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Good luck to everyone applying this cycle!
2018-2019 William Carey University College of Osteopathic Medicine (WCUCOM)
- Thread starter chizledfrmstone
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4th year student here. Feel free to ask questions of me or others about experiences, quality of education and our overall match competitiveness. Best of luck in the up coming cycle and may you select a school that is best for you.
Mind posting the secondary prompts?Thanks!
The mission of the William Carey University College of Osteopathic Medicine (WCUCOM)
is to prepare men and women to become osteopathic physicians through an emphasis on
primary care, lifelong learning, research and scholarly activities, and service, including
osteopathic clinical service and graduate medical education. Using a community-based
training model, the COM will educate and train graduates who are committed to serving the
healthcare needs of all individuals, with special attention directed to the medically
underserved and diverse populations of the state, region, and nation.
In the space below (not to exceed 500 words), please explain how your ambitions and career
plans will help WCUCOM fulfill this mission.
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Hi there!
I received an interview invitation this morning and I'm very excited!!! (First interview ever!). I'm curious about your personal experience with the school, what are some of your likes and dislikes?
How to you feel about the availability of the instructors and quality of education?
How much "hands-on" learning/clinical exposure did you have during your first and second year?
How is the match competitiveness? Do you see a lot of your class mates matching successfully?
Finally, what are some of the things you enjoy about the area? How much free time do you have in a typical week?
Thanks!
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Hi! Congrats on your interview invite! Can I ask if you ever received a complete e-mail before the invite?
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Thanks! After submitting my secondary, I received confirmation they receive it, then the invite in a short email exactly a week later. Good luck!
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1) Available of educators wide open.
2)Quality of ed? Needs serious improvement but hey I and others made it, just doesnt prep you for boards.
3)Not sure what you mean by hands on.
4) The match is very competitive. Last year the match was not very friendly to us. About half were able to match without soap or scramble. Many had to settle on another field not their first choice.
5) hattiesburg is a small town, never a favorite but the weather is great and there are a few good places to grab a bite and have a nice cold beer.
6) i always had at least 1 day off every week on average. Not too bad.
Hope that helps
What interview dates did they offer you?
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Same day for me
It took one day from receiving my secondary to my application becoming complete. I would call them to make sure they have all of your necessary documents. The admissions office is very helpful.
II today! Only given one date as well, August 20th. Secondary was complete and under review July 8th. Think they'll be lenient with rescheduling? I am in a graduate program and will have class so working something out may be a challenge.
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Congrats on the II. How were you complete and under review August 16th? . Just got the complete and under review email minutes ago
WCUCOM_OMS_Student
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Current second-year student here to answer any questions so ask away. Also, classes start in a week, so after that, I won't be checking this as often but will do my best!....
How do you feel about the availability of the instructors and quality of education?
Availability
It's a smaller school and as such the faculty is small in number and you will get to know them quickly if you make an effort. If you really need to reach them they are available. Most of them hang out in their offices with the door open so you can just pop in whenever and talk. There were two I remember from last year that were never on campus so it was hard to track them down, but the rest were very accommodating.
Quality
FWIW: I have not taken a full board exam, however, I did start prep this summer and have done the Kapan USMLE review course, about 2000 questions, and a full-length test. In addition, I've been using pathoma and first aid. Some of this was over my head (like Pharm, some Micro, and some Path) because we have yet to cover it in class (that will be covered this year), but I can say what I learned from the first year was relevant and I felt prepared on that subject material.
How much "hands-on" learning/clinical exposure did you have during your first and second year?
Again, I can't speak for the second year just yet (hasn't started), but the first year we do a fair amount of hands-on clinical training in our "Doctoring Skills" class. No real patients, just the odd-looking robot dummy, and some standardized actor patients. They did a good job last year of integrating the clinical training in with our curriculum, so for example when we covered respiratory in phys, histo, and biochem, we learned how to perform and interpret spirometer testing; for cardio we did ekg leads, readings and ultrasounding of the chest, etc. For your final test in Doctoring Skills, you will have to perform a full physical examination, and by that point, you won't know how to treat, but you should at least be able to recognize what isn't normal and feel comfortable and confident when examining someone.
How is the match competitiveness? Do you see a lot of your classmates matching successfully?
I haven't gone through this, but I did go to last year's graduation ceremony to support some friends. During graduation, they say where they are going for residency training and what specialty. The percentage breakdown was basically on par with the national average. Lots of primary care (FM, IM, OBGYN, Peds), a couple of gen surgs, a couple of specialized. Not too bad, but not ridiculous, like Johns Hopkins or Stanford where over half the class is going into something crazy specialized. Regardless of how people did it, they were still going somewhere after graduating.
Finally, what are some of the things you enjoy about the area? How much free time do you have in a typical week?
Hattiesburg is not a small place or a big place. About 50,000 people? There's enough here where you can go do something if you want, like nice walking trail, a few restaurants and bars, etc. Also, some neat small town stuff like a farmer's market and gatherings in the park, but nothing like a bigger place such as LA or Houston.
Not really a whole lot of free time. I didn't have any days off, but I did go out a few times after exams with my classmates. The first year is a load. I always felt behind, but after it was over and I started to board prep I was surprised by how much I learned because it didn't feel like I was going to be able to retain everything that was thrown at me.
How do you feel about the availability of the instructors and quality of education?
Availability
It's a smaller school and as such the faculty is small in number and you will get to know them quickly if you make an effort. If you really need to reach them they are available. Most of them hang out in their offices with the door open so you can just pop in whenever and talk. There were two I remember from last year that were never on campus so it was hard to track them down, but the rest were very accommodating.
Quality
FWIW: I have not taken a full board exam, however, I did start prep this summer and have done the Kapan USMLE review course, about 2000 questions, and a full-length test. In addition, I've been using pathoma and first aid. Some of this was over my head (like Pharm, some Micro, and some Path) because we have yet to cover it in class (that will be covered this year), but I can say what I learned from the first year was relevant and I felt prepared on that subject material.
How much "hands-on" learning/clinical exposure did you have during your first and second year?
Again, I can't speak for the second year just yet (hasn't started), but the first year we do a fair amount of hands-on clinical training in our "Doctoring Skills" class. No real patients, just the odd-looking robot dummy, and some standardized actor patients. They did a good job last year of integrating the clinical training in with our curriculum, so for example when we covered respiratory in phys, histo, and biochem, we learned how to perform and interpret spirometer testing; for cardio we did ekg leads, readings and ultrasounding of the chest, etc. For your final test in Doctoring Skills, you will have to perform a full physical examination, and by that point, you won't know how to treat, but you should at least be able to recognize what isn't normal and feel comfortable and confident when examining someone.
How is the match competitiveness? Do you see a lot of your classmates matching successfully?
I haven't gone through this, but I did go to last year's graduation ceremony to support some friends. During graduation, they say where they are going for residency training and what specialty. The percentage breakdown was basically on par with the national average. Lots of primary care (FM, IM, OBGYN, Peds), a couple of gen surgs, a couple of specialized. Not too bad, but not ridiculous, like Johns Hopkins or Stanford where over half the class is going into something crazy specialized. Regardless of how people did it, they were still going somewhere after graduating.
Finally, what are some of the things you enjoy about the area? How much free time do you have in a typical week?
Hattiesburg is not a small place or a big place. About 50,000 people? There's enough here where you can go do something if you want, like nice walking trail, a few restaurants and bars, etc. Also, some neat small town stuff like a farmer's market and gatherings in the park, but nothing like a bigger place such as LA or Houston.
Not really a whole lot of free time. I didn't have any days off, but I did go out a few times after exams with my classmates. The first year is a load. I always felt behind, but after it was over and I started to board prep I was surprised by how much I learned because it didn't feel like I was going to be able to retain everything that was thrown at me.
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If I haven't gotten a secondary for this school by now, should I be worrying? Verified June 15.
500 MCAT, high cgpa and sgpa
500 MCAT, high cgpa and sgpa
Scrublife17
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I also haven’t gotten a secondary and was verified towards the end of June with almost the same stats
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II today! Hopefully I'll be seeing you guys on August 27th. Any recommendations on which airport to fly into?
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Has anyone gotten flights yet?? Getting pumped! Im flying into MSY (New Orleans).
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Yup! I’m getting in on the 4th. Are you interviewing August 6? Can’t wait!
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Awesome! I'm actually interviewing Sept. 14, but please let me know how it goes! I heard the campus is pretty
Will do!
I have an over GPA of 3.59 and MCAT of 501. Do you think I am competitive enough for WCUCOM?
Also, are there a lot of hospitals in the area that WCUCOM students have access to?
I have similar stats and I got an interview
That is great to hear! Congrats on your invite! Best of luck to you!!
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This is fine. There are two hospitals in hattiesburg and both you can do rotations at if you want to. There are other 3rd year rotations sites available too. $th year all of your rotations are aways and you set them up.
Thank you! And you would say that the location of the med school is good, as far as opportunities and outings go?
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I am not sure what you mean could you elaborate?
Hi,
So, I decided to apply here recently and was wondering if submitting my AACOMAS application WCCOM end of July is considered "late"?
My stats are:
MCAT: 505
UG sGPA: 3.01
Graduate GPA: 3.64
Lots of basic science and clinical research experience along with working as a nurse aid. Thanks for the help!
So, I decided to apply here recently and was wondering if submitting my AACOMAS application WCCOM end of July is considered "late"?
My stats are:
MCAT: 505
UG sGPA: 3.01
Graduate GPA: 3.64
Lots of basic science and clinical research experience along with working as a nurse aid. Thanks for the help!
I think you should be fine. It's still pretty early and your stats look good!
Thanks
!!! This whole cycle is so stressful!
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Not late. Stats are good.
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II for 9/24!
How do people plan on getting there? I know Hattiesburg has its own tiny airport but i heard it doesn’t have a car rental on site; any other options for flying in?
How do people plan on getting there? I know Hattiesburg has its own tiny airport but i heard it doesn’t have a car rental on site; any other options for flying in?
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Most fly into New Orleans get their car and drive up
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For those of you that have completed the secondary, how much time did it take from submitting your primary to get the secondary?
It took about 2 days or so. Submitted primary in mid June.
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No. I interview in September but nevertheless I wish you good luck!
Thanks, I'll let y'all know how it goes!
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