PNWU Rotation Site - Portland, OR

[Low Flow]

Does anyone on here happen to be familiar with the Portland rotation site associated with PNWU? I was just wondering which hospitals/areas they send you to. Are they actually in Portland or are they in tiny towns outlying the city?

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[Bones 2020]

I'm not sure about PNW, but I know West-COMP rotates at Legacy and Providence, all of which are large lvl 2 centers in the Portland area (not small cities).

 

[NamesNotBill]

Does anyone on here happen to be familiar with the Portland rotation site associated with PNWU? I was just wondering which hospitals/areas they send you to. Are they actually in Portland or are they in tiny towns outlying the city?

Did you ever find out about the rotations sites?

 

[aspiringmd96]

I wish there was more information on this.

 

[Low Flow]

Did you ever find out about the rotations sites?

Yeah I ended up rotating in Yakima for third year, so I can't comment first-hand on the Portland site. From what I've heard though, it's not great. We only send ~5 students out of 135 to that site and it requires a decent amount of driving (most rotations are not in Portland proper, but suburbs like Gresham). As you can imagine, there is lots of competition in that area (OHSU, COMP-NW), so that makes it hard for PNWU to find many rotations. I'm not sure if we have students rotate through the major hospitals in the area or if it's just surrounding clinics (haven't talked to the people that are this site).

That being said, you can still live in Portland and just spend more time driving if that's better than the alternative of going to another site. Keep in mind though that unless you're from Portland or a nearby city, you likely won't have enough "points" when it comes time to assign third-year rotation sites.

 

[punk101]

Yeah I ended up rotating in Yakima for third year, so I can't comment first-hand on the Portland site. From what I've heard though, it's not great. We only send ~5 students out of 135 to that site and it requires a decent amount of driving (most rotations are not in Portland proper, but suburbs like Gresham). As you can imagine, there is lots of competition in that area (OHSU, COMP-NW), so that makes it hard for PNWU to find many rotations. I'm not sure if we have students rotate through the major hospitals in the area or if it's just surrounding clinics (haven't talked to the people that are this site).

That being said, you can still live in Portland and just spend more time driving if that's better than the alternative of going to another site. Keep in mind though that unless you're from Portland or a nearby city, you likely won't have enough "points" when it comes time to assign third-year rotation sites.

I am from NY and I got accepted at PNWU. I would like to rotate in NY so I can find residency here. Is that feasible or has anyone done that you know of? How is the quality of rotation sites? I see only negative feedbacks.

Thank you.

 

[Steve_Zissou]

I am from NY and I got accepted at PNWU. I would like to rotate in NY so I can find residency here. Is that feasible or has anyone done that you know of? How is the quality of rotation sites? I see only negative feedbacks.

Thank you.

These are the regional sites according to their website.

Clinical Education :: PNWU

Sounds like you rotate from one of those places as your home site then can do away rotations in NY for a few if you want. Someone else can confirm.

They put out their match list yet?

 

[heychloe]

I would like to rotate in NY so I can find residency here. Is that feasible or has anyone done that you know of? How is the quality of rotation sites? I see only negative feedbacks.

You can easily do your entire 4th year in NY if you are well connected and can set up your own rotations. As for 3rd year, the rule is that you can't go out of site unless the site can't provide a specific core. However in reality, you probably can do OBGyn or Peds out of site since those are the cores we are short on. You could push for more if you are assigned to a (****ty)site that are not well established.
As for quality, it's widely variable depending on the site.

They put out their match list yet?

No.

 

[punk101]

You can easily do your entire 4th year in NY if you are well connected and can set up your own rotations. As for 3rd year, the rule is that you can't go out of site unless the site can't provide a specific core. However in reality, you probably can do OBGyn or Peds out of site since those are the cores we are short on. You could push for more if you are assigned to a (****ty)site that are not well established.
As for quality, it's widely variable depending on the site.


No.

So, if I want to rotate in NY, I am on my own? Does school provide any support? I have no connections. How do I find rotation sites?

 

[punk101]

As out-of-state student, will I have to move a lot during rotation? That's the impression I got during interview.

 

[heychloe]

So, if I want to rotate in NY, I am on my own? Does school provide any support? I have no connections. How do I find rotation sites?

No support for NY b/c we don't have site there. The most you can get is $300 housing subsidy only if you are going out of site because the school can't provide you cores. Since you don't have connection, you can't do 3rd year in NY. As for 4th year, you can set up a lot of visiting student rotations via VSAS(VRSO) or through internal programs of teaching hospitals. Once you are there, you could ask random doctors if they could take you for 2 weeks here and there. Won't be easy tho.

As out-of-state student, will I have to move a lot during rotation? That's the impression I got during interview.

Not necessarily. For class of 2018, Alaska was very competitive while for class of 2019 nobody wanted to go to Alaska, so it would have been up for grabs for out of region student. Alaska is considered a good site in terms of clinical rotation qualities. However, whether you are out of region or not, what's a 'good' rotation site or 'bad' is shifting rapidly because we have at least 3 new medical school taking our sites and even school from far away are doing better at setting up hospital affiliations in our region than we do. New med schools are in Eastern Washington, Idaho, and another one popping up in Alaska.

 

[punk101]

How does fourth year rotation work? Do we need to do core rotations at PNWU affiliated or can I chose to do it elsewhere along with electives?

How much does where you do your rotations in 3rd and 4th year determine where you will get your residency? I want to eventually end up doing residency somewhere in NY. So, if I cannot do my rotations in NY, what is my chances of landing residency in NY?

 

[heychloe]

How does fourth year rotation work? Do we need to do core rotations at PNWU affiliated or can I chose to do it elsewhere along with electives?

You don't HAVE to do 4th year at affiliated sites. But if you want anything other than what they hand you, you need to arrange it yourself, either by VSAS, a residency's own visiting student program, or personl connections.
Graduation requirement for 4th year is 4wk EM, 10 wk IM, 10wk Surgery, 16wk elective.

How much does where you do your rotations in 3rd and 4th year determine where you will get your residency? I want to eventually end up doing residency somewhere in NY. So, if I cannot do my rotations in NY, what is my chances of landing residency in NY?

The quality of your 3rd year core rotation could in theory affect how well you perform on the Sub-internship. Other than that, I dunno if programs look into where your 3rd year rotations are.
I don't know how geographically competitive NY is. If you have stellar board score, and have connections to the region(grew up in NY, family in NY), it may not matter a whole lot. But it really depends on programs and specialty you want. Some programs favor students who's done a SubI there, while some could only see you as disappointment if you are better on paper than in person. Its a double edged sword.

I want IM residency in one of the most competitive regions in US. My board is decent but not stellar. So I have 4 SubI scheduled outside the school's territory

 

[punk101]

You don't HAVE to do 4th year at affiliated sites. But if you want anything other than what they hand you, you need to arrange it yourself, either by VSAS, a residency's own visiting student program, or personl connections.
Graduation requirement for 4th year is 4wk EM, 10 wk IM, 10wk Surgery, 16wk elective.





The quality of your 3rd year core rotation could in theory affect how well you perform on the Sub-internship. Other than that, I dunno if programs look into where your 3rd year rotations are.
I don't know how geographically competitive NY is. If you have stellar board score, and have connections to the region(grew up in NY, family in NY), it may not matter a whole lot. But it really depends on programs and specialty you want. Some programs favor students who's done a SubI there, while some could only see you as disappointment if you are better on paper than in person. Its a double edged sword.

I want IM residency in one of the most competitive regions in US. My board is decent but not stellar. So I have 4 SubI scheduled outside the school's territory

For now I am thinking IM or EM and it can be any hospitals in NYC. I am NY resident.

 

[punk101]

I have been accepted at PNWU and waitlisted at Touro-Harlem. The admission director told me I will be offered seat for sure (100%) by the end of the month. I have created pros and cons for both schools. Any advice would be helpful.

Touro (NY)

Pros: 
 1. City, more opportunities, diverse


2. 
Closer to family

/family support 
3. 
Rotations in NYC metro area during 3rd and 4th year so most likely won’t have to move at all. 

4. Better chance to get residency in NY. 


Cons: 
 1. Expensive living cost if live close to school but rent now is cheap (not in school area) 2. Commute to/from school (about 40 to hr by bus one way) 

3. Maybe less supportive administrator (seems like) because there was some issues back in 2016/17 with over acceptance. Staffs responsible were all fired though. 

4. Lower 1st attempt board passing rate but increasing yearly. 



PNWU (Yakima)
Pros: 

1. 
Lower living cost, Cheaper housing, nice weather

 2. Maybe better study environment because of less distractions

3. Seems like more supportive administration. 

4. Above average 1st attempt board passing rate.


Cons: 

1. Far from home, less support, moving to different state

 2. Most likely need to move during 3rd and 4th year rotations to different places/states. 

3. Rural area so less opportunities, school mostly primary care focused.

 4. Not so good rotation quality (mixed reactions). Also losing some sites to other medical schools.

Please correct me if I have facts wrong.

 

[heychloe]

I don't know much about Touro but your assessment of PNWU seems on point.
Sounds like you have a strong attachment to NY.
If going back to NY is your biggest priority, it makes sense to go to school in NY.
I know some residency program directors will start their screening process by looking at the graduates of nearby schools first.
They all want someone who will be happy in their respective region.

But if you want to venture out to unfamiliar territory, the greater Seattle area and the cascade is really pretty.
Maybe you'll like it here.
Yakima is a bit more of a desert, but it is really great for studying. I don't think I could have done as well on boards if I had a 1hr commute in the city with all its distractions.
However, PNWU is a OPP-heavy institution also gives very little time for dedicated.
They are given 2 weeks 'board prep' in May where the systems is finished but they still bother you with Clin Skills, OPP, Comdoc. Then you have 4-5 weeks of 'vacation' to study AND move to your clinical locations. And because they have a strong stance on 'you don't need to take STEP1' they are not very supportive with it; don't ask them questions about Step because their advice may misdirect you. (Our board prep advisor, a nice and charming man, will tell you that the school preps you well for the boards and discourages the use of FirstAid) So if Touro give you guys more time to prep for Step, it may make up for all the commuting time or distractions.

 

[punk101]

I don't know much about Touro but your assessment of PNWU seems on point.
Sounds like you have a strong attachment to NY.
If going back to NY is your biggest priority, it makes sense to go to school in NY.
I know some residency program directors will start their screening process by looking at the graduates of nearby schools first.
They all want someone who will be happy in their respective region.

But if you want to venture out to unfamiliar territory, the greater Seattle area and the cascade is really pretty.
Maybe you'll like it here.
Yakima is a bit more of a desert, but it is really great for studying. I don't think I could have done as well on boards if I had a 1hr commute in the city with all its distractions.
However, PNWU is a OPP-heavy institution also gives very little time for dedicated.
They are given 2 weeks 'board prep' in May where the systems is finished but they still bother you with Clin Skills, OPP, Comdoc. Then you have 4-5 weeks of 'vacation' to study AND move to your clinical locations. And because they have a strong stance on 'you don't need to take STEP1' they are not very supportive with it; don't ask them questions about Step because their advice may misdirect you. (Our board prep advisor, a nice and charming man, will tell you that the school preps you well for the boards and discourages the use of FirstAid) So if Touro give you guys more time to prep for Step, it may make up for all the commuting time or distractions.

Thank you for your quick reply. I really liked the school area and would love to adventure because I like outdoor activities. And sunny weather 365 days is awesome. I do not know a single person around there. For now, I eventually want to live in NY for residency and maybe after that, but that could always change.

Is there scholarship opportunities? Or any medical mission programs? Or community service events at PNWU?

Do students mostly share rooms or do most of them usually have their own family?

 

[punk101]

Any Touro-harlem students want to answer as well?

 

[heychloe]

Thank you for your quick reply. I really liked the school area and would love to adventure because I like outdoor activities. And sunny weather 365 days is awesome. I do not know a single person around there. For now, I eventually want to live in NY for residency and maybe after that, but that could always change.

Is there scholarship opportunities? Or any medical mission programs? Or community service events at PNWU?

Do students mostly share rooms or do most of them usually have their own family?

Yes, yes, yes.
Share rooms or live alone in nearby apartment