Advice Regarding AZCOM vs. KCUMB

[Ewoks]

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Hello all,

I am trying to decide between AZCOM and KCUMB and was hoping some current students could give me some advice and clarify a few things.

KCUMB

Having read through some of the posts I have come to learn the administration has a “Big Brother” attitude. What do the negative scores on these reports really mean? What does the administration do with this information? Too many negative points and you get kicked out? I am not a person that deals well with too many rules…I don’t want to feel stifled. For rotations….is it a lottery system that determines where students will go? Is there a summer break? Oh, I am from the Northeast, so I’m just a little curious about the weather as well.

AZCOM

My main question/concern with this school is regarding the rotations. I know the students have to set up their own rotations but are these hospitals/centers affiliated in any with AZCOM? If not, how do you know the hospital you are going to will actually be good at teaching you? Also, what is the grading system (P/F or letter grades)? Is there a summer break?

Other general questions I have:

1) So I keep reading that this school or that school has great COMLEX board pass rates…that means say 79% of the students passed the exam with at least the minimum score? What’s considered to be a good score on the COMLEX? Do schools disclose information regarding the average score obtained by the students or is it not important?
2) How do you determine if a school obtains good residency matches? I am looking for big name institutions? Different specialties?

I apologize in advance if these questions seem stupid, I am just a bit confused! 😕 If answers to these questions are posted elsewhere please point me in the right direction!

Thanks! 🙂

 

[cdreed]

Hello all,

I am trying to decide between AZCOM and KCUMB and was hoping some current students could give me some advice and clarify a few things.

KCUMB

Having read through some of the posts I have come to learn the administration has a “Big Brother” attitude. What do the negative scores on these reports really mean? What does the administration do with this information? Too many negative points and you get kicked out? I am not a person that deals well with too many rules…I don’t want to feel stifled. For rotations….is it a lottery system that determines where students will go? Is there a summer break? Oh, I am from the Northeast, so I’m just a little curious about the weather as well.

AZCOM

My main question/concern with this school is regarding the rotations. I know the students have to set up their own rotations but are these hospitals/centers affiliated in any with AZCOM? If not, how do you know the hospital you are going to will actually be good at teaching you? Also, what is the grading system (P/F or letter grades)? Is there a summer break?

Other general questions I have:

1) So I keep reading that this school or that school has great COMLEX board pass rates…that means say 79% of the students passed the exam with at least the minimum score? What’s considered to be a good score on the COMLEX? Do schools disclose information regarding the average score obtained by the students or is it not important?
2) How do you determine if a school obtains good residency matches? I am looking for big name institutions? Different specialties?

I apologize in advance if these questions seem stupid, I am just a bit confused! 😕 If answers to these questions are posted elsewhere please point me in the right direction!

Thanks! 🙂

Hi! I'm a MSII at AZCOM. Here's the link for our match lists.

http://mwunet.midwestern.edu/academic/AZCOM/azcomDean.htm

We just received our rotation schedules yesterday, and I am quite pleased. Although, you may opt out of the lottery altogether and set up your own rotation schedule. I have a lot of rural AZ sites, but I also intend to practice rural FP when I graduate... a bonus for me. We also have spectacular didactic years. Our first time board pass rate (I think) was 98 or 99% this year.

As far as setting up decent rotations, we seem to rely on word of mouth of students who were there before us. Networking with upper classmen is key. They usually do everything they can to help us out with maximizing our education. And of course, different students look for different things in a rotation. I specifically wanted a lot of hands-on experience. Some prefer a more classic or "cerebral" exposure. It's all up to you.

Our grading system A/B/C. Your grades during preclin years as well as your board score and rotation evals are all factored into your class rank. And we do get a summer break (almost 3 entire months) between MSI and II.

Overall, I've been happy with my experiences here. But as with any school, it does have its pros and cons. Sometimes I would prefer that we had an affiliated teaching hospital, lower tuition, and shorter days.

Hope this helps some.

Good luck in your decision.

Cyndi 🙂

 

[Ewoks]

Hi Cyndi,

Thanks for getting back to me so quickly. Just to follow up regarding the rotations...you can either set up your own rotations or go through a lottery system? If I remember correctly, even if you are out of state for some of the rotations you still need to come back to AZCOM for certain classes or review sessions?

Thanks again!

 

[cdreed]

Hi Cyndi,

Thanks for getting back to me so quickly. Just to follow up regarding the rotations...you can either set up your own rotations or go through a lottery system? If I remember correctly, even if you are out of state for some of the rotations you still need to come back to AZCOM for certain classes or review sessions?

Thanks again!

There is a mandatory review class during MSIV that everyone must attend. Traditionally it has been in Dec, but it may be moved to June to accomodate military HPSP students who take Step II in Aug vs Dec like everyone else. Other than that particular class, you may arrange to take your clerkship exams on-site where ever you're training. It's policy that you're allowed to do 6 mon out of state as a MSIII, but you can get the Dean to waive it and stay away all year.

Yes you may set up your own rotations or enter the lottery system or do a combination of the two, which is what I did. I really am not interested in Surgery, Card, Peds, so I opted to enter the lottery for them. I set up the rest myself.

Hope this helps some.

Cyndi

 

[LovelyRita]

Hello all,

I am trying to decide between AZCOM and KCUMB and was hoping some current students could give me some advice and clarify a few things.

KCUMB

Having read through some of the posts I have come to learn the administration has a “Big Brother” attitude. What do the negative scores on these reports really mean? What does the administration do with this information? Too many negative points and you get kicked out? I am not a person that deals well with too many rules…I don’t want to feel stifled.

I feel as though this is an urban myth. The administration is present, they do their jobs, you see your tuition dollars at work, but I am not aware of any secret reports that they keep on you. I think that if you are out of line, you are made well aware. Do not let this influence your decision.

For rotations….is it a lottery system that determines where students will go?

Yes. This process is completed in November. Roughly speaking, there are about 100 spots in the Kansas City area, and the rest are in Ohio, Michigan, Florida, New Jersey, New York, Colorado, Texas, and Iowa (i think). You list your top three preferences in a rotation site. A computerized match is done. Of 200+ people in my class, I think maybe 5% or so did not match and were sent to a site that they may not have been interested in. I got my 1st choice.

Is there a summer break? Oh, I am from the Northeast, so I’m just a little curious about the weather as well.

Between 1st and 2nd year you have a summer break. There is no summer break between 2nd and 3rd year, save for a few weeks before rotations start. No more summer breaks after that.

I wish you luck in your decision.....PM me with any questions!
M.