Western University College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific

Chuck Chan describes four to eight hours of class a day, with four hours a week preparing for patient encounters and another four on the principles of osteopathic manipulative medicine (OMM). Each course is integrated, with different specialists teaching anatomy, pharmacology, pathology, and microbiology within the same system.

The material isn't harder than undergrad, Chuck says, but the pace is much faster, so studying shifts toward high-yield content backed by board-review resources.

Students complete about eight standardized patient encounters each semester, practice Chuck found invaluable, including a psychiatry-focused OSCE that asked students to work through bipolar disorder, depression, panic disorder, and PTSD presentations with empathy.

COMP trains osteopathic physicians on two campuses: Pomona, California, and Lebanon, Oregon.

Chuck joined a Lifestyle Medicine track covering diet, physical health, and mental health, both to counsel future patients and to look after personal health.

WesternU also offers an OMM track, listed separately on its student budget with its own tuition schedule.

Pomona itself has limited food options and visible homelessness and poverty, Chuck says, though Chuck has never felt unsafe on campus.

Orange County and Los Angeles are close enough for a night out after exams.