KCOM General Information

[greymew]

Hi all,

If anyone is thinking about KCOM, has an interview, or wants general information, don't hesitate to contact me.

I'm a first year student. I decided when I was going through the same process you guys are, that if I got accepted, I would help anyone I could though the experience. I know it sucks.

So feel free to leave a message on here, email me personally, call, whatever. I know how you all are feeling. It gets better. Of course, there is at least equal stress in medical school, but it's different.

I have an online journal where you can read about the daily activities of a KCOM student. There you can also get my contact information. Good luck.

-Jason
www.jasondreyer.com

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[greymew]

I'm just replying to myself to put this topic at the top of the thread again. I got a lot of replies by email, so I know it's useful. Good luck to everyone.

-Jason
www.jasondreyer.com

 

[Dancing Nancie]

Hi Jason! I have an interview at KCOM this Monday (Nov. 25th). Any advice?

Thanks!

 

[greymew]

Nancie,

Let's see... I'm trying to think of things that wouldn't be obvious.

First of all, I'm sure you've noticed that the interviews are in the morning. That's something unique to KCOM, at least in my experiences. So come prepared to go right away. I've mentioned this other places, but in case you've missed it, they give you an information card about both of the interviewers; you'll go in know their education, interests, hobbies, etc. I used that to my advantage, and I suggest you do the same.

You'll find that everyone here is almost overly nice. Don't worry; they're not just acting. Everyone is genuinely so.

Try to learn as much as you can. I guess this is rather general, but it's why I chose KCOM. When I compared everything I knew about all the schools I looked at, KCOM always seemed to come out ahead. You'll see what I mean: scores, technology, faculty ratios, niceness, etc.

I'm afraid that on the 25th all the students are on vacation between quarters. There'll be some people to give tours and such, but there will not be the resource pool that is usually available. In other words, if you want a second or third opinion and there's nobody to ask, give me an email and I'll give you the straight poop.

Umm... have fun. They do a great job here of making it as comfortable of an experience as possible. I've had a couple of interviewees stay with me, and both remarked afterward that it was the least stressful interview they'd had.

So I hope this helps in some way. If you have any more questions, reply here, email me personally, or call. My information is on my web site. Good Luck.

-Jason
www.jasondreyer.com

 

[greymew]

I just wanted to bump this thread to the top again. We're starting quarter two here. I've enjoyed the oppertunities to help some of you out and am open to any other questions or concerns.

Good luck everyone,
-Jason
www.jasondreyer.com

 

[greymew]

It's been great getting to know a lot of you. If anyone is coming into town and would like to have dinner with myself and a few of my classmates, we've done that a few times, and I think it makes for a great informal Q and A session. So many of us are willing to help, take advantage of it! Good luck everyone.

-Jason
www.jasondreyer.com

 

[eastdoc]

Hi Jason, I replied to your thread but did so under a new thread. Sorry about that. If you get a chance, check out the thread entitled question. Thank you so much!

ps - is it easy to get flights in and out of Kirksville airport?

 

[blike]

Kirksville airport?

I'm not sure if Kirksville has an airport. I could be wrong, but if it does, its a small one. When I visited I flew to kansas city and drove up.

 

[AYLC]

K'ville does have a small airport. There are only 2 fly scheduled M-F and Sunday. It's lot easier and cheaper to fly to KC and drive to K'ville.

 

[eastdoc]

Hi. I noticed on the Kirksville web page that there is an internship to complete after 4 years of med school. Do you have to pay for this internship or do they pay you? That would mean 5 years before a residency. Let me know if I'm wrong. Thank you so much, Eastdoc.

 

[rbassdo]

Originally posted by eastdoc
Hi. I noticed on the Kirksville web page that there is an internship to complete after 4 years of med school. Do you have to pay for this internship or do they pay you? That would mean 5 years before a residency. Let me know if I'm wrong. Thank you so much, Eastdoc. [/QUOTE

All DO grads have to do a one year internship post graduation. In some cases, it can also serve as the first year of a residency training program. You don't pay - you get payed very little and are usually employed by a hospital.

 

[Sweaty Paul]

Eastdoc,

The internship you read about is an AOA thing. You do not have to do an osteopathic rotating internship. The prob with not doing the osteopathic rotating internship is that there are 5 states in which you cannot become licensed as a physician to practice unless you have done that internship. These are: Michigan, Ohio, Florida, Pensylvania and Oklahoma (though I get a little confused on the pennsylvania and Oklahoma it might be different).

You can also apply to the AOA to get them to approve your MD residency and then you don't have to do an Osteopathic internship yet you can still practice in the above 5 states.

As far as if the internship adds any time to your post med-school education: it depends on the program to which you are applying. For instance, there are many programs within the osteopathic world which count your Rotating Osteopathic Internship as your first year of residency (they call this fast-tracking). Also, there are some allopathic residencies that will take that rotating internship as your first year of residency for their programs too. Ultimately it is up to you to find out what each program does in relation to the internship year.

Hope this info helps. You've a long way to go before you get to residency and things may change, however, preparedness is always prudent.

Sweaty Paul MS-III
KCOM

 

[greymew]

Sorry for my neglect, I was home for the break and didn't get on the computer much...

As for the questions, I only have a couple things to add.

1. Airport: Yes there is one. It is about seven miles south of town and only get connections to and from St. Louis on American airlines (I think). I've picked up a couple of interviewers from there. They say that it's pretty expensive ($600 short notice from Minnesota), and you need to arrange for a ride to and from.

2. Post graduate internship: I don't know much, I think Paul covered it well. My only addition is that for the residency I want (neurosurgery), the internship year is equivalent. I've checked that out for both the DO and MD programs.

I hope this helps. As always, feel free to check out my internet site and/or contact me personally.

Good luck,
-Jason

www.jasondreyer.com

 

[greymew]

If you have an interview at KCOM and didn't know...

The admissions committee here meets every Wednesday. Interviews are on Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays. If you have an interview on Monday, you can call on Thursday (three days later) to see if you're accepted.

I've had several people stay with me who didn't know this. I thought it might help to put it out there.

Good luck,
-Jason
www.jasondreyer.com

 

[tristan]

Greymew,

Last week, I interviewed at KCOM and DMU. I was really impressed with both schools. Some time this week, I'll find out if
I got in. I think I have a good chance at both schools, but you never know. I want to know which school in your opinion is better if you don't take into account the location. Thanks for you input.

 

[docslytherin]

Tristan,
I was in the same boat a few weeks ago. I interviewed at DMU on Friday and then the following Thursday in Kirksville. I was accepted at both and chose KCOM. The reasons that I chose KCOM were primarily that it just had a better feel to me. Everyone was really friendly and you could see that the students were interested in helping each other out. The support network there was great. The facilities were excellent as well. Additionally, I was impressed by the clinic attached to the school. There are many specialties there and plenty of physicians to work alongside. Ultimately, it came down to the rotations though. When you do your clinicals at KCOM you choose a region (Phoenix and Tampa were mentioned) and you stay for your two years there. I like that a lot better than changing locations like DMU. For me, KCOM was a better fit. It's better to sit down and sort of make out a pros v. cons list for each school. I did and I'm going to the best place for me.

Good luck
John

 

[tristan]

DocSlytherin,

Thank you for the info that you gave me. I don't really know what I'm going to do except for the fact that I need an acceptance letter right now to actually be able to decide. Sometimt this week I'll know if I get in to both schools or not. Who knows, maybe I won't have to choose.

Tristan.