Accepted to DO...should I reapply and shoot for MD?

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Is reapplying a sane thing to do?

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Hey, I posted a similar thread in the osteopathic forum, but I wanted to hear what you have to say. I've been accepted to a DO school, but I'm considering reapplying all over again and shooting for an MD school (I would be basically taking two years off since I would have to pass on this year's application round). My Cumulative GPA is 3.97 and my science GPA is 4.0. My MCAT is a 27 and I feel like I can up that if I take another year off and try it again in the upcoming spring of '10. I have good LoR's, shadowing experience, clinical experience, research, and volunteer work. I only applied to 12 MD schools and interviewed at U of Washington and U of Utah, but got rejected from both. Do you think it would be worth the money and time to try it all over again? Will MD schools know that I've previously been accepted to a DO school? I'm seriously torn about this and I apologize in advance for even posting another thread like this.
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Nevermind MD vs. DO and all that, just from a financial point of view losing 2 years of future physician salary means you're giving up at least $300,000. Or more depending on specialty... or more depending on if you ever actually get another acceptance MD or otherwise... or more taking into account loan interest.
 
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Why in the world would you do that? Your numbers are pretty good, but you only got two invites out of twelve. Seems as if there could be something else going on. Were you complete super late? As for the DO thing, it will make no difference. And do you really want to sit around for two years? That is two years of attending cash you will never make. Thats around 400,000 Just so you can have different letters behind your name!! Seems to me there may be some other issues at play here. How old are you?
 
Tic said:
Nevermind MD vs. DO and all that, just from a financial point of view losing 2 years of future physician salary means you're giving up at least $300,000. Or more depending on specialty... or more depending on if you ever actually get another acceptance MD or otherwise... or more taking into account loan interest.
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You beat me to it.:)
 
Why do people apply to to medical schools without being serious about going there? If you dont wanna be a DO then dont go to a DO school. Let somebody who wants to be there have a chance. Does anyone else think its incredibly disingenuous that people apply to DO schools, write personal statements about how much they want to be a DO, and talk about how much they want to be a DO during their interviews when they dont. Honestly, it probably would not be that difficult to raise your MCAT a few points. People tend to exaggerate the difficulty of the MCAT. You could probably do it.
 
I would take the acceptance and run with it. There is always the small chance you wouldn't make it into an MD school when you reapplied anyways.

You GPA shows you are a smart cookie, and I think if you bust your butt in DO school you could be near the top of your class, and rock the boards, which would help you get a good residency. Being a DO may make it tougher to get a "great" residency spot, but if you are at the top of your class, or near it, and do well on your tests you should be fine.

One other thing, did you apply to any schools "ranked" lower than U of Washington and the U of U? Those are decent schools (U of W being better), and if you got an interview at those schools you should have gotten interviews at schools with "lower" rankings.

Part of me is thinking that if you applied to more MD schools that were ranked lower, you may have gotten in. I am just guessing, though. I am sensitive to this subject because I had a buddy that didn't get in last year, but the only schools he applied to were Hopkins, UCSF, Mayo, Harvard, and a couple other really top schools and he didn't get it. It doesn't sound like you're that extreme, but it may be something to think about.
 
Even if you had a far higher mcat and better overall application, if you declined an acceptance and reapplied again for the sake of two letters, I guarantee you will not get accepted anywhere, period.

You phuc'd up by applying to a school that you would not attend. Live with the minor consequences and run with your acceptance.
 
I said take the two years partially just to play devil's advocate, but also because it sounds like you applied DO because you didn't think you'd get MD, not because you liked the schools.

If you are in-state at UW, the $$ cost of postponing is reduced. Also, although the SDN dogma is choose the cheaper school, the reality is that many, many people elect to spend > $100k over the course of 4 years in order to attend a preferred school (including, I suspect, many of the people who say online that others should choose the cheaper school). I didn't choose that, but I understand why some people do, and if that's ok, so is postponing.

Of course there's also the risk that you wouldn't get into MD, but with that GPA, over a solid year to work on the rest of your app, and 1/6 return rate on apps to interviews this time around with a 27, I don't think it's a huge risk. You don't have to disclose that you applied and got into DO.

And finally, two years isn't that long of a time if you are generally enjoying life. It goes by pretty frickin' quickly, and it doesn't sound like you are all that torn up about investing it.

All that said, I bet if you did go DO it would have very little impact on the outcome of your career. Perceived prestige does open doors, but a top DO student probably isn't going to be limited compared to an MD, so it just comes down to your own personal pros and cons. People say why did you apply to a school you didn't want to go to, but it's just human nature that perspective changes with new data. I would definitely talk to UW and UU to get feedback on what it was that scuttled you though (yeah, it's probably the MCAT, but on the off chance it's something else as well...)
 
if you are asking this question, turn down the DO and go MD because you either 1) dont really know the difference, and therefore shouldnt go DO or 2) think there is a stigma difference and you dont want to be a DO in the first place.
just my .02
 
Here's what happens if you wait two years...

1. You may not get into an MD school
2. You are almost certainly not getting into the DO schools you got into last time
3. You're wasting two years. Why the **** would you do this?

Get this show on the road.
 
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You have a good chance of having a chip on your shoulder because you obviously see the DO degree as an inferior degree. If you believe a DO degree is inferior, don't go DO and regret it for the rest of your life. Personally, I am content with my DO acceptance because I see the two degrees as equal and I can say with confidence that I will have no regrets about my choice to go DO in the future.
 
DO and MD are really pretty much the same nowadays. DO you learn an extra bit about "manipulation" which has to do with osteopathy's roots. DO is maybe a little more holistic.

sounds beneficial if anything, as far as im concerned.

You generally frm what i hear get the same reputation and no one is the wiser that youre a DO not an MD... though some will have to be explained to what a DO is, of course.

just take it and run!
 
The one major reason I see not to reapply is that you'll basically lose the DO backup option in the future. You could probably get in if you raised your MCAT a few points, but on the off chance that you weren't able to raise it enough, your only other option left would be the Caribbean. I guess it just depends how much getting into MD is worth to you, and how good or bad of a fit the DO school is.
 
If your true goal is to become a physician, this should be the easiest decision of your life. The quality of doctor you will become depends on your performance in med school so take the D.O. acceptance and run!

Good Luck!
 
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My advice is to sit down with people who know you well and work through this decision. The best path for you depends on what type of person you are.

For example, if prestige is important for you (and this is something you need to be honest with yourself about), then I would say that going to a DO school will probably make you unhappy. It's true that you can go into any specialty as a DO. However, some programs are closed to DOs without exception, usually the old-school academic powerhouse programs (in any specialty) that care a lot about prestige themselves, and many university programs in the super-competitive specialties.

On the other hand, if you are mainly looking forward to starting the next phase of your career then by all means go DO, especially if you're the type of person who doesn't buy into the hype of Ivies and is more impressed by what an individual really does rather than what they put on their CV.

So basically, if you're someone who tends to be grateful for the things you have, you will probably be happy going to the DO school. If you are someone who instead is always thinking about the things you don't have, you won't be happy unless you reapply for MD schools (or develop a more mature outlook on life, which is harder than it sounds). With your 3.97 and an improved MCAT score, you should be able to get in eventually (of course, there are no guarantees).

One other thing I want to touch on - it is true that if you really "just want to be a doctor", the choice is easy. But everyone I've ever met has been complicated than that - other factors are also important. Prestige is one of the common factors. Money is another. There is not necessarily anything wrong with those two being contributing factors to your decision - it's when they are your primary motivations that they generate major problems.

You need to be able to recognize what the contributing factors for you are, and be able to be honest about them to yourself (if not to adcoms).
 
Just ask yourself, "Why did I apply DO?"

Likely, its because you want to be a doctor, and DO schools also lead to your becoming a physician. If so, just go to the DO school!

You'd be a fool to spend two years doing nothing when you've already gotten into medical school.
 
I agree with most others on this thread. If your goal is be a doctor, then just take it and run. If you reapply, the fact that you were accepted to a school and then turned it down will definitely come up and I think that it'll bring up a lot of problems for you.
 
teachmed27 said:
What is an allo residency? Are there distinct residency programs for MDs and DOs? I've never heard of this before.
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There are AOA(for DOs only) and ACGME (both MDs and DOs can apply) residencies. There are a handful ACGME programs that discriminate against DOs, but there are many that don't.
 
Tic said:
Nevermind MD vs. DO and all that, just from a financial point of view losing 2 years of future physician salary means you're giving up at least $300,000. Or more depending on specialty... or more depending on if you ever actually get another acceptance MD or otherwise... or more taking into account loan interest.
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but he also gains 2 years of doing what the hell he wants.
 
redrumi said:
There are AOA(for DOs only) and ACGME (both MDs and DOs can apply) residencies. There are a handful ACGME programs that discriminate against DOs, but there are many that don't.
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Thanks. Learn something new everyday.
 
TexasTriathlete said:
Here's what happens if you wait two years...

1. You may not get into an MD school
2. You are almost certainly not getting into the DO schools you got into last time
3. You're wasting two years. Why the **** would you do this?

Get this show on the road.
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Agree with this. The risk is big because:

1. There is no guarantee you will be able to improve your MCAT score. You could be applying in 2 years with only a slightly better, or even a worse MCAT score.
2. Even if you do improve your score, most schools will take an average of your scores, so every point of MCAT improvement is really only .5 points for admissions standards.
3. Admission standards are getting more difficult every year.
4. You will not have the DO option anymore. What DO school is going to accept you, knowing you turned down a DO acceptance for no good reason in the past?

You have to decide if the risk is worth it to you. It certainly wouldn't be for me.
 
Seems to me like you want MD, so....go ****in get it. Don't regret this decision. Take a step back and evaluate yourself, would I be happy with a DO degree? If yes, then do it. If you really want that MD....**** the money, and do what you want with your life.
 
DrCrusat said:
Hey, I posted a similar thread in the osteopathic forum, but I wanted to hear what you have to say. I've been accepted to a DO school, but I'm considering reapplying all over again and shooting for an MD school (I would be basically taking two years off since I would have to pass on this year's application round). My Cumulative GPA is 3.97 and my science GPA is 4.0. My MCAT is a 27 and I feel like I can up that if I take another year off and try it again in the upcoming spring of '10. I have good LoR's, shadowing experience, clinical experience, research, and volunteer work. I only applied to 12 MD schools and interviewed at U of Washington and U of Utah, but got rejected from both. Do you think it would be worth the money and time to try it all over again? Will MD schools know that I've previously been accepted to a DO school? I'm seriously torn about this and I apologize in advance for even posting another thread like this.
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You obviously didn't plan properly. Your GPA is almost as good as it gets and your MCAT wouldn't matter that much had you applied broadly. If you didn't want to go DO, you shouldn't have applied DO. If you turn that down now and schools find out that you did that, it may be very hard for you to get any acceptance in the future, DO or not.

I am having a hard time understanding people like you. You certainly have the numbers to get an acceptance into the top MD schools, yet for some reason you find yourself facing the options of DO or Carib. It would be another reason if you wanted DO, in that case you shouldn't have applied MD and wasted interview spots (which is obviously not the case with you). If being a premed for some years hasn't taught you to plan any better and have a better drive, then you reap what you sow. And by the way, DO is theoretically equivalent to MD, but it is not so in practice. Once you become a doctor, sure you may have some annoyances where you have to explain what a DO is, but that is not the problem. Your problem is going to be actually getting to practice: the residency. If you are planning for primary care, FM, etc, you're fine. If you have goals for very competitive specialties like plastic surgery, derm, etc, know now that you will not be able to get those spots as easily as an MD. In addition, the specialty trends do not look good for DOs. The number of MD and DO students are increasing, the number of MD residency spots are so far not budging much. Here is a breakdown for you: international candidates, who mostly fill PCP spots, are going to be displaced. DO students who are competing with MDs are going to get these spots that are mainly in primary care. In either case, good luck to you.
 
Thanks for all of your opinions. I've come to the realization that I was stupid to even consider reapplying. I'll be a physician either way I'm going to work my **s off in medical school to get the residency that I want.
 
DrCrusat said:
Thanks for all of your opinions. I've come to the realization that I was stupid to even consider reapplying. I'll be a physician either way I'm going to work my **s off in medical school to get the residency that I want.
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:thumbup:
 
I (personally) voted to go for the MD because I (personally) would not want a DO degree.
 
Go for MD. DO acceptances are a dime a dozen, especially with your stats. If you retake the MCAT and do decent, you'll have a very good shot at an MD school.
 
You got a 4.0 gpa you know how to study and i assume you prepared for the mcat. I doubt your mcat score will go up much since with your gpa I assuming you're a good student. 27 is not a bad score, but its not up to par with being a white guy. If it makes you feel better I have a 3.8 and 29 mcat with research and emt experience heading to a DO school. I went through this same though process, but since it is only getting tougher each year to get in, I'm not going to risk reapply. Also, once your reapply your chances to get in are slim. Reapplicants getting into md programs are not that common, unless you were previously waitlisted at your state schools or something. But, no out of state md program will consider you with a 27.
 
Excelsius said:
your MCAT wouldn't matter that much had you applied broadly.
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Excelsius said:
I am having a hard time understanding people like you. You certainly have the numbers to get an acceptance into the top MD schools, yet for some reason you find yourself facing the options of DO or Carib.
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what? since when does a 27 get you into "top MD schools." one thing that i've learned on this board and others is that a 4.0 doesnt mean anything if you bomb your mcat. :confused:

dude... this is a no-brainer, take the DO, work your ass off, and you'll be fine.
 
buccsmf1 said:
what? since when does a 27 get you into "top MD schools." one thing that i've learned on this board and others is that a 4.0 doesnt mean anything if you bomb your mcat. :confused:

dude... this is a no-brainer, take the DO, work your ass off, and you'll be fine.
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theres no difference b/w MD/DO, its just a premed thing. All that matters is if you work hard in medschool weather you goto harvard or carribbean. Keep in mind that DOs are more qualified than MDs since they receieve additional training in OMM.

I have a question now: One of my university freind got into an Irish school and she is currently finishing up first year. She wants to re-apply to US schools while she is in Irish schools to give it one last shot. Is it possible?
 
NoMoreAMCAS said:
Go for MD. DO acceptances are a dime a dozen, especially with your stats. If you retake the MCAT and do decent, you'll have a very good shot at an MD school.
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A dime a dozen eh? You realize that the percentages aren't that much different than allopathic right? Some have lower acceptance rates than allopathic schools even.
 
WDeagle said:
Why do people apply to to medical schools without being serious about going there? If you dont wanna be a DO then dont go to a DO school. Let somebody who wants to be there have a chance. Does anyone else think its incredibly disingenuous that people apply to DO schools, write personal statements about how much they want to be a DO, and talk about how much they want to be a DO during their interviews when they dont. Honestly, it probably would not be that difficult to raise your MCAT a few points. People tend to exaggerate the difficulty of the MCAT. You could probably do it.
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OH! ME! ME ME ME ME! I believe it's ENORMOUSLY ingenuous! OP, you must think that MD is 10 times more prestigious than DO, don't you? It's only 2 times...LOL, jk. But in all seriousness, if you want to be a doctor, go where you've gotten in. You'll make tons of money even if you're not an MD. But whatever, your future is in your own hands.
 
DrCrusat said:
Thanks for all of your opinions. I've come to the realization that I was stupid to even consider reapplying. I'll be a physician either way I'm going to work my **s off in medical school to get the residency that I want.
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:thumbup:
 
irishmedstudent said:
theres no difference b/w MD/DO, its just a premed thing. All that matters is if you work hard in medschool weather you goto harvard or carribbean. Keep in mind that DOs are more qualified than MDs since they receieve additional training in OMM.
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you are either extremely naive or you are a troll ....

everyone knows that MD/DO >>>>> Caribbean .....personally i would've rather not become a doctor than go to the caribbean.... the schools are very poor quality, only care about taking your tuition and put you at an enormous disadvantage when applying for residency

also OMM is quite useless and very few people actually practice it... knowing that in no way makes you "more qualified" to be a doctor
 
skinMD said:
you are either extremely naive or you are a troll ....

everyone knows that MD/DO >>>>> Caribbean .....personally i would've rather not become a doctor than go to the caribbean.... the schools are very poor quality, only care about taking your tuition and put you at an enormous disadvantage when applying for residency

also OMM is quite useless and very few people actually practice it... knowing that in no way makes you "more qualified" to be a doctor
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I wouldn't go calling OMM useless. Talk to the patients that have had OMT done and you'll usually find the contrary. Blanket statement = bad statement.
 
MossPoh said:
A dime a dozen eh? You realize that the percentages aren't that much different than allopathic right? Some have lower acceptance rates than allopathic schools even.
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I realize that for somebody with his stats, a DO acceptance in any cycle is a certainty. I'd be shocked if he didn't get into the majority of DO schools he applied to.
 
skinMD said:
also OMM is quite useless and very few people actually practice it... knowing that in no way makes you "more qualified" to be a doctor
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Don't knock it til you try it. I didn't think OMM would be useful until I interviewed at a few DO schools and learned more about it.

It seems very interesting to me, and I'm just waiting until I have some kind of back problem or something so I can see a DO who practices OMT..
 
NoMoreAMCAS said:
Go for MD. DO acceptances are a dime a dozen, especially with your stats. If you retake the MCAT and do decent, you'll have a very good shot at an MD school.
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Dude, you don't know what you're talking about. A friend of mine used DO as a back up and got a 3.8 and a 30 and got rejected from all DO schools. Second, DO acceptances aren't a dime of dozen for this guy. If he turns this one down, he'll never get in to DO again so if his "very good shot at an MD school" doesn't work out, then what?
 
irishmedstudent said:
theres no difference b/w MD/DO, its just a premed thing. All that matters is if you work hard in medschool
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Not quite true. While good students generally still do well for themselves, the stigma still exists. Residency is still a big determinant of where you end up. The match is easier coming from an MD school. That said, tons of DO students each year match into ACGME (MD) IM, FM, Neurology, gas, peds, rads etc.


skinMD said:
you are either extremely naive or you are a troll ....

everyone knows that MD/DO >>>>> Caribbean .....personally i would've rather not become a doctor than go to the caribbean.... the schools are very poor quality, only care about taking your tuition and put you at an enormous disadvantage when applying for residency
Click to expand...

Also not quite true. Some carribean schools are terrible. Some actually give you a decent education. I have worked with a few SGU grads and they were generally pretty solid residents. I have no idea how they stacked up against their peers in the program... perhaps they had higher scores and better grades. Regardless, they seemed to know what they were doing.

In the end OP, it totally depends on whether you think you can get into MD and if you are willing to live with the fact that if you dont get into MD you probably wont be a doctor
 
Just Joshin said:
Dude, you don't know what you're talking about. A friend of mine used DO as a back up and got a 3.8 and a 30 and got rejected from all DO schools. Second, DO acceptances aren't a dime of dozen for this guy. If he turns this one down, he'll never get in to DO again so if his "very good shot at an MD school" doesn't work out, then what?
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Your friend must be absolutely terrible in interviews. Assuming this guy is relatively normal, he'll get in. I also know plenty of DO student and doctors. It's quite easy to get into a DO school.

Why would he never get into another DO school? He'll be fine at other DO schools, just not that one. If it ever comes up at a different DO school interview (although it wont), he can just say he had family problems, relationship problems, or just wasn't mentally ready. It's easy, don't make it harder than you have to.
 
Instatewaiter said:
In the end OP, it totally depends on whether you think you can get into MD and if you are willing to live with the fact that if you dont get into MD you probably wont be a doctor
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I don't get this. Do all DO schools, even those you've never applied to, get a breakdown of where you've applied and been accepted in previous years?
 
NoMoreAMCAS said:
I also know plenty of DO student and doctors. It's quite easy to get into a DO school.
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As someone upthread mentioned, the acceptance rates for DO schools isn't that different from the acceptance rates for MD schools.

Why would he never get into another DO school? He'll be fine at other DO schools, just not that one. If it ever comes up at a different DO school interview (although it wont), he can just say he had family problems, relationship problems, or just wasn't mentally ready. It's easy, don't make it harder than you have to.
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A lot of secondaries ask if you've been accepted to any U.S. medical school.
 
Revilla said:
As someone upthread mentioned, the acceptance rates for DO schools isn't that different from the acceptance rates for MD schools.
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Apples and oranges. The group of students applying to most DO schools is not equivalent to the group of students applying to MD schools.

I'd be willing to bet any amount of money that an "average" applicant, (say... 28 and a 3.5) has a MUCH higher chance of getting into a DO school rather than an MD school. The guy with the 24 will not be applying to many MD schools given that he's several standard deviations below their mean, but hes at or above average at quite a few DO schools...
 
NoMoreAMCAS said:
Your friend must be absolutely terrible in interviews. Assuming this guy is relatively normal, he'll get in. I also know plenty of DO student and doctors. It's quite easy to get into a DO school.
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That's a *****ic thing to say.
 
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