Burrell College of Osteopathic Medicine (BCOM) Discussion Thread 2016-2017

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Know people at the school, apparently building and location is absolutely beautiful and the curriculum intense. This place is going to get harder and harder to get into.

They have a systems based curriculum which is shared with a vast majority of most medical schools in the United States. Their curriculum was based off of TUCOM and Rocky Vista medical schools. This school has a lot of potential, but their overall goal is to serve the state of New Mexico and the underserved region including the indian tribes in the northern part of the state. BCOM plans to hopefully one day accept only students who are residents of NM and plan to stick around. They already have a fast-track system set-up in place for residents of NM to apply without going through the AACOMAS application portal, which also gives those students a selective advantage by the Admissions Committee. I think what BCOM has done here is quite amazing, but they will end up being another school everyone passes up in the future because of their biased towards in-state applicants - this is the situation for OSU-COM and OH-COM right now.

I do believe that of all of the new schools, BCOM tops the list. However, we still have yet to see how their students will manage on the boards in the next 2 years, that is when we will know for sure if this program is golden or a bust.

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They have a systems based curriculum which is shared with a vast majority of most medical schools in the United States. Their curriculum was based off of TUCOM and Rocky Vista medical schools. This school has a lot of potential, but their overall goal is to serve the state of New Mexico and the underserved region including the indian tribes in the northern part of the state. BCOM plans to hopefully one day accept only students who are residents of NM and plan to stick around. They already have a fast-track system set-up in place for residents of NM to apply without going through the AACOMAS application portal, which also gives those students a selective advantage by the Admissions Committee. I think what BCOM has done here is quite amazing, but they will end up being another school everyone passes up in the future because of their biased towards in-state applicants - this is the situation for OSU-COM and OH-COM right now.

I do believe that of all of the new schools, BCOM tops the list. However, we still have yet to see how their students will manage on the boards in the next 2 years, that is when we will know for sure if this program is golden or a bust.

Hey can you elaborate on why you think that board scores determine if a school is good or not? Not you personally, just I hear that from alot of people and I am confused as to how a school has an effect on students scores? I do not know much about the board exams or process so I could just be oblivious but I thought that the scores had a lot to do with the individual and how prepared they are based on their own efforts?
 
Hey can you elaborate on why you think that board scores determine if a school is good or not? Not you personally, just I hear that from alot of people and I am confused as to how a school has an effect on students scores? I do not know much about the board exams or process so I could just be oblivious but I thought that the scores had a lot to do with the individual and how prepared they are based on their own efforts?
You are right in thinking that the individual is most responsible for their board scores when it comes down to it. However, a large part of doing well on the boards has to do with the school and how they are organized. There are many schools that deploy curriculum tools that help students better understand board exam material and the format for which it is written all while lecturing and teaching their medical students. Some of the things one might consider favorable for board prep within a school is: designated time set aside for students to focus mainly on board preparation, exams written in board test format, schools that align their curriculum to that of the board exam, professors who have a great understanding of the course material and someone who can breakdown material in such a way that makes it easier to understand and remember, etc. there are many factors that come into play, but there are numerous ways a school can help their students prepare for their board exams. Schools usually place a great deal of emphasis on board exams because they directly correlate with how well the school prepares their students. Sorry I was in a hurry and typed this out in my phone so my apologies if it is not well written.
 
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Does anyone else secondary page have no status bar on it? I did about two weeks ago and today it went away!
 
They have a systems based curriculum which is shared with a vast majority of most medical schools in the United States. Their curriculum was based off of TUCOM and Rocky Vista medical schools. This school has a lot of potential, but their overall goal is to serve the state of New Mexico and the underserved region including the indian tribes in the northern part of the state. BCOM plans to hopefully one day accept only students who are residents of NM and plan to stick around. They already have a fast-track system set-up in place for residents of NM to apply without going through the AACOMAS application portal, which also gives those students a selective advantage by the Admissions Committee. I think what BCOM has done here is quite amazing, but they will end up being another school everyone passes up in the future because of their biased towards in-state applicants - this is the situation for OSU-COM and OH-COM right now.

I do believe that of all of the new schools, BCOM tops the list. However, we still have yet to see how their students will manage on the boards in the next 2 years, that is when we will know for sure if this program is golden or a bust.

Board scores are a reflection of individual students, as didactic curriculum is pretty much identical across all schools. The student population is typically reflective of the school's mission, not how well they think their students will do on boards/how that will reflect on their program.

For instance...OSU students largely come from Oklahoma...and some of those students will certainly bust on their boards. Let's all hope their back and forth behavior on SDN isn't a reflection of their back and forth ability to do well on level one.


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Board scores are a reflection of individual students, as didactic curriculum is pretty much identical across all schools. The student population is typically reflective of the school's mission, not how well they think their students will do on boards/how that will reflect on their program.

For instance...OSU students largely come from Oklahoma...and some of those students will certainly bust on their boards. Let's all hope their back and forth behavior on SDN isn't a reflection of their back and forth ability to do well on level one.


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I'm not sure I see what you're getting at with the quote and your response. Board scores are far from an individual effort when you weigh in the ability a school has to help prepare individuals more readily than other schools. Institutions that implement study plans, exams, and board preparation into their curriculum are almost bound to do better than those schools who leave the studying entirely up to the student. I agree 100% the student body is reflective of their mission, BCOM's mission is to serve the state of New Mexico and do so by recruiting and enrolling students from within their own boarders. BCOM said it themselves that they hope to have some ~98% in-state student population with ~300 students per class. I am guessing the "Back and forth behavior" is an implication of some sort..care to explain?
 
Hi,

So I am interviewing next Monday--just called Mr. Alba--a very nice and helpful person--who helped me get a spot next Monday. I am really nervous, since my MCAT is below 500, but I am confident in my ability to express why I believe I am a good fit at BCOM. If anyone has any insight or tips to offer me please PM me. Those that already did, thank you very much.

I feel I need to ask if that not being fluent in Spanish is going to ultimately be a negative on my application? I have taken 5 years of Spanish, but have not spoken any in the last two so I have forgotten a lot, but I know I could recall it. Could any offer insight onto this?

Thanks!!
 
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Hi,

So I am interviewing next Monday--just called Mr. Alba--a very nice and helpful person--who helped me get a spot next Monday. I am really nervous, since my MCAT is below 500, but I am confident in my ability to express why I believe I am a good fit at BCOM. If anyone has any insight or tips to offer me please PM me. Those that already did, thank you very much.

I feel I need to ask if that not being fluent in Spanish is going to ultimately be a negative on my application? I have taken 5 years of Spanish, but have not spoken any in the last two so I have forgotten a lot, but I know I could recall it. Could any offer insight onto this?

Thanks!!
You got the interview which means they have no problem with your stats. Keep calm and be yourself. You will nail it. Confidence is the key. Remember you are unique and nobody can replace you. That's all I can say. I am still waiting for my interview invites.

By the way, did you make video or essay for your secondary?
 
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Hi,

So I am interviewing next Monday--just called Mr. Alba--a very nice and helpful person--who helped me get a spot next Monday. I am really nervous, since my MCAT is below 500, but I am confident in my ability to express why I believe I am a good fit at BCOM. If anyone has any insight or tips to offer me please PM me. Those that already did, thank you very much.

I feel I need to ask if that not being fluent in Spanish is going to ultimately be a negative on my application? I have taken 5 years of Spanish, but have not spoken any in the last two so I have forgotten a lot, but I know I could recall it. Could any offer insight onto this?

Thanks!!

If they invited you for an interview, they are okay with your MCAT score and stats. You will have 25-35 mins of their attention. Focus on your strengths and talk about how those strengths make you a great fit for BCOM. Everything else is out of your control. Oh, and try to enjoy it. Take a moment, breath every few mins during this day. Smile, smile, smile!


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Well, good luck to everyone on their interviews next week. Mine was just CANCELLED (I was supposed to interview on Monday).

Apparently, they were unable to secure the I-20 form required for international students. Any internationals given an interview have been "rejected" now, and all current international students have been dropped from the program.

Needless to say, I'm mad. But feel even worse for the current students.


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Well, good luck to everyone on their interviews next week. Mine was just CANCELLED (I was supposed to interview on Monday).

Apparently, they were unable to secure the I-20 form required for international students. Any internationals given an interview have been "rejected" now, and all current international students have been dropped from the program.

Needless to say, I'm mad. But feel even worse for the current students.


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Wait, could you elaborate? Current students are no longer able to attend?
 
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Well, good luck to everyone on their interviews next week. Mine was just CANCELLED (I was supposed to interview on Monday).

Apparently, they were unable to secure the I-20 form required for international students. Any internationals given an interview have been "rejected" now, and all current international students have been dropped from the program.

Needless to say, I'm mad. But feel even worse for the current students.


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Yikes! Good luck to you as well :) don't give up!


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You got the interview which means they have no problem with your stats. Keep calm and be yourself. You will nail it. Confidence is the key. Remember you are unique and nobody can replace you. That's all I can say. I am still waiting for my interview invites.

By the way, did you make video or essay for your secondary?

Video. I took much longer than I thought in making it. Perhaps it was just enough to get an interview.
 
For those of you who got interview invite, how long was the wait time after secondary submission?
 
I'll cancel my interview here on Monday August 22nd. Hope it goes to one of you. Good luck and always be positive throughout the process :)
 
I'll cancel my interview here on Monday August 22nd. Hope it goes to one of you. Good luck and always be positive throughout the process :)
Same! I'm canceling my interview here as well. Hope it goes to someone deserving.
 
Well, good luck to everyone on their interviews next week. Mine was just CANCELLED (I was supposed to interview on Monday).

Apparently, they were unable to secure the I-20 form required for international students. Any internationals given an interview have been "rejected" now, and all current international students have been dropped from the program.

Needless to say, I'm mad. But feel even worse for the current students.


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I'm not sure that's accurate...


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Hey guys! My interview is coming up on Monday and I was wondering what kind of information the interviewers have about you already/is it a blind interview? Should you not repeat things from your personal statement or secondary assuming that they have already seen it?


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Does anyone know if class attendance is mandatory?
 
I think there are also a set of lectures that are absolutely mandatory and missing those could result in a ten percent grade reduction. I'm not 100% sure but I remember reading this. Also is this schools hp/p/f?


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so, on the secondary, there's a question that asks if i've ever been accepted to a medical school anywhere around the world. i was accepted to a school in the caribbean so i have to put 'yes', but is that a bad thing? i feel like id get asked about it in an interview (if i should be lucky enough to get one) but it shouldn't be a red flag or anything, right?

edit: i obviously turned down the acceptance when i looked into the caribbean and decided against it
 
Good luck to those who are interviewing today!
 
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Hey Guys,

Just finished my interview. We signed a confidentiality agreement on interview questions, but I will make two important comments/observations:

1) Relax.
2) I suspect in a few years, this school's reputation will be on par with the other highly renowned DO schools. The facilities, faculty, but most importantly, the students are highly motived and sincere people.

P. S. Please don't PM about the questions!
 
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I also just finished! I agree, just relax. They have awesome facilities/simulation labs and everyone was very friendly. Las cruces is truly a beautiful place so take advantage of your time here and go to white sands!




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I also just finished! I agree, just relax. They have awesome facilities/simulation labs and everyone was very friendly. Las cruces is truly a beautiful place so take advantage of your time here and go to white sands!




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Did they mention whether they are planning to provide same-day acceptance/waitlist/rejection feedback like last year?
 
Did they mention whether they are planning to provide same-day acceptance/waitlist/rejection feedback like last year?

Agreed with the other 2! We'll find out on Wednesday


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Hey Guys,

Just finished my interview. We signed a confidentiality agreement on interview questions, but I will make two important comments/observations:

1) Relax.
2) I suspect in a few years, this school's reputation will be on par with the other highly renowned DO schools. The facilities, faculty, but most importantly, the students are highly motived and sincere people.

P. S. Please don't PM about the questions!

I also just finished! I agree, just relax. They have awesome facilities/simulation labs and everyone was very friendly. Las cruces is truly a beautiful place so take advantage of your time here and go to white sands!




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Thanks for sharing! By the way, I have a couple of questions about a few other details (not concerning the questions). Would you mind if I PM you?



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Was the interview conversational or more formal?
 
I also just finished! I agree, just relax. They have awesome facilities/simulation labs and everyone was very friendly. Las cruces is truly a beautiful place so take advantage of your time here and go to white sands!




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White Sands is definitely on my list! Did you visit any other places while you were there?
 
How did you guys send your letters through Interfolio? Nothing shows up when I search Burrell or BCOM. Do I just use their mailing address and send it as paper?
 
Guys I have a problem here. I have an interview on Sept. 23rd so I was planning on flying into El Paso Airport on the 22nd and driving up to BCOM but apparently I need to be over 25 to rent a car (I'm 24)? What else can I do??
 
Guys I have a problem here. I have an interview on Sept. 23rd so I was planning on flying into El Paso Airport on the 22nd and driving up to BCOM but apparently I need to be over 25 to rent a car (I'm 24)? What else can I do??
Not a problem at all! Sign up for USAA, and rent a car through Enterprise on their website. Not only can you still rent a car, they will waive the under 25 fee!
 
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White Sands is definitely on my list! Did you visit any other places while you were there?

I didn't really have time to see too much apart from that but I was happy enough just with white sands. It's a surreal experience. Also you're basically looking at beautiful mountain scenery the entire time you are there.


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Guys I have a problem here. I have an interview on Sept. 23rd so I was planning on flying into El Paso Airport on the 22nd and driving up to BCOM but apparently I need to be over 25 to rent a car (I'm 24)? What else can I do??
In addition to the great advice up above, I would suggest calling each car rental customer service at El Paso airport, directly. There may be some rental car companies that have a lower age limit, without charging you an extra fee. And, if you still are in a bind, let me know? I'm interviewing the same day and I'll be in Las Cruces a couple of days before, working on my latptop, visiting the BCOM campus and nearby attractions. If I know ahead of time, I'll schedule my work calls, meetings, etc. around the time you need a ride, to go pick you up :)
 
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Guys I have a problem here. I have an interview on Sept. 23rd so I was planning on flying into El Paso Airport on the 22nd and driving up to BCOM but apparently I need to be over 25 to rent a car (I'm 24)? What else can I do??

I used Enterprise at the El Paso airport. There was just an additional fee for being a young driver- I think like $15 per day
 
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I used Enterprise at the El Paso airport. There was just an additional fee for being a young driver- I think like $15 per day
If you use USAA, you wont get the $15 charge :)
 
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Not a problem at all! Sign up for USAA, and rent a car through Enterprise on their website. Not only can you still rent a car, they will waive the under 25 fee!

Oh wow I didn't know about this. This might be a stupid question but can I sign up even if I'm not part of the military?
 
Oh wow I didn't know about this. This might be a stupid question but can I sign up even if I'm not part of the military?
Yup, you just don't get to use most of the benefits. However, the under 25 fee waive thing is available for *anyone* with a USAA account.
 
I need to stop obsessively checking my phone..


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