how do i go about this?

[chasingmytail]

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So I'm getting ready to research schools and I was wondering what are the major criteria that I should be looking at? What do YOU look for?

Location? Matches? How do you find out about such things as percentage of students enetering a certain residency such as surgery, pediatrics, or subspecialties etc?

I'm kind of lost as how to go about this search for schools. Also where is it specified that a certain school accepts only in-state applicants? Are they mainly the public state school affiliated med schools like SUNY in ny?

Thanx guys and gals =)

 

[mx_599]

So I'm getting ready to research schools and I was wondering what are the major criteria that I should be looking at? What do YOU look for?

Location? Matches? How do you find out about such things as percentage of students enetering a certain residency such as surgery, pediatrics, or subspecialties etc?

I'm kind of lost as how to go about this search for schools. Also where is it specified that a certain school accepts only in-state applicants? Are they mainly the public state school affiliated med schools like SUNY in ny?

Thanx guys and gals =)

go to library and look at barrons guide to med schools. this book is good enough for starters.

i classified myself as average. so i first eliminate the schools that majorly favor residents of the state. i figure why would they take me as the select 10% out of state for instance. this narrows down alot.

then i eliminate harvard because i do not have what they want.

eliminate all schools that seem realistically "out of your league" from what the mcat, gpas, etc say in the book.

then i eliminate the schools that required classes i didn't have. genetics, biochem, whatever....

that should get you a more manageable number to work with.

i wouldn't really worry about residency or specialty type things. that stuff more or less depends on how well you do in med school down the road.

i wouldn't worry about location either if you are an average applicant. unless you can't work effectively in a particular state. i would have gone anywhere! of course the better applicant you are, the more you call the shots and choose.

hope that helps...but that book is handy, go look at it

 

[mx_599]

one more thing...before someone jumps at me.

if you're an awesome applicant, then of course look at things like matches and stuff.

but many of us are happy just to go "somewhere". i don't know what category you are in.

but i would say someone who is "average" would be a fool to turn down an acceptance because they didn't like the matches

you may never again get the opportunity to go


hope that clarifies and is helpful !

 

[Nate]

I don’t think a school’s match list means anything! Each individual applicant has a desire to go in a specific field and each individual applicant will work at that goal by doing well on the boards, securing letters of recommendation, and showing their stuff on rotations. These are the factors that will get you a residency spot from what I have heard time and time again. The name of your US medical school means nothing unless you are trying to get into your own school’s residency program and then it may mean a lot. Having said that, something many people don’t say is to look for a school with a good residency program because that program will be seeing you in action over 4 years and will probably believe in their own school, making you a top applicant from the go. That doesn’t mean you don’t have to be competitive with your board scores or letters but it does mean you have a really good running start. Having said that, my criteria for selecting a medical school may sound like an advertisement for UMDNJ but realize I did choose UMDNJ over other schools so it obviously fit my criteria. In retrospect, though, the one thing that should have sold me the most was the school’s residency program. Having a hospital on campus with one of the largest DO residency programs is a huge bonus to the school you go to. Other school’s that have residency programs are PCOM, NYCOM, and OU, check it out. My top criteria were 1) location, I wanted to stay near family and in a place I felt comfortable living 2) tuition, if I can save tens of thousands of dollars you better believe I am going to 3) clinical exposure, I wanted a school that had hospitals nearby with a broad and diverse population for the best exposure. That is where the education counts, not in the classroom as much.
What I did was make a chart with all the schools that I was accepted to and in each column I listed things that appealed to me, costs, and any negatives. I then compared them side by side and came to a conclusion. Thankfully for me, it wasn’t that hard to declare an obvious winner, although I mist admit I really liked UNE and it was tough letting that acceptance go.

 

[Nate]

Oh, and about the state school thing. I know Texas is very strict about getting 90% Texas residents in a class. OU has some painful contract you have to sign to go there from out-of-state, and Michigan is very expensive for out-of-staters, although I believe there are many scholarships available there to offset that. NSU also charges less for Florida residents. As for UMDNJ, the bias is very small. We have more than 50% out-of-state in each class and every single person from out-of-state in my class was able to change their residency before classes started to get the lower tuition.

 

[mshheaddoc]

mx_599 - had some great advice.

I look at the type of cirrculum they are using, Step I and COMLEX I board scores (passing - if COMLEX scores are below the average and the schools that are will NOT have this information easily accessible - therefore I have to assume there are cirriculum issues), and clinical rotation sites.

Clinical rotations are key and no matter what people say, they will ultimately be the deciding factor for your Step 2 which WILL matter for residencies (well most at least when applying). Every school has them set up differently and the biggest complaint I hear is "I wish I would have asked about how they are set up, how many blocks of each, how many electives I get, and how will they help me with placement in electives"

As for board scores - yes its self-dependant but additionally (and I know a school who just had this implemented) some schools are requiring people to take a class in order to study due to low averages of school. While this may help, some students felt that the cirriculum should have been changed to help reflect better scores, not adding another class.

Also ask the students (1st and 2nd year) about the classes, how the lectures are formatted, is attendance mandatory, etc. Some people learn better on their own, some schools have a note service or all notes are available online and you can attend lecture for more insight. It depends on how you learn.

Just hang out around here and get a feel for schools as well. There are certain schools that I would NEVER consider due to what I have heard about cirriculum (yes that is a word I can't spell and i'm too lazy for spell check) and from various students. Be informed and research your schools by networking and talking to students and alums.

 

[mx_599]

every single person from out-of-state in my class was able to change their residency before classes started to get the lower tuition.

i thought you had to prove residency for 1 or more yrs and show proof of employment and stuff like undergrad college.

they just let all your classmates claim residency???? that is crazy. what is the point of having an out of state tuition then??

 

[smc927]

Details like what % of students pass the boards (USMLE and COMLEX) are very important. Other stats are also available but calling each school and asking.

Residency placement has much more to do with how well you perform than it does your school. However, if you end up in a school that doesn't fit your style that could hinder your progression. My advice - go somewhere where you will be most focused and comfortable. Then you can perform well, ace the boards, and get the residency you want.

Good luck!

 

[Nate]

i thought you had to prove residency for 1 or more yrs and show proof of employment and stuff like undergrad college.

they just let all your classmates claim residency???? that is crazy. what is the point of having an out of state tuition then??

You don't need 1 or more years to prove residency for the school's purpose. All that you need is a lease from where you will live in NJ, register your car here, and change over your driver's license. These things can be done in the weeks before or after school starts. Out-of-state tuition is for people who refuse to change their residency to NJ for some reason and that is very rare. We still take a good percentage from NJ but remember we have three medical schools in New Jersey and they are all part of UMDNJ so we have more seats available than many states. Also remember that the school's mission is to train physicians FOR New Jersey, not to train physicians FROM New Jersey. In the end it is your choice where you go from here. I hope that helps.

 

[chasingmytail]

Good words of wisdom, all. I appreciate the feedback. I'm glad to hear I don't have to worry about residencies just yet. Also, Mx, does the Barron's book you mentioned go into detail about the style of the curriculum - PBL vs. lecture etc.? Unless this info is on the schools' websites and I'm just missing it.