Western/COMP Discussion Thread 2011-2012

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That's great about your deferred acceptance. At least you know you'll be going somewhere, sometime! So I'm guessing you are from Cali? I interviewed on 2/18 too, but don't live there so I was wondering how long the mail would take

yeah i'm from cali.. I called in on tuesday and robin said some got sent out including mine.. But she said some are still waiting to be determined by the admissions counselor for our interview date. best of luck to you :D i hope some people will be accepted over deferred acceptance in our group.

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Hey has anyone else heard back after interviewing 1/28? I find it strange that some people have gotten snail mail back as early as a week ago and some haven't yet. I asked Ana and she said we'd be getting our mail by the end of this week.
 
Hey has anyone else heard back after interviewing 1/28? I find it strange that some people have gotten snail mail back as early as a week ago and some haven't yet. I asked Ana and she said we'd be getting our mail by the end of this week.
Yeah I heard back today. They offered me deferred acceptance. That's too bad because I really liked this school. :(
 
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I interviewed on Feb. 18th and they said we should hear back in 2 weeks. However, what has been the actual wait time? It seems like its over a month for most students.
 
If they offer you a deferred acceptance, do they make you sign a contract that says you won't apply to any medical schools during next year?
 
I received a deferred acceptance from western a couple of days ago. DECISION TIME!!!! I have an acceptance from NSU for this school year. The school /environment are awesome, but I am a Cali resident. If I attend Western, then I will be in California, but importantly I will be closer to my family. If I go to NSU, then I will save one year, but one year doesn’t make a difference if I look at long term. I can use that year to travel and save up some money for the long haul. DECISIONS!!! DECISION!!! You guys have any input on my situation?
 
I received a deferred acceptance from western a couple of days ago. DECISION TIME!!!! I have an acceptance from NSU for this school year. The school /environment are awesome, but I am a Cali resident. If I attend Western, then I will be in California, but importantly I will be closer to my family. If I go to NSU, then I will save one year, but one year doesn’t make a difference if I look at long term. I can use that year to travel and save up some money for the long haul. DECISIONS!!! DECISION!!! You guys have any input on my situation?

Thats funny. I also have an acceptance to NSU along with my deferred acceptance to Western. I'm not a Cali resident but I did grow up there. Don't have any advice to offer you other than my empathy. I'm going through the same decision as you. Loved NSU but felt more at home in Western.

To answer the question a poster had about not being able to apply next year with the deferred acceptance I have read and reread the letter sent and the paper they asked us to send back to accept the deferral. I can't see a reason or fine print that would prohibit one from applying next year to different schools. I plan on calling the school soon to ask them some questions about it so I'll make sure to ask about that.
 
Has anyone heard back from Feb. 18th interview. They said we should hear back in two weeks.
 
Does anyone know how the whole deferred acceptance works? Do you absolutely have to pay the deposit in order for them to offer you admission to c/o 2016 if spots open up or do they offer it automatically even I you haven't payed yet? Also is there a specific order in how they pick which people to offer admission this year if seats open up? I was accepted at MSUCOM after being offered deferred acceptance automatically and I'm wondering if I still have any hope left at Western...
 
I believe you absolutely have to pay the deposit. And the date in which you send in the deposit will determine your rank to be potentially pulled off the deferred acceptance list and into the class of 2016. So if person A paid the deposit on March 7th and person B paid on March 12. Person A would have priority and would be called first if a spot opened up in the class of 2016. And looking from last year, everyone got pulled from the deferred acceptance list and then some regular alternate list applicants were pulled into the class of 2015 as well.
 
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I received a deferred acceptance from western a couple of days ago. DECISION TIME!!!! I have an acceptance from NSU for this school year. The school /environment are awesome, but I am a Cali resident. If I attend Western, then I will be in California, but importantly I will be closer to my family. If I go to NSU, then I will save one year, but one year doesn’t make a difference if I look at long term. I can use that year to travel and save up some money for the long haul. DECISIONS!!! DECISION!!! You guys have any input on my situation?

Seeing as they're both great schools, I would just take the acceptance at NSU. I've got a friend (also CA resident) that's starting NSU in the fall and he loves the campus. To be honest, I'm a tad jealous of his location.

At the end of the day, the state you attend school in doesn't matter all that much.
 
I also got a deferred acceptance (interviewed 1/28), so I called Western today and they said that there is no ranking for the deferred/alternate applicants. Apparently when there is a spot, EVERYONE is considered. It doesn't matter when you gave them your money and whether you're deferred versus waitlisted. Got it straight from the admissions counselor. Maybe they're doing things differently from previous years? :confused:
 
I believe you absolutely have to pay the deposit. And the date in which you send in the deposit will determine your rank to be potentially pulled off the deferred acceptance list and into the class of 2016. So if person A paid the deposit on March 7th and person B paid on March 12. Person A would have priority and would be called first if a spot opened up in the class of 2016. And looking from last year, everyone got pulled from the deferred acceptance list and then some regular alternate list applicants were pulled into the class of 2015 as well.

I just called one of the admissions counselors, and she said that they deferred acceptance list is not ranked at all.
 
Thank you for your input ooitsrich!

Anyone has any input on MSUCOM vs. WesternU? Would it be worth it for me to pay 2 grand (and risk losing it if i'm not invited to start this year) when i already have an acceptance from MSUCOM? I'm really torn about this. Thanks in advance! :)
 
I also got a deferred acceptance (interviewed 1/28), so I called Western today and they said that there is no ranking for the deferred/alternate applicants. Apparently when there is a spot, EVERYONE is considered. It doesn't matter when you gave them your money and whether you're deferred versus waitlisted. Got it straight from the admissions counselor. Maybe they're doing things differently from previous years? :confused:

I called as well and they told me the same thing. Forgot to ask if one could also apply to other schools next cycle with the deferral. But I think I'll plan on taking my acceptance to NSU and wait and see if a spot opens up over the summer.
 
Thank you for your input ooitsrich!

Anyone has any input on MSUCOM vs. WesternU? Would it be worth it for me to pay 2 grand (and risk losing it if i'm not invited to start this year) when i already have an acceptance from MSUCOM? I'm really torn about this. Thanks in advance! :)

MSUCOM's OOS tuition is ridiculous even for a DO school. For that reason I would question attending that school. But it is one of the best DO schools for a reason. Maybe you can think mathematically that the future earning you would get could by going to school a year earlier at MSUCOM would make up for the difference in tuition. Does that help you rationalize it? :)
 
MSUCOM's OOS tuition is ridiculous even for a DO school. For that reason I would question attending that school. But it is one of the best DO schools for a reason. Maybe you can think mathematically that the future earning you would get could by going to school a year earlier at MSUCOM would make up for the difference in tuition. Does that help you rationalize it? :)
Oh I'm in-state so tuition for MSUCOM would be cheaper than Western for me. I was thinking in terms of the schools and their programs. Thanks for your advice! :)
 
I called as well and they told me the same thing. Forgot to ask if one could also apply to other schools next cycle with the deferral. But I think I'll plan on taking my acceptance to NSU and wait and see if a spot opens up over the summer.
Yeah I called them as well and they said the same thing to me. But I forgot to ask them when do people find out if they're offered admission for this year. I can only wait till about May because MSUCOM's classes starts mid June. So that's another reason why I don't know if it's worth me paying Western's deposit.
 
Oh I'm in-state so tuition for MSUCOM would be cheaper than Western for me. I was thinking in terms of the schools and their programs. Thanks for your advice! :)

I just assumed you were out of state because you were even asking the questions. In-state tuition+ one of the top programs+ acceptance vs. deferred acceptance = MSUCOM for the win.
 
I'm from Arizona, interviewed 2/18... received the deferred acceptance this weekend. I called and she said they usually see movement in June. They offer all of the deferred acceptance students a seat before they move on to the waitlist, you do not have to join this years class if you do not want to. It sounded like we have a pretty good chance of starting this year to me... Good luck to everyone!
 
I just called the admissions office and was told that even though my application is still out for review, all of the interview spots have been filled and they don't anticipate adding anymore.
 
Hey, a little off topic from what has been talked about lately, but I was just looking at the DO match results from like a month ago and is there any reason why Western's match percentage is so low compared to others? If Western has their students perform so well on both board exams, it just doesn't add up. Anyone who has some insight, please let me know. Thanks!
 
Hey, a little off topic from what has been talked about lately, but I was just looking at the DO match results from like a month ago and is there any reason why Western's match percentage is so low compared to others? If Western has their students perform so well on both board exams, it just doesn't add up. Anyone who has some insight, please let me know. Thanks!

This was brought up at a recent "town hall" meeting with our assistant dean. She said that the school has been in contact with all of the 4th years reagrding their match results and that those published numbers are significantly different from what the school has recorded internally. She also said that she was very pleased with what she had seen of our AOA match results, that approximately 10 people out of 70 hadn't matched and she had contacted them personally and they had reported that they were "reaching" for desirable locations/competitive specialties in the AOA match and were also applying ACGME.
 
The people who chose to attend Western, what things specifically attracted you compared to the other DO schools out there?
 
The people who chose to attend Western, what things specifically attracted you compared to the other DO schools out there?

Established school, fairly solid rotations, good local reputation for churning out solid students, no dress code + fairly lax attendance policy and, of course, close to family.

I only wish they could transplant the beautiful AZCOM campus over to Western, but I'll keep dreaming.
 
Hey everyone so I have my interview this Saturday and I was wondering if anyone has any last minute advice/tips. Thanks!
 
Hey everyone so I have my interview this Saturday and I was wondering if anyone has any last minute advice/tips. Thanks!

just be yourself, you'll be fine.
you'll do two mmi stations, and you'll do the interview, which is pretty laid back, no trick questions.
just know the basics (why do/medicine/western?) and you'll be fine.
if you want you can review the interview feedback which can be helpful.
good luck:thumbup:
 
hey guys, i just got accepted to touro nv and deferred acceptance to western university. I live in cali and my family is fairly close to campus so i'd definetly feel more peace of mind staying. Then again, knowing myself.. If I wait a year, i know i might become a very very super duper lazy person and kinda don't want to subject myself to that. I like to keep my productivity and I suppose my momentum going. Ultimately, my goals after finishing medical school is to practice in California which is already saturated with several other physicians. Do you think going straight to med school in henderson will affect my residency location or even practicing in California down the line? I mean, i looked at the residency matches and there are hardly any in ca in comparison to western.. Thanks for the input guys
 
Hey everyone so I have my interview this Saturday and I was wondering if anyone has any last minute advice/tips. Thanks!


i know you've probably read or heard this several times that it might sound redundant but, you really just gotta be yourself. Be confident (but not too confident where you look like an a-hole) and know what you are talking about. The way i looked at my interview that seemed to help me was thinking that these interviewers aren't looking for a possible future student at this school, but more along the lines of a future colleague. If you are friendly, sociable, and professional, you will be fine. Cause after all, they know everything else about you and all the BS you've done to get to this point (grades, ec, mcat)...

Another piece of advice is to know your aacomas app front to back because they will ask about it, but don't go into it re-explaining yourself completely. just add things that just cant be expressed on paper.. like your emotions and how you felt about eveyrthing (i.e. i expressed how extremely happy and satisfied i was over doing a humanitarian trip)

You'll be fine. it's a piece of cake. good luck.
 
hey guys, i just got accepted to touro nv and deferred acceptance to western university. I live in cali and my family is fairly close to campus so i'd definetly feel more peace of mind staying. Then again, knowing myself.. If I wait a year, i know i might become a very very super duper lazy person and kinda don't want to subject myself to that. I like to keep my productivity and I suppose my momentum going. Ultimately, my goals after finishing medical school is to practice in California which is already saturated with several other physicians. Do you think going straight to med school in henderson will affect my residency location or even practicing in California down the line? I mean, i looked at the residency matches and there are hardly any in ca in comparison to western.. Thanks for the input guys

I applied MD, so my perspective may be limited, but I work in a hospital where I can get a lot of insight from residents and attendings. Some of our employees are also considering medical school and asked the docs about which osteopathic schools they recommended if they didn't have the option of getting into an MD school (NOT TRYING TO START A FLAME WAR JUST HEAR ME OUT).

The answer was always Western. In fact, had I applied DO, the only school I would want to attend would be Western. Not only is the location great, but I've heard great things about the school, it has a solid match list, and from what I've seen has churned out very capable clinicians, especially at a busy hospital. A Western doc also told me that they usually get the highest caliber DO students, and that's evident in the average stats. So if I were in your shoes, I would accept the deferred acceptance and happily go to Western. But n=1 and what do I know, I'm just a pre-med ;)

The disclaimer, obviously, is that I know nothing about Touro.
 
hey guys, i just got accepted to touro nv and deferred acceptance to western university. I live in cali and my family is fairly close to campus so i'd definetly feel more peace of mind staying. Then again, knowing myself.. If I wait a year, i know i might become a very very super duper lazy person and kinda don't want to subject myself to that. I like to keep my productivity and I suppose my momentum going. Ultimately, my goals after finishing medical school is to practice in California which is already saturated with several other physicians. Do you think going straight to med school in henderson will affect my residency location or even practicing in California down the line? I mean, i looked at the residency matches and there are hardly any in ca in comparison to western.. Thanks for the input guys

Personally I'd take the acceptance now over going to Western next year. Unless you have something in particular that you would like to do in the next year you might as well start school now. Think of the value of a lost year of income as a physician and the likelihood of a residency crunch in the near future. If practicing in Cali is your goal just do all of your elective rotations here, you'll be able to stay with your family so the logisitcs will be easy.
 
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Hey, a little off topic from what has been talked about lately, but I was just looking at the DO match results from like a month ago and is there any reason why Western's match percentage is so low compared to others? If Western has their students perform so well on both board exams, it just doesn't add up. Anyone who has some insight, please let me know. Thanks!


yeah, the AOA match isn't very high because only a bunch apply AOA. For DO's in general, if you know you want to do a really competitive specialty, Rads, Ortho, etc, it's much more favorable to go AOA. For the majority of us, it's ACGME. That being said, there are tons of great matches already this year, ACGME optho comes to mind, a lot of ER already, psych is really big again, a lot of anesthesia ACGME matches and tons other. I think you'll be very happy with the list when it's out friday. not to say the school has ANYTHING to do with it, but I'm proud of my classmates!
 
I interviewed on 2/18 and was put on the alternative list. They mentioned that they put somewhere between 60 to 70 people on the alternative list. Does anyone know on average how many of those put on alternative list get accepted?
 
yeah, the AOA match isn't very high because only a bunch apply AOA. For DO's in general, if you know you want to do a really competitive specialty, Rads, Ortho, etc, it's much more favorable to go AOA. For the majority of us, it's ACGME. That being said, there are tons of great matches already this year, ACGME optho comes to mind, a lot of ER already, psych is really big again, a lot of anesthesia ACGME matches and tons other. I think you'll be very happy with the list when it's out friday. not to say the school has ANYTHING to do with it, but I'm proud of my classmates!

Thanks for the update...looking forward to that list. I assume that the majority at Western takes both the USMLE and COMLEX?
 
Are the 4th years making a google doc for match results this year just like last year's class?
 
Are the 4th years making a google doc for match results this year just like last year's class?

I've heard that they are but I haven't seen a link yet. It'll probably be shared friday after everyone knows where they are going.
 
Hey superfan, is the match results posted?
 
How do you know if a match list is good? What sort of things should I be looking for in a schools match results?
 
Hey all-

I interviewed on 3/1. Has anyone from that interview date heard back from Western?
 
Hey all-

I interviewed on 3/1. Has anyone from that interview date heard back from Western?

When I called the Admissions Office on Monday, they said that those decisions will be mailed out sometime next week :/
 
does anyone know about the timeline for when students will be notified as to where they are on the alternate list and when movement is most likely to occur?
 
When I called the Admissions Office on Monday, they said that those decisions will be mailed out sometime next week :/

I guess I can stop chasing down the mailman until next week! Thanks!
 
Good to hear! Hope to see the list soon! Thanks
 
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