Being Honest..Hopefully No One is Offended

[yanks26dmb]

Podiatry is my plan C......and I'm wondering if it should even be a plan at all. Hear me out..

I'm not saying this to take anything away from podiatrists, nor do I think the field of podiatry is any less difficult than other fields of medicine.

I want to go to medical school, because at the moment, I'm leaning towards emergency medicine/possibly ortho. Of course, I'm realistic and know wanting to do ortho and actually doing ortho are very far apart due to the competition for ortho residencies. Of course, the above could change once I actually start classes/rotations.

The problem is, I'm not sure if my stats are going to be good enough. I'm a non-trad, 7 years since graduation. My cGPA is a 3.1 (huge upward trend - last 120 hours 3.5). My sGPA is a 3.7. My post-bacc is a 4.0. My MCAT "should" be in the 28-32 range when I take it in June. I've got a killer EC as well.

My plan A is MD, plan B is DO, and as it stands now, plan C is podiatry. Should someone in my position not consider podiatry? For all of you currently practicing podiatrists, did you have a burning desire to practice podiatry and podiatry only? Or did you simply want to get into the medical and/or surgical field and opted for podiatry because of circumstances and if so, are you happy with your decision? Thanks much.

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[SLCpod]

I am offended!!! JK.

Everyone has a different plan and students go for an MD, DO or DPM for different reasons. The only reason you should want to go to podiatry school is to become a podiatrist. Yes we are trained to be surgeons and learn the same basic sciences as a MD or DO, but our specialty is the foot. My suggestion would be to shadow a podiatrist or two. When you are with them you can ask questions and decide if this is something that you really want. If you don't then I would look at doing something else. I would hate doing something everyday if I didn't want to do it.

 

[jch555]

My advice: shadow a Podiatrist and ask a lot of questions. That, more than any advice anyone online can give, will give you a better understanding of the field and also your interest level in it. Good luck.

 

[hughesn2]

Before giving up on DO you better shadow a podiatrist because if you go down the DPM route without fully understanding what a podiatrist does you may dislike it. I personally always wanted to go into the medical field from 8th grade and on. But for me, when I had my foot issues in 8th grade is when I realized I wanted to be a podiatrist over a DO. You may find out that a podiatrists job is not for your or maybe just the opposite after shadowing them.

 

[newfeet]

I'm not offended. Podiatry was my B plan. My initial plan was MD/DO school. After I took the mcat I started getting letters from APMA and NYCPM. I wanted to work with diabetics because of my aunt so I applied. After 4 years of podiatry school and almost 3 years of residency, I'm starting to think it was a good decision. I don't love surgery but I do get to work with diabetics which is why I wanted to be a doctor. I probably will never be 100 percent sure but I'm 7 years in.

Podiatry is my plan C......and I'm wondering if it should even be a plan at all. Hear me out..

I'm not saying this to take anything away from podiatrists, nor do I think the field of podiatry is any less difficult than other fields of medicine.

I want to go to medical school, because at the moment, I'm leaning towards emergency medicine/possibly ortho. Of course, I'm realistic and know wanting to do ortho and actually doing ortho are very far apart due to the competition for ortho residencies. Of course, the above could change once I actually start classes/rotations.

The problem is, I'm not sure if my stats are going to be good enough. I'm a non-trad, 7 years since graduation. My cGPA is a 3.1 (huge upward trend - last 120 hours 3.5). My sGPA is a 3.7. My post-bacc is a 4.0. My MCAT "should" be in the 28-32 range when I take it in June. I've got a killer EC as well.

My plan A is MD, plan B is DO, and as it stands now, plan C is podiatry. Should someone in my position not consider podiatry? For all of you currently practicing podiatrists, did you have a burning desire to practice podiatry and podiatry only? Or did you simply want to get into the medical and/or surgical field and opted for podiatry because of circumstances and if so, are you happy with your decision? Thanks much.

 

[yanks26dmb]

Thanks for the feedback. I've got to be honest - I am a bit worried about the financial aspect of podiatry. I'm somewhat sure I could get scholarships for school, but despite that, I would like to be able to bring home a minimum of a solid salary, which where I live, is, ~250k. Is this feasible for someone who's willing to work hard, put in the hours, grind it out..? Or are 250k+ salaries in podiatry so uncommon, even the hardest of workers have a difficult time attaining that type of figure.

 

[Telekinesis]

Thanks for the feedback. I've got to be honest - I am a bit worried about the financial aspect of podiatry. I'm somewhat sure I could get scholarships for school, but despite that, I would like to be able to bring home a minimum of a solid salary, which where I live, is, ~250k. Is this feasible for someone who's willing to work hard, put in the hours, grind it out..? Or are 250k+ salaries in podiatry so uncommon, even the hardest of workers have a difficult time attaining that type of figure.

Nah those salaries aren't uncommon.

 

[heybrother]

Nah those salaries aren't uncommon.

Can you support this with anything besides an anecdote?

 

[Telekinesis]

Can you support this with anything besides an anecdote?

I've seen many job postings about such positions. Never said that it was the average just said it wasn't uncommon.

 

[Gigantron]

The 2010 MGMA Physician Compensation Survey (the only full pdf of the survey I could find that was in the public domain) stated that general pods earned an average salary of 216.6k (n=189) and those who did a lot of foot and ankle surgery earned an average of 287.4k (n=76). Of course, this is data from four years ago and the sample size might be a bit biased (obviously those who are comfortable with their salary are more likely to report it in the survey), so if anyone in the field can comment with more recent sources, that would be great.

 

[g squared 23]

If you're just in it for the money, don't do it. And medicine in general may not be the best idea either with the way things are heading.

 

[SweetBurger]

Before giving up on DO you better shadow a podiatrist because if you go down the DPM route without fully understanding what a podiatrist does you may dislike it. I personally always wanted to go into the medical field from 8th grade and on. But for me, when I had my foot issues in 8th grade is when I realized I wanted to be a podiatrist over a DO. You may find out that a podiatrists job is not for your or maybe just the opposite after shadowing them.

Ha i broke my foot in 8th grade playing soccer and seeing the podiatrist sparked my interest in the field.

 

[AttackNME]

I was in the same boat as you, MD with surg residency plan A, Pod plan B. mcat 32 gpa 3.33. My attitude going in was simply I wanted to work with my hands. I've shadowed plenty of docs and although physical examination is hands-on, it usually comes down to some prescription at the click of a button or writing a script. Not saying I don't wanna do that but I've been a crafty person my whole life and wanted to use that as part of my practice. I shadowed a pod, thought it was something I could see myself doing, and just went with it. A lot of people avoid discussing or thinking about the big elephant in the room, and that's their ego. I'm not above debriding toenails/calluses, it is fun, i'm good at it, and people get immediate relief (plus it pays), along with debriding infected wounds. Of course bunions, hammertoes, and ankle surgery is fun too, but you have to be okay with doing the prior as part of your practice. I have dealt with a few patients that have said to me, "why don't you be a REAL doctor instead of just cutting toenails?". This guy was disgruntled and unhappy with a prior podiatrist he's encountered, and I knew that, so I said, "hey, somebody's got to do it! " People have no idea how much medicine we actually need to know to do our jobs well. This is the reality of the profession, it is still evolving and people are only beginning to understand what we do.

 

[Telekinesis]

If you're just in it for the money, don't do it. And medicine in general may not be the best idea either with the way things are heading.

I hate this response. Everyone acts like it's oh so easy to make a 6 figure income with only a bachelors.

 

[g squared 23]

I hate this response. Everyone acts like it's oh so easy to make a 6 figure income with only a bachelors.

Nobody said that actually.

 

[Telekinesis]

Nobody said that actually.

No but to say don't go into medicine for money implies that health care professionals work out of the kindness of their heart and only make peanuts.

 

[g squared 23]

No but to say don't go into medicine for money implies that health care professionals work out of the kindness of their heart and only make peanuts.

It implies that the golden days of the $1500 bunion are over. It IS NOT as profitable as it used to be. Medicine is a job just like anything else, but it takes longer to pay off. So someone with a bachelor's will actually get into the black at least a decade quicker than someone going into the medicine. That's the point. Yea, if you practice for a loong time, you'll make far more than someone with a bachelor's. But driving a Ferrari and retiring at 50 in medicine ain't happening like it used to.

On top of that, my tuition during school went up on average 4-5% per year. Did reimbursements go up AT ALL during that period?? Also, loan interest was at about 7% when I was in school whereas 10 years ago, it was about 2. Are you getting the drift? No, doctors aren't starving, but it's taking a LOT longer to enjoy all of their labors and sacrificed youth and personal time.

 

[Telekinesis]

It implies that the golden days of the $1500 bunion are over. It IS NOT as profitable as it used to be. Medicine is a job just like anything else, but it takes longer to pay off. So someone with a bachelor's will actually get into the black at least a decade quicker than someone going into the medicine. That's the point. Yea, if you practice for a loong time, you'll make far more than someone with a bachelor's. But driving a Ferrari and retiring at 50 in medicine ain't happening like it used to.

On top of that, my tuition during school went up on average 4-5% per year. Did reimbursements go up AT ALL during that period?? Also, loan interest was at about 7% when I was in school whereas 10 years ago, it was about 2. Are you getting the drift? No, doctors aren't starving, but it's taking a LOT longer to enjoy all of their labors and sacrificed youth and personal time.

Understand that. Tuition is way too high now.

 

[heybrother]

Understand that. Tuition is way too high now.

And always climbing. According to an old email I sent my family DMU cost $28,160 on 11/22/2011. We're at ~$30K now and I'm pretty sure the tuition for next year is just slightly over $31K. These add up and I'm curious how high the cost can possibly be born. I'm sorry, but I don't think a DPM degree is worth $40K in tuition a year and my eyebrows would be raised at numbers a lot lower than that.

 

[newfeet]

And always climbing. According to an old email I sent my family DMU cost $28,160 on 11/22/2011. We're at ~$30K now and I'm pretty sure the tuition for next year is just slightly over $31K. These add up and I'm curious how high the cost can possibly be born. I'm sorry, but I don't think a DPM degree is worth $40K in tuition a year and my eyebrows would be raised at numbers a lot lower than that.

Medical education is becoming ridiculously expensive. It's going to be difficult for future podiatrists to pay loans off if tuition keeps increasing.