2017 USF COMPAC Survival Guide
MCOM C/O 2016
The most important goal of this guide is to provide some information
regarding all of your first year courses. Adding to that we threw in
information about books/materials, places to eat, and finally some
bars and places to go have fun outside of class. Hopefully this will
help to reduce any anxiety and stress you may have. Understand
that your best resources will be your BIG SIBLING and your COMPAC
team!
**Due to recurrent changes in the curriculum, please do not use this as a
verbatim resource, but rather a guide to help clear up any questions, or help
with planning and organizing. Although the curriculum map may look
different, you will cover the same material throughout the year.**
Course Formatting:
1. Each course will have a different system focus, containing lectures
including: physiology, anatomy, histology, cell biology, genetics, and
biochemistry.
2. Each course will have 3-4 multiple-choice exams (taken on Examsoft
3.
4.
5.
6.
exam software with your own laptop) and an anatomy practical.
Basic Science classes generally fall on Monday/Wednesday/Friday.
Doctoring, Evidence-based Clinical Reasoning (aka. EBCR), and
Ethics/Humanities will fall on Tuesday/Thursday along with your
Doctoring Clinical Experience (DCE).
Questions can, and will be asked in basic science classes via Turning Point
clickers. These can be used for attendance in mandatory classes, so
having one is a requirement.
Grading is an interesting issue and changes almost every class. Please
refer to the intro given by the Year 1 Coordinator to get the most up-todate information, outside of the Pass/Fail policy.
7. Gross Anatomy lab typically will be set-up with groups of 7-8 students per
body and will be broken up into groups A and B, you will not dissect
everyday or every week, however you DO have access to the lab 24/7.
So Group A might go in and dissect a section and then when B goes in
someone will come in from A to teach what was dissected and help to
identify structures, then group B will complete their dissections.
2017 USF COMPAC Survival Guide
MCOM C/O 2016
Course 1 - Musculoskeletal/Core Principles of Medicine
Your first medical school course is sort of dual purposed. While it focuses on
a lot of structural and physiological principles of the musculoskeletal system
(emphasis on structural) it also combines a lot of foundational classes in
cellular and molecular biology (including genetics). And no you’re not
mistaken, anatomy will seem like nothing then all of a sudden there’s 300
structures you need to know for the test and practical…manage your time
wisely. If the anatomy website is still up that can be a really good resource
for learning structures and clinical applications so doing the online modules
can be very worthwhile. If it isn’t up, Dr. Arslan usually does a good review
that you can just focus on to study. Finally, towards the end of the course,
Dr. Stock covers A LOT of human development so focusing on the Human
development in First Aid can be a good way to focus your studying.
Course 2 – Neurological Systems: Neurological tracts, cranial
nerves, the brain, brain blood supply and clinical correlations. This class can
be challenging, especially since most haven’t had a neuroscience or
neuroanatomy class. Staying on top of neuroanatomy is very
helpful/beneficial, and makes things make more sense during the whole
course. Dr. Gulick is the course director and she is very fair. Her PowerPoints
can be very intense the first time through, but once you look through them
again they tend to make sense and are a little repetitive which can help with
learning. Dr. Bennett covers a great deal of basic neuroscience (and neuro
biochemistry) and has really useful outlines of all his presentations. Finally,
Dr. Chichkova gives excellent active learning sessions so go to all of those
because being there really helped in learning about all of that. First Aid also
has a lot of great mnemonics for this block!
Course 3 – Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Systems:
This course is intense on the structural and physiological functions of the
cardiovascular and pulmonary systems. Many people have praised this for
being the most well organized course – it just kind of flows together for the
2017 USF COMPAC Survival Guide
MCOM C/O 2016
Cardiovascular part. Dr. Doupnik has really well-organized lectures and is
usually pretty transparent about what questions he puts on the test. Dr.
Morris has an interesting teaching style that might not work for everyone so
books like BRS Physiology and West Respiratory Physiology can be very
helpful (and they have a lot of practice questions). Reading ahead in either
of these books for the corresponding lectures might sound lame but can be
very helpful. Also Less memorizing and more thinking through the concepts
will go far in this course.
Course 4: - GI, Renal and Endocrine Systems:
This course focuses on the structural, physiological and biochemistry of GI,
renal, reproductive and endocrine systems. Warning: this course is
biochemistry-heavy, really focus on the Rate-limiting step!!! Rate-limiting
step is your best friend for this block!!! And on Dr. Williams’s lectures really
focus on his intro slides (it’s where his test questions come from.) Dr.
Johnson is the course director, and his lectures tend to be pretty wellorganized, but his test questions can be wildly tricky. The curve gets
adjusted for this so don’t stress too much. GI, GU, and endocrine physiology
is a familiar trade by now in that everyone should be thinking about what
happens to X with a change in Y. Last in this course will be the renal system
taught by Dr. Stevenson and an introduction to pharmacology taught by Dr.
Amin.
Ethics and Humanities: Classes usually take place on chosen
Tuesdays or Thursdays and last for two hours, but sometimes they can be
scheduled as the last “real” class before a test/ Anatomy Practical. Each
class will focus on an ethical or humanistic issue that relates to what we as
future physicians may encounter. Depending on the day, you may be
watching a movie, doing random learning activities or assignments or
engaging in class discussions. Any assignments or reading that assigned are
usually not too difficult.
This Course is…well, difficult to put into words, but not difficult in what’s
required of you. Just show up and do any of the assignments that are
2017 USF COMPAC Survival Guide
MCOM C/O 2016
required. Dr. Nixon (our humanities professor) is very passionate about this
class, and it can make for an interesting time.
Doctoring: This course will involve one hour of large group lecture and
after, a few hours of standardized patient (SP) encounters at the CACL and
labs typically each week. You will learn the gold standard physical exam and
clinical correlations. In CACL you will typically be in groups of 3-4 with a
preceptor and patient. Be prepared and always wear your white coat,
closed-toed shoes, a tie (guys) and have all of your necessary equipment!!!
These are typically low key and great learning opportunities; you will have
assessments on these skills. There is a test on history taking (in CACL with
Standardized Pt. mid-year), on physical examination skills (in CACL with
Standardized Pt. end of year), and on all of the Doctoring lectures (via
Blackboard end of year).
DCE (Doctoring Clinical Experience): You will be randomly paired
with a physician preceptor from across Tampa Bay. Your only task is to
shadow them and practice some clinical skills once a week for four hours.
You’ll need to present one case that you came across to your small group,
but don’t worry it, it’s not bad and pretty much writes itself. Absolutely the
easiest course in your first year, and most likely the most fun cause it’s
actually doing medicine!!! Don’t skip DCE unless you want to be kicked
out of med school. If you don’t like your preceptor at first then be patient.
Almost everyone ends up really enjoying their DCE by the end of the year.
EBCR (Evidence Based Clinical Reasoning): This is a course
which occurs on Tuesday/Thursday afternoons for an hour or so a week. It
teaches you how to recognize various research methods (such as type of
study), how to interpret statistical data and plots, as well as the best way to
design a study for a particular purpose. It is a very useful course but most
people don’t go. It’s worth putting in the effort because it is stuff that will
definitely help you in practicing medicine. Our year, we had a mid-term quiz
and a final cumulative exam at the end of the year, but it could be changed
this year.
2017 USF COMPAC Survival Guide
MCOM C/O 2016
DPT 2015 Additional Courses
Movement Science: This class covers physiology of movement,
palpation, observation of gait and posture, and detailed anatomy from head
to toe. We also used the cadaver lab and the knowledge of the 3rd year PT
students to better understand the muscles. Last year we had 3 online takehome quizzes, 2 written tests, and 1 practical.
Books used: Oatis, Trail Guide (Andrew Biel) and Netters
Foundations: This class covers all the "basic" foundational tools you will
need to become a physical therapist. This includes goniometry, manual
muscle testing, special tests, joint play, lower and upper quadrant scans,
neurology tests, and much more. This class requires the tools that you will
receive at the beginning of school. We will have an order form for you at a
later date. Last year we took 2 written tests, 2 practical's, and had a few
pop-quizzes.
Books used: measurement of joint motion (norkin and white), muscle testing
(Daniels and Worthingham), Documentation for rehabilitation (Quinn and
Gordon), patient care skills (Minor and Minor), Magee
SELECT Additional Courses
*Remember everything is subject to change
Community-Based Clinical Mentoring (CCM): This is the LCE
version for SELECT. You and a fellow classmate will be paired up to
participate at a clinical site, one half day per week. The clinical sites will
allow you to work with an interdisciplinary team, i.e. work collaboratively
along with not only physicians but many more health care professionals. The
goal of the course is to give you a better understanding of the big picture of
caring for a patient. Like LCE, you will pick a specific patient case one day
that you find most interesting and present it to your doctoring group. In
addition, you’ll present a research project at the end of the year about an
issue specific to your clinical site. You will definitely enjoy your time
learning a great deal about not only clinical medicine but healthcare overall.
It will be the best day of your week!
Professional Development Course (PDC): This is a coaching and
mentoring course which fosters personal and professional growth. You'll be
2017 USF COMPAC Survival Guide
MCOM C/O 2016
in big group or in small groups most of the time, and at the end of every
block you'll usually have an individual or peer presentation. Nothing too
major, review a couple articles prior to each meeting, reflection involved. It's
pretty awesome—faculty does the activities along with you. The majority of
the learning is self-directed, so you can choose what you want to focus on.
-Course 1: Health Systems
-Course 2: Leadership
-Course 3: Patient-Centered Care
-Course 4: Leadership
2017 USF COMPAC Survival Guide
MCOM C/O 2016
IMPORTANT: STUDY THE POWERPOINTS, this is where the majority
of your test questions come from. For those that want more to read,
we have put together some books that were helpful and used by our
classmates. Understand the professors will recommend textbooks,
and for the most part these aren’t necessary…studying the
powerpoints and taking good notes goes a long way!
Books (not necessarily the same as provided in the
syllabus):
1. Netters: Frank will be your best friend and you will become quite close
throughout the year. This is a full color atlas that will help to identify
structures, Netters flashcards are very helpful for the muscle and skeletal
portion of the Anatomy, it will provide attachments and function.
2. Atlas of Anatomy (Gilroy): Some of us would argue that this atlas is
better put-together than Netter’s, and since it’s integrated into the
anatomy lab computers, it could become more familiar. Regardless,
having an atlas is a good idea in first year.
3. Gray’s Anatomy: This is textbook that some felt to be helpful to explain
things not well understood from lecture, and will get used often in the
beginning gradually decreasing throughout the year as the amount of
anatomy decreases.
4. Rohen’s Atlas: similar to Netter’s but with actual cadaver pictures, a lot of
people pick up an older edition of this off of Amazon, etc. and find that it
helps A LOT for the anatomy practical.
5. High Yield Embryology: very helpful and will explain as the weeks
progress for development, this is very similar to how is done in the
course. IMPORTANT: Take good notes the slides tend to not have a lot
of what is said in the lecture, mostly pictures. This book is a great when
accompanied by great notes from class!
6. Lippincott’s Illustrated Review of Biochemistry: Great book for color
pictures of pathways, great book if you’re a visual learner and also has
great summaries and once again concise information!
7. Neuroscience, Purves. This book is actually well written and makes
understanding the Neuroscience course that much easier. A lot of the
reading assignments come from here, as well as pictures used in lectures
2017 USF COMPAC Survival Guide
MCOM C/O 2016
(read those captions!) and skimming over the chapters actually helps turn
the sometimes foreign lectures into simple concepts. Not too expensive,
and the newest edition isn’t exactly necessary.
8. Neuroanatomy An Atlas of Structures (Haines). This book is OK, what
many found useful is the cross-section pictures and understanding where
many of the neuro tracts run in the brainstem and the spinal cord as well
as cross-sections of the brain. This can be helpful for figuring out the
multiple tract functions and identifying lesions when given a patient
presentation.
9. High-Yield Neuroanatomy: this book was great for simple pictures of the
neuro tracts and how they run and most importantly where they cross.
This book will also discuss common lesions and how it impacts the body
and system. Great resource!
10. BRS Physiology: Many students found this to be their most important
book, however, as the professors will tell you, this book is only good for
reviewing material once you’re somewhat familiar with it and not as a
first time learning resource. The bigger version of this book (Costanzo)
could help with some background on the bullet points in BRS.
11. Respiratory Physiology (West): This book is extremely useful in Dr.
Morris’ class. His lectures are essentially based aroung this book. If you
have a hard time with respiratory phys, this book is a MUST HAVE.
Materials/Tools:
1. Laptop advice: whatever you use, if it worked for you before, without
trouble, it should work at USF MCOM. Don’t rush out to buy another
laptop or switch from Mac (about half of our class has a Mac) unless
you’re looking to do that anyways. We know there’s “guidelines” put out,
but those are the specs to make sure your laptop works with the
programs, not a requirement to spend your financial aid.
2. Printer advice: if you absolutely want to buy the laser printer they
recommend, then by all means do so. However there is free printing in
the library (up to $2.50 per day, which is about 12 pages) and free black
and white printing in Nickels Lounge (just provide your own paper).
Laser printers are a little more cost effective with the amount of volume
that exists should you choose to print your notes out, but not everyone
prints out their notes. In fact, many students in our class loaded
2017 USF COMPAC Survival Guide
MCOM C/O 2016
powerpoints onto their iPads and used them in class instead… This really
is an issue of personal preference.
3. Software: make sure you have Microsoft Office, or some equivalent that
will let you open/save/edit docs in Microsoft Word/Excel/PowerPoint. Any
extra is up to you and not really required. The ExamSoft software is free
and you’ll get info on how to download and install this during orientation.
4. Tools: it’s highly recommended that you get the minimum tool kit
suggested by COMPAC’s website. Those tools will be used in Doctoring
classes, DCE and in volunteering (Bridge, Red Crescent, and health fairs).
Some buy otoscope/opthalmoscopes and honestly…they’re expensive.
You don’t have to own one of these unless you absolutely need to prove
your worth on holiday vacations with the family, so save your money if
possible. Oh, almost forgot GET A STETHOSCOPE if that already wasn’t
an obvious decision. There’s tons of advice choosing which one…honestly
it doesn’t matter much as long as you can hear with it. Pick the one that
you like the best.
Scrubs: you’ll need a couple of pairs of these too! Some people get only
one pair (until you get to TGH) but with there being a lot of labs on some
weeks an extra pair helps out. Ordering them through COMPAC can save
some money, time, and headaches. If you need petite/short pants—you
can score these @ Walmart, but ordering through COMPAC is the best
way to go.
2017 USF COMPAC Survival Guide
MCOM C/O 2016
Restaurants:
$=cheap <$10
$$= moderate $11-$30
$$$= spendy $31-$60
$$$$= splurge >$61
American Food
Name
Price Description
Location
Burger 21
$$
N Dale Mabry
Unique specialty burgers,
sauce/condiment bar, veggie
burger options
Burger Monger
$$
Lots of topping options
N Dale Mabry
Deck Pizza
$
NY style pizza, open late
W Platt st
Gators
Dockside
$$
Sports bar, chicken wings
Fowler ave
Jimbo’s BBQ
$$
Good portion sizes, serves
their bbq sauce warm
W Kennedy
Leroy Selmon’s
$$
Sports bar and BBQ
W Boyscout blvd
Skipper’s
Smokehouse
and Oyster Bar
$$
Famous for being a great live
music venue, laid back “Old
Florida” atmosphere and food
Skipper rd
Gourmet Pizza
Company
$$
Fresh ingredients, have vegan
options
S. Howard
Square 1
Burger
$$
Won “Best in the Bay” award
this year
N. Henderson
Sally Oneal’s
Pizza Hotline
$$
Quaint neighborhood pizza
place, uses fresh ingredients
S. Howard
Asian Food
Name
Price Description
Location
Bangkok Jazz
$$
Thai food, live jazz thurs-sat
nights
Fowler
Koizi Endless
$$
Japanese food, Unlimited
Tampa palms,
2017 USF COMPAC Survival Guide
Sushi and
Hibachi Eatery
MCOM C/O 2016
sushi and hibachi lunch special Palm Pointe dr.
for $9.95!!
Liang’s China
Bistro
$$
Chinese food
Bruce B Downs
blvd
Pho Quyen
$
Vietnamese food
Fowler
Sukothai
$$
Has floor seating
N Dale Mabry
Thai Ruby
$$
Thai food
Amberly dr.
Yummy House
$$
Really good chinese food
W Waters Ave
Caribbean Food
Name
Price
Description
Location
Jerk Hut
$$
Jamaican food
Fowler Ave
Tara’s
Roti Shop
$
Trinidadian food
N. 30th st/
Bruce B.
Downs
Fine Dining
Name
Price Description
Location
Bella’s Italian
Cafe
$$
Pretty, Italian restaurant, has
outdoor seating
S. Howard
Bern’s
Steakhouse
$$$$
High-end steakhouse, large
wine selection
S. Howard
Ocean Prime
$$$$
High-end steakhouse and
seafood restaurant
Near
International
Plaza/ W. Shore
blvd
Oystercatchers
$$$
Waterfront seafood restaurant
Bayport dr.
Wine exchange
$$
Bistro and wine bar with patio
seating
Old hyde park
Greek/Mediterranean Food/Turkish
Name
Price Description
Location
2017 USF COMPAC Survival Guide
MCOM C/O 2016
Acropolis Greek $$
Taverna
Serves a variety of Greek
dishes, full bar, has some
outdoor seating, fun
atmosphere
Bruce B Downs
blvd
Athenos
$
Quick Greek food close to
campus
Fowler ave
Byblos Cafe
$$
Mediterranean/ Middle-eastern MacDill ave
food, has belly dancers in the
evening
Little Greek
$
Serves gyros, Greek salad,
Fowler ave
etc..Quick and close to
campus
Gengiz Khan
$$
Turkish food
MacDill
Petra
$$
Authentic Middle-Eastern
food/halal, good portion sizes
Busch blvd
Persia House of
Kababs
$$
Persian food
Fletcher ave
Indian Food
Name
Price Description
Location
Cilantro
$$
Indian food, have lunch buffet
56th and Fowler
Jai Ho
$$
North and South Indian
cuisine
Fowler ave
Udipi Cafe
$$
Vegetarian
Dale Mabry Hwy
Taj Indian
Cuisine
$$
Delicious food, Have lunch
buffet
Fowler ave
Taste of India
$$
North and South Indian
cuisine
Fowler ave
Italian Food
Name
Price
Description
Location
Bella’s Italian
Cafe
$$
Pretty, Italian
restaurant, has
S. Howard
2017 USF COMPAC Survival Guide
MCOM C/O 2016
outdoor seating
Bernini
$$
Delicious and
affordable
Ybor
Laughing Cat
$$
Cozy Italian food
place, large
portions
Ybor
Maggiano’s
Little Italy
$$
Good pasta
Westshore Plaza
Sally Oneal’s
Pizza Hotline
$$
Quaint
neighborhood
S. Howard
pizza place, uses
fresh ingredients
Latin/Tex-Mex Food
Name
Price Description
Location
California Tacos $
Famous for their fish tacos
Bearss ave
Ceviche Tapas
Bar
Spanish tapas, Live music on
weekends, $4 sangria and
W Azeele
$$
tapas on Tuesdays
Columbia
$$
Spanish/Cuban food. Historic
Tampa restaurant been
around since 1905!
Ybor
El Puerto Grill
$$
Argentinean food. Known for
their steaks
Ybor
Hugo’s Spanish
$
Cheap Spanish/Cuban food,
known for their Cuban
sandwiches
S. Howard
La Pequeña
Colombia
$$
Colombian food and bakery
Armenia ave
La Teresita
$
Best Cuban food in Tampa,
really cheap, large portions
W Columbus dr.
Taco Bus
$
Delicious, cheap Mexican food
Fletcher ave,
Hillsborough ave
Tijuana Flats
$
Close to campus, Mexican
Bruce B Downs
2017 USF COMPAC Survival Guide
MCOM C/O 2016
food
blvd
Sandwich Shops (close to campus)
Panera
Jimmy Johns
Jason’s Deli
Firehouse Subs
McAllister’s Deli
Quiznos
Jersey Mikes
Wawa
Seafood
Name
Price Description
Location
The Colonnade
$$
Great view
Bayshore blvd
Mitchell’s Fish
Market
$$$
Serves variety of seafood
dishes
Westshore Plaza
Oystercatchers
$$$
Waterfront seafood restaurant
Bayport dr.
Shrimp and Co.
$$
Serves both seafood and
American food
Ybor
Sushi
Name
Price
Description
Location
Samurai Blue
$$
Sushi bar
Ybor
SOHO Sushi
$$
Really good sushi
W Kennedy blvd
and new location
on Bearss**
Sushi Alive
$$
Happy hour 5-7
N Dale Mabry
Trendy Food/ Fun places to eat
Name
Price Description
Location
2017 USF COMPAC Survival Guide
MCOM C/O 2016
Ciro’s
Speakeasy and
Supperclub
$$$
1920’s prohibition era
theme(you have to call ahead
for password), incredible
cocktails, great appetizers
Hidden in an apt
complex on
Bayshore blvd
and Howard
Ella’s
Americana
Folk-art Cafe
$$
Eclectic cuisine, craft beers,
live music Fridays, soul food
Sundays
N Nebraska Ave
Dat’z
$$
Unique gourmet sandwiches
and sides, craft beers
N Dale Mabry
The Refinery
$$
Use local venders for all
N Florida Ave
ingredients, menu changes
every week depending on
what is fresh
Bars:
South Tampa:
Jacksons (harbour island),
Macdintons (Irish Pub, Soho)
Dubliner (Irish Pub, Soho) it has great pizzas too.
Mangroves (Howard Ave.)
The Rack (Platt St.) pretty decent sushi here too.
Hyde park Café (Dance club, Platt St.)
Splitsville (bowling alley/ dance club, Channelside)
Howl at the Moon ( Piano Bar, Channelside)
Banana Joe’s (Country/ Dance, Channelside)
Four Green Fields (Platt near downtown)
Taps (downtown wine bar. Very nice)
Cheap on S Howard
New Tampa:
Whiskey North (Dance Club, Dale Mabry Ave.)
2017 USF COMPAC Survival Guide
MCOM C/O 2016
Peabody’s (Pool hall, Bruce B Downs, kind of smokey)
Dallas Bull (Country Western bar, lots of fun, near Brandon)
Other Fun Stuff:
Busch Gardens (get your year pass now! Lots of fun after exams!)
Adventure Island
Muvico and Channelside Movie Theaters
County Parks (great trails for running, hiking, etc)
Beaches (St. Pete, Clearwater, Anna Maria Island, Ft. De Soto are some
favorites)
Tampa Theater (old restored movie theater- shows indy films and
concerts)
Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center (if you’re into plays and musicals)
Tampa Improv Comedy Club in Ybor
Running on Bayshore Blvd. (Where all the million dollar homes are)
International, Brandon, and Westshore Mall are places to shop
Vertical Ventures - rock climbing on Waters Ave.
Canoeing on the Hillsborough River (watch out for alligators)
Mosi (has traveling exhibits, events, and imax movies throughout the year)
Tampa bay Buccaneers, Rays, or Lightening games
USF Bulls sporting events(student tickets to football games are free!)
Lowry Park Zoo
Class socials/pool parties, etc. put on by your class Social Chairs