Many premeds question the relevance of their medical school ranking. Ultimately, however, this all depends on the criteria that form part of these rankings.
An impressive ranking may play an integral part in residency program director evaluations; however, according to a survey of program directors it only ranks 23rd as an indicator.
What is a Medical School Ranking?
For students to enter top medical schools, competitive GPAs and high MCAT scores are necessary to succeed. Therefore, students should excel in all undergraduate classes while making sure to devote enough time for studying for the MCAT exam.
When selecting a medical school, it’s essential to take into account its environment. Top medical schools offer various clinical and research opportunities; therefore it’s vital that you find one that complements both your personal and professional goals.
University of Buffalo boasts one of the highest medical research rankings in the country and offers a state-of-the-art medical school facility, while providing extensive clinical training and mentorship opportunities (such as Global Medicine Program with opportunities to travel). Furthermore, their low cost of living makes this an attractive option for New York residents. Stanford has top programs in Radiology and Surgery while simultaneously emphasizing medical research.
How Does a Medical School Ranking Work?
Many medical school rankings are determined by subjective criteria that don’t correlate directly to quality education or student outcomes, so it is essential that prospective medical students investigate each ranking system’s methodology to see what factors they use as part of their decisions.
Example: Rankings that put too much weight on research activity and National Institutes of Health funding don’t really tell us much about how medical students learn their craft. Furthermore, ranking systems’ emphasis on competitive residencies for full-paying students with legacies from donors or children of donors often leads to schools prioritizing winning the prestige game over providing an optimal educational experience for their students.
Medical school rankings must be treated as just one factor when making your school selection decision, not as the ultimate arbiter of excellence. Be wary of rankings as an indicator, however. Use them only as one tool in your search process while compiling a comprehensive school list that meets all relevant requirements (GPA, MCAT score and USMLE Step 1 pass rates), taking into account any additional personal preferences for an ideal experience at medical school.
How Does a Medical School’s Ranking Impact Your Decision?
As you consider which medical school to attend, it is essential that your own personal priorities be prioritized. While school rankings may play a part in your choice, they shouldn’t be used as the sole deciding factor.
An undergraduate education from a lower-ranked school may offer you both quality instruction and a competitive residency match, and is also less likely to put pressure on them when making career choices during medical school compared to attending one of the top 45-ranked institutions. Furthermore, many students shift their interests during medical school – as evidenced in a survey of medical students at non-top 45-ranked institutions reported less peer pressure to choose their specialty than respondents from top 45 schools did.
Current rankings put too much weight on MCAT and GPA scores, leading schools to favor students with high stats over those that contribute more towards successful careers, such as community service, leadership or extracurriculars.
Going forward, we hope that medical school rankings will take into account outcomes such as graduates’ ability to serve underserved communities or work in health professional shortage areas as a measure against status, prestige and elitism culture. This would provide an alternative means of breaking it.
What Does a Medical School’s Ranking Mean to You?
Many students devote considerable effort and attention to their applications for medical school admissions, hoping to secure one of the top-ranked programs. Rankings should only serve as one factor when making residency decisions – make sure your priorities match with whichever institution is selected as it can have an effectful influence on residency decisions.
Rankings do not accurately reflect the quality of medical education. A major problem lies with their methodology: deans and residency program directors often unfamiliar with each medical school provide subjective assessments that heavily weight perception of an institution; this has an adverse impact on smaller schools.
Other problems stem from rankings which only take into account metrics like median MCAT scores and undergraduate GPA. This encourages schools to prioritize students with high stats while disregarding its mission statement or educational quality.
Furthermore, rankings fail to consider other considerations when selecting careers; such as job satisfaction, financial security and family commitments. Finally, rankings do not take into account social outcomes or schools’ responsibility to produce physicians with effective practices.