Campbell University (D.O.) vs. California University of Science and Medicine (M.D.)

[premed92118]

Hi everyone! I'd love some advice to help me choose between Campbell University, a D.O., or California University of Science and Medicine (CalMed), which is a new M.D. school in my home of Southern California.

Campbell
Pros:

• Got to tour the school in the fall and absolutely loved the school, students, and faculty
• $50,000 tuition, with more affordable cost of living in North Carolina
• Eligible for federal loans
• Accredited
• Excellent board scores and residency placements
• Several affiliated residency programs around North Carolina

Cons

• Although I have no problem with D.O. schools, the stigma against D.O.'s is still present in many competitive specialties
• I chose Campbell over some more established D.O. schools because of it's excellent match lists, but with the change of USMLE to P/F I'm not sure if Campbell will still be able to place as many graduates into competitive residencies as it has been.
• No affiliated hospital

California University of Science and Medicine
Pros

• M.D. program
• Affiliated with Arrowhead Medical Center for clinical rotations
• Only about an hour away from home

Cons

• Unfortunately my interview was virtual because of COVID-19, so I didn't get as good of a feel for the program as I did for Campbell
• $60,000 tuition, with more expensive cost of living in California
• Would have to take out private loans for the first two years, but if it becomes accredited after my second year (May 2022), I may be eligible for federal loans for my last two years
• Unaccredited, and doesn't have a graduated class to compare match lists, etc.
• Class of 2022's USMLE scores are about 10% lower than the average (MD Program Student Outcomes | CUSM)

Summary: Overall, I'm trying not to let cost influence my decision too much, but I'm more worried about whether a D.O. with a good reputation or an unaccredited M.D. will open more doors in the future.

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[DrStephenStrange]

MD > DO
edit: Pre-accredited is NOT unaccredited. In fact, pre-accredited is the first level of being accredited.

 

[SinglePayerNow]

MD always

 

[Davidfromcali]

100% CUSM

 

[silvershark3]

I think the balance between a DO with a good reputation and an unaccredited MD is difficult, but I would like to give my thoughts. It seems you really liked Campbell, and if it has the good reputation as you said, then it will look more favorable when applying for residencies (in my opinion). With STEP1 now P/F, residency programs won't be able to depend on a numerical score as much, and will put more of their decision onto the school that the student is coming from, and I feel as if it may be riskier to be applying from a school so new versus an established one. Additionally one is much cheaper with less interest on loans.

 

[djiboutiman]

Even though Campbell is a great established DO school and CalMed is pretty new/unproven MD school, I think you should go to CalMed. While I think Campbell can train you to become a kick-ass doctor, being a DO has a stigma amongst older physicians and some residency PDs, making it harder to match into competitive residency programs/specialties. Also at CalMed you won’t have to take COMPLEX or do OMM. It is your decision though, so if you prefer the comfort of an established program you can go to Campbell. Congratulations on your acceptances!

 

[DrStephenStrange]

I think the balance between a DO with a good reputation and an unaccredited MD is difficult, but I would like to give my thoughts. It seems you really liked Campbell, and if it has the good reputation as you said, then it will look more favorable when applying for residencies (in my opinion). With STEP1 now P/F, residency programs won't be able to depend on a numerical score as much, and will put more of their decision onto the school that the student is coming from, and I feel as if it may be riskier to be applying from a school so new versus an established one. Additionally one is much cheaper with less interest on loans.

There's no such thing as an unaccredited MD school. If it's unaccredited, it would not be allowed to accept students. The school is in pre-accreditation which is the first level of accreditation. That's different. I'm still willing to bet the pre-accredited MD is better than the DO because of LCME's standards being stronger than COCA's. Plus having an attached Hospital with GME and research is gonna be better than any DO school. Also, with USMLE going pass/fail, it's definitely gonna make things harder for DOs. For a DO school, I like CUSOM, but at the end of the day it's still gonna be a DO school with all the issues associated with most DO schools. It's also not that established either. It was founded in 2011.

 

[drluckythetaurus]

I had to make a very similar decision and ended up picking new MD> established DO due to step 1 pass/fail change and a higher chance of matching into competitive specialties. I also feel that the difference in cost of attendance isn't substantial, and there are ways to lessen costs at CUSM by applying for their scholarships, finding a roommate, etc. Having an affiliated hospital is another important factor to consider, as Arrowhead Hospital has a lot of residency programs and finding clinical rotations won't be a problem.

About the chart on CUSM Step scores, here is what an M1 said:

"It's a weird graph and I honestly wish they would have designed it way differently because it's pretty confusing. Essentially what they were saying is that as 1st years, with only studying that block, they were able to score fairly close to the national average compared to the typical test takers which are second year students who have a dedicated study period before taking it. Tbh I wouldn't put much weight into this as it's not official and doesn't really contribute much to highlighting the strengths of the curriculum here. Should hopefully have actual STEP 1 data this year as the current M2s are taking their boards in the next month or so"

 

[deleted859689]

US MD > DO. Established or new. Just not Carib

 

[caffeinebby]

Congrats on your acceptances!

Take the MD and run, you wouldn't want to decrease your chances down the road if you decide to pursue a competitive speciality. Especially considering as others have mentioned, Step 1 P/F.

Good luck!

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

MD

 

[StudentDoGter]

I was able to interview in person earlier in the cycle, and the day actually left a really good impression for me. At first, I was reluctant for many of the same reasons that you stated, but I would have gone there had I not received other CA acceptances. In terms of the pricing, I liked how the school provides some need based financial aid I believe, and they seemed very willing to try to provide resources for other scholarships and gave us a handout of some too. Another thing that I really liked about the school was how committed they were to their mission, and how friendly all of the staff and faculty seemed. I spoke to the dean of admissions, different faculty members (MD and PhD) and even one of their head physicians who helped to establish programs at UC Riverside and they were so proud of their students and excited for the incoming class. They seemed to really emphasize wellness and provide a great learning community. During the day, they made a point to talk about how much they want their students to feel like their door is always open to them for support which I liked. It’s also cool that you’d be able to have brand new facilities right next to the hospital.

sorry for the long post, but I wanted to provide more feedback for what you may have felt if you had attended the interview in person! Good luck!