So things have been interesting since that phone call on Tuesday.
After submitting my financial aid documents on Tuesday, College Board took some time to process it before sending the information to Hopkins. I was able to receive my financial aid package on Thursday and…wow.
It’s incredibly generous–just enough to be cheaper than Pritzker, which is amazing. My only concern was that Hopkins, having a need-only policy, would wittle aid down over the years and replace more of it with loans (especially since various factors lead to me thinking that my EFC will increase over the next few years). I scheduled an appointment with a financial aid officer to express my concerns. At this point, I was pretty much settled on Hopkins.
Then Pritzker called, and I began to feel torn all over again.
The phone reminded me of what I would be leaving behind. As someone who’s dreamed of Hopkins Med since…forever, I find it so mentally difficult to say no. The clinical, research, public health, and community health opportunities are unmatched. At the same time, I found so much love and support at Pritzker (both on interview day and SLW) that I found it emotionally difficult to leave them. With Pritzker, I knew what I was getting. I clicked with the community. I started apartment hunting.
So I asked for help. I talked to students, to current applicants, to those unaffiliated with either institution. And I realized that:
- I should not attend a school because I feel guilt-tripped to attend. I should attend it if I love it above all of my options
- Between the two, Hopkins has strong research opportunities, a shorter preclinical curriculum (which I prefer), a stronger clinical curriculum, and is an absolute powerhouse for public and global health.
- Community and camaraderie is amazing at Pritzker, but I am biased. I attended both Interview Day and Second Look there. At Hopkins, I was only able to visit when I interviewed–and Hopkins, unlike Pritzker, did not actively try to impress applicants. That said, a student who was able to attend both SLWs says that the community is equally strong among both.
- If I choose Pritzker over Hopkins, I would be sticking to Pritzker. I would not able to justify attending UCSF over Pritzker, even if I were to be pulled off its waitlist.
- The biggest struggle applicants deal with in deciding between Pritzker and Hopkins is price. (UChicago has a lot of money to throw around and recruit students.) I am amazing lucky in that with Hopkins’ generous financial aid, the difference in price tag is less than $10K over four years, which is negligible. As someone interested in academia, the doors the Hopkins name can open more than justifies the price differential.
Overall, I think my decision is set. I just need to double check that the outside scholarship I won would transfer to Hopkins. I also need to figure out how to inform Pritzker. It will be a very sad (and guilt-ridden) phone call, for sure.
