Current first year here. I’m replying to these posts not to argue with the posters, but to give more information to others reading the thread and considering the school. It’s okay if it’s not a good fit for some and you want to go somewhere else.
Interviewed today. One of the deans spoke with us and was super OMM obsessed. It was weird.
Not sure why you thought it was weird to hear about OMM at a DO program. Also, I can’t think of any deans known for being “super OMM obsessed” so it can’t be that crazy. We do 50 mins lecture in OPP and 90 mins lab in OPP per week.
How did you feel about the school?
I did not have time to visit the research building during interview. It seems that they have started to do some real research.
Did the dean talk about the international visits, etc? I actually really enjoy this as in many countries abroad there will be more hands on experience .
My biggest concern about here is the 2 month assigned rural rotation. I do not hate rotating in rural areas. I just would like to do this not during the audition season. It seems to be fine with a lot of students but I just feel that we should be respected as adults and have choices open to us rather than pushing these requirements onto us as arrangements, feeling like we are middle school kids.
The M1 and M2 students did not seem to especially enjoy the curriculum for preclinical years. I think that 6 people/cadaver with 2 sections meaning 12 people/cadaver is way too much. The facility at OMM lab and anatomy lab seem to be less well maintained than most other med schools I have visited (MSUCOM, KCU-Joplin, PCOM, etc.). But this might be due to the hurricane, which is quite understandable.
An M2 student told me that Broward hospital is their teaching hospital, which I am sort of suspicious about how closely they relate. Their opti is not bad though.
A major concern is how the new MD school will influence the current DO program. The dean said that the focus of the MD school is research, and why... Why not open more PhD programs for research instead of MD?
I wonder any one else has any comments on this... I really appreciate any and all advice!
I agree that the biggest negative is the required rural rotations. From what I understand it comes down to luck?? if you have to do them during golden audition time or if you do them later in 4th year.
Cadavers are 2 groups of 5, 10 total. I promise there’s enough work to go around if you want it. Also, inevitably some people in the group aren’t super psyched to cut and you can do even more.
I haven’t seen gross anatomy labs at the 3 schools you mentioned, but I have literally zero complaints about our lab facilities and I have no idea what you’re talking about. Was there a glove on the floor or something? We have an amazing ventilation system, helpful prosections, models, plenty of space, instructors and fellows circulating, lockers, locker rooms, and anything else you would need from an anatomy lab.
MSU also has an MD and a DO program. They seem to get along just fine. I’m not worried about it at all. There are several healthcare programs in the HPD (health profession division) and I love having them all.
As for the curriculum, it’s grueling. But that’s just medical school. I don’t have any specific complaints. Just be ready to work hard.
Hey! So they actually didn't take us to see the research building during the tour. Research does seem to be a pro for this school, though, even without the new building...lots of the faculty mentioned being involved in research and said there were definitely opportunities for students to jump in.
The main dean actually wasn't there today so we had another dean speak to us. They did touch a bit on the opportunities to go abroad..I agree that this is a cool option to have, but it's something I think most schools have so it doesn't particularly impress me.
I am also super concerned about the rural rotation thing. I would be super pissed if I ended up having those scheduled during the "golden months" for auditions. Also, I'm not particularly interested in rural medicine and NSU requires 3 rotations, which seems a bit overkill to me. There are no electives in the 3rd year as far as I know and they require 3 months of fam med, which also seems like a lot.
They are heavily affiliated with Broward, but it doesn't mean you will get matched to that site. They have a lottery system and it's kind of totally randomized. So...I guess the relationship is a pro, but who knows whether you will actually benefit from it.
Not sure about how the DO school will be affected by the MD one. The people who spoke today said it will only be a positive thing and open up more doors, but what else can they say? South FL has a severe shortage of clinical rotation spots since there are so many schools in that one area and they bring in Carrib students here too. My main concern is that the "better" sites will start going to the MD students.
Not everyone wants to stay in south FL for rotations. I know I don’t. The lottery doesn’t randomly assign you to places you don’t want to be. You submit your preferences, and the order they fill the slots is a lottery of names. Potentially everyone could get their first choices if everyone wanted different sites.