Funny Email from AZCOM....LOL

[MDizzy]

May 2, 2007


Dear osteopathic medicine applicant:

Thank you for having taken the time to file an application with us for the Fall 2007 admissions cycle. We have now concluded the interview process and are on the verge of filling our class for Fall 2007.

The Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine graduated its first class on June 4, 2000 , at which time our full accreditation was conferred. Our students are achieving at the highest levels on national boards and in securing prestigious internships/residencies. And, while applications to all medical schools are down nationally (10-12%), AZCOM’s application pool dropped significantly less than that.

All of these factors are likely to converge in making subsequent application cycles even more competitive (averages: GPA- science, 3.39, overall 3.45; MCAT: 27). Therefore, I urge you to take whatever measures necessary to strengthen your application and/or to complete it early! The ACCOMAS application is available on line starting April 2007; you may complete and submit your AACOMAS application electronically. You are urged to take advantage of this service and complete your application with AZCOM as early in the cycle as possible. The rolling admissions process that we (and most osteopathic medical schools) utilize clearly favors those who complete their applications early.

If you have any questions regarding applying to AZCOM, please do not hesitate to contact us at (888) 247-9277; or visit our website @ www.midwestern.edu. We look forward to receiving your application for 2008.

Best wishes,

James M. Walter, MPA
Office of Admissions

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Members don't see this ad.

 

[CommanderRiker]

It's funny because you were accepted there? Mass E-Mailings to ALL applicants are not out of the ordinary.

 

[Halligan]

May 2, 2007


Dear osteopathic medicine applicant:

Thank you for having taken the time to file an application with us for the Fall 2007 admissions cycle. We have now concluded the interview process and are on the verge of filling our class for Fall 2007.

The Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine graduated its first class on June 4, 2000 , at which time our full accreditation was conferred. Our students are achieving at the highest levels on national boards and in securing prestigious internships/residencies. And, while applications to all medical schools are down nationally (10-12%), AZCOM’s application pool dropped significantly less than that.

All of these factors are likely to converge in making subsequent application cycles even more competitive (averages: GPA- science, 3.39, overall 3.45; MCAT: 27). Therefore, I urge you to take whatever measures necessary to strengthen your application and/or to complete it early! The ACCOMAS application is available on line starting April 2007; you may complete and submit your AACOMAS application electronically. You are urged to take advantage of this service and complete your application with AZCOM as early in the cycle as possible. The rolling admissions process that we (and most osteopathic medical schools) utilize clearly favors those who complete their applications early.

If you have any questions regarding applying to AZCOM, please do not hesitate to contact us at (888) 247-9277; or visit our website @ www.midwestern.edu. We look forward to receiving your application for 2008.

Best wishes,

James M. Walter, MPA
Office of Admissions

I'm a little confused here...were you accepted there, or what? Why were you sent this letter?

 

[DragonWell]

Where's the funny?

 

[MedStudentWanna]

It's funny because the school is saying they don't have that many applicants. They're saying that applications are down, but that makes subsequent years more competitive. It's obviously someone's goof. They meant to say that apps are up, not down.

 

[Dr JPH]

It's funny because the school is saying they don't have that many applicants. They're saying that applications are down, but that makes subsequent years more competitive. It's obviously someone's goof. They meant to say that apps are up, not down.

No. You read it wrong.

AZCOM is saying that despite the drop nationally in medical school applicants, their applicant pool has remained fairly constant. Thus they are not one of the schools that is suffering with a smaller number of apps = their selection criteria will remain competitive.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

No. You read it wrong.

AZCOM is saying that despite the drop nationally in medical school applicants, their applicant pool has remained fairly constant. Thus they are not one of the schools that is suffering with a smaller number of apps = their selection criteria will remain competitive.

But it still doesn't make sense because there hasn't been a nationwide drop in applications. In fact, applications have been going up regularly the past few years.

 

[CommanderRiker]

It's funny because the school is saying they don't have that many applicants. They're saying that applications are down, but that makes subsequent years more competitive. It's obviously someone's goof. They meant to say that apps are up, not down.

I agree.

 

[CommanderRiker]

No. You read it wrong.

AZCOM is saying that despite the drop nationally in medical school applicants, their applicant pool has remained fairly constant. Thus they are not one of the schools that is suffering with a smaller number of apps = their selection criteria will remain competitive.

Even then, A.Z.C.O.M.'s pool should NOT get more competitive. That's what the letter implied.

 

[Dr JPH]

But it still doesn't make sense because there hasn't been a nationwide drop in applications. In fact, applications have been going up regularly the past few years.

Well then they are indeed wrong. I dont know where they get their info, im just trying to decipher what they meant.

Check AAMC...they keep track of those records.

 

[Dr JPH]

Even then, A.Z.C.O.M.'s pool should NOT get more competitive. That's what the letter implied.

S.H.U.T. U.P.

 

[MDizzy]

Wow.

I didn't think there would actually be any debate about whether or not they screwed up.

Furthermore, the letter clearly says something along the lines of "good luck applying next year" and people on this site are confused if I was accepted?


If a med school said their application numbers were "down significantly more than the national trend" why would it be harder to get in for next year?

I'm really disturbed now......

 

[Doctor Bagel]

Wow.

I didn't think there would actually be any debate about whether or not they screwed up.

Furthermore, the letter clearly says something along the lines of "good luck applying next year" and people on this site are confused if I was accepted?


If a med school said their application numbers were "down significantly more than the national trend" why would it be harder to get in for next year?

I'm really disturbed now......

Well, they said they were down "significantly less" than the national trend. If they said "more," then it would indeed make absolutely zero sense. Even as they said it, it still wouldn't necessarily be true -- say if applications nationwide are down 20%, and their applications are down 10%, it doesn't necessarily mean anything about how competitive a school is. It also certainly doesn't mean it will be harder to get admitted next year -- in fact, if applications are down everywhere, it would be easier everywhere, even at the places that had a slightly smaller decrease in applications.

And again, it makes no sense because applications are not down. Apparently they were on the decline from the mid 90s until about 2003, but they've gone up since then. Maybe they wrote their letter in 2000 or something and never updated it.

 

[Halligan]

And again, it makes no sense because applications are not down. Apparently they were on the decline from the mid 90s until about 2003, but they've gone up since then. Maybe they wrote their letter in 2000 or something and never updated it.

That doesnt seem like the case though. The letter was recently sent out, right?

Let's see what JP has to say.

 

[MDizzy]

That doesnt seem like the case though. The letter was recently sent out, right?

Let's see what JP has to say.

Yes, the letter was sent May 2nd, 2007. My other rejection letters all said that applications were way up this year. If nothing else, it's courtesy to say "applications were way up and we didn't have enough spaces for all qualified applicants." It's unprecedented to say that applications were down, and it'll be harder to get in next year. They screwed up, plain and simple. I'm not understanding why some people are trying to rationalize it.

 

[spicedmanna]

And again, it makes no sense because applications are not down. Apparently they were on the decline from the mid 90s until about 2003, but they've gone up since then.

Yeah, the fact is the number of applicants have increased, not declined since 2002. According to both AAMC and AACOM data, the number of applicants was at a minimum during 2002 for both pools, between the years 1995 to 2006 for AAMC pool and between the years 2001 to 2005 for the AACOM pool, at 33,625 and 6,324 applicants respectively (1, 2). There has been a steady increase of applicants since that minimum in both pools, reaching a total of 39,108 applicants for 2006, a 4.6% increase from 2005, for the AAMC pool, and 8,241 applicants for 2005, a 13.0% increase from 2004, for the AACOM pool (1, 2). The latest data isn't up for the 2006 application cycle for the AACOM, but if the trend of increasing number of applicants holds, then one would expect that 2006 would see another increase. Indeed that there was an increase in applicants in 2006 for the AAMC pool, suggests an analogous increase in the AACOM pool, as the two pools seem to mirror each other within the respective year ranges mentioned above. Therefore, while it cannot be definitively said due to the lack of data for the 2006 application cycle for AACOM, the prior data and trend for the AACOM and the data and trends for the AAMC would suggest that there would an increase in applicants for 2006 for AACOM.

References:

1. Table 6: Applicants, Accepted Applicants, and Matriculants by Sex, 1995-2006, AAMC; retrieved from: http://www.aamc.org/data/facts/2006/2006summary.htm

2. Total Applications Processed and Average Designations, AACOM; retrieved from: http://www.aacom.org/data/advisorupdate/index_files/frame.html

 

[Lamont]

A couple things.

1. the letter is very confusing, its worded poorly. "our applications are down, and that makes it tougher to get in here". not logical, not realistic, unless of course all the applicants have better numbers than before - which they should have indicated if so. from what i understand, this incoming class is about on par with the others based on numbers (which are good numbers). I got the email and thought it was pretty unprofessional to send an EMAIL after I paid them 50 bucks, they could have sent a letter, and also they need to check their grammar.

2. apps this year could be down, they are going off of 2007 cycle data, not 2006. 2007 apps could be down, we dont know. the medical schools will see that data before we will, because well...they helped create the data.

 

[spicedmanna]

2. apps this year could be down, they are going off of 2007 cycle data, not 2006. 2007 apps could be down, we dont know. the medical schools will see that data before we will, because well...they helped create the data.

That's true. They could be down. We won't know until the data arrives. I'm just reacting to the indications of prior data and heresay that suggest that the number of applicants have gone up. It is just a guess without the current data, however; it's a hypothesis. I suppose we'll find out for sure when the current application data becomes available.

 

[theraball]

Obviously a typo. I have rewritten the letter for the OP to convey the meaning that they probably intended. I would also urge the OP to call the school to confirm, in addition to asking all his buddies here on sdn

May 2, 2007

Dear osteopathic medicine applicant:

Thank you for having taken the time to file an application with us for the Fall 2007 admissions cycle. We have now concluded the interview process and are on the verge of filling our class for Fall 2007.

The Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine graduated its first class on June 4, 2000 , at which time our full accreditation was conferred. Our students are achieving at the highest levels on national boards and in securing prestigious internships/residencies. And, while applications to all medical schools are up nationally (10-12%), AZCOM's application pool went up significantly more than that.

All of these factors are likely to converge in making subsequent application cycles even more competitive (averages: GPA- science, 3.39, overall 3.45; MCAT: 27). Therefore, I urge you to blah blah blah....