UBC vs UWO

[Wizard-22]

Hey guys, I was fortunate enough to get off the waitlist today at UBC and was also accepted to UWO several weeks ago. I know both are great schools but I don't know which one I should go to. I thought about some of the Pros and Cons but would like to get everyone's opinions

 

Pros

 

UWO

- surgery is something that I am interested in and the school has a good surgery program and I know a family friend who works as a prof at the department of surgery

- familiar environment; hometown is near London

- cheap rent and cost of living

- two afternoons off/week

- tight student body

 

UBC

- really nice city

- large numbers of affiliated teaching hospitals

- beautiful campus

- better/exciting lifestyle?

- prestige?

 

Cons

 

UWO

- although London is a really nice city, it can't be compared to Vancouver

 

UBC

- rent is uber expensive and so is the cost of living

- atmosphere - I did not get the same level of warmth or welcome at UBC as I did at UWO during the interview day. Don't know how indicative this is about the student/faculty.

 

I should also add that distance is not really a concern for me.

 

I am not familiar with UBC's curriculum as they don't post a lot on their website so if people can shed some light on this, that would be great. Thanks everyone!

[SooSk]

UBC anytime..... Vancouver is one of the best cities in the world, talk about spending 4 years of ur life there...and one of the best med schools in the west where all of BC research money goes there......UBC is like the UoT of the west.

[punknsmasher]

First off, I want to preface that I am currently still on the UWO waitlist so I do have a bias here.

 

That being said, if distance isnt really an issue for you, the categories you should focus on are:

Curriculum - depends on learning style

Research - depends on your interests

Hospitals - depends on what specialties you prefer

Patients - UBC has a more diverse patient population by far

Living Experience - depends on your taste

Culture - UBC wins hands down

Family - obviously UWO is closer to your hometown

Expenses - not a big factor... I have never heard of a poor doctor lol

 

those are my two cents on what things you should look at when making ur decision.

[preppy038]

If I got acceptances from UBC and UWO, I would go to UBC.

 

Vancouver is such a wonderful city and to study medicine there is like studying in heaven (LOL...)

 

The weather is really nice compared to London where it snows a LOT.

The vibe that Vancouver has can't be met by any other city in Canada.

 

In terms of academics, both schools have great resources I bet but UBC gets all the provincial funding from BC (BC is a pretty big province too.

 

You are a lucky individual to have received offers from the two schools.

If I were you, I would pick UBC over UWO anyday.

 

UWO is a great school too but I lean towards UBC because of the city

[isix]

I agree with everything punknsmasher said about which factors to consider...if the distance wasn't a factor, I'd pick UBC over UWO (I did my undergrad at UWO and loved it, but a new experience in beautiful Vancouver is something I wouldn't pass up)

 

As for the diversity bit...I don't know. While I agree that there are more ethnic people in UBC allowing for greater diversity, I've been told by friends at the Ivey school of business that apparently the demographic in London is actually a good approximate for the general diversity in Canada and apparently that's why a lot of Canadian companies demo their stuff in London. I don't know how true this is, but it at least sounds pretty interesting....

 

As far as I know, both schools are highly acclaimed, so the good thing is, regardless of where you go, you'll be set