NOVA & NYCOM: which one?

[leo56]

Hey everyone,

I know this topic of one school vs. another is getting old...however my deposit is due at either school in 2 days, and I'm really freaking out. Anyone else in the same boat? I'm from NY, like the idea of NYCOM being close to home (an hour or so), being in the same city as my SO, etc. Just get the opinion that NYCOM students are very mixed as to the quality of their first 2 years. They keep changing the curriculum, etc. Are the rotations SO great that it's worth just getting through the first two years?

I liked NOVA, the class seemed like a cohesive bunch. Yet, I'm not sure about the rotations. Many students have to move to another Florida city for the last two years. Plus, the SO wouldn't be moving, so things would pretty much be over. It seems nicer to do rotations in a city close to home.

any ideas? thanks

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[Mike2010]

rotations were a huge factor for me b/c in the end where you went to school wont matter as much as where you did your residency.... and NYCOM rotations provide far better networking opportunities (in my opinion). AS a bonus(?) you would keep your girlfriend/boyfriend.

 

[passthebiscuits]

as a 4th year Novite--I have to say that I have loved my medical school experience and fellow classmates. I feel well prepared for residency and matched in my first choice allopathic program. Nova is well respected and turns out some really fine graduates (myself excluded!)
I am sure that either choice would be a good one, but besides the less than cooperative financial aid dept. at Nova, I have been happy with my choice.

 

[Oculus Sinistra]

as a 4th year Novite--I have to say that I have loved my medical school experience and fellow classmates. I feel well prepared for residency and matched in my first choice allopathic program. Nova is well respected and turns out some really fine graduates (myself excluded!)
I am sure that either choice would be a good one, but besides the less than cooperative financial aid dept. at Nova, I have been happy with my choice.

is there a problem getting aid at Nova?

 

[GregsAnatomy]

Hey everyone,

I know this topic of one school vs. another is getting old...however my deposit is due at either school in 2 days, and I'm really freaking out. Anyone else in the same boat? I'm from NY, like the idea of NYCOM being close to home (an hour or so), being in the same city as my SO, etc. Just get the opinion that NYCOM students are very mixed as to the quality of their first 2 years. They keep changing the curriculum, etc. Are the rotations SO great that it's worth just getting through the first two years?

I liked NOVA, the class seemed like a cohesive bunch. Yet, I'm not sure about the rotations. Many students have to move to another Florida city for the last two years. Plus, the SO wouldn't be moving, so things would pretty much be over. It seems nicer to do rotations in a city close to home.

any ideas? thanks

NSU (not NOVA) has excellent rotations varying from an medium sized osteopathic hospital on the west coast of Florida to large, county hospitals with Level 1 trauma centers in south Florida. In fact, this is one of the reasons I chose the school over others. There is absolutely no one in my class who had to move to another part of Florida who didn't want to. There are something like 30 spots between the Orlando and Tampa (west coast) sites, and these are somewhat competitive to get as a lot of people rank them high. The other 180 or so in the class do their rotations within the tri-county area of Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade counties.

 

[kaikai128]

is there a problem getting aid at Nova?

No problem getting aid, the financial aid department can just be somewhat of a hassle sometimes. I don't know of anyone who didn't get their aid.

 

[leo56]

thanks for the replies I get the impression that many NSU students actually like their school, and that most NYCOMers suck up the first two years so they can rotate in NY hospitals. I guess med school is what you make of it...

 

[nvshelat]

thanks for the replies I get the impression that many NSU students actually like their school, and that most NYCOMers suck up the first two years so they can rotate in NY hospitals. I guess med school is what you make of it...

The NYCOM students I've talked to like it. I get the impression that they accept more ppl than are qualified, and the ones that aren't qualified end up whining about how they can't manage to study for the boards.

 

[dr_almondjoy_do]

The NYCOM students I've talked to like it. I get the impression that they accept more ppl than are qualified, and the ones that aren't qualified end up whining about how they can't manage to study for the boards.

NYCOM is pretty cut throat. Large class sizes make it so that people are forced to sink or swim. It builds character. You learn to make time out of thin air and coffee.

The rotation sites are all worth it in my opinion. But NOVA students rotate at all of our sites too, they just have to arrange their own rotations. So you can do your pre-clinical years wherever you want.

 

[nvshelat]

NYCOM is pretty cut throat. Large class sizes make it so that people are forced to sink or swim. It builds character. You learn to make time out of thin air and coffee.

It's pass fail..

 

[dr_almondjoy_do]

pass is a pretty word that gets underestimated alot. Pass was 1 std dev. from the mean, with a minimum of 70%. There were times when "pass" was hard to attain when you had 6 courses to study for in 3 days, 5 lectures a day, and a week of exams coming up. I hear things are different now that exams are spaced two weeks apart, but back in my day (2002-2004) we had 6 week blocks.

It's not the material that makes it hard, it's the amount of material coupled with all the other crap. so pass/fail isn't always a blessing...

 

[yanky5]

pass is a pretty word that gets underestimated alot. Pass was 1 std dev. from the mean, with a minimum of 70%. There were times when "pass" was hard to attain when you had 6 courses to study for in 3 days, 5 lectures a day, and a week of exams coming up. I hear things are different now that exams are spaced two weeks apart, but back in my day (2002-2004) we had 6 week blocks.

It's not the material that makes it hard, it's the amount of material coupled with all the other crap. so pass/fail isn't always a blessing...

Umm.. exams are spaced one month apart now and if you fail the exam, they give you a make up. It does bother me how passing is 70 percent though.... but then again, they give a make up if you fail. I also hate the academic aspect of NYCOM (underqualified teachers, a lot of crap, not enough study time etc) but I'm willing to put up with it to get a good residency.

 

[HoodyHoo]

rotations were a huge factor for me b/c in the end where you went to school wont matter as much as where you did your residency.... and NYCOM rotations provide far better networking opportunities (in my opinion). AS a bonus(?) you would keep your girlfriend/boyfriend.

Obviously in NY you will have networking opportunities but Miami and all of south Florida has a huge population. Plenty of opportunities here also, so don't base it soley on that. Tons of connections with top docs can be made down here.

 

[HoodyHoo]

Umm.. exams are spaced one month apart now and if you fail the exam, they give you a make up. It does bother me how passing is 70 percent though.... but then again, they give a make up if you fail. I also hate the academic aspect of NYCOM (underqualified teachers, a lot of crap, not enough study time etc) but I'm willing to put up with it to get a good residency.

How do you not have enough study time if you only have a test once a month? just curious. We have a test every Monday and sometimes we have 2-3 tests in a week on a rare occasion. Do your tests cover a crap load of material?

 

[dr_almondjoy_do]

Umm.. exams are spaced one month apart now and if you fail the exam, they give you a make up. It does bother me how passing is 70 percent though.... but then again, they give a make up if you fail. I also hate the academic aspect of NYCOM (underqualified teachers, a lot of crap, not enough study time etc) but I'm willing to put up with it to get a good residency.

You know, it's often very easy to find ways to blame NYCOM for your shorfalls, but it's in poor taste to criticize the very place that offers you "good residency". These "underqualified" teachers you speak of run circles around many other teachers, and are at the top of their game. Especially the 2nd year professors. Many of them are the reason why NYCOM has all the good affiliations. But that is besides the point.

Any Osteopathic student can rotate at the NYCOMEC hospitals. You don't need to put up with anything to get a good residency. The only thing stopping you is yourself. And this is coming from someone who will be graduating from NYCOM in less than 2 months. I never once blamed anything on a teacher's ability to relay information because I was in no position to judge. It's just bad form.

 

[yanky5]

How do you not have enough study time if you only have a test once a month? just curious. We have a test every Monday and sometimes we have 2-3 tests in a week on a rare occasion. Do your tests cover a crap load of material?

They give you classes up to the day before the exam and in this system we are responsible for the material we learned a day before the exam. Of course, it is a crap load of material. Plus on exam day we have 3 tests (not one like the other schools have). Written test 100 Questions + OMM practical + Anatomy practical in anatomy lab all IN THE SAME DAY so you feel like you are going to die at the end of the day. NO TIME OFF TO STUDY. Oh, and 2 days before the exam we have an anatomy lab that will be on the practical. When do you study? Skip class and study or stay up at night. Damn. That's why the system is messed up.

 

[Fin-Nor]

thanks for the replies I get the impression that many NSU students actually like their school, and that most NYCOMers suck up the first two years so they can rotate in NY hospitals. I guess med school is what you make of it...

you must be speaking with the first years at nsu...

 

[Cthulu]

They give you classes up to the day before the exam and in this system we are responsible for the material we learned a day before the exam. Of course, it is a crap load of material. Plus on exam day we have 3 tests (not one like the other schools have). Written test 100 Questions + OMM practical + Anatomy practical in anatomy lab all IN THE SAME DAY so you feel like you are going to die at the end of the day. NO TIME OFF TO STUDY. Oh, and 2 days before the exam we have an anatomy lab that will be on the practical. When do you study? Skip class and study or stay up at night. Damn. That's why the system is messed up.

The material they test us on is also kinda weak. We have not had much this whole in year in the basic sciences or path. Also this is the only place where you can skip anatomy lab and get away with it.

 

[HunterGatherer]

The material they test us on is also kinda weak. We have not had much this whole in year in the basic sciences or path. Also this is the only place where you can skip anatomy lab and get away with it.

Cthulu,

By weak do you mean the content of the exam is not very difficult or that the teaching is too weak for the difficulty of the exams?

An exam every month seems like a good balance. Less time than that is too frequent and once you go beyond 8 weeks you are going to have a pretty big exam to cover all that material and easier to slack off.

 

[nvshelat]

The material they test us on is also kinda weak. We have not had much this whole in year in the basic sciences or path. Also this is the only place where you can skip anatomy lab and get away with it.

Just leaves more room for the people who actually want to learn

 

[buffalomoose]

They give you classes up to the day before the exam and in this system we are responsible for the material we learned a day before the exam. Of course, it is a crap load of material. Plus on exam day we have 3 tests (not one like the other schools have). Written test 100 Questions + OMM practical + Anatomy practical in anatomy lab all IN THE SAME DAY so you feel like you are going to die at the end of the day. NO TIME OFF TO STUDY. Oh, and 2 days before the exam we have an anatomy lab that will be on the practical. When do you study? Skip class and study or stay up at night. Damn. That's why the system is messed up.

Welcome to medical school. If it were easy everyone would do it.