New Colorado school has a website

BU Medical Sciences
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I definitely will not be applying, and I live about 30 min away in Boulder. First of all, those pictures are not denver. They are pictures of the mountains. Denver is a metro area in the front range, pretty far from the mountains. I hate it how every school in Colorado puts up pictures of Eagle Valley, or some other beautiful place and everyone just assumes that all of colorado is mountainous. Also, it's probably not a good idea to attend a school in its first year. They'll still be working out all the kinks, and your education will suffer accordingly.
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I know a majority of you guys are pissed about Rocky Vista, but being that Colorado has only one option (University of Colorado Health Sciences Center), I am pretty excited. RVUCOM is working closely with UCHSC to put their program in place. The guy who owns it is different than the guy who is now running it - he has been a DO since 1979. The website is tacky, but I know they were anxious to throw something togther since the announcement was made at the beginning of the year. The location is great and in a beautiful area to include plenty of housing in surrounding areas. The Board members from Colorado are well respected within the community and the reference to the Carribbean schools is ignorant and unwarranted. Whether I go MD or DO, I am happy to have this school in Colorado.:p
 
Dream2BNMD said:
I know a majority of you guys are pissed about Rocky Vista, but being that Colorado has only one option (University of Colorado Health Sciences Center), I am pretty excited. RVUCOM is working closely with UCHSC to put their program in place. The guy who owns it is different than the guy who is now running it - he has been a DO since 1979. The website is tacky, but I know they were anxious to throw something togther since the announcement was made at the beginning of the year. The location is great and in a beautiful area to include plenty of housing in surrounding areas. The Board members from Colorado are well respected within the community and the reference to the Carribbean schools is ignorant and unwarranted. Whether I go MD or DO, I am happy to have this school in Colorado.:p
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Well, that's a really good way to look at it. I didn't even consider that CO residents only have 1 option right now.
 
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Dream2BNMD said:
I know a majority of you guys are pissed about Rocky Vista, but being that Colorado has only one option (University of Colorado Health Sciences Center), I am pretty excited. RVUCOM is working closely with UCHSC to put their program in place. The guy who owns it is different than the guy who is now running it - he has been a DO since 1979. The website is tacky, but I know they were anxious to throw something togther since the announcement was made at the beginning of the year. The location is great and in a beautiful area to include plenty of housing in surrounding areas. The Board members from Colorado are well respected within the community and the reference to the Carribbean schools is ignorant and unwarranted. Whether I go MD or DO, I am happy to have this school in Colorado.:p
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Exactly. It looks pretty dismal right now, but it's better than banking on UC if you want to stay instate. And frankly, even the poor sap that graduates last in their class at the bottom of the barrel school in the country is still a doctor.
 
Dream2BNMD said:
I know a majority of you guys are pissed about Rocky Vista, but being that Colorado has only one option (University of Colorado Health Sciences Center)
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Well, I for one am not pissed...just skeptical.
And a bit of skepticism is warrented.
But you're right about your situation - I applied to Colorado and didn't get in, and it's certainly not an easy school to get into, so it's good to have options.

Likewise, Nevada only had one medical school until 3 years ago, before Touro-Nevada came into existance.

It remains to be seen how Rocky Vista is going to turn out; like any new program, there are going to be bumps in the road, especially since Rocky Vista doesn't have a parent school to turn to. The new schools have had either an established Osteopathic Medical School in another location or have had an existing undergraduate institution to rely on. Rocky Vista is different, and I think that warrants keeping a close eye on.
 
Dream2BNMD said:
I know a majority of you guys are pissed about Rocky Vista, but being that Colorado has only one option (University of Colorado Health Sciences Center), I am pretty excited. RVUCOM is working closely with UCHSC to put their program in place. The guy who owns it is different than the guy who is now running it - he has been a DO since 1979. The website is tacky, but I know they were anxious to throw something togther since the announcement was made at the beginning of the year. The location is great and in a beautiful area to include plenty of housing in surrounding areas. The Board members from Colorado are well respected within the community and the reference to the Carribbean schools is ignorant and unwarranted. Whether I go MD or DO, I am happy to have this school in Colorado.:p
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Good Point! I would really really really like to stay in Colorado and I am NOT banking on CU. Colorado pre-meds are at a serious disadvantage (not as much as Cali, of course) when applying to med schools. Our only instate is CU and it is hard as heck to get into - even as an instate.

I welcome the idea of a new med school in Colorado - I just hope this one turns out to be a good one.
 
"The school will distribute secondary applications to those students who meet admission criteria and desire to be considered for admission. The school anticipates giving preference to students from the state of Colorado, the Mountain West and the Great Planes States to assist the COM in meeting its mission and vision. The school anticipates that most successful applicants will have obtained at a minimum a B.S. degree and will have fulfilled all of the course requirements that may be found on the AACOM web site. In addition, although minimums may be lower, most successful applicants will have a GPA > 3.25 and will have obtained a score of >22 on the MCAT examination."
It says on the website they are supposed to have accredation by September.
 
veraisme said:
"The school will distribute secondary applications to those students who meet admission criteria and desire to be considered for admission. The school anticipates giving preference to students from the state of Colorado, the Mountain West and the Great Planes States to assist the COM in meeting its mission and vision. The school anticipates that most successful applicants will have obtained at a minimum a B.S. degree and will have fulfilled all of the course requirements that may be found on the AACOM web site. In addition, although minimums may be lower, most successful applicants will have a GPA > 3.25 and will have obtained a score of >22 on the MCAT examination."
It says on the website they are supposed to have accredation by September.
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MOST will have >3.25 and >22???? I would hope all would. Much lower and I would hate to see their board scores
 
BWalkerMSU said:
MOST will have >3.25 and >22???? I would hope all would. Much lower and I would hate to see their board scores
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The combination of a low GPA and very low MCAT should prevent you from getting into med school, but one or the other is not necessarily a deal breaker.

While that 22 is a low mcat, if you look at MDapplicants, most schools (well, except maybe Harvard)..certainly ALL DO schools, accept many students below 3.25 gpa.

I, for one, have a 3.06 out of undergrad, but a 3.9 from graduate school and a 33 mcat. If schools set a cutoff for undergrad gpa of >3.25 I'd be screwed.
 
StringerBell;5186455 Since Rocky Vista is still in the "[B said:
pre-accreditation[/B]" phase, it can't have a .edu site just yet. LMU-DCOM and the upcoming RMU-SOM are both affiliated with accredited institutions and thus maintain web pages on those schools' websites.

Possibly when the school receives full accreditation status, it may opt for a .edu domain; that remains to be seen. Still, though, I'm sure that this is definitely raising some eyebrows - it raised mine. And according to the AACOM website, Rocky Vista is indeed a for-profit organization. We'll have to see how it all shakes out.
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at this point they *can't* opt for the .edu because they don't meet the .edu qualifications until they are accredited. Nor can they recruit or accept applicants.

Have there been any DO schools in the works that have not opened their doors and then graduated students? I've dug up some regular type news articles on "first graduating classes" and all of them have been positive.

I'm a little disappointed in the location- I've been longing for an osteopathic college in Colorado for over a decade but this one is an inconvenient location for me. :( It's close enough to be "in-state" but far enough to disrupt my family because I would not be home daily, but maybe weekly. AFAIK, Parker isn't overwhelmed with inexpensive student studio apartments, which I would need to succeed there.

I'll be continuing with my PA application but it's frustrating to have this much-desired option here now, distracting me, making me wish I could justify DO school.
 
Dream2BNMD said:
I know a majority of you guys are pissed about Rocky Vista, but being that Colorado has only one option (University of Colorado Health Sciences Center), I am pretty excited. RVUCOM is working closely with UCHSC to put their program in place. The guy who owns it is different than the guy who is now running it - he has been a DO since 1979. The website is tacky, but I know they were anxious to throw something togther since the announcement was made at the beginning of the year. The location is great and in a beautiful area to include plenty of housing in surrounding areas. The Board members from Colorado are well respected within the community and the reference to the Carribbean schools is ignorant and unwarranted. Whether I go MD or DO, I am happy to have this school in Colorado.:p
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The comparison to the Caribbean schools is entirely warranted... the ignorance may be on your part, since you appear to not know much about Caribbean schools and their graduates (Ross and St. George's in particular have a long track record of producing solid graduates that match very well in the US). They even have their 3rd and 4th year rotations in the states (in big cities too, such as New York City and Chicago).

In the end, the fact that Rocky Vista is a for profit institution makes it only comparable to those programs.

Anyhow... to anyone that is applying to Rocky Vista, keep in mind that there is a strong push among AOA-members to prevent this school from getting fully accredited. Pretty much the majority of the medical community (both MD's and DO's) is against having a for-profit medical school established on US soil.
 
Terpskins99 said:
Anyhow... to anyone that is applying to Rocky Vista, keep in mind that there is a strong push among AOA-members to prevent this school from getting fully accredited. Pretty much the majority of the medical community (both MD's and DO's) is against having a for-profit medical school established on US soil.
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Is it possible for a school to get pre-accreditation and not become fully accedited?
 
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Terpskins99 said:
The comparison to the Caribbean schools is entirely warranted... the ignorance may be on your part, since you appear to not know much about Caribbean schools and their graduates (Ross and St. George's in particular have a long track record of producing solid graduates that match very well in the US). They even have their 3rd and 4th year rotations in the states (in big cities too, such as New York City and Chicago).

In the end, the fact that Rocky Vista is a for profit institution makes it only comparable to those programs.

Anyhow... to anyone that is applying to Rocky Vista, keep in mind that there is a strong push among AOA-members to prevent this school from getting fully accredited. Pretty much the majority of the medical community (both MD's and DO's) is against having a for-profit medical school established on US soil.
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And isn't Rocky Vista somehow affiliated with AUC, one of the big Caribbean schools? Following that, I'd guess AUC and Rocky Vista students will have largely identical clinical programs and probably a very similar curriculum with the addition of some OMM at Rocky Vista.

Honestly, I think the comparison a brand new for profit DO school and a well-established Caribbean school is largely a wash. Actually, maybe not -- the least risky path would probably be to go with an established Caribbean school.
 
There is a strong and growing movement among AOA members for the COCA (accrediting body for D.O. schools) to establish new policies that mirror the accreditation policies for M.D. schools which has explicit rules against for-profit schools.

This policy was borne from the Flexner report in 1910 (hence the "1910 initiative" mentioned in the above linked post) which was very critical of many of the "diploma mill" schools which were present at that time.

We are pushing for another independent survey and examination of Osteopathic schools; another Flexner report, if you will.

Please refrain from applying or matriculating at this school (Rocky Vista) - we, as a profession do not want to be responsible for bringing for-profit schools back to the US after over 70 years.

jd
 
A for profit medical school seems pretty much like the absolutely worst idea you could possibly come up with. How long will it be before certain medications are taught as better because a drug company has stock or similar situations like that. Additionally, although osteopathic schools do not have as much a focus on research as allopathic schools wont this seriously affect their ability to perform credible, independent research?
 
DeLaughterDO said:
Please refrain from applying or matriculating at this school (Rocky Vista) - we, as a profession do not want to be responsible for bringing for-profit schools back to the US after over 70 years.
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I wish that this would be the case. However, trying to convince a pre-med that it is in the best interest of the profession that they don't apply is another battle. Maybe we should take bets on how many apps this school will get the first year?
 
pguin said:
A for profit medical school seems pretty much like the absolutely worst idea you could possibly come up with. How long will it be before certain medications are taught as better because a drug company has stock or similar situations like that. Additionally, although osteopathic schools do not have as much a focus on research as allopathic schools wont this seriously affect their ability to perform credible, independent research?
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I completely agree. Everything about a for profit institution reeks of looking out for themselves. That is one reason we have a such a problem with our current healthcare system and HMOs. I would hate to see for-profit med-schools popping up all over.
 
dr.kicia said:
every other school has that in their name.
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Yes, but it makes no sense here. The only school at the "university" is the College of Osteopathic Medicine.

For MSU, for example, we have Michigan State University, with many different departments, colleges, schools, etc., one of which is the College of Osteopathic Medicine.

There is no Rocky Vista University, you see?
 
Which 3 are not on through AACOMAS? i only saw 25
 
jason3278 said:
Yes, but it makes no sense here. The only school at the "university" is the College of Osteopathic Medicine.

For MSU, for example, we have Michigan State University, with many different departments, colleges, schools, etc., one of which is the College of Osteopathic Medicine.

There is no Rocky Vista University, you see?
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You're right -- a university encompasses multiple colleges. My ugrad was a liberal arts school, so it's a college and not a university. Is Rocky Vista planning on opening up other schools like say a pharmacy school or a nursing program?
 
HarveyCushing said:
I wish that this would be the case. However, trying to convince a pre-med that it is in the best interest of the profession that they don't apply is another battle. Maybe we should take bets on how many apps this school will get the first year?
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Well, if this school was open last year when my wife applied to other schools and interviewed, she might have applied to that one. Happy we moved from Colorado Springs to Des Moines though. Kinda tired of Colorado (been there for a long time), and nice to be in a different place. Aurora wouldn't cut it :laugh: And DMU is an awesome school.

Opinions vary, but we rate Des Moines to be a little better than Colorado Springs. And certainly better than Denver/Aurora/et al.
 
HarveyCushing said:
I wish that this would be the case. However, trying to convince a pre-med that it is in the best interest of the profession that they don't apply is another battle. Maybe we should take bets on how many apps this school will get the first year?
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All depends on IF they get accreditation. They don't have it yet and I can tell you that many osteopathic students/physicians are going to fight this nail and tooth to the end. :thumbup: So it doesn't hurt to show your support if you are against for-profit medical schools. You may not be a student yet but that doesn't discount your voice. It just seems like a bad idea all around. Allopathic schools don't allow for a good reason of the "diploma mill" incidents, we don't need anymore of that business mentality in the US. JMHO.
 
Auraraptor said:
Well, based of their website address, the area looks like this (Press satellite to see real image):

http://www.google.com/maps?q=8401,+Chambers,+Rd,+Parker,+CO+80134,+USA&sa=X&oi=map&ct=title

(Address source: http://www.rockyvistauniversity.com/map.asp)
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Nice. Easy on, Easy off, the way any good, profitable medschool should be. If it works for rest stops, it should work here.

Can anyone else not stop themselves from saying enhance every time you scroll in on the satellite feature?
 
Their website is complete garbage.





:banana:
 
i think that people will apply there regardless. many pre-meds would rather go to the for-profit school in the US then in the Caribbean...unfortunately.
I am not applying there...even if it means having to reaply.
 
dr.kicia said:
i think that people will apply there regardless. many pre-meds would rather go to the for-profit school in the US then in the Caribbean...unfortunately.
I am not applying there...even if it means having to reaply.
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Good to see at least one person values their soul.
 
Krazykritter said:
Good to see at least one person values their soul.
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I won't apply, just because it does not sound sexy. Rocky Vista University...ehhh. not sexy. Sounds like a housing development or retirement village "Rocky Vista". That and I hate the cold...with a passion. So much I am almost eager for global warming...until the doom that follows.
 
Be forewarned that there is significant resistance to this for-profit US branch of a Caribbean medical school. Anyone going there is going to be seen as the lowest of the low when it comes to residency selection, job search, etc.
 
DO Anes said:
Be forewarned that there is significant resistance to this for-profit US branch of a Caribbean medical school. Anyone going there is going to be seen as the lowest of the low when it comes to residency selection, job search, etc.
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well it also depends on how well you do in med school and what your boards scores will be...so don't jump into conclusions.
there are people in caribbean schools who get competetive residency spots because of their awsome usmle scores...
but then the question is...how much will a for -profit school care about well being and sucsess of their students? and will they even get acredited? since they will be for-profit will they even care about spending $$$ for top notch facilities, labs etc?
those are my main concerns...at first i was thinking "cool one more chance to get in to med school..." but the more i read about it the less i liked it...so i am not applying there for sure.
 
I am a senior faculty member and involved with residency candidate selection at a major medical school. For IMG's boards are vital (need >90th pctle to be competitive) but will not overcome coming from a school seen as deficient.
 
DO Anes said:
I am a senior faculty member and involved with residency candidate selection at a major medical school. For IMG's boards are vital (need >90th pctle to be competitive) but will not overcome coming from a school seen as deficient.
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of course there is always a stigma and i think "deficient" is a much better word here then "the lowest of the low" that you used before.
We all know that getting a residency of one's choice is a mix of diferent qualities and not just what kind of brand name one has on their diploma. You can graduate from Harvard as a last in your class and bomb your boards and it will not help you in any way to be a Harvard graduate...you will still be a dude who bombed their boards and was last in all rankings.
I think this is one of the biggest misconceptions...as is the choice of hard major or graduating from top tier as a pre-med...
at the end of the day what matters is your grades, your scores and things you did.
Having said all that it is logical to have doubts about new school that even says clearly they are for profit...and i stated why i would be concerned not to go there in my previous post.
 
DO Anes said:
I am a senior faculty member and involved with residency candidate selection at a major medical school. For IMG's boards are vital (need >90th pctle to be competitive) but will not overcome coming from a school seen as deficient.
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there must be a good # of IMGs getting >90th percentile then for them to be matching into competitive IM, Anesth, Radiology and Ortho
 
What are usually the starting admissions stats for new Osteopathic schools?
 
What kind of population does Colorado have? People keep talking about the disadvantage of the students there...but there are other places that get just as much of a shaft. Granted, IU isn't as hard to get into (supposedly) that is the only medschool in Indiana..although they do have branch campuses.
 
busupshot83 said:
What are usually the starting admissions stats for new Osteopathic schools?
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1) Minimum of 10 on the MCAT and a maximum of 15 in order to be competitive
2) minimum of 2.0 GPA
3. Letters of rec.Preferably from a chiropractor.However, letter from a D.O grants you automatic acceptance.If you are lucky to obtain rec.letter from an M.D, your first year tuition will be waived.
4.)Since lectures are written in mandarin you must possess the ability to write and read in Chinese.
 
MossPoh said:
What kind of population does Colorado have? People keep talking about the disadvantage of the students there...but there are other places that get just as much of a shaft. Granted, IU isn't as hard to get into (supposedly) that is the only medschool in Indiana..although they do have branch campuses.
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Colorado is the only med school serving like 6 or 7 states... and they don't have a large class size either (somewhere around 100-125 I think). No branch campuses. I looked a couple years ago, and statistically it's harder to get into Colorado as an instate resident that into a California med school as an instate resident. Granted, all 6 or 7 of those other states combined with Colorado don't add up to California's population (all those no-med-school states are viewed by Colorado as being in-state for med school purposes), but California has more than one med school, and I think several of those have a larger class size.
 
arsenewenger said:
1) Minimum of 10 on the MCAT and a maximum of 15 in order to be competitive
2) minimum of 2.0 GPA
3. Letters of rec.Preferably from a chiropractor.However, letter from a D.O grants you automatic acceptance.If you are lucky to obtain rec.letter from an M.D, your first year tuition will be waived.
4.)Since lectures are written in mandarin you must possess the ability to write and read in Chinese.
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Don't take this the wrong way, but is there a reason why your an ass? If you dont like DO schools or the profession or people who choose this route for their career just stay away. I can't see why it is any business of yours.
 
Toohotinvegas33 said:
Don't take this the wrong way, but is there a reason why your an ass? If you dont like DO schools or the profession or people who choose this route for their career just stay away. I can't see why it is any business of yours.
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1. Left click on name
2. Left click on "View public profile"
3. Left click on "Add Arsenewenger to my ignore list"
4. Problem solved!! :laugh::thumbup:
 
ShyRem said:
Colorado is the only med school serving like 6 or 7 states... and they don't have a large class size either (somewhere around 100-125 I think). No branch campuses. I looked a couple years ago, and statistically it's harder to get into Colorado as an instate resident that into a California med school as an instate resident. Granted, all 6 or 7 of those other states combined with Colorado don't add up to California's population (all those no-med-school states are viewed by Colorado as being in-state for med school purposes), but California has more than one med school, and I think several of those have a larger class size.
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As a Colorado resident...that's pretty daunting. my fiance can't leave his job to follow me to med school, and while i think i'll be a successful applicant elsewhere, i really don't think i'll be a very good student.
 
arsenewenger said:
1) Minimum of 10 on the MCAT and a maximum of 15 in order to be competitive
2) minimum of 2.0 GPA
3. Letters of rec.Preferably from a chiropractor.However, letter from a D.O grants you automatic acceptance.If you are lucky to obtain rec.letter from an M.D, your first year tuition will be waived.
4.)Since lectures are written in mandarin you must possess the ability to write and read in Chinese.
Click to expand...

It never fails: leave it to an internet forum to be filled with those special individuals who strive to be smart@sses. Anyhow, if anyone can intelligently answer my original question, unlike Arsie here (I feel sorry for your future patients), I would appreciate it. I just made the switch from dentistry to medicine, so excuse me if some of my questions seem redundant.

bus
 
Hello to all!

I'm new to the Network, but I thought everyone should know...

I interviewed at Rocky Vista and was accepted. The faculty are ALL professors from other D.O. schools, as is the Dean. Very, very nice people!

The "for-profit" thing is interesting, although I don't know too many schools (private or public) who are in the "business" of education to not make any money. The mission of the school is upheld by an independent Board of Directors, and the expected profit return for the school is not projected to occur until 20 years from now. Furthermore, the application requirements rival any other D.O. school in the country as far as stringency goes, and I know several people who applied and weren't invited to submit a secondary application.

Think about it this way - Rocky Vista is a new school, so they want their COMLEX numbers and residency match rates to be the best they can be in order to make them a desirable choice for future D.O. applicants. They will surely be extremely selective for at least the first four years. After that, they will want to maintain their statistics, and will continue to be selective in order to do so.

Honestly, does anybody have a solid, substantiated reason that a "for profit" tax status is so terrible?

Anyway, it is in a beautiful location - not to mention resident tuition breaks!:)
 
Also, Rocky Vista is not a branch of the Carribean Medical School. The man who started Rocky Vista is the son of the man who started the Carribean school. The similarities end there. :)

Also, they have a nursing school, a dental school, a pharmacy school, and potentially a veternary school all going in at the site of Rocky Vista University. So, you see, the "University" tag actually does fit... you just need to give the new site time to grow!
 
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