UNECOM vs. CCOM

[brody17]

I received an acceptance from UNECOM and CCOM. I'm originally from the east coast but Chicago is exciting. Anybody have any advice? The moving around for rotations at UNECOM doesn't bother me too much since I am familiar with the east coast.

Anybody have any advise as far as curriculum content? OMT hours? Stress on primary care or not? I am just looking for the best education though location is important.

I would appreciate some imput from current students at both!!! I need some dirt on both schools. This is a hard decision.

Thanks!

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[docbill]

you should ask people in program.. maybe try the class of 2008 for UNE and CCOM.

I think UNE IS MUCH BETTER.. but I am biased.

 

[wook]

brody17:

Do a search on UNECOM, as I think there was just a posting about the curriculum about UNECOM and a couple of other schools. I don't know anything about CCOM, but if you have any specific UNECOM questions not addressed by previous threads, I would be happy to answer them.

Wook

 

[SM-UCLA tech]

I received an acceptance from UNECOM and CCOM. I'm originally from the east coast but Chicago is exciting. Anybody have any advice? The moving around for rotations at UNECOM doesn't bother me too much since I am familiar with the east coast.

Anybody have any advise as far as curriculum content? OMT hours? Stress on primary care or not? I am just looking for the best education though location is important.

I would appreciate some imput from current students at both!!! I need some dirt on both schools. This is a hard decision.

Thanks!

To me there is no comparison. ( obviously )

But while trying to stay impartial, I'll try to give you my thoughts about the generalities of the two schools.

From what I know, I would say that the two schools are quite different.

big city vs. rural

our school tends to have a lot of people go into specialty vs. more primary care focus.

i also know that there is a bigger emphasis on OMM there than here. I believe that OMM is incorporated into their basic sciences. ( At least their physiology, but you'll have to check that with a unecom student ). I'm very glad that we don't do that here.

and you will get more clinical exposure here than in maine. ( big city with large population and many major medical centers )

But I think it's also important for you to figure out where you will be happy. CCOM is a great environment with an outstanding campus. If you do decide to come here, I'm sure that you will love it.

Good Luck....and remember that this is a good problem to have!

 

[brody17]

This is the type of information I am looking for. Would you mind elaborating a bit? What are the most popular specialties at CCOM (without directing me to a matchlist)? Downers Grove is suburban, how much time do you spend in or near Chicago in the first two years? Also, most importantly, what is the feeling about OMM on the CCOM campus? When I interviewed, my tour guide seemed angry about even having to go the OMM class. CCOM didn't seem to inviting to anyone who is interested in OMM. How much time do you spent in Anatomy as compared to UNECOM? UNECOM's program is geared towards primary care which is supported by its double hours of anatomy.

I am considering specialization but more along the lines of PM&R. For this reason, UNECOM seems more appropriate. Chicago seems like it is a very well-run school with wonderful opportunities for students. I just wonder if those opportunities are for students in specialties.

Do most students stay in IL? Any students move to the east coast? I don't know if I could leave New England...it is just too beautiful.

 

[PublicEnemy]

whenever i see threads with titles like this, i think of some kind of showdown, like a football game. i give unecom the edge with a -3 spread.

basic science curriculum, anatomy, and omm, primary care exposure, early clinical exposure - all of that unecom is tough to beat.

but chicago is an amazing city, my favorite city, ccom has great rotation sites and seems to have strong match placements.

you should check out both schools again, really talk to students there, actually get to know them beyond the regular selling my school bs, and see if you can figure out where you would fit in best and where and in what environment you'll be happiest. i think thats really all it comes down to because both schools will definitely provide you every opportunity to realize your goals.

 

[jonb12997]

yeah, our anatomy has the most hours in the country... we had 3 hours of lecture and 9 hours of lab a week since the start of school at the end of july, from here on our (since biochem and immuno started) we have 2 horus of lecture and 6 hours of lab a week untill december. OMM is great, we have 1 hour of lecture, and 2 hours of lab a week. The also incorporate it some into our anatomy course... it's awesome. Both schools will be great. Be ready for a more rural setting up here though. (although we're 90 minutes to boston and a lot of people go for weekends)... It's all a personal decision! Best of luck wherever you end up!

 

[mcandy]

Hey Brody17,

I am a UNECOM student heading towards a specialty in PM&R. I know nothing about CCOM, so I will save comment. I will stick to what I know. I can tell you is that anatomy is very, very important to PM&R and OMM is one the greatest tools ever for a line of work that focuses on being (mostly) non-invasive to make people healthy. We do somewhere between 250-300 hours of anatomy in our first semester here at UNECOM and heavily revisit in 2nd year systems classes. As far as OMM, I have been trully amazed at what I can legitemately "fix" and I have only been at it for a few months. I can only imagine what I will be capable of by the time I get out of here. OMM is now a strong component of COMLEX. UNE has a lot of weekend workshops for professionals (they spend $1000s) that we are encouraged to attend for free...some people with impressive resumes (including our faculty) come to teach these courses.

As far as PMR stuff...Harvard Spaulding is 90 minutes away and you have oppurtunity to set yourself up on "experiences" there. Also, in portland, New England Rehab hospital is a teaching hospital and I have spent many afternoons there (Tufts residency program is there)...There Medical director is a DO who uses a lot of OMM.

Yes, Biddeford is rural. I am looking at the ocean and orange leaved oak trees out my window right now. Hope this helps. Andy

 

[SM-UCLA tech]

This is the type of information I am looking for. Would you mind elaborating a bit? What are the most popular specialties at CCOM (without directing me to a matchlist)? Downers Grove is suburban, how much time do you spend in or near Chicago in the first two years? Also, most importantly, what is the feeling about OMM on the CCOM campus? When I interviewed, my tour guide seemed angry about even having to go the OMM class. CCOM didn't seem to inviting to anyone who is interested in OMM. How much time do you spent in Anatomy as compared to UNECOM? UNECOM's program is geared towards primary care which is supported by its double hours of anatomy.

I am considering specialization but more along the lines of PM&R. For this reason, UNECOM seems more appropriate. Chicago seems like it is a very well-run school with wonderful opportunities for students. I just wonder if those opportunities are for students in specialties.

Do most students stay in IL? Any students move to the east coast? I don't know if I could leave New England...it is just too beautiful.

brody......you have to realize that just because someone doesn't like OMM doesn't mean that it is non-existent or that you can't love it. And the "on-campus feeling" of OMM doesn't have anything to do with what your own personal desires are for it. Probably at every osteopathic school you will have people who love OMM and people who don't. It's one of those things that takes a special talent to be really good at. And not everyone has that feeling for detecting dysfunction. That is especially true for cranial. It's just the same as if you are talking about pathology, or psychiatry, or obstetrics. Some people love some aspects of medicine, and other people love other aspects. And I'm sure that there will be some things that you don't really care too much for. There are a lot of dynamic choices to make in medicine, and that's one of the things that makes this profession so great. So as a future medical student, and also when you are a medical student, try to remember that each person is looking for different things in their career choice. And at the same time, you have the freedom and opportunity to do anything you choose.

It's hard to try and address your questions. There really is no such thing as most popular specialties on campus. And, as per above, it wouldn't matter. You can end up specializing in anything you want to. I think the more important question to ask is; "Am I limited in anything by attending a certain school?". The answer to that, probably at most medical schools whether they are DO or MD, is no.

How much time do you spend downtown your first two years? Well that is also up to you. Some people go downtown 2 or 3 times a week. One of my classmates has lived there the entire first two years. It's only a 20 or 30 minute drive, so it's no big deal. The problem is, as a first year medical student you are doing nothing but studying and that's your priority. So you really don't have time to worry about that. We do have more than one student run clinic downtown though. First year students generally start seeing patients down there in the second quarter.

I would say about half our class is from either Illinois, Michigan, or Indiana. The rest are from everywhere else. I'm not sure what the significance of people staying in Illinois is though. Do you mean do they stay here for residency? If that's what you mean, then there are a significant amount of people who stay here for residency. But there are a lot of people who go elsewhere. I will probably go back to California for residency.

And finally.....Anatomy.....well.....after hearing how much time is spent in anatomy at unecom, I find that there is no difference when compared to here. It sounds pretty much the same. But that being said.......it is still not enough time to sufficiently learn anatomy, as you will soon find out. You will find out that you will spend many more extra hours in lab, and some really strange hours of the day and night.


Ok.......that's way too much writing for me..........


I hope I've been helpful. And I hope you are happy wherever you go.

Good Luck

 

[brody17]

I believe the school sets the tone for the teaching any subject. It has been my experience that every school stresses or offers more opportunities in different subjects. Can you learn OMM at every school? Sure. Can you enter a specialty at every school? Sure. I think anyone who believes that every school is equal is ignorant to opportunities at other schools. If not, how would you choose between them, by location alone?
I asked the question about the feeling towards OMM at CCOM because my tour guide suggested students at CCOM, on the whole, are not as accepting to the treatment. He suggested that most students just find it a burden and are glad that they only have 4 hours a week. Now, this could have only been his opinion but he made it sound like it was the opinion of the majority. He also revealed some professors that felt the same, often debunking osteopathic treatments. Again, this could just be the minority...that is why I asked the question.
I do believe that medical school is what you make of it but the environment you are learning in is just as important. I asked about where students go for residencies because I am from the east coast. At UNECOM, they brag about their strong network of alumni in the New England/New York area. If I plan to practice in this area, I believe this is beneficial. Chicago is not that far from the East coast so I wondered how many students may accept residencies here.
UNECOM has double the amount of anatomy hours that most other schools. Since most students put extra hours in, outside of lecture/lab, it might equal out. But I do find it impressive that UNECOM stresses anatomy. They also incorporate OMM in physiology. I was simply inquiring whether CCOM students felt this necessary or do they compensate on their own.
I also understand that OMM is a talent, one that I might not possess. I want to have the best exposure and teaching so that I firmly decide if I have that talent. That?s all.

Thank you for your opinion. I welcome others as well.

 

[mcandy]

We have an anatomy professor here at UNECOM who wrote a dissertation trying to disprove cranial osteopathy by stating that the spheno-occipital synchondrosis ossifies completely in the late teens and is not manipulatable (is this the right word...if not excuse my ignence) beyond this point. Having had a lot exposure to cranial-sacral work, I do not follow his teachings, but I think a devils advocate is always healthy to keep you ??ing your education and the powers that be. His only platform for this rant is the head and neck portion of our anatomy course and he does not effect OMM education directly.

We do have a lot of hours of anatomy (July to dec, 12 hours/week) and spend almost as much time in addition on our own learning and that is very important to me. But as the post above stated...it is still not enough to master it! They do have a component of "live" anatomy where we learn clinical correlations that relate to our section of study...ie land marks for proceedures, safe places for injections, palpations of injures, pulses, abnormalities etc. I find that very helpful too.

I believe that your education is what you make of it...working hard at any school, going the extra mile, and kranking the boards will land you a residency anywhere. That said, make sure your personality and people skills are desireable, because no residency director wants a stiff, arogant, gunner for 5 years. So go where you will be happy.

Our rotations 3rd and 4th year send most of us to large population centers on the NorthEastern seaboard (Newark, NJ, Cooperstown, NY, etc) while a few stay in Me and rotate. So our rural setting for the first two years is not a detriment in the latter two...that said, I know cooperstown, NY is probably not going to be as intense as Chicago.

I think a little less than half of us go family doc and the rest specialize (do not quote me on these #'s) Best of luck.

 

[jdaasbo]

I had the same choice between UNECOM and CCOM. I am also from New England originaly. It was very close for me, but I chose CCOM for two reasons: 1) at CCOM you don't have to move at all for your third and fourth years and the clinical affiliations/hospitals were of higher quality. 2) CCOM's match lists were better. This was my opinion based on the data in 1998.

In retrospect, CCOM has an addition al advantage that, if so desired, it is very easy for you to do elective rotations at Chicago hospitals.

That said, they are both good schools.

 

[oceandoc]

not really sure where the person who said this got his/her info...but I'm a MS2 at UNECOM and OMM wasn't really part of our physio course. there was maybe an hour or three out of a almost semester-long course. however, OMM is huge here, the faculty is incredible and our lab is AWESOME. if you're interested in pediatric OMM our department head wrote the book on it.

 

[HoosierDO]

Ok time for my 2cents!!! Definitely dont chose CCOM for the curricula...i can list off many many reasons to attend CCOM (current ms1) but the curricula certainly isnt one of them. To me the main advantage that CCOM has over other schools is its location and affiliation with hospitals in the city. As far as classes go...ahhh they are ok...the profs are great and doing the best they can, we are currently in the middle of an overhaul in curricula so things are becoming more case based...too bad most of the prof's have very limited clinical experience...all that means is you relya lot more on your board review series!!! But so far im satisfied...the people are great, the profs are great, and the dean is spectacular!!!! Plus you cant go wrong with a school that has the reputation that CCOM does. I think the point is that no matter where you go your education is going to be what you make of it...you can get a great education at any of the DO schools...some will just be presented better, others you rely more on your own motivation etc. Go with where you feel the most comfortable and where you think your heart in...pick a place that feels like home because no matter where you go...YOU WILL LIVE ON CAMPUS!! i spend close to 80 hours a week on campus (lecture + individual studying)