Attending a new school

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VTBuc

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So, I have been accepted at a brand new school and will more than likely be attending it. My year will be the very first class so nobody really knows what to expect. I liked the facilities and the area and the curriculum seems exciting, but the only picture I have is the one that the faculty has painted for us.

I was wondering if anyone has had any experiences regarding new medical schools? Both positive and negative points are appreciated.
 
Well I had heard that usually, first-year schools will offer great scholarships as incentives for people to give their program a try, even though they are only (usually) on provisional accreditation. Is that true with this school?

Yes, this school has been offering 1-year and 4-year scholarships. I already have a full ride though, so this will not be an issue.
 
The curriculum is the best thing at that school, but it's also a little scary considering they plan on doing things "by ear".

I hope I get in. It'll be fun and exciting to be a part of shaping a new program, I think.

PS - I had experience with a new program before that's why I'm fond of the idea. In my experience there's a little more care to nurturing the students because there's this constant need to "prove" the school. The downside of the program I was a part of was that admin didn't take into serious consideration any concerns the students had. There was also a LOT of tension between the students because there's only 30+ students so you can't "blend in".
 
Yes, this school has been offering 1-year and 4-year scholarships. I already have a full ride though, so this will not be an issue.

Jealous!

Dude, I wouldn't worry about it. Full ride counts for quite a bit, you will have the same MD/DO after your name that I do!
 
Jealous!

Dude, I wouldn't worry about it. Full ride counts for quite a bit, you will have the same MD/DO after your name that I do!

Err sorry, perhaps I should be more clear. My full ride is thru the Army HPSP program, not through the school. 🙂
 
I don't think any new schools have opened in awhile, not counting the new wave that's coming about now, so I think we'll be hard pressed to get any feedback from someone that was in the first or second graduating classes of a medical school, at least not for a few more years. Someone correct me if I'm wrong here...

That said, I am certainly not opposed to attending a new medical school, and will be applying to one (TCMC in Scranton). The scholarship incentives certainly are appealing, and would definitely affect my decision.
 
I don't think any new schools have opened in awhile, not counting the new wave that's coming about now, so I think we'll be hard pressed to get any feedback from someone that was in the first or second graduating classes of a medical school, at least not for a few more years. Someone correct me if I'm wrong here...

That said, I am certainly not opposed to attending a new medical school, and will be applying to one (TCMC in Scranton). The scholarship incentives certainly are appealing, and would definitely affect my decision.


Three new schools opened last year. FIU, UCF and I believe one in Texas. VTBuc, you should talk to people in those schools to see what their experiences have been like. I interviewed at the two Florida schools and everyone seemed pretty happy about their program. The main complaint that I noted was that they don't have any M2s during their M1 to help them out with advice and whatnot.
 
VTBuc, what do you know about the scholarship situation at this school? I have been accepted here, too, and was a little unclear about the terms of the scholarship in my acceptance letter. How do you know if it's for one year, or renewable for all four?
 
VTBuc, what do you know about the scholarship situation at this school? I have been accepted here, too, and was a little unclear about the terms of the scholarship in my acceptance letter. How do you know if it's for one year, or renewable for all four?

I actually don't know anything about it. I haven't even gotten my letter of acceptance yet, was just called on Sunday. 🙂
 
Three new schools opened last year. FIU, UCF and I believe one in Texas. VTBuc, you should talk to people in those schools to see what their experiences have been like. I interviewed at the two Florida schools and everyone seemed pretty happy about their program. The main complaint that I noted was that they don't have any M2s during their M1 to help them out with advice and whatnot.
And also TCMC in Scranton. That would be what I mean by the ones that are coming around now. When was the last time a medical school accepted its first class prior to this new wave? I honestly have no idea.

What I'm talking about is getting feedback from people that are practicing physicians that were one of the first classes to graduate from a medical school when it opened. Do they think it affected their matching into a residency, or getting a job afterwards, etc.? It's been awhile, and I'd be surprised if any of them post here. That was my point.
 
Even if you don't get feedback from people going to new schools, you can talk to people who started when their schools were changing up the curriculum in a major way. UVA's class will have that disadvantage, because the M2 class will be on a different curriculum than the M1 class.
 
And also TCMC in Scranton. That would be what I mean by the ones that are coming around now. When was the last time a medical school accepted its first class prior to this new wave? I honestly have no idea.

What I'm talking about is getting feedback from people that are practicing physicians that were one of the first classes to graduate from a medical school when it opened. Do they think it affected their matching into a residency, or getting a job afterwards, etc.? It's been awhile, and I'd be surprised if any of them post here. That was my point.


Ah, I see. Very good point indeed.
 
FSU COLLEGE OF MEDICINE INAUGURAL CLASS MATCH


March 17, 2005
by Nancy Kinnally
FSU COLLEGE OF MEDICINE ANNOUNCES MATCH RESULTS
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.- All 29 senior students in the inaugural class of the FSU College of Medicine received notification today of where they will enter residency training this summer after graduation.
Twelve of the 29 graduating students, or 41 percent, are entering residency in primary care specialties, including family medicine, pediatrics, internal medicine and obstetrics/gynecology.
Other students matched in emergency medicine, psychiatry, general surgery, orthopedic surgery, urology and otolaryngology.
The 30th member of the inaugural class has been participating in the prestigious Clinical Research Training Program at the National Institutes of Health this year and will complete his fourth year of medical school during the coming academic year.
Fourteen of the students, or 48 percent, will remain in Florida for their graduate medical education. On average about 40 percent of students graduating from allopathic medical schools in Florida remain in the state for residency training, due in part to a limited number of available residency positions in state.
Of those matching outside of Florida, most will remain in the Southeast, although students also matched in California, New Mexico, New York and Texas.
“We couldn’t be more pleased with our first match results,” said College of Medicine Dean J. Ocie Harris, M.D. “The fact that every student had a successful match, and the high quality of the programs at which our students have been accepted, is a very strong indicator that we have developed a first-rate medical education program here at Florida State.”
The residency match, conducted annually by the National Residency Matching Program, is the primary system that matches applicants to residency programs with available positions at U.S. teaching hospitals. Graduating medical students across the country receive their match information at the same time on the same day.
 
So, I have been accepted at a brand new school and will more than likely be attending it. My year will be the very first class so nobody really knows what to expect. I liked the facilities and the area and the curriculum seems exciting, but the only picture I have is the one that the faculty has painted for us.

I was wondering if anyone has had any experiences regarding new medical schools? Both positive and negative points are appreciated.
Riverside?
 
UC Riverside has had the program for a while, but is just now applying to be independent. Before, students coming into the program would do their first 2 years in Riverside and then go to UCLA for clinical rotations. Their degrees were actually granted by UCLA and not UCR. The accreditation that UCR is going through right now will allow it to act autonomously in all these aspects (performing the clinical training/granting the medical degrees).

In that sense, no, the people who have gone through the program wouldn't be of much help. They have all been under the umbrella of UCLA, not opening a new path with UCR.
 
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