UHS vs. KCOM??

[BamaAlum]

Hello,
I have been accepted to both UHS and KCOM. Both are excellent institutions and I am sure that I will receive an excellent education at either one. I was just curious as to why some of you chose KCOM or UHS, respectively. I am especially interested in those of you who had to decide between UHS and KCOM and why you chose one over the other. I was also wondering what KCOM's rotation sites in Florida were like. I am hoping to do my rotations in Florida since I am from the Southeast. Thanks!

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[Sweaty Paul]

BamaAlum,

My most sincere congratulations to you on your acceptance to KCOM and to UHS. Perhaps you remember me, I was one of your tour guides at KCOM, we spoke about the rivers in your neck of the woods. The hospital we are currently at in Florida is Northside in St. Pete. We have our pilot program (this is our first year there) and we are sending 5 students. In addition, our Regional Dean has landed a psych rotation in Tampa for 12 students/time.
In addition to Northside, the Dean is trying to secure another rotation in Florida, and hopefully it will be ready to go for the Class of 2005 rotations which means should everything proceed according to plan we'll have at least two sites there for your class. That said, it is wise not to take an inventory of your juvenile poultry until the process of incubation has thoroughly materialized. Essentially, all institutions reserve the right to close any rotation site for any reason. Typically KCOM and our Deans work hard for consistency, however, non-compliance in the educational program and/or poor reports from students can result in the closing of sites.

As to why I decided to attend KCOM:

1) The interview day/process was by far the most relaxed, friendly, and welcoming.

2) I may be strange, but, I liked Kirksville.
I also knew there would be little play-time.

3) The board-pass rates were phenomenal both for the COMLEX (Osteopathic) and USMLE (Allopathic).

4) The reputation of this institution, is great. This isn't only because we are the founding institution, but, our graduates perform well once they are graduated. (I'll likely be the exception if I don't pass pharm tommorrow).

5) You will be the beneficiary of a new Information Center that is being built (as mentioned in the tour).

6) KCOM is also building a new Geriatric Health Center, which will provide further clinical contact in your first two-years here. It will also, provide an ideal setting for a variety of clinical research options if you are interested in research.

Both schools are great and you should be congratulated on your efforts to attain admission to both. You have a hard decision. If I had to make mine again, I would, unequivically choose KCOM.

Sincerely,

Sweaty Paul

 

[mmpp]

Hi Sweaty Paul,
I didn't hear that much on the tour about the new Information Center that is being built at KCOM. When is it supposed to be completed? What kind of resources will it provide to students?

By the way, thanks for all of your previous responses in other posts.

 

[ral]

Hey, BamaAlum, I think I was in your interview group on the 7th? Anyway, I too have been accepted to UHS and KCOM and I am going to choose KCOM without a doubt. I can't really explain why except that I just loved the school. I thought the whole package was just better, and I felt really at home there. The people were great, the school was great, and I am really excited to be a member. I have an interview at University of Missouri after Christmas, but I liked KCOM so much that I might decline the interview. Well, I know I didn't really give you any concrete reason, but I hope this helps. Did anyone else out there just get a really good feeling about this school? Oh, and don't forget, 10 people, yes 10 people to a cadaver at UHS as opposed to 4 at KCOM. I know this is kind of trivial, but it might make a difference. Congrats on both acceptances and good luck.

 

[PainMan]

hey Paul. A general question really. How is housing arranged at off-site rotations? do you have to try and stay with a resident or rent or what?

 

[OldManDave]

First, I was also accepted at both UHS & KCOM...obviously, I chose KCOM. There were many reasons for my decision.

1 - Safety: KC is a nice city, but the area where UHS is located is one of the highest crime areas of KC. Therefore, to be safe, you can not live near there -- necessitating a long commute.

2 - ALL of the students, faculty & staff I encountered at KCOM appeared to be legitimately in me as a person, not just as a payor of tuition. The observation panned out to be very true.

3 - The rotations system. Of all of the DO schools, KCOM is the most well organized, hands down. We match to a base hosp where most, if not all, of your third year clerkships take place. The fourth year, you can do all but 2 of your clerkships out...or, you can remain at your base hospital. You will hear many horror stories of students at other DO schools having to largely secure much, if not most of their own rotations in places potentially far-flung. If i correctly recall, very few of the UHS students are actually able to remain in KC for years 3 & 4...and UHS expects you to do a lot of arranging of your own clerkships. Believe me, years 3 & 4 give you more than enough to do without having to fret over where I am going next.

4 - Cost of living...unbelievably cheap in K'ville...coming from Dallas, I had a hard time believing the rents.

5 - No matter where you live in K'ville, your commute is essentiually ZERO (again, a by-product of life in Dallas)

6 - The relative isolation of K'ville not only leaves you less tempted to seek out distractions; but also causes you to forge bonds with your classmates -- something I will always treasure.

7 - All of the reasons Sweaty cites above

8 - Once you hit the clerkships, you realize that you are in deed VERY VERY well prepared.

All in all, when I was applying, KCOM was not my first choice, initially. Once I interviewed there...it quickly rose to the top of my list. Now, 1/2 way through year 3...I can unequivocally endorse the place and would select KCOM again.

Now, is the place perfect...hell no. If any school tells you that, run like hell as fast your little feet will carry you. However, KCOM offers you a lot of bang for the $ and, if you survive, will provide you with the opportunity to obtain an excellent education.

 

[dctrben]

Bama Alum,

I had the opportunity to interview at these schools back to back and feel this enhanced my ability to compare the two. I agree with Dave and Paul in that KCOM's reputation is exemplary. One thing that stood out to me is that the KCOM folks mentioned in a an 'oh by the way' tone that they had a first time board pass rate of 97% on step one whereas UHS bragged about their 87%. That could just have been a slightly biased impression because I did KCOM first and fell in love with the school.

I much prefer the friendliness of the people (students and staff) at KCOM as compared to UHS. It did seem to me that a good deal of the students at UHS were 'payors of tuition' (to paraphrase Dave) as opposed to being genuinely excited to be a student. I also agree with the whole safety assessment that Dave put up, but also bear in mind that the apartments kitty-corner from the school will be completed this coming spring.

I currently have not been accepted to KCOM (I interviewed there on 6 Dec.) and have been accepted to UHS (I interviewed there on 7 Dec.). Both schools will provide an excellent education I just think that I would like the people I will be around in K'ville more. Unfortunately I need to wait about a week to see if I can go to KCOM because of a scheduling issue with the adcom (I was pretty disappointed when Arloa told me I had to wait another week).

I hope this helps.

RAL

Were you at UHS or KCOM on the 7th?


Ben

 

[ral]

dctrben, yes i was a KCOM on the 7th. I'm not sure if we talked or not. I was the one that had my dad there (you know, the guy who slept on the couch outside the admissions office).

 

[BamaAlum]

Thanks for all the replies, guys. I have heard nothing but good things about KCOM all along. MY decision seems to be getting easier to make. I have to decide soon since my deposit at UHS is due next week. I am hoping to make my final decision by the end of the weekend, but I think you know which way I am leaning.
Paul, of course I remember you. You were the one who talked about taking naps on the OTM table in The Dungeon. Ask your buddy from Alabama if he is able to get UA football games in Kirksville.

 

[drewdo]

I interviewed at both KCOM and UHS. While I was waitlisted at KCOM and accepted outright at UHS, the decision was still easy for me -- UHS!

Let me make a few points about the two.
1. I prefer larger cities. Everybody says there is little play time in med school blah blah blah. I've been able to find play time and still do well in school. I'd be stir crazy in Kirksville.

2. The school is NOT in the best part of town, but I'm happy to say that not only do I live in the same neighborhood, but I am also a HOMEOWNER. Our house is awesome. The housing market is much cheaper than where I'm from (Minneapolis) and while there is lower-income apartments in our neighborhood, there is also half-million dollar homes three doors down. (KC is an interesting city!)

3. Sometimes I do just feel like a "payer of tuition", but at the same time, this is a pretty damn good education that I'm getting. The class sizes are big, but we manage pretty well. While there are indeed about 10 students to a cadaver, only five work on that cadaver at a time! Our school does pretty well with teaching anatomy.

4. We have one of the craziest, most brilliant pathologists teaching us path!

5. There's a lot of rumors going around campus right now about some of our faculty and administration. We've had some scandal regarding the people in charge of our externship. But the school DOES NOT make your fend for yourself in arranging your rotation sites! Right now we have too many rotation sites for the number of students, and they are actually needing to cut down the number of sites available. I think there are about 60 slots available in the KC area, and they are not hard to get.

6. Everyone here is pretty friendly. Our class as a whole is constantly supporting one another with helpful emails, websites, diagrams, notes, pictures, etc. For a class of 250, I haven't noticed any sense of competition.

7. At last count, about 60% of the MSI's were receiving tutoring sessions from the MSII's. I see this as a positive thing!!

8. Our OPP lab seems nicer than KCOM's. KCOM's lab is in the basement, if I remember correctly, and is littered with a creepy amount of A.T. Still quotes.

9. While the school no longer runs its own hospital, we have close connections with several large hospitals in the area, including Children's Mercy, UMKC, KU, etc.

10. Last I heard KCOM's and UHS' board pass rates were nearly identical. Correct me if I'm wrong anyone...

 

[UHS2002]

Nope, you are right. UHS step I first take passing rate was 96% or 97% (one of the two, I honestly don't remember which).

 

[solie]

BamaAlum,

I'm glad you posted this question, because I'm trying to choose between the two, as well. I think I'm leaning more towards UHS, though.
As soon as I got to the UHS campus, I really felt like I could be a student there. For some reason, it felt like it would be more of a stretch for me at KCOM. I don't know if that makes any sense, though.

I was also kind of creeped out at KCOM (no offense to anyone there!) by the whole "Mecca" thing. EVERY single person I spoke to there kept repeating to me about how KCOM is the Mecca of osteopathy...Mecca this and Mecca that. I know it was the founding school, but does that really make it a BETTER school? I think if you're trying to sell your school, you should stress more important things, like reputation and high board scores, both of which KCOM has, rather than being the almighty "Mecca." It felt like more of a religious experience for me being there with all that talk, rather than a professional educational one. A lot of people I spoke to there seemed to really worship A.T. Still. While I agree that he was obviously important to the profession, I don't think I want to base my education on how great he was. Some other poster here left a message about how great he thought it was that he got to pass by A.T.Still's grave site everyday on the way to school at KCOM. To me that is just plain creepy, not something that would inspire me to attend a school.

If I do decide to attend KCOM, it will be for the reputation the school has, its board scores, and its rotations...NOT for the fact that the table that I'm using in the OMM lab may have actually been owned by A.T. Sill himself at one point in time.

That being said, though, UHS seems to have a really good program as well. Plus, I like KC a lot better than K'ville. All in all, though, I'm still up in the air about my decision. I've got to make it pretty quickly, though.

From what I've heard, you'll end up with a good education from either of the two schools, so I'd concentrate more on where you can see yourself as a student for the next couple of years. I'm sure you'll make the decision that's right for you, though...and Congratulations on having to be in such a situtation (choosing between schools) in the first place! It's a wonderful spot to be in!

 

[Mr. happy clown guy]

Solie, you have made some solid, and pretty funny points.
In ALL DO programs you will notice it gettting pretty "deep" when speaking of A.T. Still lore and legend, and it is probably worse at KCOM. But both schools are good, and offer solid academic years. 3rd year rotations may be more solid at KCOM whereas your 4th year can be anywhere regardless of institution.
But for any pre-med student, you will literally "know" what institution fits you, and the same certainly goes for residency...since I am in the middle of that process now. When it gets "close" between two places, just go with your own personal gut feeling.

 

[BigSkyDreams]

Howdy,

I have to agree with HCG. The school that meets all your standards PLUS where you feel most at home is the best school for you. I'm from a smaller community alot like Kirksville and to be honest I don't know if I could attend school in a large city, I would be distracted from study time. Besides, I like living in a house within walking distance to the school.

I am even able to pass by AT Still's final resting place everyday without altering my route, this is very helpful as I have taken the vow, as have most of us, to memorize one Still quote per day while kissing the sacred gravestone.

"Talk is talk, but the biscuit speaks for the cook" AT Still, D: 12 December 1917

 

[bustinbooty]

BSD,
I sleep by his grave every night and pray three times a day in that general direction as well.
I can see how some people would view the KCOM atomosphere as almost cultish at first. REally is is not that extreme (at least for most). The A.T. Still "buzz" around here does keep a certain enthusiasm for osteopathic roots around, which is nice.

"My greatest ambitions are heaven and an automobile." - A.T.s

 

[Sweaty Paul]

Solie,

If you got hit with the Mecca stuff a whole lot then you may have just gotten some of the more vocal/fervent students concerning manipulation. For the record the OMT lab isn't in the basement, however, there are indeed a large number of A.T Still quotes along the top of the walls. Not surprising really since we have his birthplace and the entire first Ostepathic school building in the lobby of our educational center.

I couldn't agree with many of the above posters more...you gotta go where you are going to be happy. That said, anyone who thinks they're going to make a bunch of play time to really enjoy K.C. (a great city where my family lives) is absolutely nuts. As I have said before 1st quarter anatomy and biochemistry do not suffer fools or lazy academics.

My congratulations to all of you who were accepted anywhere and to those of you who must make a choice...good luck. If I had to make mine again it would be KCOM.

Sweaty Paul

 

[Sweaty Paul]

mmpp and 3mc1dj,

I'm gonna try to answer both of your questions.

mmpp, as far as the information center goes they are trying/planning on breaking ground sometime in 2002, according to the last facilities committee meeting that I attended. However, after working in the real world for 7 years b/4 medical school and being involved with building projects, a good rule of thumb is if you don't have the workers on site digging/building anything is possible. Again 2002 is the target date to start. The Information Center will contain a portion of our library collection, all of our journals, and plenty of study space including 16 small conference/group study rooms. In addition, there will be areas featuring, what I like to call, "the Barnes and Noble comfy chairs." Admittedly the library is one of our weaknesses, however the information center will rectify that. In addition to the study areas there will be 4 large classrooms with dividers to make them into 8 smaller classrooms each having interactive learning devices (smart boards) etc. for teaching in smaller groups. There will also be a production studio for instructional video production, advertising etc.
Hope that answers your question. Any others let me know.

3mc1dj,

Rotation housing I assume you mean in your 3rd and 4th years. Normally you will move to the base hospital where you will do the majority of your rotations. That means you will get a place to live just like if you were in K'ville. If you do out rotations...rotations away from your base hosp. you will likely need to find housing. Some out - rotations provide housing, while others do not. To be perfectly honest I haven't worried about it at all. I still have 6 mos of classes, boards and 10 mos of required in house rotations to get through. I don't mean to be glib, but, with the loans I'll have a few hundred extra here or there really won't make that much difference.

Any other questions, Please let me know.

Sweaty

 

[DO/MBA]

You will have time to enjoy KC. Everything else is cool.

 

[PainMan]

So they (UHS) said they will be breaking ground in the only parking lot they have for a new building. have they talked to you guys about the impact of this? Probably wont affect you since you will be on rotations, but I am not sure about my only two years there in a construction zone with the campus being so small...thoughts?

 

[nathan]

I'll go ahead and throw my two cents in- of course, I'm biased to UHS because that is where I chose to go. I posted a long message on the UHS Class 2006 page, so you may want to read that. As far as the safety issue, there is no issue. The school is safe (and for those of you interested- there is great security officers there on campus at all hours, every day of the week). The above posts by others are correct- go with the school which fits you most. You will know which school is best. The cadaver issue is also not an issue at all. You will have plenty of time to learn what you need to know. I also want to add something about the tutor system at UHS. You can't beat it! In fact, in my eyes, it is one of the biggest sellers of UHS right now. I no doubt will tutor anatomy and maybe pathology next year because I want to help other students out like I have been helped out. Also, I am from a smaller town also. Believe me, when you have time for a distraction, and you WILL NEED to make time for a distraction or two or you'll go crazy, KC has much to offer. I was accepted at the other MD school in KC and chose UHS-COM over it with no questions asked. It was a better school by far to get your education, but like I said, go with the school you feel most comfortable at, not the one that others tell you is the best. It is your education and you and you only will have to make the best of it. Hope this helps!

Nathan (UHS-COM '05)