What is the highest ranked osteopathic school in the country?

[postbacpremed87]

Which one?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

They aren't formally ranked, this isn't law school. However CCOM, PCOM, NYCOM, DMU, KCOM, KCUMB, Western, and TCOM are considered the better of the DO schools. In that they are older and more well established ( Read as: have strong connections and rotations) and have stats which are pretty comparable to MD schools.

 

[Dr Yiot]

They aren't formally ranked, this isn't law school. However CCOM, PCOM, NYCOM, DMU, KCOM, KCUMB, Western, and TCOM are considered the better of the DO schools. In that they are older and more well established ( Read as: have strong connections and rotations) and have stats which are pretty comparable to MD schools.

what about LECOM and UMDNJ?

this is a very subjective question.

 

[seraphkz]

UMDNJ should definitely be on that list too.

 

[aSagacious]

this is a very subjective question.

Agreed. There is no 'US News Research Ranking' for most DO schools. So what sorts of criteria are you looking for? Gaudy GPA/MCAT averages? Low acceptance rates? High COMLEX pass rates? High % matched into derm?

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

what about LECOM and UMDNJ?

this is a very subjective question.

I honestly was naming a few off the top of my head, however I'd say UMDNJ is probably a good school, albeit in New Jersey so....
But yah, for the most part the question is subjective. So I tried to take into account strength of rotations and establishedness/age to make it a slightly more objective list.

 

[postbacpremed87]

I am just saying that I might throw a few DO schools into the mix in addition to applying majority MD. I was wondering what is the most well established osteopathic medical school in that they can get an allopathic residency easily if they wanted to in say anesthesiology.

Agreed. There is no 'US News Research Ranking' for most DO schools. So what sorts of criteria are you looking for? Gaudy GPA/MCAT averages? Low acceptance rates? High COMLEX pass rates? High % matched into derm?

 

[Poliscidoc]

Michigan State?

 

[tkim]

I am just saying that I might throw a few DO schools into the mix in addition to applying majority MD. I was wondering what is the most well established osteopathic medical school in that they can get an allopathic residency easily if they wanted to in say anesthesiology.

Not the school, the applicant. Board scores, grades, LORs, rotations.

 

[FrkyBgStok]

Not the school, the applicant. Board scores, grades, LORs, rotations.

+1. I would guess that most, if not all DO schools can boast about at least some MD residency placements in moderately competitive specialties.

 

[gatorfann14]

KCUMB had a kid match integrated plastics last year and I can say with confidence KCUMB had absolutely nothing to do with it. You learn quickly success in med school is based on your work.

 

[nicknickp3]

Which ever one lets me doctor in their facilities.

 

[jphwki82]

I am just saying that I might throw a few DO schools into the mix in addition to applying majority MD. I was wondering what is the most well established osteopathic medical school in that they can get an allopathic residency easily if they wanted to in say anesthesiology.

MSUCOM had several people match into an allopathic anesthesiology program. http://com.msu.edu/admissions/AllopathicMatch2010.pdf and http://com.msu.edu/admissions/index.html have the osteopathic and allopathic match lists for the past 3 years. Our school is well established, and has a number of base hospitals affiliated with it. A lot of the osteopathic residencies are in the state of Michigan, and it is a very D.O. friendly state.

 

[slammer922]

I may be biased, but tcom has Excellent matches, 99% comlex pass rate, 75% of us take usmle and we have a 95% pass rate, and I think we have the most NIH research funding.

 

[costales]

I may be biased, but tcom has Excellent matches, 99% comlex pass rate, 75% of us take usmle and we have a 95% pass rate, and I think we have the most NIH research funding.

And the president of the Texas Medical Board is a TCOM DO.

 

[drctother]

The answer is very subjective and literally everyone is going to claim their school is the best, which is not the case with at least 10 of the DO schools. However I would personally say the following are exceptionally good schools.

TCOM, MSU, Western, PCOM, CCOM, UMDNJ, KCOM

 

[costales]

MSU is actually the only one that's "ranked" and UMDNJ is the leader in research. Other than that, the older schools like PCOM, TCOM, OSUCOM, KCOM, KCUMB, CCOM, and Western are equally as good.

TCOM is "ranked" too. U.S. News & World Report has always listed TCOM as "University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, TX" (TCOM is basically shorthand for UNTHSC's med school). In fact, TCOM ranked higher than UT Southwestern for primary care the last time I looked.

 

[OMGPharmD]

Fortunately, Gas is a specialty in which DO's are widely accepted even at the very "top" programs. MSUCOM, KCOM ect. matched students into Hopkins Gas program before, http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/anesthesiology/residency/apply/match_results.html , Western COMP has 1 matched into UCLA gas last year IIRCC (to my knowledge UCLA, as a whole, is not very friendly towards DOs). Point is if you are set on Anesthesiology as a prospective specialty, any DO school in the country will be fine. Personal merits >>>>>>>>>>>> school.

 

[gatorfann14]

TCOM is "ranked" too. U.S. News & World Report has always listed TCOM as "University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, TX" (TCOM is basically shorthand for UNTHSC's med school). In fact, TCOM ranked higher than UT Southwestern for primary care the last time I looked.

LECOM is ranked as well we are #63. EAT IT Yale and Stanford!! But really, those rankings don't mean anything. The best school is the one you are comfortable at.

 

[HH Holmes]

NSU-COM had 12 anesthesiology matches a few years back. Agreeing with most people who posted; it doesn't matter where you go. Get good board scores, do your away rotations and try to do research on the specialty you want to match into.

 

[TriagePreMed]

TCOM is "ranked" too. U.S. News & World Report has always listed TCOM as "University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, TX" (TCOM is basically shorthand for UNTHSC's med school). In fact, TCOM ranked higher than UT Southwestern for primary care the last time I looked.

Oh, that's good to hear.

 

[patel2]

Depends on what you are looking to do. IMO, if you want to specialize, then the better a school's ranking is for USNews Primary Care, the worse off you are at that school.

Research wise, there are no DO schools ranked. But who cares? It only really matters for academic medicine, and it may give an applicant a (very slight) edge into getting into the top-tier programs of any given field, but won't necessarily help with getting into that field in general. The better DO schools are the more established, and if you have a choice then pick them over the newer ones that have limited track records.

 

[nicknickp3]

And the president of the Texas Medical Board is a TCOM DO.

I shadow Dr. Hanford. Excellent physician.

 

[aSagacious]

Research wise, there are no DO schools ranked. But who cares? It only really matters for academic medicine, and it may give an applicant a (very slight) edge into getting into the top-tier programs of any given field, but won't necessarily help with getting into that field in general. The better DO schools are the more established, and if you have a choice then pick them over the newer ones that have limited track records.

I might take issue with the bolded section. I generally agree with your sentiment but you seem to understate the importance of research experience in residency admissions. From what I've been told research is one of those unwritten requirements for MANY competitive residencies and finding a school that has plenty of research opportunities (which cannot be said for many DO schools) is very important. Of course one cannot be sure of their specialty preference before entering med school so IMO it would be wise to leave yourself the opportunity (by choosing a well-funded school) just in case you decide to go that route later on.

 

[willen101383]

http://nucleus.pcom.edu/cps/pcom_content/StdAffairs/Career/DO/Match_List_2011_Philadelphia.pdf

answers your ?s about gas matches

 

[donkeykong1]

the way i see it, after visiting schools this cycle.

Tier1: State supported institutions: OUCOM, MSUCOM, TCOM. OSUCOM, UMDNJSOM

Tier2: Established private COMs: PCOM, KCOM, kcumb, NYCOM, CCOM, Western-ca, NSUCOM, UNECOM, dmucom

Tier3 strong community focus : VCOM (both branches), WVSOM,

Tier4 branch schools with established mother institutions: AZCOM, ATSU-SOMA, PCOM-GA

Tier 5: Touro colleges in ca, nv, ny

Tier 6: all LECOM institutions erie, bradenton, seton hill

Tier 7: newer schools with lots of upside: lmu-dcom, wcucom, rvucom, pikeville, pnwucom, western-oregon

 

[HH Holmes]

There's always great debate on this, so I will watch what I say, but just know that RVU-COM is a for-profit school (the only FP medical school in the US). This affects many applicants' views on the school.

 

[seraphkz]

Wow you guys rate LECOM that low?

 

[Mbeas]

Wow you guys rate LECOM that low?

I'm kind of baffled by that assessment as well. Personally, I don't agree with that ranking, but to each their own, I guess. I definitely disagree with VCOM/WVSOM being "Tier 3", as I would put them into the Tier 6/7 group. Also, I would flip
Tier 1/2 because I would rank an old, established institution over any new(er) state institution.

 

[debbrown]

There's always great debate on this, so I will watch what I say, but just know that RVU-COM is a for-profit school (the only FP medical school in the US). This affects many applicants' views on the school.

There has been quite a bit of publicity surrounding the for-profit schools and colleges. Any ideas on how this might affect RVU or its reputation if at all? I'm thinking about RVU for possibly next year.

 

[TeamZissou]

Also take into account the location of the school. Here in Chicago we rotate through places that have med students from 6 other schools here in the city alone. As such when trying to find research in a specific field that your school might not have, you can probably find a doc around that might be affiliated with other schools.

 

[deleted245139]

the way i see it, after visiting schools this cycle.

Tier1: State supported institutions: OUCOM, MSUCOM, TCOM. OSUCOM, UMDNJSOM

Tier2: Established private COMs: PCOM, KCOM, kcumb, NYCOM, CCOM, Western-ca, NSUCOM, UNECOM, dmucom

Tier3 strong community focus : VCOM (both branches), WVSOM,

Tier4 branch schools with established mother institutions: AZCOM, ATSU-SOMA, PCOM-GA

Tier 5: Touro colleges in ca, nv, ny

Tier 6: all LECOM institutions erie, bradenton, seton hill

Tier 7: newer schools with lots of upside: lmu-dcom, wcucom, rvucom, pikeville, pnwucom, western-oregon

this isn't law school. also, you interviewed at each and every school on this list?

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

I'm kind of baffled by that assessment as well. Personally, I don't agree with that ranking, but to each their own, I guess. I definitely disagree with VCOM/WVSOM being "Tier 3", as I would put them into the Tier 6/7 group. Also, I would flip
Tier 1/2 because I would rank an old, established institution over any new(er) state institution.

I personally in my opinion view LECOM & Touro as tier 2 schools, they are undoubtedly strong schools, but lack as many connections. Tier 1 schools are in my opinion are state schools + Well established privates. VCOM, WCU, WVSOM, and OUCOM, might as well be tier Z for me as I would never attend them.

 

[Mbeas]

I personally in my opinion view LECOM & Touro as tier 2 schools, they are undoubtedly strong schools, but lack as many connections. Tier 1 schools are in my opinion are state schools + Well established privates. VCOM, WCU, WVSOM, and OUCOM, might as well be tier Z for me as I would never attend them.

Completely agree. I'm awaiting a response from the poster who ranked LECOM so low on the list...

 

[donkeykong1]

I personally in my opinion view LECOM & Touro as tier 2 schools, they are undoubtedly strong schools, but lack as many connections. Tier 1 schools are in my opinion are state schools + Well established privates. VCOM, WCU, WVSOM, and OUCOM, might as well be tier Z for me as I would never attend them.

As I stated in my post, this is the way I rank this list in my experience so far this cycle. Believe me, no one applicant will have the same school ranking list.

 

[donkeykong1]

I'm kind of baffled by that assessment as well. Personally, I don't agree with that ranking, but to each their own, I guess. I definitely disagree with VCOM/WVSOM being "Tier 3", as I would put them into the Tier 6/7 group. Also, I would flip
Tier 1/2 because I would rank an old, established institution over any new(er) state institution.

the only private institutions older that the state ones are dmu, kcom (the oldest there is), pcom, ccom.

still though, when taking into account stability of faculty,hospital affiliations, rotations, variety and strength of post grad residencies, in addition to research funding, not moving state to state year 3 and 4...state supported DO schools are imo in better shape than private ones.

Also to the OP, if you've researched other threads on the same topic "trying to rank DO schools" you will find lots of different opinions. Just try and take everything here with a grain of salt and go out and visit schools yourself before coming to a decision. It also helps to speak to DO residents and attendings. In any case though a DO from any accredited non profit or for profit school will enable you to practice medicine in an unlimited scope.

 

[Mbeas]

also to the op, if you've researched other threads on the same topic "trying to rank do schools" you will find lots of different opinions. Just try and take everything here with a grain of salt and go out and visit schools yourself before coming to a decision. it also helps to speak to do residents and attendings. In any case though a do from any accredited non profit or for profit school will enable you to practice medicine in an unlimited scope.

+1

 

[HockeyDr09]

the way i see it, after visiting schools this cycle.

Tier1: State supported institutions: OUCOM, MSUCOM, TCOM. OSUCOM, UMDNJSOM

Tier2: Established private COMs: PCOM, KCOM, kcumb, NYCOM, CCOM, Western-ca, NSUCOM, UNECOM, dmucom

Tier3 strong community focus : VCOM (both branches), WVSOM,

Tier4 branch schools with established mother institutions: AZCOM, ATSU-SOMA, PCOM-GA

Tier 5: Touro colleges in ca, nv, ny

Tier 6: all LECOM institutions erie, bradenton, seton hill

Tier 7: newer schools with lots of upside: lmu-dcom, wcucom, rvucom, pikeville, pnwucom, western-oregon

I'll never understand the LECOM hate on here. The school is so underrated on this site it's remarkable. Oh well, I'll just enjoy the immaculate facilities, 50mil wellness center, 3rd cheapest private school tuition in the country, 95% board pass rate, lengthy list of rotation sites, low cost of living, and of course, its own hospital which has multiple competitive residencies (optho, ortho, oto+plastic, EM, gastro fellowship, sports med fellowship).

Yeah, I guess tier 6 sounds about right .

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

I'll never understand the LECOM hate on here. The school is so underrated on this site it's remarkable. Oh well, I'll just enjoy the immaculate facilities, 50mil wellness center, cheapest 3rd cheapest private school tuition in the country, 95% board pass rate, lengthy list of rotation sites, low cost of living, and of course, its own hospital which has multiple competitive residencies (optho, ortho, oto+plastic, EM, gastro fellowship, sports med fellowship).

Yeah, I guess tier 6 sounds about right .

Erie weather + strict dress code = Unhappy Californians.

 

[donkeykong1]

I'll never understand the LECOM hate on here. The school is so underrated on this site it's remarkable. Oh well, I'll just enjoy the immaculate facilities, 50mil wellness center, 3rd cheapest private school tuition in the country, 95% board pass rate, lengthy list of rotation sites, low cost of living, and of course, its own hospital which has multiple competitive residencies (optho, ortho, oto+plastic, EM, gastro fellowship, sports med fellowship).

Yeah, I guess tier 6 sounds about right .

don't get me wrong you'll definitely get a great education for the money at LECOM. most of the "competitive" residencies at the 200 bed Millcreek hospital take on only 1 resident provided they get the funding. the optho program in particular has didactics at columbia univ. though which is pretty legit i must say .

also the 95% pass rate at erie is that for last years class? does lecom require students to take a pre-exam before they are allowed to sit for the real deal.

 

[Dissected]

I personally in my opinion view LECOM & Touro as tier 2 schools, they are undoubtedly strong schools, but lack as many connections. Tier 1 schools are in my opinion are state schools + Well established privates. VCOM, WCU, WVSOM, and OUCOM, might as well be tier Z for me as I would never attend them.

Touro? Really?

 

[HockeyDr09]

don't get me wrong you'll definitely get a great education for the money at LECOM. most of the "competitive" residencies at the 200 bed Millcreek hospital take on only 1 resident provided they get the funding. the optho program in particular has didactics at columbia univ. though which is pretty legit i must say .

also the 95% pass rate at erie is that for last years class? does lecom require students to take a pre-exam before they are allowed to sit for the real deal.

You may have to either support your claims, or gain some perspective on the number of seats programs usually have. Although millcreek does only have 3 spots for optho (and 21 for ortho), many programs have the same amount.
Ortho has 21 positions with 20 filled
Oto + Facial Plastic Surgery has 5 positions 5 filled
Optho has 3 positions 3 filled

Both fellowships have 3 positions and all 3 filled

I just grabbed the top 8 results for optho from here

3 positions
128274
Genesys Regional Med Ctr-Health Park - Ophthalmology Residency
Ophthalmology
Grand Blanc
MI


3 positions
169701
Hillsdale Community Health Center - Ophthalmology Residency
Ophthalmology
Hillsdale
MI

6 positions
330051
Oakwood Healthcare System Osteo Div - Ophthalmology Residency
Ophthalmology
Trenton
MI


3 positions
128516
Metro Health Hospital - Ophthalmology Residency
Ophthalmology
Wyoming
MI


9 positions
175783
TUCOM/Valley Hospital Medical Center - Ophthalmology Residency
Ophthalmology
Las Vegas
NV


7 positions
157614
St John's Episcopal Hospital South Shore - Ophthalmology Residency
Ophthalmology
Far Rockaway
NY


3 positions
126133
OUCOM/Doctors Hospital - Ophthalmology Residency
Ophthalmology
Columbus
OH


4 positions
126158
OUCOM/Grandview Hosp & Med Ctr - Ophthalmology Residency
Ophthalmology
Dayton


4 positions
130310
Oklahoma State University Medical Center - Ophthalmology Residency
Ophthalmology
Tulsa
OK
OH




I believe our PBL was either 96% or 97% and LDP was 95% last year. I can't say I'm positive what the process is for us to sit for exams. I can say that we are getting CRUSHED with anatomy right now (which I should be studying) and we were told that we slaughter the average on the anatomy shelf exam.

I wasn't trying to make it look like LECOM was the best, but insinuating that we're "Tier 6" is just insulting. Back to studying.

 

[donkeykong1]

You may have to either support your claims, or gain some perspective on the number of seats programs usually have. Although millcreek does only have 3 spots for optho (and 21 for ortho), many programs have the same amount.
Ortho has 21 positions with 20 filled
Oto + Facial Plastic Surgery has 5 positions 5 filled
Optho has 3 positions 3 filled

Both fellowships have 3 positions and all 3 filled

I just grabbed the top 8 results for optho from here

3 positions
128274
Genesys Regional Med Ctr-Health Park - Ophthalmology Residency
Ophthalmology
Grand Blanc
MI


3 positions
169701
Hillsdale Community Health Center - Ophthalmology Residency
Ophthalmology
Hillsdale
MI

6 positions
330051
Oakwood Healthcare System Osteo Div - Ophthalmology Residency
Ophthalmology
Trenton
MI


3 positions
128516
Metro Health Hospital - Ophthalmology Residency
Ophthalmology
Wyoming
MI


9 positions
175783
TUCOM/Valley Hospital Medical Center - Ophthalmology Residency
Ophthalmology
Las Vegas
NV


7 positions
157614
St John's Episcopal Hospital South Shore - Ophthalmology Residency
Ophthalmology
Far Rockaway
NY


3 positions
126133
OUCOM/Doctors Hospital - Ophthalmology Residency
Ophthalmology
Columbus
OH


4 positions
126158
OUCOM/Grandview Hosp & Med Ctr - Ophthalmology Residency
Ophthalmology
Dayton


4 positions
130310
Oklahoma State University Medical Center - Ophthalmology Residency
Ophthalmology
Tulsa
OK
OH




I believe our PBL was either 96% or 97% and LDP was 95% last year. I can't say I'm positive what the process is for us to sit for exams. I can say that we are getting CRUSHED with anatomy right now (which I should be studying) and we were told that we slaughter the average on the anatomy shelf exam.

I wasn't trying to make it look like LECOM was the best, but insinuating that we're "Tier 6" is just insulting. Back to studying.

hmm interesting so is there any way to find out how many residents they take on per year. the way i thought of it was that "positions filled" mean basically the number of residents from pgy2-pgy4.
according to aoa opportunities at millcreek:

for optho

Current Filled Positions
OGME 2
1
OGME 3
1
OGME 4
1


the numbers on ortho are indeed much higher. lecom also has 2 ortho sites

Current Filled Positions
OGME 1
4
OGME 2
6
OGME 3
4
OGME 4
3
OGME 5
3

anyways, i don't mean to take up your study time. good luck on those exams.

 

[TriagePreMed]

I wasn't trying to make it look like LECOM was the best, but insinuating that we're "Tier 6" is just insulting. Back to studying.

Pfft. More like Tier 9 bro. That's how bad LECOM is. We're actually leaving 3 open tiers for the schools of the future.

(kidding of course)

 

[SavoirFaire]

the way i see it, after visiting schools this cycle.

Tier1: State supported institutions: OUCOM, MSUCOM, TCOM. OSUCOM, UMDNJSOM

Tier2: Established private COMs: PCOM, KCOM, kcumb, NYCOM, CCOM, Western-ca, NSUCOM, UNECOM, dmucom

Tier3 strong community focus : VCOM (both branches), WVSOM,

Tier4 branch schools with established mother institutions: AZCOM, ATSU-SOMA, PCOM-GA

Tier 5: Touro colleges in ca, nv, ny

Tier 6: all LECOM institutions erie, bradenton, seton hill

Tier 7: newer schools with lots of upside: lmu-dcom, wcucom, rvucom, pikeville, pnwucom, western-oregon

Cool story bro. Tell it again.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

Touro? Really?

I don't know .

 

[Postal]

the way i see it, after visiting schools this cycle.

Tier1: State supported institutions: OUCOM, MSUCOM, TCOM. OSUCOM, UMDNJSOM

Tier2: Established private COMs: PCOM, KCOM, kcumb, NYCOM, CCOM, Western-ca, NSUCOM, UNECOM, dmucom

Tier3 strong community focus : VCOM (both branches), WVSOM,

Tier4 branch schools with established mother institutions: AZCOM, ATSU-SOMA, PCOM-GA

Tier 5: Touro colleges in ca, nv, ny

Tier 6: all LECOM institutions erie, bradenton, seton hill

Tier 7: newer schools with lots of upside: lmu-dcom, wcucom, rvucom, pikeville, pnwucom, western-oregon

I agree with this, except I'd bump LECOM up a couple of notches

 

[MedicinaeDoctor]

touro ny above LECOM? are you serious?

 

[deleted245139]

Erie weather + strict dress code = Unhappy Californians.

Girls in sweatpants and sweatshirts daily = fail
Girls in skirts/sexy outfits/heels daily = win

I'll put on a freakin tie


Edit: the weather does suck. excellent for study motivation... bad for vit. D levels lol

 

[MaximusD]

KCUMB had a kid match integrated plastics last year and I can say with confidence KCUMB had absolutely nothing to do with it. You learn quickly success in med school is based on your work.

Not true. It's a combination of both.