Which is better, Nicolaus Copernicus Medical University or Wroclaw Medical University?

Hi! I recently got admitted to both Wroclaw medical university and NCU, but I'm not sure which one to choose. Are there any grads, or current students who can tell about their Uni's organization, the labs, clinical training quality, how many people are in a group, professors etc? Thx!

Definitely Wrocław: higher in the ranking, more points required to be accepted, more tradition.

I don't know any closer details and I don't think we have any medical students here, but out of the two schools you mentioned Wrocław seems much better.

Yeah, but NCU has an entrance exam while Wroclaw is only based on GPA, doesn't the exam filter the applicants out? Plus, I worried that since Wroclaw is older and bigger( = more students), less organization in terms of exam schedules, quality of training, etc. I heard from a fellow student in Wroclaw that sometimes students can push/advance exam dates which might cause some chaos between those who want to postpone and those who don't.

If this was the case, it would probably show in the rankings...

2023.ranking.perspektywy.pl/ranking/ranking-kierunkow-studiow/kierunki-medyczne-i-o-zdrowiu/kierunek-lekarski

rynekzdrowia.pl/Nauka/Ranking-uczelni-medycznych-2024-Na-czele-Warszawski-Uniwersytet-Medyczny,260131,9.html

... but as you can see Wrocław is one of the best universities whilst Toruń... well. The rankings are based on a variety of factors, including prestige, grads' salaries, scientific potential etc. (you have the detailed list of factors in the second link), so I'd say they are pretty accurate. Of course, you may want to take other things into account and the choice of a university is indeed a very important decision.

Is there a reason you didn't research any of this before applying to them?

Ask Alzheimer which university he would choose, and Mikulicz-Radecki too.

I can't say anything intelligent about the universities in questions, but between the cities...

The old town of Toruń is lovely but there's not much else going on except for being the capital of a conservative political movement within the Catholic church.

Wrocław is about three times the population of Toruń with much easier land connections to other countries. Wrocław will also have more foreigners and a much more international vibe (if that's important) and a lot more to do in terms of entertainment and recreation (yeah med students don't have a lot of time for that but that means you want to make the chances you do have count).

Do you plan on taking the courses in Polish or English?

I've heard the medical courses in English are not as good of quality as the Polish ones. Not certain how accurate that is, but I've heard it; so, something you may wish to investigate.

Very true.

THis is true. Although Torun is pretty city (in the centre, anyway), it could become claustrophobic quickly and is very definitely provincial in atmosphere.

And the center of Wrocław is pretty nice too with all the canals and a nice old market square.

Very true.

And it's just an easier place, better infrastructure, very different people and easier to be foreign.

A bit more expensive but not crazily so and going to Toruń might feel a bit like stepping into the past.

That's not always a bad thing, but not necessarily how every younger person would want to spend 5 years.