AZCOM Class of 2005?

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roughgod,

I check the board and the unofficial site daily or every other day. It does seem that people have stopped posting. At least for me things are starting to get more and more chaotic as we prepare for our move to AZ. Keep up the great work on the site and don't worry, things will all come together sooner than we think.

Mrs. oregonDO,

My fiance and I will be living at Sage Stone as well. I would be happy to introduce the two of you beforehand via email if you are interested. We don't have kids yet, but we will. Let me know.

Wade
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Indeed, times are busy. Most of us are preparing to tranplant our lives and families and that takes a lot of work. But I still manage to check for new posts about twice a week.

My wife, baby and I just returned from a weekend in AZ (we live in Illinois). The weather was great (in the 90s)! We visited 24 houses in Scottsdale on Thursday, and another 5 in Glendale on Friday, and finalized a contract on Saturday. We will be living near 56 Street and Bell Rd, just a couple of minutes from the 101 freeway. Our closing date is August 6. We close on our home in Il on August 10. So, I imagine we should be in the clear and ready to relax for that last couple of weeks before classes.
 
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Hello classmates! It fels great to say that! Have any of you finished up your financial aid stuff and received word about your grant in aid yet? Does the expected family contribution come off the top of any Stafford loan amount that you might otherwise have? I'm trying to plug all of the possible holes and am bailing water to get the ship afloat before August! Post up if you know anything!
 
I haven't heard a thing yet. I heard AZCOM's pretty slow. On the bright side, I heard someone say the interest rates are down 2% on loans after July 1. Can it be? :D
 
Hey guys, I checked the sallie mae site yesterday and they show that the school hasn't verified my status yet. On another subject has anyone heard anything else about the dean getting a grant for PDA's for incoming students? :D
 
I haven't heard a thing about financial aid yet and it's making me nervous. I called the school and they said that the MSI's are the last to get mailed because we start later than the other colleges. I don't know if that is good or bad?!

For those of you who live in Arizona, can you tell me about car insurance, property taxes, etc. Your state is very different than mine. Email me the info if possible.

Thanks, and good luck to those of you waiting.

Tiffany
 
I called financial aid today and the message you get says that the award letters should be out sometime the week after the 4th of July and if you don't receive one by then to give them a call.
 
Tiff - if I were you, I'd be "sweating" the utility costs to pay for air conditioning! Have you been keeping up with the weather (I check it online every once in awhile)? I think it has been triple digits plus for at least a month now - guess what it's going to be like in August!
 
It is hot in Phoenix now, but at least there are monsoons in August. Although we have a lot of rain in the northwest we rarely have thunderstorms and lightning - I can't wait to see a desert storm!
I haven't received anything about financial aid either, so I'm glad to read your posts. Thanks for keeping us up to date!
kelley
 
tiffsat--the best rates we found for car and rental ins were through county companies. We have an account with them up here in Oregon and have been very pleased with the service.
 
In preparation of starting school in August,
how's everyone doing on getting those shots and titers done?
Here's what I found out about all that:

I called the student services and they said that we'll have a month (from August 22nd) to finish all the shots and/or titers.
I'm not sure if you know the prices for these shots/titers......some are truly hefty. It was to my surprise that titers are in fact more expensive than the shots themselves!!! And they want you to get titers done for all the shots. This reassures that you do have the antibody still in your system.
AZCOM has arrangement with a clinic where you can get them done with a student discount. Most insurances do not cover immunizations for adults, is my understanding. I was lucky my insurance did. So, I think the best thing is to first check with your current plan and see if they cover your titers. If they do, then you save a whole lot. I checked with a clinic before checking to see if my insurance covered for the titers or not, and they wanted to charge me some ridiculous 350 bucks for my Hep B titer!!! So, if you have to eventually pay for it, wait until you get to Glendale so you can use the student discount at their designated clinic.

Thought sharing this with you.

David B.
 
Sorry tiffsat - that was COUNTRY COMPANIES (not county companies LOL). Just wanted to clarify :)
 
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Shots & Titers: when I was out there 3 weeks ago, I stopped by the student services office and gave them copies of my immuno records. I have all shots complete except the 3rd of the Hep B series, which I can't take until October (according to the schedule). I spoke to Julie High Horse Munstedt, and she told me that it would be okay to finish the series later (in October, for me - check with her on your schedule) and then get the titers through the school. Since I gave her a copy of that medical record for the files, it was evident that I was working toward compliance. I think if you have something along those lines when we get there, that you will also be okay.
 
Just learned some discouraging news from AZCOM.....

I seems there are 2 types of alternates:

1. Provisional: Someone who gets accepted but doesn't have an actual "seat". These people don't have to put a deposit down but WILL get the first call when any spots are open.

2. Alternate: Well, you know what these are but in this case it's kinda like being in the middle to lower third of the list.

Well, this really has me :( :( :( :(

I'm holding the slightest smidgen of hope but school in Des Moines starts in just over 4 weeks. Once I've bought a house there and moved my family, we'll be rooted.

Dave
 
I'm sorry to hear all that Dave. Just hang in there brother....and hope for the best I guess. I'm sure everyone is looking forward to seeing you there next to us in August.

David B.
 
swdave: is there any way that you can find out where you are? Can you schmooze it out of Dr. Walters by explaining your family situation? I think that DMU starts before we do. I know that Dr. Walters was good about telling if a person got accepted or not if that person had a good excuse not to have to wait for the written word... perhaps the same philosophy here? Its hard to believe that people aren't getting definitive answers yet. I'm keeping up hope for you to be with us in August, I want that barbeque!
 
Has anyone checked into the possibilities of dual degrees? Anyone know about the possibilities of getting degrees not offered at Midwestern, such as MBA or MPH? Would we have to check into this independently at another school such as ASU?
 
muonwhiz,

I've been wondering the same thing. I think AZCOM may offer a MPH program, but I don't think they have a MBA program. For that you'd probably have to look into ASU, Phoenix College, or, if lucky, Glendale Community College.

By the way when do people plan to start their big trip to the Southwest. I will be moving into Sage Stone on the 20th of July. Woo - Hoo!!! Post up as to when you plan on arriving, and how to get in touch once your there. Personally, email is still the best. You can reach me at the following address:

[email protected]

Talk to you soon.

Wade
 
I'm going back out 7/11-14 to see if I can find a house. I hope to move during the week of August 6th. My email is: [email protected]
and I look forward to meeting everyone!
 
Dual degrees:

MA in Bioethics and MPHE (Master's in Health Professions Education).

In the catalog, they also offer DO/PhD with "another local university." However, I'm not aware of anyone pursuing this route.

No MPH that I'm aware of.

I heard talk about a DO/MBA being in the works, but so far, nothing official has been said.

Good luck.
 
It seems like I remember something about a partnership with ASU for a DO/PhD dual degree. Anyone have more info on that?
Also, for those of you interested in an MBA, I have one and have actually found it extremely useful in many ways. If anyone wants to discuss it just let me know.
 
Hello classmates! Does anyone know what the average utility cost in Phoenix is to provide A/C in an ordinary sized apartment? I'm assuming electric instead of gas for this. Also, has anyone heard anything from financial aid or received an award letter yet? Anyone heard anything from the school yet re orientation?
 
I've heard nothing from the school in about 2 months. Pretty dissapointing.
 
Hello everyone-
Well I just called COMP and told them to go take a hike...AZCOM is the place for me. I'm doing my best to pick an apartment from a distance and have nailed it down to either Highlands or Sage stone thanks to the posts on this board. I was hoping the people that chose either of these places to live could share some of the differences between the 2 with me. Im vacationing in California this summer and wont have a chance to visit AZ this summer. Both seem like great deals with the 2 months free and xtra AZCOM student discounts. I was looking for a large one bedroom or small 2 bedroom for my girlfriend and me. Hopefully some of you can share your impressions of the 2 complexes. Cant wait to meet you guys! Adios
Chris
 
I haven't heard anthing from the school on financial aid either. Should be soon they keep telling me.

OregonDO,
Any idea how to get in touch with that company? Number or email would work spendidly!

Also, any rough estimates on costs of utilities in Phoenix? Moving on August 13th and can't wait to put faces with all the names. Do we have a date for the party?

Tiff
 
Hi guys,

I am writing this to you from the library at MWU. I just checked with the finan. aid office and they told me that the reason they are so behind in the process is that all three programs (Pharm., P.A. and D.O.) have accepted more students than they should've and surprisingly not as many have declined their offer as they had anticipated it. And that there are only two people handling the new students and continuing students award releases and all....that is only two people looking at 1500 students' financial aid biz!
So, just be patient with them. And they told me if I don't hear anything from them by two weeks, I should call their offices.

I was also at the student services office and overheard them talking about sending orientation letters to the new students within the next two days. So, sit tight.

Everything else looks great out here.....I have taken some new pictures to post on the site for upon some of your requests. Everytime I visit here, there is something new on the campus.....it's growing very rapidly.

gocubs,

Let me have your e-mail address so I can e-mail some insight about the two communities you have asked in your earlier post.


David B.
 
Does anyone know much about the insurance offered by the school, and whether or not it is worth the money? I know that SOMA and AMSA also have programs, but don't know any of the specifics about it.
 
Muonwhiz,

For single students SOMA is about 50 dollars cheaper per quater. However, SOMA sometimes covers only 80 percent of things like lab work and certain procedures. With Arizona it's almost always 100%. I think AZCOM's insurance is definitely the better choice as far as coverage. If you are trying to save money, however, then SOMA might be the way to go.
 
SW Dave, if you are still out there keep hanging on, I just released my spot at AZCOM.
Maybe it will have your name on it. :D
 
Hello all, been a while since I read the posts last - good to see your all still out there :) To answer some posts:

gocubs: to see a virtual tour of SageStone
1) http://www.fairfield-properties.com
2) then select Arizona as the state.
3) then select Sagestone at Arrowhead
4) on the site there is a virtual tour
link. hope this helps.

tiffsat: I couldnt find the phone number
for the insurance company 'Country
companies' but I did find a web
address for info:
http://www.countryfinancial.com

harleyman: thanks alot for the post on
your denial of the AZCOM position.
It's nice for the people on the
waiting lists to have some info on
what's going on. :) thanks.

To all, moving on the 23rd of this month - roughly a week and a half away!! I am very excited and nervous. It is such a big financial committment ya know!! :) See ya all soon,
:cool:
 
Hey there my fellow AZCOMers. Anyone have any information regarding our first year schedule. Like, with vacations on it and stuff. I assume we get some kind of X-mas break. Maybe I'm just dreaming.
 
Hello to all from hot and sunny Phoenix, where I am house hunting. You aren't the only one slightly crazed by the financial commitment! I don't know whether the academic schedule is out for this next year, but if you look at last year's, there were some breaks at Thanksgiving, Christmas and over the summer. There are probably others as well. Depending on what I can find here, I hope to move during the first week of August. It's getting close, classmates!
 
I just moved to Glendale a couple of weeks ago. We bought a house and our agent was very good. If anyone is looking to buy at this time and you need help, I can give you his number. I'd offer a place to crash for housing hunters but a lot of our stuff is still in boxes. Sorry.
 
I posted some new pic.'s of the campus that I have recently taken on the site....check'em out.

Here are the breaks we'll have for the first year:

11/10-11/25 (Thanksgiving)
12/22-01/06 (X-mas)
05/18 (Summer break starts)

David B.
 
Is anyone moving to Glendale from L.A. area?
Any idea as to the rates for trucks and the pros and cons of the three major companies (U-Haul, Penske and Ryder)?
 
Thanks for the list of breaks. That's what I was after. Anyone had titers done by the lab Midwestern recommends?
 
Roughgod:
U-haul seems to be the cheapest. A word of caution though. We scheduled our truck a month ahead of time and had to wait an additional two days to get a truck. I thought we would never get one. We almost went to Ryder or Penske but the price difference was significant. You just have to keep on them about finding you a truck.
 
I got my orientation notice letter on Saturday, so it should be on its way (if not already received) for everyone. I also bought a house out in Surprise (a suburb) and I had a good experience using the agent that was recommended by the student services office. The agent's name is Tim Duncan and he does apartments, houses, whatever you need. Good luck to everyone moving and finding a place to live!
 
So the time is drawing near. I cannot believe how much stuff I have to deal with in a move these days. It is a far cry from heading off for college freshman year (all I owned fit into a jeep (CJ, not the SUV)!

I am looking forward to meeting the message board crew in person. Trust me, I am much more talkative during face to face meetings.

Oh, just as I get going, my darling daughter has awakened and needs a feeding. It's 2am now, I am looking forward to when she is on the American style 3 square meals bit!

Chow for now.
 
Hey Guys,

Well, the count down has begun for me now. Thanks for everyones help on all the little things. Still looking for another roomate and to those of you looking for a place to live, my "big sis" said that there is a message board with people looking for roomates posted at school.

Anyone know what books are a necessity yet and when we should buy them?

Tiff
 
The countdown has begun for us also. My fiance is having a hard time finding a job in the Phoenix area, so the move may be more stressful than we thought. But, it will all work out ok.

I have a question about the titer... we can get this when we arrive at AZCOM, right? It was my understanding that AZCOM has a deal with a lab company and we can get our titers done during orientation if we chose to. Also, how much does it cost?

Thanks to anyone who is able to help. Can't wait to meet everyone!

kelley
 
Kelly,

That is right. You can get them done at or even after the orientation....I think they give you a month or two to finish them all. Read my earlier post about this. Titers usually cost much more than the shot itself....but the deal they have is actually pretty good. I remember when asked it was something close to 40% off what labs would regularly charge. Good luck to your finace on his job-hunt.

David B.
 
What is the web address of the list of people at AZCOM looking for roommates? I'm planning on moving out during the week of August 6th. Does anyone have advice or recommendations as to who is a good mover? I hope we can get a party together before orientation as has been suggested on the AZCOM 2005 site. We need to eat, drink and be merry before 8/27!
 
I have packed non-stop since Friday, I can not believe how much junk I have. OOPS, We have. Anyway, the big day is near. I'll pick up the 24-foot Ryder tomorrow, pack it, get some rest, and Thursday morning we are on our way from Boise to Las Vegas. Friday is Vegas to Glendale. My ducks are in a row, but the row ain't exactly straight. No worries! I will be offline as of Wednesday night and I should be back up on VDSL on Monday with stories to tell. Does it bother anyone else that telephone, cable, and high speed internet service are all controlled by Qwest in Phoenix? Just curious. Talk to you soon.

Wade
 
Actually, all three services you 've mentioned are offered only by Cox Communications at Glendale. I was surprised that even the local telephone provider for that area is COX!
 
Hi

Actually both services are offered in Glendale. I found Qwest to be slightly more reasonable in price vs. Cox. Just an opinion. (PS. you guys should have an additional week of "vacation" listed, unless things have changed since I was in basic sciences, right after finals between second and third quarter). Good luck.
 
Per Natalie O'Connor, MWU Financial Aid Administrator, incoming medical students will be packaged for loan approval sometime around the end of next week, and award letters should be received sometime around 8/3. Does anyone know where a person could get "hints from Heloise" type advice on packing for those all important moves to Arizona? Post any good sites that you know of! Thanks, and see you all soon!
 
I am driving from Chicago on August 3. Actually, the 110 degree heat will be quite welcome compared to the weather of late in Chicago. We are closing on a house in Scottsdale on August 6. I know, it seems far from the school. However, I am used to allowing nearly an hour for my commutes here. So 25 minutes will be a breeze!

Practical info: someone mentioned phone/internet/cable service. Ask around if you can. My brother just cancelled his Qwest internet (high speed) service out of frustration. Apparently, downloads are very fast as is expected of high speed service, but locating pages through their server takes a long time. We opted for Cox in our home because we are used to dealing with broadband (we have AT&T in Chicago). Also, they offer a package discount if you use all services, but I know this varies across the valley. Their site: http://www.cox.com/

Other points of interest:
AZ has a lot to offer (even beyond tubing the Salt!) Take a look at the lake near our school. I learned how to ski on this lake during high school when it was 1/5 of what it is today! http://ci.peoria.az.us/lakepF.htm
Also, the Arizona Highways is a magazine full of information about Arizona's greatest places. http://www.arizhwys.com/
 
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