Anyone else worried about AZCOM?

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.

bansheeDO

Member
7+ Year Member
15+ Year Member
Joined
Feb 14, 2004
Messages
61
Reaction score
0
I'm really worried about AZCOM. I heard many great things about it initially but as I have spoken to some of their MS1 and MS2's, I'm a little worried to tell you the truth. With the monday morning exams, will we ever have a weekend in whcih we can spend time with our family or go shopping or some other fun excursion? I don't think going out on Monday and Tuesday is the same as spending a weekend. I know medical school isn't meant to be fun but I haven't heard of a situation in which all of your weekends are occupied? That really stinks because I wanted to have at least a few weekends each quarter where I can relax. If I have an exam each Monday, that means I will have to devote my entire weekend to studying. What about those who have families? How do you cope?

Also, how do you skip class if AZCOM doesn't give class notes. Powerpoint handouts are not the same as service in which students write down the notes and make copies for others in the class. I was disappointed to learn that they only give out powerpoints. I thought the school provided a note service. How do you avoid classes knowing the powerpoint handouts aren't complete? I wrote in response to what I read on the CCOM thread.

Don't mean to offend. Just presenting some genuine concerns I have and as always I'm open to any suggestions or corrections about some of the assumptions I may have. Every response is much appreciated.

:love:

Susan

Members don't see this ad.
 
AZCOM does provide notes for most, if not all, the classes. Plenty of folks skip classes. Not an issue.
Monday exams aren't ready as negative as one might assume. I have yet to hear anyone complain. It gives you the weekend to play a little and study as much as you need. I would much rather have Monday morning exams than mid-week exams, where you would be staying up late just trying to commit all the info to memory. Most still live a little on weekends.
 
Med school will not be an easy task anywhere. I wouldn't worry about Monday tests and the lack of a notetaking service. I rarely go to class, and I fare well. I use the ppt handouts as a guide to focus my studies.

I have a 2y/o daughter and husband at home, as well. We definitely get time together. It just depends on your time management and study skills. I vary my routine... sometimes I study more during the week, so that I can take Sat or Sun off. Other times I procrastinate throughout the week and manage to stay current with weekend studies. We all manage to keep social lives.

Don't get me wrong. Your concerns are valid. But I liken them to pre-wedding jitters. Sometimes you have to know what you want and be prepared to follow through with your commitments. Med school is definitely worth any hassle that it presents. I think that even if you had decided to attend elsewhere, something would pop up that would inflict some apprehension. Totally normal. Besides, as a soon-to-be MSII at AZCOM, you are always welcome to come to us for assistance. We (I) will point you in the right direction, if you have the need or desire guidance.

Hope this alleviates some of your anxiety.

Cyndi
 
Members don't see this ad :)
You are freaking out for no reason. As for powerpoint, those are the EXACT LECTURES. Do you need someone to write out every single detail for you? Didn't think so.

Anyoots you'll get that in neuroanatomy if you guys aren't too cheap/stubborn to NOT order a note taking service...and it can be quite tough to disseminate whats really important from what isn't when presented with something more than an outline.

Lots of people do not go to class and do exceptionally well. Why? Because they have those class notes and outlines to study at home. Its a great system, you just don't know it yet.

As far as having monday exams, boo-hoo. You'll get through it. Work hard, take USMLE, don't freak yourself out and you may actually have a blast.

Vent
 
Originally posted by VentdependenT
You are freaking out for no reason. As for powerpoint, those are the EXACT LECTURES. Do you need someone to write out every single detail for you? [/B]

Welll...yeah to be quite honest with you. That was sort of the idea. If I'm going to skip class, I don't want to miss some details the professor only provides in lecture.
 
Originally posted by cdreed
Med school will not be an easy task anywhere. I wouldn't worry about Monday tests and the lack of a notetaking service. I rarely go to class, and I fare well. I use the ppt handouts as a guide to focus my studies.

I have a 2y/o daughter and husband at home, as well. We definitely get time together. It just depends on your time management and study skills. I vary my routine... sometimes I study more during the week, so that I can take Sat or Sun off. Other times I procrastinate throughout the week and manage to stay current with weekend studies. We all manage to keep social lives.

Don't get me wrong. Your concerns are valid. But I liken them to pre-wedding jitters. Sometimes you have to know what you want and be prepared to follow through with your commitments. Med school is definitely worth any hassle that it presents. I think that even if you had decided to attend elsewhere, something would pop up that would inflict some apprehension. Totally normal. Besides, as a soon-to-be MSII at AZCOM, you are always welcome to come to us for assistance. We (I) will point you in the right direction, if you have the need or desire guidance.

Hope this alleviates some of your anxiety.

Cyndi

Thank you Cyndi, I do feel a lot better about the school. I think I just had a bad case of the jitters
 
monday exams worried me a bit at first too....i'm married and have a few kidlets and didn't want to miss out on being with them over the weekends....what i have found is that the idea of monday exams is AWESOME!!! i can't imagine doing it otherwise. Subjects have to haggle for dates so you don't overlap test too much (it does happen some, but that is unevitable) I LOVE having friday night, all day sat, and some of sunday to prep for the test....there is always plenty of time to spend with fam AND hit the books. As todde said, i can't imagine trying to do it AND go to class during the week.
I, like you, have tough time skipping class. I don't want to miss that one break-through moment when the universe aligns and things finally make sense!:) The notes provided, along with reading assignments will give you ample opportuntity to learn what you need to learn. That's why some people do so well not going to class...i, personally, need to go and hear it once before trying to tackle it myself.
Another thing about azcom is that you will be hard pressed to find a more united and helpful group of students!!! i know each class will be different, but the school really encourages unity and cooperation. If i miss a class i know i can go to todde or cyndi and they'll let me know what i missed. I have been impressed time and time again with the quality of my classmates, both as students/future docs but also as people.

the school is not perfect....but there has not been a single day that have regretted the decision to come here!!
keep the questions rolling....
 
I still don't like the Monday schedule, but I will say that it is a lot easier studying for a test that covers 10 chapters than one that covers 30 chapters at the end of 8 weeks like many block schedules. The only drawback is that you don't get down time but in reality that's a good thing. It teaches you a lot of discipline to study at a constant rate. And the quarter system is nice because we get a one week break every 10 weeks and a 4 month summer vacation after first year. That's nice! There is plenty of time to unwind.

I disagree with others about the notes. In my experience, profs do give little tid bits of information that is not in the notes.
 
The notes have worked great for me! I have done VERY well in all of my classes. I study almost exclusively from the notes. The only real exception was for anatomy (Neter's and histo atlas) during the 1st two quarters. We get enough notes, I have muliple 3-ring binders FULL of notes. For me, they were more than adequate. But, each person has their own comfort zone:) I skip a lot of class...come to think of it, I really didn't go to more than 1 or 2 biochem lectures in 2nd quarter. If you are disiplined enough to put some good time in with the notes missing class should not be a problem. ;) I personally love the monday test thing, it gives the whole weekend...if you so need..to study up for a test. I still have a lot of time to spend with my fiancee and stuff in the evenings as long as I get good quality studying in beforehand. I am not saying this is how it is for everyone, but it can done. Best of luck with your choice. :)
 
during the weekdays. I went to all lectures, studied by butt off Monday through Thursday, then went to San Diego on the weekends to see my girlfriend, now wife, with light studying done there. Did just fine. Powerpoint handouts give you enough information to pull a 90% on any test, attending lectures gets you the rest. Graduated in the top 20 of the class.

I thought it was a great format, because there is really no midterm where you are trying to study for 5 tests in one week.

Don't sweat it!
 
I may be beating a dead horse, but take it from me, the Monday test schedule is great. I love the fact that we have multiple tests to break up the amount of material on which we are tested. It think we probably learn the material in greater detail than those who are tested overall on one test at the end of each semester, not to mention we end up getting really good at taking multiple choice tests (like what you will see in the boards). Plus, having the weekends to study is great, as it gives one a chance to regroup from hours of classes all week (if you go, of course), and be fresh (relatively) once you start studying. Take it from me, it is very possible to carry on a social life with that schedule. This year I discovered the joys of happy hour, the best places in Phoenix and Scottsdale to attend happy hour, and associated reverse happy hours. And except for the weekend before finals, I made it a point to go out every Friday and Saturday night, if only for a couple hours for a beer or two. So I think while your concern for time has merit, it is definitely possible to pursue one's interests (in my case, the discovery of the finer bars in life). I even live 20 minutes from school and have never felt incredibly pressed for time. The test schedule is actually pretty decent, with a few exceptions.
As to the notes, I never studied from anything except for the notes, and I owned all the books as I'm on the Air Force scholarship. Netter's anatomy atlas and a picture atlas are essential tools, but other than that, you can get by with just a pencil and a bunch of highlighters and should be hunky dory.
Come to AZCOM. It definitely has its faults, as Chuck implied, but it's a good school for the most part, and I think the positives outweight the negatives if you come with an open mind.
Welcome, and don't forget to have fun!
 
we did the happy hours every Monday after tests, either the local sports bar or mexican dive. We also had many, many Sat. night get togethers involving lots of spirits.

Time crunch in med school is about time management. I got married, had a kid, during 3rd/4th year, without problems.

About the school having problems. The problems seem bigger while there, but the school gets you to where you need to be. Looking at where my class matched. My social group has one at Mayo in FP, one at Cleveland Clinic in Radiology, an ENT in a DO residency somewhere in Michigan and a bunch of other decent, and very competitive programs.
 
Top