It seems like you have already made up your mind about TTU-El Paso, so I doubt that anything anyone says here will make a difference, but I will take a shot.
It is ironic to me that in subsequent points you say that a place not having enough research is a con, indicating that research is something that is important to you and then the very next point you make is to say that the school requiring a research project is also a con. That doesn't seem to make sense to me. University Medical Center has been around for ages and there is all kinds of research being done over there. I don't know what kind of research specifically you are interested in, but odds are it's happeneing over there. The reason it hasn't gotten a lot of publicity is because there was not a medical school associated with it, and now that there is, I expect that a lot of the research recognition will take off. There is also a whole building next to the Medical Education Building called the Medical Sciences Building, which you will tour at your interview, wherer they are developing four National Centers of Excellence. One in Infectious Diseases, Breast Cancer, Diabetes, and another one that I can't remember. There is a certain level of productivity you have to maintain to reach Center of Excellence Standards, so should be able to find something that interests you.
I disagree with your assessment that being at a place where you see strange cases somehow excludes you from seeing normal cases. The cases wouldn't be normal if you didn't see them everywhere, so the great thing about UMC is that you see BOTH the normal and the strange cases.
It is going to take a special group of people to take the chance on the school, some people put more value in upper classmen and history than what the curriculum and the faculty have to offer them, so those people immediately decide not to come out here. That's something that you have to decide on your own.
The other thing you will find at different interviews is that you get a different feeling at each place and you really don't know if you belong some place until you actually go there. I had some of the same feelings you do. I grew up in Dallas and moving out here was the last thing I ever thought I would do, but then I came out here and the faculty was great (I know that doesn't count as a PRO, but it's true), the curriculum was the best of all the places I'd been to (Except maybe BCM's 1.5 year basic science, but they don't really have a teaching hospital right now, so who knows what's up there), and I just felt really at home here. You won't know unless you come out here, so I hope you will at least give it a chance unless you have major financial or time reasons not to. You won't know unless you come to the interview.
The curriculum and the faculty are the two big reasons I came out here. I know you arbitrarily decided these don't count, but I will expand on them just a little to offer what, in my opinion, are the biggest Pros to come out here. The curriculum is designed to provide you with clinical applications from Day 1. It helps you connect what you are learning in your basic science classes to the work you do in the clinic, OR, etc. from the very beginning. Learning all of the Biochem, Microbiology, Immunology, Anatomy associated with a presentation makes it very easy to make connections between the subjects. The lectured are coordinated to build on one another from subject to subject and the faculty are ALWAYS available for questions and extra study sessions and any kind of help you may need.
You will see on your interview, which I sincerely hope you take the time to attend, the awesome Simulation Center and Standarized Patient facility which is better than any other school in the state of Texas, because it is brand new. We have a class in the facility every week where we learn what takes place in a clinical or surgical setting with either standardized patients (actors who help us learn the ins and outs of providing clinical care) or the simulators.
We also do a lot of work in the community where we go out to the community clinics to get hands on interaction with real doctors and real patients once a month. This is a great experience and most of the doctors are really interested in being a part of our education.
That's all I want to say right now, but if you have questions, I'll be happy to answer them.
Either ways, now that I have interviewed... I know a little bit more and can say a little bit more. I also interviewed at some other places as well, so I can compare... but no expert!
- Yes, getting the interview is an Honor, I never said it wasn't, but I am poor... and I suppose I was trying to find an excuse which at the moment, finances overruled going, but later... realized the stupidity.
*Disclaimer blurb - Being new to this forum, I did not think every nitty-gritty detail of how I phrased anything would be taken in to consideration... considering i wrote the cons list pretty quickly. So, I have to put a disclaimer now, that what I write is MY opinion... I previously asked for PROs for the school, I really wanted to see what other people thought. Maybe I should have left out the whole interview thing, etc... etc... and I was being harsh, because I was playing devil's advocate.
Yes, now that I look at the cons list... I can see the "Irony" or contradiction as stated by canjosh...
Of course, what I meant was:
- The Research is not as well developed there... Their Centers for Excellence is not by any means a Center as I would have seen as in a whole accumulation of several departments with hundreds of faculty. But this is understandable as the school is new! There is certainly a lot of potential! But it is not UTSW, UTH, UTSA, or BCM YET.... so that's the thing... YET, I am going NOW and I do consider Research important. Sure, the school has Much Much potential, no denying.
- The special project.... from what I understood from the interview, I could be Wrong. Is basically anything you want. It just has to be a project! It could be a book, etc.... So it's not a research project, unless you want it to be. Either ways, I want to do research... but I do not want to be forced. UTSA has the MD with focus on research, it's optional.
- Hmmm... the El Paso, TX population is not the norm. Yes, you will see norm patients.
- Regarding BCM and the teaching hospital issue. BCM and Methodist had their fallout, true... I am hearing that they are getting remarried because Cornell is just too far away, etc etc... and BCM building their own teaching hospital might not have worked out so well, but saying BCM doesn't have a teaching hospital is definitely misleading. BCM students go to Ben Taub, St Lukes, Meninger, Hermann (even though it's UT-H's "Teaching hospital"), and tons of other hospitals.
- Regarding the simulation center, you should tell that to a UTSA med student and I highly doubt they will agree to TT-El Paso's sim center to be Texas' best.
- PBL, just not for me... But great for others!
- But after the interview, Yes... the environment was very nice. The mood was good and the faculty/students were very enthusiastic! It was a very optimistic and positive mood! Which I did like. Obviously, the student to faculty ratio is a Big Plus. The faculty seem to be very friendly.
- But all in all, most of my cons, even after the interview still stand... objectively, this will be the last medical school in the match list in Texas, "IF accepted Anywhere. Not because the school doesn't have the potential to be great nor because it's a bad school or anything, it's just not there Yet. It's a good school no doubt. I think it's far better than some out of state schools I have interviewed thus far. But the Texas medical schools are just overwhelmingly all very good.
