Transferring DO schools

[CaliDO2014]

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I am wondering how difficult it is to transfer schools. I am currently a first year at a DO school on the east coast, and I am looking to transfer back to the west coast (where I am from). I am just unsure of the process, as there is not much information on the school's websites about the transfer process. I have emailed the admissions office of each school I am considering, but I am not really sure what to do next besides wait! If anyone has any information about this process or if you have gone through it, I would really appreciate any info you could give me! Thanks!

 

[TeamZissou]

I am wondering how difficult it is to transfer schools. I am currently a first year at a DO school on the east coast, and I am looking to transfer back to the west coast (where I am from). I am just unsure of the process, as there is not much information on the school's websites about the transfer process. I have emailed the admissions office of each school I am considering, but I am not really sure what to do next besides wait! If anyone has any information about this process or if you have gone through it, I would really appreciate any info you could give me! Thanks!

My understanding is that it is dependent on your school and situation. Usually people need to have a very serious situation to necessitate their moving ie a parent dying of cancer and you need to be their caretaker.

 

[Terpskins99]

I am wondering how difficult it is to transfer schools. I am currently a first year at a DO school on the east coast, and I am looking to transfer back to the west coast (where I am from). I am just unsure of the process, as there is not much information on the school's websites about the transfer process. I have emailed the admissions office of each school I am considering, but I am not really sure what to do next besides wait! If anyone has any information about this process or if you have gone through it, I would really appreciate any info you could give me! Thanks!

You should contact the school you are interested in transferring to. They will tell you their policy.

Based on what I know, most schools will only accept a transfer after your MS2 year (and after you've passed COMLEX Level 1). I know of two that did so from my school. One did it because she had just gotten married and her husband got a job in a different city than her clerkship sites. The other one did it because her long-time boyfriend from another state proposed, and likewise was unable to move. Not exactly "parent dying of cancer", but it was an important enough reason for them. The key is, they were honest with the school dean. You need a letter from the dean stating that you are in good academic standing to be approved for a transfer.

And in case you were wondering, yes it is possible to transfer to an MD school from a DO school.

 

[mauve]

You should contact the school you are interested in transferring to. They will tell you their policy.

Based on what I know, most schools will only accept a transfer after your MS2 year (and after you've passed COMLEX Level 1). I know of two that did so from my school. One did it because she had just gotten married and her husband got a job in a different city than her clerkship sites. The other one did it because her long-time boyfriend from another state proposed, and likewise was unable to move. Not exactly "parent dying of cancer", but it was an important enough reason for them. The key is, they were honest with the school dean. You need a letter from the dean stating that you are in good academic standing to be approved for a transfer.

And in case you were wondering, yes it is possible to transfer to an MD school from a DO school.

i'm not contemplating this by any means but this just caught my eye.
so to clarify, are you saying a DO->MD transfer is possible *only if* there's no DO school in the area you're moving into ? wouldn't the dean ask this student why they want to move into the MD school over a DO school if there's a DO school present too?😕

 

[polkadoctor]

I am also thinking about transferring after my 2nd year to a west coast DO program (california resident). I got into that program but decided not to go and I have been having second thoughts ever since. 🙁

Will it look bad when I apply for residency? However, my top choice happens to be at Western so.. 😕

 

[IandIatrogenic]

Boy I sure hope it doesn't because I transferred to a west coast school after my first year.

Team Zissou is wrong insofar as second to third year is concerned. The majority of schools WILL consider it. Will they go for it? Well...to be frank being in at the upper end of your class and having a good COMLEX score will probably better your odds. And yeah depending on the program you are going to have at least write a formal letter to the Dean if not go for an interview to explain your situation.

Yes it is possible to transfer from DO to MD but only a handful of schools will consider it.


And no you don't need to have something of the magnitude of a dying relative to transfer schools but you are going to need a better reason than I from the West Coast.

 

[Gabby]

Boy I sure hope it doesn't because I transferred to a west coast school after my first year.

Team Zissou is wrong insofar as second to third year is concerned. The majority of schools WILL consider it. Will they go for it? Well...to be frank being in at the upper end of your class and having a good COMLEX score will probably better your odds. And yeah depending on the program you are going to have at least write a formal letter to the Dean if not go for an interview to explain your situation

The problem with transferring after first year is that many schools have different curriculums. For some schools, anatomy goes two years, for others, it's over in 10 weeks. Some are systems-based, some are traditional. Some do neuro first year first block (I think TCOM does this) and some do neuro second year (if I'm not mistaken, that's how KCUMB does it). It's just so variable. Your first year curriculum has to be identical to the school you're transferring to in order to facilitate a transfer between first and second year, but in most cases, I bet you'll have to wait until after second year.

 

[ShyRem]

We had several students transfer in to my class after second year. As others have stated, it is difficult to transfer after first year due to differences in curriculum. It is not uncommon to do so after second year with a passing level 1 score, but you generally have to have a really good reason. Not a "I miss my boyfriend" or "I just don't like the east coast" or "I want to surf on my weekends" reason, but "my mother is dying" or "my husband and children are still here and couldn't relocated to my first school" kind of reason.

 

[Silent Cool]

What kind of documentation would one need for the dean of the school? In other words, if I want to transfer because my spouse/fiance gets a job on the opposite coast, would I need a letter from her future employer? Or would it just be sufficient to say to my dean, "yeah, the fiance has a new job and I don't want us to be apart--been there, done that, not doing it again." Does anyone know about this?

 

[costales]

I have not met a transfer student. The requirements are generally strict, there must be a compelling reason, and admission is not guaranteed. Here are some examples:

West Virginia
http://www.wvsom.edu/sites/default/files/policies/Education/E-05_Student_Transfer.pdf

Des Moines
http://www.dmu.edu/do/admission-requirements/transfer-students/

Texas
http://www.hsc.unt.edu/education/tcom/admissions/transfer.cfm

Schools are not explicit about what they consider a valid reason - it's up to the dean to decide.

 

[SMC123]

What md schools do you know of that accept do students?

Sent from my GT-I9000 using SDN Mobile

 

[costales]

George Washington is one. In practice, MD schools rarely allow transfers:

"Only a handful of students transfer between U.S. medical schools successfully"
http://www.usnews.com/education/blo...08/22/transferring-between-us-medical-schools

 

[Prncssbuttercup]

I know that the University of MN's policy is they will only take you if you were accepted to a US MD school, and have stats that they would have accepted for your class. DO schools are not quite as strict from what I've read... Best of luck

 

[Dissected]

I met a doc that had transferred from a DO school to U of Nebraska b/w 2nd and 3rd year. I believe he had family in Omaha and smashing the usmle helped him. This was a number of years ago so things might be different.