/worse anywhere else.

[Guest The Law]

I really don't know because I'm not going to UofT. I have a few friends who go there and say it's brutal, but honestly I have no idea. I go to Western and I really like it here.

 

If you find that you are not liking the program and you seriously think you can do better at another school then maybe you should switch. In Ontario, there is absolutely no excuse for a low GPA since at most schools they'll just not look at your application if you don't make the cutoffs.

[Guest treehuggingbiologist]

The whole "oh no my school is so tough" argument carries very little weight. If you honestly think you can do better at another school, switch. But you have to take a long hard look at yourself and ask if you're putting in 100% - If not, then don't look for an easy way out.

[Guest the man]

UTM has a premed program? News to me! :b

[Guest TheChosenOneDDS]

YAAAAAAAH western!

 

that's where i went for undergrad.

 

Naw, U of T is harder. I know so many people who got killed at U of T for undergrad.

 

As for med or dental school if you can get in stick with U of T...med can go to mac coz it is 3 years.

[Guest rgb6]

I am a UofT student (downtown campus) and have often heard that UofT is more difficult than other universities. Although, I cannot confirm this, because it is the only university I have attended, I have heard of cases where people have switched out and performed better at other places.

 

Nonetheless, I wouldn't strongly recommend UofT as a good place for premed. I am not satisfied with the quality of education here, and neither are most people I know (I think Maclean's stats will show that as well). And I think that the biggest hurdle to quality education is the large classes. Most profs do not want to/know how to teach a large class effectively. But then again, I can't compare to other places cause I have never been there.

[Guest Chowchilla]

i'm entering my fifth year (let's call it a victory lap) at uoft this fall, and i still regret coming here. i ended up not going to queen's because i couldn't afford it (i saved over 10,000 every year because i could stay at home in toronto). uoft has disgustingly large courses (con hall speaks for itself), professors who're bent on research instead of teaching (that's why it's always ranked number one in macleans), and administrators who're complete a-holes and reluctant to change (i'm qualified to say that after nearly four years in student government). and it's harder, there's no doubt about it--this i've heard from professors and administrators alike. students like to delude themselves by saying, 'it's all the same across ontario' but really it isn't.

[Guest uOttawaBch]

Regarding administration, I've had horror stories myself at U of O. I was in sciences, and it was very much hit or miss. Some people had great experiences, got along great, others, a good number of us, just didn't get treated very well at all! That may be due to the fact that we spoke english to a very french administration staff, but regardless of that, my experiences with Ottawa U administration were terrible. I'm not one to rant about this kind of thing, but a good size of us in my class had the same complaint (20+). Most profs were great though!

 

Lates!

[Guest hp18]

But I have also come across some who have done premed from Ryerson / York with very high GPA & MCAT scores and good extra curricular but did not interview at any med schools in Ontario.

[Guest blinknoodle]

But I have also come across some who have done premed from Ryerson / York with very high GPA & MCAT scores and good extra curricular but did not interview at any med schools in Ontario.

 

No offense, but their marks and MCAT could not have been that stellar, because you automatically get an interview at Queen's and UWO if you meet the cut-offs (there is no further assessment through a sketch, essay, etc like at Ottawa, Toronto and McMaster).

[Audio]

I am 2nd year premed student at UTM. Understand it is harder as compared other universities (York/Ryerson etc.)

 

I do not know if it would have been better to go to easier schools and hence get better GPA.

 

Any views!!!!

 

You go to UTM. It's like UofT College so get over yourself.

[Kuantum]

I've heard UofT is harder, not necessarily because the material is harder or the test are harder, but it is harder to learn because the prof's focus is considerably less-geared towards education than at other institutions.

 

For something like this, could UofT really be considered harder the way most people who attend UofT think? I'm sure if they were to go to another smaller university they'd do better because they might get more attention, but a student who rarely speaks to his/her teacher or rarely goes to class from a smaller university will probably do the same. However, students who rely on the instruction provided in university may have a tougher time because they won't get the same quality as they would at UofT.

 

Those who attend UofT..confirm or deny?

[dirtymonkey]

U of T is definately a harder school, but if you apply yourself like I did you should be all right!

[tmacgirl]

^ What tips to have for applying oneself.

[rugger48]

i think that the quality of education at u of t is of a very high standard. large class sizes should not be thought of as a hindrance. all the profs that are hired for the big classes are top-notch speakers and good teachers. i don't see how going to a first year bio class at york with 200 people is any different from a class of 800 people. in both classes, students are unlikely to interrupt the lecturer to ask questions and there is almost no in-class discussion. in my 4 years at u of t i have hardly ever had a prof who did not have time to wait behind after class to answer questions for upto 1 hour sometimes.

 

the question of which school is easier shouldn't really even be asked. if you want medicine then you should know that you're choosing a career path that isn't the easy way out. if you want to be a serious, dedicated and responsible physician then you gotta kick your ass from the get go. you can't be taking easy routes and expect to get your MD. there are tons of people who do very well with U of T's curriculum whatever program they're in. the difficult times people claim they have is not a result of the school's curriculum but more a result of each individual's work ethic.

 

sure the workload is probably higher at U of T compared to most other schools but it's definitely manageable. plus you have a huge plethora of other resources, both academic and non-academic that make studying at toronto a great experience. and when it comes to reputation, few other schools (other than perhaps mcgill or UBC) can match up to U of T's fame amongst employers within and outside of canada.

 

bottom line, if you want to go to med school then you're gonna have to work hard when you get there so get into the habit and start now. and if U of T is really a higher workload than other schools then be glad that you'll have a leg up if and when you get into med school. as a doctor, you'll find out that you can never know too much.

 

 

 

what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger.

[swansunday]

I really think it depends on the type of experience you are looking for. Some people like university to be like high school (smaller class sizes, one-on-one interaction with profs, more cohesive atmosphere). I personally loved and still love my time at U of T (St. George). I like being downtown in a busy and thriving atmosphere and I love being exposed to to some of the fantastic research and teaching that goes on in this university. I also like the absolute diversity of students and staff that we have here (and I'm not talking about ethnic diversity...just to see people from all over the world in such a wide variety of academic fields is pretty awesome).

 

I am not in arts and science so maybe I've escaped some of the horror stories you've all mentioned. I'm not sure that the coursework itself is harder compared to other universities. I think U of T sort of has the 'Ivy League in Canada' reputation, which leads to people maybe exaggerating the academic difficulty here. Even on the off-chance that it is more difficult than your average Ontario/Canadian university, I don't mind. I find it well worth the experience.

[Kuantum]

I'm currently at the University of Manitoba, and it often gets dogged on because our reputation is so weak. However, I've met some extremely intellgent people here, but that's the problem...that's it. Sometimes I wonder if UofT or Alberta would have been a better idea for undergrad. I'm going into 3rd year now, so its not like it matters. I have enjoyed my time at UofM, but I'm really hoping to move into a larger urban centre that has more diversity - ethnically and personalities.

 

UofT...I hope you take me this year