Pomona, CA
Osteopathic Medical Schools | Private Non-Profit
Application Cycle: 2009-10
⭐ Overall Impressions
How did the interview impress you?
Positively 🙂
What was the stress level of the interview?
1 out of 10
0 = Low Stress, 10 = High Stress
How you think you did?
9 out of 10
0 = Bad, 10 = Great
How do you rank this school among ALL other schools?
7 out of 10
0 = Below, 10 = Above
How do you rank this school among other schools to which you've applied?
9 out of 10
0 = Below, 10 = Above
What are your general comments?
To be quite honest, when I first walked around the campus, I was truly disappointed. But after talking to the students and the dean about the school, I realized that WesternU is an amazing school. It is definitely one of my top choices. Good luck!!
💬 Interview Process
What is one of the specific questions they asked you?
How is your experience working at ____?
What was the most interesting question?
If two people needed a liver transplant-- your best friend (age 23) and a potential nobel prize winner (age 60)--who would you give the liver to?
(I brought this question up with my interviewer, and then he decided to ask me my opinion)
How did you prepare for the interview?
Read website, looked at practice questions, and just relaxed
What was the most difficult question?
If two people needed a liver transplant-- your best friend (age 23) and a potential nobel prize winner (age 60)--who would you give the liver to?
What impressed you positively?
WesternU has developed a wonderful curriculum that focuses on what you need to know to become a physician, as well as what you need to know for the COMPLEX exams. The dean visited our interview session, and he was super nice. He has only been at the school for about a year, but the MS1 told us that he has fulfilled all of his promises thus far. The school is the most selective of all the osteopathic schools, according to the US World News Graduate Guide. The quality of rotations during the third and fourth year was also impressive.
What impressed you negatively?
Pomona is not the most built up/safest city in CA. I know that most great schools are in bad areas (Hopkins is in Baltimore, MD, UPenn is in Philly, etc), but it is still hard to ignore the area around the school. But, most students do not live in Pomona, you only need to be on campus for classes. The insides of the buildings were completely renovated.
What did you wish you had known ahead of time?
That this website has some inaccurate info...the passage rate of the complex for WesternU was 89% for last year's class. According to one of the students, the dean confronted all the MS1 at the beginning of the year to stop the rumors about low passage rates. Next, someone posted on here that the school has the worst attrition rate. I found out that most of the people who dropped out had personal problems (depression, pregnant, death in family). One student dropped out because he did not enjoy working on cadavers and decided to find a new profession. Obviously with a class size of 176, some students will drop out. The school does provide an academic advisor and personal health advisor for the students. In addition, the school pays the MS2 a stipend to tutor MS1. If you are a good student, you probably don't need to worry. I was happy to hear that the admissions committee meets once a week, so I will know my status within two weeks. Finally, the school has a lot of opportunities to work in clinics as a MS1, more than any other school I have visited.
🤝 Campus and Facilities
How do you rank the facilities?
5 out of 10
0 = Bad, 10 = Great
What is your ranking of this school's location?
1 out of 10
0 = Bad, 10 = Great
What is your ranking of this area's cultural life?
5 out of 10
0 = Bad, 10 = Great
📍 Travel and Logistics
Who was the tour given by?
Student
How did the tour guide seem?
Enthusiastic
What is your in-state status?
Out of state
What were your total hours spent traveling?
7+ hours
What was your primary mode of travel?
Airplane
About how much did you spend on room, food, and travel?
$501+
What airport did you fly into?
ONT
Where did you stay?
Hotel
What is the name of the hotel you stayed in?
Shilo Inn Suites
How would you rate the hotel?
8 out of 10
0 = Bad, 10 = Great
Would you recommend the hotel?
yes
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