Not sure what to pursue

[battlesankey]

I feel like no matter what path I end up in (DPM,MD,DO), I will love my job. Which one should i choose?

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[CardsFan92]

I feel like no matter what path I end up in (DPM,MD,DO), I will love my job.

What is your question?

 

[Cosmo_Kramer]

I ended up getting a 511. I know this is a very competitive score for applying to podiatry schools, DO schools, and even some MD schools. With this kind of score should I still apply podiatry, or should I go for the MD/DO? I have long considered podiatry and enjoyed my experience shadowing a podiatric physician. But at the same time I want to be rewarded for my hard work and credentials. If becoming a DPM will not do that to the same level as other schools would, I would rather not go the dpm route.

I have experiencing shadowing an Urgent Care doc, podiatrist, family practice, ophthalmologist, and I loved all of them and I know for sure that I want to be a physician. I feel like no matter what path I end up in (DPM,MD,DO), I will love my job.

Also my gpa is 3.50 both overall and science. have clinical volunteer experience, research experience, non clinical volunteering experience, a few other things too. all the E.C stuff that admissions people like to see.

Easy--Go for the profession that you like the most. If you want us to tell you what path you should take, then you're constantly going to wonder, "What if I did DPM/MD/DO/etc.?"

 

[HappyHobPod]

Maybe ill have to do another round of shadowing to figure out what I would like the most....

I agree with you here. You are going to be able to help individuals in many different ways regardless of which health profession you are going to shoot for. Of course DPM vs MD/DO is going to be a fairly different overall experience, so shadowing more to understand how these differences will affect your overall training would be a good idea. Also you should maybe think about the type of practice you want to have or the type of environment you want to work in and the hours that you would be willing to devote to either. But I definitely wouldn't try to justify going for MD/DO because of your MCAT score or undermine the medical profession that is podiatry by saying that because you scored a 511 on your MCAT, you should reward yourself with a profession that historically has had higher average MCAT scores. It doesn't equate to the conclusion I think you are trying to arrive to. So definitely try to build a more solid understanding of the professions and how you would be able to best help people with the interest that you have.

 

[bobtheweazel]

I can tell you that I got the same MCAT score as you and I applied Podiatry this cycle and it was surprisingly easy to get interviews and acceptances. Also, they'll pretty much automatically offer you their highest incoming scholarships or close to them.

Maybe just apply to all of them (DPM, DO, MD) in the same cycle, interview at some schools and make your decision then. We all interview at the same time of the year anyway.

 

[bobroberts]

I got the same score and had the same thoughts you are having: should I go towards DO/MD and away from DPM? I soon realized that I didn't choose DPM because of the lower average MCAT, I chose it because it offers me exactly what I am looking for in a career. Hopefully you enjoyed your shadowing experiences and are passionate about DPM, don't just do DO/MD because you got a high MCAT when what you really want is DPM.

For me, I want DPM because of the volume of surgery, and surgery via the DO route is extremely difficult and unlikely. Just part of my reasoning. Hope this helps.

 

[Podseidon]

Maybe ill have to do another round of shadowing to figure out what I would like the most....

This is what you should do. Don't let us choose what's best for you even if you can't pick yourself.

 

[hellcat12]

I don't suggest you apply to MD now, it's pretty late in the cycle for MD, will be awfully tough to get in, so you might be wasting a lot of money and time, since you'll also have to do supplemental applications. If you decide to try to go the MD route, apply as soon as the AMCA opens again next june or may (not sure the exact month). It's pretty late for D.O as well, but you may have a slight shot there if you apply broadly. As for D.P.M you obv have enough time to apply still, but i'd make the decision soon too, so that you get a good scholarship offer. If you end up choosing MD, i'd strongly suggest applying to some D.O. schools as well next summer just in case, because allopathic schools are very tough to get into now, and for MD your gpa is a bit lower than the avg. So, in conclusion, if you want to go to grad school next fall and you like all the fields equally, D.P.M would be your best chance at doing that, mainly because of the timeline. Also, I'm not just making things up here, i have known a hand full of people who haven't gotten into MD/DO schools, because they didn't apply early enough, and these were all well qualified candidates too.

 

[soccermac42]

I got the same score and had the same thoughts you are having: should I go towards DO/MD and away from DPM? I soon realized that I didn't choose DPM because of the lower average MCAT, I chose it because it offers me exactly what I am looking for in a career. Hopefully you enjoyed your shadowing experiences and are passionate about DPM, don't just do DO/MD because you got a high MCAT when what you really want is DPM.

For me, I want DPM because of the volume of surgery, and surgery via the DO route is extremely difficult and unlikely. Just part of my reasoning. Hope this helps.

Surgery via DO is not impossible or even extremely difficult now especially when the residencies merge. It is based on board scores and DO is becoming way more respected as an equal to MD and will only continue.

 

[Doctor Dream]

Maybe ill have to do another round of shadowing to figure out what I would like the most....

Either that or just take some time to reflect on your shadowing experiences and evaluate the positives and negatives to each path. It might be in your best interest to apply next cycle anyway, so you've got some time to figure things out. If you want MD/DO, apply. Your stats are definitely competitive for some lower tier MD's and most DO's, and the worst they can say is no. If you want DPM, you're probably a solid lock for most schools.

 

[surfguy84]

I ended up getting a 511. I know this is a very competitive score for applying to podiatry schools, DO schools, and even some MD schools. With this kind of score should I still apply podiatry, or should I go for the MD/DO? I have long considered podiatry and enjoyed my experience shadowing a podiatric physician. But at the same time I want to be rewarded for my hard work and credentials. If becoming a DPM will not do that to the same level as other schools would, I would rather not go the dpm route.

I have experiencing shadowing an Urgent Care doc, podiatrist, family practice, ophthalmologist, and I loved all of them and I know for sure that I want to be a physician. I feel like no matter what path I end up in (DPM,MD,DO), I will love my job.

Also my gpa is 3.50 both overall and science. have clinical volunteer experience, research experience, non clinical volunteering experience, a few other things too. all the E.C stuff that admissions people like to see.

I'll tell you what a podiatrist I shadowed told me last year when I was in the application cycle....

"If you can go MD/DO, do it."

This is what I did, and I don't regret it for a second.

 

[TheCzechShrek]

I'll tell you what a podiatrist I shadowed told me last year when I was in the application cycle....

"If you can go MD/DO, do it."

This is what I did, and I don't regret it for a second.

There's always people who regretted their decisions/made them on wrong preconceived notions. I hear all day about MDs/DOs who are warning premeds to turn away from the becoming a physician all together, would you let their personal headings turn you away from going MD/DO as well?

IMO, don't let other people's regrets control your own decisions, take a step back and think why they would say something like that. I bet more often than not, it's someone who wanted to get into the medical field for money above else or had some glamorous idea about what being a physician (of any kind) is.

My shadowing podiatrist (who is very successful and works his ass off) told me the biggest gripes he hears from disgruntled DPMs is either their lack of income, or dislike for healthcare changes. The former can be curved by either having more realistic expectations, or is due to some lack of interest anymore (may be more of a personal issue though so it really becomes subjective how to handle that).
For the latter, he told me it will almost be somewhat inherent in the field and one needs to get used to it or, again, have more realistic expectations going in. Current physicians dislike the new changes, but incoming physicians will start off with them, so when that changes, they'll dislike whats new, and the cycle just goes on and on.

Podiatry seems like pretty much any other field to me (medical or otherwise), generally the better you work and the more passion you have for it the better you can become, but there will always be a chance someone might get crap luck in some way and things wont turn out how they want them. So either they can complain about it (which is an easy and popular approach), or find out how to fix it. If someone can get through medical school I don't see how they don't have the intelligence or drive to push a little harder to grow and fix whatever the issue is that causes their disdain.

 

[surfguy84]

There's always people who regretted their decisions/made them on wrong preconceived notions. I hear all day about MDs/DOs who are warning premeds to turn away from the becoming a physician all together, would you let their personal headings turn you away from going MD/DO as well?

IMO, don't let other people's regrets control your own decisions, take a step back and think why they would say something like that. I bet more often than not, it's someone who wanted to get into the medical field for money above else or had some glamorous idea about what being a physician (of any kind) is.

My shadowing podiatrist (who is very successful and works his ass off) told me the biggest gripes he hears from disgruntled DPMs is either their lack of income, or dislike for healthcare changes. The former can be curved by either having more realistic expectations, or is due to some lack of interest anymore (may be more of a personal issue though so it really becomes subjective how to handle that).
For the latter, he told me it will almost be somewhat inherent in the field and one needs to get used to it or, again, have more realistic expectations going in. Current physicians dislike the new changes, but incoming physicians will start off with them, so when that changes, they'll dislike whats new, and the cycle just goes on and on.

Podiatry seems like pretty much any other field to me (medical or otherwise), generally the better you work and the more passion you have for it the better you can become, but there will always be a chance someone might get crap luck in some way and things wont turn out how they want them. So either they can complain about it (which is an easy and popular approach), or find out how to fix it. If someone can get through medical school I don't see how they don't have the intelligence or drive to push a little harder to grow and fix whatever the issue is that causes their disdain.

Fair enough.

I do think his point has validity however.

In all honesty, a few days, weeks, months (?) of shadowing is not enough to let you know what you want to do with the rest of your life...especially when you're young with (presumably) many options in front of you. There's a reason third and fourth year medical students still have trouble deciding on fields after a year+ spent on rotations. I think far too many people think they like what they see when they shadow, but unfortunately, that doesn't provide a clear enough picture in reality. Frankly, I think its ridiculous to expect the average 20 something to know what they want to be doing with the rest of their lives.

With podiatry, you're locked into one field. Find out later you don't like it? Tough luck. At least with DO/MD degree, you have the flexibility to change your mind after you've got significant hands on experience in a variety of fields. And even after you've decided, you can still go back and change gears, or specialize further.

And for the record, the Pod I saw was quite successful. His biggest grip was his desire to travel/practice overseas and he saw a lot of his MD/DO colleagues doing so, but he really was never able to with his degree because the opportunities are quite restricted for the DPM vs. so limitless for the former. His words, not mine, so I have no idea if this is true or not.

Lastly, I think it absolutely sucks that a DPM could perform a procedure and be reimbursed LESS than an MD/DO who performs the exact same procedure/does the exact same thing. It's not fair and it shouldn't be that way, but it is...that total disrepect alone would cause me to forgo DPM if at all possible.

 

[TheCzechShrek]

At least with DO/MD degree, you have the flexibility to change your mind after you've got significant hands on experience in a variety of fields. And even after you've decided, you can still go back and change gears, or specialize further.

I don't believe your above criticisms are necessarily true.

MDs and DOs cannot change specialities with ease. Possible? Technically. Practical or common? Not at all, you have to repeat matching and a new residency, so in my opinion it's still not much of a "viable" option for those who chose MD or DO.

Also a US completed MD does not move with ease overseas either, some European/UK countries may require to re-complete a residency, hell if you are a DO you may not even get full-scope of practices depending on the country so this is anything but "limitless" (though this is besides the point as this is a personal problem, and not a problem with the field of Podiatry as a whole in any sense).

I really don't want to turn this into a physician vs physician argument, all physicians are within their own scopes of practice and no one is universally "better" than the other. In the end satisfaction still comes down to what the individual person wants from their career, I just really don't see how people can glorify MD or DO like it's some magical ease to success compared to DPM.

 

[surfguy84]

I don't believe your above criticisms are necessarily true.

MDs and DOs cannot change specialities with ease. Possible? Technically. Practical or common? Not at all, you have to repeat matching and a new residency, so in my opinion it's still not much of a viable option for those who chose MD or DO.

Also a US completed MD does not move with ease overseas either, some European/UK countries may require to re-complete a residency, hell if you are a DO you may not even get full-scope of practices depending on the country so this is anything but "limitless" (though this is besides the point as this is a personal problem, and not a problem with the field of Podiatry as a whole in any sense).

I really don't want to turn this into a physician vs physician argument, all physicians are within their own scopes of practice and no one is universally "better" than the other. In the end satisfaction still comes down to what the individual person wants from their career, I just really don't see how people can glorify MD or DO like it's some magical ease to success compared to DPM.

For the record, I wasn't referring to picking up and moving overseas to practice permanently. I'm referring to locum tenens, Doctors Without Borders, or the myriad of other NGO's which gladly take physicians for international assignments.

And yes, I realize once you finish residency it becomes a real headache to switch fields. I guess what I'm saying is, you can usually sub-specialize to get into another area you like better, or change fields after a year or so in...The ultimate point is, you get far more time to determine what you want to do with your life, as opposed to being forced to pick your life path as a pre-med with a week or so worth of shadowing experience.

And I do hope you realize I'm not trying to say DO/MD is inherently BETTER than pod...just that it affords you a better chance to see what you really want to do, rather than forcing you to pick as a (typically) uninformed pre-med.

 

[HappyHobPod]

Fair enough.

I do think his point has validity however.

In all honesty, a few days, weeks, months (?) of shadowing is not enough to let you know what you want to do with the rest of your life...especially when you're young with (presumably) many options in front of you. There's a reason third and fourth year medical students still have trouble deciding on fields after a year+ spent on rotations. I think far too many people think they like what they see when they shadow, but unfortunately, that doesn't provide a clear enough picture in reality. Frankly, I think its ridiculous to expect the average 20 something to know what they want to be doing with the rest of their lives.

With podiatry, you're locked into one field. Find out later you don't like it? Tough luck. At least with DO/MD degree, you have the flexibility to change your mind after you've got significant hands on experience in a variety of fields. And even after you've decided, you can still go back and change gears, or specialize further.

And for the record, the Pod I saw was quite successful. His biggest grip was his desire to travel/practice overseas and he saw a lot of his MD/DO colleagues doing so, but he really was never able to with his degree because the opportunities are quite restricted for the DPM vs. so limitless for the former. His words, not mine, so I have no idea if this is true or not.

Lastly, I think it absolutely sucks that a DPM could perform a procedure and be reimbursed LESS than an MD/DO who performs the exact same procedure/does the exact same thing. It's not fair and it shouldn't be that way, but it is...that total disrepect alone would cause me to forgo DPM if at all possible.

There's a lot of what if's and subjectiveness with what you are saying. There's no reason a 20 something year old can't decide what they want to do with their lives. I know this is where I want to go, and it's a decision based on a lot of different factors throughout my life that have lead to my decision, none of which occurred through hasty decisions making. And I am sure that others are in the same boat. Outside of general well being for the patient, there is a reason individuals choose to specialize. I wouldn't want an MD to work on me if I needed a root canal and I wouldn't want a DO to work on me if I had the unfortunate luck to be dealing with brachymetatarsia. I would want individuals who went to school and had the experience to deal with these issues. If an MD worked as a cardiologist for 5 years and then decided to change specialties to become a neurologist, well I would probably choose a neurologist who has been around longer than that doctor who switched. I don't even know if it's that easy to switch specialties like you are saying, but if it is, well you know that is great flexibility for the individual if they are wanting to take a loss for a little while. But how common is it on the whole to change specialties like you are saying? You dilute yourself by ridding yourself of patients you would have built, and then have to rebuild another set of patients while also becoming an expert in your specialization. And as far as being locked into podiatry, there are a lot of specialties within the field that allows for focus on an area of the body that the individuals who are in the field are already interested in. And even if DPM's are compensated less for certain procedures compared to an MD, I would want someone who spent the majority of their medical education focusing on a particular area of the body or system, and then continue to build upon their skills and knowledge of that area of the body or system. If I could perform a procedure better than an MD on the foot or the ankle, I don't care if they get paid more. It's about providing optimal care for an individual or referring the patient to others who could do a better job.

 

[surfguy84]

There's a lot of what if's and subjectiveness with what you are saying. There's no reason a 20 something year old can't decide what they want to do with their lives. I know this is where I want to go, and it's a decision based on a lot of different factors throughout my life that have lead to my decision, none of which occurred through hasty decisions making. And I am sure that others are in the same boat. Outside of general well being for the patient, there is a reason individuals choose to specialize. I wouldn't want an MD to work on me if I needed a root canal and I wouldn't want a DO to work on me if I had the unfortunate luck to be dealing with brachymetatarsia. I would want individuals who went to school and had the experience to deal with these issues. If an MD worked as a cardiologist for 5 years and then decided to change specialties to become a neurologist, well I would probably choose a neurologist who has been around longer than that doctor who switched. I don't even know if it's that easy to switch specialties like you are saying, but if it is, well you know that is great flexibility for the individual if they are wanting to take a loss for a little while. But how common is it on the whole to change specialties like you are saying? You dilute yourself by ridding yourself of patients you would have built, and then have to rebuild another set of patients while also becoming an expert in your specialization. And as far as being locked into podiatry, there are a lot of specialties within the field that allows for focus on an area of the body that the individuals who are in the field are already interested in. And even if DPM's are compensated less for certain procedures compared to an MD, I would want someone who spent the majority of their medical education focusing on a particular area of the body or system, and then continue to build upon their skills and knowledge of that area of the body or system. If I could perform a procedure better than an MD on the foot or the ankle, I don't care if they get paid more. It's about providing care for individuals in a way that you are passionate about it.

And this is why pods are reimbursed less than their DO/MD counterparts. Pods should care about this.

 

[HappyHobPod]

And this is why pods are reimbursed less than their DO/MD counterparts. Pods should care about this.

A podiatrist is going to have a comfortable life. There is no doubt about that, especially if you are interested in it or passionate about it. But if you are in it for the money then you are doing it for the wrong reasons. Should there be equal pay for the same procedure? Yea that is probably a good idea. I'm not arguing with you on that. But it's not enough to deter me away from the field altogether.

 

[surfguy84]

There's a lot of what if's and subjectiveness with what you are saying. There's no reason a 20 something year old can't decide what they want to do with their lives. I know this is where I want to go, and it's a decision based on a lot of different factors throughout my life that have lead to my decision, none of which occurred through hasty decisions making. And I am sure that others are in the same boat. Outside of general well being for the patient, there is a reason individuals choose to specialize. I wouldn't want an MD to work on me if I needed a root canal and I wouldn't want a DO to work on me if I had the unfortunate luck to be dealing with brachymetatarsia. I would want individuals who went to school and had the experience to deal with these issues. If an MD worked as a cardiologist for 5 years and then decided to change specialties to become a neurologist, well I would probably choose a neurologist who has been around longer than that doctor who switched. I don't even know if it's that easy to switch specialties like you are saying, but if it is, well you know that is great flexibility for the individual if they are wanting to take a loss for a little while. But how common is it on the whole to change specialties like you are saying? You dilute yourself by ridding yourself of patients you would have built, and then have to rebuild another set of patients while also becoming an expert in your specialization. And as far as being locked into podiatry, there are a lot of specialties within the field that allows for focus on an area of the body that the individuals who are in the field are already interested in. And even if DPM's are compensated less for certain procedures compared to an MD, I would want someone who spent the majority of their medical education focusing on a particular area of the body or system, and then continue to build upon their skills and knowledge of that area of the body or system. If I could perform a procedure better than an MD on the foot or the ankle, I don't care if they get paid more. It's about providing optimal care for an individual or referring the patient to others who could do a better job.

To this.... that's just silly. Its equally as silly as a patient saying I only want someone who scored X on their MCAT to work on me because they must be smarter.


There's no evidence to show that podiatrists experience better outcomes or reduce complications vs. an orthopedic surgeon performing the same procedure. If there is, I'd love to see it.

Spending your entire medical eduction focusing on one part simply does not result in better care provided.

 

[surfguy84]

A podiatrist is going to have a comfortable life. There is no doubt about that, especially if you are interested in it or passionate about it. But if you are in it for the money then you are doing it for the wrong reasons. Should there be equal pay for the same procedure? Yea that is probably a good idea. I'm not arguing with you on that. But it's not enough to deter me away from the field altogether.

Hey if it's not reason to detract you, more power to you. I'm just saying I think pods should be viewed equally by the govt/insurance companies.

 

[HappyHobPod]

To this.... that's just silly. Its equally as silly as a patient saying I only want someone who scored X on their MCAT to work on me because they must be smarter.


There's no evidence to show that podiatrists experience better outcomes or reduce complications vs. an orthopedic surgeon performing the same procedure. If there is, I'd love to see it.

Spending your entire medical eduction focusing on one part simply does not result in better care provided.

That's true. I have met and know a number of orthopedic surgeons who are very successful in what they do. And I have heard the same response from a number of individuals. However, that doesn't take away from the amount of specialization and actual experience that an orthopedic surgeon vs a podiatrist will have coming out of residency and medical school on the area of interest. This is a variable that then falls to the patient in who they see as more fit to provide care. And personally, if each individual were right out of residency, I would want someone who has spent more time focusing on one area of the body.

 

[TheCzechShrek]

The main thing I am disagreeing with what you (surfguy84) are saying is basically your original comment.

"If you can go MD/DO, do it."

It's lacking any and all context, and glorifies one field while putting down another without basis. If you want to use "he said/she said" recommendations, then there are many MDs who will tell you don't even bother becoming a physician at all, so how would you factor that into all this?

One of the OPs main concern is "I want to be rewarded for my hard work and credentials" (direct quote). There is no guarantee MD or DO will give you this at all, and neither do DPMs. Podiatry doesn't try to argue that it lends you as many choices as going to an allopathic school will upon picking residency, but why glorify simply having choice? You keep bringing up what seems to be cherry picked personal complaints (being unable to move across seas) to mean MD/DO is "better" than DPM. Yes, you aren't typing that directly, but you are in denial if you think your first comment here didn't imply that.

 

[surfguy84]

The main thing I am disagreeing with what you (surfguy84) are saying is basically your original comment.



It's lacking any and all context, and glorifies one field while putting down another without basis. If you want to use "he said/she said" recommendations, then there are many MDs who will tell you don't even bother becoming a physician at all, so how would you factor that into all this?

One of the OPs main concern is "I want to be rewarded for my hard work and credentials" (direct quote). There is no guarantee MD or DO will give you this at all, and neither do DPMs. Podiatry doesn't try to argue that it lends you as many choices as going to an allopathic school will upon picking residency, but why glorify simply having choice? You keep bringing up what seems to be cherry picked personal complaints (being unable to move across seas) to mean MD/DO is "better" than DPM. Yes, you aren't typing that directly, but you are in denial if you think your first comment here didn't imply that.

I tend to believe a large swath of disgruntled pod's become that way because they got into a field they weren't truly passionate about.

I think a lot (not all, of course) of 20 something pre-meds really don't know exactly what they want to be doing for the rest of their lives. Maybe they're sure about medicine...but after that, I bet a lot have no clue.

I think allowing oneself as much time/experience as possible to make an informed decision is important, thus DO/MD would be better from this perspective only...NOT because those individuals are better, more prestigious, smarter, whatever else people sometimes say on here.

IF an individual knows without a shadow of a doubt, they want to work on foot/ankle alone, then sure, go pod. That said, I think unless you've experienced a wide array of medical fields (ideally in a "more than shadowing" capacity), how could you possibly "know" what you want to do? I'm just saying, keep as many doors open as possible before you make a life-changing, final decision.

 

[TheCzechShrek]

That said, I think unless you've experienced a wide array of medical fields (ideally in a "more than shadowing" capacity), how could you possibly "know" what you want to do? I'm just saying, keep as many doors open as possible before you make a life-changing, final decision.

This I can more or less agree with when telling someone what to think about regarding path choices, rather than just telling someone "go MD/DO"

 

[HappyHobPod]

I tend to believe a large swath of disgruntled pod's become that way because they got into a field they weren't truly passionate about.

I think a lot (not all, of course) of 20 something pre-meds really don't know exactly what they want to be doing for the rest of their lives. Maybe they're sure about medicine...but after that, I bet a lot have no clue.

I think allowing oneself as much time/experience as possible to make an informed decision is important, thus DO/MD would be better from this perspective only...NOT because those individuals are better, more prestigious, smarter, whatever else people sometimes say on here.

IF an individual knows without a shadow of a doubt, they want to work on foot/ankle alone, then sure, go pod. That said, I think unless you've experienced a wide array of medical fields (ideally in a "more than shadowing" capacity), how could you possibly "know" what you want to do? I'm just saying, keep as many doors open as possible before you make a life-changing, final decision.

You know a lot of disgruntled MDs/DOs comes from that same line of thought. But every profession has their disgruntled population. That's why most advice on here says to make sure you shadow as much as possible when looking where to spend your time. Spending 4 years in med school doesn't necessarily help a person figure out what they want to specialize in or guarantee you will even get your specialty in residency or even guarantee that medicine is for you, if we are using that logic for 20-something year olds. But that's not necessarily the case on the whole for a lot of pre-health professionals. And that type of thinking doesn't help people either. I know you mean well, but you seem to come off as a bit hostile towards the field of podiatry from your previous comments. We shouldn't be putting down health professions. We should be promoting all of them. Pods may get paid less for certain procedures, but why say "Dont go podiatry because of this" rather than "I will help to make sure pods get paid equally as well." MDs/DOs provide an invaluable service to the field of medicine. There is no doubt about that. But so do other health professionals and the niche that they occupy.

 

[surfguy84]

You know a lot of disgruntled MDs/DOs comes from that same line of thought. But every profession has their disgruntled population. That's why most advice on here says to make sure you shadow as much as possible when looking where to spend your time. Spending 4 years in med school doesn't necessarily help a person figure out what they want to specialize in or guarantee you will even get your specialty in residency or even guarantee that medicine is for you, if we are using that logic for 20-something year olds. But that's not necessarily the case on the whole for a lot of pre-health professionals. And that type of thinking doesn't help people either. I know you mean well, but you seem to come off as a bit hostile towards the field of podiatry from your previous comments. We shouldn't be putting down health professions. We should be promoting all of them. Pods may get paid less for certain procedures, but why say "Dont go podiatry because of this" rather than "I will help to make sure pods get paid equally as well.". MDs/DOs provide an invaluable service to the field of medicine. There is no doubt about that. But so do other health professionals and the niche that they occupy.

I think you misconstrued several things.

1. First, I said 20 something pre-meds originally, though I did leave out "pre meds" later on. So I'll clarify that I think it's difficult to expect 20 something premeds to know what they want to do forever. Presumably after year(s) worth of rotating and getting hands on experience you'd have a much better idea of which field to go into.

2. Four years of medical school, including two years of rotating doesn't guarantee someone will know for sure, but it's a heck of a lot better than 40 hours of shadowing.

3. I never once put down pods. In fact I said they should be viewed/treated as equals, and MD/DO is not better, necessarily smarter, etc. I do believe I was clear on this.

4. I never said don't go pod because they get reimbursed less for the same procedure. I said *I* would never go pod for that reason.

Bottomline, I was really just trying to get OP to carefully think about things because unlike many pod students (this isn't a knock this is just reality), he has choices and opportunity to go MD/DO if he so desires. If pod is what his heart desires, more power to him, I hope he goes on to accomplish great things.

 

[HappyHobPod]

I think you misconstrued several things.

1. First, I said 20 something pre-meds originally, though I did leave out "pre meds" later on. So I'll clarify that I think it's difficult to expect 20 something premeds to know what they want to do forever. Presumably after year(s) worth of rotating and getting hands on experience you'd have a much better idea of which field to go into.

2. Four years of medical school, including two years of rotating doesn't guarantee someone will know for sure, but it's a heck of a lot better than 40 hours of shadowing.

3. I never once put down pods. In fact I said they should be viewed/treated as equals, and MD/DO is not better, necessarily smarter, etc. I do believe I was clear on this.

4. I never said don't go pod because they get reimbursed less for the same procedure. I said *I* would never go pod for that reason.

Bottomline, I was really just trying to get OP to carefully think about things because unlike many pod students (this isn't a knock this is just reality), he has choices and opportunity to go MD/DO if he so desires. If pod is what his heart desires, more power to him, I hope he goes on to accomplish great things.

 

[HappyHobPod]

My apologies. Good luck to you as well!

 

[HappyHobPod]

^ not sure what happened to these two separate post above.

 

[CardsFan92]

Sooooo essentially...OP got a good a MCAT score and should spend a good bit of time shadowing to figure out what kind of program they want to apply to? Sound about right?
Just my attempt to try and sum things up before the thread goes completely off the cliff