Hello everyone. The title may be misleading and this is a long one so please stay with me. For clarification, this is not an MD vs DO discrepancy as I will be happy being a physician and do not carry any bias towards the letters that will follow my name whether that is MD or DO. At the same time, I also do not want to immediately shut future doors based on the school I attend.
I applied to 26 schools (21 MD, 5 DO programs). All R's except I had one interview and one acceptance from NSU-KPCOM (DO) which I was initially thrilled about; however, I have continuously read an alarming number of negative aspects about the administration of the school from a few current/past students accompanied by many other opinions to "avoid" this school if possible. On the other hand, I have also read "take a DO acceptance and run with it". I had memorably positive interactions with the NSU students and staff I have directly communicated with, but from what I have read, the administration is unreceptive to any negative feedback/critiques the students present, the COMLEX 1 and 2 first time pass rates are low for an established institution, and they also had a surprising number of transitional year residency placements. The school appointed a new dean a few years ago who I met and who seems to have a very clear vision for the program and its future in research.
Although the sources seem credible, could they be opinions from students who had a terrible experience? Yes. Could my search for unsettling information be confirmation bias? Absolutely. But I am still feeling uneasy about what I have read; things that I have not found from the other DO or MD programs I applied to. I am conflicted about my decision given that it is my only acceptance, but I do not want ignore major red flags because it is my only acceptance. Of course, it would be easy to say I should have done more research on any negatives about the school; however, I didn't see any reason to purposely look for information that would steer me away from attending.
Main concern: How would attending NSU hinder my medical career? I have read many negatives and maybe I am too dense to understand, but what specifically about this program would affect my route/passions individually?
Thinking long term, I am 99% sure I want to pursue surgery and believe I would be best suited for ortho as does every premed-my interests could also very well change over time. I am well aware ortho is amongst the most competitive specialties, but I fail to believe I would fail to match based on simply being a DO (not trying to sound cocky by any means). I understand the DO route to ortho will be more challenging than that of an MD, but any medical student (DO or MD) still needs to ace COMLEX/Step 2, excel in their didactic years, rotate well, and have substantial research in that field-I am not looking to match at some prestigious program like Stanford or Harvard.
If I had to reapply, I am confident I would produce a substantially improved application with what I have done during my gap year specifically in the timing, writing quality, and added experiences. I am tempted to apply again but would be losing an acceptance. Obviously I could take the MCAT again to possibly get a better score to possibly get into a better program. I am willing to wait another cycle even though that would blacklist me from this school and possibly flag me at other DO programs given I would be rejecting an acceptance. I completely understand that the decision to apply again does not guarantee an acceptance at another program, MD or DO. I apologize for the lengthy message, but I just want to ensure I am making an educated decision. Am I dumb for even having these thoughts that are maybe even influenced by the privilege of having an acceptance or would these be areas of concern for any of you if you were in my shoes? I would be extremely grateful to hear any feedback you may have about this situation.
After review from this cycle, I believe I was rejected due to three reasons
1) time of submission of my full application (Primaries completed end of July 2021, first secondaries completed middle of August 2021, finished second week of October 2021)
2) poor quality and persuasiveness of writing not necessarily the actual quality of the activities/experiences
3) strength of GPA and MCAT score
Stats:
3.67 cGPA, 3.52 sGPA
MCAT 507 (128, 124, 128, 127)
4th (top) quartile CASPer test
ECs (GY=Gap year activities)
-division 1 athlete (not a club athlete lol, full-scholarship athlete on national championship team and two-year team captain)
-student athlete volunteer (10 hours)
-hospital volunteer (150 hours) GY
-high school student mentor (15 hours)
-high school tutor (100 hours) GY
-full time urgent care scribe (1500 hours) GY
-part time COVID clinic medical assistant (400 hours)
-co-chair of diversity committee at former university (20 hours)
-youth soccer coach (250 hours)
-MD shadowing (60 hours, 8 specialties)
-research at T-20 medical school (150 hours)
I applied to 26 schools (21 MD, 5 DO programs). All R's except I had one interview and one acceptance from NSU-KPCOM (DO) which I was initially thrilled about; however, I have continuously read an alarming number of negative aspects about the administration of the school from a few current/past students accompanied by many other opinions to "avoid" this school if possible. On the other hand, I have also read "take a DO acceptance and run with it". I had memorably positive interactions with the NSU students and staff I have directly communicated with, but from what I have read, the administration is unreceptive to any negative feedback/critiques the students present, the COMLEX 1 and 2 first time pass rates are low for an established institution, and they also had a surprising number of transitional year residency placements. The school appointed a new dean a few years ago who I met and who seems to have a very clear vision for the program and its future in research.
Although the sources seem credible, could they be opinions from students who had a terrible experience? Yes. Could my search for unsettling information be confirmation bias? Absolutely. But I am still feeling uneasy about what I have read; things that I have not found from the other DO or MD programs I applied to. I am conflicted about my decision given that it is my only acceptance, but I do not want ignore major red flags because it is my only acceptance. Of course, it would be easy to say I should have done more research on any negatives about the school; however, I didn't see any reason to purposely look for information that would steer me away from attending.
Main concern: How would attending NSU hinder my medical career? I have read many negatives and maybe I am too dense to understand, but what specifically about this program would affect my route/passions individually?
Thinking long term, I am 99% sure I want to pursue surgery and believe I would be best suited for ortho as does every premed-my interests could also very well change over time. I am well aware ortho is amongst the most competitive specialties, but I fail to believe I would fail to match based on simply being a DO (not trying to sound cocky by any means). I understand the DO route to ortho will be more challenging than that of an MD, but any medical student (DO or MD) still needs to ace COMLEX/Step 2, excel in their didactic years, rotate well, and have substantial research in that field-I am not looking to match at some prestigious program like Stanford or Harvard.
If I had to reapply, I am confident I would produce a substantially improved application with what I have done during my gap year specifically in the timing, writing quality, and added experiences. I am tempted to apply again but would be losing an acceptance. Obviously I could take the MCAT again to possibly get a better score to possibly get into a better program. I am willing to wait another cycle even though that would blacklist me from this school and possibly flag me at other DO programs given I would be rejecting an acceptance. I completely understand that the decision to apply again does not guarantee an acceptance at another program, MD or DO. I apologize for the lengthy message, but I just want to ensure I am making an educated decision. Am I dumb for even having these thoughts that are maybe even influenced by the privilege of having an acceptance or would these be areas of concern for any of you if you were in my shoes? I would be extremely grateful to hear any feedback you may have about this situation.
After review from this cycle, I believe I was rejected due to three reasons
1) time of submission of my full application (Primaries completed end of July 2021, first secondaries completed middle of August 2021, finished second week of October 2021)
2) poor quality and persuasiveness of writing not necessarily the actual quality of the activities/experiences
3) strength of GPA and MCAT score
Stats:
3.67 cGPA, 3.52 sGPA
MCAT 507 (128, 124, 128, 127)
4th (top) quartile CASPer test
ECs (GY=Gap year activities)
-division 1 athlete (not a club athlete lol, full-scholarship athlete on national championship team and two-year team captain)
-student athlete volunteer (10 hours)
-hospital volunteer (150 hours) GY
-high school student mentor (15 hours)
-high school tutor (100 hours) GY
-full time urgent care scribe (1500 hours) GY
-part time COVID clinic medical assistant (400 hours)
-co-chair of diversity committee at former university (20 hours)
-youth soccer coach (250 hours)
-MD shadowing (60 hours, 8 specialties)
-research at T-20 medical school (150 hours)
