Apply to only DO schools?

[OlderStudent]

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I am still taking my pre-req courses but I know that I would rather be an osteopathic physician. It's approach to applicants and medicine in general appeal to me more that Allopathic medical schools. When it comes time to apply would it be in my best interest to apply to only Osteopathic Medical School? I know there are those that use these schools as back up options so should I do the same and apply to some allopathic programs as a back up or would this show a lack of committment to the field of Osteopathic Medicine to the adcoms? Some opinions would be helpful. Thanks

 

[toothless rufus]

I am still taking my pre-req courses but I know that I would rather be an osteopathic physician. It's approach to applicants and medicine in general appeal to me more that Allopathic medical schools. When it comes time to apply would it be in my best interest to apply to only Osteopathic Medical School? I know there are those that use these schools as back up options so should I do the same and apply to some allopathic programs as a back up or would this show a lack of committment to the field of Osteopathic Medicine to the adcoms? Some opinions would be helpful. Thanks

If the osteopathic approach is what you are more aligned with, then apply only osteopathic! Of course, you can also apply to allopathic schools as back up! 😛

Does this show less committment to osteopathic medicine? Honestly, I don't know how much osteo schools care if you apply allo. I do know that some people prefer osteo but apply allo due to other factors like family, tuition, location, etc.

Why are you considering allopathic schools?

 

[mletter]

I only want to do osteopathic medicine and I never applied to allo schools. So, don't be afraid! If you only want to do DO than there is no reason to apply MD. 😀

 

[DropkickMurphy]

I'm applying DO mostly my first time around (along with a few of the MD programs with lower averages to cover my butt), so don't have any fear of applying stricly osteopathic. If I don't get in first time around I will have completed my second bachelors and brought up my GPA a little more and will apply to more MD programs and if all else fails, there is Ireland. Personally I see no difference between osteopathic and allopathic medicine in actual practice (from the docs I've worked with over the past 10 years), but do whatever makes you happy and comfortable.

 

[Vix206]

there's definitely nothing wrong with applying all osteopathic! i'm doing that as well, and i find that it might be even better than applying to both (not that there's anything wrong with doing both!). applying to either philosophy shows dedication to either ostopathy or allopathy. also, applying to all osteopathic schools would be the exact same as applying to all allopathic schools (and no one would question that, right?)

good luck!

 

[FMR1]

Hi there,

I have been asked at three of my interviews at osteopathic schools if I applied to any allopathic schools this season (which I did not). So the question does come up often enough to warrant preparation of solid answer if you choose to appply to both. As long as you back up why you want to be an osteopathic physician with strong evidence of your desire to become one, you should be good on interview day. Good luck and have a happy holiday!

 

[OlderStudent]

I too believe that in actual practice there is little difference between an allopathic physician and an osteopathic physician. I am drawn to opsteopathic medicine my its approach to education and the students themselves.When I matriculate I will be 31 or 32 years old. I also have a wife and 4 kids. This I say would make me a non-traditional applicant by many standards. And Even though my education is all over the place with a pathetic 3.0 I still have all the science courses and MCAT to make things right for me. So while I can probably gain an acceptance to an Allopathic program I don't believe I will meet many other students that will have much in common with me. I will be about 10 years older than them. In an Osteopathic program a student like myself would fit in more and that is important to me so that I can feel comfortable the 4 years I am there. I hope that helps explain my situation, my reasons and hopefully more opinions.

 

[thesauce]

I am still taking my pre-req courses but I know that I would rather be an osteopathic physician. It's approach to applicants and medicine in general appeal to me more that Allopathic medical schools. When it comes time to apply would it be in my best interest to apply to only Osteopathic Medical School? I know there are those that use these schools as back up options so should I do the same and apply to some allopathic programs as a back up or would this show a lack of committment to the field of Osteopathic Medicine to the adcoms? Some opinions would be helpful. Thanks

If you're having misgivings, I would go ahead and apply to some Allo schools. You might find that you like them more and change your mind about going osteopathic.

 

[Dr.Inviz]

If you're having misgivings, I would go ahead and apply to some Allo schools. You might find that you like them more and change your mind about going osteopathic.

I dont see why it even matters. med school is med school. i applied to both md and do schools to maximize my chances of getting into med school. im not gonna limit myself over some philosophy or stereotype, do what you want and what you feel is right for you.

 

[thesauce]

I dont see why it even matters. med school is med school. i applied to both md and do schools to maximize my chances of getting into med school. im not gonna limit myself over some philosophy or stereotype, do what you want and what you feel is right for you.

I think many DO's would disagree with you...they like the OMM side of Osteopathic school which is why they chose to go there. There's more to it than philosophy, there's a difference in training.

 

[Dr.Inviz]

I think many DO's would disagree with you...they like the OMM side of Osteopathic school which is why they chose to go there. There's more to it than philosophy, there's a difference in training.

If you ONLY want to do OMM, then only apply DO. Shouldnt be a problem either way. Apparently, this guy is considering MD schools, so its not the case for the OP 😉

 

[thesauce]

If you ONLY want to do OMM, then only apply DO. Shouldnt be a problem either way. Apparently, this guy is considering MD schools, so its not the case for the OP 😉

Good point.

 

[toothless rufus]

It's not the only or most important reason, but OMM alone is enough of a draw for me! Very cool stuff!

 

[bkpa2med]

I applied only osteo.

 

[AustinFinklea]

My brother is a 2nd year resident in Cleveland. Through med school, he worked his OMM magic on my wife a few times, and now that is the only reason my wife wants me to go to med school..

I applied all DO. I think learning OMM is going to be really cool. I didnt apply stricly DO, however, because I believed there was some kind of magical philosophy about how health care issues SHOULD be addressed these days. My brother loved/loves it. That is the only thing I really know.

 

[Dr.Inviz]

My brother is a 2nd year resident in Cleveland. Through med school, he worked his OMM magic on my wife a few times, and now that is the only reason my wife wants me to go to med school..

I applied all DO. I think learning OMM is going to be really cool. I didnt apply stricly DO, however, because I believed there was some kind of magical philosophy about how health care issues SHOULD be addressed these days. My brother loved/loves it. That is the only thing I really know.

So you applied all DO, but not strictly DO ... 😕

 

[Dr JPH]

Go all DO. Save some money on applications.

👍

 

[Entgegen]

So you applied all DO, but not strictly DO ... 😕

He applied all DO, just not because of the philosophy.

 

[czanetti]

They are different schools of thought; at least that is what Osteopathic medical schools sell to you. I applied to all Osteo bcs I wanted to, on top of the fact that by doing so it gave me a good opportunity to have a choice on where I wanted to go. My grades/MCAT aren't bad but nothing stellar(3.56/27). Letters of Rec were awesome, as was my extra cur. But when it came down to it yes I agreed with the philosophy, I like explaining to people what an Osteopathic medical doctor is because the philosophical approach makes sense, and it jives with my healthcare outlook. I was fortunate to have choices, and pick a place that was well recognized, has cheap tuition, and that I really liked when I went for my interview. I feel like I might have had that choice with allopathic, but the chances of having a choice would be much less, I feel like I would have ended up paying more, going to a location that I might not have liked, and a lower tier school (if you even consider this into your choice) by applying to allo. I weighted all this in when I made my decision to apply to all Osteo. I intend on being politically active, and somewhere in the primary care field, although considering I have changed my mind many times in regard to my major during undergrad I feel like I will probably do the same when I get to med school. What most people say is that if you want to specialize go to allo you have a better chance. You can specialize after going to Osteo med school weather it is harder or not I don't know. What finalized my choice was that I truly wanted to be a DO after researching what created the reformation movement and what they are all about. Read Osteopathic medicine a reformation in progress, it’s a great book. I took all my thoughts and factors in and just did it. You have to make the choice but if people decide to choose allo, bcs they want to don't give them **** for it, they have the freedom to make there choice too, and by doing so it doesn't make them less loyal to the Osteopathic or Allopathic profession.

 

[pchong]

I personally applied only to osteopathic schools because I have a persuasion on the type of physician I want to be. The difference in approach is well documented so I won't go into that. So it all depends on whether you just want to be a doctor...or if you envision yourself as being a certain type of physician.

 

[OlderStudent]

Given the choice I would prefer to go the Osteopathic route. Even if I got into both types of schools I would choose Osteopathic unless going to an Allopathic school was the best place to be for my family. Other than that I would choose Osteopthic Medicine any day. I just want to make sure that I get in somewhere first. Given that I am trying to figure out if it is best to apply to both to apply to more schools to have a better chance of going somewhere, or if I should just apply to the type of school I want to go to which would result in fewer apps sent.

 

[thesauce]

Given the choice I would prefer to go the Osteopathic route. Even if I got into both types of schools I would choose Osteopathic unless going to an Allopathic school was the best place to be for my family. Other than that I would choose Osteopthic Medicine any day. I just want to make sure that I get in somewhere first. Given that I am trying to figure out if it is best to apply to both to apply to more schools to have a better chance of going somewhere, or if I should just apply to the type of school I want to go to which would result in fewer apps sent.

That mostly depends on your stats. If you've got good stats (>30, 3.5+) you should have a good chance of acceptance to either so applying to both will likely give you more options. Otherwise, it probably won't increase your probability too much. As someone said before, save your money and apply only DO if that's what you really want.

 

[AustinFinklea]

So you applied all DO, but not strictly DO ... 😕

Youre confusing yourself Inviz. I just meant to say that there was more to me applying DO than just the philosophy.

 

[Dr.Inviz]

Youre confusing yourself Inviz. I just meant to say that there was more to me applying DO than just the philosophy.

yea, i got it. thanks 🙂