Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine (ACOM) Discussion Thread 2014 – 2015

[DOthreads]

Good luck to everyone applying in the new cycle!

Helpful links:
ACOM Page of the College Information Book (pdf)
ACOM Website

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[WorldChanger36]

First time applicant to this school

 

[AlteredScale]

Really hoping to get some attention from this amazing school!

If there are any recently admitted students to give some description of Dothan? I live in east county San Diego which is a very western-esque town with a southern vibe so the Dothan community doesn't seem to far from home!

 

[ahens23]

Applying here. Does anyone know the advantages of being an Alabama resident when applying to ACOM?

 

[chemicalbull]

Starting here in the fall. ACOM puts a large preference on Gulf State students. Most students at acom are from Alabama Florida and Georgia with the biggest percentage coming from Alabama.

 

[HopefulDoc12]

Starting here in the fall. ACOM puts a large preference on Gulf State students. Most students at acom are from Alabama Florida and Georgia with the biggest percentage coming from Alabama.

Did I waste my money applying as a TN resident?


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[Beargryllz]

Really hoping to get some attention from this amazing school!

If there are any recently admitted students to give some description of Dothan? I live in east county San Diego which is a very western-esque town with a southern vibe so the Dothan community doesn't seem to far from home!

It's a really cool city with more restaurants per capita than any I have encountered. All these highways all come together and make a great, big circle with a city in the middle. Southern hospitality does exist and there seems to be a lot of it here. Before my interview I went out to eat and my waitress brought me a second coke before I was halfway done with the first. I've found housing ranging from very basic to very extravagant, but overall it is cheap, cheap, cheap especially compared to CA

 

[chemicalbull]

Did I waste my money applying as a TN resident?


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Nope you did not! Plenty of students are from outside the three state area. I know with my incoming class there are plenty of students from outside those the states. Such as California Tennessee the Carolinas and New England to name a few.

 

[AlteredScale]

It's a really cool city with more restaurants per capita than any I have encountered. All these highways all come together and make a great, big circle with a city in the middle. Southern hospitality does exist and there seems to be a lot of it here. Before my interview I went out to eat and my waitress brought me a second coke before I was halfway done with the first. I've found housing ranging from very basic to very extravagant, but overall it is cheap, cheap, cheap especially compared to CA

Thank you so much for this awesome response! I spent some time in New Orleans and really really love that southern hospitality feel. Plus I have close friends who live near Dothan so I might just live with them.

How are you liking the curriculum? Is there enough clinical exposure that you guys feel comfortable doing H&P's?

 

[HopefulDoc12]

Nope you did not! Plenty of students are from outside the three state area. I know with my incoming class there are plenty of students from outside those the states. Such as California Tennessee the Carolinas and New England to name a few.

Awesome! I know DO schools don't focus as much on research but are there any opportunities for students to get involved in it?


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[chemicalbull]

Awesome! I know DO schools don't focus as much on research but are there any opportunities for students to get involved in it?


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While this is still a very new school research is developing at Acom. Recently SAMC (South Alabama Medical Center), our affiliated hospital, donated over 800K towards research programs. With that money a brand new research facility wasrecently built on campus to build our research profile. Plus being affiliated with SAMC I'm sure there are plenty of opportunities for research at the hospital.

 

[Beargryllz]

How are you liking the curriculum? Is there enough clinical exposure that you guys feel comfortable doing H&P's?

I'll get back to you later this year. I move down in about 3 weeks.

 

[TheBoneDoctah]

Really hoping to get some attention from this amazing school!

If there are any recently admitted students to give some description of Dothan? I live in east county San Diego which is a very western-esque town with a southern vibe so the Dothan community doesn't seem to far from home!

My santee homie haha. I'm applying here too!

 

[InGen]

I'll get back to you later this year. I move down in about 3 weeks.

Looking forward to meeting you. I'm moving down around the same time.

 

[chemicalbull]

Looking forward to meeting you both. I too will be moving to dothan in about 3 weeks as well!

Looking forward to meeting you. I'm moving down around the same time.

 

[ShayDawg]

.

 

[trs88]

Just got the secondary! Essays have different instructions than other secondarys I've seen.

Before starting your supplemental application, you should respond to the following questions in essay style. Your response should be no longer than one page for each question. Save both essays as a single PDF file with your name and AACOMAS ID typed at the top of all pages. You will be prompted to upload this file as part of the Supplemental Application process so the file should be ready to prevent the session from timing out on you.

a. What personal qualities do you possess that will make you a successful osteopathic physician?

b. What life experiences and people have inspired you to become an osteopathic physician?

 

[ShayDawg]

.

 

[Lost Complex]

I also received a secondary from ACOM today. I do have a question in regards to this, though:

Two college Science Professors – Letters from instructors who taught you in the required prerequisites of biology, chemistry and physics who can evaluate your academic and classroom performance as well as potential success as a medical student.

One of my LORs is from an upper-level biology course, not the prerequisite biology course. Does anyone know if this will count?

Please and thank you.

 

[trs88]

I received the secondary as well and I was working on it (two minutes ago) googled something in the same tab as my application, saw my mistake and hit the back browser and the whole form was blank, some of the calendars weren't loading so I closed the browser and clicked on the link from the e-mail to start the application again. I can't get anything to load. I also clicked on their portal page from the school's main page and that wont load either, so I'm hoping it's on their end. Would anyone be willing to let me know if they are able to access the secondary so I can figure out how to internet. Thanks.

 

[fkt24]

I also received a secondary from ACOM today. I do have a question in regards to this, though:

Two college Science Professors – Letters from instructors who taught you in the required prerequisites of biology, chemistry and physics who can evaluate your academic and classroom performance as well as potential success as a medical student.

One of my LORs is from an upper-level biology course, not the prerequisite biology course. Does anyone know if this will count?

Please and thank you.

It should probably work, but I would call the admissions to verify it.

 

[Fargofargo]

Applying as an Oregon resident, hopefully they will show me some love!

 

[TexasMed92]

Currently on the wait list (applied super late) but I'm hoping to get another chance this round. I really like the first impression the school gives and hopefully I'll have the chance to see some of you all at the interviews!

 

[Hoping2makeit]

Currently on the wait list (applied super late) but I'm hoping to get another chance this round. I really like the first impression the school gives and hopefully I'll have the chance to see some of you all at the interviews!

In the exact same boat as you. Good Luck.

 

[MADNEMO]

Applying as an Oregon resident, hopefully they will show me some love!

I was accepted from Las Vegas along with another person. We also have a lot of California residents, Arizona, Northeast... It seems like about half the 2018 class is coming from outside of the region. I think the plan for the school is to start accepting more from within the south over time, but right now its still open.

 

[ShayDawg]

.

 

[Fargofargo]

I was accepted from Las Vegas along with another person. We also have a lot of California residents, Arizona, Northeast... It seems like about half the 2018 class is coming from outside of the region. I think the plan for the school is to start accepting more from within the south over time, but right now its still open.

Thanks for your input. If you dorm mind asking, what were your stats?

 

[AlienHandSyndrome]

Starting here in the fall. ACOM puts a large preference on Gulf State students. Most students at acom are from Alabama Florida and Georgia with the biggest percentage coming from Alabama.

This isn't the whole story, just over 1/2 of the class is from Georgia, Florida, & Alabama (56%). I know you will have an advantage if you are from Alabama, but there are around 30 states represented in our class. I don't know about what they are going to start doing in the fall, but I can't imaging the the applicant pool will drastically increase in those 3 states over the next few years. Here is some information about the school, the demographics of the first year class are on pg. 44.

http://www.dothanmagazine.com/wp-content/themes/dothan_mag/archives/ACOM/FLASH/index.html

 

[chemicalbull]

This isn't the whole story, just over 1/2 of the class is from Georgia, Florida, & Alabama (56%). I know you will have an advantage if you are from Alabama, but there are around 30 states represented in our class. I don't know about what they are going to start doing in the fall, but I can't imaging the the applicant pool will drastically increase in those 3 states over the next few years. Here is some information about the school, the demographics of the first year class are on pg. 44.

http://www.dothanmagazine.com/wp-content/themes/dothan_mag/archives/ACOM/FLASH/index.html

Thanks for clearing that up. I hadn't seen the exact statistics. I knew a good amount of students are from the tri state area of Alabama Georgia and Florida but I was unsure as to how many. Since this is still a relatively new school I would expect the representation to remain near the 50/50 split for the time being. From what I have heard, it seems like they want to lean more on the tri state area, though they will not discriminate if you are from outside the area.

 

[DocWinter]

Hi folks

2018 classman here

To the person asking about the snafu with the secondary, that happened to myself (are and a few others) last cycle. It's not your fault, they should contact you and request you send it by email, but if you don't hear back, email them.

To the person asking about 2 LORs from science profs, generally, yes, you are fine. It's not intended to be pre-reqs, but science in general. All final words should come from any college, so email them if you want to be airtight on it.

The stats tossed around are accurate, it's about 46% from AL, GA and FL, and 56% from the SE region. The rest are from everywhere else. Coming from Boston, it's a huuuge change in culture, so if you're making a new home from a big city anywhere but the south, it's a whole new world.

Best to all applying, it's a great school.

 

[YeastyMan]

Hi folks

46% from AL, GA and FL, and 56% from the SE region. The rest are from everywhere else.

I'm from California, does ACOM have regional bias against applicants from this part of the country?

Also, I am finishing up my secondaries using questions from last year.
Is there word limit?
The I'm over 500 words for the first prompt and over 700 words for the second one...

 

[Fargofargo]

That is 102% of the students with no room for other regions?
I'm from California, does ACOM have regional bias against applicants from this part of the country?

Also, I am finishing up my secondaries using questions from last year.
Is there word limit?
The I'm over 500 words for the first prompt and over 700 words for the second one...

500~700 words seem like a lot.... I'm guessing thats well over one page per prompt... I wrote both of my around 300 words so that 2/3 of a page

... Anyone confirm this?

 

[YeastyMan]

500~700 words seem like a lot.... I'm guessing thats well over one page per prompt... I wrote both of my around 300 words so that 2/3 of a page

... Anyone confirm this?

How can you write 300 words for "In your own life, which experiences and people have inspired you to become an osteopathic physician?"

I'm sure we need at least two experiences and two people. So that's 75 words for each of them without having to explain how these factors inspire you to become a DO doctor....

 

[ananasmed]

I wrote just under 500 words for both essays, they each fit on a page single spaced in a standard font!

 

[biggskiesbiggdreams]

500~700 words seem like a lot.... I'm guessing thats well over one page per prompt... I wrote both of my around 300 words so that 2/3 of a page

... Anyone confirm this?

Same I wrote around 2/3 a page for each essay.

 

[chemicalbull]

I'm from California, does ACOM have regional bias against applicants from this part of the country? .

I haven't seen any bias against students from that part of the country. Quite frankly there are good number of students from California and the West coast in this year's class.

 

[YeastyMan]

best of luck everyone.
Has anyone gotten secondaries yet?

 

[DocWinter]

I'm from California, does ACOM have regional bias against applicants from this part of the country?

Also, I am finishing up my secondaries using questions from last year.
Is there word limit?
The I'm over 500 words for the first prompt and over 700 words for the second one...

Check out the link someone posted above, it will show you how many from CA were accepted.

It appears they have bias TOWARDS the SE, not AGAINST any certain area.

 

[hopeful-student]

Considering applying here. Seems like a good school. From NJ so I'm wondering what the avg acceptance stats are for this school. Anybody have any idea?

 

[Fargofargo]

Considering applying here. Seems like a good school. From NJ so I'm wondering what the avg acceptance stats are for this school. Anybody have any idea?

Judging from last years threads, it's around 3.4/26

 

[67552931811]

.

 

[ManOfDiligence]

Secondary app submitted!

 

[Fargofargo]

Cattycat lol...meow

 

[67552931811]

.

 

[PhysToMed]

Hey everyone, I'm new to applying to DO schools (I just began working with one last August). Do I have to submit my letters of rec first before I can even get a secondary or do I submit it with the secondary?

 

[ccantr10]

Hey everyone, I'm new to applying to DO schools (I just began working with one last August). Do I have to submit my letters of rec first before I can even get a secondary or do I submit it with the secondary?

I submitted mine through Interfolio before I even received a secondary; however, you shouldn't have to do that. Most schools just need LORs prior to issuing IIs.

 

[Fedxup]

Why does it keep saying title is invalid when I try to upload secondary? Anyone have this problem?
Edit: Figured it out. No commas or dashes.

Did ACOM send a verification email after submitting secondary? After I hit finish it took me to a random page.

 

[BorntobeDO?]

I contacted admission about letters of reference as I am non-traditional. They allowed me to substitute supervisor letters, but I would use the word hesitantly to describe it. Just submitted my secondary, and I hope all goes well. Looking forward to hearing back from this school. I put down my hometown as Orlando (true), but I think I will call tomorrow due to my Tuscaloosa and Tallahassee connections (parents still live in Tally, so school close to them isn't a bad thing.)

 

[BorntobeDO?]

I had some similar issues as HandsomeRob. I was having trouble obtaining some science LORs because I took a majority of my classes in 2004/2005. The admissions director told me that if I absolutely could not get a science professor to write a LOR, they would take a letter from my Army supervisor. I am also non-trad and have been out of undergrad for 8 years.

Yeah, I have found the D.O. schools in general less accommodating on the LOR from non-traditional front. Every MD school has allowed me to substitute with relative ease, while some D.O.'s (PCOM) flat out refused to accommodate me in any way. I mean I actually have science LOR, I just don't have 3 faculty letters cause people don't remember me/professors left the school (and it was small so no prehealth committee). It was kind of funny going back and talking to these professors (some of whom I remember very well), and having them not remember me. And by funny, I mean depressing.

I even had a professor yell at me and tell me how he had 1000's of students since I left, and I expected him to remember me (yes I did, he was my adviser for 3+ years). He gave me a good reference after I talked to him about a half hour reminding him of who I was. It was his sabbatical too, so I have to give him some leeway (I didn't know that at the time). Overall an interesting experience.

 

[BorntobeDO?]

Couldn't have said it better myself. Some of my professors have taken the same stance. I can only imagine how many different students they had in the past decade! I also went to a relatively small aeronautical university in Florida that had no pre-med/health committee. I just got a secondary from PCOM so it'll be interesting!

They (PCOM) told me that you must have 3 faculty with 2 being science no exceptions, or a prehealth committee packet. They will miss out on my secondary cause of this, and it's too bad, us nontraditional have a lot to offer.