I have been accepted to both UOMHS and KCOM. I was wondering if anyone has any input regarding either school. I am married and will be moving to med school with my husband any input about the areas where these schools are located would also help me in my descision (Job market, etc.) I thought both schools were excellent and that is what is making my decision so difficult. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an alternative browser.
You should upgrade or use an alternative browser.
KCOM vs. UOMHS
- Thread starter Margie
- Start date
Decide where you want to live while in school--Small city in the midwest? KCOM, Larger city in the Midwest? UOMHS? Major Metro Area in the West? AZCOM. The differences between the three schools are not nearly as significant as other factors like location, how far you need to move, where you felt most comfortable, etc.
- Joined
- Nov 2, 1998
- Messages
- 237
- Reaction score
- 0
Margie,
I was accepted to AZCOM as well, but chose COMP because it is in my home state. It was a tough choice, AZCOM is a very high-quality medical school in a beautiful area. The cost of living is very reasonable, the Grand Canyon is nearby. Don't count AZCOM out, they are an up-and-coming school and the faculty have very impressive credentials. If you are interested in doing research, quite a few of the faculty do research at Arizona State University or at Mayo Clinic Scottsdale. The greatest perk is that there is only one other medical school in the state besides AZCOM, which is the University of Arizona further South in Tucson. And so since most of the hospital training sites for AZCOM students are in the Phoenix area, there is little conflict with other medical schools in securing clerkship sites. Plus, AZCOM has an innovative program where you follow your attending through the hospital and clinic, rather than being stuck on a hospital ward.
EDGAR
I was accepted to AZCOM as well, but chose COMP because it is in my home state. It was a tough choice, AZCOM is a very high-quality medical school in a beautiful area. The cost of living is very reasonable, the Grand Canyon is nearby. Don't count AZCOM out, they are an up-and-coming school and the faculty have very impressive credentials. If you are interested in doing research, quite a few of the faculty do research at Arizona State University or at Mayo Clinic Scottsdale. The greatest perk is that there is only one other medical school in the state besides AZCOM, which is the University of Arizona further South in Tucson. And so since most of the hospital training sites for AZCOM students are in the Phoenix area, there is little conflict with other medical schools in securing clerkship sites. Plus, AZCOM has an innovative program where you follow your attending through the hospital and clinic, rather than being stuck on a hospital ward.
EDGAR
Margie,
I am currently MSI at KCOM. No school is perfect and neither is KCOM but I love it so far. Wouldn't trade it for another school though. I've learned a lot the last few months from the faculties and classmates, I mean A LOT. The small town atmosphere (17000 population, excluding the 6000 students at Truman State U.) kinda shocked me at first, myself coming from the biggest city in the West, but it's a perfect environment for studying. The downside is that the job market is very limited for spouses. Being in the health or teaching field helps (you can work at the school's hospital or teach at local schools). To learn more about the city, go to www.kirksvillecity.com. Details about major employer, demographics, etc.
Hope this helps. More q's, eme.
I am currently MSI at KCOM. No school is perfect and neither is KCOM but I love it so far. Wouldn't trade it for another school though. I've learned a lot the last few months from the faculties and classmates, I mean A LOT. The small town atmosphere (17000 population, excluding the 6000 students at Truman State U.) kinda shocked me at first, myself coming from the biggest city in the West, but it's a perfect environment for studying. The downside is that the job market is very limited for spouses. Being in the health or teaching field helps (you can work at the school's hospital or teach at local schools). To learn more about the city, go to www.kirksvillecity.com. Details about major employer, demographics, etc.
Hope this helps. More q's, eme.
Margie,
Two cents on UOMHS. I graduated in May. I had a similar dilema when I applied. I chose UOMHS because I was from Iowa, my wife had an easy time finding a job (Des Moines is the largest city in Iowa... A whopping 450,000), and we found and purchased a house in Des Moines.
After attending UOMHS, I knew a made the right choice. UOMHS is very strong in basic sciences and systems and known as one of the best for OMM (mainly attributable the dept head, Dr. Bosler). I also liked the fact that there are other degree programs at UOMHS, meaning more faculty and resources for students. Since Des Moines is a fairly large metro, students don't have to leave to do clinical rotations elsewhere, unless they want to.
When I applied for residency, I was told that I was considered at some programs because I was a UOMHS student: UC Davis, U of I, U of Colo, U of Chi, Mayo, U of Mo.
UOMHS offers dual-degrees. I also received my masters in health care administration while getting my medical degree. After your 1st year you can apply for the dual-degree program and if accepted, you can get your masters with no aditional tuition (not that 20k isn't a lot anyway), more work, but worth it. They just started a program in public health so now its possible to get a DO/MPH degree.
Margie, you'll get a good education whichever school you choose, as long as you work hard. Being happy where you live for 2-4 years is important. Good luck with school!
Two cents on UOMHS. I graduated in May. I had a similar dilema when I applied. I chose UOMHS because I was from Iowa, my wife had an easy time finding a job (Des Moines is the largest city in Iowa... A whopping 450,000), and we found and purchased a house in Des Moines.
After attending UOMHS, I knew a made the right choice. UOMHS is very strong in basic sciences and systems and known as one of the best for OMM (mainly attributable the dept head, Dr. Bosler). I also liked the fact that there are other degree programs at UOMHS, meaning more faculty and resources for students. Since Des Moines is a fairly large metro, students don't have to leave to do clinical rotations elsewhere, unless they want to.
When I applied for residency, I was told that I was considered at some programs because I was a UOMHS student: UC Davis, U of I, U of Colo, U of Chi, Mayo, U of Mo.
UOMHS offers dual-degrees. I also received my masters in health care administration while getting my medical degree. After your 1st year you can apply for the dual-degree program and if accepted, you can get your masters with no aditional tuition (not that 20k isn't a lot anyway), more work, but worth it. They just started a program in public health so now its possible to get a DO/MPH degree.
Margie, you'll get a good education whichever school you choose, as long as you work hard. Being happy where you live for 2-4 years is important. Good luck with school!
rtk,
Where did you do your rotations? Did you stay in Iowa? I was told that all the rotations need to be planned by the student. Did you find that it was difficult to do? Where have you ended up for your residency? Thank you very much for you input!
Where did you do your rotations? Did you stay in Iowa? I was told that all the rotations need to be planned by the student. Did you find that it was difficult to do? Where have you ended up for your residency? Thank you very much for you input!
Sillborn,
From looking at other posts, I believe you are at AZCOM. Is that correct? Could you give me your take on the rotations there? I know that they are a bit different than "traditional" rotations. Do you think that will be an issue when applying for residencies? Thank you for the advice!
From looking at other posts, I believe you are at AZCOM. Is that correct? Could you give me your take on the rotations there? I know that they are a bit different than "traditional" rotations. Do you think that will be an issue when applying for residencies? Thank you for the advice!
Yes, I am an MS 2 at AZCOM. As at any school, the rotations can be as good as the student makes them. We regularly run into students from KCOM, WUHS, and UHS, so I am not sure that our rotations are that different than some of the other schools, except that we have to do our required rotations in the AZCOM system (meaning you don't move around the country, but you can't do all your clerkships in your home state).
As far as residency goes, your preceptors will by and large be board certified docs (both MD and DO) and will be able to write you recommendations. If your goal is to practice community-based medicine, I think that AZCOMs clerkships will not only provide an exceptional education, but will provide an advatage over students who spent their time in the wards under residents and interns. If you want to be an ER doc or a hosptial based surgeon, I'm not sure what the effect the clerkships will have on selection, although the associate Dean in charge of clerkships is a former ER doc and the doc who teaches our clinical correlations class is a current ER doc.
Do I think that the rotations will be an issue? No. What will be an issue is: How YOU did in clerkships, YOUR recommendations, YOUR interview, YOUR board scores, YOUR commitment to a particular specialty, YOUR academic performance. Note the emphasis on YOU.
A DME might be familiar with a few schools curriculum, but certainly not all the schools from all the applicants.
As far as residency goes, your preceptors will by and large be board certified docs (both MD and DO) and will be able to write you recommendations. If your goal is to practice community-based medicine, I think that AZCOMs clerkships will not only provide an exceptional education, but will provide an advatage over students who spent their time in the wards under residents and interns. If you want to be an ER doc or a hosptial based surgeon, I'm not sure what the effect the clerkships will have on selection, although the associate Dean in charge of clerkships is a former ER doc and the doc who teaches our clinical correlations class is a current ER doc.
Do I think that the rotations will be an issue? No. What will be an issue is: How YOU did in clerkships, YOUR recommendations, YOUR interview, YOUR board scores, YOUR commitment to a particular specialty, YOUR academic performance. Note the emphasis on YOU.
A DME might be familiar with a few schools curriculum, but certainly not all the schools from all the applicants.
Similar threads
- Replies
- 245
- Views
- 31K
- Replies
- 387
- Views
- 55K
- Replies
- 0
- Views
- 734
- Replies
- 263
- Views
- 74K