Drexel IMS 2010-2011

[aidama]

Surprisingly not as many as you might think. My first and biggest time saver: don't go to lecture. Watch the video streamed lectures. At home you are able to watch the videos somewhere between 1.5x - 2x the original speed using quicktime depending on how comfortable you are listening to them that fast and who the lecturer is. You get used to it though and most of what they say is in the notes you'll get. On days you have a lot of lecture it shaves off at least an hour, but usually more. If I had to try and stick a number to it I'd say on non-exam weeks I really just watched lectures for a 3-4 hrs/day (give or take an hr or two) and studied maybe an hour two a day. Come closer to exams there will still be lectures and you'll need to study so maybe 8-10 hrs for a few days.

I find this an interesting story, that you didn't really go to class (except for quizzes and tests). My main concern about IMS-Sacramento, CA is that for the first semester I would be commuting for 2+ hours every day to get to a class that isn't live and is streamed anyway (totally prepared to do it if accepted). Nevertheless interesting food for thought.. I'm the go-to-class-anyway kinda person.

I wish Thursday would come faster, why must it be a holiday weekend?

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[SopChoppy]

One of my good friends from the program lives in Loft 640. It's cheaper than Packard, but still expensive relatively speaking. I would recommend the website 4wallsinphilly.com for a pretty good listing of apartment buildings.

Do you think it would be ok to live out in a suburb west of Philly, such as Springfield? I'm not familiar with the traffic, would it be too much? Do any students live out that far?

Which brings me to my other concern, is there parking on the campus? Or are Drexel students allowed to park across the street to the west, where this is a huge parking garage?

 

[aidama]

Do you think it would be ok to live out in a suburb west of Philly, such as Springfield? I'm not familiar with the traffic, would it be too much? Do any students live out that far?

Which brings me to my other concern, is there parking on the campus? Or are Drexel students allowed to park across the street to the west, where this is a huge parking garage?

I have family not too far from Springfield, in Norristown. Takes like 30 minutes to get into the city. Without traffic. If you're driving during the rush hour times (6-10, 4-7) it will take you 1-2 hours. It's been a while since I did that drive, though.

 

[USFmedical]

Do you think it would be ok to live out in a suburb west of Philly, such as Springfield? I'm not familiar with the traffic, would it be too much? Do any students live out that far?

Which brings me to my other concern, is there parking on the campus? Or are Drexel students allowed to park across the street to the west, where this is a huge parking garage?

Unfortunately, I can't be of too much help in this matter. I didn't have a car this year, but will be bringing it up for medical school. I'm not familiar though with any parking in this area that won't cost you.

I can tell you that most of the students lived somewhere in or around Center City. Of course, I knew a kid who came in from NJ so it's really up to you and what you're willing to deal with traffic/time wise. For me the convenience of being able to walk across the street right before an exam or a quiz was great and I'll miss it since Queen Lane is not in Center City, but I really like where I live and don't feel like moving yet again. Not to mention I've heard that area is pretty desolate.

 

[DeucesHigh3]

The suburbs are fine, but I would try to find a place within walking distance of regional rail -- the R3 in the case of Springfield. It would be pretty stressful to try to make that sort of drive every day, because University City can be a traffic nightmare at any time of day.

I lived next to the R5 for eight years, and commuted into Temple for three semesters, and I never had any problem with it. Pretty relaxing ride actually.

 

[SopChoppy]

Well, 1-2 hours is a little too far, lol. I was hoping to keep my average commute time around 30-45 one way. So I guess Springfield is out of the question (It was just a place recommended to me by a friend who attended the Queen Lane campus). However, if I did live next to a rail line like DeucesHigh3 suggested, how long would a trip be from out there?

Basically I have these things running through my head:

· I would like to live in a place with garage parking (public or private).
· I would like to drive my car to class (Don't mind paying for parking, as long as a spot is relatively guaranteed), But not if it's more that 45 minutes in traffic.
· My wife would prefer not to live in downtown.
· I have no idea how public transit works and I can sure as hell guarantee that my wife is not going to want to ride it to wherever she will be working (at least in the beginning), but I don't mind taking it to class.

So I'm just trying to research what areas can reasonably make those things happen. I'm also trying to keep it under or around $2K for a 2 bedroom. I've been eyeing places north like Manayunk and East Falls and places south like Drexel Hill. But those recommended areas came from people who weren't really heading into the area where class is held.

You'll have to forgive my ignorance a bit, I've been living in Tallahassee, FL for the last 5 years and we barley have a public transit system in place and an hour will take you from one side of the city to the other during rush hour. So I do greatly appreciate the input from you guys!

 

[meilideai]

Just had my interview today! It was pretty casual and lasted ~20 min, and the lady was very nice. Her name was Irena (not sure if I spelt it right).

Some of the questions not on the list were:
1) Do you have anything else you'd like to say about your application that was not shown on paper?
2) Do you have any questions about this program?
3) Did you shadow physicians? Share some experiences.
4) How did these clinical experiences and shadowing impact you?
5) How was your time split in undergraduate years?

Of the questions mentioned above, she asked me:
1) How many times did you take the MCAT?
2) What are some of your exposures to medicine?
3) What were you involved in non-clinically?
4) What is a major problem in the US Healthcare system?
5) How do you balance yourself between work and school?
6) What's your support system?

She didn't mention how long it would take to get back to me. Did you guys ask or she just mentioned it?

 

[aidama]

She didn't mention how long it would take to get back to me. Did you guys ask or she just mentioned it?

My interviewer told me 1-2 weeks, but when I called today to double-check my status (knowing the committee met today), they told me my file hadn't even been brought up to the committee yet! So it's looking like 3 weeks for me. Others have said ~2 weeks. I know the DPMS kids are getting a decision soon, this could be why it's taking a while.

I was hoping I would get accepted before my summer school classes started (because I'm taking Biochemistry/Cell Biology, which are 2 of the starter courses for IMS), guess I'll just go ahead and do them anyway

 

[DeucesHigh3]

Well, 1-2 hours is a little too far, lol. I was hoping to keep my average commute time around 30-45 one way. So I guess Springfield is out of the question (It was just a place recommended to me by a friend who attended the Queen Lane campus). However, if I did live next to a rail line like DeucesHigh3 suggested, how long would a trip be from out there?

As far as the trains, Suburban Station is right in the middle of the city, three blocks from Drexel's center city campus, and all of the Regional Rail trains stop there. To get a sense of the commute time, you can go to septa.org and click on "Plan My Trip" on the left-hand column. Use the clickable map, From any station you're interested in, To Suburban Station, and change the time to a representative morning/evening commute time. Most rides shouldn't be much more than 20-35min, depending on whether it's express or local (unless you're looking really far out). You can see both the tracks and the various stations on Google Maps too, which makes it pretty easy to narrow potential apartments down by proximity to regional rail.

So I’m just trying to research what areas can reasonably make those things happen. I’m also trying to keep it under or around $2K for a 2 bedroom. I’ve been eyeing places north like Manayunk and East Falls and places south like Drexel Hill. But those recommended areas came from people who weren’t really heading into the area where class is held.

Well the fortunate thing is that $2000 for a 2BR is a very large budget for Philly, so you can be pretty picky about where you rent. Check out PadMapper.com and filter for <2000, there are tons of options. It also has a new Commute Time Overlay which is pretty cool, but it certainly isn't taking traffic into account.

As far as general areas to look, I'm only really familiar with the Main Line (roughly the area along the R5 and Lancaster Ave, extending west from City Ave/Rt-1), Manayunk/Roxborough, and Mt. Airy/Chestnut Hill, but any of those would be great places. If you have any questions, just let me know!

 

[USCTrojanPreMed]

Hi all, just accepted today. What's the verdict on Stiles? I'm not as worried about cost of housing as if it's close enough/livable.

 

[meilideai]

Hey! Thanks for the reply... eek I hope not mentioning anything does not mean anything bad...but good luck to us both

Cell Biology is hard and that sounds like a challenging summer, lol. Hope you hear soon!

I have a friend who did Drexel's IMS program and currently finishing up her MMS. She has been quite successful in getting interviews, so I guess it is not as bad as a lot of people on here make it out to be. I want to go to the Sacramento branch but she mentioned how we wouldn't get as much faculty attention there. I asked if there would be NO faculty there, she said there would be, but only a few. I'm a Cali resident so staying in state would be ideal. Although, I'm feeling a little iffy about not having as much resources in Sac. If we ended up doing the IMS program in Sac, we'd have to go to Philly for the MMS. Are you planning to stay a 2nd year or going directly into medical school?

My interviewer told me 1-2 weeks, but when I called today to double-check my status (knowing the committee met today), they told me my file hadn't even been brought up to the committee yet! So it's looking like 3 weeks for me. Others have said ~2 weeks. I know the DPMS kids are getting a decision soon, this could be why it's taking a while.

I was hoping I would get accepted before my summer school classes started (because I'm taking Biochemistry/Cell Biology, which are 2 of the starter courses for IMS), guess I'll just go ahead and do them anyway

 

[aidama]

I have a friend who did Drexel's IMS program and currently finishing up her MMS. She has been quite successful in getting interviews, so I guess it is not as bad as a lot of people on here make it out to be. I want to go to the Sacramento branch but she mentioned how we wouldn't get as much faculty attention there. I asked if there would be NO faculty there, she said there would be, but only a few. I'm a Cali resident so staying in state would be ideal. Although, I'm feeling a little iffy about not having as much resources in Sac. If we ended up doing the IMS program in Sac, we'd have to go to Philly for the MMS. Are you planning to stay a 2nd year or going directly into medical school?

I didn't think anything of it because the DPMS program deadline was this week and they are finalizing decisions. That's my spin and I'm sticking to it

A lot of the courses will be taught by Graduate TA's, not Medical School faculty. The program director will visit 2x a year... but yeah, I too am having second thoughts about Sacramento, and if accepted into the Sac program, I might ask to "transfer" to the Philadelphia before classes start. My reasons now are less about faculty and more about wanting a fresh start/I have a better support system in Philadelphia (family).

I am applying to mostly DO schools this year with a few MD interspersed (didn't apply to any DO last year). If I get into medical school --- baaaam! I'll take that spot in a heartbeat. If I don't, I'll go on for a second year to get that MMS, and reapply. I want something to show for my time not in medical school!

 

[gymdoc10]

hey guys anyone attending this year's class? I just sent in my deposit and am excited for a fresh start.

 

[cmr4gym]

heyy guys! i am currently in the IMS program and got a ton of help from IMSers last year on SDN so i'm paying it forward! PM me if you have any questions and i'll do my best to answer

lykyamy00, I saw that you posted on the forum last year about deciding between drexel and tufts SMP. Why did you choose drexel?

 

[TyrKinase]

What's the verdict on Stiles?

Stiles is convenient, but that's about all it has going for it. It's small, expensive and you're surrounded by other IMS students. Sometimes it's nice to go home to get away, but you don't exactly get that if you live across the street in university housing.

There are a couple other options nearby you may want to consider: One Franklin Town and The Lofts at Logan View. Both are about a 5 minute walk door-to-door to the New College Building. A 2BR/2BA at One Franklin Town is fairly affordable if you can find a roommate to share the place with.

 

[DeucesHigh3]

Does anyone happen to know the orientation schedule? More specifically, does it run the entire week of Aug 2, and how late in the day does it end?

 

[dashak]

The schedule hasn't been posted yet. Its on the link they sent you in the email.

 

[aidama]

The schedule hasn't been posted yet. Its on the link they sent you in the email.

I got in!!! Called immediately after the committee finished today! They let me decide between either Sacramento or Philadelphia, I tentatively said Philadelphia - it seemed like the committee was recommending anyone who had less than a 31 MCAT not go to Sacramento because of how isolated it is. Not sure what I'm gonna do about the 6month lease on this apartment I got 2 months ago, but whatever!!!

 

[meilideai]

Congrats aidama!!
I got in too and was offered a place in Sac and Philly!! I'm leaning towards Philly.
I am still wondering how I got in, but here are my stats:

sci GPA 3.13
cGPA 3.31
MCAT: 26Q (9 P, 6 V, 11 B)

My verbal is pretty low, and I wasn't expecting much but I am so excited!! My friend is going to Drexel for nursing too! The admission committee recommend that I retake next summer, since they see this as a 2 year thing for me. They also said the classes would help in the BS section and standardized testing. Ecstatic!! Hope to meet you all soon

 

[aidama]

Congrats aidama!!
My verbal is pretty low, and I wasn't expecting much but I am so excited!! My friend is going to Drexel for nursing too! The admission committee recommend that I retake next summer, since they see this as a 2 year thing for me. They also said the classes would help in the BS section and standardized testing. Ecstatic!! Hope to meet you all soon

Grats!!!

Are you applying to DO schools this year? Those stats aren't terrible for DO schools - right around the average I think! I'm applying to DO schools too this year, depending on where I get in I won't be doing the 2 year track.

I'm not sure about Sacramento, the person who told me the news (Sara) was like... you can choose either program, but know that it's going to be really isolated, there won't be a lot of people out there this year, and your support system is about zero because everything is based out of here in Philadelphia. As much as I want to stay in California, I think psychologically the change will be good - this is basically med school, gotta treat it like it!

She also told me all my areas were fine except for non-clinical volunteering.

 

[DeucesHigh3]

Hey, congrats to you both!

I just sent in my deposit yesterday... I don't think I've ever even seen a cashier's check before, lol.

 

[aidama]

Hey, congrats to you both!

I just sent in my deposit yesterday... I don't think I've ever even seen a cashier's check before, lol.

Are you going to stay in Stiles? I'd like to be surrounded by other IMSers. Haven't been in a "dorm" situation for 4 years..... I have family in the area, and I'd rather not stay with them

 

[DeucesHigh3]

Nah, I actually have an apartment in Mt. Airy, which is like 30 minutes away on the R8 train. I'm only a few minutes away from the Queen Lane campus though, which will be nice next year if everything works out.

 

[aidama]

Nah, I actually have an apartment in Mt. Airy, which is like 30 minutes away on the R8 train. I'm only a few minutes away from the Queen Lane campus though, which will be nice next year if everything works out.

Yeah, I'm gonna be looking into Stiles. Don't have to worry about utilities and I can finally be back on a meal plan (one of the things I actually look forward to).

I was looking over the handbook and it made it seem like the two classes that aren't run by the COM require mandatory attendance - because it's seminar based - yes no?

 

[DeucesHigh3]

Mandatory attendance would be my assumption. That said, I haven't actually gotten ahold of the handbook yet -- it's not working for me online. I've only been able to look at the course policies at the IMF page, which mentions IMS differences in a few places.

I guess I'll just have to see what works best for me for the other classes: watching the recordings from the comfort of home, or marooning myself in center city all day long to study...

 

[gymdoc10]

does anyone know if we are compared to the med students in our recommendation letters?

 

[aidama]

does anyone know if we are compared to the med students in our recommendation letters?

I forget where I read this, but I think there are 2 letters. The first letter is a very nice "cover" sheet where the program director explains what IMS is all about, and what a "B" means in comparison to the DUCOM MS1 class. Remember we don't take every class they take.

The second letter would be the advisor recommendation.

 

[dashak]

Has the immunization form been a pain in the ass for anyone?

 

[aidama]

Has the immunization form been a pain in the ass for anyone?

Except for the part where I hate getting TB tests, no. :/ What are you having trouble with?

 

[DeucesHigh3]

Has the immunization form been a pain in the ass for anyone?

Heh, as a matter of fact, yes. I drove 160 miles to my home Dr's office for a tetanus booster and to get the form filled out, and then 160 miles back as soon as I was finished. And had to pay cash, because I won't have insurance til class starts. Fun day.

Fortunately I had to get a varicella titer (because apparently there's no medical record of me having chicken pox as a kid) and a PPD late last year for a volunteer gig, or this would have been even more of a pain in the butt.

 

[aidama]

I'm still trying to figure out parking, since I'll be bringing my car. Anyone have a solution? I've been told the actual campus has 24hr parking if you have a permit. I'm planning on living in Stiles but no commitments yet, and they don't boast a garage.

 

[dashak]

Heh, as a matter of fact, yes. I drove 160 miles to my home Dr's office for a tetanus booster and to get the form filled out, and then 160 miles back as soon as I was finished. And had to pay cash, because I won't have insurance til class starts. Fun day.

Fortunately I had to get a varicella titer (because apparently there's no medical record of me having chicken pox as a kid) and a PPD late last year for a volunteer gig, or this would have been even more of a pain in the butt.

Thats awesome. That is exactly what happened to me, except for the driving 160 miles part. It's like they are trying to weed us out already.

 

[SopChoppy]

As far as the trains, Suburban Station is right in the middle of the city, three blocks from Drexel's center city campus, and all of the Regional Rail trains stop there. To get a sense of the commute time, you can go to septa.org and click on "Plan My Trip" on the left-hand column. Use the clickable map, From any station you're interested in, To Suburban Station, and change the time to a representative morning/evening commute time. Most rides shouldn't be much more than 20-35min, depending on whether it's express or local (unless you're looking really far out). You can see both the tracks and the various stations on Google Maps too, which makes it pretty easy to narrow potential apartments down by proximity to regional rail.




Well the fortunate thing is that $2000 for a 2BR is a very large budget for Philly, so you can be pretty picky about where you rent. Check out PadMapper.com and filter for <2000, there are tons of options. It also has a new Commute Time Overlay which is pretty cool, but it certainly isn't taking traffic into account.

As far as general areas to look, I'm only really familiar with the Main Line (roughly the area along the R5 and Lancaster Ave, extending west from City Ave/Rt-1), Manayunk/Roxborough, and Mt. Airy/Chestnut Hill, but any of those would be great places. If you have any questions, just let me know!

You Sir are awesome, Thanks!

 

[DeucesHigh3]

You Sir are awesome, Thanks!

Hey, no problem. I just did the apartment hunting thing here 2 months ago, so I can only imagine how much harder it is if you're not familiar with the area at all.

 

[aidama]

Deposit sent! Kinda wish summer would end sooner!

 

[DeucesHigh3]

Deposit sent! Kinda wish summer would end sooner!

Haha, I kind of feel the same way. I'm sure in 6 months, we'll be wishing it was still summer though...

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I'll be curious to see how many people end up living in Stiles, versus other places in Center City, or further out in the city/burbs.

 

[dr octagon]

Sent my deposit in a few days ago. I'm planning to head up to Philly next weekend to find an apartment within a 2 day period. Any more apartment recommendations in the area that are <1300$ would be greatly appreciated. It's daunting to sift through all these apartments online!

Also for any previous IMS'ers or anyone who is currently filling out their AMCAS hoping to get in this year when do you get the recommendation from the program advisers? Is it too late to send it out to the medical schools you're applying to by the time they get it out to you? Also how do you send out first semester grades to all the schools you apply to? Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[aidama]

I think three reasons I am personally choosing Stiles is because a) it's less of a hassle for me to worry about in addition to moving me out there, b) most of the building is IMSers/other students and c) I don't want to walk too far to class in the snow.

Also for any previous IMS'ers or anyone who is currently filling out their AMCAS hoping to get in this year when do you get the recommendation from the program advisers? Is it too late to send it out to the medical schools you're applying to by the time they get it out to you? Also how do you send out first semester grades to all the schools you apply to? Thanks in advance for your help!

IIRC from reading other threads is that AMCAS is going to probably want your first semesters grades before they review your classes. So too will your advisor want those grades before he writes you a letter. So you're essentially a late applicant whose file will be reviewed in January/February. Unless your application is already stellar or something (in which case I'm jealous). It's not too late to send the letter though because you can easily add it to AMCAS and attach it to the schools.

 

[DeucesHigh3]

Oh, so the Orientation Memo is finally posted, as well as last year's Policies and Procedures Student Handbook. I was also able to set up my Drexel e-mail and online accounts, which let me log onto the webcampus.drexelmed.edu and see all the IFM lecture videos from last year -- very cool.

Seems odd that we need to rent microscopes from an outside company, since they'll be stored on campus anyway. I'm sure it's a money thing, but would it kill them to provide a microscope lab with sign-ups?

 

[gymdoc10]

"Seems odd that we need to rent microscopes from an outside company, since they'll be stored on campus anyway. I'm sure it's a money thing, but would it kill them to provide a microscope lab with sign-ups?"

Are we assigned lab partners or do we pick them ourselves? I rather split the cost of the mircoscope with my lab partner.

 

[DeucesHigh3]

Are we assigned lab partners or do we pick them ourselves? I rather split the cost of the mircoscope with my lab partner.

IMS Memo:
"Please make every effort to acquire a satisfactory microscope. Students are encouraged to share a microscope with a lab partner which will be formed at
orientation."

That memo is terribly worded, but it sounds like we do split the cost with our lab partner, and that we get partners during orientation. I guess somebody from the current year will have to chime in with whether it's us or them that actually picks the partners.

 

[USFmedical]

IMS Memo:
"Please make every effort to acquire a satisfactory microscope. Students are encouraged to share a microscope with a lab partner which will be formed at
orientation."

That memo is terribly worded, but it sounds like we do split the cost with our lab partner, and that we get partners during orientation. I guess somebody from the current year will have to chime in with whether it's us or them that actually picks the partners.

You interpreted that correctly. You split the cost and partners are assigned. However, this will be the biggest waste of money with purchasing books coming in a close second. There is a virtual microscope on the IFM micro website that has all the slides you'll need. And there are very few actual microscopes set up during the practical exams. You do, however, need a microscope to do the scavenger hunts, which will allow you to accumulate a few bonus points for your first semester grade since those will be most important for medical schools you're applying to.

 

[aidama]

You interpreted that correctly. You split the cost and partners are assigned. However, this will be the biggest waste of money with purchasing books coming in a close second. There is a virtual microscope on the IFM micro website that has all the slides you'll need. And there are very few actual microscopes set up during the practical exams. You do, however, need a microscope to do the scavenger hunts, which will allow you to accumulate a few bonus points for your first semester grade since those will be most important for medical schools you're applying to.

I still find it hard to believe that purchasing books is a waste of money. What books would you recommend we do buy? What helped you the most? (Other than the texts for nutrition/immuno/ethics etc).

I've always been a textbook girl, based on a common theme throughout college: "This test question wasn't in our lecture notes!" "Yeah, but it was in your textbook." "*RAGE!*"

 

[ejcarrol]

I am accepted to the Sacramento program.

Just wondering how are people deciding between the one in Sac and the one in Philly. Kinda scared of the one in Sac since just found out the class is really small (25 people or so) and it's the first year they're doing the program in Sac.

 

[aidama]

I am accepted to the Sacramento program.

Just wondering how are people deciding between the one in Sac and the one in Philly. Kinda scared of the one in Sac since just found out the class is really small (25 people or so) and it's the first year they're doing the program in Sac.

I originally applied to the IMS program because I was interested in staying in California. I was originally thinking "well I can view all the lectures online anyway" ... but the more I thought about it Philadelphia seemed like the better idea. My extended family lives out there, there is a better support system for doing well in the program out there (tutoring/other IMS students), and living in Philadelphia makes doing the 2nd year/DUCOM transition very easy.

I know WishDr was also thinking about it but decided on Philly, as did meilideai.

 

[USFmedical]

I still find it hard to believe that purchasing books is a waste of money. What books would you recommend we do buy? What helped you the most? (Other than the texts for nutrition/immuno/ethics etc).

I've always been a textbook girl, based on a common theme throughout college: "This test question wasn't in our lecture notes!" "Yeah, but it was in your textbook." "*RAGE!*"

You may find it hard to believe, but it's absolutely true. And you sound a lot like me. When I was in undergrad I mainly read the textbooks and didn't bother taking notes in class. So I understand where you're coming from, but the textbooks are too dense to teach first years in a timely fashion. So the wonderful faculty construct your module guide, which is like a watered down textbook for each class. The ONLY books you should buy are nutrition and ethics. I bought Lippincott's Biochem, which is written by one of the biochem faculty members, the micro books, and the physio book. I already owned the Nolte text for Neuro and it was slightly helpful because they do not reproduce the images they use from the text in the notes unlike the other courses, but even still I could've done without. I didn't even crack the other books open except to thumb through them and look at some diagrams. I just sold them to a friend who's transitioning from MSP to IMS and I'm gonna be a first year here at Drexel so that should tell you how important I really think they are for success in the IFM curriculum. Do what you need to do for yourself and your success, but this is what worked for me. The faculty do an amazing job with the module guides and you really don't wanna "waste time" (I use that phrase very loosely) by reading through textbooks that go into too much detail.

 

[DeucesHigh3]

You may find it hard to believe, but it's absolutely true. And you sound a lot like me. When I was in undergrad I mainly read the textbooks and didn't bother taking notes in class. So I understand where you're coming from, but the textbooks are too dense to teach first years in a timely fashion. So the wonderful faculty construct your module guide, which is like a watered down textbook for each class. The ONLY books you should buy are nutrition and ethics. I bought Lippincott's Biochem, which is written by one of the biochem faculty members, the micro books, and the physio book. I already owned the Nolte text for Neuro and it was slightly helpful because they do not reproduce the images they use from the text in the notes unlike the other courses, but even still I could've done without. I didn't even crack the other books open except to thumb through them and look at some diagrams. I just sold them to a friend who's transitioning from MSP to IMS and I'm gonna be a first year here at Drexel so that should tell you how important I really think they are for success in the IFM curriculum. Do what you need to do for yourself and your success, but this is what worked for me. The faculty do an amazing job with the module guides and you really don't wanna "waste time" (I use that phrase very loosely) by reading through textbooks that go into too much detail.

That's excellent news. I'm the same way too -- I found undergrad lectures to be useless, and did 100% of my learning from the book before exams. So the module guides are win-win: I won't have to go to class or pay for $800 of expensive textbooks.

Now I just wish I'd held onto my Ross & Pawlina histology book... I had it marked up and everything, but somehow it got lost over the course of 3 or 4 moves...

 

[ejcarrol]

I originally applied to the IMS program because I was interested in staying in California. I was originally thinking "well I can view all the lectures online anyway" ... but the more I thought about it Philadelphia seemed like the better idea. My extended family lives out there, there is a better support system for doing well in the program out there (tutoring/other IMS students), and living in Philadelphia makes doing the 2nd year/DUCOM transition very easy.

I know WishDr was also thinking about it but decided on Philly, as did meilideai.

so it seems like everyone who was considering the IMS program in Sac have decided to go to Philly eventually? Is anyone actually going to the program in Sac? I'd love to know one or two people and see what you guys think about going there.

 

[aidama]

so it seems like everyone who was considering the IMS program in Sac have decided to go to Philly eventually? Is anyone actually going to the program in Sac? I'd love to know one or two people and see what you guys think about going there.

I'm not worried about the success of the program. Drexel's got proven stats and everybody I know that has attended it has loved it. I know WishDr and I share the same views (I asked him a while back). Both have the desire to stay in CA, but a change in scenery might be just what we need to get in gear and do well.

 

[dr octagon]

I am super excited to start in August! I'll be in the Philly campus as well. Also if anyone is looking to live off campus the phillyaptco (http://www.phillyapartmentco.com/) is a great website to use to find places to live. I found some studio apts for 750-850$ a month and they're located about 10 minutes walking from our classes (cheaper than the dorms and I feel like it'll be good to get away from campus every now and then). What's the opinion on meal plan (from previous IMS'ers and future ones)? I'm looking forward to meeting all of you guys next year