LMU vs. ACOM vs. Campbell: Advice Needed

[ysera555]

Hello SDNers,

I have lucky enough to have 3 acceptances to LMU, ACOM, and CUSOM. I have made a pros and cons list but am unsure which school I should go with. I am from CO and don't really have any family near any of the schools I have been accepted to. My SO does go to school in Atlanta though. Any input would be helpful! Thank you!


Pros and Cons:
(* denotes greater significance)

LMU-DCOM

Pros:

-Great facilities
-Open door facility—>When I interviewed, every faculty door was open
-Students seemed friendly and happy
-Associated with an undergrad so gym and cafeteria available for use
-Beautiful surroundings
-No mandatory attendance policy*
-Streaming lectures*
-DO/MBA offered if I want to pursue it
-Can pursue hobby of hiking near the beautiful Cumberland Gap park
-Anatomy boot camp program where I can get exposed to anatomy before classes start

Cons:

-Locations is VERY rural (nearest big city is knoxville 1.5 hours away)
-Huge class size of ~240*
-Heard that quality of rotations third and fourth year are hit or miss*


ACOM:

Pros:
-Dothan is not as rural
-Affiliated Hospital (SAMC) 2 minutes down the road*
-Student housing is very convinient and a 2 minute walk
-Students were very happy with their school
-Lots of rotation sites for third and fourth year (1200 preceptors)*
-3.5 hours away from SO in ATL
-24 hr access to school

Cons:

-Newer School so no match list yet
-80% mandatory lecture policy
-Relatively lower board scores around 89% pass rate*

Campbell:

Pros:

-One hour drive to bigger city of Raleigh*
-Great facilities—>Best Sim lab out of all schools I interviewed at so far
-Great rotations and school has established residency programs* recently
-Associated with an undergrad so gym available for use
-High board scores*

Cons:

-Newer School so no match list yet
-Mandatory Lecture policy*
-Dress code (Tie necessary daily)*
-Assigned seats in lecture for two years*
-Rural location
-No on campus housing

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[cptnjack]

Id go with ACOM due to their clinical education thats been in development for like 10 years, board pass rate IMO is very dependent on the person as well and Im sure it will get better as they go. Ur also close to ATL and Tallanasty so if you get bored a weekend you have something to do.

 

[FutureD.O]

I interviewed at all 3 and was going to go to ACOM for several reasons. Btw, they also offer the MBA dual degree.

When it comes down to it I would suggest going where you feel the most comfortable and where you think you'll be most likely to succeed. With that said, I'd cross DCOM off of the list because of their rotations.

 

[FutureD.O]

ALSO, make sure to weigh the mandatory attendance VERY HEAVILY. Depending on what type of learner you are, not having to go to lectures and being able to watch them from my bedroom at my pace is something I ended up getting lucky with. I would've hated mandatory lectures and am very thankful I don't have to go to them.

 

[OrdinaryDO]

Id go with ACOM due to their clinical education thats been in development for like 10 years, board pass rate IMO is very dependent on the person as well and Im sure it will get better as they go. Ur also close to ATL and Tallanasty so if you get bored a weekend you have something to do.

I am confused..they haven't even bee around for 10 years? More like 6-7.. they JUST graduated their first class in 2014-2015. LMU is a great school, but you know what, I hate threads like this because in reality you should just come out and say what you want everyone else to tell you...WHICH SCHOOL IS THE BEST OF THESE THREE CHOICES? My answer? Go where you feel comfortable..if that doesn't help, then look up the area and see what kind of food they specialize in. ACOM is in Dotha, right on the coast...SEA FOOD!

Also, the above poster mentioned a Dual degree program - almost every medical school has some sort of dual degree program, so don't let that hinder your decision. Besides, you have to be accepted into the dual degree program to even attend and you don't matriculate until the NEXT year into medical school (I am a DO/MHA student). However, FutureD.O has a very solid point with mandatory attendance. When it comes to boards you will want as much time to study as possible. Not to mention, mandatory attendance is a pain in the arse. I would choose a school that doesn't require it.

 

[MADD!!!]

It's a really tough call... I don't know why but I really got the impression that CUSOM will prepare their students for boards better than ACOM, but most students I've spoken to in general say it comes down to self-study the most so I don't know :/. Can't speak for LMU-DCOM since I didn't attend their interview.

 

[lnguyen1412]

Just another thing to add is ACOM just open their new research center today + new team base learning will be included in curriculum for class of 2021.
@OrdinaryDO I think what he's trying to say is the Alabama Medical Education Consortium has been developed their clinical education to attract others DO students from other schools come to Alabama for clerkship before, so they have experience in training DO students. Their clinical sites has been developed for 10 years, that what he means.And yes, SEA FOOD is the thing for me haha

But honestly, go where you feel comfortable.

 

[NecrotizingFasciitis]

ACOM.

Atlanta isn't a terrible drive from Dothan so you could see your significant other when you have time to travel without having to buy a plane ticket. I know CUSOM you'd need a ticket; no idea where LMU is tbh.

ACOM is incredibly nice too; they have more money than they know what to do with and their facilities reflect that. Their clinical rotations are a huge plus as well, like others have said. They aren't going anywhere because it is the healthcare system in the area that set up the school (the story is somewhere along those lines, I don't know the details.)

Like @lnguyen1412 mentioned, the research facility is a huge plus. There aren't many DO schools that I'm aware of that are very involved with research. This could potentially help you stand out when you apply for residencies if you are interested in research.

Very close to Panama City if you ever need to get away after an exam and.. vent... or go to the beach.

I'm super biased, I love ACOM. I also know little to nothing about the other schools. I know where CUSOM is located, that's about it.

 

[popopopop]

I am confused..they haven't even bee around for 10 years? More like 6-7.. they JUST graduated their first class in 2014-2015. LMU is a great school, but you know what, I hate threads like this because in reality you should just come out and say what you want everyone else to tell you...WHICH SCHOOL IS THE BEST OF THESE THREE CHOICES? My answer? Go where you feel comfortable..if that doesn't help, then look up the area and see what kind of food they specialize in. ACOM is in Dotha, right on the coast...SEA FOOD!

Also, the above poster mentioned a Dual degree program - almost every medical school has some sort of dual degree program, so don't let that hinder your decision. Besides, you have to be accepted into the dual degree program to even attend and you don't matriculate until the NEXT year into medical school (I am a DO/MHA student). However, FutureD.O has a very solid point with mandatory attendance. When it comes to boards you will want as much time to study as possible. Not to mention, mandatory attendance is a pain in the arse. I would choose a school that doesn't require it.

"
By the early 1990s, leaders in Alabama had come to recognize the growing need for primary care physicians within the state. Having recognized the propensity for osteopathic medical graduates to pursue careers in primary care, state leaders established the Alabama Medical Education Consortium (AMEC) in 2005 as a means of attracting third and fourth year medical students to rotations within the state.[8]

By 2010, the success of the AMEC pipeline led some to consider the development of Alabama’s own osteopathic medical college. After much deliberation about the location and structure of the school, the Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine (ACOM) was established in May 2010 through the partnership of AMEC and the Houston County Healthcare Authority."

^From wiki, but as explained to me by the dean, basically rotations were developed before the school was built and not the other way around.

 

[OrdinaryDO]

"
By the early 1990s, leaders in Alabama had come to recognize the growing need for primary care physicians within the state. Having recognized the propensity for osteopathic medical graduates to pursue careers in primary care, state leaders established the Alabama Medical Education Consortium (AMEC) in 2005 as a means of attracting third and fourth year medical students to rotations within the state.[8]

By 2010, the success of the AMEC pipeline led some to consider the development of Alabama’s own osteopathic medical college. After much deliberation about the location and structure of the school, the Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine (ACOM) was established in May 2010 through the partnership of AMEC and the Houston County Healthcare Authority."

^From wiki, but as explained to me by the dean, basically rotations were developed before the school was built and not the other way around.

Yeah that makes sense. However, don't forget that they are a non-profit school so it literally takes them 10 years or more on average just to get funding for things like this. They have certainly showed dedication, but the efficiency for which they worked is probably pretty low for the majority of those years. One thing I do like about ACOM is that it was built and funded by a nice hospital.


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[AnatomyGrey12]

Like @lnguyen1412 mentioned, the research facility is a huge plus. There aren't many DO schools that I'm aware of that are very involved with research. This could potentially help you stand out when you apply for residencies if you are interested in research.

A couple benches and some equipment doesn't mean anything. If you want research then you should go to one of the state schools. I'll believe ACOM does research when they start to produce and publish.

 

[sdhere1234]

I can't believe schools actually have assigned seating in lecture?!? Like really? Telling a 30+ year old where to sit in a classroom just seems bizarre to me.

 

[PamSpammer]

I have the same dilemma too! I am picking between ACOM and CUSOM. I liked the vibe at ACOM much more than at CUSOM. But from what I've read on SDN, it seems CUSOM could be the better school in a few years because of the fact that they are establishing their own residencies.

 

[lnguyen1412]

I have the same dilemma too! I am picking between ACOM and CUSOM. I liked the vibe at ACOM much more than at CUSOM. But from what I've read on SDN, it seems CUSOM could be the better school in a few years because of the fact that they are establishing their own residencies.

Unless you want to stay in NC for residency yeah, that is a good choice since they have an in-house residency. Cusom is 100% attendance policy though...
Samc at ACOM will also ha e their own IM residency next year.

 

[DO2015CA]

Acom student and picked LMU. Those mandatory attendance though.

But then again I'm just burnt out and ready to be done with class work so of course being in class bugs me more than it used to.

The clinical rotations are solid though

 

[Ho0v-man]

Acom student and picked LMU. Those mandatory attendance though.

But then again I'm just burnt out and ready to be done with class work so of course being in class bugs me more than it used to.

The clinical rotations are solid though

Is your vote for lmu purely based on the soul suckage that is mandatory attendance?



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[PamSpammer]

Acom student and picked LMU. Those mandatory attendance though.

But then again I'm just burnt out and ready to be done with class work so of course being in class bugs me more than it used to.

The clinical rotations are solid though

Does ACOM have assigned seating or can you sit somewhere different everyday?

 

[DO2015CA]

Is your vote for lmu purely based on the soul suckage that is mandatory attendance?



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Yes the school otherwise is top notch and their clinical education is very solid for DO schools.

Does ACOM have assigned seating or can you sit somewhere different everyday?

You can sit wherever.

 

[Oh_Gee]

FYI, ACOM is starting to "force" the second years to take this 1 month long Wolfpacc program for boards.

i am unable to find any reviews of this program

i posted about this in the USMLE forum and some guy who took the program replied and said some negative things but offered no proof

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/thr...-for-board-prep-before.1224366/#post-18273416

*shoulder shrug

 

[lnguyen1412]

FYI, ACOM is starting to "force" the second years to take this 1 month long Wolfpacc program for boards.

i am unable to find any reviews of this program

i posted about this in the USMLE forum and some guy who took the program replied and said some negative things but offered no proof

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/thr...-for-board-prep-before.1224366/#post-18273416

*shoulder shrug

Can you request for change? Maybe do a petition to take it out of curriculum and give more time for board prep?

 

[MADD!!!]

A couple benches and some equipment doesn't mean anything. If you want research then you should go to one of the state schools. I'll believe ACOM does research when they start to produce and publish.

Or receive some NIH grants

 

[sdhere1234]

Why the hell do so many DO schools have mandatory attendance?! It honestly blows my mind.

 

[MarshMedic]

Interviewed at CUSOM and ACOM:

I'm pretty sure CUSOM is 80% as well. You can miss like 9 lectures per block. I don't think assigned seating is a factor I'd weigh in...more than likely you will sit in the same place all year and if it turns out to be a true obstacle for you I'm sure a switch can be arranged.

I liked the feel at both places, though I did get a warmer friendlier feel at ACOM.

CUSOMs board scores and board prep seem preferable over ACOMs and the unknown Wolfpak thing (from what I could tell from the 2nd years on interview day at ACOM they don't want this and don't seem to have a choice in it).

Cusom is driveable to Raleigh (an actual city) and a few 1st years said they live comfortably in fuquay varina (due to SO working i the city) which is a 20 min drive to CUSOM. ACOM/Dothan doesn't seem to offer much in the way of careers for SO.

I would love to hear from you guys/current students on the rotation quality especially since both schools have several different "base stations"/regions for clerkship. This is what I need to study up on.

This is my own pros/cons. Overall I think it's a dead tie, but with my SO only able to find work in Raleigh vs Dothan I think it leans CUSOM.

 

[Oh_Gee]

Can you request for change? Maybe do a petition to take it out of curriculum and give more time for board prep?

 

[Ho0v-man]

I think that Wolfpack stuff puts acom out of the running.

Of the three, it appears cusom has the best 3rd year and lmu has the most preclinical freedom. On the other hand, cusom has done very well on boards so maybe it's just brutal yet effective. On the other other hand (yeah that's right), cusom gives scholarships to recruit people with higher stats so that might be the difference. Tough call.



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[AnatomyGrey12]

I think that Wolfpack stuff puts acom out of the running.

Of the three, it appears cusom has the best 3rd year and lmu has the most preclinical freedom. On the other hand, cusom has done very well on boards so maybe it's just brutal yet effective. On the other other hand (yeah that's right), cusom gives scholarships to recruit people with higher stats so that might be the difference. Tough call.



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I do want to just insert that it was my understanding from my interview day that the Wolfpacc thing is in addition to the 4 weeks dedicated study that they give. So basically 2 months of board prep if you want it. I have no idea on whether Wolfpacc is even good or not but just wanted to point out that it isn't replacing the dedicated study time. And having talked to multiple students who have scored 250+ (MD and DO) that 4 weeks is enough

Edit: just for the thread I would vote for CUSOM. The rotations at LMU are not something I would ever want to experience

 

[PamSpammer]

I do want to just insert that it was my understanding from my interview day that the Wolfpacc thing is in addition to the 4 weeks dedicated study that they give. So basically 2 months of board prep if you want it. I have no idea on whether Wolfpacc is even good or not but just wanted to point out that it isn't replacing the dedicated study time. And having talked to multiple students who have scored 250+ (MD and DO) that 4 weeks is enough

Edit: just for the thread I would vote for CUSOM. The rotations at LMU are not something I would ever want to experience

Since you voted for CUSOM, what advantages do you think it has over attending ACOM?

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

Since you voted for CUSOM, what advantages do you think it has over attending ACOM?

I think the early board performance is impressive, but the biggest thing is the number of residency programs it has already started.

 

[Ho0v-man]

I do want to just insert that it was my understanding from my interview day that the Wolfpacc thing is in addition to the 4 weeks dedicated study that they give. So basically 2 months of board prep if you want it. I have no idea on whether Wolfpacc is even good or not but just wanted to point out that it isn't replacing the dedicated study time. And having talked to multiple students who have scored 250+ (MD and DO) that 4 weeks is enough

Edit: just for the thread I would vote for CUSOM. The rotations at LMU are not something I would ever want to experience

Ah, I thought it was replacing dedicated.


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[Scrubs101]

In reference to ACOMs board prep i believe you can test out of their Wolf-pacc 4 week block if you score high enough on a practice exam. At least thats what i think i recall hearing. As mentioned you also get 4-5 weeks self study after the wolf pacc block


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[DO2015CA]

In reference to ACOMs board prep i believe you can test out of their Wolf-pacc 4 week block if you score high enough on a practice exam. At least thats what i think i recall hearing. As mentioned you also get 4-5 weeks self study after the wolf pacc block


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No

 

[Scrubs101]

No

Thanks for the heads up!


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[Marrowist]

What's so wrong with Wolfpacc ?

 

[Oh_Gee]

I do want to just insert that it was my understanding from my interview day that the Wolfpacc thing is in addition to the 4 weeks dedicated study that they give. So basically 2 months of board prep if you want it. I have no idea on whether Wolfpacc is even good or not but just wanted to point out that it isn't replacing the dedicated study time. And having talked to multiple students who have scored 250+ (MD and DO) that 4 weeks is enough

Edit: just for the thread I would vote for CUSOM. The rotations at LMU are not something I would ever want to experience

i guess i'm just salty that it's forced on us. they keep telling us that everyone has their own study style and you have to find your own way.

then they're like "nah fam, 80% attendance and mandatory in class board prep"

 

[ysera555]

Anyone know what test prep Campbell uses? And how much time they give you to study for boards?

 

[PamSpammer]

Anyone know what test prep Campbell uses? And how much time they give you to study for boards?

I think it is Kaplan for test prep. Not sure how much time they give for studying though.

 

[MADD!!!]

From what I remember it's 4-5 weeks of dedicated self-prep time + an additional 4-5 weeks of Kaplan COMLEX test prep. If you score at or above 550 on your COMSAE's then you can test out of Kaplan, or else it's mandatory.

 

[ShadowCipher]

Are these rural schools nice? Will one like me (who's been raised in the city most of her life) like a school like a rural school?


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[AnatomyGrey12]

Are these rural schools nice? Will one like me (who's been raised in the city most of her life) like a school like a rural school?


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Only you can answer that question.

 

[MADD!!!]

Are these rural schools nice? Will one like me (who's been raised in the city most of her life) like a school like a rural school?


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They're not going to judge you as much based on where you're from, but be prepared to discuss why you are ok moving from an urban area to rural.

 

[MADD!!!]

Dang! Surprised ACOM got so many votes. I would think the votes would be closer to one another and not a blow-out.

 

[coffee-doc]

I will potentially be in the scenario in two months or so. ACOM seems like a great fit. I just want to weather of Campbell though

 

[crazyboi1993]

I go to LECOM-B, very happy, and interviewed at CUSOM and ACOM, and would've went to ACOM, I got a much better vibe there than CUSOM, I thought CUSOM was way more rural than ACOM, and people were so nice! I think SDN kinda hypes up, CUSOM too much, it was a good school, but not like everyone makes it out to see. Its overrated. ACOM for sure! I would cross off the other school since it seems so rural!

 

[psu228]

ACOM.

 

[zero0]

Not knowing anything else about them, I'd take LMU by a mile based on attendance policy alone.

 

[Alienman52]

Not knowing anything else about them, I'd take LMU by a mile based on attendance policy alone.

Lol "not knowing anything else about them." I would do your research. LMU's rotations are pretty mediocre.


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[zero0]

Lol "not knowing anything else about them." I would do your research. LMU's rotations are pretty mediocre.


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Kinda like every DO school? Hell, even a good chunk of MD schools have garbage rotations.

Point is, if I had gone to a school with mandatory attendance, I likely would have dropped out by now or at least would deeply hate life. Meanwhile, this is chill af right now.

 

[futurephysician57]

ACOM no doubt about it

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[BriannaRodriguez1992]

Definitely CUSOM! I also interviewed at all three places and while I felt most comfortable at ACOM, I felt like they were trying really hard to sell their school and it came off as fake to me. The location of CUSOM was more rural but I liked that it was near Raleigh, a decent sized city. I also appreciate that I won't have to spend all four years in Alabama but that comes down to personal preference. Another big factor for me was the amount of ACGME approved residencies that CUSOM has created for its students. NC is not very DO friendly so Campbell is doing a lot to make sure that its students match. I believe that number of residences are in internal medicine, family medicine, and even one in dermatology. After I got accepted to ACOM and CUSOM, I quickly took LMU out of consideration because it was extremely rural and I have read stories about their third and fourth year rotations on SDN and don't stack up to what I could get at ACOM or CUSOM. Hope this helps! Good luck on your decision!

 

[sunshinefl]

ACOM unless you get a big scholarship from CUSOM.