~450 words for why DO school
~450 for memorable community service
~450 for why Western
~350 for why geat fit.
~250 for the research/teaching experience part
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2019-2020 Western University of Health Sciences (Pomona, California)
- Thread starter PapaGuava
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~450 for memorable community service
~450 for why Western
~350 for why geat fit.
~250 for the research/teaching experience part
I had 124 CARS and was fine. But I think DO schools are more lax about the cars subsection
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deleted850233
I am a bit worried cause I got verified by AACOAMS on 5/22 and still haven't gotten a secondary from them. Literally the only school I haven't heard from. I already have interviews from other schools and no secondaries from them. Anyone in a similar situation?
no interviews over here haha but yeah I haven't gotten a secondary from western
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deleted850233
I called them to make sure they have me in the system. The admissions guy just said "yup" lol I just see people who got verified in June with already submitted secondaries so I guess they have their own algorithm on how they sent the secondaries.
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Yeah verified in June and got secondary last week. No IIs over here either tho lol. Deff screen differently cuz the email we got said
"Thank you for submitting your AACOMAS application to Western University of Health Sciences’ College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific, Pomona Campus. I am very pleased to inform you that, based on your academic performance, volunteerism, and clinical experience you are eligible to continue to the next step of our application process. "
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deleted850233
I asked them If my credentials match their minimums too and they said yes. I am so confused by them O_O
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Thanks! Is Western Pomona pretty selective on gets their secondary? Or do they just pretty much give it to everyone who submitted a primary to them?
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On their website, it states minimum requirements but doesn't state what they are. I don't think they are super selective, my stats are really not competitive (non-trad that forked up considerably in college and had to do GPA repair).
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deleted850233
I asked them that too, their minimum requirements for subsections of MCAT is pretty low, its 121. Not sure about GPA though.
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Did you get any other email besides the one for payment to confirm?
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Nope. From portal they still need to verify LORs. Based on last year's thread, people had that as well around this time and an ADCOM said they do it slowly...
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deleted991583
Doesn't seem like a good use of their time to verify letters tbh... only like 1 in 100 people fake theirs probably
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deleted850233
Same! Literally the only DO school I haven’t heard from.
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The question that asks "What is your specific interest in the osteopathic medicine program at COMP Pomona Campus", is this asking what about specifically WesternU? Cause I am interpreting it as them asking why did you apply to this campus (particularly them trying to see what makes them unique over the other campus).
If it's just what we like specifically about WesternU, then that's easy enough.
If it's about Pomona Campus in particular, Idk what else to write besides my interest in stuff like the campus's location.
If it's just what we like specifically about WesternU, then that's easy enough.
If it's about Pomona Campus in particular, Idk what else to write besides my interest in stuff like the campus's location.
It is a "why us" essay. Don't read too much into it. Yes, its about WesternU COMP Pomona specifically. You don't have to love the campus/location to write why you want to attend the COM.
I read somewhere online that Western has a “unwritten requirement” of at least 100 hours of strictly shadowing a physician to be considered for an II. Clinical experience/scribing does not count.
Can anybody confirm or deny this?
Can anybody confirm or deny this?
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deleted991583
Not true, but they said 100 hours is their average
If you don't mind me asking, what are your stats/ when did you submit?
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deleted850233
Secondary recieved and submitted today. AACOMAS verified 5/22. Took a while.
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Sure, for privacy feel free to PM me and I can give you the details. I cannot PM you for some reason 🙁
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deleted850233
Yes
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"Non-U.S. Citizen
On the previous (Personal) page of this application, you indicated your Citizenship country is not United States. Please upload a copy of your visa or permanent resident documents here:"
I do not have a Visa or Permanent resident document because I am a Canadian. I will not be able to apply for a Visa until I actually get my acceptance. I don't quite understand how to deal with this. Any ideas or people who experienced this?
On the previous (Personal) page of this application, you indicated your Citizenship country is not United States. Please upload a copy of your visa or permanent resident documents here:"
I do not have a Visa or Permanent resident document because I am a Canadian. I will not be able to apply for a Visa until I actually get my acceptance. I don't quite understand how to deal with this. Any ideas or people who experienced this?
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Current 4th year here killing time before Step 2, I got in with 16 hours of shadowing only, but it was with the school's OMM faculty so it looked better than a non-OMM practicing DO. The main reason for shadowing is to show interviewers that you know that 80% of being a physician is paperwork, policy, politics, online modules, certifications, etc.
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deleted991583
How do you feel about the Western curriculum? Do you think Western grads are beggars or choosers when it comes to selecting a residency?
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I am a non-Canadian international so I might not be of help, but I think you should definitely ask the admission office. They would probably ask you to upload your Canadian citizenship documents so you can complete the secondary.
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The curriculum actually adjusts to student feedback, which is a treat imo. Would be nice if an older DO school like COMP didn't HAVE to adjust because they have a good formula, but whatever... they cut the OMM time in half from before so that's a huge win. The school has a significant portion of the class who got in through an SMP or some MCAT/GPA-forgiving arrangement and I've noticed that those students are the ones who tend to have a harder time with the course load or board exams. I could be wrong, but I have an N > 8 to base this claim on. It makes sense. We also have psycho geniuses with legitimate photographic memory who don't study often.
COMP grads have a decent CA options compared to other DO schools due to familiarity with our students and general "try-hard" culture. Boards performance is almost purely based on individual effort and effective time-management. The school gives you a lot of opportunity to have super early electives... Technically, you have 3 electives as a 3rd year. That's kind of insane and can also be bad if you can't turn that into an advantage. For example, you can orchestrate a schedule where you can have 2 EM rotations in 3rd year. This is definitely useful because you can get extremely good SLOEs in 4th year if you're gunning for EM (one of the more popular desired specialties at this school... dunno why... maybe all the freakin' scribes and EMTs that get accepted here). As for research, it's hard to have meaningful research because opportunities aren't thrown at you compared to UCLA or Stanford.
You should go with almost ANY school that has a teaching hospital or enough legitimate, hospital-based clinical sites to accommodate > 90% of their 3rd and 4th years - rather than WesternU, unless you are extremely comfortable with putting down a decent amount of money for a ton of VSAS applications and are extremely sure of your test-taking skills for killing Step 1 and 2 (ie. you already use Anki very well and scored > 80th percentile on the MCAT on the 1st try... but... somehow can't get the MD acceptance for some reason). If you are happy with non-competitive specialties like neurology AND you have a strong CA preference, it's okay to decline an acceptance to a super low-tier MD school like Netters or one of the newer schools. Maybe.
I've received a secondary from nearly all other schools I applied to besides Western I'm IS and have decent stats anyone else in the same position? Western has been one of my top choices but I have heard nothing but silence from them so far.
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deleted991583
its probably in waves
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when were you verified by AACOMAS? I was verified on June 25th and I got the secondary from Lebanon on Jul 3 and Pomona on Jul 8
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deleted850233
It's definitely in waves but there is no chronological order that I see cause I got verified 5/22 and didn't get the secondary till a couple of days ago. There were people who got verified in June and got the ma month earlier than me.
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deleted941478
Not true, I have 46 shadowing hours and I received a secondary. However, I have 1500+ hours in clinical experience as a CNA so I'm sure that helps offset my low hours.
I was verified June 26th..hoping it isn't being sent out chronologically then!
Does anyone know if the 2-week turnaround on secondaries applies to DO schools as well? I received my secondary from, Western on 7/8, but I've been prioritizing my MD secondaries. I'm a little worried. Thanks!
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I would say you should have the same mentality for all of them. Just get them in as soon as you can because everything is still done on a rolling basis
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2 weeks is just a guideline for most schools, but Western requests a 10 day turnaround. You’re still able to submit after this deadline though! From their site:
Working on the secondary right now. Does anyone have any suggestions for the physicians shadowing part? I don't know any emails of the physicians I've shadowed. I shadowed multiple physicians 3 years ago. Any tips on how to go about this?
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From what I remember... I’m not sure that they actually require the email. Do you at least have their phone/office info?
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Some of mine only gave numbers to their administrative assistant, so you'll be fine.
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deleted850233
Any II's yet?
Doesn't seem like it. I also submitted the day after I got the secondary and that was the first day it was sent out! Hopefully we hear something soon!
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deleted991583
None yet.. at the open house they stressed the importance of applying early, yet here we are.....
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