I know this has sort of been answered already, but I just want to check before I spend a lot of money on plane tickets.
I am an Arizona resident who is currently working in washington state. I am mostly applying DO, but applied to UA as well. QUOTE]
I think you're asking the wrong question...do you want to become a MD or DO? If DO is your flavor then skip the MD, regardless of interview costs or state school. That is like me saying "should I eat meat because it's on sale although I am a strict vegan?"
That's kind of a silly way to look at it. First of all, the difference between "flavors" is not nearly as large as most people make it out to be. You're not talking about allopath vs. homeopath or osteopath vs. naturopath. Aside from an extra lecture in every block give or take pertaining to OMM your curriculum is going to be nearly identical. I don't know where people get the idea that allopathic schools or osteopathic schools have secret texts relating to special or different ways to communicate with patients or that the student bodies are homogeneous enough at both such that you can tell a DO from an MD student by the aura they give off or something. BS.
Secondly, the most important "flavor" you need to consider is the individual school program and environment and culture that the campus itself cultivates, and how you as a person fit into that culture. And that so doesn't depend on DO/MD but the individual location and people and goals of the program. You're only doing yourself a disservice to consider one class vs. the other.
And finally, one great reason to consider the U of A and other public allopathic schools- cost. DO schools are all private and my buddies attending them pay two to three times what I pay in tuition.