West Virginia University Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center School of Medicine Individual responses

📚 General Info ▼

What graduating class are you in?

2011

Are you pursuing any joint degrees (MD/PhD, MD/MPH, etc.)?

No

Are you considered in-state or out-of-state for tuition purposes?

in-state

What is your race/ethnic background?

Other/Multiracial

Overall, how would you rate this medical program?

8 out of 10

What is the reputation of the school in the medical community?

7 out of 10

What is the reputation of the research that goes on at this school?

4 out of 10

What was your MCAT score?

505

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What was your undergrad GPA?

3.5

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What was your undergrad science GPA?

3.6

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What was the zip code of your residence in high school?

25314

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What do you like most about this school?

It feels like family at WVU. Everyone takes good care of students and has a lot of concern for how students are doing (no matter what year you are).

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What do you like least about this school?

They don't do a good job of orienting you to campus when you are new there. They offer some numbers to find housing, but they don't do more than that. Everyone did okay in the end though.

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Please provide any other general comments on your school

No responses

Curriculum ▼

How is the curriculum structured?

Systems-based

How many courses are taken at a given time?

4

How long are you typically in class per day?

4-5 hours

Are courses recorded for medical students?

Powerpoint slides provided only Video recording

How many days per week is anatomy lab?

4

How many students per cadaver?

3-4

How long (in months) do you have anatomy?

3 months

Is the curriculum lecture-centric or small-group centric?

3 out of 10

Are standardized patients used?

yes

How much patient interaction is there in the pre-clinical years?

2 out of 10

Are syllabi provided for the student?

yes

How frequently do pre-clinical medical school activities have mandatory attendance?

The Physical Diagnosis course has mandatory attendance at lectures and small group meetings. PBL & other small groups are also mandatory. Otherwise, you can choose to go to class or not. All lectures are recorded and posted on the school's website, so you can choose daily whether you want to attend.

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What books are necessary?

Most students use books recommended by the majority of medical students in the country. "Required" textbooks generally aren't needed. PowerPoints are provided, so if tests are based on lectures, they come from the PowerPoints.

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What books are unnecessary?

Most of the "required" textbooks aren't needed.

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Is the curriculum designed to promote a specialty? If so, which specialty?

No

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Location & Housing ▼

How do you feel about the location of the school?

7 out of 10

Do you feel safe on campus?

10 out of 10

How available and convenient is public transportation?

2 out of 10

Is a car necessary at any point during your education here?

Clinical years

If a car is required for education, how available and convenient is the parking provided to students?

10 out of 10

Is on-campus housing available?

yes

What is the quality of available on-campus housing?

7 out of 10

What percentage of your medical school classmates would you estimate live on campus, if on-campus housing is available?

5 out of 10

Is couples housing available?

yes

Is nearby off-campus housing available?

yes

How expensive is nearby off-campus housing?

8 out of 10

Please describe the on-campus housing if available (i.e., cost, type - studios, 1-br, 2-br, etc.)?

During the clinical years, housing is available in Charleston. Housing is available in Morgantown, but it is older, and I don't know anyone that lived there. Housing is usually available at rural sites.

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Cost/Financial Aid ▼

Are fees/tuition expensive?

9 out of 10

How is the cost of living (rent, food, bills, etc.)?

9 out of 10

Are many institutional scholarships/grants available?

8 out of 10

Is institutional aid need-based or merit-based?

Both

Faculty/Grades ▼

Are faculty members very open to students during office hours?

10 out of 10

Are faculty members very available to students via email/message board?

10 out of 10

Are there many opportunities to shadow/work with clinical faculty?

10 out of 10

Are the faculty willing to mentor students in regards to career guidance?

10 out of 10

Is the class ranked?

yes

How is the instructional faculty during pre-clinical years?

Most of the faculty is very good. There are only a handful of teachers that you can tell don't really want to be there, or they don't have a good way of conveying their point to students. Otherwise, the teachers are spectacular.

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How is the instructional faculty during clinical years?

Many of the faculty go out of their way to help students understand concepts starting at a basic level. Faculty with busy work schedules and practices spend less time as expected. But if faculty are directly associated with WVU, they generally take time out of their day for students.

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What is the grading scale used during pre-clinical years?

Honors/Pass/Fail

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What is the grading scale used during clinical years?

Honors/Pass/Fail

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Clinical Rotations ▼

Are the desired rotation sites easy to obtain?

10 out of 10

Is desired rotation order easy to obtain?

7 out of 10

Are the elective rotations easy to obtain?

8 out of 10

Is there substantial hands-on experience for medical students?

10 out of 10

Are the rotation sites conveniently accessible for medical students?

10 out of 10

How far are the clinical sites from the main campus?

7 out of 10

How are clinical rotations scheduled? What are the required rotations?

You schedule rotations online near the end of second year. The scheduling system opens up at a certain time and you enter your choices (first come, first serve) in open spots. Required rotations in the third year are OB/GYN, Peds, Medicine, Surgery, Psych/Neuro (6 weeks psych, 2 weeks neuro), and Family. You are required to do a month of rural medicine during the Family rotation. (All rotations are 8 weeks total). In the fourth year, a Sub-I, Acute Care, and Rural month are required. Ample time is given for interviews and studying for Step 2.

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What responsibility do med students have on the wards?

This depends on the clinincal campus the student is assigned to. You rank Morgantown, Charleston, and Eastern during your interview. The assignment is made in your acceptance letter. You are free to swap as long as it is a person-for-person swap. Eastern campus is very small and geared towards those who want to do rural medicine. Charleston has less residents and no fellows, so students have lots of hands on experience. Med students are expected to keep up with knowing patients on the service they are assigned to and learning how to manage their stay in the hospital/clinic.

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What is the status/condition of the affiliated hospital(s)?

Charleston and Morgantown have Level I trauma centers. The hospital in Morgantown is WVU Hospital. Students on the Charleston campus rotate through Charleston Area Medical Center's 3 hospitals. The hospital on the Eastern campus is a smaller facility.

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What is the typical patient population medical students work with?

There is a fair mix of private and non-private patients, with the mix swinging towards the non-private side.

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Social Environment ▼

Do students do a lot of activities outside of school together?

7 out of 10

How would you rank student involvement in extracurricular clubs?

7 out of 10

What is the range of extracurricular clubs available?

10 out of 10

Is the student body cooperative or competitive?

10 out of 10

Is the environment supportive for underrepresented minorities?

10 out of 10

Is the environment supportive for lesbian/gay/bisexual/transsexual students?

6 out of 10

Is the environment supportive for students with disabilities?

7 out of 10

Is the environment supportive for married students?

9 out of 10

Is the environment supportive for older/non-traditional students?

9 out of 10

What do the students typically like to do in the area?

Go out to area clubs/bars, go out for outdoor activities like hiking.

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Post Graduation ▼

How do graduates from this school fare in residency and clinical practice?

Graduates fare very well from what I have heard. Many people go on to secure fellowships and go to residencies at top institutions if they want.

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Is this school known for producing physicians strong in a certain area? If so, which area?

The school is known for producing strong primary care physicians.

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What do you believe residency directors think about graduates from this program?

Well prepared to practice any type of medicine in any type of setting he or she desires.

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West Virginia University Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center School of Medicine

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