2004 hopefuls

[ac47]

i was browsing the pre-mds and saw a thread that i felt would be good for this section as well.

for the 2004 hopefuls:

where is everyone applying?

i thought we all could talk (complain) about this road to med school, and maybe help each through the application, interview, and hopefully acceptance processes. who knows, some of us may be attending the same school next year.

ccom, kcom, azcom, and dmu/com are my hopefuls. i have an alumni from ccom helping me through the process, so maybe she'll slip in a good word for me.

ac

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[DOit]

PCOM and NOVA are my two top choices, but I will be applying to as many schools as I can afford!:

 

[irish79]

Slickness,

I THINK the AACOMAS for last year was available sometime in April, just like this year. I know we weren't allowed to actually submit until June 1st though. It was much easier and more efficient to fill out than the AMCAS and it was actually working (the AMCAS was having some problems?though hopefully they have fixed them now).

If any of you have any questions, feel free to ask--I know the LONG application road and am finally done and ready to get going this fall (AZCOM). I would be willing to answer any questions and give advice (if I can) on the DO and MD schools I interviewed and was accepted at.

Good luck with the whole process--soon enough it will be done.

Later,
Matt

 

[medicRN669]

Yep, count me in for 04. Ill be applying for NOVA, PCOM, KCOM, AZCOM, and PCSOM. Those are my prefrences, but I will probably apply to more.
Good Luck to all.

 

[ac47]

the aacomas website says that the 2004 application will be available in april, but it doesn't give an exact date.

does anyone know if we send our lor to aacomas or just to the schools during secondaries?

mcat in 1 month! this is going to be the longest month; my thesis has to be finished by the end of april as well so.....no stress at all.

 

[Osteoblasts]

Hello guys, i am a new to this website. This is a great thread. It seems like alot of people have accepted on this forum. I am considering to appy to OSU-COM and any other "easy" access school. Has any of you taken the mcat yet. I am shooting for the summer mcat.

 

[tercisima]

i'm applying to wvsom, new england, pcom, pikeville, and new jersey. wvsom is my top choice. i have good letters and a lot of volunteer time. i don't take mcats until april, but on the kaplan practice my school just offered i had a 30 and wvsom has a 22 avg. sadly, i have a 3.0 gpa (one bad year,and two good ones after that). i'm hoping i can still get in despite being out of state- there aren't any in my home state(MD) any one else in that "out of state mine-as-well-have-leprosy" situation everywhere they are applying? that is actually one of my biggest concerns about applying

 

[post-bac premed]

Wow! Guess a lot of us have AZCOM high on our list!

I plan on applying to AZCOM, WUHS/COM, PCOM, CCOM, NSUCOM, MSUCOM. At this point, AZCOM is first choice. I will be applying to allopathic schools as well.

The part of this process that is so confusing is hearing about students with seeminly great stats that DON'T get in, and those with not-so-great that DO get in. Feels like such a crap shoot. With so many of us applying to AZCOM, I have a feeling that it is going to be getting a little more competitive than it was already.

Good luck to everyone!!!!

 

[LukeWhite]

The nice thing about AZCOM is that they've been a hidden gem the last few years....the acceptance rate has been very high. Moreover, the post-interview acceptance is enormous. The latest US News statistics from a few years back had an out-of-state rate of nearly 100%, and this year the adcom guy told us that it was about 75% after interview.

It's such a new school that the reputation is still catching up with the quality. I imagine it will become tougher and tougher to get in, especially since AZCOM has such a small class size, but I bet that those of you shooting in 2004 are in excellent shape.

One word of advice, though: get everything done early! AZCOM stops interviewing in EARLY November and doesn't start again until March or April. Since so many osteopathic schools require enormous deposits, it's far better to get into your first choice first. Make sure that all your stuff is in as soon as possible, that you have an excellent DO LOR in hand, and you'll be in good shape.

 

[ac47]

just got done looking at the aacom website and the application won't be available until may 1st. just thought i'd let everyone know. does anyone know if there is a place where we can start filling out the application before actually submitting it?

yes, it seems like most of us are considering azcom. my first choice will be ccom, then azcom. i like the cirriculum for these two and they have a good selection of electives. my university's doctor went to ccom and she's going to write me a lor so hopefully that will help some.

good luck to all those taking the april mcat.

ac

 

[irish79]

Slickness,

You are correct. Send your LOR's to the schools with your secondaries (or even before your secondaries). When I started receiving secondaries, I made up a list of addresses and school names and which LOR's I wanted sent to each school and gave it to my pre-med office. They sent out the letters I requested as soon as I called and told them to. I would recommend sending them early and completing secondaries early as well (in case anything gets lost?as something usually does). I think the key to AZCOM is getting EVERYTHING in as early as you can--almost all interviews are handed out before December 1st (according to the AZCOM website). I sent all my stuff into AZCOM as soon as I got it and received an invitation to interview right away and then an acceptance less than 2 weeks after that?it was the 2nd interview I had (after Touro).

I did get accepted to 3 MD and 10 DO schools (and then was waitlisted at 1 MD and 1 DO and rejected from 1 DO). I decided on AZCOM for a number of reasons. Most importantly was that I felt very comfortable there. They seemed very interested in me and the students seemed genuinely happy. The other schools seemed much more "malignant" or treated me like JUST ANOTHER APPLICANT. Also, the MD schools I received acceptances to were all in Illinois and Wisconsin (I'm from IL) and I kind of wanted to get out of the Midwest. If you want to know MORE about my application process, just let me know.

Also, "lukealfredwhite" and myself are both in the AZCOM class of 2007, so I am sure we would both be more than happy to answer any questions regarding your application process to AZCOM (or any of the other schools we interviewed at).

Good Luck to all of you on your MCAT's!

 

[irish79]

Slickness,

I guess I am going to take "the road less traveled." I never really knew of the "stigma" of osteopathic medicine, until I started reading things on SDN. I work with a group of about 20 cardiologists and one is a DO. She completed an allopathic residency and then a Cardiology Fellowship at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation (arguably one of the best cards fellowships). She was even made chief cards fellow while there. It was she who encouraged me to pursue osteopathic medicine and ultimately her encouragement is what solidified my decision. She said she has never faced any sort of discrimination for being a DO?so I?m not TOO worried about it.

I thought COMP was okay when I interviewed there. The faculty and students seemed nice, but I felt the campus left a little to be desired (compared to other schools I had already visited). As for Pamona, most of the students I talked to said they lived outside of Pamona, though some said Pamona was completely safe. I liked the option of living on-campus at AZCOM and being close to the school. As far as academics go, I am not sure how the two compare. I think both are good schools?though I really liked AZCOM, so I am sure I am a bit bias.

On the topic of residency, I don?t think it will be hard for me (or anyone) to find a spot. I think it is very rare for people not to match in SOMETHING in the end (if they don?t match, then they enter the scramble, and get something). Depending on what program you want, it might be harder (e.g. allopathic derm). For me, I want to do cardiology and will probably enter an internal medicine residency?most likely allopathic. The nice thing is that we have the option of entering both the osteopathic and allopathic residency programs?so we have a much larger pool to pick from. While it is rumored that some allo programs are ?biased? against DO?s, I doubt it is the majority (though I could be wrong). For me, I don?t believe internal medicine is extremely competitive, so I am not overly worried.

Did this help at all? Any other questions?

 

[DrLady]

Originally posted by ac47
my first choice will be ccom, then azcom. i like the cirriculum for these two and they have a good selection of electives. ac

I am planning to do the same. I am from Illinois and I am taking the august mcat but I am going to start applying early. I am a bit scared..but I am excited at the same time! I have some schools in mind that I want to apply to, but since right now I am fairly busy with the semester. I am going to start on my personal statement in next week or so...now that u said that the aacom website is going to be on, on may 1st. Thanks for letting us know


-DL

 

[DrMom]

Originally posted by Osteoblasts
I am considering to appy to OSU-COM

I'd be happy to answer any questions from you or anyone else about OSU-COM.

 

[irish79]

Slickness,

I wouldn't think you would have any trouble getting a good FM residency in California if you went to AZCOM. As long as you do well in school and on your boards, you could probably go anywhere. I can't imagine any Cali programs taking people just because they went to COMP (especially since AZCOM is just as good of a school). In fact, I don't even know if they will care what school you go to--after all, some FMG's get competitive spots each year.

As for earnings, I don't think your residency will determine your salary. If you are a good doctor, you will get the patients and make enough money. However, I'm not really sure on any of this. Someone who is in the final stages of med school or who is in their residency or even an attending might be more enlightening. DrMom seems to know a lot and has been a ton of help to many people--she might know.

DrLady, I am an Illinois resident too--so if you have any questions about IL/WI schools let me know: CCOM, UIC, Rush, Loyola, SIU, MCW, and Chicago Med. What school did you go to for undergrad?

 

[ac47]

where is ccom located exactly? i lived in chicago for a summer so i remember the area fairly well. also, does anyone know if they have dorms, and is the housing cost extremely expensive around the campus?

anyways, i'm taking my first full length practice test tomorrow morning. i've been taking tons of timed section tests, so i guess i'll find out if i'm as prepared as i think i am.

ac

 

[DrLady]

Originally posted by irish79

DrLady, I am an Illinois resident too--so if you have any questions about IL/WI schools let me know: CCOM, UIC, Rush, Loyola, SIU, MCW, and Chicago Med. What school did you go to for undergrad?

I am currently a senior at UIC and am graduating in december. I will be applying to chicago schools: UIC, Rush, CCOM, loyola, and SIU. But I will PM u soon, about the application questions.

Thanks so much!!!


oh and ac7, CCOM is located in Downer's Grove. Unfortunately, although I haven't visited this school yet. Yes, CCOM does have housing, i think there are apartments for the students there. So there is no problem for the housing. Good Luck with the april mcat! I am taking the august one!

 

[Doctortobee]

Hi

Good luck to all the class of 2008 applicants!!! Please do not hesitate to ask questions...I am a member of the LECOM class of 2007...SDN is an amazing resource in the long application process...

I understand what everyone is going through...PLEASE don't hesitate to ask questions. You won't know unless you ask!

 

[NUgirl]

Hi ac47,

CCOM is located in Downers Grove. They have 3 types of on-campus housing: LLC ( newest dorm on campus-all singles), the traditional dorms (mostly singles, but some doubles), and on campus-apts. The apts are approx $6,000 for the year while the dorms are approx $5,000 (LLC is slightly more expensive than the trad dorms).

Good luck!

 

[paramed2premed]

Not many folks appying to UNECOM, but it is the only osteo school I'm applying to.

I live in NH. No state school, no contracts with other states. At the hospital I work in we have several DO's, many of them UNECOM graduates.

Good luck to all! There is room enough in the schools for all of us, I hope.

 

[sketchyMcG]

Count me in! I'll be applying to AZCOM, UHS, Nova, TUCOM, COMP, and probably a few others and a couple of MD schools thrown in there.... Class of '08!!!!

 

[Herpeto]

I shall also be applying to Osteopathic school this year. My applications will include AZCOM, CCOM, NOVA, PCOM, UNECOM, Touro, UHS-COM and maybe one more, although I am uncertain as to which school to select. My top two choices are NOVA and AZCOM at the moment. However, that may all change once I visit each school and see what they have to offer. I will also be applying to about eight MD schools as well.

Herp