Everything ran smooth as can be.
One mistake I made was that I didn't apply earlier. I noticed that a lot of people applied and had heard back from schools by the time I was applying. People, please apply early in order to get a great shot into the school you want.
Interview:
Touro-com NY- Don't let the school's newness get to you. The office of admissions is great, the professors are very enthusiatic, and the enviroment was very friendly. Overall, a great school.
NSU-COM- I don't know where to beginning. This school was AMAZING. The campus is huge, the facilities are great (extremely nice gym and library), and the students seem to love the school. The school is dedicated to giving the students the best education possible, and the professors displayed that during our talks. My only qualm is that the tap water is yellow for some reason, and I don't know why. One more thing...you can't beat the weather!
NYCOM- This school is nice, but I think a tad bit overhyped. The facilities are good and they have that STAN machine which is great. The environment is nice, but the students didn't seem so enthusiastic and the environment seemed like a prison of sorts. Maybe this was just my opinion.
PCOM-PA- This school was great. The students here were probably the most happy about their experiences. Everyone came in and gave us their e-mails and begged us to ask them questions. The facilities are great and the surrounding area is nice. Philadelphia is a nice city and this is in a great area.
Other Notes:
APPLY EARLY, GET ACCEPTED EARLY
Make sure you have extracurriculars, volunteering, and shadowing (and research doesn't hurt). DO schools like to see well rounded students who are truly interested in become osteopathic physicians, not zombies who study all day but can't associate with other people. Numbers aren't everything, especially to DO schools.
Don't worry about your numbers in the interview; they may ask you a question or two, but they wouldn't give you an interview if you weren't good enough to go to their institution.
One thing I have always done in my interviews is when they ask you if you have any questions, don't just ask them about the school, ASK THEM ABOUT THEIR BACKGROUND; I cannot emphasize this enough. At every interview I went to, I asked them either why they went DO, where they went, and why they decided to teach there. For the MDs, I asked why they decided to teach at a DO institution. It seems like all of them love to talk about themselves, so the fact that you want to know about them may make you stand out in their minds.
Lastly, have fun with it. You get to travel all over the place for these interviews and whatnot, so enjoy yourself. You only live once so make the best of it.
Best of luck to everyone who is applying this year and for years to come. With luck, we will all be doctors someday.
-Scott
