Podiatry as a Backup?

[ChillDawg]

How come nobody on these boards ever mentions podiatry as a possible career backup plan for applicants with lower than average numbers? You hear suggestions about applying to DO schools, Caribbean (lol), or even to consider PA or nursing.
Yet I don't think I've ever seen anyone say 'podiatry' more than one time on the pre-med allopathic board. The pre-pod forum doesn't seem too active either.
As a podiatrist, you'd be a legit physician, work in healthcare, can own your own practice, do surgery, make a good living... What gives?
Do not enough pre-meds know about it?
Is it looked down upon for being less 'prestigious?'
Feet are gross? (not exactly worse than buttholes if you ask me...)

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[Gandyy]

As a podiatrist you are literally limited to medical practice concerning only feet. That does not seem attractive because it is too limited in scope.

 

[IslandStyle808]

As Gandy741 has stated above, they only focus on feet and how disease/injury affect them. While in the other fields, you have a large scope to choose from initially.

 

[ChillDawg]

As a podiatrist you are literally limited to medical practice concerning only feet. That does not seem attractive because it is too limited in scope.

How is that much different from any med specialty where your focus is also limited?

 

[Gandyy]

How is that much different from any med specialty where your focus is also limited?

Errm its not. Pretty much any primary care physician deals with every organ system and treats a variety of ailments. Even doctors who are specialists of certain body systems such as a cardiologist etc

have to worry about immune systems etc etc. Also, the other big thing is if you go to Podiatry school, you are locked in to being a doctor of feet. There is no choice.

When you go to medical school, you may change your mind about what you want to do after viewing various rotations. If you go to Podiatry school and you decide you dont like diagnosing only feet... well tough luck.

 

[NonTrad16]

The scope of practice for DO/MD is wider, and MD/DO/PA all have a basic science core you study before specializing (if you choose to). You don't with podiatry. It sounds as good as dentistry to me (=not very). I'd sooner do PA or PT.

 

[drjay16]

Basically like being a dentist but for feet . Pretty limited if you ask me.


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[candbgirl]

Ahh but have you ever been to a podiatrist? People do rec Podiatry on here sometimes.

 

[ChillDawg]

Errm its not. Pretty much any primary care physician deals with every organ system and treats a variety of ailments. Even doctors who are specialists of certain body systems such as a cardiologist etc

have to worry about immune systems etc etc. Also, the other big thing is if you go to Podiatry school, you are locked in to being a doctor of feet. There is no choice.

When you go to medical school, you may change your mind about what you want to do after viewing various rotations. If you go to Podiatry school and you decide you dont like diagnosing only feet... well tough luck.

Sure, but the 'feet' aren't just separate organs. They're usually covered in skin, for instance. (live by the snark,...)

Sure, nurses and PA's learn a more systemic approach, but to their their scope once they have a job is more broad than a DPM is...laughable?
Besides the fact that the scope is limited for pods, are there other reasons?

e. your other reasons are legitimate, but once one starts practicing, the scope is narrower, of course, but not as narrow as people think. Not to mention the autonomy, having own practice, being able to do surgery, etc...

 

[GrapesofRath]

The high attrition rate for podiatry school is also worth mentioning although it can be explained at least partly by the caliber of students it accepts(look at the MCAT averages for podiatry school as some reference)

 

[Catalystik]

How come nobody on these boards ever mentions podiatry as a possible career backup plan for applicants with lower than average numbers?

I've brought it up from time to time. To me it seems an attractive backup option since they also use the MCAT. Before med school I worked in a Pod office as a general aide and surgical assistant, so I have a good idea of what goes on there: lots of warts and callus/toe nail trimming, but also some in-office surgery. With a foot and ankle fellowship one can also do major cases in a hospital OR. The option of being involved in an academic program also exists.

 

[deleted577188]

Sure, but the 'feet' aren't just separate organs. They're usually covered in skin, for instance. (live by the snark,...)

Sure, nurses and PA's learn a more systemic approach, but to their their scope once they have a job is more broad than a DPM is...laughable?
Besides the fact that the scope is limited for pods, are there other reasons?

e. your other reasons are legitimate, but once one starts practicing, the scope is narrower, of course, but not as narrow as people think. Not to mention the autonomy, having own practice, being able to do surgery, etc...

You answered your own question while refuting others.

 

[genericpremedstudent]

I dunno guys, you can bill Medicaid a bunch for clipping diabetic's toenails all day and make bank.

 

[efle]

Feet are gross.

But they make massive bank, and they're very easy to get in to by MD and even DO standards (median MCAT is ~30th percentile).

 

[Frazier]

Podiatry is a fine profession.

If you have a passion for treating/managing pathologies of the lower extremity, it is a great route.

 

[Hospitalized]

The biggest downside is that it takes the same amount of time to complete as an MD, and they have residency time as well. Although, in terms of time, it is one of the shortest routes for getting to perform procedures on your own in an OR. The procedural/clinic balance is very appealing, as you can explore and decide to do different foot procedures like wound care, reconstructive surgery, etc. I would say they are most similar to otolaryngology in terms of practice, with the obvious difference in training.

 

[panda16]

Two of my cousins became podiatrists, and I believe they're both very happy with that decision.

I've shadowed podiatrists before and it's actually pretty cool, you get to make a huge impact on people's lives because we're on our feet all day long!

 

[CaliforniaDreamer]

Feet are incredibly important to a patient's quality of life, and there are many issues that can totally ruin your day (or life) that a podiatrist is specialized in fixing. Don't be so quick to write off an entire profession because you think feet are smelly/dirty...

 

[MrSamrtGuy]

Basically like being a dentist but for feet . Pretty limited if you ask me.


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Sorry to revive an old thread but...it's not that old and I figure it beats starting a new one.

Couldn't you say that for a lot of medical specialities as well? Ophthalmologists are dentists of the eyes, etc. I think it would be awesome to do a little bit of everything like they do on House, but that's not realistic.

I have not shadowed a podiatrist, but have seen one a couple times for onychomycosis (toenail fungus!). I don't know if I could see myself filing down/removing toenails all day-but she does surgery once a week and told me about orthotics and taking care of diabetic patients. That does sound like it could be interesting. Although from lurking on the podiatry forums it seems like podiatric surgery has a lower profit margin than office care (which does not seem that interesting from what I've seen).

Still though, you would technically be a surgeon. The majority of podiatry residencies have surgical training. From the videos I've seen it looks pretty neat-if you dream of being a thoracic surgeon like you've seen on TV I guess it's pretty lame in comparison, but if you just want to be a surgeon, any kind of surgeon, it's lower risk than going through medical school and potentially not getting a surgery residency.

And that's what turns me off from podiatry-the fact that people seem to say that the best way to make a living is more office care than surgery. I think I would rather do primary care. If I can be convinced otherwise I would definitely take a harder look at podiatry.

And I'm not a prestige ***** but I've seen some less than complimentary things about podiatrists on some of these forums. I like to think that wouldn't bother me but it might get under my skin. It would probably take the median MCAT score of incoming podiatry students rising before people stop calling podiatrists failed doctors though.

As far as dentistry goes-from the shadowing I've done, I find general dentistry to be more interesting than primary care. Not to mention, I can be out in four years and start practicing , or maybe do a general practice residency. What if you don't match into something you want? You're spending more time training than a dentist, and for something you don't really want to do. For me, dentistry is much lower risk compared to medical school for this reason. And if I were hellbent on being a surgeon, even if it meant being limited to the foot and doing mostly office care, podiatry seems like it is also significantly lower risk.

 

[Mad Jack]

I just can't look at feet for the rest of my life. Podiatry requires a certain kind of person, much like dentistry or optometry. You're either down for it or you're not.

 

[parachichi]

I'm not a squeamish person at all, but I have a pretty strong foot phobia. I got an email from a school of podiatry inviting me to "Foot Fest" and I almost screamed.

 

[MrSamrtGuy]

I'm not a squeamish person at all, but I have a pretty strong foot phobia. I got an email from a school of podiatry inviting me to "Foot Fest" and I almost screamed.

I know what you mean. I wouldn't call myself a podophobe, but feet gross me out more than most things. I don't know why blood, piss, vomit, feces, snot, saliva (not mixed together) don't bother me, but I see a pair of dirty feet and I shudder.

 

[samac]

I'd just like to note you said you've seen people recommend Caribbean? They'd be crucified here.

 

[Gandyy]

I'd just like to note you said you've seen people recommend Caribbean? They'd be crucified here.

Well I think thats why OP put "(lol)" next to it.

 

[MrSamrtGuy]

I'd just like to note you said you've seen people recommend Caribbean? They'd be crucified here.

I'm always surprised when people seriously consider the Caribbean on here, but I have had the benefit of secondhand experience. I had a high school teacher who was a Ross dropout (he later went to grad school in an unrelated field and is doing well). I remember talking to him as a doe eyed premed high schooler-he told me that if he could turn back time he wouldn't have turned his nose up at D.O. schools-although his day was the late 90s/early 00s, so I don't know how different perceptions were back then. He was the smart one though-at a nearby prep school I heard they hired an M.D.-he was a Caribbean graduate who couldn't get a residency for a couple years and took a solid job as a science teacher.

 

[ums220]

Hi. During the past year I have been preparing my credentials for application to MD or DO schools but recently have found podiatry to be a good backup as well. I plan on applying to NYCPM and Temple PM as well; can anyone here advise me of my chances for POD as well as DO if I go through with that? I have decent research, volunteer, leadership, and work experience in medical related and non medical related areas, my GPA is 3.9, science GPA 3.8, MCAT score was 25 because I was only able to study for 3-4 weeks. How does this look?

 

[Catalystik]

Hi. During the past year I have been preparing my credentials for application to MD or DO schools but recently have found podiatry to be a good backup as well. I plan on applying to NYCPM and Temple PM as well; can anyone here advise me of my chances for POD as well as DO if I go through with that? I have decent research, volunteer, leadership, and work experience in medical related and non medical related areas, my GPA is 3.9, science GPA 3.8, MCAT score was 25 because I was only able to study for 3-4 weeks. How does this look?

Shadow a Pod and a DO. Get a DO LOR.

 

[emraldragon]

Hi. During the past year I have been preparing my credentials for application to MD or DO schools but recently have found podiatry to be a good backup as well. I plan on applying to NYCPM and Temple PM as well; can anyone here advise me of my chances for POD as well as DO if I go through with that? I have decent research, volunteer, leadership, and work experience in medical related and non medical related areas, my GPA is 3.9, science GPA 3.8, MCAT score was 25 because I was only able to study for 3-4 weeks. How does this look?

Is taking the MCAT a second time out of the question? If podiatry is really what you want to do, I wouldn't dissuade you; but if you want to go MD/DO and bring up your score you might have a good chance with that GPA as long as you have all of your other boxes appropriately and passionately checked.

 

[bc65]

In my hospital, podiatrists do all the orthopedic surgery from the ankle down. I don't know if those podiatry practices are typical, but from what I've seen, if you would like doing orthopedic surgery, you would like podiatry.

As far as feet being gross is concerned, try doing some general surgery for a while, with dead bowel or wound debridement, and then compare.

 

[Sweatshirt]

If you think you won't like podiatry because of the feet aspect, trust me you get over it within 5 minutes...

I chose podiatry because my MCAT absolutely sucked, and I realized I could combine by love for surgery and sports into it somehow (even though most of the patients you see are diabetes patients). Honestly I discovered it through spam email, I thought you had to be an MD/DO. It was poorly advertised at my college.

Its a great field if you don't mind specialization early, and I know I'll be happy with. All the pods I've shadowed have been the coolest and most down to earth doctors in the hospital too. I'm on here a lot if you wanna ask me anything since the pod forums aren't the most active

 

[Gandyy]

Feet are gross.

But they make massive bank, and they're very easy to get in to by MD and even DO standards (median MCAT is ~30th percentile).

Are you serious? Median MCAT is 30th percentile???????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[oOKawaiiOo]

Feet are gross.

Not mine! Growing up with 3 sisters can make you high maintenance. They provided me all of my essential needs for foot care. I've been told my feet were "pretty." Very soft, but a bit hairy. BTW, im a guy.

 

[efle]

Are you serious? Median MCAT is 30th percentile???????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yep, matriculant median sGPA 3.1 and MCAT ~22.5
And those are medians

It really doesn't add up. Tons of people struggling to get into MD/DO and then this related option which also pays six figures...it should be a lot more competitive

 

[Gandyy]

Yep, matriculant median sGPA 3.1 and MCAT ~22.5
And those are medians

It really doesn't add up. Tons of people struggling to get into MD/DO and then this related option which also pays six figures...it should be a lot more competitive

Well... feet are indeed repulsive

 

[emraldragon]

Yep, matriculant median sGPA 3.1 and MCAT ~22.5
And those are medians

It really doesn't add up. Tons of people struggling to get into MD/DO and then this related option which also pays six figures...it should be a lot more competitive

It's possible that some people can't get past the "it's all feet all the time" aspect of the profession. I think feet are actually quite neat and are a fascinating combo of skeletal and soft tissue. But trimming geriatric toenails 8 hours a day 5 days a week just wouldn't cut it for me--even for 6 figs.

Edit: I do realize that there is more to podiatry than toenail trims. I am a fan of exaggeration. I also forget to realize this is the internet and no one can hear you sarcasm.

 

[allantois]

Yep, matriculant median sGPA 3.1 and MCAT ~22.5
And those are medians

It really doesn't add up. Tons of people struggling to get into MD/DO and then this related option which also pays six figures...it should be a lot more competitive

Plus it's probably one's only shot at becoming a surgeon, since it is unlikely that someone with that kind of MCAT would ultimately match into a surgical specialty.

IMO it's more lucrative to be a specialist in feet than a primary care doc, at least those nurse "doctors" haven't started claiming their proficiency in podiatry... yet

 

[MrSamrtGuy]

Yep, matriculant median sGPA 3.1 and MCAT ~22.5
And those are medians

It really doesn't add up. Tons of people struggling to get into MD/DO and then this related option which also pays six figures...it should be a lot more competitive

I can't say I'm surprised. A lot of people who are borderline for MD have a difficult time "settling" for DO. There are dozens of new threads every year from people with a DO acceptance in hand who are torn about spending another 1-2 years to get into an MD school. People who applied only to MD schools and get rejected everywhere and balk when people tell them they would've had a shot at some DO schools. And despite bias and increased difficulty for some specialties, a DO can theoretically become any kind of doctor an MD can. You "settle" for DPM and you're signing up for something way different.

Whereas podiatry you have a far more limited scope from the outset. How can you convince people who can barely accept DO as an alternative to go DPM? The problem I think is that it forces you to be realistic from the outset-and some people can't handle that. You can intellectually "know" that your dream specialty is hard to get even as an MD student, but you can preserve the illusion for a few more years-everyone wants to believe they're above average. No illusions of glamor-when was the last time you saw foot surgery on a medical drama like House? Podiatry could probably use its own show...

Perhaps it's a self-fulfilling prophecy to some extent as well. Say you're a prideful person. You can convince yourself that you had a bad day taking the MCAT, and DO numbers are just a liiiiittle lower...it's not your fault, you just missed a few more questions than your friend who's competitive for MD schools. You even see DO numbers that are comparable to some lower tier MD schools. Whereas you look at the DPM numbers, maybe you think something's wrong there. I dunno. I think a lot of people just look at the numbers, they see their "suspicions" confirmed. Maybe they're on the fence between DO and DPM and despite any shadowing they've done, they read too much into the numbers. It's possible. I've seen people think like that.

 

[allantois]

Also, it is not clear how much podiatrists actually make. There are tons of conflicting figures on this.

 

[MrSamrtGuy]

Plus it's probably one's only shot at becoming a surgeon, since it is unlikely that someone with that kind of MCAT would ultimately match into a surgical specialty.

IMO it's more lucrative to be a specialist in feet than a primary care doc, at least those nurse "doctors" haven't started claiming their proficiency in podiatry... yet

I don't know about that. I think median podiatry income was somewhere around 116k as of 2012, whereas primary care docs it was closer to 200-I've seen anywhere from 140-190 as an average. And isn't the residency for those about the same length? I suppose it comes down to your entrepreneurial ability to some extent.

If what you say is correct, that the encroachment of midlevels on podiatrists is not as pronounced as it is with "regular" doctors-it may be explained by the lower average pay for podiatrists. It's just basic economics, right? If you have to pay an anesthesiologist ~300k plus, there's plenty of room for nurses to lobby to be able to do that job for half the pay, which is still a lot of money. Even for an internist there's room for PAs and nurses to undercut on price. But when you're clearing just over 100k on average it's probably not worth the effort as much as it was when CRNAs were starting to explode.

I bet that a lot of recent podiatry grads settle for jobs that are around the same pay that a midlevel would jump at in another field. Why hire a PA when you can get a new podiatrist at the same price? The lower average salary may be saving them, the same way "regular" doctors are victims of their own success recently-everyone wants a piece.

 

[ChillDawg]

Yep, matriculant median sGPA 3.1 and MCAT ~22.5
And those are medians

It really doesn't add up. Tons of people struggling to get into MD/DO and then this related option which also pays six figures...it should be a lot more competitive

This is exactly what I was thinking.

I'm not interested in podiatry personally, but know of a podiatrist in SF area who pulls in like 300k.

 

[efle]

This is exactly what I was thinking.

I'm not interested in podiatry personally, but know of a podiatrist in SF area who pulls in like 300k.

Yep if you're even top quarter at podiatry you're looking at ~180k which is the same as GP median! How the hell does a slightly above average pod earn the same as the average doc? How can you be a mediocre student and bottom third MCAT and earn buku bucks like this?? Maybe there's some hidden issue like with law schools where success means huge success but many can't even find jobs

 

[ums220]

Hi this is the 2nd time posting here but I just want a few more opinions about my chances to get into NYCPM and/or Temple PM! I have a 3.9 gpa, 3.8 science gpa, and 25 mcat because I was only able to study for 3-4 weeks. I have extensive research w orthopedic physician, w a professor, volunteer work, and other health care experiences both paid and unpaid. What are my chances!

 

[efle]

Hi this is the 2nd time posting here but I just want a few more opinions about my chances to get into NYCPM and/or Temple PM! I have a 3.9 gpa, 3.8 science gpa, and 25 mcat because I was only able to study for 3-4 weeks. I have extensive research w orthopedic physician, w a professor, volunteer work, and other health care experiences both paid and unpaid. What are my chances!

Quite good considering their medians are 3.3/23. What attracts you to pod instead of DO?

 

[ums220]

Quite good considering their medians are 3.3/23. What attracts you to pod instead of DO?

To be honest, at first I thought of it as an easier way to become a health professional. But then I actually became interested in the field because of it's possibilities in physical rehab and sports medicine practice which is what I wanted to do with med school. However, I am currently studying for the MCAT 2015 to see if I can get a better score to apply for DO/MD but I wanted to know if I would have a good chance to get into NYCPM because I think I'd go if I was accepted.

 

[efle]

To be honest, at first I thought of it as an easier way to become a health professional. But then I actually became interested in the field because of it's possibilities in physical rehab and sports medicine practice which is what I wanted to do with med school. However, I am currently studying for the MCAT 2015 to see if I can get a better score to apply for DO/MD but I wanted to know if I would have a good chance to get into NYCPM because I think I'd go if I was accepted.

You can get in to some DO schools with a 3.9/25 and boxes checked

 

[MrSamrtGuy]

Yep if you're even top quarter at podiatry you're looking at ~180k which is the same as GP median! How the hell does a slightly above average pod earn the same as the average doc? How can you be a mediocre student and bottom third MCAT and earn buku bucks like this?? Maybe there's some hidden issue like with law schools where success means huge success but many can't even find jobs

Law school may be a very apt analogy. I remember the doctors in my family and family friends who were doctors always told me to go to law school because "lawyers make more for less work." Which I suppose is true, but there's more to even the dreaded med mal lawyers than just showing up in court with a legal pad. I think with law the ceiling is higher, the educational investment is less, but the rewards are not as evenly distributed. Yeah, you can make 160k straight out of law school (3 years, as opposed to a primary care doctor who needs 4 years of med school and what, is it 3 years for internal medicine?). Add to that, there are no prereqs for law school. All you need is a high GPA and high LSAT (for the top schools, these days you can have a crap LSAT and get into lower tier law schools). Good ECs are a big plus, but I know plenty of people who got into great law schools without any kind of legal shadowing or volunteer work or research-the barriers to entry are almost nonexistent.

Problem is, those 160k BigLaw jobs are not available to the vast, overwhelming majority of graduates. Now, I'm not a doctor and I'm not knowledgeable about healthcare economics, but I'm willing to bet that the vast majorities of internists can get a decent job somewhere. At pay that a lot of premeds look down their nose at, but nothing horrible.

So I would say law is much higher risk. You can come out 4+ years ahead and start making money right away-but there are not enough BigLaw or even mid law jobs to go around (the ABA could take some lessons from the medical community, they're really asleep at the switch when it comes to saturation of lawyers). If you get one? Those jobs aren't forever. Something like 1 in 8 people (if that) will make partner. If you make partner at a cream of the crop firm, you can clear $1 million a year. The best plaintiff's attorneys can also make millions. But they are the outliers. I think close to 50% of legal graduates can't find legal jobs, and those that can, it's closer to the mid 5 figures-which is not terrible until you take debt into account.

And the other problem with legal education is that no one comes out of law school ready to practice law (trust me on this one, I'm an attorney). No matter how many clinics you've taken. Again, I'm not a doctor, so I'm sure that doctors fresh out of residency feel unready, but at least they have years after school dedicated to training. Law you either get a job at a place that trains you (albeit in a much less formalized way) or you learn on your own. So if you're coming out of law school today from a non top 6ish school (even graduates not highly ranked in their class at the lower end of the T14 are struggling) you have almost even odds of not getting a job, *and* you have no real training so you can hang a shingle but you're really up **** creek in the preparedness department.

 

[MrSamrtGuy]

You can get in to some DO schools with a 3.9/25 and boxes checked

That's also a hell of a GPA. You only studied 3-4 weeks for the MCAT? Take it from me, do everything you can to minimize regrets. Retake the MCAT-study longer and harder this time. Make yourself more competitive for MD/DO and then once you have those options see if you're still interested in podiatry or just trying to convince yourself you are.

Disclaimer: I'm a nontrad, I have a couple or a few years to go yet in taking prereqs and studying for the MCAT. So, maybe take my advice at a discount.

BUT I see a little of myself here. Let me analogize from my own experience going to law school. I didn't study that much for the LSAT (I got a good score, but I could've done better with some effort). I applied late-ish, and I didn't apply to many reaches. I rushed into it. I wish I had done better on the LSAT, and aimed higher. What the hell was the hurry? I'll never know if I could have gotten a higher LSAT, gotten into a better law school, or gotten more scholarship money. You don't want to look back in a few years and regret this.

Now, it turns out that I actually hate law, and am looking forward to leaving the profession. But, the point is-in the grand scheme of things, taking an extra year to regroup, study for a huge standardized test and mull your options is *nothing.* Nothing. Even if you have to wait tables or busk in the extra year, it's so much better than rushing. I envy my friends who took their time.

 

[efle]

Law school may be a very apt analogy. I remember the doctors in my family and family friends who were doctors always told me to go to law school because "lawyers make more for less work." Which I suppose is true, but there's more to even the dreaded med mal lawyers than just showing up in court with a legal pad. I think with law the ceiling is higher, the educational investment is less, but the rewards are not as evenly distributed. Yeah, you can make 160k straight out of law school (3 years, as opposed to a primary care doctor who needs 4 years of med school and what, is it 3 years for internal medicine?). Add to that, there are no prereqs for law school. All you need is a high GPA and high LSAT (for the top schools, these days you can have a crap LSAT and get into lower tier law schools). Good ECs are a big plus, but I know plenty of people who got into great law schools without any kind of legal shadowing or volunteer work or research-the barriers to entry are almost nonexistent.

Problem is, those 160k BigLaw jobs are not available to the vast, overwhelming majority of graduates. Now, I'm not a doctor and I'm not knowledgeable about healthcare economics, but I'm willing to bet that the vast majorities of internists can get a decent job somewhere. At pay that a lot of premeds look down their nose at, but nothing horrible.

So I would say law is much higher risk. You can come out 4+ years ahead and start making money right away-but there are not enough BigLaw or even mid law jobs to go around (the ABA could take some lessons from the medical community, they're really asleep at the switch when it comes to saturation of lawyers). If you get one? Those jobs aren't forever. Something like 1 in 8 people (if that) will make partner. If you make partner at a cream of the crop firm, you can clear $1 million a year. The best plaintiff's attorneys can also make millions. But they are the outliers. I think close to 50% of legal graduates can't find legal jobs, and those that can, it's closer to the mid 5 figures-which is not terrible until you take debt into account.

And the other problem with legal education is that no one comes out of law school ready to practice law (trust me on this one, I'm an attorney). No matter how many clinics you've taken. Again, I'm not a doctor, so I'm sure that doctors fresh out of residency feel unready, but at least they have years after school dedicated to training. Law you either get a job at a place that trains you (albeit in a much less formalized way) or you learn on your own. So if you're coming out of law school today from a non top 6ish school (even graduates not highly ranked in their class at the lower end of the T14 are struggling) you have almost even odds of not getting a job, *and* you have no real training so you can hang a shingle but you're really up **** creek in the preparedness department.

Interesting. I've heard one of the few things that is more of a hell than residency is a starting position at a big law firm - sleeping under your desk, total cutthroat environment etc. The real moral is: always be a positive outlier!

That's also a hell of a GPA. You only studied 3-4 weeks for the MCAT? Take it from me, do everything you can to minimize regrets. Retake the MCAT-study longer and harder this time. Make yourself more competitive for MD/DO and then once you have those options see if you're still interested in podiatry or just trying to convince yourself you are.

Disclaimer: I'm a nontrad, I have a couple or a few years to go yet in taking prereqs and studying for the MCAT. So, maybe take my advice at a discount.

BUT I see a little of myself here. Let me analogize from my own experience going to law school. I didn't study that much for the LSAT (I got a good score, but I could've done better with some effort). I applied late-ish, and I didn't apply to many reaches. I rushed into it. I wish I had done better on the LSAT, and aimed higher. What the hell was the hurry? I'll never know if I could have gotten a higher LSAT, gotten into a better law school, or gotten more scholarship money. You don't want to look back in a few years and regret this.

Now, it turns out that I actually hate law, and am looking forward to leaving the profession. But, the point is-in the grand scheme of things, taking an extra year to regroup, study for a huge standardized test and mull your options is *nothing.* Nothing. Even if you have to wait tables or busk in the extra year, it's so much better than rushing. I envy my friends who took their time.

I'm not sure if aiming higher means that much for medicine. If you had certainty of a midlevel MD acceptance, but could take an extra gap year to give you a good shot at Top 20s, would you take that gap year?

 

[Stagg737]

Hi this is the 2nd time posting here but I just want a few more opinions about my chances to get into NYCPM and/or Temple PM! I have a 3.9 gpa, 3.8 science gpa, and 25 mcat because I was only able to study for 3-4 weeks. I have extensive research w orthopedic physician, w a professor, volunteer work, and other health care experiences both paid and unpaid. What are my chances!

You should be able to get into any Pod school pretty easily with those stats. As long as you've got some ECs to back it up, you're fine.

To be honest, at first I thought of it as an easier way to become a health professional. But then I actually became interested in the field because of it's possibilities in physical rehab and sports medicine practice which is what I wanted to do with med school. However, I am currently studying for the MCAT 2015 to see if I can get a better score to apply for DO/MD but I wanted to know if I would have a good chance to get into NYCPM because I think I'd go if I was accepted.

What I'm about to say isn't meant to knock pod, but for most people it's not the ideal career path simply because of how limited you are. While both pod and MD/DO may end up having a somewhat similar scope after residency, pods are locked into that from the second they enter school. If your goal is to go into PMR or sports medicine, both are relatively easily attainable. You can go PMR, FM, or ortho and do a sports med fellowship or just do PMR to do rehabilitation (which has a ton of paths). The only one of those paths that's really competitive is ortho, so if that's your reasoning I'd still shoot for MD/DO

 

[chloesilverado]

Former lawyer. admitted to American MD school. From a person who has actually done what you are proposing to do, I feel that being a lawyer was a major advantage in my applications and interviews. You should definitely stress that as a big strength in your application. I didn't really see it as a negative.

I too considered podiatry as an alternative. The hospital i work at now have podiatrists on call; they're a part of the health care team as much as a doctor or surgeon.

That's also a hell of a GPA. You only studied 3-4 weeks for the MCAT? Take it from me, do everything you can to minimize regrets. Retake the MCAT-study longer and harder this time. Make yourself more competitive for MD/DO and then once you have those options see if you're still interested in podiatry or just trying to convince yourself you are.

Disclaimer: I'm a nontrad, I have a couple or a few years to go yet in taking prereqs and studying for the MCAT. So, maybe take my advice at a discount.

BUT I see a little of myself here. Let me analogize from my own experience going to law school. I didn't study that much for the LSAT (I got a good score, but I could've done better with some effort). I applied late-ish, and I didn't apply to many reaches. I rushed into it. I wish I had done better on the LSAT, and aimed higher. What the hell was the hurry? I'll never know if I could have gotten a higher LSAT, gotten into a better law school, or gotten more scholarship money. You don't want to look back in a few years and regret this.

Now, it turns out that I actually hate law, and am looking forward to leaving the profession. But, the point is-in the grand scheme of things, taking an extra year to regroup, study for a huge standardized test and mull your options is *nothing.* Nothing. Even if you have to wait tables or busk in the extra year, it's so much better than rushing. I envy my friends who took their time.