Any DO school with below the average board scores?

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I have been to only three DO school interviews. They each have stated that they have no less than a 97% pass rate. One of them claimed a 99%, the other claimed 100% for two years in a row with the highest scores in the nation (LECOM-B).

Maybe I was just lucky with the schools where I interviewed. They all were "above average" but if the average is 89 to 91% then there must be some schools that are "below average"

Since I was accepted to at least one of the schools with "above average" scores, then I really don't care where the "below average" schools are located.

I also believe that the responsibility for board scores is NOT ONLY on the school, it is also on the student. The school needs to supply an education that is appropriate for training physicians (including passing the stupid tests), and the student is responsible for learning as much and as best as they can so that they can become the best physician that they can be (including passing the stupid tests). Which part is of greater weight? I am not sure yet. As a former teacher I believe that the student needs to take more of the responsibility. As an upcoming student, I want the school to take more of the responsibility, but I know that it really is up to me when it comes time to take the test.

Things that a school can do to help:
1. Test in the same manner as the Step 1. This gets the student familiar with the format of the exam.
2. Test mostly over high yield material. This encourages the student to learn the most likely material that will be on the step.
3. Comprehensive exams. This requires the students to remember material long term.
4. Help the students with exam prep (U-world, Kaplan test prep, etc.) Help the students determine a good program and encourage the use of that program. If more than one program has proven successful, then inform the students which parts of which program are better for certain topics.

Wow, I got off topic, but this is what I thought about when I started thinking of step 1 preparation. It is only 2.75 years away. 🙂

dsoz
 
AZCOM gave us specific numbers for their average on all the comlex (and even some usmle) vs the national average and they were higher by 40+ points.
 
Dmu was above average 4 years ago, I don't know what they are today.
I think pcom Philly is below average.
 
at the DMU interview they gave specifics on their students scores on the COMLEX and UMSLE. i guess there is no way to check that these numbers are accurate but i assume that they are
 
cliquesh said:
Dmu was above average 4 years ago, I don't know what they are today.
I think pcom Philly is below average.
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Are you certain about this info about pcom?

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zoner said:
Are you certain about this info about pcom?

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Click to expand...

No, I'm not certain. I know their pass rate is below average. Not crazy below average, but below average.
 
IslandStyle808 said:
Okay here is what I meant. In your initial post you are saying that knowing the COMLEX statistics are meaningless. You are still required to do the COMLEX as an osteopathic student. So if you are ever in a bind for time and not able to take the USMLE, then you should check and make sure that the ACGME residency program is willing to only take the COMLEX. I am telling you this as a last resort and not to be lazy.

Now in response to your second quote. Yes you are correct to say you have to have your bases covered. This also means scoring well in both the USMLE and COMLEX. So the statistics for the COMLEX are not meaningless in this sense.
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Well sure, I agree with all that. I just disagree that a school's average COMLEX is indicative of how well any of us will do at that school.

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Lecom-B had the highest avg score of any school ever(as long as no one beats us this year, which the admin apparently won't know for a few weeks/months) on the most recent COMLEX. 1 kid failed, but they apparently were a high B student that took a leave of absence, for a year, a few weeks before the test and decided that it was intelligent to take it anyway. needless to say they failed epically. The pre-test that they make us take is blown out of proportion. There are a few tests that they make us take during the first 2 years that show you where you are week and where you are doing ok. The only one that matters is in a few months for us and if we fail we have to take the review course during the month we have off before taking the COMLEX, that the rest of the class can use to study on their own. If you fail no one keeps you from taking the test, you just don't get to study on your own, which I would say is good. It's in everyone's best interest that you don't have a failing score on your record and they do their best to ensure that everyone avoids that. All of these stories on SDN about how lecom keeps people from taking the test so that they can inflate their scores are completely false, and perpetuated by people that have never spent a day in a medical school class, nevermind a day in a lecom class. Lecom-B doesn't have a magical plan they just make us work hard the first 2 years and ensure everything is put into our heads better than most. All of the upper classmen will swear that our PBL exams are far harder than the board tests and that's why we do well.
 
gatorfann14 said:
Lecom-B had the highest avg score of any school ever(as long as no one beats us this year, which the admin apparently won't know for a few weeks/months) on the most recent COMLEX.
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Where is that data published?

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MedPR said:
Where is that data published?

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Click to expand...

As someone said earlier there seems to be a pact among schools not to publish actual numbers. But all schools know how every other school does and where they fit in. My advisor has no reason to lie to me about the numbers and then fabricate multiple charts given to the school by the AOA for years passed that they showed to the entire class. I have no doubt lecom might try and paint even these new numbers in a better light than reality to anyone interviewing in the near future, but they don't need to lie to me.
 
gatorfann14 said:
As someone said earlier there seems to be a pact among schools not to publish actual numbers. But all schools know how every other school does and where they fit in. My advisor has no reason to lie to me about the numbers and then fabricate multiple charts given to the school by the AOA for years passed that they showed to the entire class. I have no doubt lecom might try and paint even these new numbers in a better light than reality to anyone interviewing in the near future, but they don't need to lie to me.
Click to expand...

Well I'll reserve my judgments until empirical evidence actually exists.
 
MedPR said:
Well I'll reserve my judgments until empirical evidence actually exists.
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Unfortunately you will most likely never get that info. I also wish you didn't already have to be a student to get the full story.
 
gatorfann14 said:
Unfortunately you will most likely never get that info. I also wish you didn't already have to be a student to get the full story.
Click to expand...
Just curious, but do you know why schools don't post their board scores?
 
You mean for the public? Because some of them do tell you when you ask them

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Yeah publicly. They post pass rates but not actual scores.
 
probably for the obvious reasons

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Keep in mind that to share specific board scores, the school would need to get permission from each of the students to make their scores public.
 
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