Yes, Thanks MJB. I'm glad to hear there are a couple Chinese restaurants.
I won't lie - King's Buffet was pretty much a staple there and there is also a fairly decent restaurant within walking distance from the campus (China Palace). To be truthful, Kirksville really isn't such an awful place to go to school. I went to undergrad in Champaign, IL and grad school in Washington, DC so heading out to Kirksville was a bit of a change from both those atmospheres. However, outside of an enormous concert venue, Kirksville has pretty much everything you need to stay occupied. I saw that you wanted some cons so, I guess I'll share what I wish we had in the 'Ville when I was there.
1. As stated above, a bigger music venue in town would have been nice. Granted, Columbia is just over an hour away and there are huge venues there but it is a little harder to justify driving down there to see a great band when you have to take a test the next morning. Every once and a while, Truman State has a good show like Cake or Guster.
2. No lie, it is a small town. Some people are really freaked out with the near-rural environment. I will say, however, that after a couple months it really starts growing on you. If not, I know a couple of people that would drive down to Columbia once or twice a week to study.
3. If you hate OMM, don't go to Kirksville. There were a couple people in our class that weren't really all that excited about OMM and they pretty much suffered through the two-hour labs and nearly daily lectures. If you love OMM, however, I think it will be a great time to be in Kirksville. The OMM fellows for next year are really great (they are from the Class of 2008) and as best I understand, the new technology center is/will be open and there is a huge OMM lab there.
4. Choosing rotations is kind of a crapshoot. There is a match process in place, but it is pretty much random. About 80% get their first choice and 10% get their second. The rest pretty much get one of their other choices and rarely does somebody not match. The plus side to this is that in the past, there has been some wiggle room and they work really hard to get people who did not match or matched their 4th, 5th, 6th choice into one of their higher matches. And as a little plug here, the rotations have been awesome. I haven't heard anyone complain yet from any of the sites. I'm out in Arizona (which is mostly preceptor-based) and have had some really excellent rotations thus far.
I think that's pretty much it. Truthfully, being in Kirksville is what you make of it. There are things to do and if nothing else, and plenty of people there that will more than likely go hiking, biking, golfing, running, or drinking with you. I went to Kirksville because it is a relatively laid-back atmosphere, the admissions committee and students were awesome on my visit, and the reputation of the school with the MD and DO physicians I worked with. The education was great and I certainly am reaping the benefits now that I am on rotations. Hope this helps.
Andy, OMS III
KCOM Class of 2008
