Preparing for your Interview

A.T. Still University School of Osteopathic Medicine in Arizona’s ideal candidate for admission understands and identifies with the tenets and philosophy of osteopathic medicine and is able to demonstrate a strong and compassionate commitment to medically underserved populations in the form of volunteerism and/or work experience. An ideal candidate is well-aligned with SOMA’s mission to create empathetic physicians aspiring to provide healthcare to medically underserved communities.

Candidates for admission to SOMA are strongly encouraged to spend time shadowing a physician and obtain a letter of support from that physician. Candidates are also strongly encouraged to provide a letter of support from a supervisor of activities involving outreach to medically underserved populations.

To be considered for admission to SOMA applicants typically complete four years of undergraduate work culminating in a bachelor’s degree. Osteopathic medical schools require one year each of biological sciences, physics, general chemistry, organic chemistry, and six semester hours of English.

It is required for applicants to take the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT). The MCAT examines knowledge and skill in areas such as biology, math, reading, and problem-solving. A pre-medical advisor can assist applicants in scheduling and preparing for this examination.

Prospective ATSU-SOMA students will be evaluated in three major areas: academic accomplishment, personal characteristics of a physician, and propensity to serve the underserved. Osteopathic colleges require a personal interview during the application procedure. The applicant is strongly encouraged to have clinical exposure in a healthcare environment.

Tips for Interviewing

• Confirm the date and time of your interview. If cancellation or rescheduling is required, communicate promptly and courteously with us.
• Arrive early. If you are virtually interviewing, check your internet connection, video, and audio ahead of time to avoid delays.
• Dress professionally and neatly.
• Be polite and courteous to those you meet. If you are virtually interviewing, leave your camera on, look into the camera, and show signs of active listening when others are speaking.
• Be genuine and thorough in answering questions. We want to get to know you! If you are virtually interviewing, do not read your answers to your interviewers from previously prepared statements.
• Bring one to two questions about our school to ask your interviewers.

Questions frequently asked by applicants interviewing with ATSU-SOMA:

1. What is Case-Based Inquiry (CBIQ)?

   The CBIQ course is designed as Small Groups faculty-facilitated sessions based on clinical cases to cement student knowledge of critical basic science and clinical concepts. Faculty offer guidance and support. They also provide supplemental content to ensure all students succeed as they progress in the program. This Small Groups work on clinical cases will ensure our students will be ready to become integral members of the interprofessional teams on which they will serve as osteopathic physicians.

2. What will 3rd and 4th year be like?

   Students relocate to their assigned community partner region at the beginning of their third year for their clinical rotations.

   Students in their third year complete core clinical rotations in Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, Psychiatry, General Surgery, Obstetrics/Gynecology, Primary Care Selective and Elective rotations, as well as the required OPP course. Students return to the Mesa campus for 3-4 days for the required Rotation Readiness course during spring semester.

   Students in their fourth year complete required clinical rotations in Critical Care (ICU) and Emergency Medicine, as well as Selective and Elective rotations. The Selective and Elective rotations may be performed outside of the student’s assigned community partner region. Students also participate in the required OPP course and return to Mesa for 3-4 days for the required Residency Readiness course during spring semester.

3. How will I be assigned to a partner region?

   Students spend their first two years on the Mesa campus and transition to one of our community partner regions at the beginning of their third year. Community partner regions will be assigned to students midway through their second year. The process for assignment to regions takes student preference into account, and does not guarantee students their preferred choice of assignment. Upon acceptance, a student must be prepared to attend any assigned community partner region for the third and fourth year of their osteopathic medical education.

4. What will the 2nd year be like in the new 2+2 curriculum?

   The student experience in the second year will mirror the first year in terms of schedule layout, courses, and activities on the Mesa campus. The curriculum remains consistent, emphasizing more advanced topics, board preparation, Osteopathic Principles and Practice (OPP), and clinical skills. Year 1 addresses the “how” and year 2 focuses on the “why.” Students will gain early clinical exposure during the OMS II year and participate in the required Clinical Readiness course after sitting for the COMLEX Level I exam.

5. Are there opportunities for loan forgiveness?

   Students are advised to reach out to ATSU Enrollment Services for information and guidance on these opportunities.

6. What research opportunities are available for students at ATSU-SOMA ?

   All ATSU-SOMA students engage in research/quality improvement projects. Faculty teach sound research methods and apply these to quality improvement projects and programs.

Epidemiology/Biostatistics/Preventive Medicine Course FAQs

1. What topics and skills are covered in these courses?

   Epidemiology course examines the study of disease in populations from a public health perspective, a foundation for the integration of primary care and public health. Topics covered include data sources and management, surveillance/outbreak investigation, study design, sampling, data analysis, and causation. The tools acquired allow students to apply research findings to individual patient care, population health, and public policy. Additional tools include the fundamentals necessary for evidence-based practice. Students apply knowledge by developing “community projects” and submitting applications to the Institutional Review Board (IRB). Students work in teams on either “research” or “quality improvement” projects. Each team starts with a needs assessment in their community. Students work together to develop project ideas, research questions, hypotheses, and potential plans. All projects must be related to the social determinants of health and the tenets of Osteopathic Medicine.

   Biostatistics & Preventive Medicine introduces the basic principles of biostatistics and preventive medicine. Biostatistics is the study and development of mathematical, statistical, and computational methods applied to biological and medical data. The study of biostatistics serves to further the educational link between primary care and public health. Topics covered include methods to describe variation in data, statistical inference and hypothesis testing, confidence intervals, bivariate analysis, multiple variable analysis, and probability theory. Preventive medicine topics include primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention. Additional topics include public health systems, policy, and finance. Students apply their knowledge by completing their “community project.” Students are expected to summarize their work in an abstract and to present their work in poster form. Student teams also complete a video recording of their poster presentation.

   These 2 courses teach the fundamentals required for community-based participatory research. These courses also prepare students to be practitioners of evidence-based medicine.

2. When do students take these courses?

   These courses are mandatory and are part of the second-year medical school curriculum.

3. Who are the contact people for questions regarding the courses?

   Surekha Appikatla, MPH, email: surekhaappikatla@atsu.edu, Community Oriented Primary Care (COPC) & Public Health Research Specialist Department of Public Health

   Dr. Joy H. Lewis (email: jhlewis@atsu.edu), Chair Public Health and Research

4. What quality improvement projects and research opportunities are available for students?

   All second-year medical students are required to complete a Community Oriented Primary Care (COPC) project as part of their Epidemiology, Biostatistics & Preventive Medicine course. It will be a group project. Each group will conduct a needs assessment in their community through interviews and review of available health data, develop an intervention, and design methods to evaluate the process and outcomes. Here are some of the quality improvement and research project topics students from the previous class have completed:

   • Social Determinants of Health
   • Nutrition Education and Healthy Food Choices
   • Chronic Disease Management - Diabetes, Hypertension, Obesity
   • Mental Health Education in Schools
   • Food insecurity & Healthy Food Accessibility
   • Trauma-Informed Care in Radiology
   • Physician Shortage in Central Valley
   • Self-Monitoring Blood Pressure Program
   • Opioid Overdose Reversal Education
   • Contraception and Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) Education
   • Colorectal Cancer Prevention Screening
   • Stress & Resilience Strategies among Health Professions Students
   • Education on Pediatric Asthma Management
5. What opportunities are available to students interested in presenting their research or quality improvement projects?

   All second-year students will have an opportunity to submit their COPC project to the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) Community Health Institute (CHI) & EXPO. The projects can be chosen for a poster or an oral presentation.

   More Info: https://www.nachc.org/conference-page/chi-expo-conference/

   The Interdisciplinary Biomedical Research Symposium (IBRS) sponsored annually by the A.T. Still Research Institute (ATSRI) is another great opportunity for students to present scholarly work.

   More Info: https://www.atsu.edu/a-t-still-research-institute/news-and-events/ibrs

   Apart from this opportunity, ATSU-SOMA regularly presents with opportunities to submit student scholarly work for many local, state, and national conferences such as the Arizona Health Equity Conference, University of Arizona College of Medicine-Phoenix Research Office for Medical Education (ROME) Forum, and the Osteopathic Medical Education Conference (OMED).

   Students can also work with their research team and faculty mentors to publish their research work.

ATSU-SOMA Research Elective FAQs:

1. What is the Research Elective?

   The research elective is a non-clinical research clerkship available to OMS III (ELEC 7116) and OMS IV (ELEC 8159) students. It’s available in 2 week (2 credit hours) or 4 week (4 credit hours) rotations. Students can also split a 4 week rotation into two 2 week rotations spread across the academic year. Of note, students can only take a total of 8 hours of non-clinical elective per year. This rotation cannot be taken as the last rotation in year 4. The clerkship director can serve as the preceptor of record, or a different preceptor can be identified at the discretion of the student. The clerkship director or preceptor of record helps students identify a research question and helps them through all aspects of the project. All preceptors of record (if non-ATSU faculty) need to be credentialed by the clinical education department. It is advisable that students choose an ATSU faculty as a preceptor of record.

2. When can I take this elective?

   The elective is available throughout the academic year, but can not be scheduled over winter break. The course director is not available for consultation during the winter break.

3. Who is the contact person for the elective?

   Dr. Debosree Roy (email: debosreeroy@atsu.edu) is the course director and contact person for the 3rd and 4th year Research Elective clerkship rotations. Information can also be garnered from regional coordinators of education as well as the regional directors of medical education (RDMEs). If students need help with formalizing a question and designing a study, it’s advisable that they contact Dr. Roy at least 90 days prior to enrolling in any of these courses. Students who are working with other ATSU or external faculty may contact the course director 14 days prior to starting the rotation. All rotation requests need to be approved by the RDME and the course director with documented approval (available on E-Value).

4. What scientific methods are taught?
   1. Evidence Synthesis
      1. Systematic review
      2. Scoping Review
      3. Narrative Review
   2. Observational
      1. Primary data - Survey, Interviews, Focus groups
      2. Secondary data - National survey, EHR, claims
   3. Experimental
      1. Clinical trials (only OMT)
      2. Case-control interventional
   4. Case Studies

   Some examples of recent student publications from the elective:

   Lee A, Wang MY, Roy D, Wang J, Gokhale A, Miranda-Cacdac L, Kuntz M, Grover B, Gray K, Curley KL. Prophylactic tranexamic acid prevents postpartum hemorrhage and transfusions in cesarean deliveries: a systematic review and meta-analysis. American Journal of Perinatology. 2023 Jul 21.

   Wang J, Roy D, Wang MY, Dinh D, Lao A, Mendoza V, Xu G, Chatterton CG, Ahmadieh N. Timing of Antidepressant Use in Pregnancy and Preterm Birth: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. O&G Open. 2024 Sep 1;1(3):022.

   Holt VN, Pelegrí E, Hardy M, Buchin L, Dapkins I, Chuang M. Patient-perceived barriers to early initiation of prenatal care at a large, urban federally qualified health center: a mixed-methods study. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth. 2024 Jun 21;24(1):436.

   Pendlebury GA, Oro P, Haynes W, Merideth D, Bartling S, Bongiorno MA. The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on dermatological conditions: a novel, comprehensive review. Dermatopathology. 2022 Jun 29;9(3):212-43.

   Nies S, Patel S, Shafer M, Longman L, Sharif I, Pina P. Understanding physicians’ preferences for telemedicine during the COVID-19 pandemic: cross-sectional study. JMIR formative research. 2021 Aug 13;5(8):e26565.

   Tang R, Garduño-Ortega O, Bushnik T. Life Satisfaction Assessment 1 Year after Traumatic Brain Injury: Exploring the Impact of Language and Employment Status. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. 2024 Apr 1;105(4):e187-8.

   McGilvery W, Hasson C, Wongworawat MD, Witkos M. Traumatic Humeral Diaphysis Extrusion and Replantation With Periosteal Involvement. Journal of Medical Cases. 2022 Aug;13(8):408.

5. How do I get involved in research projects?

   To get involved in research projects, students should consult with Dr. Roy to identify suitable opportunities and receive guidance on project planning and execution. Students can contact the course director anytime of the year and during any OMS year. In fact, it's encouraged that they contact the course director as soon as they find an interest in conducting research.

6. Can research projects be conducted during clinical rotations?

   Yes, research projects can be done during clinical rotation, especially clinical rotations in specialties the particular student is interested in. Students can seek case-studies or interventional (with assessment) research opportunities with clinical preceptors, within reason. It’s imperative that they contact the research elective course director a month before they start the clinical rotation so that they are prepped to start doing research activities as soon as they start clinic activities. They can then use non-clinical elective time to complete the study (e..g, data analysis, manuscript writing) However, it’s strongly advised that students do not seek anything more than case-study opportunities during clinical rotations because it may affect their performance and learning during a clerkship critical to their success in med school.

7. What resources are available for research and project development?

   ATSU-SOMA provides a range of resources, including access to faculty mentors, library, statistical analysis and writing resources and at times may provide financial support for publications.

8. Where can students present their research? (See FAQ 5 under BPM above)

ATSU-SOMA DO/MPH Dual Degree Program FAQs:

1. What is the ATSU-SOMA DO/MPH dual degree program?

   The ATSU-SOMA DO/MPH dual degree program is designed for students who wish to integrate medical education with public health principles. As students continue with their DO program, they take online MPH courses concurrently until graduation. This program provides students with a comprehensive understanding of the social determinants of health and public health leadership, and equips them with the skills necessary to address public health challenges while practicing medicine.

2. When can I start the DO/MPH dual degree program?

   Applications for the MPH program are welcomed toward the end of the OMS-I year at ATSU-SOMA. Once admitted, students start their online MPH courses at ATSU-CGHS during the summer of their OMS-II year.

3. Who is the contact person for optional selective and elective clerkship rotations in the DO/MPH program?

   Dr. Eboni Anderson (email: ebonianderson@atsu.edu) is the contact person for the 3rd and 4th year PC Selective and Elective Practicum clerkship rotations. As the course director for PCSL 7134, SELE 8177, ELEC 8190, ELEC 8191, and ELEC 8178, and the faculty advisor for PUBH 7850, it is vital for all DO/MPH students to schedule an appointment with Dr. Anderson at least 90 days prior to enrolling in any of these courses. Students should come prepared to discuss their optional dual-credit course plans, including their project ideas.

4. What quality improvement projects and research opportunities are available for students in the DO/MPH program?

   ATSU-SOMA offers a variety of quality improvement projects and research opportunities for DO/MPH students, allowing them to engage in projects that address critical public health issues. Here are some of the quality improvement and research projects students have completed in the program:

   • Social Determinants of Health Needs Assessment – Involved assessing the needs within pediatric departments at community health centers (CHCs).
   • Infectious Disease Care Analysis – Analyzed care progression for infectious diseases and the cascade of care for Hepatitis C Virus infections.
   • Nutrition Education – Conducted home-based hands-on nutrition education for lower-income families in urban areas.
   • Maternal Health Program Initiation – Developed benchmarks and targets for maternal health programs at CHCs.
   • Chronic Disease Management – Focused on diabetes self-management education using the ketogenic diet.
   • Alzheimer’s and Dementia Screening – Investigated ethnoracial differences in screening practices for the CDC website.
   • Vaccination Initiatives – Improved vaccination rates in the LGBTQIA+ community.
   • Public Health Policy and Addiction – Developed community-based strategies and policy reform to address substance use dependence.
   • Healthy Eating Barriers – Conducted qualitative analysis of barriers to healthy eating among high school students in urban areas.
   • Mental Health Access – Created mental health treatment guides and resources for LGBTQIA+ individuals in rural communities.
   • Homeless Health Care – Improved care for unsheltered/unhoused populations and created multimedia curricula for healthcare providers.
   • Gender-Affirming Care – Explored the benefits of using pronouns and chosen names for adolescent patients in clinical settings.
   • Reproductive Health Education – Developed interventions for cancer patients and family planning tools to improve maternal health.
   • Cardiovascular Disease Awareness – Raised awareness of cardiovascular disease risks among a South Asian population in the U.S. and provided preventative strategies.
   • Food Insecurity – Promoted visibility and accessibility of food pantries at urban CHCs.
   • HIV PrEP Prescribing Practices – Examined HIV PrEP prescribing practices for underserved communities in urban areas.
   • Substance Use Disorder Education – Enhanced education and documentation capabilities using electronic health record systems like Cerner.
   • Postpartum Screening Needs – Evaluated needs and gaps in postpartum screening practices.
5. How do I get involved in quality improvement and research projects?

   To get involved in quality improvement and research projects, DO/MPH students should consult with their preceptor, faculty advisor, and the course director to identify suitable opportunities and receive guidance on project planning and execution. Scheduling an appointment with these individuals is important for aligning selective and elective courses with the student’s research interests and academic goals.

6. Can quality improvement and research projects be conducted during clinical rotations?

   Yes, quality improvement and research projects can be integrated into clinical rotations, allowing students to apply their public health knowledge in practical settings. This integration is essential for those pursuing dual-credit course plans. Students are encouraged to discuss their quality improvement and research ideas during appointments with Dr. Anderson to ensure alignment with their selective and elective clerkship rotations.

7. What resources are available for quality improvement/research and project development?

   ATSU-SOMA provides a range of resources, including access to faculty mentors, research databases, and collaboration opportunities with healthcare and public health organizations.