Was wondering if anybody had an opinion on which direction to go?
I'm a CA resident and here are my thoughts!
MSUCOM
Pros: Great interview day, felt awesome about the faculty that I met, and there seemed to be a great sense of camaraderie with the few students on the panel, but I have to take this with a grain of salt.
- extensive opportunities within your first two years for medical missions, 4th year rotations at 3rd world spanish speaking countries... including the first US medical school to partner with Cuba
- extensive research opportunities, though with summer semesters... is this a moot point?
- well-renowned faculty... but does that mean great teaching quality?
- Big Ten intangibles: atmosphere, campus facilities, etc
- Statewide Hospital System - they boast of great teaching being done at every base hospital they partner with. I feel this is important, to feel like it's a guarantee that you'll be taught something in your clinical years. I'm not one for rural medicine, and the thought of potentially being caught up at a rural hospital because of lottery is scary, but at least I'll be confident that I'll be taught something valuable.
- great reputation/ranking/everyone knows the MSU name, if that's important.
- P/NP classes
- all lectures recorded
- one test every week/few weeks for all subjects
Cons: I'd have to re-apply for OOS scholarship each year. Though there aren't that many OOS students to begin with. So chances might be 50/50 and I'd hope to get it if I pass all my classes and remain involved in community outreach as originally planned
- untested curriculum, no COMLEX score/pass rates since this year was the first year they implemented the "board focused" change
- city of chicago > all other cities/towns in MI
- 1 year internship requirement post grad in MI, so all those AOA residencies they partner with, you'll need to spend 1 year doing this internship before jumping in
- not as diverse as chicago, which might be important for pathology (?)
- two summer sessions, but they also give 2 months for board prep
- while MSU CHM has matches all over, including many in CA, MSUCOM, not so much. But, that may be because there's such a large MI student base in MSUCOM and they prefer applying to AOA residencies in MI. But hard to tell whether it's self selection or not.
CCOM
Pros
- they boast about a great reputation within the medical community, though I haven't heard of it until I started looking, but they've been in the game since 1900, so they know what they're doing, many alumni work as top dogs at many chicago hospitals and across the nation, they boast that students from here know their stuff. along with 100% match rate in the past 12 years, with great pass rates on Comlex
- impressive rotation sites, in partnership with hospitals that also partner and teach rosalind franklin and UIC MD students
- two years suburban life in didactic years, two years city life in clinical years. I loved the city, I loved the city, I loved the city.
- they boast faculty who are "paid to teach", inviting, open door policy
Cons
- not as big on research, international opportunities, or the state university intangibles mentioned above
- not all lectures recorded, though they say they're working on it.
- graded classes, they boast a collaborative student body though
- multiple tests all the time, sometimes several within the same week, per subject testing. this is a pro/con? they seem to like it because it keeps them on top of their game, but i'm wondering if this style teaches you to cram and stress for a test then forget about material afterwards because you're stressed about what's coming next
- I think 3 weeks for board prep?
My thought process is everywhere and I'm so fortunate to be accepted into two great schools. I'd be excited for either because they both have different pros. But I have to decide by next week! Thoughts?
I'm a CA resident and here are my thoughts!
MSUCOM
Pros: Great interview day, felt awesome about the faculty that I met, and there seemed to be a great sense of camaraderie with the few students on the panel, but I have to take this with a grain of salt.
- extensive opportunities within your first two years for medical missions, 4th year rotations at 3rd world spanish speaking countries... including the first US medical school to partner with Cuba
- extensive research opportunities, though with summer semesters... is this a moot point?
- well-renowned faculty... but does that mean great teaching quality?
- Big Ten intangibles: atmosphere, campus facilities, etc
- Statewide Hospital System - they boast of great teaching being done at every base hospital they partner with. I feel this is important, to feel like it's a guarantee that you'll be taught something in your clinical years. I'm not one for rural medicine, and the thought of potentially being caught up at a rural hospital because of lottery is scary, but at least I'll be confident that I'll be taught something valuable.
- great reputation/ranking/everyone knows the MSU name, if that's important.
- P/NP classes
- all lectures recorded
- one test every week/few weeks for all subjects
Cons: I'd have to re-apply for OOS scholarship each year. Though there aren't that many OOS students to begin with. So chances might be 50/50 and I'd hope to get it if I pass all my classes and remain involved in community outreach as originally planned
- untested curriculum, no COMLEX score/pass rates since this year was the first year they implemented the "board focused" change
- city of chicago > all other cities/towns in MI
- 1 year internship requirement post grad in MI, so all those AOA residencies they partner with, you'll need to spend 1 year doing this internship before jumping in
- not as diverse as chicago, which might be important for pathology (?)
- two summer sessions, but they also give 2 months for board prep
- while MSU CHM has matches all over, including many in CA, MSUCOM, not so much. But, that may be because there's such a large MI student base in MSUCOM and they prefer applying to AOA residencies in MI. But hard to tell whether it's self selection or not.
CCOM
Pros
- they boast about a great reputation within the medical community, though I haven't heard of it until I started looking, but they've been in the game since 1900, so they know what they're doing, many alumni work as top dogs at many chicago hospitals and across the nation, they boast that students from here know their stuff. along with 100% match rate in the past 12 years, with great pass rates on Comlex
- impressive rotation sites, in partnership with hospitals that also partner and teach rosalind franklin and UIC MD students
- two years suburban life in didactic years, two years city life in clinical years. I loved the city, I loved the city, I loved the city.
- they boast faculty who are "paid to teach", inviting, open door policy
Cons
- not as big on research, international opportunities, or the state university intangibles mentioned above
- not all lectures recorded, though they say they're working on it.
- graded classes, they boast a collaborative student body though
- multiple tests all the time, sometimes several within the same week, per subject testing. this is a pro/con? they seem to like it because it keeps them on top of their game, but i'm wondering if this style teaches you to cram and stress for a test then forget about material afterwards because you're stressed about what's coming next
- I think 3 weeks for board prep?
My thought process is everywhere and I'm so fortunate to be accepted into two great schools. I'd be excited for either because they both have different pros. But I have to decide by next week! Thoughts?
