deciding between schools

[p30doc]

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I am blessed to have more than one acceptance, with interviews still on the horizon. Now comes some tough decisions (but great to have to make decisions), which schools to continue to interview at, which to withdraw from and which to ultimately attend. I came up with 5 factors important to me and ranked them in order of importance 1) resources 2) curriculum 3) location 4) cost 5) prestige. How are you guys planning on making this decision for yourself?

 

[deleted172531]

I am in the same boat...I am deciding based on
1) Location (Prefer SoCal)
2) 3rd/4th year Rotations
3) Technology/Facilities (ie: are classes available online? Are the facilities up to date?)
4) Past history (ie: past matches)
5) The "feel" I got from the campus when I interviewed.

 

[Bacchus]

I am in the same boat...I am deciding based on
1) Location (Prefer SoCal)
2) 3rd/4th year Rotations
3) Technology/Facilities (ie: are classes available online? Are the facilities up to date?)
4) Past history (ie: past matches)
5) The "feel" I got from the campus when I interviewed.

I would say this is a good way. I have a 6) though. That's gonna be an SDNer to do a toin coss for me (see signature).

 

[deleted172531]

Have to add I never thought I would be in the position to even have choices!! Crazy how things can change in just a few weeks..

 

[EhCdnGirl]

First of all, good of you to think of this decision as a blessing and not a problem, many people would love to be in your situation.
I was faced with the same situation as you last winter and I wil give me two cents about that process and how that has worked out in terms of my first quarter.

I was sitting on an acceptance between KCOM and NOVA, two opposites!! what it ended up coming down to for me was
1. I wanted a curriculum that I felt would prepare me for boards, but also for life as a physician. So high board scores, but lots of experience with standardized patients and simulators, which was huge at KCOM.
2. I wanted a place that I like where I could rotate, and KCOM has a huge selection..Nova has mostly Florida, which is cool, but if I didn't like it for some reason, I had no "out" per se.
3. And finally, and now with some perspective, most importantly, I needed a place where I would be happy. This may sound cliche, or goofy, but when I came to KCOM, more than any other place I felt like I would be taken care of...they cared about me, they took interest in me and in a small town you really do feel safe. Additionally, the faculty go out of there way to make sure you understand and learn the material. This is probably generally a trend at most schools, but KCOM exuded this most strongly for me. If you are unhappy where you are, for whatever reasons those may be, location, type of atmosphere of school etc...you will have a very hard time being able to devote yourself to studying as much as you need. You spend a large percentage of your time studying or in class and if this is not a pleasant experience, you will burn out quickly.

Sorry about the ramble, but now that you have decided what is important, try to rationalize through your choices...it took me a long time and a lot of thinking to get here to KCOM, and I was still unsure when i got here, but now two months in I can tell you that finding a place where you will fit and be taken care of is absolutely huge. If you can figure that out and find a place that fits, go there, you will not regret it...best of luck!!!

 

[engineeredout]

Man I hope I get to be in this position.

 

[Bacchus]

You will. I have a nice amount of work to do so I can put a decision on the backburner.

 

[p30doc]

First of all, good of you to think of this decision as a blessing and not a problem, many people would love to be in your situation.
I was faced with the same situation as you last winter and I wil give me two cents about that process and how that has worked out in terms of my first quarter.

I was sitting on an acceptance between KCOM and NOVA, two opposites!! what it ended up coming down to for me was
1. I wanted a curriculum that I felt would prepare me for boards, but also for life as a physician. So high board scores, but lots of experience with standardized patients and simulators, which was huge at KCOM.
2. I wanted a place that I like where I could rotate, and KCOM has a huge selection..Nova has mostly Florida, which is cool, but if I didn't like it for some reason, I had no "out" per se.
3. And finally, and now with some perspective, most importantly, I needed a place where I would be happy. This may sound cliche, or goofy, but when I came to KCOM, more than any other place I felt like I would be taken care of...they cared about me, they took interest in me and in a small town you really do feel safe. Additionally, the faculty go out of there way to make sure you understand and learn the material. This is probably generally a trend at most schools, but KCOM exuded this most strongly for me. If you are unhappy where you are, for whatever reasons those may be, location, type of atmosphere of school etc...you will have a very hard time being able to devote yourself to studying as much as you need. You spend a large percentage of your time studying or in class and if this is not a pleasant experience, you will burn out quickly.

Sorry about the ramble, but now that you have decided what is important, try to rationalize through your choices...it took me a long time and a lot of thinking to get here to KCOM, and I was still unsure when i got here, but now two months in I can tell you that finding a place where you will fit and be taken care of is absolutely huge. If you can figure that out and find a place that fits, go there, you will not regret it...best of luck!!!

When I decided to try to go to medical school a few years ago, I highly doubted that it would even be possible. I am truly shocked, awed, and grateful to be in the position that I am in now. Thank you for your perspective. It is always good to get some insight and wisdom from someone who has been through this before.

 

[RySerr21]

Ive pretty much enjoyed every interview that I have been at and could be happy at each school..... so for me in the end i think its gonna come down to cost. Of course there are things I like about each school, and of course I can say school X has a better curriculum (for me) than School Y, or School X is in a better location than School Y........ but say school Y has incredibly cheap tuition (aka cali school) or they happen to give me lots of money AND i enjoyed my interview and the studejts were friendly, etc.........then its a whole new ball game.

 

[MossPoh]

Things I consider in no particular order.

Curriculum, Rotation Sites, Residency Programs, Early Clinical Exposure, Board prep, happiness of students, integration with other professional fields, a support network in place, tuition and general feel.

I'm currently leaning towards NSU. The tuition and support in the area are big plusses for me. My brother and his family live down there, along with a ton of family friends. Connections outside of medicine are very important to me, so it is something I ranked a little higher than most people. Some find it trivial, but medicine involves interaction with more than just other doctors. Networking with lawyers, nurses, dentists, public health people...all great assets in the long run and I felt south florida offered a lot with that regard. Rotation location doesn't matter much to me because honestly, it is only about a year and a half anyway and you aren't going to be able to do much if you don't like the area once you get there.

 

[simbalimba]

I too have been blessed with this luxury of having to choose between multiple schools. I wanted to ask u guys for a little help. I have narrowed it down to 3 schools for myself and wanted to get more data on them. If anyone can answer the any of the following questions about DMU, CCOM, AND PCOM, I would greatly appreciate it and it would save me some time:

-How many weeks of elective rotations can you take during your third year? fourth year?
-Is the school geared more towards producing FPs and rural docs or more towards specialities?
-How many weeks/months do students have between end of 2nd year and date of comlex/usmle?
-Does this school have a hospital?
-Is this school known for placing students into very competitive residencies?

 

[RySerr21]

I too have been blessed with this luxury of having to choose between multiple schools. I wanted to ask u guys for a little help. I have narrowed it down to 3 schools for myself and wanted to get more data on them. If anyone can answer the any of the following questions about DMU, CCOM, AND PCOM, I would greatly appreciate it and it would save me some time:

-How many weeks of elective rotations can you take during your third year? fourth year?
-Is the school geared more towards producing FPs and rural docs or more towards specialities?
-How many weeks/months do students have between end of 2nd year and date of comlex/usmle?
-Does this school have a hospital?
-Is this school known for placing students into very competitive residencies?

I can speak a little bit about DMU.

The 3rd year schedule allows for 8 weeks of elective time and 12 weeks of selective time. The fourth year schedule allows for 28 weeks of elective rotations. So, thats quite a lot of time that you have free to "audition" for residnecy positions or practice abroad or what have you. Probably some of the longest elective time I have seen.

DMU does offer the Rural Iowa Provider Education Program which is specific for students who are intersted in pracicing a primary care speciality in rural Iowa. That being said, this is just an OPTION for students that want to do this, by no means do they try and force people to enter rural medicine or primary care. In fact, they have some of the most impresive facilities I have seen for specialties such as surgery. They even offer a surgical techniques course during 2nd year, which I have not seen at any other schools. You can read more about the details from the link above. The dean (I think its the dean) is a surgeon so he has really done his best to expose the DMU students to as much surgery as possible it seems. So, definitely they encourage people to enter all fields of medicine.

The school does not have its own hospitals. Students rotate throughout Iowa and local states such as Ohio and Michigan (I could be wrong about Michigan but Ohio for sure).

The school year looks like it ends in early-mid May for the 2nd year students, but I'm not sure when you are supposd to take the COMLEX/USMLE so i dont have a complete answer for that question.

Hope these answered your questions!

 

[scpod]

....The fourth year schedule allows for 28 weeks of elective rotations. So, thats quite a lot of time that you have free to "audition" for residnecy positions or practice abroad or what have you. Probably some of the longest elective time I have seen....

Keep in mind that the structure of rotations means as much or more than the number of weeks if you're looking at "audition" rotations. Most residency interviews are done by January, which means the last 20 weeks or so of your rotations don't mean squat.

 

[lainey234]

I was fortunate enough to be in this position as well. Acceptances at RVU (which would have meant not moving), KCOM, and Lecom-B. Had an interview at Nova too but decided to cancel since I am pretty set on Lecom.

For me the number one factor was my family. I have two kids and a husband and I need to consider how a move will affect them. Bradenton offered a curriculum and flexibility that really appealed to me. Bottom line - it just came down to where everyone would be most happy.

 

[RySerr21]

Keep in mind that the structure of rotations means as much or more than the number of weeks if you're looking at "audition" rotations. Most residency interviews are done by January, which means the last 20 weeks or so of your rotations don't mean squat.

Oooo, interesting! Thats good to know, thanks!! Based on the schedule I posted you can't really tell when the electiive weeks are, so thats definitely a good question to ask on interviews.

 

[ronicajay]

Oooo, interesting! Thats good to know, thanks!! Based on the schedule I posted you can't really tell when the electiive weeks are, so thats definitely a good question to ask on interviews.

Not everyone will do their rotations in the same order. Since they are electives, some of which you will use as audition/away rotations, I am sure you can choose to front-load them in the 4th year.

 

[TeamZissou]

I don't think its best to decide soley based on match lists but you will probably find these interesting.

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=574257

 

[AgnesWickfield]

I'm not sure if this is the best place to post this question, but here goes anyhow: I, too, am blessed enough to have options in front of me right now and I was wondering, basically, what is proper etiquette when turning down an acceptance? There are some schools with Admissions Staff that were so kind and I would feel bad telling them that their school is not for me, after all. By the same token, it may be just as bad if not worse, to just sit back, do nothing and watch the deposit deadline pass me by.

What are your thoughts? 😕

 

[p30doc]

I'm not sure if this is the best place to post this question, but here goes anyhow: I, too, am blessed enough to have options in front of me right now and I was wondering, basically, what is proper etiquette when turning down an acceptance? There are some schools with Admissions Staff that were so kind and I would feel bad telling them that their school is not for me, after all. By the same token, it may be just as bad if not worse, to just sit back, do nothing and watch the deposit deadline pass me by.

What are your thoughts? 😕

They aren't going to be heart broken, they have a line of people waiting to get in. Send them something in writing or an email thanking them and saying that you will be declining their acceptance and attending school elsewhere

 

[Bacchus]

I'm not sure if this is the best place to post this question, but here goes anyhow: I, too, am blessed enough to have options in front of me right now and I was wondering, basically, what is proper etiquette when turning down an acceptance? There are some schools with Admissions Staff that were so kind and I would feel bad telling them that their school is not for me, after all. By the same token, it may be just as bad if not worse, to just sit back, do nothing and watch the deposit deadline pass me by.

What are your thoughts? 😕

I did this one:

XXX,
Thank you for the invaluable opportunity to attend Y. However, I am e-mailing you to withdraw my acceptance. The decision to withdraw was extremely hard. Please grant my acceptance to a deserving student. Again, thank you for the invitation to join the Class of 2013. I will always remember Y and will speak of it highly at my University. Best of luck to the Y community; you all have a great program!

(I wrote the above because I was torn and really loved the school).

I also wrote:

XXX,
I wish to withdraw my application for admission into the Class of 2013 at Z. Thank you for inviting me to interview with your school.

(I wrote the above to schools where I didn't yet schedule my interviews.)

I have one more to write, I'll get around to it.

 

[AgnesWickfield]

I did this one:

XXX,
Thank you for the invaluable opportunity to attend Y. However, I am e-mailing you to withdraw my acceptance. The decision to withdraw was extremely hard. Please grant my acceptance to a deserving student. Again, thank you for the invitation to join the Class of 2013. I will always remember Y and will speak of it highly at my University. Best of luck to the Y community; you all have a great program!

(I wrote the above because I was torn and really loved the school).

I also wrote:

XXX,
I wish to withdraw my application for admission into the Class of 2013 at Z. Thank you for inviting me to interview with your school.

(I wrote the above to schools where I didn't yet schedule my interviews.)

I have one more to write, I'll get around to it.

Oooo, tactful. I was thinking of writing something along the same lines. To the above poster: thanks for your input as well. While I know schools have a long line of people waiting to get in, I had some notable circumstances at a couple of interviews that led the people in admissions to go above and beyond (offering to drive me to the airport after my interview b/c of a car fiasco, etc.). I just want to be polite and considerate when I turn them down.

 

[umean2tellme]

I have acceptances at KCOM and today found out about NOVA. I have been thinking about these two schools for a while and now am leaning heavily towards Nova for several reasons:

1. Even though I hate city life, I live in Miami and can commute to Nova in about 45 min (If I can beat the traffic which sux). I like Kirksville but it seems a bit to isolated for me.
2. The rotations: I think nova has better rotation spots, namely the UM/Jackson Memorial where my sister is an RN in the NICU so it's kind of been our dream to work together one day (She's almost 20 years older so maybe she put that dream in my head when i was a kid lol).
3. Both campuses look great but Nova wins in terms of facilities.
4. Nova is a bit crowded with all the health professions in the same building, but I can look past that.
5. Chance for international rotations and relief efforts: Nova does a lot of medical missions and stuff and I really want to do some international stuff. I didn't get the feel that KCOM does a lot of that.
6. My girlfriend: She didn't want to go to Kirksville and in Florida there are more schools (including NOVA) that offer the graduate degree she's looking for.

So yeah those are what i used in no particular order.

 

[Chuck's Right Foot]

Right now my two choices are UMDNJ and Western. I'm leaning towards UMDNJ for location and tuition. Everything was kind of the same for me at the interviews otherwise... and all things being equal, I think I'd rather be closer to family.