USLME/COMPLEX Scores for NOVA-COM

[DrMaximus]

Hey guys,

I'm curious about how Nova's scores stack up next to other school's scores in all the boards.

I'm considering this as one of my top choices, but I've heard bad things about their scores. I've seen that they seem to land quite a few residencies in U of Florida's internal medicine program so I don't see how they can be too low, though.

Any other comments on this school would be well appreciated as well like how it's reputation is within Florida, how its lectures are, etc.

Anyways, thanks for the help!

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[Bravetown]

I wouldn't choose a school because of their test scores, because even if the school has a high average it's still up to you to get the score

 

[DrMaximus]

That's very true. I'm just curious if that's really true or if it's just another rumor. I really want to know more about the schools and how well they are known to get both allopathic and osteopathic residencies.

 

[Lukat]

That's very true. I'm just curious if that's really true or if it's just another rumor. I really want to know more about the schools and how well they are known to get both allopathic and osteopathic residencies.

Just look up their recent match lists. Go to this link:
http://medicine.nova.edu/
On the left side, click on Alumni Affairs, then click on Recent Graduate Placement, it seems that they have match lists since 2006 to 2010. Hope this helps

 

[DrMaximus]

You, sir, have made my night. =)

 

[Lukat]

You, sir, have made my night. =)

You're welcomed

 

[painmd87]

You have to know how to make a 3-point-turn to get your driver's license, can we make it a requirement that you need to know there's no P in COMLEX in order to post on SDN? I'm willing to give you USLME is simply a typo. But COMPLEX? C'mon man!

/grouchy

 

[UBCvan]

you mean USMLE?
and you mean COMLEX?

 

[hawkeye pierce]

One thing I do not get about this site, is that everyone thinks that the board scores don't matter because they are all on you. Do people really think the quality of the education and training methods they use have no impact on this?

 

[lftbndlbrnchblk]

One thing I do not get about this site, is that everyone thinks that the board scores don't matter because they are all on you. Do people really think the quality of the education and training methods they use have no impact on this?

I see what you're saying because it's very possible that a medical school class can be weak and strong, and some information on the USMLE/COMLEX could be glazed over and other stuff can be really hammered in. But I agree with posters on here. I wouldn't blame my undergraduate professors if I bombed the MCAT. Would you? Isn't that my doing? What does that have to do with my professors or my institution?

 

[hawkeye pierce]

No I would not blame my undergrad that is correct. However, this is about choosing a school, so choose the one with the track record.

 

[zac16125]

I see what you're saying because it's very possible that a medical school class can be weak and strong, and some information on the USMLE/COMLEX could be glazed over and other stuff can be really hammered in. But I agree with posters on here. I wouldn't blame my undergraduate professors if I bombed the MCAT. Would you? Isn't that my doing? What does that have to do with my professors or my institution?

Apples and oranges there. The MCAT is more of a standardized test in that most of the material can't me "studied for" in the traditional sense. No one really knows what is going to be on the MCAT from year to year, and you can memorize every MCAT book out there and it doesn't guarantee you a good score. The COMLEX on the other hand consists of, more or less recycled material, in a sense that certain concepts will nearly always be tested and the format of the questioning generally remains the same. The medical school you attend will almost certainly affect your COMLEX score.

The MCAT is more like the SAT, whereas the COMLEX is similar to (a very large and extensive) subject examination.

 

[lftbndlbrnchblk]

Apples and oranges there. The MCAT is more of a standardized test in that most of the material can't me "studied for" in the traditional sense. No one really knows what is going to be on the MCAT from year to year, and you can memorize every MCAT book out there and it doesn't guarantee you a good score. The COMLEX on the other hand consists of, more or less recycled material, in a sense that certain concepts will nearly always be tested and the format of the questioning generally remains the same. The medical school you attend will almost certainly affect your COMLEX score.

The MCAT is more like the SAT, whereas the COMLEX is similar to (a very large and extensive) subject examination.

I could have this all wrong but this entire cycle, I've been told pre-clinical grades don't mean a whole lot. This coming from people already in it and those that have been out for years. They told me; however, success on the USMLE/COMLEX can be predicted by how well one can perform on NBME/NBOME shelf exams, which are taken 3rd and 4th year. It's my understanding that one should go in and expect little help from the school you attend in preparation for these shelfs or the later exams like the USMLE/COMLEX aside from maybe a week sponsored by Kaplan or something. Perhaps, since Step 1 for USMLE/COMLEX is taken after MS2, the basic sciences at the school could leave more to be desired. But that's the only way I could see the school letting people down aside from having crap rotations lined up for their students later on but that's a fear everyone has - DO or MD. When people say medical school is what you make it, I tend to believe them because I can see how that could be the case.

My comparison to the MCAT was based on the fact that it's also a test where it all depends on how much you can put into it. And success is based on your efforts and not the help of anyone else. But I agree, no way the MCAT and COMLEX/USMLE are similar.

 

[scpod]

....The medical school you attend will almost certainly affect your COMLEX score..

I will disagree with that statement. YOU are the only person who controls your score on COMLEX. Every school will present you with the material you need to know. How well you use that material is up to you. How much effort you put into it is up to you. The fact that it is a standardized test means that ALL schools will be feeding you the same material, albeit in a slightly different way sometimes. YOU determine how to use it.

The MCAT is more like the SAT, whereas the COMLEX is similar to (a very large and extensive) subject examination.[/QUOTE]

I can't really totally agree with this one either. COMLEX feeds off of a number of intertwined subjects and requires that you have the ability to synthesize material from each of those. That's why the MCAT is structured as it is. They both have the information you need to solve the puzzle and you must best figure out how to put it together. Yes, there is a lot of material that you just have to know, but you have to take it a lot farther than that.

 

[scpod]

I could have this all wrong but this entire cycle, I've been told pre-clinical grades don't mean a whole lot....

They can mean a lot when you are applying for residency. Some schools only count the first two years when establishing your class rank. Even when they don't, your Med School GPA can keep you from some residencies. Many of them will have a minimum.