CCOM vs. TUCOM-CA

[conmo]

Hi everyone,

I have been reading past threads of people in the same situation as me but I just wanted to start my own thread to get any more recent opinions.

Some stuff about me, I am from Southern California and want to practice in California in the future. I am interested in primary care but want to leave my options open for specializing as well.

I really liked CCOM, but the main things holding me back are the location (much farther from home), the weather (I really hate the cold) and the insane tuition. I want to eventually practice in California so I am a bit worried about my chances of returning to California if I go to CCOM. I feel like going to Touro would set me up best to practice in California (correct me if I'm wrong).

However, with the residency merger in 2020 when I graduate, I want to make sure I pick the best school to make me competitive and I know CCOM has a a great reputation and better rotations.

If anyone could give me some input I would really appreciate it! Thanks

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[OrdinaryDO]

You know, I admire your investigative efforts, but I honestly have no idea why people still make the threads on here. There is LIMITLESS information in the "school-specific" threads and an infinite number of "CCOM vs XYZ" threads. I have no problem with these kinds of threads even if I do think they are a waste of time and effort, but the thing is in the end it has nothing to do with what we think because it is YOUR choice. You are going to have to pick between geographical advanage or "prestige." Honestly, to me this is a no brainier if I am to base my choice off of what you have just said....go California all the way. You will be close to home, warm weather, residency in your desired state and therefore higher chance of obtaining a job out of residency in California. California is one of the least friendly DO states in the U.S., so if you have any advantageous shortcuts to take, then take them all!

 

[first_time_poster]

If you want to stay in CA, then stay in CA.

 

[conmo]

I am leaning towards touro but just doubting myself a little because ccoms campus impressed me a lot more than touro. but obviously that's just one aspect of many I need to consider. ultimately it is my decision but it's always nice to hear some input as well. thanks for taking the time to write I appreciate it!

 

[OrdinaryDO]

I am leaning towards touro but just doubting myself a little because ccoms campus impressed me a lot more than touro. but obviously that's just one aspect of many I need to consider. ultimately it is my decision but it's always nice to hear some input as well. thanks for taking the time to write I appreciate it!

Listen, there is no doubt that CCOM is one of the most talked about DO medical schools on SDN and dare I say probably one of the best of all ~32 DO schools, but those assumptions are made based on board scores and residency slots filled. If you set your mind towards going to Touro-CA, then I have no doubt that you can and most likely will perform just as well as you would have at CCOM. Shoot, not to mention the money saved!!! WOWZA!!!

 

[Goro]

Let's focus on what's really important: SF seafood and Napa wines vs those casseroles called Chicago pizzas.

Hi everyone,

I have been reading past threads of people in the same situation as me but I just wanted to start my own thread to get any more recent opinions.

Some stuff about me, I am from Southern California and want to practice in California in the future. I am interested in primary care but want to leave my options open for specializing as well.

I really liked CCOM, but the main things holding me back are the location (much farther from home), the weather (I really hate the cold) and the insane tuition. I want to eventually practice in California so I am a bit worried about my chances of returning to California if I go to CCOM. I feel like going to Touro would set me up best to practice in California (correct me if I'm wrong).

However, with the residency merger in 2020 when I graduate, I want to make sure I pick the best school to make me competitive and I know CCOM has a a great reputation and better rotations.

If anyone could give me some input I would really appreciate it! Thanks

 

[ananasmed]

Let's focus on what's really important: SF seafood and Napa wines vs those casseroles called Chicago pizzas.

Hey, don't forget our famous neon relish!

 

[premedM]

Hi everyone,

I have been reading past threads of people in the same situation as me but I just wanted to start my own thread to get any more recent opinions.

Some stuff about me, I am from Southern California and want to practice in California in the future. I am interested in primary care but want to leave my options open for specializing as well.

I really liked CCOM, but the main things holding me back are the location (much farther from home), the weather (I really hate the cold) and the insane tuition. I want to eventually practice in California so I am a bit worried about my chances of returning to California if I go to CCOM. I feel like going to Touro would set me up best to practice in California (correct me if I'm wrong).

However, with the residency merger in 2020 when I graduate, I want to make sure I pick the best school to make me competitive and I know CCOM has a a great reputation and better rotations.

If anyone could give me some input I would really appreciate it! Thanks

I have the same decision to make, and really appreciate you posting here! It seems like we have some of the same concerns, and a few that are different. This probably won't make your decision easier, but it is nice to be able to think these things through in a forum with folks who are working through the same decision.

Although I currently live in California very close to TUCOM-CA, I have been wanting to leave for a long time, and would love to live and practice in Chicago. I also am pretty sure I want to focus on primary care, but know that having the ability to explore specialties can only be a good thing. The match list distributed at my CCOM interview was stunning, and the facilities were top-notch. I could easily see myself there.

I was sure that CCOM would be the clear winner for me, and am so grateful for the acceptance! However, after attending both interviews, the vibe I got from TUCOM-CA was much more positive. I didn't particularly click with the students I was interviewing with at CCOM, and the student ambassadors were downright unfriendly and seemed pretty uninterested in answering our questions or talking about the school. Whereas at TUCOM-CA my fellow interviewees were friendly and interesting and I could definitely see myself in a community with them, and both the faculty and student ambassadors were responsive and helpful.

Other pros for TUCOM: Awesome Global Medicine Rotations, MUCH lower tuition (which is a big deal to me because I am an older non-trad and don't want to be saddled with so much debt in my late 30s/40s), and a much more flexible attendance policy than CCOM with all lectures recorded.

Things that scare me about TUCOM: I have spouse and we are trying to stick together during my med-school and residency. His work doesn't offer a ton of flexibility, so we want to choose a place and stay there for 8-10years. TUCOM won't guarantee me a residency anywhere close to where we live, and may require a lot of travel during year 3 and 4, while CCOM has 3&4th year already mapped out and plenty of students staying in the Chicagoland area for residency. Also, we could never afford to buy a home in the Bay Area but would probably be able to find a decent home in IL within the next few years.

Still no closer to a decision, but grateful for acceptances to 2 great schools. Have you made your decision?

 

[ananasmed]

I have the same decision to make, and really appreciate you posting here! It seems like we have some of the same concerns, and a few that are different. This probably won't make your decision easier, but it is nice to be able to think these things through in a forum with folks who are working through the same decision.

Although I currently live in California very close to TUCOM-CA, I have been wanting to leave for a long time, and would love to live and practice in Chicago. I also am pretty sure I want to focus on primary care, but know that having the ability to explore specialties can only be a good thing. The match list distributed at my CCOM interview was stunning, and the facilities were top-notch. I could easily see myself there.

I was sure that CCOM would be the clear winner for me, and am so grateful for the acceptance! However, after attending both interviews, the vibe I got from TUCOM-CA was much more positive. I didn't particularly click with the students I was interviewing with at CCOM, and the student ambassadors were downright unfriendly and seemed pretty uninterested in answering our questions or talking about the school. Whereas at TUCOM-CA my fellow interviewees were friendly and interesting and I could definitely see myself in a community with them, and both the faculty and student ambassadors were responsive and helpful.

Other pros for TUCOM: Awesome Global Medicine Rotations, MUCH lower tuition (which is a big deal to me because I am an older non-trad and don't want to be saddled with so much debt in my late 30s/40s), and a much more flexible attendance policy than CCOM with all lectures recorded.

Things that scare me about TUCOM: I have spouse and we are trying to stick together during my med-school and residency. His work doesn't offer a ton of flexibility, so we want to choose a place and stay there for 8-10years. TUCOM won't guarantee me a residency anywhere close to where we live, and may require a lot of travel during year 3 and 4, while CCOM has 3&4th year already mapped out and plenty of students staying in the Chicagoland area for residency. Also, we could never afford to buy a home in the Bay Area but would probably be able to find a decent home in IL within the next few years.

Still no closer to a decision, but grateful for acceptances to 2 great schools. Have you made your decision?

Just wanted to say that I'm sorry about your less than stellar interview experience at CCOM. As a first year at the school, I'd be glad to answer any questions here or via PM if it would help you to make a decision. To some extent, I'd advise you to trust your gut - it's really important that you go to school somewhere that you feel comfortable, in terms of both the location and the student body, resources, etc. offered by the school. On the other hand, I will say that I had better interview experiences at other schools last year (the vibe I got at DMU made my heart swoon; comparatively, my interview day at CCOM was basically a disaster). Despite my luke warm feelings from interview day, I am so grateful to be here and so glad that I chose CCOM. I'm from Chicago and see myself wanting to live and practice in the area, so my choice was swayed by that and is not directly equivalent to yours, perhaps. I don't think you can make a bad choice between TUCOM and CCOM, so congratulations

P.S. All of our lectures so far this year have been recorded, except for OMM and PSP (basically "doctoring" class) which hasn't been an issue. I don't regularly attend either of those lectures and haven't felt any negative effects lol. But we do have a very rigid schedule in terms of testing, not sure how that compares to TUCOM.

 

[premedM]

Just wanted to say that I'm sorry about your less than stellar interview experience at CCOM. As a first year at the school, I'd be glad to answer any questions here or via PM if it would help you to make a decision. To some extent, I'd advise you to trust your gut - it's really important that you go to school somewhere that you feel comfortable, in terms of both the location and the student body, resources, etc. offered by the school. On the other hand, I will say that I had better interview experiences at other schools last year (the vibe I got at DMU made my heart swoon; comparatively, my interview day at CCOM was basically a disaster). Despite my luke warm feelings from interview day, I am so grateful to be here and so glad that I chose CCOM. I'm from Chicago and see myself wanting to live and practice in the area, so my choice was swayed by that and is not directly equivalent to yours, perhaps. I don't think you can make a bad choice between TUCOM and CCOM, so congratulations

P.S. All of our lectures so far this year have been recorded, except for OMM and PSP (basically "doctoring" class) which hasn't been an issue. I don't regularly attend either of those lectures and haven't felt any negative effects lol. But we do have a very rigid schedule in terms of testing, not sure how that compares to TUCOM.

Thank you so much for your reply @ananasmed ! I'm glad to hear about the recordings. I learn much better outside of a lecture setting and having the option to study at home is important to me.

It's nice to hear that you had similar feelings on your interview at CCOM. I really do want to give them the benefit of the doubt. Everybody can have a bad day once in awhile, and while I had a less than glowing experience with the student ambassadors/financial aid presentation/etc. I have to say that my interview panel was wonderful and even sent me an encouraging message when I emailed a thank-you note. Some of my negative feelings were also probably due to the fact that my interview was relatively early in the season and my fellow interviewees seemed to view CCOM as their backup while waiting for MD decisions, whereas at TUCOM everybody was excited to be there and had real enthusiasm for osteopathic medicine.

I will almost certainly PM you when it comes closer to final decision time! A quick question for now though: TUCOM has some amazing global/international medicine elective rotations. I haven't been able to find anything about similar opportunities at CCOM. It's definitely not a deal-breaker, but do you know if CCOM has any kind of global medicine programs, or the option to set up rural rotations out of the state? Thank you!

 

[conmo]

I have the same decision to make, and really appreciate you posting here! It seems like we have some of the same concerns, and a few that are different. This probably won't make your decision easier, but it is nice to be able to think these things through in a forum with folks who are working through the same decision.

Although I currently live in California very close to TUCOM-CA, I have been wanting to leave for a long time, and would love to live and practice in Chicago. I also am pretty sure I want to focus on primary care, but know that having the ability to explore specialties can only be a good thing. The match list distributed at my CCOM interview was stunning, and the facilities were top-notch. I could easily see myself there.

I was sure that CCOM would be the clear winner for me, and am so grateful for the acceptance! However, after attending both interviews, the vibe I got from TUCOM-CA was much more positive. I didn't particularly click with the students I was interviewing with at CCOM, and the student ambassadors were downright unfriendly and seemed pretty uninterested in answering our questions or talking about the school. Whereas at TUCOM-CA my fellow interviewees were friendly and interesting and I could definitely see myself in a community with them, and both the faculty and student ambassadors were responsive and helpful.

Other pros for TUCOM: Awesome Global Medicine Rotations, MUCH lower tuition (which is a big deal to me because I am an older non-trad and don't want to be saddled with so much debt in my late 30s/40s), and a much more flexible attendance policy than CCOM with all lectures recorded.

Things that scare me about TUCOM: I have spouse and we are trying to stick together during my med-school and residency. His work doesn't offer a ton of flexibility, so we want to choose a place and stay there for 8-10years. TUCOM won't guarantee me a residency anywhere close to where we live, and may require a lot of travel during year 3 and 4, while CCOM has 3&4th year already mapped out and plenty of students staying in the Chicagoland area for residency. Also, we could never afford to buy a home in the Bay Area but would probably be able to find a decent home in IL within the next few years.

Still no closer to a decision, but grateful for acceptances to 2 great schools. Have you made your decision?

I agree! Thanks for your post, it's nice to hear from others trying to make the same decision as me.

After visiting CCOM, I was in a very similar mindset to yours. I almost cancelled my TUCOM interview because I was so impressed with CCOM. They have great facilities and I had a very pleasant interview experience. I also spent the weekend in the city and I loved it! It would be awesome to be so nearby. I went into the TUCOM interview not really expecting much, but at the end of the day I was happily surprised. TUCOM wasn't as nice or prestigious as CCOM, but the students I met were awesome and I could really see myself being friends with them.

My concerns about TUCOM are the the few bad things I've heard about the quality of their rotations and how safe the area is. I'm also a bit concerned about how rotations are assigned and how much traveling 3rd and 4th years have to do. I wish I would've asked more about that on my interview day, but I'm going to e-mail my student ambassador and see what they have to say.

I have not made an official decision but I am definitely leaning towards TUCOM. When it comes down to it, I want to practice in California and I want to have minimal debt and TUCOM allows me to do both those things. It's a hard decision though, because CCOM was so impressive and I could see myself there as well, but that tuition scares me. Have you come any closer to a decision?

 

[ananasmed]

Thank you so much for your reply @ananasmed ! I'm glad to hear about the recordings. I learn much better outside of a lecture setting and having the option to study at home is important to me.

It's nice to hear that you had similar feelings on your interview at CCOM. I really do want to give them the benefit of the doubt. Everybody can have a bad day once in awhile, and while I had a less than glowing experience with the student ambassadors/financial aid presentation/etc. I have to say that my interview panel was wonderful and even sent me an encouraging message when I emailed a thank-you note. Some of my negative feelings were also probably due to the fact that my interview was relatively early in the season and my fellow interviewees seemed to view CCOM as their backup while waiting for MD decisions, whereas at TUCOM everybody was excited to be there and had real enthusiasm for osteopathic medicine.

I will almost certainly PM you when it comes closer to final decision time! A quick question for now though: TUCOM has some amazing global/international medicine elective rotations. I haven't been able to find anything about similar opportunities at CCOM. It's definitely not a deal-breaker, but do you know if CCOM has any kind of global medicine programs, or the option to set up rural rotations out of the state? Thank you!

You can absolutely set up rural rotations out of state/wherever you want. I'm not sure if there are international/global medicine electives (that doesn't mean it wouldn't be possible to do one), but there is an active global medicine club on campus that plans medical mission trips which are popular between M1 and M2. Hopefully that helps!

 

[premedM]

@ananasmed thank you! That's great to know and so helpful! I spent some time growing up in a rural part of the country and would love the opportunity to schedule a rotation there. I also plan on taking advantage of any international opportunities that are available.

@conmo still no decision yet! I swing back and forth from day to day, but a lot of my decision also depends on my spouse's employment situation. I feel great having two solid schools to choose from, and now he has a starting point to begin researching work stuff. Luckily, both Chicago and the Bay Area are great places for work in his field. Realistically we'll probably hold off making our final decision until sometime in the New Year. I promise to update this thread when I do. Maybe we'll see each other next fall

 

[premedM]

@conmo it looks like you decided on Touro-CA! Just wanted to update this thread. I declined Touro-CA (and Touro-Harlem which offered me acceptance later in the cycle) after my spouse was offered a job in Chicago, and after I was offered a few surprise MD acceptances. I don't have any idea yet where I'll end up, and the decision is really really stressing me out, but it won't be in California. I still loved both of the Touros and felt especially sad sending my withdrawal email to TUCOM-CA. Best of luck this upcoming year!!

 

[conmo]

@premedM @swollcat thanks for your input and well wishes! Im sure wherever you end up will be where you should be. I feel like that's how it always works out for the most part haha.
I did decide on tucom Ca and as time has gone by I feel very confident in my decision. CCOM was great but I think tucom is just a better fit overall and I can't wait to start in the fall! Good luck to you all too!