It's not where you go that counts!

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EW5817

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I'm tired of the bickering about which program, be it osteopathic or allopathic,is better or worse.

LADIES AND GENTLEMAN, IT'S NOT WHERE YOU GO, BUT RATHER WHAT YOU KNOW THAT COUNTS.

Case closed.

P.S. And it's not the institution that determines what you know, it's yourself.

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EW5817,
This is a common statement but not all together true. For instance I went to DMU-OMC (Des Moines) and my girlfriend goes to University of Iowa. Our first two years were probably equall in the quality of education. I cannot even compare the second two years. Hands down, we lost. We get to setup our fourth year rotations anywhere. This is good if you know the right places to go, but bad if you don't. Several months I ended up just following Drs around like I was a highschool observer student.
Some schools like Kirksville, K.C., and Michigan set up all your rotations. This is probably worse than my situation. If you get stuck in a bad hospital than you have to stay where they have scheduled you maybe upto a year, than you are out of luck. None of the schools can control the quality of education at distant sites. This is because these are private hospitals with private physicians. The physicians for the most part do not make any money and therefore do not feel obligated to teach.




[This message has been edited by Kent Ray (edited 05-22-2000).]
 
While ultimately I think the student has the greatest impact on how much they know, I would have to argue that your institution will have a profound effect on how much you know.

First, it impacts the opportunities you have to be in learning situations. Second, it determines how the material is presented to you, and third it determines who will present the material.

Under normal circumstances, more opportunities to learn and participate is better than less opportunities to learn and participate.

Having material presented in a form that is logical and consistent with your style of learning is better than having information randomly thrown at you in a manner that makes no sence to you.

Having instructors that are approachable, concerned, and competent is far better than having snobby, preoccupied, and/or incompetent instructors.

Laslty, your school is generally going to be the definative on WHO you know. Sometimes that goes a long way (sometimes).

The problem is as pre-meds we tend not to know what to look for in a medical school. So, we let US News & World Report, our peers, and "not-so-common sense" dictate what is important.
 
I agree in part. Do not forget however, that medical school is only the beginning. If you are intersted in a competitve residency, many programs have inherent bias and preferences [MD first, DO second, foreign grads last].

The only way to combat that is with a steller performance throughout medical school including high GPAs and class standing, competitve scores on your boards, and recommendations from your faculty and preceptors. ALL of these factors are completely up to the INDIVIDUAL!!!

We have all heard the stories of the foreign grad that got an ER residency at Yale, or the DO that is now at Harvard, but they are the exception to the rule. Like it or not: reality bites!

My point: make sure YOU are the EXCEPTION!
Wherever you go!
 
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