University of North Texas (UNTHSC/TCOM) Discussion Thread 2013 - 2014

Get Your Med School Admissions Questions Answered!
This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
Got the call this morning! My status on the portal didn't change until after though.
Members don't see this ad.
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Just interviewed here..awesome staff and facilities. From the students, faculty, to my interviewers, everyone is just so nice, approachable and knowledgeable. And numbers don't lie...TCOM has to be up there in the top 5 if not top 3 DO schools in the country if there was a ranking. Really excited to hear good news from them! Good luck everyone!
 
han9427520 said:
Just interviewed here..awesome staff and facilities. From the students, faculty, to my interviewers, everyone is just so nice, approachable and knowledgeable. And numbers don't lie...TCOM has to be up there in the top 5 if not top 3 DO schools in the country if there was a ranking. Really excited to hear good news from them! Good luck everyone!
Click to expand...

This is my dream school, I really hope to get an interview here. Submitted back in may, so my hopes are dwindling
 
First II of the season here. Feels like a huge weight lifted off my shoulders to get my first ii.

Transmitted 8/9. 3.73c 3.78s 29 nontrad.
 
Interviewed here yesterday. It was much more intense than I expected - lots of pointed questions. Definitely read up on healthcare system, and go over their website for info about Osteopathic medicine before. Know your stuff. I did hear of a couple people that had laid back interviews, but since at least some of them are more intense, I think it's better to be overprepared than underprepared.

Just a heads up. Overall, the school was very impressive and definitely exceeded my expectations.
 
BlueLabel said:
Interviewed here yesterday. It was much more intense than I expected - lots of pointed questions. Definitely read up on healthcare system, and go over their website for info about Osteopathic medicine before. Know your stuff. I did hear of a couple people that had laid back interviews, but since at least some of them are more intense, I think it's better to be overprepared than underprepared.

Just a heads up. Overall, the school was very impressive and definitely exceeded my expectations.
Click to expand...

Would you mind sharing what sources you used to prepare for healthcare law questions?
 
phys2med said:
Would you mind sharing what sources you used to prepare for healthcare law questions?
Click to expand...

I read Real Clear Politics on a daily basis. They have a great iPhone app.

Of course I don't do this specifically to prepare for interviews, I just follow politics because it interests me. I don't think it would be hard to pull up recent news stories, opinions and editorials on the internet. Google is your friend.
 
phys2med said:
Would you mind sharing what sources you used to prepare for healthcare law questions?
Click to expand...

I think it's just important to remember that the interviewers aren't looking for some sort of revolutionary insight. They just want to see that we aren't completely clueless of our upcoming healthcare system. If they asked what do you think of obamacare, you should be able to hold a simple conversation concerning likes and dislikes
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Just know what "Obama care" means and what it's supposed to change in your future life as a physician, also read a bit about osteopathic medicine and Andrew Taylor Still and you should be fine, I don't think you need any more than that, just work on your people skills
 
Interviewed here this past Friday.

Pros:

Highly ranked DO school
Facilities are good
Fort Worth has a college town feel
The MET building looks state of the art
The girls are good looking.

Cons:

Curriculum seems to be 8-12 and 1-4 for most days. From what I understand, a lot of the time is mandatory since there is a lot of interaction in the classroom.

Didn't see a whole lot or surgical matches (with the exception of a few gen surg/ortho)
 
BlueLabel said:
Interviewed here yesterday. It was much more intense than I expected - lots of pointed questions. Definitely read up on healthcare system, and go over their website for info about Osteopathic medicine before. Know your stuff. I did hear of a couple people that had laid back interviews, but since at least some of them are more intense, I think it's better to be overprepared than underprepared.

Just a heads up. Overall, the school was very impressive and definitely exceeded my expectations.
Click to expand...

My interviews were also pretty intense as you described. My first eventually became more conversational as he got to know me, but I was still given several stumper questions with minimal feedback about my responses. My second felt like I was being interrogated even though my file was closed and he didn't know anything about me.

Overall I felt the interviews went pretty well and heard from many other students who had a less stressful experience. The biggest thing I took away from interview day is that they are really looking for students who are excited about learning osteopathy and know a thing or two about it.

It's a great school and I'm excited to have the opportunity to go there.
 
radkat101 said:
My interviews were also pretty intense as you described. My first eventually became more conversational as he got to know me, but I was still given several stumper questions with minimal feedback about my responses. My second felt like I was being interrogated even though my file was closed and he didn't know anything about me.

Overall I felt the interviews went pretty well and heard from many other students who had a less stressful experience. The biggest thing I took away from interview day is that they are really looking for students who are excited about learning osteopathy and know a thing or two about it.

It's a great school and I'm excited to have the opportunity to go there.
Click to expand...

When did you interview?
 
GandalfTheWhite said:
Interviewed here this past Friday.

Pros:

Highly ranked DO school
Facilities are good
Fort Worth has a college town feel
The MET building looks state of the art
The girls are good looking.

Cons:

Curriculum seems to be 8-12 and 1-4 for most days. From what I understand, a lot of the time is mandatory since there is a lot of interaction in the classroom.

Didn't see a whole lot or surgical matches (with the exception of a few gen surg/ortho)
Click to expand...

Response to your cons:
1st yr curriculum does have a lot of classroom time but most are not mandatory and students record lectures for those who dont come to class. 2nd year has a lot less class time and those are/are not mandatory. It's not like they take attendance but participation counts towards your grade, so it's your call if you want to miss them.... but easy points for showing up for half a day to learn something isn't that horrible.

Not sure how not having a lot of surgical matches is a con since that's based on the number who actually want to go into surgery. Look at matches, plenty of our students are competitive for surgery if they had wanted it. Remeber we are a primary care focused school, as are all DO schools... that being said I anticipate those numbers increasing (from what can tell) there seems to be an increased interest in surgery in 2014 and 2015.
 
slammer922 said:
Response to your cons:
1st yr curriculum does have a lot of classroom time but most are not mandatory and students record lectures for those who dont come to class. 2nd year has a lot less class time and those are/are not mandatory. It's not like they take attendance but participation counts towards your grade, so it's your call if you want to miss them.... but easy points for showing up for half a day to learn something isn't that horrible.

Not sure how not having a lot of surgical matches is a con since that's based on the number who actually want to go into surgery. Look at matches, plenty of our students are competitive for surgery if they had wanted it. Remeber we are a primary care focused school, as are all DO schools... that being said I anticipate those numbers increasing (from what can tell) there seems to be an increased interest in surgery in 2014 and 2015.
Click to expand...

Thanks for your response.
During my interviews and the orientation, it was mentioned that these 'recordings' are based on the discretion of the professor.
 
GandalfTheWhite said:
Thanks for your response.
During my interviews and the orientation, it was mentioned that these 'recordings' are based on the discretion of the professor.
Click to expand...

The regular lectures are always recorded, however we have lectures called mechanism of learning modules (MLM) which are at the discretion of the professor because they ask the class questions that they like to repeat each year and want the students to think for themselves instead of knowing the answers ahead of time from the recordings of previous years.
 
Just got an II today (my first) for Sep 17th

Officially submitted secondary on 8/14/13 (MCAT score came in late but main application was submitted on 5/24/13)

31 MCAT/ 3.67 cGPA / 3.55 sGPA / Nontraditional
 
QuantumJ said:
Can anyone who interviewed here comment on whether we need to bring pad/pen to take notes on or if we are given some sort of hand-out?
Click to expand...

You can bring a pen and spiral if you want, I didn't but I saw one or two people that did. Just know you'll have to carry it all day. They do give you a pen and some papers (along with a folder) you could theoretically write on the back of if you feel so inclined.
 
BlueLabel said:
You can bring a pen and spiral if you want, I didn't but I saw one or two people that did. Just know you'll have to carry it all day. They do give you a pen and some papers (along with a folder) you could theoretically write on the back of if you feel so inclined.
Click to expand...

Thank you I'll keep that in mind then.
 
So on myHSC after interviewing here on 8/22, my application status has changed from "you have been invited to an interview" back to "your application is under review"... is anyone else who has already attended an interview seeing this change in status as well? Thanks.
 
han9427520 said:
So on myHSC after interviewing here on 8/22, my application status has changed from "you have been invited to an interview" back to "your application is under review"... is anyone else who has already attended an interview seeing this change in status as well? Thanks.
Click to expand...

The application will change to this status, and is good that this occurs

The only bad statuses on myHSC are "This application is incomplete" and "Your application has been reviewed", the former representing a deficiency in your profile, and the latter occurring after match day/wait list construction, where they are about to alert you that you have not made it on to the list. Hope that helps!
 
Hey all, I'm a first year here (non-resident acceptance) that got in off the waitlist this summer. If y'all have any unanswered questions, I can try to answer them either in here or over PM!
 
Just got done with my interviews today. It has been an amazing experience. This is the only school that I have applied to thus far and it would be a fantastic if I were to matriculate here.

Both of my interviews were pretty much consistent with what everyone else has said. My first interview lasted like 30 min. My second interview lasted 1 hour. As you can imagine, my second interview went very very well. The best advice that I could give would be to get excited and pumped up.

The hardest question that I received was in relation to the new changes in healthcare and how the industry will be affected. (aka Affordable Care Act) If I could go back in time, I would familiarize myself more with healthcare policies.

Now its a waiting game. :cool:
 
Just a little over a month now before the first acceptance letters are sent out!
 
Sahren said:
TCOM has a LizzyM score of 63.7 (matriculated data, not accepted). You have a score of 62.5 so you're within range. They might stick you in the bridge program though, you never know. When did you apply?
Click to expand...

I was complete in late aug. would the bridge program still allow me to start in fall 2014?
 
Sahren said:
TCOM has a LizzyM score of 63.7 (matriculated data, not accepted). You have a score of 62.5 so you're within range. They might stick you in the bridge program though, you never know. When did you apply?
Click to expand...

The bridge program is only "by invitation" and only one, maximum two students are invited to enroll in it, only if they think you are good enough for med school but need a little "preparing" you are accepted into the Med sci program with guaranteed acceptance a year later
 
Sahren said:
That's why I said they might choose to stick him in that since he's a little borderline. We had somewhere around 10 bridge students in our class last year so the 1-2 figure is just wrong.
Click to expand...

We had only two in our class so it might vary greatly, I guess it depends on the applicant pool and what they bring to the table.
You only have 3 interviews if you are applying to the ROME program or if someone in the admissions committee wants to interview you besides your scheduled interviews
 
Sahren said:
That's why I said they might choose to stick him in that since he's a little borderline. We had somewhere around 10 bridge students in our class last year so the 1-2 figure is just wrong.
Click to expand...

We had only two in our class so it might vary greatly, I guess it depends on the applicant pool and what they bring to the table.

are you applying to the ROME program? ROME applicants have an additional interview
 
I've decided to apply to TCOM last minute, and am wondering how the whole TMDSAS ID thing works. Will I have to get my referees to resubmit the LORs with the TMDSAS ID/Evaluation Form, or can I just assign the LORs already uploaded to my Interfolio portfolio the TMDSAS ID myself and send them to TMDSAS? I'm really confused about this, so any help would be really appreciated. Thanks. :)
 
interview invite!!! - phone call received Friday. Only been complete for like 2.5 weeks :)
 
Interviewed here today. The student guides were very knowledgeable and showed us all around. We got to see the sim room (including surgery sim), library, omm room, lecture hall and anatomy lab. All of these seemed great and the students seemed to really like it here. They mentioned numerous times how much they worked together. Unt places students into a variety of residencies so there's a lot of chances to match into what you want.

Interviews were...not terrible. The 1st seem disinterested at first. The 2nd was a little harder and he didnt seem to like my answers. He said "well you didnt disqualify yourself" :laugh: so who knows. It was my first interviews though so it could have been me. They have an ABCDF grading system and no curving which I'm not a fan of but otherwise it's a great school.

Edit: Adding a little bit of misc. info. I arrived at 9:20 for my 9:30 check-in time. Got my name tag, folder with schedule and interviewer's names and sat in the lobby. Some had check in times of 7:00 and had their interviews done before we started the tour while I had both of mine in the afternoon. We sat around and talked until 10:30 when we were escorted to the metsci building and had a presentation. Then we had lunch (that we got to select in the morning and everything was delicious) and the ms2's came down and sat with us during lunch. After lunch we toured the rest of the campus and we're done by 1:15 as many of us interviews at this time. The interviews are scattered across campus so be prepared to a lot of walking. The entire interview day was very organized and I had all of my questions answered. Be prepared for DO/MD obviously. Both of my interviewers mentioned how the school wanted them to be sure to ask that and it was my first question each time. Try and come up with more than the "holistic approach/patient centered care" stuff as both interviewers mentioned they were glad I hadn't given them the textbook answer.
 
Last edited:
Congrats on the interview! I saw y'all on the tour coming through the library. PM me or post here if you have any questions that didn't get answered today.
 
I don't have much to contrast it with, but it doesn't bother me personally, and that seems to be the consensus among my classmates too. What the first two years tangibly boil down to is just your class rank -- you'd think that would make it a pretty cutthroat atmosphere, but I haven't seen that yet. Everybody shares their resources pretty freely.

For me, curving is irrelevant. I don't care so much about my pre-clinical education yielding a "4.0" or "all honors" as much as I do about it preparing me well for the COMLEX/USMLE.


To anybody who cares: for what it's worth, I think our testing schedule/system is superior to most everybody else's I've heard of. I've got friends at other schools (one in particular) that does the "hell week" a few times a semester that's full of tests in 5 or 6 different classes at once, like finals week over and over again. I couldn't do that.
 
II for Oct 10. Yay!
In-state 3.4cgpa/3.5sgpa/33(9vr/11ps/13bs)
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Next unread thread

Similar threads

PapaGuava
2022-2023 University of North Texas Health Science Center/Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine (UNTHSC/TCOM)
7 8 9 10 11
Replies
510
Views
93K
imtiredofthisgrandpa
I
PapaGuava
2021-2022 University of North Texas Health Science Center/Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine (UNTHSC/TCOM)
4 5 6 7 8
Replies
380
Views
125K
nxm3
nxm3
PapaGuava
2020-2021 University of North Texas Health Science Center/Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine (UNTHSC/TCOM)
8 9 10 11 12
Replies
572
Views
162K
Wdl2020
W
PapaGuava
  • Locked
2022-2023 Alphabetic Index of Osteopathic School-Specific Discussion Threads
Replies
0
Views
62K
PapaGuava
PapaGuava
PapaGuava
2019-2020 University of North Texas Health Science Center/Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine (UNTHSC/TCOM)
7 8 9 10 11
Replies
546
Views
160K
MRKHAN06
MRKHAN06
Top