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it is ironic that SNOWfox asked about driving in snow, that is all. It seems that our warm weather contingent is always overly concerned. You'll be fine
MCW Class of 2014!!!!
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it is ironic that SNOWfox asked about driving in snow, that is all. It seems that our warm weather contingent is always overly concerned. You'll be fine
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This is a side effect of using different random user names on a bunch of forums...!I wonder how MCW would tell if the curriculum has changed for the better or worse besides the feedback they get. Wouldn't they have to wait for whichever class they tried the new curriculum with to take the boards? But then they're introducting new curriculum at a rate much faster than that so I assume the feedback is all they are considering at this point? Or they are pretty much set on how the new curriculum is going to be and they are just trying to implement it quickly, then really make changes based on scores. Or scores don't really serve as a good indicator?
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I doubt board scores would change too much either way, given how much of it depends on your individual effort and not on the quality of the coursework.
I wonder how MCW would tell if the curriculum has changed for the better or worse besides the feedback they get. Wouldn't they have to wait for whichever class they tried the new curriculum with to take the boards? But then they're introducting new curriculum at a rate much faster than that so I assume the feedback is all they are considering at this point? Or they are pretty much set on how the new curriculum is going to be and they are just trying to implement it quickly, then really make changes based on scores. Or scores don't really serve as a good indicator?
They're definitely going to take student feedback into account. And likely see how faculty feel about the students once they get to their third year.
Other than that... the new dean seems to be really gung-ho about changing the curriculum, so they're probably going to do it and adjust it as necessary to satisfy both the students and the faculty. Probably why they're going to pick a "pilot" group to be guinea pigs the first year (or two?).
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All agreed- I think they are also comparing exam and final course scores from previous years with the results of the current students. However, I don't know how useful that information is due to a variety of confounding factors.
The challenging part of comparing board scores is that they are running 2 curriculums (curriculi?) at the same time which is a nightmare from many angles.
Ultimately, I'd suggest asking as many questions as you can until you get satisfactory answers. Good luck
I can see big smiles on the people that taught EBM, lol
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I figured they were probably lurking, why not throw them a bone.
However, lets avoid the topic of "intention to treat" analysis which makes me wonder what ever happened to patient accountability
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I've talked to a few people who are on the curriculum committee, and right now it seems like next year there really will not be that many new changes from what is already going on. The most major changes that are happening are the Pathways course and making Physiology more problem based. Pathways has no affect on step 1 scores, so don't worry about it affecting your performance there.
As far as Physiology is concerned, the new curriculum is going to have less lecture time and more of an expectation that students will learn on their own. There will still be "lectures", meaning that there are professors who will explain the material, but you need to learn it on you own for the most part. The course right now has 4 sections - Homeostasis/CV, Renal, Respiratory/GI, and Endocrine. Last year, CV was piloted as problem based. This year Respiratory is going to be piloted and CV was given to the entire class. Next year, the entire class will have new CV and Respiratory, while a pilot group will have CV, Respiratory and at least one other section (I don't know which it might be). The year after that, the entire class will have the new curriculum. The other major change is that right now a lot of lectures are being overlapped between courses, and so some lectures could be removed from physiology, which would allow for more time for harder material.
This is how I understood it (and I could be completely wrong), and it is vastly subject to change. One thing that both last years and this years classes have said is that the new program should be small group. We found it incredibly difficult to have professors try to explain all of CV to a group of 200 students who had to learn the material on their own, so this could influence the way that the new curriculum is set up.
As far as Physiology is concerned, the new curriculum is going to have less lecture time and more of an expectation that students will learn on their own. There will still be "lectures", meaning that there are professors who will explain the material, but you need to learn it on you own for the most part. The course right now has 4 sections - Homeostasis/CV, Renal, Respiratory/GI, and Endocrine. Last year, CV was piloted as problem based. This year Respiratory is going to be piloted and CV was given to the entire class. Next year, the entire class will have new CV and Respiratory, while a pilot group will have CV, Respiratory and at least one other section (I don't know which it might be). The year after that, the entire class will have the new curriculum. The other major change is that right now a lot of lectures are being overlapped between courses, and so some lectures could be removed from physiology, which would allow for more time for harder material.
This is how I understood it (and I could be completely wrong), and it is vastly subject to change. One thing that both last years and this years classes have said is that the new program should be small group. We found it incredibly difficult to have professors try to explain all of CV to a group of 200 students who had to learn the material on their own, so this could influence the way that the new curriculum is set up.
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Cubssox2000's explanation of the general curriculum changes is great, but I was also under the impression that there would be a separate pilot next year for a more integrated (year-long) curriculum with all the classes for 25 or 30 students. Not 100% sure on any of the details for that though.
I don't know how much of it was theoretical and how much has been planned already, but I'm sure they'll be emailing you guys more details. Or call and ask, our admissions office is usually quite on top of things.
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Ah, MIM. That class could use just a *little* improvement, but it's not as bad as health policy. Such an important topic, such a useless class.
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It hasn't been called MIM (Medical Information Management) for a couple years now. Now its EBM (Evidence Based Medicine).
Important information, useful concepts, but the lectures themselves weren't that good.
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As far "complete integration" is concerned, all I have heard so far is that many of the courses are going to be combined into one course under one director. This will cut down on overlapping material that can be presented 3 times to the students (as actin filaments were this year). So in theory, there will be no CTB course, no Physiology course. Everything will be integrated into one course. Thats what the vision is supposed to be, but it is not clear how well this will work - Hence the pilot.
For current students, this probably seems odd because our changes did not seem to "integrate" anything. But, in theory, it was supposed to. Some course directors were miffed about why Physiology was teaching the exact same things as CTB, and that seems to be a problem of communication between directors. Under a modified curriculum, lots of material was condensed for us, cutting out the fat and leaving only the more important portions.
My personal feeling is that this means the curriculum is headed towards being more organ-based as opposed to class based. I can't see any other way to integrate CTB, Neurology, Physiology, Anatomy and Devo into one course. The problem is, where do classes like Biochemistry go? It seems to be an outlier to the other courses. Things like this are still being worked out. However, clinical continuum is not (as yet planned) supposed to be changing.
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there will be a "prep/background course" that will run for 2 to 4 weeks after M1 orientation, i believe the most fundamental biochemistry will be taught during that time, and probably also genetics. The rest of biochem can be integrated some what.
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This is why it's laughable when applicants ask me about the curriculum during their interviews. Hell if I know what you'll be taking, guys!
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or it just isn't that important?
I kid, but really all you class of '14 folks, call and ask as many questions as you want.
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where did you hear that?
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it will be given starting M1 year now. And if you already have one you can return it at the apple store nearby
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Seems sort of silly, but I guess they're really getting into the iTunes U thing. I guess they'll just have to issue new ones once M3 year rolls around? I'd imagine that those things would be toast after two years...
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They changed it to M1 now? Guess that makes us happier M1s and less happy M3s in the future? haha I've always thought they gave it to M3s because you would need it for clinical rotations/keeping track of stuff, but now I'm not so sure about that. Can any current students enlighten me on how the iTouches help with anything?
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If they're giving it to you guys as M1s, do we get it as M2s next year? Or will we be the one class without it?
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Anyone have any comments on the curriculum pilot FAQ they just sent out? It did a good job answering a lot of the questions I had. The new curriculum looks very similar to the other systems-based curricula I've seen at other schools (which is basically what they were going for, I think). I still think it's a bit strange that they're having a small pilot group separate from everyone else; most schools that revise their curriculum seem to make everyone just deal with it at once. I guess a smaller group allows them to make adjustments more easily? The new curriculum also appears to leave more time for board prep, which is good.
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Looks good to me. I'd be happy to commit to it.
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No they sent another one this past Friday. If you didn't reply to the survey (or maybe if you said you weren't interested) they might not have sent it to you. If you want a copy I can pm the attachment to you or something.
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Hey guys! Welcome and congrats on getting into MCW! You'll have a great 4 years coming up.
I'm a fourth year here and just matched in Chicago so I'm trying to rent or sell my place. I sent the same description to many of my classmates that are staying but thought I'd send it to you too. I might give priority to them if timing works out better but let me know if you're interested in the place or especially if you want it in June or July. I would also consider leaving some of my furniture to make it easier on you but we can negotiate on that. Thanks. Let me know if you have any questions about the place or MCW!
I have a second floor condo in Wauwatosa for rent or sale. It's a 2 BR, 1.5 Bath located 1.9 miles from Froedtert Hospital. The bedrooms are quite large (master is 14x12) and the master bedroom also has an awesome walk-in closet with California cabinets (huge bonus, big factor in why we bought it) as well as a personal half bath attached. The living room (16x14) and dining room are also very large. Eat-in kitchen is a great size with dishwasher, built in microwave, tons of cabinets and trash compactor. There's also a balcony overlooking a fresh green courtyard.
1 assigned indoor parking spot in a heated garage and 1 outdoor spot in the parking lot (with ample parking for visitors). An elevator in the building makes moving and/or grocery shopping a lot easier. FREE laundry on each floor. Overall, the area is really nice and it's walking distance to pizza, gelato, subway, mexican, sushi, bars, a park, biking trails, etc. Located at 120th and Bluemound. Just west of Froedtert/MCW and just east of Brookfield. Water and hot water would be included in the rent (you'd only have to pay electric).
We're asking $1100/month or $147,900. Either way is a great deal for the place!
Honestly, I've really liked living here a lot and haven't had any problems. Has been very easy to live in without worrying about shoveling snow, gardening or raking leaves! Let me know if you want to come by and take a look. PM/E-mail me with questions. Thanks.
I'm a fourth year here and just matched in Chicago so I'm trying to rent or sell my place. I sent the same description to many of my classmates that are staying but thought I'd send it to you too. I might give priority to them if timing works out better but let me know if you're interested in the place or especially if you want it in June or July. I would also consider leaving some of my furniture to make it easier on you but we can negotiate on that. Thanks. Let me know if you have any questions about the place or MCW!
I have a second floor condo in Wauwatosa for rent or sale. It's a 2 BR, 1.5 Bath located 1.9 miles from Froedtert Hospital. The bedrooms are quite large (master is 14x12) and the master bedroom also has an awesome walk-in closet with California cabinets (huge bonus, big factor in why we bought it) as well as a personal half bath attached. The living room (16x14) and dining room are also very large. Eat-in kitchen is a great size with dishwasher, built in microwave, tons of cabinets and trash compactor. There's also a balcony overlooking a fresh green courtyard.
1 assigned indoor parking spot in a heated garage and 1 outdoor spot in the parking lot (with ample parking for visitors). An elevator in the building makes moving and/or grocery shopping a lot easier. FREE laundry on each floor. Overall, the area is really nice and it's walking distance to pizza, gelato, subway, mexican, sushi, bars, a park, biking trails, etc. Located at 120th and Bluemound. Just west of Froedtert/MCW and just east of Brookfield. Water and hot water would be included in the rent (you'd only have to pay electric).
We're asking $1100/month or $147,900. Either way is a great deal for the place!
Honestly, I've really liked living here a lot and haven't had any problems. Has been very easy to live in without worrying about shoveling snow, gardening or raking leaves! Let me know if you want to come by and take a look. PM/E-mail me with questions. Thanks.
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for PM&R?
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Just wanted to bump this thread, I hate when we fall so far down the list.
I just withdrew from all my other schools yesterday so I'm officially headed to MCW this fall! Can't wait.
I just withdrew from all my other schools yesterday so I'm officially headed to MCW this fall! Can't wait.
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Look forward to seeing you in August!
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There will be (hopefully) many more opportunities. Brewers games start next week.
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For those of you looking for housing, both units in the duplex I'm in will be available. The upstairs has 2 br, 1 bath, and I think it's $675. All HWF, central air/heat, off-street parking but no garage.
Downstairs unit has two br, 1.5 bath, and a study or den, also HWF, for $775. Full washer/dryer hookups for each unit in shared full basement. This is all about 2 miles from campus, nice neighborhood, very safe. PM me for info!
Downstairs unit has two br, 1.5 bath, and a study or den, also HWF, for $775. Full washer/dryer hookups for each unit in shared full basement. This is all about 2 miles from campus, nice neighborhood, very safe. PM me for info!
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You guys need about another 7000 posts if you want to catch up with the classes of 2009 or 2010. Step on it!
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Class of 2013 isn't very active on our thread, so they'll likely beat us at least.
You would not believe the amount of stuff you can keep on hand with an iTouch, both in terms of reference and study aids.
A lot of my friends have step 1 review stuff on them. And I personally have used my iTouch to look smart in clinic. Even an attending I was working with busted his out one time to look up something.
They're a huge crutch sometimes, though, and can be really distracting. More good than harm, though.
hi everybody
i was wondering if anyone had advice on specific apartment complexes to take a look into as well as to keep away from - and maybe the reasons why you would say so. also, i had planned on going for a 1br place just cos id need my own space
thanks in advance! i really appreciate any input and look forward to meeting some of you in the coming months.
i was wondering if anyone had advice on specific apartment complexes to take a look into as well as to keep away from - and maybe the reasons why you would say so. also, i had planned on going for a 1br place just cos id need my own space
thanks in advance! i really appreciate any input and look forward to meeting some of you in the coming months.
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Thank you! So are we getting them first or third year...? Someone said earlier that starting with our class, we're getting them first year--did anyone else hear this?
jonhwee: hm there were some comments on apt complexes on last year's MCW thread (though it IS pretty long). Maybe you can search for that MCW 2013 thread if you haven't seen it already? But if current students have anything to add, that would be really greeat tooo.
And to piggyback on jonhwee's questions--is it enough to just show up to the area and look for apartments, or would you suggest having already made an appointment or something with a few apt offices before arriving in Wauwatosa?
Hey everyone. So I have the same concern about the housing search this upcoming summer like everyone else. The plan is after graduation around late May-ish to go up to 'Tosa and look for places but my main concern is the flexibility of moving in with the apartment companies. Do most apartments allow for moving in during mid-July or early August? Or is it even that big of a deal at all? I've heard MCW has some sort of magic apartment listing handbook or something, so does anyone have any knowledge of this? Thanks for any input and looking forward to meeting everyone in August. Very excited.
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Come and look whenever you get a chance...but everything depends on the landlords for that specific place. If the place is empty and your lease doesn't start until August, they may let you move things in early...
There is a binder full of rentals at the Campus Security office, just go in and ask them about it.
Most of the rentals are not managed by big property management companies, so they are a bit more flexible with scheduling...but you shouldn't expect to get same-day appointments. I had a few same-day showings, but you should do some craigslist scouting before coming.
There is a binder full of rentals at the Campus Security office, just go in and ask them about it.
Most of the rentals are not managed by big property management companies, so they are a bit more flexible with scheduling...but you shouldn't expect to get same-day appointments. I had a few same-day showings, but you should do some craigslist scouting before coming.
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The good news is that area landlords like to rent to med students generally, so they are totally down with the July move-in dates and may be stretched to August if you are lucky. The bad news is that because they want med students, they tend to confine their advertising to the landlord list and a nice little For Rent sign, so you really have to get up here and drive around. Many of these small landlords have day jobs so at best you'll get to see the place that night or the next night.
Again, PM me if you want info on the duplex where I live.
Again, PM me if you want info on the duplex where I live.
This question goes out to current students and those who have decided to attend MCW ths fall -- what aspect(s) about MCW led you to choose this school?
I'm currently trying to decide between a few schools right now, and any opinions I could gather would be much appreciated!
Thanks!
I'm currently trying to decide between a few schools right now, and any opinions I could gather would be much appreciated!
Thanks!
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While my personal decision was very family motivated, there are a slew of reasons that I think MCW is an exceptional school. However, what it all boils down to is personal preference. What is ideal in my opinion may be misery in yours. I'll try to make a few brief comments...
- a class of 200 is great since there are that many more people to get to know and hang out with. If you don't get along with someone it is easy to forget about them. Conversely, it is incredible the variety of students I interact with daily. I "know" everyone and I would never say our class is too big.
- being a free standing institution leads to a few downsides like no free anti-virus software, no sporting events, no whatever else that you may get at a larger institution. That said, MCW is a huge institution and the med students are a top priority. Also, we are the only ones nagging for shadowing opportunities, research spots, etc. I have come to appreciate the tight knit community
- MCW is very cooperative, at least from a student to student basis. Upper level students are always sharing materials, making course suggestions, relaying tips and hints, and so forth in an attempt to make everyone as happy and successful as possible. The only pressure and competition you will see is that which you put on yourself
- really I like it all, the only thing that could be better is if it were free.
If you have any other questions or want to hear about anything specific, just ask (like I said - very willing and cooperative upper class students)
last thing - make sure you understand the changes coming in the curriculum. We can relay everything we know, but talking to admissions, etc may be your best bet. Call and ask until you get the answers you want because there are some big changes going on. (all for the better, it is just a long process)
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Personally, I made the choice for several reasons. A lot of it came down to where I felt I would have a better experience. Regardless of which schools you are comparing, if you don't think you can get along with the student body or faculty, its going to be a long four years. I felt that the atmosphere at MCW was much better than the other schools I contemplated.
There are also the financial aspects. Living in Wisconsin does have it's benefits in that cost of living in pretty low. There are plenty of things to do in the city, although not so much in the area around the school itself.
While not one of my considerations, class size can also have a large effect on where you might choose to go. MCW has a class of just over 200, which is on the larger side. There are both positive and negative aspects of this. On the plus side, there are a lot of people you can get to know and there are a lot of people in classes above you that you can go to for help. The student body is very involved, with lots of student interest groups and organizations - not all of which are strictly medically related. On the minus side, it can be difficult sometimes to get in touch with some of the teachers because they have a lot of students to reply to. There are still plenty of opportunities to shadow and volunteer despite the large number of people.
MCW is a great place, and if you choose to come here, you will have a great time. PM me if you have any questions.
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I picked MCW mostly because of its location, but I have no regrets. I had a great time here.
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Your nostalgic tone makes me very jealous.
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I took a trip to 'Tosa a week and a half ago to look for apartments and had pretty good luck finding a nice 1 br close to school. I needed to find someplace right away due to being out of the country and the landlord seemed to have no problem with a move in date of early August. I did a mix of calling ahead and just dropping in. Most landlords I talked with seemed like they were quite accomodating to med students. I ended up going with a place called Wilshire Manor.
See everyone this August!
