lawdoc4love
New Member
- Joined
- Apr 4, 2019
- Messages
- 5
- Reaction score
- 9
Not sure if there is a thread for this school, but I have a friend here and his feedback about the school is below. As with newer schools, things are always changing so this is this most up-to-date information as of April 2019. Hopefully it will help those considering this school with other offers make the best personal decision.
Pros:
Friendly and accessible Dean
Student body - the students here are genuinely committed to helping each other succeed and working together. On the whole, a really diverse and compassionate body of medical students.
Solid faculty
renovated historic campus
Texas school- more residency opportunities in family practice
Cons:
Faculty turnover
Inaccessible faculty*
Administration
Cost of attendance
Mandatory class attendance
Variable factors
San Antonio location
EMT certification
Community involvement
*Some of the more concerning things about this school is how isolated they keep faculty. They are not permitted office hours. They are not permitted to "teach" in the traditional sense. Students are not allowed to visit faculty offices with questions without first setting an appointment and then checking in with a security desk and being escorted to the faculty office.
They model their version of a "flipped classroom" and PBL after a school that ranks #86 instead of the more proven execution of flipped classroom learning that schools ranked in the top 10 (like Stanford) use.
As for the variable factors, San Antonio is a large city with a lot of recreation opportunity. Some critiscims about the part of town the medical campus is located are negated by the projected developments and current construction all around the formal base giving access to public spaces, parks and walking trails, decent apartments, retail and food options, and public train transport.
The downside to San Antonio is the hidden living costs... Its one of the few cities left in Texas (which deregulated energy so that it created a competitive market) that has municipality owned utilities so there are no options for electric provider and they set rates considerably higher than anywhere else. If you don't know, it gets HOT in Texas and that ac will cost a fortune because you have no other option. Apparently the city has a corrupt city council in bed with the single utility company.
The school requires student to become EMT certified, which in theory is cool, but in execution a bit of a nightmare I hear. The school is contracted with a company that doesn't have a great reputation (but probably gave the best bid) and the amount of time, travel, poor communication and paperwork with regard to the student is a considerable burden and distraction from their medical curriculum without offering real value of experience. Many students spend 12 hours changes bed sheets or transporting elderly people to doctor visits for their "hands-on clinical emergency experience". Doesn't mean that is every persons experience, but it's most.
They have a community engagement component to the curriculum which was a big selling point for him, However, its really just a means of collecting data for faculty research. If a student values community involvement there are many other opportunities via student organizations and catholic charities. So not all is a loss on this point.
Pros:
Friendly and accessible Dean
Student body - the students here are genuinely committed to helping each other succeed and working together. On the whole, a really diverse and compassionate body of medical students.
Solid faculty
renovated historic campus
Texas school- more residency opportunities in family practice
Cons:
Faculty turnover
Inaccessible faculty*
Administration
Cost of attendance
Mandatory class attendance
Variable factors
San Antonio location
EMT certification
Community involvement
*Some of the more concerning things about this school is how isolated they keep faculty. They are not permitted office hours. They are not permitted to "teach" in the traditional sense. Students are not allowed to visit faculty offices with questions without first setting an appointment and then checking in with a security desk and being escorted to the faculty office.
They model their version of a "flipped classroom" and PBL after a school that ranks #86 instead of the more proven execution of flipped classroom learning that schools ranked in the top 10 (like Stanford) use.
As for the variable factors, San Antonio is a large city with a lot of recreation opportunity. Some critiscims about the part of town the medical campus is located are negated by the projected developments and current construction all around the formal base giving access to public spaces, parks and walking trails, decent apartments, retail and food options, and public train transport.
The downside to San Antonio is the hidden living costs... Its one of the few cities left in Texas (which deregulated energy so that it created a competitive market) that has municipality owned utilities so there are no options for electric provider and they set rates considerably higher than anywhere else. If you don't know, it gets HOT in Texas and that ac will cost a fortune because you have no other option. Apparently the city has a corrupt city council in bed with the single utility company.
The school requires student to become EMT certified, which in theory is cool, but in execution a bit of a nightmare I hear. The school is contracted with a company that doesn't have a great reputation (but probably gave the best bid) and the amount of time, travel, poor communication and paperwork with regard to the student is a considerable burden and distraction from their medical curriculum without offering real value of experience. Many students spend 12 hours changes bed sheets or transporting elderly people to doctor visits for their "hands-on clinical emergency experience". Doesn't mean that is every persons experience, but it's most.
They have a community engagement component to the curriculum which was a big selling point for him, However, its really just a means of collecting data for faculty research. If a student values community involvement there are many other opportunities via student organizations and catholic charities. So not all is a loss on this point.
