Liberty University COM (LUCOM) Discussion Thread 2013-2014

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lizzieb89 said:
Interviewing at LUCOM this week. I am incredibly anxious and nervous about it--any advice from individuals who have already interviewed? Are all the faculty interviewers nice? What sort of questions do they ask? Do they let you know what they think of you after the interview? Thanks!
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One station is open file but moreover they are just trying to get a feel for you personally so this is the time to let them know about you and for you to get them engaged and excited to have you there. I answered the questions but steered the interview into the reason they are excited to teach there. For the scenario station, I heard that most people my day had different scenarios but for example; You are a family doctor and a couple comes to see you and they are having trouble getting pregnant what types of things do you recommend? I wouldn't recommend anything as I have not gone through this myself but, I would try to inform them on different options such as adoption and fertilization specialists while trying to remain empathetic to their situation. They find out the child has down syndrome during development and want to abort what do you recommend? It's just a fun random scenario. I had fun with it and just gave the best answers I could. They just want to see how you reason through things, if you are able to accept others viewpoints and if you are looking out for your patient, so they make informed decisions and meet the schools mission and goals.

Also at lunch you sit with one or two teachers/admins (all of which are extremely nice and welcoming) and I asked them tons of questions and they really were quite helpful. I sat with Dr. Dormer who is one of the co-creator's of the cochlear implant and did years of research with dolphins. Just try to get a feel for the school and you may soon be like me and many of the other interviews you attended will pale in comparison. As I stated in previous posts, going in to this interview I didn't even expect this to be on my top end picks but, you know this institution will soon be a top notch program. I just feel in my gut that this will be a successful place for me to attend personally.

Hope this helps and if you have any other questions feel free to ask.
 
Donkk: thank you for the post. Would you mind sharing which school(s) you're ranking LUCOM over and what made you decide on LUCOM? Is there something about LUCOM that the other schools did not have? Thank you
 
For the people who are getting accepted and interviewed, did u finish all of the pre recs such as the cell bio, biochem, and stats requirement?

Seems like a lot of pre recs compared to the other schools
 
I got accepted and still have a class to complete

Sent from my SGH-T679 using Tapatalk 2
 
Donkk said:
One station is open file moreover they are just trying to get a feel for you personally so this is the time to let them know about you and for you to get them engaged and excited to have you there. I answered the questions but steered the interview into the reason they are excited to teach there. For the scenario station, I heard that most people my day had different scenarios but for example; You are a family doctor and a couple comes to see you and they are having trouble getting pregnant what types of things do you recommend? I wouldn't recommend anything as I have not gone through this myself but, I would try to inform them on different options such as adoption and fertilization specialists while trying to remain empathetic to their situation. They find out the child has down syndrome during development and want to abort what do you recommend? It's just a fun random scenario. I had fun with it and just gave the best answers I could. They just want to see how you reason through things, if you are able to accept others viewpoints and if you are looking out for your patient, so they make informed decisions and meet the schools mission and goals.

Also at lunch you sit with one or two teachers/admins (all of which are extremely nice and welcoming) and I asked them tons of questions and they really were quite helpful. I sat with Dr. Dormer who is one of the co-creator's of the cochlear implant and did years of research with dolphins. Just try to get a feel for the school and you may soon be like me and many of the other interviews you attended will pale in comparison. As I stated in previous posts, going in to this interview I didn't even expect this to be on my top end picks but, you know this institution will soon be a top notch program. I just feel in my gut that this will be a successful place for me to attend personally.

Hope this helps and if you have any other questions feel free to ask.
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Thank you for your response! I had no idea it was all open file. I was told that they would see everything except my mcat scores, like a partial blind interview type thing. Also, I didn't know about the scenario thing either. I was told it is 2 30 minute interviews.
 
radrandos5 said:
Donkk: thank you for the post. Would you mind sharing which school(s) you're ranking LUCOM over and what made you decide on LUCOM? Is there something about LUCOM that the other schools did not have? Thank you
Click to expand...

I don't feel like showing my personal ranking system, as I feel this will bring a lot of trolls and unnecessary attention onto this thread. I ranked the schools based on learning style, the teaching faculty and staff and how I personally felt about the education I would receive based on my learning style. My two favorites this cycle were Liberty University and LECOM Seton Hill over the many others I went too, neither of the which are SDN favorites. I took advice from the D.O. I shadow and did not care or take to heart the comments I read on SDN. I chose what I feel is best for me and have zero regrets thus far.
 
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lizzieb89 said:
Thank you for your response! I had no idea it was all open file. I was told that they would see everything except my mcat scores, like a partial blind interview type thing. Also, I didn't know about the scenario thing either. I was told it is 2 30 minute interviews.
Click to expand...

You are correct they are two 30 min interviews, one that was more scenario based and one that is open file/get to know you.
 
Donkk said:
You are correct they are two 30 min interviews, one that was more scenario based and one that is open file/get to know you.
Click to expand...

Thank you for your help! I really appreciate it 🙂
 
Has anyone heard back yet that was at the interview on the 14th? I'm so nervous to hear back from them. I'm worried I messed up with the first interview and it killed my chances. I can't believe how bad I was at talking. Usually, talking with people is a breeze for me.
 
Element515 said:
Has anyone heard back yet that was at the interview on the 14th? I'm so nervous to hear back from them. I'm worried I messed up with the first interview and it killed my chances. I can't believe how bad I was at talking. Usually, talking with people is a breeze for me.
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While I did not interview on the 14th, actually interviewed on the 7th, just curious why you think you messed up the first interview? i hear you though, it's really frustrating thinking back and wanting to adjust what you said. hope you get some good news man
 
ugh2802 said:
While I did not interview on the 14th, actually interviewed on the 7th, just curious why you think you messed up the first interview? i hear you though, it's really frustrating thinking back and wanting to adjust what you said. hope you get some good news man
Click to expand...

I ended up blanking on a few questions that should have been easy. Turned myself into a babbling idiot basically for a few minutes. Some questions I just wasn't expecting either and I was unsure of whether to take a few seconds to formulate my response or just say whatever came off the top of my head. I feel if I have any other interviews I would do a lot better, but being my first I think I made some dumb errors.

Were you able to hear back from them already? I hope to get in, this school looks great and I like it a lot despite what others may say about it.
 
Im in the same boat. I interviewed on the 14th and I have not heard back yet. I was pretty sure they said they would call us today.
 
soopadupa said:
Im in the same boat. I interviewed on the 14th and I have not heard back yet. I was pretty sure they said they would call us today.
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Ah, okay. Well, at least we know we were singled out. I thought they said they would call today as well. I've been a bit tense all day.
 
Element515 said:
I ended up blanking on a few questions that should have been easy. Turned myself into a babbling idiot basically for a few minutes. Some questions I just wasn't expecting either and I was unsure of whether to take a few seconds to formulate my response or just say whatever came off the top of my head. I feel if I have any other interviews I would do a lot better, but being my first I think I made some dumb errors.

Were you able to hear back from them already? I hope to get in, this school looks great and I like it a lot despite what others may say about it.
Click to expand...


Yeah I totally understand..this is my second time thru the app process, my first interview last year was an embarrassment. The biggest thing that helped me improve was having the answer to why Do you want to be a doctor down really well, as well as why you want to be an osteopath. I also knew coming into this one they were going to ask about the current state of healthcare in the US so before the interviews I read a lot of books on articles about healthcare in our country. Interviews are tricky, in the past I had weird interviewers who clearly did not like me. At liberty I was lucky to have two really nice guys and we clicked pretty well. Just have some solid answers to the common questions and just be yourself for the rest, if you are interviewing you clearly have your **** together and know why you wanna be a doctor, relax and you'll be fine dude.

Luckily, having an interview on Tuesday the 7th, we were told they would review our apps that Friday so I got the call the 13th in the late afternoon about my acceptance. I think I heard back atypically fast so don't freak out if you haven't heard back yet.

I agree with you, the school does look amazing! I'm excited to start in July!
 
ugh2802 said:
Yeah I totally understand..this is my second time thru the app process, my first interview last year was an embarrassment. The biggest thing that helped me improve was having the answer to why Do you want to be a doctor down really well, as well as why you want to be an osteopath. I also knew coming into this one they were going to ask about the current state of healthcare in the US so before the interviews I read a lot of books on articles about healthcare in our country. Interviews are tricky, in the past I had weird interviewers who clearly did not like me. At liberty I was lucky to have two really nice guys and we clicked pretty well. Just have some solid answers to the common questions and just be yourself for the rest, if you are interviewing you clearly have your **** together and know why you wanna be a doctor, relax and you'll be fine dude.

Luckily, having an interview on Tuesday the 7th, we were told they would review our apps that Friday so I got the call the 13th in the late afternoon about my acceptance. I think I heard back atypically fast so don't freak out if you haven't heard back yet.

I agree with you, the school does look amazing! I'm excited to start in July!
Click to expand...

When a question you don't really prepare for comes up, do you usually give yourself a few seconds to think? It felt odd with your interviewer just staring at you waiting for an answer. I expected the healthcare question too and that I was fine with, I've talked about it with friends plenty of times. But, oh well I guess. Just have to hold out and wait now. I had a nice long drive home to rethink my entire interview haha.

Congrats on getting in!
 
Element515 said:
When a question you don't really prepare for comes up, do you usually give yourself a few seconds to think? It felt odd with your interviewer just staring at you waiting for an answer. I expected the healthcare question too and that I was fine with, I've talked about it with friends plenty of times. But, oh well I guess. Just have to hold out and wait now. I had a nice long drive home to rethink my entire interview haha.

Congrats on getting in!
Click to expand...


Thanks a lot dude. Don't worry too much about it man, that's a big regret I have from last cycle, easy to get caught up in your own head I know.

In my opinion, and everyone has differing opinions on this, when u get asked a question you're not really sure how to answer, I definitely have given myself a few seconds to think. I know it may be awkward when the interviewer is looking at you blank faced but I have looked off to the side to gather myself before starting to answer. When I have answered those I usually start out by saying oh that's a tough or different question. If you have prepared an answer to a similar question, you can say something like 'I really appreciate this question, it reminds me of this other one..' And follow up with your answer you're comfortable giving.

For this past cycle, I literally racked my brain for every single possible thing they would ask and rehearsed an answer for each. Some people are really good at interviewing, I am not and I needed to practice a lot.

Good luck with the rest of the app cycle, stay positive and I'm sure everything will work out bro..
 
Anyone have Dr. Leonard or Dr. Patterson as their interviewers? I'm interviewing this week so any information would be helpful and much appreciated!
 
swan92 said:
Anyone have Dr. Leonard or Dr. Patterson as their interviewers? I'm interviewing this week so any information would be helpful and much appreciated!
Click to expand...

Dr. Leonard sounds familiar, I believe I spoke with him during lunch but I'm not 100% sure. If it's the man I am thinking of , he was a great guy to talk to and real friendly like everyone else. Dr. Patterson I don't know about.

Good Luck!
 
Element515 said:
When a question you don't really prepare for comes up, do you usually give yourself a few seconds to think? It felt odd with your interviewer just staring at you waiting for an answer. I expected the healthcare question too and that I was fine with, I've talked about it with friends plenty of times. But, oh well I guess. Just have to hold out and wait now. I had a nice long drive home to rethink my entire interview haha.

Congrats on getting in!
Click to expand...
I was asked something about which life is most important: human or animal. I did exactly that: I said "that's a tough question" and gathered my thoughts for a few seconds. After giving my response he told me verbatin "that's the best answer I've heard on this issue thus far!"
I feel it is better to spend a little time (1-2 sec) to organize your thoughts before beginning to speak. It shows you don't simply spit out a memorized response, but rather think deeply about something before stating your opinion.
But that's me. Other people do quite well with immediate responses. The best thing is to be yourself and remember the whole process is a crapshot, so you really never know if your interview made or broke your chances.
 
LA1004 said:
I was asked something about which life is most important: human or animal. I did exactly that: I said "that's a tough question" and gathered my thoughts for a few seconds. After giving my response he told me verbatin "that's the best answer I've heard on this issue thus far!"
I feel it is better to spend a little time (1-2 sec) to organize your thoughts before beginning to speak. It shows you don't simply spit out a memorized response, but rather think deeply about something before stating your opinion.
But that's me. Other people do quite well with immediate responses. The best thing is to be yourself and remember the whole process is a crapshot, so you really never know if your interview made or broke your chances.
Click to expand...

I did the same thing, said "that's tough" and thought for a second or two. I thought giving a sincere response would be better that very rehearsed ones. Unfortunately, they rejected me. I still think it's odd they call to reject you, so awkward for both sides.

If anyone is wondering, GPA- 3.1, MCAT- 32.
 
Element515 said:
I did the same thing, said "that's tough" and thought for a second or two. I thought giving a sincere response would be better that very rehearsed ones. Unfortunately, they rejected me. I still think it's odd they call to reject you, so awkward for both sides.

If anyone is wondering, GPA- 3.1, MCAT- 32.
Click to expand...
sorry to hear that. But just out of curiosity, how exactly does the conversation go after you answer the phone?
 
user3 said:
sorry to hear that. But just out of curiosity, how exactly does the conversation go after you answer the phone?
Click to expand...

They called, you could tell they wanted to get over with it as they just said of a prewritten thing of who they were calling. I hardly got a word in after "Hello" and just said sorry the committee decided against accepting you. Awkward pause for a few seconds as you're contemplating what it means and they are thinking, "Sorry kid." Then, they ask any questions? I didn't have the time to talk so I couldn't ask but I've been trying to call back in my free time to see if they could tell me my weak spots.
 
Element515 said:
They called, you could tell they wanted to get over with it as they just said of a prewritten thing of who they were calling. I hardly got a word in after "Hello" and just said sorry the committee decided against accepting you. Awkward pause for a few seconds as you're contemplating what it means and they are thinking, "Sorry kid." Then, they ask any questions? I didn't have the time to talk so I couldn't ask but I've been trying to call back in my free time to see if they could tell me my weak spots.
Click to expand...


Very surprising to hear you didn't at least get wait-listed. Definitely call and ask for a file review...Ms. Mendez and Mr. Cook are very helpful and can tell you how to beef up your application and interview better next time. Best of luck!
 
Element515 said:
I did the same thing, said "that's tough" and thought for a second or two. I thought giving a sincere response would be better that very rehearsed ones. Unfortunately, they rejected me. I still think it's odd they call to reject you, so awkward for both sides.

If anyone is wondering, GPA- 3.1, MCAT- 32.
Click to expand...

Yeah, the same thing happened to me with the stupid obama care and i had the same stats as you have. Thankfully though, i got accepted at another school where i also answered with my most sincere words. This process is a crapshot. Good luck.
 
Congrats on your acceptance to a school JimTex I like to see everyone get in somewhere :nod:

JimTex said:
Yeah, the same thing happened to me with the stupid obama care and i had the same stats as you have. Thankfully though, i got accepted at another school where i also answered with my most sincere words. This process is a crapshot. Good luck.
Click to expand...
 
Donkk said:
Congrats on your acceptance to a school JimTex I like to see everyone get in somewhere :nod:
Click to expand...

Thanks. Cant be happier that what i am now. I feel great about the school i got accepted.
 
That's crazy that you guys got rejected with stats like that...my gpa was a little higher but my mcat was waaaay lower when I got accepted
 
JC719 said:
That's crazy that you guys got rejected with stats like that...my gpa was a little higher but my mcat was waaaay lower when I got accepted
Click to expand...
Well it's definitely clear that numbers are not the only thing that dictates your acceptance. Fortunately, I got accepted to a place that felt like home the very first second I got there. And btw, that school has a high stat avg. I used same honest answers and got in.
 
GypsyHummus said:
For the people who are getting accepted and interviewed, did u finish all of the pre recs such as the cell bio, biochem, and stats requirement?

Seems like a lot of pre recs compared to the other schools
Click to expand...
I have already graduated undergrad, but when I applied to medical school last year I was still in undergrad and I had completed all of those pre-recs by the spring semester of my senior year. Hope this helps
 
Do they give you the names of your interviewers beforehand? I have one coming up on Monday and haven't received anything like this from LUCOM.
 
You'll get the names at the beginning of interview day. They have scrolling bios running on the tv screen during the waiting periods, and you should have some time to look up their profile on LUCOM's site if you feel so inclined.
 
They should send you the itinerary with the interviewers names and when you are scheduled to interview long before the day arrives. If they don't by Friday I would send them an email asking for an itinerary. Good luck!
 
Got the email this morning. Anyone have Dr. Wells and Dr. Gish as their interviewers? Any information would be appreciated.
 
ugh2802 said:
While I did not interview on the 14th, actually interviewed on the 7th, just curious why you think you messed up the first interview? i hear you though, it's really frustrating thinking back and wanting to adjust what you said. hope you get some good news man
Click to expand...
Hi, you said you interviewed the 7th, have you heard anything back yet?
 
Element515 said:
Ah, okay. Well, at least we know we were singled out. I thought they said they would call today as well. I've been a bit tense all day.
Click to expand...
I interviewed the 7th and was supposed to hear back on the 13th and still haven't heard back yet.
 
ugh2802 said:
Yeah I totally understand..this is my second time thru the app process, my first interview last year was an embarrassment. The biggest thing that helped me improve was having the answer to why Do you want to be a doctor down really well, as well as why you want to be an osteopath. I also knew coming into this one they were going to ask about the current state of healthcare in the US so before the interviews I read a lot of books on articles about healthcare in our country. Interviews are tricky, in the past I had weird interviewers who clearly did not like me. At liberty I was lucky to have two really nice guys and we clicked pretty well. Just have some solid answers to the common questions and just be yourself for the rest, if you are interviewing you clearly have your **** together and know why you wanna be a doctor, relax and you'll be fine dude.

Luckily, having an interview on Tuesday the 7th, we were told they would review our apps that Friday so I got the call the 13th in the late afternoon about my acceptance. I think I heard back atypically fast so don't freak out if you haven't heard back yet.

I agree with you, the school does look amazing! I'm excited to start in July!
Click to expand...
What time in the afternoon did you hear back on the 13th? I also interviewed on the 7th and have not heard back from them yet.
 
Thelonelyarab said:
Trying calling them, bud!
Click to expand...
I thought about it, I didn't want to push them, they did contact my post-bac on the 13th for my grades, so I'm wondering if they just reviewed my file on the 24th, and may call me this week, if they don't call tomorrow, I'll call.
 
dogfan said:
I thought about it, I didn't want to push them, they did contact my post-bac on the 13th for my grades, so I'm wondering if they just reviewed my file on the 24th, and may call me this week, if they don't call tomorrow, I'll call.
Click to expand...
 
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They called your post bac for your grades? Interesting.

Yea, my post-bacc informed me that the school called, because at the time our grades had not been released to us yet, because I had just finished the first semester. I imagine that they are looking over those grades in addition to my undergrad. So I am hoping for the call this week. If I don't hear one, then I guess I will call them.
 
dogfan said:
What time in the afternoon did you hear back on the 13th? I also interviewed on the 7th and have not heard back from them yet.
Click to expand...

I got the call around 4:30pm on jan13, I heard from others that it's taken them several weeks to get back to them so don't look too much into the timing of it all.

Hope you get some good news soon man
 
ugh2802 said:
I got the call around 4:30pm on jan13, I heard from others that it's taken them several weeks to get back to them so don't look too much into the timing of it all.

Hope you get some good news soon man
Click to expand...
Thank you so much, that makes me feel a lot better
 
dogfan said:
Thank you so much, that makes me feel a lot better
Click to expand...

Sure man, hang in there. As others have suggested, if I were you I would call or email James cook now and strongly state you want to attend LUCOM. Don't worry about 'pushing' them, just make sure they know you will attend if they accept you.
 
ugh2802 said:
Sure man, hang in there. As others have suggested, if I were you I would call or email James cook now and strongly state you want to attend LUCOM. Don't worry about 'pushing' them, just make sure they know you will attend if they accept you.
Click to expand...
Alright, thanks
 
Donkk said:
One station is open file but moreover they are just trying to get a feel for you personally so this is the time to let them know about you and for you to get them engaged and excited to have you there. I answered the questions but steered the interview into the reason they are excited to teach there. For the scenario station, I heard that most people my day had different scenarios but for example; You are a family doctor and a couple comes to see you and they are having trouble getting pregnant what types of things do you recommend? I wouldn't recommend anything as I have not gone through this myself but, I would try to inform them on different options such as adoption and fertilization specialists while trying to remain empathetic to their situation. They find out the child has down syndrome during development and want to abort what do you recommend? It's just a fun random scenario. I had fun with it and just gave the best answers I could. They just want to see how you reason through things, if you are able to accept others viewpoints and if you are looking out for your patient, so they make informed decisions and meet the schools mission and goals.

Also at lunch you sit with one or two teachers/admins (all of which are extremely nice and welcoming) and I asked them tons of questions and they really were quite helpful. I sat with Dr. Dormer who is one of the co-creator's of the cochlear implant and did years of research with dolphins. Just try to get a feel for the school and you may soon be like me and many of the other interviews you attended will pale in comparison. As I stated in previous posts, going in to this interview I didn't even expect this to be on my top end picks but, you know this institution will soon be a top notch program. I just feel in my gut that this will be a successful place for me to attend personally.

Hope this helps and if you have any other questions feel free to ask.
Click to expand...

Could you tell me what sort of questions were you asked at the open file stations? And how would you recommend one prepares for scenario station?
 
akumar29 said:
Could you tell me what sort of questions were you asked at the open file stations? And how would you recommend one prepares for scenario station?
Click to expand...

They had my grades and MCAT there but, they didn't really ask me anything on those areas, case may vary between applicants and interviewer, I had Dr. Leonard for this station. He asked about my volunteering experiences, work experiences and basically tried to get a feel for who I was as a person, he definitely cruised my personal statement/essay. He asked things that really drove the conversation in a positive manner and then I steered the remainder of this 30 minute interview to ask important questions to ensure my happiness at the program. On all of the interviews I have gone on at various schools, I never prepared for possible scenarios with rehearsed answers. I always perform best in this situations when I answer from the heart I feel and never wanted to reply with something that felt rehearsed or overly complicated. I did however keep up on recent AOA topics and cruised through BBC health news to make sure I was ready for potential topics that may be out there.
 
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