PCOM-Philly vs. Rowan-Virtua SOM

[FutureDoc1014]

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PCOM-Philly vs. Rowan-Virtua SOM

Hey guys! Still on an MD WL and waiting on a post-II decision from another MD school, but for now these are my two choices so I'd like some help narrowing it down.

PCOM Pros:

- well established/strong reputation

- in a city

- strong match list (extra plus for more surgical matches)

- has home residency programs in competitive specialties (ortho, ophtho, derm)

- cheaper (\~66k tuition)

PCOM Cons

- letter grades and GPA

- no home hospital system

Rowan Pros:

- strong research culture

- public school funding

- P/F grading

- home hospital system

- has home residency in ortho (but not really other competitive specialties)

Rowan Cons:

- also well established, but not as strong of a reputation as PCOM (i think)

- more expensive (74k OOS tuition)

- suburban location

Both are about equally far from home, both are pretty well respected programs, and have strong match lists. My current areas of interest are orthopedic surgery or IM -> cardiology though I know this can change. I don't have any interest in primary care at all. Important factors for me are COMLEX/USMLE rates, research availability, and surgical and academic IM matches.

 

[chilly_md]

Rowan has a strong name since it is state-supported.

PCOM is good too. People usually know if they like the idea of derm and ophtho. Ortho at either program is fine.

 

[FutureDoc1014]

Rowan has a strong name since it is state-supported.

PCOM is good too. People usually know if they like the idea of derm and ophtho. Ortho at either program is fine.

So far I’m leaning towards PCOM partly because it’s cheaper. Do you have one you’d recommend based on my post or are they pretty much similar?

 

[chilly_md]

So far I’m leaning towards PCOM partly because it’s cheaper. Do you have one you’d recommend based on my post or are they pretty much similar?

Similar enough.