I agree that is pretty scary. VCOM just seems worse off now with a dictator controlling what students can and can't say about the school. I wonder if the dean made a sn pretending to be a happy student or paid someone to say good things. Very WEIRD at VCOM.
Wow, really? Your first logical conclusion is that the Dean is paying us to act happy?
It is unprofessional to come on a public forum and defame an individual. It is also illegal. The dean could easily have many people on these forums charged with defamation of character. The fact that she calls someone out and tells them to take down a post is not scary; the easier way to deal with it would have been to dismiss the student and sue them for libel.
This is a public forum that anyone can read. If you post something that reflects an individual in a poor and inaccurate light, be prepared for that person to find out about it. If your classmate posted their facebook status about what a corrupt and terrible individual you were, an opinion that was clearly skewed by their personal beliefs, would you not talk to them about taking it down? Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but when your opinion is completely clouded by personal things going on in your life (ie: Rolltide's family situation), it is most certainly not appropriate to attribute your difficulties to an individual or even the entire school.
Like it or not, when we are doctors we will be expected to act in a professional manner. This means not pointing people out individually OR being prepared to deal with the consequences when you do. Free speech is one thing, but defaming a person (or an entire organization, business, etc) is completely different and people who act in this way will likely pay for it eventually both professionally and legally.
So, in short, the dean has never offered to pay me, given me a grade boost for posting my love of vcom on here, or given me any other sort of incentive to come on a public forum and give a second side to a story. I did it because I truly love vcom, and I know that I am getting an education beyond what I could have imagined. As a first year medical student, I never thought that I would be able to keep up with fourth years from other schools, yet here I am.
Just to give you all some light into the mindset of some of the second years here: recently a second year told a friend of mine that VCOM was listed as one of Forbe's worst companies to work for/ least financially stable companies in America. VCOM is a computer software company:
http://www.avanquest.com/USA/vcom/
Twisting words and situations to make your point fit is easy. I have no doubt that there are a few people who are very unhappy at this school, but think of the much larger group who are incredibly happy with their education. The fact that anyone is offered a second chance to begin with is something that other schools would never consider (seriously, look at the thread titled "facing dismissal," where repeating a year is simply against school policy, or look at past med students' situations where failing one class automatically got them dismissed from school). VCOM takes care of their own.
Regardless of how much anyone complains on these forums, the seats will fill, VCOM will continue to attract applicants from all over and with all sorts of strengths and weaknesses, and the profession will go on. I'm only concerned with knowing from where these negative and unprofessional comments come so that I may avoid working with the individuals in the future.
