Differences in DO school elective policies?

[AlbertVOligh]

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I was Googling threads and couldn't find a definitive source where people talked about this topic. Also, I was navigating through some school websites and had a hard time finding my answer.

I saw in the Pros and Cons of DO school thread, JP Hazelton stressed the importance of having a school that actually gave you significant free time to use your electives in your desired specialty, especially if you want something non-PC. He said that he picked PCOM over like UMDNJ and NYCOM for instance because of the greater time for electives. In that same vein, you could probably say DMU gives you greater freedom as well since I think their fourth year is pretty open.

Can any current students or knowledgeable Pre-Meds share any info they have on the electives policy in years 3/4 of some schools? Which schools give you the most freedom? Which schools do people feel are somewhat restrictive?

 

[dntke1518]

Are you asking about elective classes that you can take while in school or are you talking about elective rotations? Either way it never hurts to have options, so yes, picking a school that gives you some freedom to study/go where you want to.

 

[Iliketoytles]

Are you asking about elective classes that you can take while in school or are you talking about elective rotations? Either way it never hurts to have options, so yes, picking a school that gives you some freedom to study/go where you want to.

I think he's referring to audition rotations/elective rotations/away rotations/whatever else people like to call it.

DMU's fourth year is pretty open for audition rotations, which is great since you have time to travel to different programs and spend a good amount of time at each one. Downside is the cost and stress of bouncing around so much, especially since not all programs give you housing (so you have to find your own). Worth it, I guess.

 

[oms2]

4th year at every school i know is pretty open. i'm not aware of roadblocks at any school that prevent a student from doing electives. it's a matter of personal initiative, money, scheduling and logistics

 

[mommy2three]

CCOM offers a total of 5 4 week electives between 3rd and fourth year