KCOM or UMDNJ!?

[imadoc4]

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Hey,
Im deciding wether to attend KCOM or UMDNJ.
Ive seen countless threads like these and i know everyone says price location and which school you felt more comfortable in should be the deciding factors.

However,
I am from Florida so i will be moving either way and I would be fine living in either location.

I decided that I wougld go to the best school i got accepted to regardless of price so price is not a factor either. I dont mind paying a bit more for loans if it means attending a better school that will increase my chances for success.

I liked KCOM more and I am definitely planning on going there but I want to make sure I am making the best decision possible. Ultimately both schools were great and i would be happy at either one.

I guess what i am asking is which school will provide me with better 3rd and 4th years and better opportunities for residencies.

Thanks for the advice!!

 

[Dr Yiot]

there both very good schools. UMDNJ has its own hospital system they rotate through and may be less expensive. However tuition is expected to increase as per the governors enormous cuts. It is also in a suburbanish type area. Despite me never visiting KCOM I hear it is in a rural area. However KCOM is an extremely well established school as well so I can imagine that despite not having its own hospitol system they probobly have well established rotations. Although bieng a NJ resident I want to move as far as possible from this state as I can, I hate the weather I hate the people and it just sux. Although this is just my oppinion. Its expensive as crap to live here. If I were u I would probobly choose KCOM since your moving anyway.

 

[Cheshyre]

there both very good schools. UMDNJ has its own hospital system they rotate through and may be less expensive. However tuition is expected to increase as per the governors enormous cuts.

Just for some updated info (just talked to UMDNJ yesterday) - the Board of Trustees has not made a final decision on tuition yet. However, if it rises it will be increased by a maximum of 4%. The in-state tuition eligibility after 1 year still stands.

 

[nycDOplease]

To be honest, I can't stand South Jersey! The Stratford area is so boring. I know Philly is close by but still Stratford is such a dreary town. Both are great schools so go where you think you will be most happy!

 

[Dr Yiot]

To be honest, I can't stand South Jersey! The Stratford area is so boring. I know Philly is close by but still Stratford is such a dreary town. Both are great schools so go where you think you will be most happy!

Really? I LOVE south jersey lol as a matter of fact I can't stand central and northern. WAY 2 congested for me. also the weather. I honestly wouldnt mind the congestion like the ft. lauderdale, boca raton area considering how nice it really is. However I may be overly dramatic due to the terrible winter that we just had. this is just my personal oppinion though and I am sure people hate the warm weather and like populated places.

 

[jslo85]

Hey,
Im deciding wether to attend KCOM or UMDNJ.
Ive seen countless threads like these and i know everyone says price location and which school you felt more comfortable in should be the deciding factors.

However,
I am from Florida so i will be moving either way and I would be fine living in either location.

I decided that I wougld go to the best school i got accepted to regardless of price so price is not a factor either. I dont mind paying a bit more for loans if it means attending a better school that will increase my chances for success.

I liked KCOM more and I am definitely planning on going there but I want to make sure I am making the best decision possible. Ultimately both schools were great and i would be happy at either one.

I guess what i am asking is which school will provide me with better 3rd and 4th years and better opportunities for residencies.

Thanks for the advice!!

I'll only speak from experience on behalf of KCOM as I was very interested in the school and interviewed there.

KCOM is the oldest osteopathic school in the nation and is always one of the most established. Their cost of tuition is roughly average that of it's osteopathic counterparts bar the LECOM schools and TCOM (IS student). Their 3rd and 4th year rotations are solid in that you will most likely not have to move after relocating for your 3rd and 4th year, only having to come back to Kirksville for your shelfs. Another advantage is you get to choose where you want to go as they have many clinical affiliates around the nation. Their emphasis on OMM is quite reknown and their faculty is quite reputable even though there have been a few recent shifts (their chair of anatomy left to head PNWU's anatomy department) but these were for purely personal reasons and unrelated to the school.

The cons if they can be really seen as thus would be obviously location. Kirksville is a very rural town as I'm sure you saw during your interview. Not much happening besides the local popular destination of super walmart and Dukum Inn but this can also be a good thing if you're looking for zero distractions. No traffic and incredibly low cost of attendance outside of the tuition are also semi-perks. Their facilities are nothing to rave about but they are in adequate in their purpose and I personally felt the faculty makes up for any immediate shortcomings. I really can't speak enough about the professors and the admissions department about how they make you feel at home and I've read constantly on these boards of how their students are very well regarded during their offsite rotations and residencies elsewhere.

UMDNJ I have zero experience on so I won't even try to go there. I've heard mostly positive things and obviously in NJ it's a larger city with probably a more ideal location for most and closer hospital rotations. For Kirksville, there is the NERMC which is joined at the hip to the school but is relatively small even though it houses many different departments.

I don't think you can go wrong with either pick, it's just purely personal imo. Congrats and good luck.

 

[rddoms]

I figured I should comment on KCOM, being that I'm a current student.

The pros:

KCOM is the founding school of osteopathic medicine, and the original building is now located inside the current admissions building. We also have the Still National Osteopathic Museum, which has some cool stuff as well (ask about the dissected nervous system and things made by students 100 years ago).

The school's new OMM lab/library/breakout rooms are really nice. The electric OMM tables are nice, especially if you are very tall/very short. The classrooms are a bit older, but are in great shape. There is wireless internet throughout the school, and there are ethernet/electric outlets at every seat. The seats themselves are padded, so that helps out with long days of lecture.

There are many basic scientists that do research, and a lot of them would take a student on if said student was interested in getting some research experience. There are 10-12 MS students a year, so some of the professors may have students already (this might help you to get onto a paper, but you'd have to talk about it with the professor).

We take a lot of hours in OTM, so that could be either a plus or a minus depending on your outlook. Most people are pretty comfortable with OMM after leaving here, and the professors do a wonderful job.

The rest of the basic science are great as well. They really want you to learn, and a lot of them will go out of their way to give students assistance. Every student will have a gripe or two, but the professors are always there to help.

There are MANY places you could go for rotations. Some are hospital-based, and some are preceptor-based. For example, we can rotate within the DMC system in Michigan (those are hospital-based). There are many associated residencies, from family medicine to surgical sup-specialties. The following link shows the hospitals associated with KCOM:

http://www.atsu.edu/kcom/clinical_rotations/index.htm

For what it matters, KCOM is in the top 5 for graduating doc's that specialize (last time I checked). Many students want to do primary care here, but more than 50% do residencies in non-primary care fields.

The cons:

Kirksville is small. Wal-Mart will quickly become a favorite store... but Columbia is only 88 miles away (and they have anything and everything you could need). You really get used to it, though. You do school work throughout the week, and end up at the Dukum on Friday night (if you like barley pops, etc.). Truman State University is here as well, so there are more than just the 330ish KCOM students out on the weekends. There are also plenty of outdoor activities, including hiking, swimming (the aquatic center and the lake), hunting, fishing, etc. It takes a bit of getting used to, but the size of Kirksville is quite nice for the basic sciences. And when you go on to 3rd year, you'll enjoy the 'big city' even more.

I've enjoyed my time here. I am definitely excited to be back in a big city (3.5 weeks!), but Kirksville was pretty cool.

Hope this helps...

 

[Dr Yiot]

The 4% increase is only for undergraduate institutions.

lets face it, only losers live in jersey.

 

[call me x]

lets face it, only losers live in jersey.

i'm sure your insightful comment will be quite helpful to the op

i am unfamiliar with kcom but i really enjoyed umdnj when i interviewed there. all of the students were incredibly friendly and seemed really happy. while the area is not that great you are close to philly and if you are into working in inner-city/underserved communities many students i talked to have various projects going on in camden, which i really liked. the small class size, availability of faculty, and being part of the umdnj umbrella were other positives for me

 

[Superman DO]

KCOM will rock your socks, enough said =)

 

[dudechiefboss]

Does UMDNJ still offer the DO/JD dual degree? I think that would be very interesting - if it's something that tickles your fancy, though.

 

[Dr Yiot]

i'm sure your insightful comment will be quite helpful to the op

i am unfamiliar with kcom but i really enjoyed umdnj when i interviewed there. all of the students were incredibly friendly and seemed really happy. while the area is not that great you are close to philly and if you are into working in inner-city/underserved communities many students i talked to have various projects going on in camden, which i really liked. the small class size, availability of faculty, and being part of the umdnj umbrella were other positives for me

Well I hope u feel better now. Actually if u look at the first response I n this thread it was me and I though I was pretty insightfull. I'm also a NJ resident however so I was just poking some fun.

 

[Cheshyre]

.

 

[Cheshyre]

🙂

I was going to ask about what the increase was proposed to be but then I read the UMDNJ thread.

AURHG.

 

[JaggerPlate]

Don't think you can go wrong with either ... and this is coming from a future KCOMer.