DMU vs AZCOM

[583380]

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[NurWollen]

Hi guys!

So I have to choose between DMU and AZCOM by this Friday and it's proving to be a hard decision. I know the tuition difference is significant but I'd like to choose the school with the best value rather than cheapest cost. I'm from California so I hope to go back there for residency.

DMU
Pros:
Friendly people
New city
Cons:
Snow/unused to weather
1-2 tests per week
Clinical faculty teach 2nd year (not as good?)
Older/married students?

AZCOM
Pros:
Used to weather/similar to CA
Fair grading
More students from same area (similar culture)/younger students?
Cons:
1 test/week (hard to have free weekends)
Older/married students?

What do you guys think? If current students could comment on good and bad of their experience/why they chose their school over others that would be awesome

Interesting. I've never been on a med school con list before. Lol.


j/k. I would think of it this way: I'd say about 1/4 to 1/3 of our class is married. But since we have 250 students in our class, there are probably more single people around than at most schools.

 

[kp11]

I'm biased because I go to AZCOM...but I guess just ask yourself: how important is weather? Both places will give you a great education (as will most DO schools), so you can't go wrong either way.

Both schools also match really well, and have a great "campus" feel with multiple healthcare colleges.

Also, 1 test a week isn't bad- it forces you to stay on top of your coursework. Full disclosure though, I have 3 tests in 7 days

 

[psych72]

How are the rotations for 3rd year at both places? That's something that I would consider.

 

[xBODOMx]

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[JimmyB123]

AZCOM matches pretty well. Dunno much about DMU though. CoA is important though

 

[xBODOMx]

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[NurWollen]

DMU:
Year 1
Tuition: 45,000
CoA $71,000.

AZCOM:
Year 1
Tuition: 60,000
CoA ~$90 to 93,000 (They don't post the official, city of Glendale isn't cheap at all).

Pretty simple choice.

I don't necessarily disagree with you, but what makes you say Glendale isn't cheap? Yeah, the apartments right by campus have inflated prices, but overall I don't fell like it's that expensive.

 

[xBODOMx]

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[jockdoc97]

I have friends at both schools and I think that in terms of "cost of living" Glendale is the same as Des Moines.

 

[kp11]

The rotations for AZCOM are pretty solid. I would say that from what I remember when I was in your shoes last year, AZCOM's rotation schematics seemed a bit more confusing than most, but to break it down: you can be in Phoenix (East or West Valley), Chicago (good rotation option), Tuscan (people who do it absolutely love it, but I personally don't want to live in Tucson... I didn't go to UA), and LA (People choose this spot MOSTLY because of location-location-location, not based on hospitals). There are 1 or 2 more minor locations, but those are the major locations. Its also relatively easy to trade with your fellow students if you are interested in going to a different spot than what you were given.

I know nothing about DMU rotations, but I'm sure they are good. Its an established school, and one of the best DO schools. You can't really go wrong either way, so just enjoy the ride and be thankful that you have the opportunity to choose between 2 good school!
-Good Luck-
KP11

 

[wudabum]

Unless you have a family and they would prefer AZ, I would pick DMU. But AZ is convenient in that it is only 5 hours away from LA if that is important to you.
5% tuition increase every year that the school can't justify (at this rate, you would be projected to pay 70k in tuition by the time you are a 4th year) and honestly, as a current 4th year, there is nothing to justify 60k tuition
rotations are nothing special at AZCOM, you'll have some good ones, and you'll certainly have bad ones
match list means nothing. both schools will give you the opportunity to learn enough for the boards. how well you do and how well you match is up to you
I will say that I did appreciate not having to attend most classes while at AZCOM but I'm not sure about the policy at DMU.

Edit: feel free to PM me if you want to chat more. my suggestion is mostly based on tuition assuming the quality of education is pretty equal and if location does not matter. AZCOM's tuition is something to seriously consider.

 

[xBODOMx]

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[ortnakas]

I was really impressed with AZCOM when I interviewed there, but given the options I think I'd base my decision on cost of attendance.

That said, nobody can really give you a great answer because nobody has had personal experience at more than one school (outside of interviewing, which gives some insight but isn't the same as actually being there).

 

[dav86]

I CANNOT stress enough how important COA should be to future medical students.

DMU Tuition: 45000 x 4 years = 180000 COA: 71000 x 4 years = 284000

AZCOM Tuition 60000 x 4 = 240000 COA: 90000 x 4 = 360000

Those totals are likely underestimated since tuition goes up every year plus you have interest (which is 6.8 at best, 7.9-8.5% at worst) accruing.


If you are able to refinance, after residency, with a private company (DRB, SoFi, etc.) and pay the ten year fixed rate (4.5-5.5%) your monthly payment will be:

DMU: 2900/month, again likely higher since you have interest accruing throughout school.

AZCOM: 3800/month!!! probably over 4000/month when interest accrues....THIS IS AN INSANE AMOUNT OF MONEY. Think about it, if you go right through and graduate three yr residency at 29, you will be paying 4k/month on just loans until you are almost 40! If you do surgery you will be 41, fellowship/neurosurgery you will be 43-44.

If you make 150k/year that is around 12-13k/month PRETAX. Taxes take a quarter....so 3k, loans take 4k, that leaves you 4k left to live on. That doesn't include mortgage, retirement, cars, food, bills.....it is scary stuff.

I went to CCOM and agree with the comments above. It is not worth the cost (and it was cheaper when I went four years ago than it is now). GO WHERE YOUR TOTAL LOAN PACKAGE WILL BE LESS!!! AZCOM vs DMU are the same, go with the cheaper school. Save yourself over a 100k in loans

 

[seap3]

I had to make the same decision 4 yrs ago. I chose DMU. Mostly because of recorded lectures and tuition. Technology seemed better at DMU. Rotations are pretty good. I'm done in 1 week, and I haven't had any complaints about my rotations. I will admit, the thought of palm trees, cacti, and no snow was pretty darn tempting, but I know I was able to do much better not having to be in lecture halls all day.

 

[JimmyB123]

I CANNOT stress enough how important COA should be to future medical students.

DMU Tuition: 45000 x 4 years = 180000 COA: 71000 x 4 years = 284000

AZCOM Tuition 60000 x 4 = 240000 COA: 90000 x 4 = 360000

Those totals are likely underestimated since tuition goes up every year plus you have interest (which is 6.8 at best, 7.9-8.5% at worst) accruing.


If you are able to refinance, after residency, with a private company (DRB, SoFi, etc.) and pay the ten year fixed rate (4.5-5.5%) your monthly payment will be:

DMU: 2900/month, again likely higher since you have interest accruing throughout school.

AZCOM: 3800/month!!! probably over 4000/month when interest accrues....THIS IS AN INSANE AMOUNT OF MONEY. Think about it, if you go right through and graduate three yr residency at 29, you will be paying 4k/month on just loans until you are almost 40! If you do surgery you will be 41, fellowship/neurosurgery you will be 43-44.

If you make 150k/year that is around 12-13k/month PRETAX. Taxes take a quarter....so 3k, loans take 4k, that leaves you 4k left to live on. That doesn't include mortgage, retirement, cars, food, bills.....it is scary stuff.

I went to CCOM and agree with the comments above. It is not worth the cost (and it was cheaper when I went four years ago than it is now). GO WHERE YOUR TOTAL LOAN PACKAGE WILL BE LESS!!! AZCOM vs DMU are the same, go with the cheaper school. Save yourself over a 100k in loans

Agree with everything but 150k salary is very very modest.

 

[chizledfrmstone]

I CANNOT stress enough how important COA should be to future medical students.

DMU Tuition: 45000 x 4 years = 180000 COA: 71000 x 4 years = 284000

AZCOM Tuition 60000 x 4 = 240000 COA: 90000 x 4 = 360000

Those totals are likely underestimated since tuition goes up every year plus you have interest (which is 6.8 at best, 7.9-8.5% at worst) accruing.


If you are able to refinance, after residency, with a private company (DRB, SoFi, etc.) and pay the ten year fixed rate (4.5-5.5%) your monthly payment will be:

DMU: 2900/month, again likely higher since you have interest accruing throughout school.

AZCOM: 3800/month!!! probably over 4000/month when interest accrues....THIS IS AN INSANE AMOUNT OF MONEY. Think about it, if you go right through and graduate three yr residency at 29, you will be paying 4k/month on just loans until you are almost 40! If you do surgery you will be 41, fellowship/neurosurgery you will be 43-44.

If you make 150k/year that is around 12-13k/month PRETAX. Taxes take a quarter....so 3k, loans take 4k, that leaves you 4k left to live on. That doesn't include mortgage, retirement, cars, food, bills.....it is scary stuff.

I went to CCOM and agree with the comments above. It is not worth the cost (and it was cheaper when I went four years ago than it is now). GO WHERE YOUR TOTAL LOAN PACKAGE WILL BE LESS!!! AZCOM vs DMU are the same, go with the cheaper school. Save yourself over a 100k in loans

Ridiculous. I feel really bad for my friends at AZCOM.

I had to make the same decision 4 yrs ago. I chose DMU. Mostly because of recorded lectures and tuition. Technology seemed better at DMU. Rotations are pretty good. I'm done in 1 week, and I haven't had any complaints about my rotations. I will admit, the thought of palm trees, cacti, and no snow was pretty darn tempting, but I know I was able to do much better not having to be in lecture halls all day.

I think AZCOM has recorded lectures now.

 

[NurWollen]

Ridiculous. I feel really bad for my friends at AZCOM.



I think AZCOM has recorded lectures now.

We do, for most classes. It took a lot of effort on the part of the student body leadership, and I am grateful for that.

Overall, I feel like we get a pretty darn good education at AZCOM. I really do. I have my complaints, yes. But I think that would be true anywhere. I can't speak to the quality of rotations yet, as I am finishing MS2. But my friends who are current MS3s have had far fewer complaints about their rotations than what I read here on SDN. People here really do match well, do well on boards, etc. The student body is fantastic and I have made life long friends. There is a great culture of camaraderie, we help eachother. It's just the opposite of cutthroat competitiveness. Most of the faculty are fantastic as well.

Where people on this thread really hit the nail on the head is tuition. I have no idea where the tuition money goes. We have a beautiful campus, but so do many schools with much cheaper tuition. MWU does seem to love building new things. The new veterinary program probably has as much in the way of facilities as the rest of the school combined. We have a parking garage on the main campus. Across the street is the dental/optometry/FM/OMM/Peds clinic, and they have their own parking garage. They have built an animal hospital right next door, on the same block of land, and it got its own parking garage too. They're currently building what look like barns/shelter for large numbers of livestock over there too. Back on the main campus, they're adding a fourth in a series of small administrative offices (the other three contain the cafeteria, bookstore, admissions office, as study lounge, financial aid office, etc and have been there for a while.) There are a few other small buildings going up here and there too.

I heard the school offered the city of Glendale $5 million to purchase a city library adjacent to the school and some of the land it's on. The city turned them down, from what I heard.

I don't know what's going on, or why, or how much of our tuition money is going in to all these projects. Maybe there's a great rationale for all of it. But it does make me wonder.

 

[rkearl27]

I received acceptances to both DMU and AZCOM and to me there was no contest(without taking into account the price tag). I felt like DMU fit me better; I loved the atmosphere and I was very impressed with how prepared the admissions staff were as well as the interviewers. I also loved that I would be able to live right across the street if I wanted to.

 

[kp11]

@NurWollen , I wonder the same thing every time I look at my student loans: where is this all going? I like to imagine there is a big fantastic master plan that we just don't know about yet...it helps me sleep better at night.

 

[NurWollen]

@NurWollen , I wonder the same thing every time I look at my student loans: where is this all going? I like to imagine there is a big fantastic master plan that we just don't know about yet...it helps me sleep better at night.

Haha maybe they'll build a 500-bed teaching hospital.

 

[serimeri]

The southern california rotations that AZCOM offers are a joke. I know that one of the hospitals, Fountain Valley, is quite malignant and the students get a really crappy teaching experience. If you're going to choose, AZCOM, please choose the AZ rotation sites, they are much better.

They had San Diego rotations, last year, and a lot of people ended up going back to Phoenix because the quality and hospitals (Banner, Maricopa, etc.) are much better.

All in all, I think AZCOM is definitely way overpriced. I would choose DMU.

 

[Flushot]

I guess I can chime in being an AZCOM graduate. I was Tucson based but there have been a severe amount of changes to 3rd and 4th year since I was last there. For starters, testing and priming prior to Step 1 and 2 (more specifically 2) has increased dramatically last time I check. For better or worse, they want to make sure you don't fail and will get in your face about it early on and often. For some students, this may help but others it's a massive hindrance.

4th year was very different from the year after me. Here, they did not limit us at all for pretty much any rotation beyond ED and ICU. If you wanted to do 6-8 sub-Is/auditions, you theoretically could if you did all of the leg work and forked over the money. As I talk with other residents from my program and other programs here, they all seem to prefer this total autonomy. Sadly, I don't believe this to be the case anymore and AZCOM appears to be adopting UofA-Phoenix's methods of running 3rd and 4th year overall.

So what to choose? Well, considering DMU is not a branch campus and doesn't have massive expansive of other programs along with being way cheaper, I guess I would go with that. I don't know Iowa's medical political climate, but AZCOM has to tangle with ATSU-Mesa, UofA-Phoenix, UofA-Tucson, Mayo and to a certain degree, Creighton. This is why there's this half-hearted farming out to California and other places because the competition has become fierce. If DMU has more clout in where their students can go in Iowa, I would choose that.

I can't completely condemn AZCOM but I would say a lot of external factors and being a typical DO administration has led to some unfortunate changes. It seems like most DO schools with good match lists, most of my classmates were hard workers and intelligent and thus, probably would've succeeded at any school.

 

[abolt18]

DMU:
Year 1
Tuition: 45,000
CoA $71,000.

AZCOM:
Year 1
Tuition: 60,000
CoA ~$90 to 93,000 (They don't post the official, city of Glendale isn't cheap at all).

Pretty simple choice.

This, to me, should be the answer to your question over and over.

Unless of course you're doing HPSP or NHSC.

 

[JRO38]

^Agreed. I was one of the fortunate few to receive a scholarship at my school. Now at the end of my 4th year I have ~190,000 in principal and ~20,000 in interest for a grand total of 210,000 (including some undergraduate debt too). I've been watching my account over the last few days and I'm adding ~27.50 in interest every single day (10,000 over the course of one year without making payments). It is extremely sobering for me and I don't even have any grad plus - feel so bad for some of my friends.

If you go to AZCOM and you don't receive any aid on top of the loans you'll have ~ 372,000 in principal and probably ~50,000 in interest (due to grad plus loans). You'll have to ask yourself if adding more than $50 a day in interest throughout your entire residency is worth it.

*Forgot to mention I also have about 40,000 in subsidized not accruing any interest right now so it'll get higher per day when I graduate in a bit. Can't wait for that interest to capitalize!

 

[azhawk]

So I did the Master's of Anatomy (MSA) program at DMU and am now a 2nd year student at AZCOM (came here bc my wife got into a different school in AZ and didn't get into the school at DMU). Have a little bit of a unique perspective on both schools.

With the MSA program at DMU I basically took all of the classes that the first years took. DMU allows you to have a little more of a life outside of school, which is tough to get at AZCOM because AZCOM has a structured schedule with exams every Monday morning. This makes it tough to do anything on weekends. DMU has about the same amount of tests, but their schedule is very dynamic (every week is different), which I liked a lot about DMU.

As far as facilities go, DMU has the better lecture hall (w/ plug-ins at every seat in the auditorium, and comfy chairs), they record basically every lecture (they do this at AZCOM too for most lectures, but its actually every lecture at DMU), and their anatomy lab is superb. While they don't have the campus that AZCOM has they have things that i totally took for granted while i was there.

Professor-wise, its pretty close. There are a lot of good profs at both schools. One thing that is a major plus for DMU is you get an academic advisor for your first 2 years that is an academic prof, you don't get this at AZCOM. Some people need someone like this more than other people, but I think it would have been a very nice asset to have as a med student.

As far as administration goes - at DMU the med school is the biggest show in town. They cater to their DO students more than they do here at AZCOM. At DMU i could believe that their thoughts and goals were more aligned with creating quality docs. It seems like Midwestern is very concerned with the bottom-line with just about everything and the tuition is outrageous here and becoming more outrageous. Don't forget that by the time you graduate the tuition will probably be closer to 70K than to 60K (where its at now).

As far as rotations go I can't make a comparison bc so far i havent done any at either school.

I'm glad I came to AZCOM, it is a great school. The education I've got here so far has been excellent. It's just some of the monetary things that go on here leave a bad taste in my mouth, especially when some simple fixes could easily upgrade the experience. Needless to say I wish my wife would have gotten into school in Des Moines sometimes.

One last thing, Midwest-nice is actually a thing. People in Iowa are generally nicer than people in AZ.

 

[psych72]

The tuition at AZCOM is just not justified.

I like the idea of having advisors, I think we have to do a lot of scutwork as DO's to try and find our own advisors and set up away rotations its a total pain.

 

[NurWollen]

I imagine there is a point where the combination of increasing tuition and relative lack of benefits in return starts to affect a school's ability to attract top quality students (which AZCOM does when compared with DO schools on average. AZCOM obviouly hasn't hit that point yet, but it makes me curious as to where that point is. I have to admit, AZCOM is aided but the amazing weather here. As someone who tends toward a slight, subclinical bit of seasonal affective disorder, I have to say, studying at AZCOM had been very, very good to me,

 

[dav86]

I imagine there is a point where the combination of increasing tuition and relative lack of benefits in return starts to affect a school's ability to attract top quality students (which AZCOM does when compared with DO schools on average. AZCOM obviouly hasn't hit that point yet, but it makes me curious as to where that point is. I have to admit, AZCOM is aided but the amazing weather here. As someone who tends toward a slight, subclinical bit of seasonal affective disorder, I have to say, studying at AZCOM had been very, very good to me,

I don't know if you will ever reach that point. Premeds will always be gunning to get into medical school. Premeds are ignorant to cost and will be sold that they will all be orthopedic surgeons, dermatologists, rad onc, etc and make over 500-600k/year and that being 500k in debt will be fine. Then once they are in residency they will realize it is way more than they thought it would be and that salaries won't be as good as they thought or god forbid they matched into a PC speciality and never be able to pay it off. By then it is too late to back out.

I was just as ignorant eight years ago. I thought hey, whoever can't live on 150k/year is just being greedy, not realizing that 300k of debt is a heck of a lot of money. Didn't understand interest rates, didn't understand retirement and how much you have to save, didn't realize taxes, didn't realize malpractice, CMGs/corporate medicine, etc. I still think this is a great field and I love what I do every day but there is a lot as a premed and even as a medical student many don't realize/understand. Medical education has got a great thing going. Sucker people in with the 1990s dream of what medicine used to be and not what it is now.

 

[xBODOMx]

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[JimmyB123]

Yeah but I just want to bring up the point that while cost is the most important factor, we aren't comparing MD schools here that for the most part have adequate/solid clinical rotations. We are talking about DO schools which have MAJOR issues when it comes to the clinical years. For some people, shelling out the extra $ for an established DO school is worth not having to fly around the country during your 3rd and 4th year.

 

[xBODOMx]

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[user3]

I don't know if you will ever reach that point. Premeds will always be gunning to get into medical school. Premeds are ignorant to cost and will be sold that they will all be orthopedic surgeons, dermatologists, rad onc, etc and make over 500-600k/year and that being 500k in debt will be fine. Then once they are in residency they will realize it is way more than they thought it would be and that salaries won't be as good as they thought or god forbid they matched into a PC speciality and never be able to pay it off. By then it is too late to back out.

I was just as ignorant eight years ago. I thought hey, whoever can't live on 150k/year is just being greedy, not realizing that 300k of debt is a heck of a lot of money. Didn't understand interest rates, didn't understand retirement and how much you have to save, didn't realize taxes, didn't realize malpractice, CMGs/corporate medicine, etc. I still think this is a great field and I love what I do every day but there is a lot as a premed and even as a medical student many don't realize/understand. Medical education has got a great thing going. Sucker people in with the 1990s dream of what medicine used to be and not what it is now.

AZCOM actually posts salary data on its admissions page, perhaps to make applicants feel less hesitant about paying their overpriced tuition. lol

2013 MEDIAN SALARIES IN THE WEST (VARIES BY SPECIALTY)-FROM MGMA PHYSICIANS COMPENSATION AND PRODUCTION SURVEY 2014 REPORT

• Family Medicine(Without OB):$224,889
• Family Medicine(with OB): $220,983
• Pediatricians: $234,763
• Internal Medicine: $241,874
• General Surgeons: $405,743
• Anesthesiologists: $419,383
• Emergency Medicine: $350,934
• Obstetrics and Gynecology: $342,028

 

[JimmyB123]

AZCOM actually posts salary data on its admissions page, perhaps to make applicants feel less hesitant about paying their overpriced tuition. lol

2013 MEDIAN SALARIES IN THE WEST (VARIES BY SPECIALTY)-FROM MGMA PHYSICIANS COMPENSATION AND PRODUCTION SURVEY 2014 REPORT

• Family Medicine(Without OB):$224,889
• Family Medicine(with OB): $220,983
• Pediatricians: $234,763
• Internal Medicine: $241,874
• General Surgeons: $405,743
• Anesthesiologists: $419,383
• Emergency Medicine: $350,934
• Obstetrics and Gynecology: $342,028

Is it just me or do those numbers sound too good to be true

 

[NurWollen]

Is it just me or do those numbers sound too good to be true

Actually all the attendings on the Physician/Resident forums say the MGMA data is the most accurate. It's also hard to get a hold of without shelling out $$$

 

[xBODOMx]

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[serimeri]

I think if you go with AZCOM, make sure you do not go for the California rotations and try and secure as many ward based rotations. Studying for Step 1 and Step 2 is ok, but make sure you get a good clinical education. You will need to be proactive about this. The california rotation sites are definitely way inferior compared to the wonderful ones in AZ (Banner, Maricopa, even rural ones are good). Honestly, I would feel pretty awful if I only did preceptor based rotations in California and didn't arrange any through VSAS. I mean I saw a few friends who did that and I think they are doing themselves a huge disservice.

Given the fact that you have to set up your own rotations, go with the cheaper school, it will give you more affordability to plan out the 4th year with auditions and such.

 

[kenjixshadow]

These definitely aren't starting salaries. EM at 350k is what you hope to make after years out. These are probably post-partner figures.

The problem is that it isn't easy to find a true democratic group anymore. CMG (TeamHealth, EMcare, etc) are buying practices left and right. You will still hit that 350k, but you have to work more hours to get that figure while dealing with Press Gainey and administration b.s.

 

[touchpause13]

I really don't have that much to add, but I will comment that DMU has a big ass class and you will easily be able to find people that you click with. It's not all boring married people like @O Grady jk. There are plenty of people who like to go out a lot, there are plenty of people who don't. Regardless it's a nice small city with nice people and I'm very happy to be here. It certainly felt like the right fit for me and I stand by that.

 

[583380]

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[Jamers]

Hi guys!

So I have to choose between DMU and AZCOM by this Friday and it's proving to be a hard decision. I know the tuition difference is significant but I'd like to choose the school with the best value rather than cheapest cost. I'm from California so I hope to go back there for residency.

DMU
Pros:
Friendly people
New city
Cons:
Snow/unused to weather
1-2 tests per week
Clinical faculty teach 2nd year (not as good?)
Older/married students?

AZCOM
Pros:
Used to weather/similar to CA
Fair grading
More students from same area (similar culture)/younger students?
Cons:
1 test/week (hard to have free weekends)
Older/married students?

What do you guys think? If current students could comment on good and bad of their experience/why they chose their school over others that would be awesome

Never really heard Des Moines Iowa called a "new city" before.

I've been far removed from the testing and I am sure the clinical staff has changed but the few things I do remember are that the people were friendly, the weather is the weather (we had more ice storms my three years there than snow), the downtown was small which made it nice because you didn't have to worry about much traffic (plus there were a bunch of really nice bars (really important )), and there was still a good mix of single students. As far as matching, it got me where I wanted to go and now, near the end of my first year as an attending, I don't have many complaints.

 

[Jamers]

It depends on what area of the country you pratice in. 350K (gross) in the south is easily attanable.

These definitely aren't starting salaries. EM at 350k is what you hope to make after years out. These are probably post-partner figures.

Really depends on where you work. In the south 350k (gross I am assuming) first year out of residency is easily possible. It comes down to how much you want to work. An example, I work 160-170 a month (contracted for 140) which leaves me with a good amount of free time and more than enough income.

But, the posts above are accurate. Try to limit your debt as much as possible. It really doesn't matter if you are making a butt load of money if you have to then pay 5 grand a month to Sallie Mae. Trust me, your rectum hurts every time that comes out of your bank account.

 

[JimmyB123]

Thank you so much for all the help guys! I'm sure people in the future making this same decision will find the thread helpful. Luckily, I was accepted into CMS in Chicago so my choice was made for me. Thanks again!!

Congrats!! So jealous lol

But seriously that's awesome

 

[serimeri]

I had a general question as I graduate and am going to enter the loan repayment process.

Does cost of attendance really matter when we're talking about most DO schools? I qualify for PAYE an I'd be doing that option so 10% of my income for the next 20 years will be used towards my debt. To top it off, I will be doing my residency (4 years) at a place that qualifies for PSLF. So I would only need to make 120 payments if I go that route.

With that logic, isn't it better to just go to the school you feel is better quality regardless of cost? Thanks

EDIT: Clearly, I don't know how loans work. I see that after residency, when you stop qualifying for hardship, you have to pay back your loans based on 10 years. Yikes!

 

[seminoma]

Wandered in here by chance and read something in the OP I thought I would chime in on.

Second year being taught by clinicians is actually a good thing. I thought it was a bad thing too when I was a premed and even through parts of MS2 (I just finished MS2), but at the end of the day you and I have a much better shot at learning textbook info on our own than we do learning clinical decision making (which is on step 1) on our own.

Yeah, clinicians will throw in a lot of "useless" crap, but I think that the clinicians who taught some of our MS2 classes were actually really helpful. Just take that into consideration when you're choosing where to go in the fall.