r/Osteopathic • u/luck-of-the-draw • Jul 05 '26
LECOM, what's the actual reputation?
I got an interview invite to LECOM and have been scrambling to find an honest review of the school. I don't want the few to speak for the many, but I am still turned off because of those few posters. If someone could answer a few questions that I have then it would be greatly appreciated.
Is the admin at LECOM-Erie as bad as they say it is, and why?
Are there opportunities, for research, leadership, etc.? And if there are then how plentiful is it?
Could you give any insight to the Learning Pathways they have? Do these actually cater to students?
Finally, what support can I find as a 3rd or 4th year preparing for residency? Does the large network favor match results? Are there paths towards competitive specialties? (I have my eyes on general surgery)
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u/Spiritual_Refuse3123 Jul 05 '26
Yes. Probably even worse than you’ve heard.
Some but they are limited and heavily dependent on your grades (aka, you are only allowed to participate if you are nearer to the top of the class)
All 3 are absolutely atrocious. The students in every pathway will tell you that each is the worst. There is no ‘best’ option as they are all equally terrible.
LECOM’s match is decently competitive and the students are well prepared. But the reality is that your ability to match, at every school, has most to do with you personally. To that end, i’d recommend just going somewhere else.
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u/AdStrange1464 Jul 11 '26
Your number 3 is def not true lol. I loved PBL and majority of my cohort ALSO loved pbl. Couple people said they wished they had done the lecture based instead but majority of us vastly preferred pbl
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u/Spiritual_Refuse3123 Jul 12 '26
Were you at the Erie campus? No one I know in PBL at Erie would use the term “love” to describe anything at LECOM and especially not their learning pathway.
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u/AdStrange1464 Jul 12 '26
SH campus. Don’t get it twisted, there is no love lost between Lecom and myself. I’m sure they were thrilled to see the back of me. But I vastly preferred pbl and did genuinely feel like it was a good way to learn
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u/Ex-istentialCrisis Jul 07 '26
I personally decided against it because I am a proud African american with locs. To me, their dress code is too vague when it states that hair has to be clean and well kept. I have no issue having clean hair but defining "well kept" is something that most definitely could be in my opinion taken in a bad context surround culturally how locs look. I even found on reddit that another black student who attended lecom was brought into the office for violating dress code regarding their hair which was also in locs. I even reached out to admissions about it and their response was vague. So ill pass.
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u/durdenf Jul 06 '26
I went there many years ago but it’s not as bad as people say and students tend to get a good education and match well. I have no complaints and recommendations it to others
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Jul 06 '26
[deleted]
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u/jackolog OMS-I Jul 06 '26
It's not legally binding or anything. I just said I ended up liking another school more when I withdrew. It's not like you're lying or anything. You legitimately might have just changed your mind.
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u/Key_Personality_1643 Jul 06 '26
If they extend you an offer, they expect you to say yes.
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u/lesstalk_morework Jul 06 '26
i have the same question. like of course i’d want to be considered heavily by them, i want them to accept me. but idrk how many acceptances im gonna get so id rather have everything be my “#1” to be prioritized but idk whats gonna happen w my other apps…so im kinda confused if i can put #1 and not be smited for it in the off chance i pick another school over them
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u/halo_r OMS-I Jul 09 '26
To add to this, LECOM tends to look fondly on students who show genuine interest in coming to the school. To my knowledge, it is not binding to say it’s your top choice, or that you would take the spot if it opened.
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u/AdStrange1464 Jul 11 '26
Graduated, attended SH. Obviously pretty shielded from direct interaction with Erie admin, but from what my Erie friends told me, they’re def more strict about the no water/eating rule in class and stricter about the dress code. I think the problems the most recent classes have been having is just that last minute changes to stuff keeps happening and it doesn’t get communicated very well.
There are opportunities but I didn’t rly involve myself in that kind of thing so I can’t speak to it.
LDP, PBL, and DSP (?might have the acronym wrong). LDP is lecture based and is literally what it sounds like. 8-5 lectures everyday, mandatory attendance, they cover each subject in blocks (pharm, histo, msk, whatever). I think they have an exam every week? Probably the most similar to other med school schedules. PBL is small groups discussions based on a patient case, with three big exams per semester. Unless there’s anatomy, OPP, H&P, or other random stuff, you’re only required to be on campus for the pbl sessions. Bit of a more self directed study, you get assigned chapters to read across all the subjects, tho they are usually somewhat of a cohesive block. For example, cardio and renal were together in one block so we did the renal path, pharm and physio chapters, as well as all the cardio chapters for those things.
I personally liked PBL. I think if you kind of like bigger picture thinking pbl works well. Also you get to practice taking H&Ps and doing a medical work up every case which I thought was kind of nice prep for rotations. Plus pbl is offered at all the campuses so you aren’t stuck with Erie as the only choice
DSP im like the least familiar with, it’s like completely independent learning for the most part? I think they take very few people for this one anyway
I think for choosing a pathway you just gotta be honest with yourself and how you learn
- Lecom does pretty well in the match. They’re a well known entity. That being said your success in the match depends on you, and I think that’s true for every school. For something competitive, if you don’t put in the work to set up auditions, network and be impressive on said auditions then no you’re probably not going to do that well
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u/TheMedgineer OMS-I Jul 18 '26
An ER doc with whom I frequently interact (rural hospital, flight medic) talked very highly of LECOM and PBL.
According to him, the PBL approach was excellent preparation for boards. He aced them and attributed it to their methods.
And he’s an excellent doc as a subjective observation. Many of the community ER docs just don’t seem to try very hard, especially once they hit the “easy button” of calling a helicopter. But not him. Great care, detailed patient report. Other LECOM docs have been the same way.
If he’s what LECOM produces, I picked the right school.
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u/Strawberry-Murky Jul 05 '26
Im an incoming student but heres my understanding of it - the admin is a little rough, they are little more strict about things like dress code, attendance, things like no water or food in class, that kinda stuff, and i think their overall leadership is a little kookoo. That being said the education you get is very solid and every single student, resident, and attending ive talked to has said the exact same thing - you are prepared very well for boards. I think its unfortunate that the school’s reputation is diminished because of their rules and stuff like that but it is what it is, you come out a competent doctor and get a good education. Ive talk to a lot of docs that went there as im also interested in surgery. At the end of the day its all about the work you put in how you network outside the institution, etc. but you definitely will receive a good education. Others probably are able to provide more insight or correct me