What about PCSOM?

[EricOH]

Hey all...

I haven't seen any posts or comments about the Pikeville Colege School of Osteopathic Medicine. Comments anyone...people applying or current students?

How is the curriculum? Since its the newest ostepathic med school...is the curriculum doing well? board pass rate?

Thanks all!!

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[phd2b]

I agree that no one seems to be writing about PCSOM lately. I have applied and my application is complete. I'm just waiting to hear from them for a possible interview. Has anyone else on the forum scheduled an interview yet???

There are several PCSOM'ers on the board that can give you feedback about the school. All indications are that it is a great school, but is in the middle of *Nowhere*, KY, which matches their stated mission. If you *officially* aren't interested in rural osteopathic medicine (esp in Appalachia), don't bother applying.

You mileage may vary...

 

[asilvey]

If you look at the submitted questionnaires for PCSOM on interviewfeedback.com, you will notice that none were submitted earlier than November. Leads me to believe that they don't start interviewing until then (Nov.). Just a hypothesis.

 

[phd2b]

Roger that, asilvey. They told me that they would be conducting interviews from 'October through May' for this cycle. I was just curious as to whether anyone else had actually scheduled an interview or not...

 

[EricOH]

Hey all....

So where are the students at PCSOM? Tell us what it's like there..

Right now, they sent a letter for a 11/10 interview. Anyone else? Talk to you later and good luck!

 

[B_ADAMS]

Hey everyone,

I was just sitting here reading the post during an Embryo. lecture (wireless internet is a Bad thing).

I love being in school here. The class has 64 students, which is somewhat smaller than most schools.

The curriculum is quite stable. Currently we are taking Gross Anatomy, Biochem, Cell biology & microanatomy (aka histology), embryology, OP&P, clinical skills and medical ethics.

I'm sure most of you know we are on the block testing schedule, which means we have test (in every class) set aside for 2 days out of every month. Can get heavy for some, but I like it. It gives you some time to recover afterwards.

I not sure what the exact board pass rate is by percentage, but I know it is pretty good.

Some of the other students may know the percentage.

My advice-- If you like a close knit class and prof.s that truly care, then you will love it here.

Oh yeah, not everyone here wants to go into primary care in Applachia, but most say something like that around interview time.

The committees know that everyone does not want to do primary care, but many do.

I'm from Louisiana and I'm sure they knew that I was not intending on staying in Applachia, although I may (I'm not sure where I want to practice-- other than in a small town ah- rural medicine).

The town is small, but hey its not like you have that much time to party anyhow.
The town has everything you need, a few restaurants, movie theatre and a wal mart.
There is a YMCA that most students are members at.

We work hard, but we have a good time as well.

Ooh yeah, its not like the students are a bunch of hillbillies up here--- but there are some out and about in the area.

If I had it to do all over again, I would not choose anywhere else.

Hope to see some of you around interview time.

 

[Slingblade the Surgeon]

I have called twice to check to see if my file is complete, only to be met with harshness from the admissions people. The woman was very rude toward me and actually blew (sighed loudly and conspicuously)when I asked to verify that my file was complete. I also called back a third time as requested, but I had to leave a message and haven't gotten a callback yet (5 working days now). Has anyone else had this experience with PCSOM? I have a couple of interviews coming up and my file is complete and "under review" at the other 7 I applied to. I wonder why they hate me so...They didn't hate my money. hehe maybe they don't want us hillbillies from rural Appalachia.

 

[phd2b]

Slingblade,

I had a similar experience the one time that I called to verify the status of my file. I found that it is better to email the director of admissions directly. The turnaround is not very fast (several days), but there isn't any attitude in the email reply.

My understanding is that they have a relatively small staff and this time of year is really busy for them (giving them the benefit of the doubt). They didn't hate my money either.

Let us know when you get an interview...

 

[EricOH]

Hey B Adams...Thanks for the info!

Wow, wireless internet! Sounds fun...

Where do you do your rotations B Adams?

Good luck all!

 

[B_ADAMS]

Eric OH--

I'm just a first year student, no rotations for a while.

The admissions office is only staffed by a few people, so they are generally in a bind when all of the apps come in.

Best wishes

 

[Slingblade the Surgeon]

I got a postcard from them today so I suppose my question for them is answered anyway. I figured they must be pretty busy...if they let me in I'll take some of their calls for them.

 

[phd2b]

EricOH,

How did the interview go today?

Care to share your experiences?

Anyone else on the board signed up for interviews yet?

phd2b

 

[mongoose]

Slingblade, Do I know you? Are you in Knoxville?

 

[BADunning]

Allow me to echo some of the same feelings that B_Adams wrote.

I came here from Memphis, it was a dramatic change in pace. However, you don't have the time to go bar-hopping and/or other activities that consumed much time in undergrad. I am rather enjoying the small town atmosphere. One caveat, if you like anonymity, you probably won't like it here.

The class is small compared to other schools and the professors know us by first name and relate to us as individuals. It is evident they care about us as individuals and as students. I got that feeling even at the interview, something that didn't happen at other schools. Our class has also formed many bonds among its members and that helps us to encourage one another.

The curriculum is solid, as has been said. I'm very satisfied with the education I'm recieving here.

I turned down two allopathic schools and two other osteopathic schools to come here. Given the chance to do it over, I would do the same thing again. Faced with the prospect of having to transfer to some other place, I would fight very hard to stay here.

 

[Slingblade the Surgeon]

Mongoose,

Yes I am. I don't know if you do or not...Do/Did you go to UT?

 

[mongoose]

Slingblade...Yeah, I'm a Volunteer. I am a chem.major, graduating in the spring. Did you happen to take an MCAT prep course? If so, which one?

 

[EricOH]

Hey phd2b,

Actually I cancelled my interview. Sorry I can't give you any info. You have probably heard already: interviewfeedback.com is a good site.

Take care and good luck!

 

[phd2b]

EricOH,
Just curious...why did you cancel? Also, there isn't any new feedback at the site you mentioned.

Any of you PCSOM'ers know how many folks that they've interviewed/accepted to date?

 

[Slingblade the Surgeon]

Goose,
No I didn't take a prep course.
Me too in Spring.

PH2B,
I interviewed there last week. I thought I did a questionaire...maybe not. What do you want to know?

 

[B_ADAMS]

I believe 15 people interviewed this past saturday. I do not know many were accepted.

 

[phd2b]

Blade,

Who did you interview with? What were your questions? How did you like the faculty, facilities, students and pikevegas? Just give us the run-down. Also, were you accepted?

 

[Slingblade the Surgeon]

Interviews were with some people whose names escape me at the moment. The interviewers made me feel like they were on my side as opposed to some at other schools who made me feel like I was up for parole. They asked questions in such a way as to elicit an easy answer. The dean appears to be a militant sort of fellow and the others were clinical faculty and they were extremely nice. The facilities were small but good enough to learn in...hell, I could learn in a bathtub if I had to. The students were very friendly and incessantly offered to answer questions. Pikevegas as you call it (I call it piketropolis) sucks, but then again not for the student as all the necessities are there, seems like it would suck for a spouse. I haven't received word yet on acceptance or rejection.
I have been accepted at a few other schools so far so I'm not sweating it too much. It seemed to me that the strength of that school lies more in its clinical education than in its basic sciences. The tour left a lot to be desired. Many of the rooms were locked up since it was the weekend and there was no opportunity to view students at work (the monkeys in the cage, so-to-speak) and ask them quesitons, though our student guides were candid enough. It would have been nice to speak to some of the 3rd and 4th year students to see how the clinical education is going and to see more of the fqcilities.
Things I like:
Small classes
Everything but library in same building
They use lots of technology
Very friendly students
Have supercenter WalMart
They give you all kinds of stuff
Things I don't like:
Dinky town (6k pop.)
In the middle of nowhere
No decent jobs for spouse
No student housing that I know of
Board scores were lame at first, I think on par with foreign med school grads, but we were assured that they were better this year
Some place I went said that there were 8 ppl per cadaver (may not have been here) which would suck as most schools have 4. In all fairness though it may not have been piketropolis. I have been to many interviews and get them confused sometimes.

Anything else you want to know?

 

[mongoose]

Since I have an undergrad degree from Pikeville College, I can weigh in on the town and somewhat on the school. For me, Pikeville wasn't all that bad, since I lived about an hour away from there originally. All my family lived near and that helpe dmake it bearable. Pikeville, like many small towns, has a decent movie theater, a couple of nicer restaurants, and a Super WalMart. And that is it. As for their undergrad, it wasn't all that bad. For comparison, I attend the University of Tennessee now and it is my opinoin that I am receiving a far better education now, but it is in a different major, so a direct comparison may not be valid. It is my opinion that to learn as much at Pikeville College as one would at the University of Tennessee, more work would be required of the student. But that is just my opinion. Remember, I am comparing different educational disciplines. Why did I apply to Pikeville College School of Osteopathic Medicine? Because I feel it would be a nice place to study medicine and I believe I can receive a quality medical education there.

 

[Pikevillemedstudent]

It seems I have been absent from the boards for awhile. Second year is tough. I can assure you that at PCSOM there are only 4 students/cadaver. As for the board scores, the class of 2003(3rd years) scored a 90%. When you only have 60 people taking the exam, it is hard to get into the upper 90's. I think 6 people failed and I personally know that 1 of those failed by ONE question. I am sure you can imagine the disappointment. Also, I have always found the admissions staff to be very nice. I guess they get stressed out around this time of year, but it is still shocking to me. It certainly can not be Angel!! Perhaps the biggest strength at PCSOM is Pharm. Dr. Harris is amazing. We get an entire year of pharm and usually score the highest on the comlex as a whole since his arrrival. I had other acceptances also, but if I had to do it all over again, I would definitely choose PCSOM. EricOH I sorry you missed out.

 

[EricOH]

Hey all

Sorry I haven't posted...been out of town.

PhD2B-Reasoning for not going: I don't think I could live in a small town and attend a school with a short history. Best of luck to you all!!

Take care.

 

[phd2b]

Anything new on the PCSOM front? Any acceptances? Any of you planning on going? It's been mighty quiet...

 

[Billie]

Hi PikevilleMedStudent!

Long time no see! How you been? I am currently doing another ER rotation at PMH. I have been doing a lot of traveling too, going to internship interviews and stuff. But thank heavens that is over with. Now to Feb. where I will find out where I end up!

Hope all is well with you!

Billie, MS-IV
WVSOM

 

[Pikevillemedstudent]

Billie,
Are you thinking of coming to PMH for residency? I don't know if they will have the EM res. by then though. Good luck!

 

[Billie]

Pikevillemedstudent,

No, I am not pursuing an internship slot at PMH. I had considered it, but I just think it will be to my advantage to do my internship year at a program that already has an EM residency there. These places seem to "take from their own" first, then look outside for others to fill their slots. So I have interviewed at some places in Cleveland and a place in Philly, as well as the new program in Wheeling, WV.

Hope all is well with you! Happy Holidays!

Billie