NSU vs LECOM-B

[docisthegoal]

---

Members don't see this ad.

Hey everyone. So I thought I was done with my application process but have yet again had another change in the process. I have recently put down a deposit to LECOM Bradenton but I also recently received a last minute II to NOVA and attended the interview 2 days ago. I was very impressed after the interview - extremely impressed. Although I am not accepted to NOVA, if I am, I will only have 2 weeks to decide and put down a deposit so I would like to contemplate my decision before then. If I'm not accepted, well then this post won't matter haha. Any advice from fellow SDNers is appreciated, maybe even those who have attended/graduated the institution. Anywho, a little about me is that I would like to specialize in EM or Anesthesiology; also maybe looking into some sort of Peds specialty. Although I know EM and Anesthesiology are harder for DOs to get into, I am dedicated to getting where I want to be. Below is how I have classified the 2 schools with pros and cons.

LECOM-B
PROs:
- high board score averages
-PBL curriculum
-close to family
-30k tuition
CONs:
-very little to no research opportunities
-prosected cadavers/ no SIM lab
-history of problems with rotations
-didn't feel a sense of "connectedness" between faculty and students at interview

NOVA
PROs:
-rural rotation that could be in a different country/ mission trips
-integrated curriculum
-cadavers/ SIM lab
-decent amount of research opportunities (even almost done building new research building on campus)
-super great connection with faculty and students (from what I saw at the interview and what people say)
-solid rotations
-ability to use class recordings (& not attend non-mandatory classes if that works better for me)
-close to family
CONs:
-49k tuition 🙁
-not as high board score averages?

So yes, I put both curriculums as a pro because I like both. PBL I think I would do well in because I can be a very independent learner when given the opportunity. On the other hand, all throughout college I used a similar type of curriculum NOVA has and I did well. Something I'm interested in hearing from people is what school they think will allow me to better specialize in the specialties I listed above. Thanks to everyone.

 

[AlteredScale]

NSU would be my pick. Great clinical rotations and solid research opps is really the thing that gives it it's edge. The cheaper tuition at Lecom doesn't do it justice for the fact that you literally are in one building with no research opportunities at all and limited faculty compared to NSU. Then again, if research isn't a big thing to hog and you can deal with PBL and working with teams (since that's what you do on that curriculum) then by all means go to Lecom.
Good luck!

 

[DoctorSynthesis]

Hey everyone. So I thought I was done with my application process but have yet again had another change in the process. I have recently put down a deposit to LECOM Bradenton but I also recently received a last minute II to NOVA and attended the interview 2 days ago. I was very impressed after the interview - extremely impressed. Although I am not accepted to NOVA, if I am, I will only have 2 weeks to decide and put down a deposit so I would like to contemplate my decision before then. If I'm not accepted, well then this post won't matter haha. Any advice from fellow SDNers is appreciated, maybe even those who have attended/graduated the institution. Anywho, a little about me is that I would like to specialize in EM or Anesthesiology; also maybe looking into some sort of Peds specialty. Although I know EM and Anesthesiology are harder for DOs to get into, I am dedicated to getting where I want to be. Below is how I have classified the 2 schools with pros and cons.

LECOM-B
PROs:
- high board score averages
-PBL curriculum
-close to family
-30k tuition
CONs:
-very little to no research opportunities
-prosected cadavers/ no SIM lab
-history of problems with rotations
-didn't feel a sense of "connectedness" between faculty and students at interview

NOVA
PROs:
-rural rotation that could be in a different country/ mission trips
-integrated curriculum
-cadavers/ SIM lab
-decent amount of research opportunities (even almost done building new research building on campus)
-super great connection with faculty and students (from what I saw at the interview and what people say)
-solid rotations
-ability to use class recordings (& not attend non-mandatory classes if that works better for me)
-close to family
CONs:
-49k tuition 🙁
-not as high board score averages?

So yes, I put both curriculums as a pro because I like both. PBL I think I would do well in because I can be a very independent learner when given the opportunity. On the other hand, all throughout college I used a similar type of curriculum NOVA has and I did well. Something I'm interested in hearing from people is what school they think will allow me to better specialize in the specialties I listed above. Thanks to everyone.

Nova IMO

@j4pac is a lecom-b grad @NekoBeats is a Nova student. Maybe they can weigh in.

 

[j4pac]

Staying as objective as possible on the topic...my general recommendations for deciding between which medical school to chose is the following:

MD>DO (non-LUCOM)>LUCOM>>>>IMG

When choosing between schools of the same type (DO vs DO):

1) Choose the school with the curriculum type to allow you to thrive

IF YOU CAN'T DECIDE GO TO 2.

2) Go to the school that is cheaper

IF THE TWO SCHOOLS ARE SIMILAR IN PRICE

3) Go to the school with the better location


The truth is that LECOM's USMLE/COMLEX success is very real and in my opinion it outweighs the affects of not having a research division. The students that want to do research still find research...but LECOM regularly has students who go to strong MD/DO residencies with or without the help of research because their board scores are so damn good...and let's face it...board scores are the single most important factor to getting residency invites.

You will find many medical students who will recommend NOVA, but those same students are a bit naïve in regards to just how important tuition should play a role in your decision making. It's enormous. It's my opinion that you better have a very good reason to not go to the cheaper school.

 

[adrian710]

LECOM-B: Med school on the beach though!

 

[docisthegoal]

LECOM-B: Med school on the beach though!

They are both equally close to beaches 🙂

 

[docisthegoal]

Staying as objective as possible on the topic...my general recommendations for deciding between which medical school to chose is the following:

MD>DO (non-LUCOM)>LUCOM>>>>IMG

When choosing between schools of the same type (DO vs DO):

1) Choose the school with the curriculum type to allow you to thrive

IF YOU CAN'T DECIDE GO TO 2.

2) Go to the school that is cheaper

IF THE TWO SCHOOLS ARE SIMILAR IN PRICE

3) Go to the school with the better location


The truth is that LECOM's USMLE/COMLEX success is very real and in my opinion it outweighs the affects of not having a research division. The students that want to do research still find research...but LECOM regularly has students who go to strong MD/DO residencies with or without the help of research because their board scores are so damn good...and let's face it...board scores are the single most important factor to getting residency invites.

You will find many medical students who will recommend NOVA, but those same students are a bit naïve in regards to just how important tuition should play a role in your decision making. It's enormous. It's my opinion that you better have a very good reason to not go to the cheaper school.

I appreciate your input! Definitely some things to think about.

 

[Azete]

This is a no-brainer; obviously you go with NSU. Their rotations are comparable to most MD schools, and they offer legitimate research opportunities -- all the things you need to match a good residency as a DO.

Of course, it's not all dandy as I've heard NSU's curriculum is pretty flawed (as evident by their less-than-stellar board scores). That shouldn't deter you, though, as there are plenty of extraneous resources that will allow you to perform well on boards if you put in the time. You may regret choosing NSU during your first two years, but you will be grateful when it comes time to apply for residency (the only part that should really matter, IMO).

Don't listen to those that say Bradenton/Davie are comparable locations though. Been to both many times, Davie is pretty awful and Bradenton is beautiful. That would be the only reason to choose LECOM, but you would only be there for two years anyway.

 

[j4pac]

They are both equally close to beaches 🙂

Bradenton is within 45 mins to not one but two of the five best beaches in the country (Clearwater and Siesta Key). It is absolute paradise.

 

[dreee]

Idk if you've seen a pbl curriculum but definetly look into it. I was accepted to both, in the same position as you. I chose NSU because I hate PBL. I attended one session and realized I can't do it for the next 2 years. I need the solid format of a lecture where I'm actually being taught, not leaning on textbooks and other students.

There is some great advice on here, but for me the curriculum is the biggest factor because they are soooo different. Nova you are taught, LECOM-B you teach yourself. Pick the school that will maximize your effort with the curriculum.

And tuition is a huge factor definetly, but in this case curriculum is a bigger factor. It doesn't make sense to go to a cheaper school if you don't feel you have the resources to learn. Then again if you love PBL, then LECOM is a Clear choice.

 

[NekoBeats]

Hey everyone. So I thought I was done with my application process but have yet again had another change in the process. I have recently put down a deposit to LECOM Bradenton but I also recently received a last minute II to NOVA and attended the interview 2 days ago. I was very impressed after the interview - extremely impressed. Although I am not accepted to NOVA, if I am, I will only have 2 weeks to decide and put down a deposit so I would like to contemplate my decision before then. If I'm not accepted, well then this post won't matter haha. Any advice from fellow SDNers is appreciated, maybe even those who have attended/graduated the institution. Anywho, a little about me is that I would like to specialize in EM or Anesthesiology; also maybe looking into some sort of Peds specialty. Although I know EM and Anesthesiology are harder for DOs to get into, I am dedicated to getting where I want to be. Below is how I have classified the 2 schools with pros and cons.

LECOM-B
PROs:
- high board score averages
-PBL curriculum
-close to family
-30k tuition
CONs:
-very little to no research opportunities
-prosected cadavers/ no SIM lab
-history of problems with rotations
-didn't feel a sense of "connectedness" between faculty and students at interview

NOVA
PROs:
-rural rotation that could be in a different country/ mission trips
-integrated curriculum
-cadavers/ SIM lab
-decent amount of research opportunities (even almost done building new research building on campus)
-super great connection with faculty and students (from what I saw at the interview and what people say)
-solid rotations
-ability to use class recordings (& not attend non-mandatory classes if that works better for me)
-close to family
CONs:
-49k tuition 🙁
-not as high board score averages?

So yes, I put both curriculums as a pro because I like both. PBL I think I would do well in because I can be a very independent learner when given the opportunity. On the other hand, all throughout college I used a similar type of curriculum NOVA has and I did well. Something I'm interested in hearing from people is what school they think will allow me to better specialize in the specialties I listed above. Thanks to everyone.

M3 at NSU here. Gonna try to stay unbiased.

First thing I want to mention is that board scores have a lot to do with individual dedication and work ethic. You could go to the best medical school with the best board prep in the world and it won't mean anything if you don't actually sit down and study.

Another thing is you wanting to do EM. I'm not sure how it is at other schools but your EM rotation at NSU will always be during your M4 year. If you're already 100% set on EM then that's fine, but if it's one of those areas you wanted to check out first before applying for auditions/residency then you might be at a disadvantage, simply because you'll be having it so late.

Also, clinical rotation experience is a massively important portion of the medical school curriculum that I think gets overlooked. Don't forget that you're still supposed to be learning during your M3-4 years and the only way you're going to learn is if you get to see and do a bunch of stuff through rotations. I posted this is an NSU vs KCU thread w/ regards to the different rotation sites you can get at NSU. IMO it also applies when you're deciding between schools with varying clinical experience for M3/M4 year:

There is a difference between rotation sites. You can be a self-directed learner all you want but that won't get you nearly as far as being self-directed and have attendings who are actually willing to teach you. There is absolutely no substitute for having great physicians mentor you through rotations, some of whom have literally decades of clinical and teaching experience.

I'm also going to quote what I posted in the Pros and Cons of Your DO School thread. It goes into a lot of detail about NSU that might be helpful:

Current M3 at NSU-COM writing a more up-to-date review. I agree with most of what mspeedwagon mentioned in his/her post. Take everything I say with a grain of salt. I used the original formatting to keep things organized and tried to stay objective. I hope it helps.

Curriculum: M1 year- multiple classes every semester and there are exams pretty much every week. Once in a while there will be a week without exams and it's the best thing ever. I won't lie- the exam schedule is hell, and I'm sure M1s can attest to that. The combination of the crazy exam schedule plus the sheer amount of material you're exposed to is enough to stress a lot of people out. Over the course of the year though, you'll learn to adapt and figure out how you study best. That's pretty much the point of M1 year anyway- figuring out how you study. Something kind of unusual that happened this year for the M1s was that their anatomy course got moved to spring semester. This was because NSU is re-vamping the anatomy lab after being sited by OSHA (https://www.osha.gov/newsrelease/reg4-20150316.html). The lab couldn't be updated on time for Fall, so the gross anatomy course got moved back. I assume that this won’t be an issue for future entering M1s and that after this year, anatomy will resume being offered in Fall semester.

Before the M1 summer session started, my class got an email saying that attendance for all classes is going to be mandatory. Until that point we probably only had 2 classes that we absolutely had to go to. With the new change in attendance policy, we would now have to swipe our ID cards within the first 10 minutes of every lecture hour for every class. If you missed a certain number of lectures by forgetting to swipe, or by arriving over 10 minutes late, you failed the class. We were pretty upset about it considering it was such short notice and our entire class clamored together to fight it. Administration eventually changed their minds apparently after realizing that our current auditoriums don’t even have enough outlets for students to charge their computers. After a lot of back and forth between administration and us, a compromise was eventually reached where only our OMM and Principles of Clinical Medicine lectures would become mandatory with a minimum of 70% attendance. The OMM and PCM lectures combined only took up 2-3 hours a week, so we were okay with that. They were also on the same day as mandatory labs, so we had to be on campus anyway. Lecture attendance for all the systems courses remained ‘highly encouraged’, but not mandatory.

M2 year is composed of 4 system blocks, each block consisting of 3-4 organ systems. The good thing with M2 year is that you go weeks without an exam. The trade-off is that the exams are high stakes: there's only one midterm and one final per system. Also, when it’s exam week, it’s crazy. All the system exams are lined up with midterms and finals for the other non-system classes so you get hit hard with tests. Over the course of days you could have 3-4 system finals + finals for non-system classes. Personally I thought M2 was worse than M1 year, at least in the beginning just because of the exams.

Something different from M1 year is the M2 Principles of Clinical Medicine 'lab'. You get broken up into small groups, each one lead by an attending. There are SPs that come in and one of the students is supposed to do the interview. Then you all discuss the case together and come up with 3 differentials and a plan for each one. It's kind of like PBL. At the end, everyone writes a SOAP note timed in under 10 minutes and turns it in for grading/critique. I liked PCM but when I compare it to how rotations actually are I think they could do a lot to improve the course. I guess for an M2 though, it's okay.

Class schedules for both M1 and M2 year are basically lecture from 8-3 or 5 on days with no lab. On days with labs, lectures are from 8-12 with labs from 1-5. Attendance is not mandatory for most courses and the ones where attendance is mandatory usually require a minimum 70% attendance rate, meaning you can still miss some lectures. Labs are mandatory with the exception of histo and neuroanatomy. Take all the attendance stuff with a grain of salt since a lot has changed over the past several years.

Location: The main campus is located in Davie. The nice thing is that there are a bunch of shops, grocery stores, banks, etc around the school. There are also some decent places to eat if you explore the surrounding areas. IMO, a car is pretty essential. If you ever need to 'escape' from school, studying, or classmates, the beach and downtown Las Olas are about 15-20 minutes away. And of course if you're willing to drive a little bit more and/or deal with traffic, Miami is about 35-40 minutes away.

Cost: Expensive. I don't have an exact figure on me but NSU is notoriously pricey. There's a survey somewhere out there by US News ranking the top medical schools where graduating students have the most debt. If I remember correctly NSU was in the top 5.

Faculty: M1- faculty is good, most are decent lecturers. The professors for some subjects, like biochem, teach under the College of Medical Sciences instead of the College of Osteopathic Medicine. This makes it hard for the COM to implement changes w/ regards to the course since they can't really do anything about it, at least that’s what we were told my M1 year. It’s not that big of a deal. Only a handful of the professors aren’t good at teaching, but they’re still brilliant. NSU has an open door policy where if you don’t understand a concept, you can always swing by the professor’s office to ask questions and get some clarification. All the professors are also pretty quick with email. I’ve never had a problem getting in touch with a professor or reaching out to them for help. Lots of the faculty members also do research. Most of the people I know that got involved in research projects actually met their PI through one of our M1 classes.

M2- Most, if not all of the professors are physicians so they drop lots of great clinical pearls while lecturing which makes the subject material more interesting and engaging. I believe a lot of them also have privileges at the major hospitals that NSU students rotate at. As such, teaching is a passion of theirs and you can tell when they lecture. A lot of them also emphasize topics on boards and they’ll make it a point to talk about it more in depth. After taking the COMLEX I can tell you that there were a bunch of things that I remembered partially because those professors emphasized it so much during class and on their exams. I thought the professors we had as M2s were all fantastic.

Reputation: NSU is pretty well known with a good reputation. I get good feedback from my patients, residents, and attendings when I tell them I go to NSU. Even lay people know about NSU-COM. Large network of alumni and the program itself has been around for decades.

Clinical Rotations: In my opinion, probably the biggest pro about Nova. We have 14 in-state core sites and many of them are statutory teaching hospitals with a multitude of affiliated residency and fellowship programs. Tons of patient exposure and tons of pathology. If you want the big hospital feel and work alongside residents and attendings on a team, then you will definitely get that here. However, if you’re looking for one-on-one with an attending with no residents or other students, you’ll also get that here if you end up at one of the community hospitals for your core site.

Where you end up for rotations is based on a random lottery system and a rank list that you fill out. A majority of people get one of their top 3 choices. The school also assigns your schedule for you so you don't have to go about setting up third year by yourself.

With all that being said, you actually don’t spend all of M3 year at wherever your core is. You’ll most likely do your main rotations there, like IM or surgery. But other things like peds and EM will be done elsewhere. It’s completely random which rotations are done at your hospital and which aren’t so that part of it is unpredictable. The good thing is that if there’s a rotation you really wanted and one of your classmates has it, the school will let you switch.

Core rotations are as follows: Peds (2 months), FM (2 months), IM (3 months), Ob/Gyn (1 month), Surgery (2 months), Geriatrics (1 month), EM (1 month), Psych (1 month).

The month of July between M3 and M4 year is considered either an independent study month for Level 2/Step 2, or it can also be used as an audition rotation. There are 3 mandatory rural rotations you have to do as part of your M4 year. Two of these months are done at a community health center. Some people get assigned a site in Orlando, some people get a random place in Miami, and others get a place in between. It's really random. If you have to go far away for rurals the school will provide you with housing and a stipend. There's also a chance you'll get assigned your 2 months of community center rural rotations during the so-called "golden months" of M4 year in which case I don't think there's anything you can do except deal with it and try to work around it. One of the three rural rotations is considered a rural selective and can be done somewhere in the US. Some students use it as a type of audition rotation month. Another option is to use the rural selective as an opportunity to go abroad.

Housing: There’s an on-campus dorm called Rolling Hills about 3 blocks or so from the school. It’s only open to professional and graduate students. The units all come furnished and there’s a shuttle that comes by and takes people to and from various locations on both the HPD campus and the undergrad NSU campus.

There are also a bunch of apartments and condos around the school itself. Some students also live by the beach. Rent isn’t super expensive, but it’s not super cheap either. Living with classmates definitely cuts down the costs. My personal advice with apartments down here is to live on any floor except the 1st. Lots of strange bugs and creatures make their way into your place if you live on the ground floor.

Study areas: Most people study at the Health Professions Division Library. We share it with all the other HPD programs though, so it gets crowded during finals when it seems like every single program has an exam that week. I personally have never had a problem finding a cubicle there, even when it was packed. There’s also an adjacent building with 24/7 study rooms and two other large libraries on campus where students go to study. The Alvin Sherman Library is massive. I know some classmates that also choose to study at the University Center, probably because there’s a Starbucks there. If you know where to look, there are a lot of places to study.

Social Scene: I don’t really think I need to say much here. You have the beach and downtown Ft. Lauderdale less than 30 minutes away and Miami to the south. Other than going to bars and clubs, there are a bunch of art events and music festivals/concerts year round as well as some decent food and drink events. My class would usually go to Las Olas after a major exam and go down to Miami for special occasions. It’s a lot of fun, but I think it can be a negative in that some people get distracted and do poorly in classes. If you come to NSU, you need to be able to focus.

Local Hospitals: Big ones in Dade and Broward County are Palmetto General, Mt. Sinai, Broward Health, and Memorial. They’re 4 of 14 in-state rotation sites for students. There's some overlap with the University of Miami and FIU medical students but no issues have come up.

Board Prep: In M1 year, there’s a mandatory 2 hour class every Friday that’s supposed to help students think like a clinician. A professor usually presents a case for the first hour and we participate by asking appropriate questions with regards to the H&P, PMHx, FHx, SHx, etc. At the end of the first hour, they reveal what the diagnosis is. The second hour is then spent going into depth about the pathophys about whatever the patient was diagnosed with. Some people really like the class and other people don’t. I don’t think it’s a horrible thing but we get really antsy and impatient when there’s an exam on the immediate horizon.

M2 year you still have the mandatory 2 hour class on Fridays except now you have an additional 2 hours of board review immediately afterwards. It’s basically 2 hours of one of the professors going through a ton of board questions. I want to point out that most of the questions aren’t really board-quality. They're pretty short and are only really good for drilling some facts and those knee-jerk diagnoses when given a certain set of symptoms. Again, some people really like it, and others don’t.

At the end of 1st semester, the school distributes First Aid for the USMLE books to the M2s M1s. Everyone also gets access to the Doctors in Training (DIT) USMLE videos and their massive workbook. It’s a relatively new (and expensive) prep program. Most of my class liked it a lot so we were happy with it. We also get DIT for Level 2/Step 2.

The OMM department at NSU starts prepping you for the OMM portion of boards starting Day 1. As an M2, you’ll still be tested on M1 OMM material. It helps to keep everything fresh.

Specialty: We usually do pretty good with the match list. Below are the # of matches for some random specialties I picked for the class of 2015. More info on http://osteopathic.nova.edu/do/residency-board-scores.html.

Anesthesiology- 3
EM- 18
Rads- 8
Surgery and surgical subspecialties (general, neuro, ortho, ophtho, ENT & plastics) - 18

Grades: Grades are percentage for M1/M2 years and your numerical class rank is emailed out at the beginning of M2 year. Some classes are pass/fail. Grades for M3/M4 years are Fail/Pass/Honors.


Curriculum: B-. Needs some tweaking. Exams could be better written and be more board-like/actual board questions. Lecture content could be more streamlined especially during M1 year.
Location: A
Cost: C-
Faculty: A
Reputation: A+
Technology: B, only because sometimes there are recording issues. Something to mention is that how quickly the recordings are uploaded or fixed has to do with how good the AV captains for the class are. The ones for my class were awesome so even when something didn’t work, they were able to find the recording and have it online by the end of the day.
Study Space/Library: B+. Gets kind of crowded. Study rooms can only be checked out for 3 hours at a time. If someone is waiting you have to give up your room at the end of the 3 hours.
Library technology/Resources: B+. Sometimes the printers are down. Not a super huge deal though since there are a ton of printers on campus. We got about $60 worth of printer money for the year during M1 and slightly more for M2 year. Lots of people ran out of printer money and had to use their own funds. We get access to a lot of major medical journals and online medical resources through the library, so that's nice.
Rotations: A+
Social: A+
Hospitals: A+
Post Grad: A+

Overall Grade: A-

I’m happy with my education so far. I’ve met a lot of Nova grads on rotations and they know their stuff. I'm glad I decided to go here. I'm learning a lot and I've met a lot of cool people along the way. PM me with questions.

Lastly I also have a medical school blog that I started as an M1. It's not exactly unbiased, but it records my experience at NSUCOM and how I felt as I went through it: https://howaboutasecondopinion.wordpress.com

Good luck, I hope you get in. Lmk if you have questions.

 

[AvrgPreMedKid]

I was also accepted to both. Chose LECOM-B. MUCH cheaper tuition, cheaper area to live in, excellent board scores, and I have friends in the area (dental students).

 

[Rekt]

Hey everyone. So I thought I was done with my application process but have yet again had another change in the process. I have recently put down a deposit to LECOM Bradenton but I also recently received a last minute II to NOVA and attended the interview 2 days ago. I was very impressed after the interview - extremely impressed. Although I am not accepted to NOVA, if I am, I will only have 2 weeks to decide and put down a deposit so I would like to contemplate my decision before then. If I'm not accepted, well then this post won't matter haha. Any advice from fellow SDNers is appreciated, maybe even those who have attended/graduated the institution. Anywho, a little about me is that I would like to specialize in EM or Anesthesiology; also maybe looking into some sort of Peds specialty. Although I know EM and Anesthesiology are harder for DOs to get into, I am dedicated to getting where I want to be. Below is how I have classified the 2 schools with pros and cons.

LECOM-B
PROs:
- high board score averages
-PBL curriculum
-close to family
-30k tuition
CONs:
-very little to no research opportunities
-prosected cadavers/ no SIM lab
-history of problems with rotations
-didn't feel a sense of "connectedness" between faculty and students at interview

NOVA
PROs:
-rural rotation that could be in a different country/ mission trips
-integrated curriculum
-cadavers/ SIM lab
-decent amount of research opportunities (even almost done building new research building on campus)
-super great connection with faculty and students (from what I saw at the interview and what people say)
-solid rotations
-ability to use class recordings (& not attend non-mandatory classes if that works better for me)
-close to family
CONs:
-49k tuition 🙁
-not as high board score averages?

So yes, I put both curriculums as a pro because I like both. PBL I think I would do well in because I can be a very independent learner when given the opportunity. On the other hand, all throughout college I used a similar type of curriculum NOVA has and I did well. Something I'm interested in hearing from people is what school they think will allow me to better specialize in the specialties I listed above. Thanks to everyone.

Those are giant Pros, you just don't know it yet.
But, I'd pick Nova anyway.

 

[AvrgPreMedKid]

From one of my previous posts on this subject, regarding recent match list comparisons:

LECOM-B (Class size of 180) - 5 Anesthesiology, 66 Internal/Family Med, 15 General/Ortho Surg, 19 Emergency Med, 7 Radiology, 3 Ophthalmology

Nova (Class size of 236) - 3 Anesthesiology, 109 Internal/Family Med, 14 General/Ortho Surg, 18 Emergency Med, 8 Radiology, 1 Ophthalmology

A little more than a third (66/180, 33%) of LECOM-B grads went into IM/FM while nearly half (109/236, 46%) did from Nova.

 

[AlteredScale]

From one of my previous posts on this subject, regarding recent match list comparisons:

LECOM-B (Class size of 180) - 5 Anesthesiology, 66 Internal/Family Med, 15 General/Ortho Surg, 19 Emergency Med, 7 Radiology, 3 Ophthalmology

Nova (Class size of 236) - 3 Anesthesiology, 109 Internal/Family Med, 14 General/Ortho Surg, 18 Emergency Med, 8 Radiology, 1 Ophthalmology

A little more than a third (66/180, 33%) of LECOM-B grads went into IM/FM while nearly half (109/236, 46%) did from Nova.

idk if that speaks for anything. IM matches cant and shouldnt be added to the notion that nova students are selecting more for primary care. Nova had way more academic matches in IM (suny, umass, u conntecticut, penn state, UF, USF, MCG, Loyola, Yale-New Haven, UT-Houston, Oregon Health Sciences). And they are the DO school to rightly claim to have the first DO to enter academic gastroenterology at George Washington University coming from the same residency program (academic, and categorical). Additionally quantity isnt much especially when looking at DO matches, you need to loom at the quality of the matches and placements Nova is one of the few to get their grads into acgme specialties that are quite competitive (for DO schools, obv amongst MD schools matching these places isnt that hard) and academic (opthalmology- Howard, neurosurgery-VTC, gen surg-UT memphis)

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

idk if that speaks for anything. IM matches cant and shouldnt be added to the notion that nova students are selecting more for primary care. Nova had way more academic matches in IM (suny, umass, u conntecticut, penn state, UF, USF, MCG, Loyola, Yale-New Haven, UT-Houston, Oregon Health Sciences). And they are the DO school to rightly claim to have the first DO to enter academic gastroenterology at George Washington University coming from the same residency program (academic, and categorical). Additionally quantity isnt much especially when looking at DO matches, you need to loom at the quality of the matches and placements Nova is one of the few to get their grads into acgme specialties that are quite competitive (for DO schools, obv amongst MD schools matching these places isnt that hard) and academic (opthalmology- Howard, neurosurgery-VTC, gen surg-UT memphis)

Agree with all of this but would just like to point out that the VTC neurosurgery match is an AOA match. Still impressive though as they only take 1 grad per year and are one of the true academic AOA NS programs

 

[AlteredScale]

Agree with all of this but would just like to point out that the VTC neurosurgery match is an AOA match. Still impressive though as they only take 1 grad per year and are one of the true academic AOA NS programs

Ah didnt catch that! thanks. Wonder if itll get through the merge.

 

[docisthegoal]

Those are giant Pros, you just don't know it yet.
But, I'd pick Nova anyway.

Are the pros you are referring to the anatomy lab and SIM lab?

 

[Rekt]

Are the pros you are referring to the anatomy lab and SIM lab?

Yeah. Fancy anatomy labs and sim labs are there to wow pre-meds, but get in the way of studying later on. You'll be spending multiple hours "cleaning" the cadavers instead of learning anything.

 

[docisthegoal]

idk if that speaks for anything. IM matches cant and shouldnt be added to the notion that nova students are selecting more for primary care. Nova had way more academic matches in IM (suny, umass, u conntecticut, penn state, UF, USF, MCG, Loyola, Yale-New Haven, UT-Houston, Oregon Health Sciences). And they are the DO school to rightly claim to have the first DO to enter academic gastroenterology at George Washington University coming from the same residency program (academic, and categorical). Additionally quantity isnt much especially when looking at DO matches, you need to loom at the quality of the matches and placements Nova is one of the few to get their grads into acgme specialties that are quite competitive (for DO schools, obv amongst MD schools matching these places isnt that hard) and academic (opthalmology- Howard, neurosurgery-VTC, gen surg-UT memphis)

And those good IM residencies can lead toward some awesome gastro/cardiology/pulmonology fellowships if the student is interested and competitive enough🙄

 

[docisthegoal]

Yeah. Fancy anatomy labs and sim labs are there to wow pre-meds, but get in the way of studying later on. You'll be spending multiple hours "cleaning" the cadavers instead of learning anything.

Ah I see what you mean. I have actually thought about that but wasn't sure if it was sound thinking lol.

 

[deleted719840]

idk if that speaks for anything. IM matches cant and shouldnt be added to the notion that nova students are selecting more for primary care. Nova had way more academic matches in IM (suny, umass, u conntecticut, penn state, UF, USF, MCG, Loyola, Yale-New Haven, UT-Houston, Oregon Health Sciences). And they are the DO school to rightly claim to have the first DO to enter academic gastroenterology at George Washington University coming from the same residency program (academic, and categorical). Additionally quantity isnt much especially when looking at DO matches, you need to loom at the quality of the matches and placements Nova is one of the few to get their grads into acgme specialties that are quite competitive (for DO schools, obv amongst MD schools matching these places isnt that hard) and academic (opthalmology- Howard, neurosurgery-VTC, gen surg-UT memphis)

This. Quality > Quantity. If a whole class of Harvard medical students decides to go into primary care and match at places like Mayo Clinic, Mass Gen..etc, it is still a very good and respectful program nevertheless.

When I interviewed at NSU, I had a sense that the school envisions more than just providing a simple medical education, not to mention it's already pretty good. NSU gives a flexible curriculum, bountiful research opportunities, many outreach programs and mission trips, strong clinical curriculum, solid rotation sites, and mandatory rural rotation(timing is pretty bad though). The goal is not for their students to go through 4 years to pass the boards with flying colors so they can all match surgery/derm/all the gunner residency. The goal is really to provide proper education, training, resources, and most importantly, room and flexibility for students to really discover who they are. After all 4 years, you might become a true and passionate underserved/rural primary care physician, or a surgery junkie who loves cutting, or dermatologist in Hollywood who just wants to make $$.

I withdrew my LECOM-B II so I cannot speak for it. But my 1 vote goes to NSU. 50k > a life-long experience.

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

Ah didnt catch that! thanks. Wonder if itll get through the merge.

I think I saw on their website that they are preparing for ACGME accreditation. I also just assume that it won't have any issues because it is associated with VT academically. They already say on their website as well that they consider themselves a top academic NS program, and almost all faculty are MDs with one DO. I am more worried about smaller programs like at Doctors that aren't really associated with academic centers.

Disclaimer: this is all just stuff I've seen on their website and some of my own opinions. I may very well be wrong.

 

[AvrgPreMedKid]

idk if that speaks for anything. IM matches cant and shouldnt be added to the notion that nova students are selecting more for primary care. Nova had way more academic matches in IM (suny, umass, u conntecticut, penn state, UF, USF, MCG, Loyola, Yale-New Haven, UT-Houston, Oregon Health Sciences). And they are the DO school to rightly claim to have the first DO to enter academic gastroenterology at George Washington University coming from the same residency program (academic, and categorical). Additionally quantity isnt much especially when looking at DO matches, you need to loom at the quality of the matches and placements Nova is one of the few to get their grads into acgme specialties that are quite competitive (for DO schools, obv amongst MD schools matching these places isnt that hard) and academic (opthalmology- Howard, neurosurgery-VTC, gen surg-UT memphis)

It definitely speaks to something, especially when one has debt going into medical school. What it says to me is that LECOM-B offers comparable opportunities to those of Nova for 60% of the price. Nova is at least 100k more expensive than LECOM-B over 4 years, which will probably be 150k by the time you pay the loans off. I've never been huge on name brands (duh, I'm most likely going to a DO school), and I'm not interested in academic medicine. So, for others like me, who simply want to be physicians, LECOM-B seems like a better deal. There is no doubt that Nova has better rotations, and I was very impressed when I interviewed. I just wasn't sold enough to take on that much more debt.

 

[DanielSea]

Lastly I also have a medical school blog that I started as an M1. It's not exactly unbiased, but it records my experience at NSUCOM and how I felt as I went through it: https://howaboutasecondopinion.wordpress.com

Dude your pen post had me in tears, and now I'm spending my night stalking your memories of this school.

Crossing my fingers for an interview 🙂

 

[docisthegoal]

Lastly I also have a medical school blog that I started as an M1. It's not exactly unbiased, but it records my experience at NSUCOM and how I felt as I went through it: https://howaboutasecondopinion.wordpress.com

Good luck, I hope you get in. Lmk if you have questions.

Wow. Your blog is so great! Thanks for the good wishes and I'll definitely dm you a few questions!