Touro NY - current students?

[ejay1518]

The attendance policy is not even enforced, just like the 'dress code'.

The pop quizzes on the other hand do make life a bit harder.

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[Bones DO]

Any other Touro NY c/o 2013's want to weigh in? I interviewed there very late (end of April) last cycle and was wait listed... I was hoping to be accepted this cycle, as the facilities seemed nice and modern and the dean left me with a good impression. How about those who had good impressions a couple months in, are you still happy with the school so far? Please do keep us posted it's very helpful for those of us considering the school.

Thanks!

 

[ejay1518]

Our first year teachers are great; much better than the ones the class of 2012 had. I don't regret my decision of coming to TouroCOM. You can check the 2009-2010 discussion thread as well for feedback for other interviewees and current students.

 

[tuffguy13]

AZCOM is an established school and has produced nice graduates. However, its students will tell you that those who made it,did so on their own.

Could you explain this more specifically based on what you heard?

 

[Doc2BNYC]

The attendance policy is foggy. I'm not sure what's being told to you first years, but we are being told that we will receive a letter of unprofessional conduct in our permanent file which will be seen by residency directors. I'm not sure that residency directors will actually care about such a silly letter but it will be there none the less.

I would not tell students that the policy is not enforced. Administration has said that they plan to continue the policy and enforce it much more strictly for entering classes. The only reason why they have somewhat given up for 2012 and 2013 is because none of us were notified of the policy before hand and none of us agreed to it.

I would expect that the policy will be enforced for 2014.

 

[Doc2BNYC]

I'm a first year at Tourocom, and the general consensus is that Second years hate the school and First years like it just fine. So far my experience here is that the admin is putting in 150% effort into making the school excellent. I guess some people see that as overbearing. I guarantee next year's class will have it better than we do now.

I've spoken with many first years who do not agree with you. I would hardly call it a consensus that the first year "likes it just fine." I also wouldn't call it a consensus that the second years unanimously hate our school either. There are good things, and there are people who are okay with how it is going.

I think you will recognize many, many more problems as you spend more time at Touro.

Rotations are a major problem that and hiring a Clinical Dean who is traipsing off to Asia for a month or two isn't going to help us get the spots we need and have PAID FOR IN OUR TUITION.

That being said, the academic faculty has seen great improvement but don't let Admin fool you, we only got a significant portion of new hires by accident. Touro NJ was shut down and we got two professors from there, another professor happened to come to an open house and was offered a job, another professor just submitted a resume and was hired without even an interview...

Touro does not carry any weight yet or have a reputation that's going to attract stellar teachers. I think a lot of what we have right now is luck/accidental. I'm thankful, regardless because I have nothing but good things to say about the 2nd year basic sciences.

 

[snurpy]

I've spoken with many first years who do not agree with you. I would hardly call it a consensus that the first year "likes it just fine." I also wouldn't call it a consensus that the second years unanimously hate our school either. There are good things, and there are people who are okay with how it is going.

I think you will recognize many, many more problems as you spend more time at Touro.

Rotations are a major problem that and hiring a Clinical Dean who is traipsing off to Asia for a month or two isn't going to help us get the spots we need and have PAID FOR IN OUR TUITION.

That being said, the academic faculty has seen great improvement but don't let Admin fool you, we only got a significant portion of new hires by accident. Touro NJ was shut down and we got two professors from there, another professor happened to come to an open house and was offered a job, another professor just submitted a resume and was hired without even an interview...

Touro does not carry any weight yet or have a reputation that's going to attract stellar teachers. I think a lot of what we have right now is luck/accidental. I'm thankful, regardless because I have nothing but good things to say about the 2nd year basic sciences.

I'm a first year. I think our biggest problem is with the physio professor. She doesn't teach well period, but if you read Costanzo, you'll generally be fine. I also find Embryo really boring, but similarly, if you read the book, you'll be fine. I have no complaints otherwise. I thought 2nd years were unhappy b/c Clinical Systems takes too much time away from basic sciences and the attendance policy.

I don't think I can refute anything about great teachers coming to Touro by happenstance. But hopefully they'll stay for a good number of years, and continue to foster great future doctors.

 

[nyc4me]

This post has become a little outdated and there have been a lot of changes at TouroCOM in Harlem since the last post. I thought I'd offer some fresh info about the school.

I am in my 2nd year (c/o 2013) at Touro and have to say that overall I am happy with the school. Yes, its fairly new and with that there are issues (I'm sure there are issues at any school)...I'll bullet point some pros and cons:

PROS:
- Fantastic anatomy, pharmacology, pathology, microbiology, and immunology professors. Really, I am incredibly impressed with the quality of these professors. I doubt that there is a student who doesn't love the anatomy prof.

- While 1st year is not "systems based", 2nd year most definitely is. We have different blocks which focus on different body systems called "modules". Each class (micro, immuno, path, etc) will focus on that body system (cardiology, ie) and then will take a comprehensive 4 hour exam with questions from all subjects combined. The idea is that this method will build up our testing stamina for the boards. I really like it and find it very beneficial to have the curriculum set up this way...the professors really work together to try to present material in a logical way for us.

- Its awesome going to med school in NYC...for many reasons. For me, just having the fast paced energy of the city keeps me going at a fast pace...with studying etc. Also, after exams there is no end of great places (bars, etc) to go out to with classmates etc.

CONS:
- Mediocre histology, physiology, and public health professors.

- Rotations, 3rd/4th yrs are pretty much a mystery right up until the last moment before rotations start in July. I suppose its due to still being new and thus still acquiring rotation sites etc. Also, our clinical deans are not the most organized and helpful people on earth, which is frustrating. Basically, you have to sort of accept that there are a LOT of unknowns in regards to your 3rd and 4th year...though most 3rd and 4th years who I have spoken with are happy with rotations.

- The attendance policy is annoying. You have to scan your fingerprint twice a day. It's rumored that if you dont meet the school's attendance requirement that some sort of "letter" will go in your file. I dont know what really happens, but the general feeling is that if you pass all your classes its fine...I can't really say what the consequences would actually be.

- There is virtually NO clinical exposure in years 1 and 2.


I guess those are the main things that stand out to me as pros/cons with touro. Feel free to ask any specific questions and I'll try to answer them.

Good luck to all.

 

[Postal]

This post has become a little outdated and there have been a lot of changes at TouroCOM in Harlem since the last post. I thought I'd offer some fresh info about the school.

I am in my 2nd year (c/o 2013) at Touro and have to say that overall I am happy with the school. Yes, its fairly new and with that there are issues (I'm sure there are issues at any school)...I'll bullet point some pros and cons:

PROS:
- Fantastic anatomy, pharmacology, pathology, microbiology, and immunology professors. Really, I am incredibly impressed with the quality of these professors. I doubt that there is a student who doesn't love the anatomy prof.

- While 1st year is not "systems based", 2nd year most definitely is. We have different blocks which focus on different body systems called "modules". Each class (micro, immuno, path, etc) will focus on that body system (cardiology, ie) and then will take a comprehensive 4 hour exam with questions from all subjects combined. The idea is that this method will build up our testing stamina for the boards. I really like it and find it very beneficial to have the curriculum set up this way...the professors really work together to try to present material in a logical way for us.

- Its awesome going to med school in NYC...for many reasons. For me, just having the fast paced energy of the city keeps me going at a fast pace...with studying etc. Also, after exams there is no end of great places (bars, etc) to go out to with classmates etc.

CONS:
- Mediocre histology, physiology, and public health professors.

- Rotations, 3rd/4th yrs are pretty much a mystery right up until the last moment before rotations start in July. I suppose its due to still being new and thus still acquiring rotation sites etc. Also, our clinical deans are not the most organized and helpful people on earth, which is frustrating. Basically, you have to sort of accept that there are a LOT of unknowns in regards to your 3rd and 4th year...though most 3rd and 4th years who I have spoken with are happy with rotations.

- The attendance policy is annoying. You have to scan your fingerprint twice a day. It's rumored that if you dont meet the school's attendance requirement that some sort of "letter" will go in your file. I dont know what really happens, but the general feeling is that if you pass all your classes its fine...I can't really say what the consequences would actually be.

- There is virtually NO clinical exposure in years 1 and 2.


I guess those are the main things that stand out to me as pros/cons with touro. Feel free to ask any specific questions and I'll try to answer them.

Good luck to all.

Much Appreciated Any other Touro students like to chime in?

 

[dragonj]

I am a 2nd year (class 2013) and I agree with nyc4me. Sure there are things here and there I get annoyed with like the fact that I have to wait an entire week before they post grades for exams or the fact that I have to "scan my finger" into a machine that doesn't always work. But these are things you get used to and they are minor.
I loved anatomy last year. I think Dr. Rich did an excellent job and if you don't do well you can always find a 2nd year to tutor you. We as a class are NOT negatively competitive.
As for rotation sites.....I'm not worried. Some sites might be a little bit annoying to travel to but it's NYC so public transportation is abundant.
What's really priceless? Being on the top of your game in the city full of people trying to be on the top of their game. It will make you a better person and a better doctor.

 

[fletchffletch]

bumping, curious to hear how the 3rd and 4th year rotations have been as of late

 

[DocEspana]

bumping, curious to hear how the 3rd and 4th year rotations have been as of late

awesome.

Now stop necro bumping.

 

[same21]

haha, Im curious about this as well. So they have improved this year?

 

[WonderBoy]

Anatomy as a whole, there are about 8-10 failures per semester, which is normal for a class of 125+. The anatomy class is tough because Dr. Rich uses USMLE world type questions, so you have to bust your butt to do well, no gimmes. The most disorganized class is OMM.

Med school is a lot of self study, you won't learn everything on class and you should expect to. You have to be proactive because at the end of the day its your career, don't expect to be spoon fed.

Other classes from path, pharm, physiology (taught by Dr. Conrad Fisher) are top notch.

 

[fletchffletch]

awesome.

Now stop necro bumping.

Appreciate the enthusiasm

 

[DocEspana]

Appreciate the enthusiasm

sorry. The new icon lets me feel like I am glaring at everyone. Its allowed my inner asshat to come out.

In all honesty, I don't have the time right this second to fully expand on the clinical rotations, but I will say that they have some really outstanding ones and some middling ones. None are bad and they are constantly trying to tighten up the middling ones.

For example some of the middling ones are in that category because big hospitals have great services in certain fields (IM or Psych) but really weak services in other fields (EM or surgery). Because they are a new hospital for us we sent students there carte blanche under the assumption they could do everything there. When we realized some of the areas were lacking, we contacted the DME and (as I understand it) future classes will go to that hospital for only the strong programs and swap to a nearby hospital that is stronger in the remaining fields. We have no "bad" hospitals. We just have a few that need to be grouped together properly to take advantage of strengths (Summit, Bergen, Meadowlands) and a few that are stand-alone great places to rotate (Staten Island, St. John's, Trinitas).

Plus we're supposedly getting a bunch of residencies opening up in north jersey under us. so thats a good thing. For specifics on the hospitals you're gonna have to go dig through the touro threads for the various times someone listed out the schools and their pros/cons.

 

[hopeful12345]

Hey everyone, I wasnt sure where to post this, but I have an interview at Touro Harlem on February 15, 2012 and wanted to possibly meet up with any current students before my interview to talk about the school. I fly in on February 14 and wanted to either grab lunch, dinner, or a drink. Anybody want a free meal? Message me and we can make it happen.

 

[poopyhead]

For example some of the middling ones are in that category because big hospitals have great services in certain fields (IM or Psych) but really weak services in other fields (EM or surgery).

Is it rare for a hospital to be great in all (or most fields)?

 

[Tacozhu]

I am a 2nd year (class 2013) and I agree with nyc4me. Sure there are things here and there I get annoyed with like the fact that I have to wait an entire week before they post grades for exams or the fact that I have to "scan my finger" into a machine that doesn't always work. But these are things you get used to and they are minor.

Why would it take a week? That's kinda disturbing. I would like to know if I pass or not right away.

 

[SML67]

Why would it take a week? That's kinda disturbing. I would like to know if I pass or not right away.

unfortunately i don't think that's going to change- it takes them time to grade the exam and do a statistical analysis. thus, you usually receive your grade 1 week after taking the exam.

 

[WonderBoy]

unfortunately i don't think that's going to change- it takes them time to grade the exam and do a statistical analysis. thus, you usually receive your grade 1 week after taking the exam.

Yea it's not going to change and that's fine b/c they need that week to throw out questions that most people got wrong or were just poorly written.

If you studied you know you passed when you are taking the test.

 

[msleia]

I know this was posted a few years ago but I just got accepted to the Masters program. I was wondering if you had study tips and suggestions for Anat? Thanks

 

[The kitchen sink]

Malignant administration is not unique to Touro-NY alone. NYCOM has/had similar problems. In fact, several of its students have posted on SDN highlighting some of things Jess posted.

During my interview at Touro, I was impressed with how the deans took time to speak to us and answer some of the questions we had. They sounded like they deeply cared about the students. Deans at NYCOM were no show.

At the end of the day both schools will produce fine graduates.Its kinda a New York thing......

Agreed, it sometimes feels like a 'free for all' mentality at NYCOM when it comes to students vs faculty but they do produce good graduates

 

[GTP]

I know this was posted a few years ago but I just got accepted to the Masters program. I was wondering if you had study tips and suggestions for Anat? Thanks

Hey. Congrats on ur acceptance. I am oms1 at touro and did very well in anatomy. I took the summer anatomy course and started studying during the course. What works really well for me is repetition. *Netters flashcards was my foundation. I did his an hour a day on the train. *In this time, I memorized about 5-10 muscle origins and insertions with actions, nerve and blood supply. The next day, i would review the previous days material. I didnt move on until i knew the old stuff cold. At home, i did 3 hours studying daily minimum. An hour is spent reviewing material from previous days. Even during school, i studied anatomy everyday. The only time I didn't study anatomy was the day before another exam. This is probably overkill, but this was how i crushed the first and second anatomy exams. I always started off with the flashcards and then used class notes and brs to build around it. However, this was only for the first test. Muscle origins and insertions become useless for the second and third tests. In my opinion, the first test is the easiest, if you can crush that one, then you get a good head start. I also did online practice questions every week or so.*