Soleil9 said:
I'm in a simular situation (S.O. is a COMer but I am currently hoping to attend Wayne... on the waitlist) What benefits (or drawbacks) does Wayne have over COM?
Thanks for your insight!
Drawbacks: That you are an hour away from your S.O., Wayne's atmosphere is more competitive, and not being able to see Big 10 football during the fall.
Benefits: Just about everything else in my opinion. Since my opinion is most likely tainted, I'll give my gf's opinions on what is better at Wayne.
1) MD degree. Although you can do anything with a DO degree and DOs are just as good of physicians, it makes life easier to have an MD degree. Especially if you are planning on going into a competitive specialty.
2) Two classes at a time. We only have two classes at once, compared to as many as 5-6 for COM.
3) Monthy exams. This one is debatable depending on your learning style. However, both of us favor the Wayne system where you take your exams for each class back to back once a month. As opposed to COM, where you have up to three exams a week. Of course the Wayne system means the exams are worth a lot more and have a lot more material, but they allow you time to relax between exams. The month also gives you more time to integrate entire concepts without having to cram one topic after the next. But, if you need to be kept on track with weekly exams, then this might not be a benefit to you.
4) Clinical rotations at large tertiary care hospitals. At Wayne you are rotating through the largest and most sophisticated hospitals in the state with the exception of UofM's hospital. Compare this to the rural and suburban hospitals of the COM system. This especially pisses off my gf. She has the oportunity to rotate through Henry Ford Bi-county (203 beds) while I'll be in the main hospital with 903 beds.
Those are the main things I can think of. I am sure there are more, but it's late... Any specific questions, don't hesitate.