Transferring DO schools to TouroCOM

[babymunailmcat]

I am waiting to hear back from 2 schools but only got into ICOM. I have severe anxiety & depression & I am from New Jersey very close to New York City. I was hoping to get into a New York or New Jersey school, but I didn’t get an interview. What are the odds I can transfer to touro COM or PCOM? I saw touro allows transfers after 1 year and I also noticed you need more than a 2.5 GPA. When I called them they said they don’t get many transfer applicants and it all depends on whether they have someone drop or get kicked out for grades. I think it seems pretty likely that at least 1-2 people would leave the class, leaving room for me. How hard is the transfer process and do you think I should bank on it? I really want to be close to home.

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[KirksvilleKrunk]

Why apply to ICOM if you're already making calls about transferring. The transfer process is extremely hard and usually reserved for students with sick parents/immediate family that they must be near to. I would learn to love Idaho. it's a good school.

 

[Sidus1011]

Transferring should not be on the table here. I would never tell someone to drop a medical school acceptance, but I would consider that over trying to attend a program and transfer out after a year. Keep in mind that these worries of moving you face are applicable not only to this stage in your career, you may have to attend a residency program away from home as well. At one point or another, this career will force your hand, better to understand that and try your hardest to match back home.

 

[TUWEST_509]

I am waiting to hear back from 2 schools but only got into ICOM. I have severe anxiety & depression & I am from New Jersey very close to New York City. I was hoping to get into a New York or New Jersey school, but I didn’t get an interview. What are the odds I can transfer to touro COM or PCOM? I saw touro allows transfers after 1 year and I also noticed you need more than a 2.5 GPA. When I called them they said they don’t get many transfer applicants and it all depends on whether they have someone drop or get kicked out for grades. I think it seems pretty likely that at least 1-2 people would leave the class, leaving room for me. How hard is the transfer process and do you think I should bank on it? I really want to be close to home.

Hey, I'm a first year ICOM student from the east coast as well. I was definitely hoping to stay close to family. Didn't work out unfortunately and ICOM was my only acceptance. Was obviously grateful to be offered a seat, but honestly was not thrilled about the idea of moving to a state most people couldn't point out on a map.

I would also say that I'm a very family oriented person. I start feeling really homesick when I'm away for an extended period of time. The first few weeks in Idaho were rough. But after a while you get used to being away from home. Idaho is a beautiful state. People here are extremely friendly ( saying this as a visible minority) and there are tons of things to do around Boise.

I know moving to an entirely different environment over a thousand miles away from home is anxiety inducing. Trust me I know. But you will get through this I promise you. If you have any specific questions about the school or the moving process please feel free to message me. Looking forward to welcoming a fellow east coaster to ICOM. There are dozens of us! Dozens!!

 

[DO2015CA]

Almost zero

 

[OtoBro]

I recently met a med student who told me they transferred schools. They said they didn’t have a specific reason for transferring other than they didn’t enjoy their previous school / inadequate clinical rotations. Apparently it was fairly simple as long as you fulfill the requirements of the school you intend to transfer to. I believe this one was a GPA requirement + passing scores on licensing exam.

Edit: definitely don’t expect it to be easy everywhere and this is anecdotal so I wouldn’t go into it with just the sole intent of transferring

 

[Goro]

I am waiting to hear back from 2 schools but only got into ICOM. I have severe anxiety & depression & I am from New Jersey very close to New York City. I was hoping to get into a New York or New Jersey school, but I didn’t get an interview. What are the odds I can transfer to touro COM or PCOM? I saw touro allows transfers after 1 year and I also noticed you need more than a 2.5 GPA. When I called them they said they don’t get many transfer applicants and it all depends on whether they have someone drop or get kicked out for grades. I think it seems pretty likely that at least 1-2 people would leave the class, leaving room for me. How hard is the transfer process and do you think I should bank on it? I really want to be close to home.

If your mental health issues aren't under control, I can't recommend med school. It's a furnace.

What are the odds that you can transfer?

All I can say is that transfers are RARE.

I suggest that you dump the accept, take some time off to improve your app so that it is competitive for the NY and PA COMs.

 

[Ho0v-man]

Chances are low. Your school will want your tuition money. They likely won’t part with it because you just don’t want to be there. Even if you did magically get to do this, you could likely experience this again when you match for residency.

People from all over the world would do anything to get the chance to practice medicine anywhere in this country. You just have to move to Idaho. Seriously, grow up. We don’t always get exactly what we want.

This is your chance to be a doctor. Take it or leave it. Someone else would love to have your acceptance.

 

[Surgeon D.O.]

Being a doctor is filled with sacrifices.

This is one of them.

 

[ortnakas]

Transferring is so incredibly rare. Even if an OMS2 spot magically becomes available, there’s zero guarantee they’ll give it to you. To be blunt, they didn’t want to take a chance on you OMS1, why would they want you as an OMS2? especially since you’d be switching curriculums, a challenge for anyone, and very well may struggle as an OMS1 given how hard you anticipate this will be for you?

I feel for you for the mental health challenges, I really do. But you need to think hard about if you can make it through school in Idaho, and if not, while dropping an acceptance is rarely advised, in this case, dropping and reapplying east coast only seems the wisest plan.

 

[DrFutureDO]

Transferring is so incredibly rare. Even if an OMS2 spot magically becomes available, there’s zero guarantee they’ll give it to you. To be blunt, they didn’t want to take a chance on you OMS1, why would they want you as an OMS2? especially since you’d be switching curriculums, a challenge for anyone, and very well may struggle as an OMS1 given how hard you anticipate this will be for you?

I feel for you for the mental health challenges, I really do. But you need to think hard about if you can make it through school in Idaho, and if not, while dropping an acceptance is rarely advised, in this case, dropping and reapplying east coast only seems the wisest plan.

It won’t happen; your two deans would need to agree, it’s very rare.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

I am glad we got @TUWEST_509 for a view from the school as a student.

I also agree that thinking about transferring before school starts is a sign that you aren't really ready to start at the school.

Can you defer your start? Depends on ICOM, but since it is a newer school, I don't know how flexible they would be.

 

[kelminak]

I am waiting to hear back from 2 schools but only got into ICOM. I have severe anxiety & depression & I am from New Jersey very close to New York City. I was hoping to get into a New York or New Jersey school, but I didn’t get an interview. What are the odds I can transfer to touro COM or PCOM? I saw touro allows transfers after 1 year and I also noticed you need more than a 2.5 GPA. When I called them they said they don’t get many transfer applicants and it all depends on whether they have someone drop or get kicked out for grades. I think it seems pretty likely that at least 1-2 people would leave the class, leaving room for me. How hard is the transfer process and do you think I should bank on it? I really want to be close to home.

Thousands of students have to leave home to go to med school. Why are you special in this? I am one of those people that traveled 36 hours of driving to get to my new home. I've grown more as an adult in these last years than I thought was possible and I'm grateful for it.

By the way I'm from Idaho, and the Boise/Meridian area used to be extremely underrated. The secret is out and it is now ranked #1 in fastest climbing prices in real estate. It's not a "small town" vibe, but it won't be NY/NJ big.

 

[h23]

Honestly, I would just take the acceptance and go with ICOM and try to spend the time you have right now to find whatever resources you can find to help you manage being away from home. While you do have valid reasons for being afraid, I still feel that if you didn't want to go to ICOM in the first place, then you shouldn't have applied. The first thing one should know about a medical school is its location. If you couldn't handle being so far away from home, then don't apply there. I don't know how medical schools would look at you applying once more either, if you decide to forgo this acceptance and transferring doesn't look promising at all either. Its your call entirely though. You can roll the dice and try to apply again and hope that medical schools will like you, even though that has statistically not looked good for people, but who knows, you might have better luck. You could try the transfer thing and hope that works out, despite the odds again. Or you could try to tackle this challenge head on and grow better as a person. This option will be difficult, but in my eyes, I feel it'll lead to more reward later on. There are ways that you can prepare yourself for this as you head to med school. Despite being far from home, you won't be alone and you'll have plenty of support from both classmates and staff. And with the benefit of zoom and FaceTime, family are only a phone call away.

 

[doc111111]

take this chance if you are serious because another one may not come along.

 

[PhD_to_DO]

I am waiting to hear back from 2 schools but only got into ICOM. I have severe anxiety & depression & I am from New Jersey very close to New York City. I was hoping to get into a New York or New Jersey school, but I didn’t get an interview. What are the odds I can transfer to touro COM or PCOM? I saw touro allows transfers after 1 year and I also noticed you need more than a 2.5 GPA. When I called them they said they don’t get many transfer applicants and it all depends on whether they have someone drop or get kicked out for grades. I think it seems pretty likely that at least 1-2 people would leave the class, leaving room for me. How hard is the transfer process and do you think I should bank on it? I really want to be close to home.

Transferring into a medical school is quite rare and usually reserved for those who have a very strong reason to transfer. That said, you mentioned that you are suffering from anxiety and depression; medical school is a pressure cooker and if you don’t have the tools to cope with the pressure and the sacrifices that you make, things could go down hill. FAST. When you combine this with the fact that you really don’t seem to want to attend ICOM, I don’t know that starting medical school under these circumstances is a wise idea. If you were one of my friends, I would tell you to either defer if possible, or decline the seat. Spend the year workingbon your behavioral health and if you really don’t want to move from home, develop a more competitive application for schools in your area. I understand that not everyone wants to move across country and you may have very valid reasons to stay close to home. If this is the case, let that guide your decisions regarding where you apply to school. Best of luck whatever your decisions are.

 

[StressedBiClown]

Hey, I'm a first year ICOM student from the east coast as well. I was definitely hoping to stay close to family. Didn't work out unfortunately and ICOM was my only acceptance. Was obviously grateful to be offered a seat, but honestly was not thrilled about the idea of moving to a state most people couldn't point out on a map.

I would also say that I'm a very family oriented person. I start feeling really homesick when I'm away for an extended period of time. The first few weeks in Idaho were rough. But after a while you get used to being away from home. Idaho is a beautiful state. People here are extremely friendly ( saying this as a visible minority) and there are tons of things to do around Boise.

I know moving to an entirely different environment over a thousand miles away from home is anxiety inducing. Trust me I know. But you will get through this I promise you. If you have any specific questions about the school or the moving process please feel free to message me. Looking forward to welcoming a fellow east coaster to ICOM. There are dozens of us! Dozens!!

I just wanted to say that I appreciate the AD quote at the end there so much.
But also, I hope the OP really takes what you said to heart because there isn't a better perspective than someone who has gone through (and survived!) the exact thing the OP is so anxious about.

 

[AlbinoHawk DO]

You will come to terms with your medical school in due time. If not, you'll have to deal with not transferring because those are given for emergency reasons

 

[never-too-late]

If your mental health issues aren't under control, I can't recommend med school. It's a furnace.

THIS!!!!!

a wise friend once said "2 years of medical school and all I got was a prescription for prozac"...I know so many people who came into medical school WITHOUT mental health issues and are heading out into rotations with brandy new psych drugs. If anxiety and depression are such an issue for you that you don't think you can handle the move, then you really need to consider whether or not this is the right path at all. Suicide rates among medical students are multiples of the general population. This isn't a peace love and happiness journey: this is an exercise in cramming more information into your brain than should be possible under high pressure in a room full of people who are actually smarter than you and who would probably eat you alive if it meant they would get the residency they want at the end of it all!!!

Not to discourage you or anything.

I wouldn't go into this thinking transfer from a super brand new school to an established east coast school was a possibility.

 

[MusicDOc124]

As someone who transferred between OMS1 and OMS2, it is pretty difficult, and it's rare. I personally know 3 other people who did this. All of us had extenuating circumstances that occurred DURING 1st year (i.e. family deaths, ICU/life support, major family changes, etc) that led to consideration for moving closer to home while continuing school. First if your mental health is enough of a concern with being away before you even start, I'd re-consider entering the field, or at least entering currently via your current acceptance.


Factors other than a major reason for a transfer:

• The wanted school must take transfers (some simply don't)
• They must have space in the class for you, meaning someone in the class must have failed out, dropped out, or be repeating
• Some schools have a clause that they will not consider you as a transfer if you applied to them already and were not accepted
• Some schools want a letter of good stand/letter of rec of sorts from the Dean of the current school; depending on the situation, be aware that this may be easy or difficult to obtain.

If between years 1 and 2:

• Your coursework must be above par
• The coursework must match at both schools so that there is not something you'd be missing going into year 2
• The school may take into consideration your undergrad GPA and MCAT, which they will want to match the class you'd be entering

If after year 2:

• Must take COMLEX early enough to have a passing score around the average or better for previous class, but I guess this is just simply a "pass" now

Basically, this is not something that should be banked on. You should plan to continue through to graduation wherever you matriculate. Mind you, every situation is different, and it may not hurt your to attempt to transfer, but do realize that it's rare to happen for a reason (or many reasons noted above).