Getting into Midwestern University – Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine (CCOM)

What is CCOM's mission — and what does it signal?

The Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine educates osteopathic physicians to provide compassionate, quality care, promote the practice of osteopathic medicine and lifelong learning, research and service.CCOM official mission¹

It's a compact mission, but notice the order: compassionate, quality care first, then osteopathic identity, lifelong learning, research, and service. CCOM presents itself as a broad, traditional osteopathic program that turns out well-rounded physicians, and its match distribution backs that up — the two largest specialties for its recent class were internal medicine and family medicine. If you're drawn to a large, established program with a strong primary-care backbone, that's the fit CCOM is describing.

What makes CCOM's curriculum distinctive?

CCOM is a four-year DO program that progressively integrates basic and clinical sciences, with core rotations across family medicine, internal medicine, surgery, pediatrics, psychiatry, OB/GYN, emergency medicine, and OMM. It sits on Midwestern's large Downers Grove health-sciences campus alongside other health professions — useful for interprofessional exposure. One concrete signal of quality is board performance: CCOM's officially reported COMLEX-USA pass rates run at or above the national average.¹

• COMLEX Level 1 (2025): 91.3% (national 90.25%).
• COMLEX Level 2-CE (2025): 92.68% (national 91.89%).
• COMLEX Level 3 (2024): 99.47% (national 96.81%).

(CCOM's DO program page doesn't enumerate named dual-degree tracks, so we're not listing any we can't verify — confirm any specific combined-degree option directly with the school.)

How does CCOM review applicants?

CCOM publishes a minimum 2.75 cumulative and 2.75 science GPA to apply, and states that above 3.00 is competitive.² The snapshot numbers are entering-class averages above that, so a GPA between the floor and the average still puts you in a real conversation. Prerequisites are a year each (with lab) of biology, general chemistry, organic chemistry, and physics, plus English composition, with a minimum grade of C; anatomy, physiology, and biochemistry are recommended. MCAT scores must be from a test taken no more than three years before the planned enrollment year. Letters are specific: two — one from a premedical committee, prehealth advisor, or basic-science professor, and a letter from an osteopathic physician is strongly recommended. Family-member letters aren't accepted.

Does Midwestern CCOM use the MMI — and what is the interview like?

CCOM uses a panel interview, not the MMI. In its own words, applicants "join several other interviewees to meet with members of an interview panel," drawn from basic scientists, current students, administrators, and clinicians, with both virtual and on-campus options; the season runs roughly September through April.² A panel means several people forming an impression at once, from different vantage points — so rehearse holding eye contact and addressing the whole room, and be ready to speak to why osteopathic medicine and why CCOM specifically. Because you may be interviewing alongside other applicants, treat everyone in the room the way you'd want a future colleague to.

When should I apply, and how do secondaries work?

CCOM uses a supplemental (secondary) application — reaching that stage requires meeting the 2.75 GPA minimum — and admissions are rolling, first-come, first-served until seats fill.² The school notes that, typically, 50% of all admissions offers are made by the end of December, which tells you plainly how much early completion matters. Applications go through AACOMAS with an April 1 deadline — but given that half of offers land by December, treat the real deadline as "as early as you can be complete."

How much does CCOM cost?

For 2026–2027, CCOM tuition is $85,232 for the year; adding the student services fee ($1,500) and disability-insurance fee ($48) brings it to about $86,780 a year before living expenses.³ That's toward the higher end for DO programs, so factor total cost of attendance and financial aid into your decision — and confirm the current year's figure on Midwestern's official page.

Where do CCOM graduates match?

CCOM reports a 98.44% placement rate for the Class of 2026 (189 of 192), across 29 states, with 53% staying in Illinois; the largest specialties were internal medicine (38), family medicine (16), and emergency medicine (15), followed by anesthesiology and general surgery.⁴ The heavy internal-medicine-and-family-medicine weighting lines up with CCOM's primary-care-oriented mission — and if you want to practice in Illinois, that in-state concentration is worth noting.