"Early clinical experiences, involvement in the community, and a great education rooted in a family and community medicine discipline is stellar. The school also uses the Clinical practice curriculum, which breaks our modules into systems-based courses that present a clinical framework of how patients present to physicians. The basic science disciplines (micro, biochem, phys, path, pharm) are included in each weeks discussions of the clinical presentation, making it relevant and very different than having a different course for each discipline that the learner has to later synthesize and relate to clinical experiences in the third and fourth year. Also, SOMA is the only school I know where 2nd year medical students work one on one with attendings in an outpatient clinic one day a week actually seeing patients, assisting with procedures, and getting an introductory clinical experience BEFORE 3rd year rotations." | Report Response

"Some instructors are still learning how to fit the basic science material into the clinical presentations meaningfully, but the admin is working hard and has been very responsive to feedback. Any concerns I have had have been addressed and fixed." | Report Response

"You will go to Mesa, AZ for one year, and years 2-4 are spent at one of the 11 community campuses that are each affiliated with a local community health center all over the US. 3rd and 4th year rotations are commonly done in the area of the community campus. It's a wonderful program that I'm very happy with, and I encourage you to take a strong look at it. Also, please note that while the focus is on family medicine and primary care, the school gives you a great primary care foundation for any specialty. Don't think you can't go here if you don't want to do primary care. Many of us don't, but the broad-based education and clinical exposure is awesome." | Report Response

"OMT and Medical skills have mandatory attendance, as well as when there is a prominent guest lecturer. Regular class attendance can be missed without problems." | Report Response

"Bates, LWW Biochem by champe, LWW Microbiology by Harvey. Most required books are provided free via StatRef or through the Learning Resource Center (library)." | Report Response

"Janeway's Immunobiology" | Report Response

"Focus on family medicine and primary care, but really encouraging "physicians of need," which is any specialty as long as you are practicing in an area with a need (for example: Surgery in a rural area that needs a surgeon)" | Report Response

No responses

"Very good. Great faculty for biochem and micro. They do a really nice job integrating the basic science material into the clinical vignettes (the same way the boards do) and" | Report Response

"Each community campus has at least one full-time learning facilitator that helps with counseling, clinical knowledge, and precepts small groups. They are INCREDIBLE and really invested in each student. Since 10 students from each class year are at each community campus, it fosters a great environment for learning." | Report Response

"Pass/Fail, with >70% being considered pass. Numeric scores are recorded on transcripts for ranking purposes, and your grade is for each systems-based course, OMT, and Medical skills (in the first year)." | Report Response

"Pass/Fail, with NBME scores recorded." | Report Response

"Preferences are considered and each site's learning facilitator schedules for the students at their site. 3rd year has 6 weeks of electives and 4 weeks of primary care selectives in addition to IM, Surg, Peds, Psych, OB/GYN, Maternal/Child Health, and Family Practice" | Report Response

"Since most sites do not have residents there, you get a wonderful exposure working one on one with attendings, including lots of clinical experience in the outpatient clinic during your second year." | Report Response

"Good. Sites are found in each community campus so they vary. So far in my training, they have been stellar." | Report Response

"Patients at the CHC are mostly those on state or federal insurance programs or those without insurance that use the sliding fee scale provided by the community health center. We get a varied experience though as some rotations are at more "upscale" hospitals." | Report Response

"In AZ- intramural sports, golf, spring training!, bars, clubs, restauraunts" | Report Response

"To be determined... comments from clinical faculty in the 2nd and 3rd year have been very promising that SOMA students are much more adept at clinical skills including interviews, SOAP notes, and PE skills than other students they have worked with." | Report Response

"Admin has a strong reputation in the osteopathic community, including the dean who was former chair of the AACOM." | Report Response

"I suspect primary care grads will be high, but we'll see when the first class graduates." | Report Response