Question on DO & MD

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
C

CV2MD

Full Member
10+ Year Member
15+ Year Member
Joined
Oct 3, 2006
Messages
28
Reaction score
0
Members do not see this ad.
I know a lot of people have asked the same thing. But I really have not seen a complete answer...

What is the main difference between a DO & an MD?

They are both Doctors?
They both can perform surgery pres. meds...

Is there a difference in the length of school or the amount of time to finish a residency program?

Do residency programs accept DO's or mostly MD's.

Honestly before this forum I hadnt even hear of a DO.

Please answer my question, Im kind of lost on this topic. Or refer me to a good answer on another thread.

Thanks
Cristina
 
CV2MD said:
I know a lot of people have asked the same thing. But I really have not seen a complete answer...

What is the main difference between a DO & an MD?

They are both Doctors?
They both can perform surgery pres. meds...

Is there a difference in the length of school or the amount of time to finish a residency program?

Do residency programs accept DO's or mostly MD's.

Honestly before this forum I hadnt even hear of a DO.

Please answer my question, Im kind of lost on this topic. Or refer me to a good answer on another thread.

Thanks
Cristina
Click to expand...

Christina, You should check out the FAQ's, which are "tacked" at the top of the pre-Osteopathic forum. You will learn a lot there.
 
Thank you,

Ill take a look!
 
Christina,

If you want the same old rehash to answer your question, you could look at the FAQs. However, here's an analogy I've used to explain the differences to my nerd friends:

The differences between MD & DO are like the differences between PCs & Macs.

  • Both do the same tasks.
  • One has a bigger market share.
  • One will probably cost more to get.
  • You can run PC stuff on a Mac, but not the other way around.
  • Some people prefer one over the other.
  • Some couldn't care less which one they use.

A littly geeky, perhaps; if for nothing else, it changes the subject onto something I prefer talking about! Hope this helps.
 
That was great, BostonDO! Well put. 🙂
 
BostonDO said:
  • Both do the same tasks.
  • One has a bigger market share.
  • One will probably cost more to get.
  • You can run PC stuff on a Mac, but not the other way around.
  • Some people prefer one over the other.
  • Some couldn't care less which one they use.
Click to expand...

That is so freakin cool! 👍 I never thought of it like that!

Curious though, does MD or DO cost more?
 
harrypotter said:
That is so freakin cool! 👍 I never thought of it like that!

Curious though, does MD or DO cost more?
Click to expand...


On the whole DO costs more. There are less public DO schools. Also the vast majority of funding for DO schools comes from tuition.
 
harrypotter said:
That is so freakin cool! 👍 I never thought of it like that!

Curious though, does MD or DO cost more?
Click to expand...

It is more school dependant than "MD cost more than DO". In general, private school will cost more than public schools.

Some private DO schools are cheaper than private MD schools. Some public schools will let out-of-staters get in-state tuition easily. Others do not. It's more dependant on the school itself than "on the whole" since your tuition/education will be based on one school.

As an example of private schools (as listed by AAMC):
Boston University Tuition - 39,510
George Washington - 41,193
New York Medical - 37,200
Northwestern - 37,308
Tufts 43,014
Baylor 19,650 (out-of-state resident)
Howard - 22,695
Mayo - 24,500


AZCOM - 38,908
NYCOM - 37,676
Western/COMP - 37,190
LECOM - 26000 (out of state)


Edit: I've met some people who decided not to apply to DO schools because "DO schools are more expensive than MD schools" yet end up applying to MD schools that have higher tuition than the most expensive DO schools. If you hop over to the MD forums, you'll see that in the vast majority of cases, scholarships won't make that big a difference between the schools (unless you're MSTP, HSPS, or you're heavily valued by the school)

Sources:
http://services.aamc.org/tsfreports/report.cfm?select_control=PRI&year_of_study=2006
http://www.aacom.org/colleges/
 
BostonDO said:
Christina,

If you want the same old rehash to answer your question, you could look at the FAQs. However, here's an analogy I've used to explain the differences to my nerd friends:

The differences between MD & DO are like the differences between PCs & Macs.

  • Both do the same tasks.
  • One has a bigger market share.
  • One will probably cost more to get.
  • You can run PC stuff on a Mac, but not the other way around.
  • Some people prefer one over the other.
  • Some couldn't care less which one they use.

A littly geeky, perhaps; if for nothing else, it changes the subject onto something I prefer talking about! Hope this helps.
Click to expand...
Hmmm... Not so much.
 
It'sElectric said:
I thought BostonDOs analogy was fairly spot on. It's an analogy, so it's not perfect. All in all, however, it works quite well.
Click to expand...

I think that jkhamlin was commenting on the nature of the analogy. All in all, the analogy paints osteopathic medicine to be worse ("one costs more than the other") or equal (both do the same tasks) to allopathic medicine and doesn't really give any examples of osteopathy's strengths. I wouldn't use this analogy when informing friends, personally, because I find the connotations implied to be apathetic at best. That being said, I enjoyed reading BostonDOs comments and his personal spin on MD/DO differences. Cynical? Maybe, but relays some valid issues to the already informed applicant crowd. And I enjoy a touch of cynicism every once in awhile, it keeps ya' honest! :laugh:
 
PassingDays11 said:
I think that jkhamlin was commenting on the nature of the analogy. All in all, the analogy paints osteopathic medicine to be worse ("one costs more than the other") or equal (both do the same tasks) to allopathic medicine and doesn't really give any examples of osteopathy's strengths. I wouldn't use this analogy when informing friends, personally, because I find the connotations implied to be apathetic at best. That being said, I enjoyed reading BostonDOs comments and his personal spin on MD/DO differences. Cynical? Maybe, but relays some valid issues to the already informed applicant crowd. And I enjoy a touch of cynicism every once in awhile, it keeps ya' honest! :laugh:
Click to expand...

I see what you're saying. I guess I perceived it under the same circumstances as yourself. I've heard an infinite number of analogies at this point, and it was just interesting to hear a different spin. Ultimately, I guess I don't see one as being better than the other (DO/MD or PC/Mac). Some people just have their preferences. From all of the commercials you see on TV, you'd swear Macs are infinitely better than PCs, but I honestly can never really see myself using a Mac (unless I suddenly get into graphic design).

Anyways, that's neither here nor there, and I'm way off topic.

Thanks for clarifying things, PassingDays.
 
It'sElectric said:
I see what you're saying. I guess I perceived it under the same circumstances as yourself. I've heard an infinite number of analogies at this point, and it was just interesting to hear a different spin. Ultimately, I guess I don't see one as being better than the other (DO/MD or PC/Mac). Some people just have their preferences. From all of the commercials you see on TV, you'd swear Macs are infinitely better than PCs, but I honestly can never really see myself using a Mac (unless I suddenly get into graphic design).

Anyways, that's neither here nor there, and I'm way off topic.

Thanks for clarifying things, PassingDays.
Click to expand...

No prob It'sElectric 🙂

I have a hard time confronting the Mac issue too. I think I'm just too lazy to give it a real go and have no real motivation right now. Maybe one day I'll give Macs a fair shake.🙄
 
BostonDO said:
Christina,

If you want the same old rehash to answer your question, you could look at the FAQs. However, here's an analogy I've used to explain the differences to my nerd friends:

The differences between MD & DO are like the differences between PCs & Macs.

  • Both do the same tasks.
  • One has a bigger market share.
  • One will probably cost more to get.
  • You can run PC stuff on a Mac, but not the other way around.
  • Some people prefer one over the other.
  • Some couldn't care less which one they use.

A littly geeky, perhaps; if for nothing else, it changes the subject onto something I prefer talking about! Hope this helps.
Click to expand...


Heyy that's a pretty cool analogy! did u come up with it on ur own?
 
BostonDO said:
Christina,

If you want the same old rehash to answer your question, you could look at the FAQs. However, here's an analogy I've used to explain the differences to my nerd friends:

The differences between MD & DO are like the differences between PCs & Macs.

  • Both do the same tasks.
  • One has a bigger market share.
  • One will probably cost more to get.
  • You can run PC stuff on a Mac, but not the other way around.
  • Some people prefer one over the other.
  • Some couldn't care less which one they use.

A littly geeky, perhaps; if for nothing else, it changes the subject onto something I prefer talking about! Hope this helps.
Click to expand...

I am so using that next time I explain it to somebody... 👍👍
 
BostonDO said:
Christina,

If you want the same old rehash to answer your question, you could look at the FAQs. However, here's an analogy I've used to explain the differences to my nerd friends:

The differences between MD & DO are like the differences between PCs & Macs.

  • Both do the same tasks.
  • One has a bigger market share.
  • One will probably cost more to get.
  • You can run PC stuff on a Mac, but not the other way around.
  • Some people prefer one over the other.
  • Some couldn't care less which one they use.

A littly geeky, perhaps; if for nothing else, it changes the subject onto something I prefer talking about! Hope this helps.
Click to expand...

****, i hate macs. They're so annoying to use.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Ho0v-man
DO vs Carib MD podcast episode
Replies
3
Views
862
Ho0v-man
Ho0v-man
Meganerd2012
  • Question Question
DO acceptance or Conditional MD SMP acceptance
Replies
26
Views
3K
Angus Avagadro
Angus Avagadro
S
Interesting Take - Canadian MD vs US DO
Replies
2
Views
1K
sky778
S
M
Apply DO or wait a year to apply DO + MD
Replies
5
Views
2K
Mr.Smile12
Mr.Smile12
Y
DO Application Timing Question (retaking MCAT)
Replies
5
Views
2K
Faha
F
Top