Lincoln Memorial - DeBusk (LMU-DCOM) Discussion Thread 2013 - 2014

Discover Your Odds of Getting into Medical School
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DCOMer here. If anybody has questions feel free to send them my way and I'll be glad to help.
 
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itsokimadoctor said:
DCOMer here. If anybody has questions feel free to send them my way and I'll be glad to help.
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Couple of q's......
1) Do you know anything about the availability of family housing at/by the school. I'm married with kids.
2) how close are most clinical rotations
3) how responsive have administration/teachers been when you had a question
4) is there any one thing you wish you had known before you picked debusk?
 
sb247 said:
Couple of q's......
1) Do you know anything about the availability of family housing at/by the school. I'm married with kids.
2) how close are most clinical rotations
3) how responsive have administration/teachers been when you had a question
4) is there any one thing you wish you had known before you picked debusk?
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1. Housing isn't too difficult to find in this area (and it's very cheap). Most of the available houses in this area will be posted on the site below but traditionally you won't see too many postings until mid-late May.
http://www.dcomdo.com/category/housing/

2. This is probably a question that current 2nd and 3rd years will be better suited to answer but below is a link (albeit dated) of some of the sites. The word is dcom is trying to add additional sites to the list so it will probably change by the time the C/O 2018 comes in.
http://www.lmunet.edu/dcom/academics/sites.shtml

3. The faculty here have an open door policy and they have been very good at enforcing it. I have been able to get my questions answered in a timely fashion. One good thing about dcom is that most of the faculty are very passionate about their jobs and they will do all they can to help.

4. One thing I wished I would have known was the difficulties that arose from all the new changes that were made. Within one year dcom had increased their class size, changed their curriculum, and hired a large amount of new faculty members (some of whom had never taught at a medical school before). I felt that the students did suffer as these changes were rapid and significant. However, I'm confident that these rough edges will be taken care of by the time the C/O 2018 comes in and it seems that these changes will be beneficial in the long run for both the students and the school.
 
High on my list.
3.76/3.72/31
Good luck everyone. Hopefully we all have successful cycles.
 
I am a part of the 2017 class. I would gladly answer any questions people have about the application process, interviews and anything I know up to my level of experience thus far with the school. Good luck with the application process, it is timely, mind consuming and requires a lot of patience, but when it is all done and you are accepted, it is a great feeling!!!
 
Heard this was a nice place, how's the town surrounding it? Also, any stupid rules like mandatory classes? Is it pass/fail?
 
Wow I can't believe it's this time of the year again (for a new class page). Rock on!
 
Shinobiz11 said:
Heard this was a nice place, how's the town surrounding it? Also, any stupid rules like mandatory classes? Is it pass/fail?
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I personally love the community, and I am from a big city (San Diego). I have a lot of friends outside of school that I have made from working out, etc. Also, housing is very cheap and you get a lot for your money. I bought my place (4 bedroom 2500 square foot on an acre for a very low price).

The town is small though but Knoxville is only an hour away.

Classes are optional and recorded. Labs and a few other random things are mandatory. We are graded (not pass/fail), which in my opinion is a very good thing. Every med student I talk to who comes from a true pass/fail school wishes they were graded.

I am just finishing my first year in a week so let me know if you guys have any questions.
 
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Buckeye1992 said:
High on my list.
3.76/3.72/31
Good luck everyone. Hopefully we all have successful cycles.
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Great stats, you should have no problem landing an interview at most DO schools in the country.
 
Why would anyone possibly want to be graded? Pass/fail would be the best thing ever.
 
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Atom bum said:
Why would anyone possibly want to be graded? Pass/fail would be the best thing ever.
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People wanting to be ranked or show all a's through med school for residency chase......gunnas gunna gun ;)
 
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I'm a Kentucky resident from the heart of Appalachia. I visited this school a few years ago and was highly impressed. I am going to apply this year or next.
 
Atom bum said:
Why would anyone possibly want to be graded? Pass/fail would be the best thing ever.
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I don't think you think through your posts very often. Go check out other schools' forums where they are on a pass/fail system and see how they actually feel about it. Very few schools are on a "true" pass fail btw. Most of them that claim to be pass/fail still rank via pass, high pass, honors, etc.

Pass/fail sounds great on the surface but there are some huge downfalls with it. For one it removes many students desire to truly excel (much like a communistic society sounds good in principle but would remove your desire to excel in reality). If you only have to pass there is less pressure to put forth 100% effort which may hurt you on the COMLEX/USMLE. Also, with a pass/fail there is one less measure for residency directors to gauge your performance (even though grades are farther down on the list, it is still nice to be able to prove you did more than the bare minimum). Also, how would you get evaluated for honors programs like Sigma Sigma Phi that have a GPA requirement (which actually is a big deal because it is one of the few things that is directly on the residency application "ERAS").

And to answer your question......most students who I talk to prefer to be graded. Those who want to do the bare minimum......maybe not so much.
 
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corpsman33 said:
For one it removes many students desire to truly excel (much like a communistic society sounds good in principle but would remove your desire to excel in reality). If you only have to pass there is less pressure to put forth 100% effort which may hurt you on the COMLEX/USMLE. Also, with a pass/fail there is one less measure for residency directors to gauge your performance (even though grades are farther down on the list, it is still nice to be able to prove you did more than the bare minimum).

And to answer your question......most students who I talk to prefer to be graded. Those who want to do the bare minimum......maybe not so much.
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I have to disagree with these statements. I've seen students who put in a tremendous amount of effort to succeed only to end up barely passing. I've also seen students who party frequently and still end up with a 3.0+. Just because a person is barely floating doesn't mean that they're not putting in 100% effort. You still have to factor in whether the student has a background in the subject, if they're more academically capable than others, if they have good test taking skills, etc. Furthermore being graded/ranked causes increased competition among students (which DCOM tries to discourage). The more competition there is, the more likely students are to withhold study guides and materials, refrain from tutoring others, and to use "gunner tactics" to get ahead of others.
 
itsokimadoctor said:
I have to disagree with these statements. I've seen students who put in a tremendous amount of effort to succeed only to end up barely passing. I've also seen students who party frequently and still end up with a 3.0+. Just because a person is barely floating doesn't mean that they're not putting in 100% effort. You still have to factor in whether the student has a background in the subject, if they're more academically capable than others, if they have good test taking skills, etc. Furthermore being graded/ranked causes increased competition among students (which DCOM tries to discourage). The more competition there is, the more likely students are to withhold study guides and materials, refrain from tutoring others, and to use "gunner tactics" to get ahead of others.
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LOL you can't be serious. Withhold study guides! During test week we get 20-30 study guides per day being sent out (and thats not an exaggeration). We get soo many study guides that it gets annoying and I typically avoid the class Facebook page during the test week.

Also, I agree that some students put forth minimum effort only to blow the tests away and others study 24/7 only to fail or barely pass. This has nothing to do with pass/fail or being graded, it is simply what happens in a testing environment. This doesn't mean that students shouldn't be evauated by their performances. Evaluations provide additional motivation to students to try harder.

Make no mistake, every person in medical school will be ranked and evaluated by their ability to take a test when they take the COMLEX/USMLE. Those same students who struggled to take tests during the first two years statistically don't do as well on this test. Does this mean that we should eliminate this test as well to equalize the playing field?

My point was that grading students simply provides an additional motivation factor to perform better, which will hopefully leave you better prepared for step 1.
 
corpsman33 said:
LOL you can't be serious. Withhold study guides! During test week we get 20-30 study guides per day being sent out (and thats not an exaggeration). We get soo many study guides that it gets annoying and I typically avoid the class Facebook page during the test week.

Also, I agree that some students put forth minimum effort only to blow the tests away and others study 24/7 only to fail or barely pass. This has nothing to do with pass/fail or being graded, it is simply what happens in a testing environment. This doesn't mean that students shouldn't be evauated by their performances. Evaluations provide additional motivation to students to try harder.

Make no mistake, every person in medical school will be ranked and evaluated by their ability to take a test when they take the COMLEX/USMLE. Those same students who struggled to take tests during the first two years statistically don't do as well on this test. Does this mean that we should eliminate this test as well to equalize the playing field?

My point was that grading students simply provides an additional motivation factor to perform better, which will hopefully leave you better prepared for step 1.
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I'm very serious. DCOM isn't your typical school when it comes to competition among students. This school tries to pick students who prefer a collaborative environment over a competitive one. Hence why you see so many study guides being posted. This can't be said for other schools.

I'm not saying that students shouldn't be evaluated on their performance, I'm saying that their dedication, effort, and work ethic should also be accounted for as a part of their performance.
 
corpsman33 said:
I don't think you think through your posts very often. Go check out other schools' forums where they are on a pass/fail system and see how they actually feel about it. Very few schools are on a "true" pass fail btw. Most of them that claim to be pass/fail still rank via pass, high pass, honors, etc.

Pass/fail sounds great on the surface but there are some huge downfalls with it. For one it removes many students desire to truly excel (much like a communistic society sounds good in principle but would remove your desire to excel in reality). If you only have to pass there is less pressure to put forth 100% effort which may hurt you on the COMLEX/USMLE. Also, with a pass/fail there is one less measure for residency directors to gauge your performance (even though grades are farther down on the list, it is still nice to be able to prove you did more than the bare minimum). Also, how would you get evaluated for honors programs like Sigma Sigma Phi that have a GPA requirement (which actually is a big deal because it is one of the few things that is directly on the residency application "ERAS").

And to answer your question......most students who I talk to prefer to be graded. Those who want to do the bare minimum......maybe not so much.
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Lol... Whatever dude. I could pick this apart piece by piece but I'm too tired. But just two things.... Sigma Sigma phi requires a 3.0. a3.0 is actually pretty easy to get especially when you consider the curve is set near a 3.0. Grades mean very little, people that are driven will have drive with our without grades.
Not having the stress of grades would make things so much better. When you get into spring semester of second year you might change your tune.
You have your opinion, it isn't the only opinion.

Think about your posts... Lol nice dude.
 
Sorry guys but I don't know why this debate is taking place here. You've already trashed nearly the entire first page of the 2013-2014 DCOM thread with an argument about P/F vs graded. It's entirely off topic. Please make a post in the osteopathic school section if you want to continue the debate. If you search you will find that the merits of each have been exhaustingly perused at length on SDN.

Good luck to all of the 2013-2014 applicants as you begin working on your applications. It's a long process and the sooner you get started the better! Many of us keep an eye on this thread to help you as that's entirely what its purpose it!

:luck:
 
CopToEM said:
Sorry guys but I don't know why this debate is taking place here. You've already trashed nearly the entire first page of the 2013-2014 DCOM thread with an argument about P/F vs graded. It's entirely off topic. Please make a post in the osteopathic school section if you want to continue the debate. If you search you will find that the merits of each have been exhaustingly perused at length on SDN.

Good luck to all of the 2013-2014 applicants as you begin working on your applications. It's a long process and the sooner you get started the better! Many of us keep an eye on this thread to help you as that's entirely what its purpose it!

:luck:
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Agreed. Sorry for contributing to the derailment.

For those of you just tuning in, LMU-DCOM is a great school with incredible opportunities. If you have any questions there are several students here who are more than happy to answer them for you.

Good Luck this cycle!
 
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I had a couple of questions for the current students.

Can you use interfolio to send out LOR? I did not see anywhere on their website that indicated this.
Does everyone get a secondary app? I won't be able to submit my primary until early August due to the MCAT and was thinking this would be a great place to get my foot in the door with the AACOMAS verification.
 
HowDidIGetHere said:
I had a couple of questions for the current students.

Can you use interfolio to send out LOR? I did not see anywhere on their website that indicated this.
Does everyone get a secondary app? I won't be able to submit my primary until early August due to the MCAT and was thinking this would be a great place to get my foot in the door with the AACOMAS verification.
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Interfolio is perfectly fine.

They request that everyone submit the secondary application. It's not just to get your money - it gives you two more opportunities to tell a bit about yourself. Try to look at it that way.

They will accept your secondary application as soon as you submit your primary. Don't wait for them send you a secondary invite like at other schools. The day you click submit on your primary you should already have your secondary completed and drop it in the mail. As soon as the school gets a piece of paper with your name on it they will start your file.

[EDIT]: A common thing every year is that you submit your secondary and then a month later you get an email asking you to complete a secondary invite. Don't panic. They probably got it but with 2,000 applications they end up sending some of these out that have already submitted. Please, please, please add delivery confirmation to anything you submit through US Mail.
 
CopToEM said:
Interfolio is perfectly fine.

They request that everyone submit the secondary application. It's not just to get your money - it gives you two more opportunities to tell a bit about yourself. Try to look at it that way.

They will accept your secondary application as soon as you submit your primary. Don't wait for them send you a secondary invite like at other schools. The day you click submit on your primary you should already have your secondary completed and drop it in the mail. As soon as the school gets a piece of paper with your name on it they will start your file.

[EDIT]: A common thing every year is that you submit your secondary and then a month later you get an email asking you to complete a secondary invite. Don't panic. They probably got it but with 2,000 applications they end up sending some of these out that have already submitted. Please, please, please add delivery confirmation to anything you submit through US Mail.
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Does the secondary change each year? Will it be online?
 
sb247 said:
Does the secondary change each year? Will it be online?
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Usually, no. Seems like last year it might have changed in the middle of the season though. The website says, "**NOTE: Supplemental applications for the 2014 application cycle will be available in June 2013." Keep an eye on the website.

I would go ahead and write responses to last year's questions in the event they don't change. If they don't then you're ready to roll and if they do no harm done - just write them again. Someone in the c/o 2017 thread (2012-2013 application cycle) can tell you what they were for sure.
 
I don't remember what the questions were but I can tell you that if you want to get the majority of your secondaries done then write up responses to LMU and RVU's secondary. Shouldn't be too much work to get the questions. With those you should be able to cut and paste everything you need with minor changes for each school.
 
Last year's secondary prompts:

1) In your own life, what experiences and/or people have inspired you to become an osteopathic physician and what personal qualities do you possess that will help you become a successful osteopathic physician?

2) Medical school requires a huge commitment in time and energy. How have you prepared for this commitment?

I'm an incoming first year and I'll try to help out in this thread as the application cycle progresses, especially once I make it to campus in the July and know more about the school.
 
If I submit my Primary in June to be verified, would it be okay to submit my secondary in July?

Edit: They don't even accept supplementary applications until July 1st, phew!
 
SFU said:
If I submit my Primary in June to be verified, would it be okay to submit my secondary in July?

Edit: They don't even accept supplementary applications until July 1st, phew!
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I don't believe it makes any difference whether you wait a month or two to submit a secondary. Especially here. Despite popular opinion on SDN I have never seen evidence (anecdotal or otherwise) that staggering information sent to schools has any negative impact on an application. Schools understand that students are typically broke. Some students will have the financial support to submit everything quickly and some students will not. Your file is complete when it's complete. And when it's complete it will be given to the admissions committee for review.

I don't recommend anyone take the admissions process lightly. However, with that said, the less stressed out you get about the process and the minute details the more successful you will be. DCOM is a very laid back school and will want to see the same friendliness and happiness in you! I will say this a dozen times on here this year I'm sure but it's true - this is the most laid back interview you will have in your life. I had job interviews for minimum wage jobs that were more stressful. :)
 
Holy crap. I completely missed this thread opening up!! Now I feel super old.

Good luck to everyone applying this year. I'm an upcoming second year, so feel free to ask me any questions you have while I bask in the glory of being back in civilization. :smuggrin:
 
3.7 cGPA, 3.6 sGPA, 26 MCAT
From Ohio
Hoping for some love
 
Applying here this cycle! I have family all over the area and would love to be in TN!! Good luck everyone!!
 
Recently toured here (last week). LMU was my number one choice prior to touring. It is my absolute number once choice now. The environment is top notch. They go out of their way to make sure the students are very well prepared and educated. The simulation centers are 100% accurate (I am a registered nurse) to the hospital, even down to the 'hospital' smell. I will be applying here in July and I hope to get in!

My only question is to they accept anyone prior to October? I looked back at last years thread and a couple more years prior, looking at the dates that students have gotten acceptance letters and could not form a solid answer.

Also about the pizza gathering prior to interview, do these take place after going through that insanely long tunnel into KY?

Also this is for someone that lives in the LMU apartments. How are they? I have been unable to find solid reviews on these. I live about 130 miles away from campus (Chattanooga) and I am single.

Thanks! Wish me luck! (Stressed already!)
 
Waggy said:
Recently toured here (last week). LMU was my number one choice prior to touring. It is my absolute number once choice now. The environment is top notch. They go out of their way to make sure the students are very well prepared and educated. The simulation centers are 100% accurate (I am a registered nurse) to the hospital, even down to the 'hospital' smell. I will be applying here in July and I hope to get in!

My only question is to they accept anyone prior to October? I looked back at last years thread and a couple more years prior, looking at the dates that students have gotten acceptance letters and could not form a solid answer.

Also about the pizza gathering prior to interview, do these take place after going through that insanely long tunnel into KY?

Also this is for someone that lives in the LMU apartments. How are they? I have been unable to find solid reviews on these. I live about 130 miles away from campus (Chattanooga) and I am single.

Thanks! Wish me luck! (Stressed already!)
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I was in the second interview week the year I interviewed and accepted October 7th or so. I would imagine others were accepted right at the end of September.

The pizza gathering, as of now, is at Gondolier Italian Restaurant. It's right next to the school. This may change before the next cycle begins. Yes, it's worth your time to go to it. No, it won't harm you AT ALL if you don't. This isn't something that's setup by admissions - it's setup by the SOMA Club which is a student-ran organization. Admissions has no idea who is there and no one takes attendance.

I'll let someone else speak specifically about The Inn since I don't live there. I will tell you the consensus is no-fuss, convenient, but relatively expensive in comparison to living with roommates in a rental home. It has a pool, they just tripled the size of the gym and are about to purchase new equipment, and they opened a lounge/bar inside recently for us to unwind.

Hope that helps!
 
Sorry I answered my own question on the acceptance date. Its 9/1/13 for future reference.
 
Waggy said:
Recently toured here (last week). LMU was my number one choice prior to touring. It is my absolute number once choice now. The environment is top notch. They go out of their way to make sure the students are very well prepared and educated. The simulation centers are 100% accurate (I am a registered nurse) to the hospital, even down to the 'hospital' smell. I will be applying here in July and I hope to get in!

My only question is to they accept anyone prior to October? I looked back at last years thread and a couple more years prior, looking at the dates that students have gotten acceptance letters and could not form a solid answer.

Also about the pizza gathering prior to interview, do these take place after going through that insanely long tunnel into KY?

Also this is for someone that lives in the LMU apartments. How are they? I have been unable to find solid reviews on these. I live about 130 miles away from campus (Chattanooga) and I am single.

Thanks! Wish me luck! (Stressed already!)
Click to expand...

I was accepted in September.
 
Waggy said:
Recently toured here (last week). LMU was my number one choice prior to touring. It is my absolute number once choice now. The environment is top notch. They go out of their way to make sure the students are very well prepared and educated. The simulation centers are 100% accurate (I am a registered nurse) to the hospital, even down to the 'hospital' smell. I will be applying here in July and I hope to get in!

My only question is to they accept anyone prior to October? I looked back at last years thread and a couple more years prior, looking at the dates that students have gotten acceptance letters and could not form a solid answer.

Also about the pizza gathering prior to interview, do these take place after going through that insanely long tunnel into KY?

Also this is for someone that lives in the LMU apartments. How are they? I have been unable to find solid reviews on these. I live about 130 miles away from campus (Chattanooga) and I am single.

Thanks! Wish me luck! (Stressed already!)
Click to expand...

I was also accepted in September.

As far as the Inn goes, I think it's great for first year to meet people. The kitchen space kind of sucks so if you cook, that will get on your nerves. They're just your standard university apartments, nothing really special about them. Except for the 3am fire alarms...

And I'm in Chattanooga as well. What a coincidence.
 
Since LMU is a newer school, how well established are their rotation sites? I know thats one of the reasons people tend to shy away from newer schools
 
O Grady said:
Since LMU is a newer school, how well established are their rotation sites? I know thats one of the reasons people tend to shy away from newer schools
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Most of them are unchanged from the first class. They add new ones just about every year but the bulk of them are pretty established at this point. There are the usual hiccups with sending 225 students out into the world but overall the third years don't seem to have gross complaints. I have heard of isolated cases where students have not had a rotation at their site for a particular specialty because the preceptor is on vacation and he's the only [X] specialist for 60 miles. You just adapt and work around those things when they happen. Every school in the nation has rotation problems - I don't care who it is :)
 
DrMaximus said:
I've heard more good than bad. But I know noting directly about them. Can we get a third or fourth year in here?
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Not a third year yet, but rotations have consistently been one of the biggest complaints I hear from my fellow 2nd years.
CopToEM said:
Every school in the nation has rotation problems - I don't care who it is :)
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Yeah.. Pretty much this. I think it is pretty safe to assume that people in state MD schools that are affiliated with a large university hospital probably have it easier, but most DO students have a similar situation where you pretty much have to fend for yourself.
On the one hand this creates nice opportunities to do rotations pretty much anywhere, on the other hand it can be scary/stressful to have to setup most of your own stuff. The rotation coordinators do their best to help but currently we only have 2 people for several hundred students.
More are being hired though, so you increased class size classes shouldn't worry too much.
 
DrMaximus said:
I was also accepted in September.
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i'm taking my mcat in july and won't get my scores until mid-august. would this make me too late for this school if they give out acceptances in september? I'm going to try my best to pre-write secondaries so all I'll have to do is submit them once I receive the secondary.
 
I'm in...gonna be applying here
 
PinkMelon said:
i'm taking my mcat in july and won't get my scores until mid-august. would this make me too late for this school if they give out acceptances in september? I'm going to try my best to pre-write secondaries so all I'll have to do is submit them once I receive the secondary.
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I took my MCAT in July and was accepted in September despite not having pre-written my secondaries. They accept people through May, so taking the MCAT in July will in no way put you at a disadvantage.
 
corpsman33 said:
I took my MCAT in July and was accepted in September despite not having pre-written my secondaries. They accept people through May, so taking the MCAT in July will in no way put you at a disadvantage.
Click to expand...

DrMaximus said:
I also took the MCAT mid-July and was accepted in September. I wouldn't worry about it.
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ah okay this makes me feel ten times better!
 
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