Applying DO with no DO experience

[SCooFS]

I honestly am quite interested in DO. I am applying to probably 5 DO schools and lots of MD. I love in a sparse area for DO's, however, and was never contacted by the two that I reached out to. How bad will my lack of DO shadowing hurt me? (I have 29 MCAT and above 3.7 gpa's) Thanks every one!

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[j4pac]

Just make sure that the schools you are applying to do not REQUIRE a DO recommendation. With your stats, I'm pretty sure that schools with an "optional" DO LOR will turn a blind eye. Just make sure that you are prepared for your interviews. The question of why you didn't shadow a DO will be asked...and also of course "why DO" and "differences between MD and DO". Your answers might mean more than an average applicant.

 

[SCooFS]

To add some context, TCOM, DMU, AZCOM, and the Westerns are the schools I have in mind. I know DMU has MD or DO letter. How about the rest?

 

[DetectiveAlonzo]

Focus more on the MD. No DO lor and no DO shadowing will hurt you.

 

[K1NG]

I think bare minimum you should at least have DO shadowing. DMU will definitely look for that at least from what I gathered after talking to them.

 

[ERK123]

I am not sure if it will come close to replacing DO shadowing, but you could read Norman Gevitz book, The DO's Osteopathic Medicine in America and talk about your connection to osteopathic medicine in your secondaries/interview. I mentioned the book in all of my interviews, and I am pretty sure that the interviewers ate it up.

 

[spenguin]

I honestly am quite interested in DO. I am applying to probably 5 DO schools and lots of MD. I love in a sparse area for DO's, however, and was never contacted by the two that I reached out to. How bad will my lack of DO shadowing hurt me? (I have 29 MCAT and above 3.7 gpa's) Thanks every one!

Two is not enough. I cold called at least 20 people.
Also if you are still in UG, see if your pre-med advisors have a list of DO you can shadow

I would try to shadow if you get the chance because otherwise schools might get the feeling that you are using DO as a backup. If you tried calling a couple more people and no one agrees, just tell that to ADCOM

 

[AlteredScale]

I honestly am quite interested in DO. I am applying to probably 5 DO schools and lots of MD. I love in a sparse area for DO's, however, and was never contacted by the two that I reached out to. How bad will my lack of DO shadowing hurt me? (I have 29 MCAT and above 3.7 gpa's) Thanks every one!

It won't hurt you in the sense that it'll tank your app but having it is a very good thing to have as it shows that you actually have had some experience observing a DO in practice. Specifically one who performs OMT or in PC as you can create some talking/writing points down the line through the cycle.

 

[SCooFS]

What do you think about putting it down as a planned activity and making sure I shadow as soon as I can in June? I could potentially take a road trip to the nearest DO school and check it out, add another activity.

 

[lyana]

You should not put planned activities into the AACOMAS primary application.

 

[MedNation907]

What do you think about putting it down as a planned activity and making sure I shadow as soon as I can in June? I could potentially take a road trip to the nearest DO school and check it out, add another activity.

Is the 'planned activities' section new? I don't remember there being one but the system did change.. Regardless I think shadowing (+LOR) a DO as soon as possible is a good idea. None of us can say with 100% certainty whether it will hurt you or not because we're not ADCOMs and every school is different -- but most, if not all, schools at least make it a point to 'strongly suggest' it, so why create blemishes when prevention is a possibility?

I remember traveling 2 hours (one way) to fulfill shadowing requirements, believe me I know how inconvenient it can be -- but again, it's just a part of the application game in which you actually have control.

 

[LChristmas]

If you're not going to shadow a DO, then you better be able to explain the "Why DO" question. It is all but guaranteed to get asked in the interview. I didn't get asked Why Medicine, but got asked Why DO in both interviews. The lack of DO shadowing won't sink an otherwise strong application, but having it could push a borderline app from the "regrets" to "accept" pile.

Do your best to find someone to shadow.
http://www.osteopathic.org/osteopathic-health/pages/find-a-do-search.aspx

 

[AlbinoHawk DO]

To add some context, TCOM, DMU, AZCOM, and the Westerns are the schools I have in mind. I know DMU has MD or DO letter. How about the rest?

Western takes MD, but the school always has a weird prompt on the secondary asking about your experiences shadowing a DO.

 

[Gandyy]

Hmm I was told it is very difficult to get into MD schools with a 29 and a 3.7 gpa.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

It is not in your interest to apply to osteopathic medical school without a DO letter or experience unless you wish to find yourself wasting thousands on travel for the sack of attending interviews you will be disadvantaged in.

 

[Dreamstoo]

Hmm I was told it is very difficult to get into MD schools with a 29 and a 3.7 gpa.

No it's possible. Usual range of people I know who got accepted into MDs were 3.5-3.8/29-36

 

[Iridescent]

I didn't have a DO letter and I did just fine. Your stats are good for DO schools. For MD schools, it'll be a crapshoot. Your local state school should be the best bet with those stats. Apply early too.

 

[Goro]

We do understand that there are areas of the country that are DO sparse.

It will hurt the most for those schools that require DO LOR.

I honestly am quite interested in DO. I am applying to probably 5 DO schools and lots of MD. I love in a sparse area for DO's, however, and was never contacted by the two that I reached out to. How bad will my lack of DO shadowing hurt me? (I have 29 MCAT and above 3.7 gpa's) Thanks every one!

 

[AlbinoHawk DO]

Hmm I was told it is very difficult to get into MD schools with a 29 and a 3.7 gpa.

Depends on a lot of factors. Great EC and a forgiving state? Shouldn't be too hard.

 

[readingrl]

I had no DO shadowing experience and an MD letter and I received 4 DO II out of 6 apps, attended 2 and was accepted at 2. My stats were similar( slightly higher MCAT, slightly lower GPA), you should be fine. As other people have said above, just make sure you have a good answer to the why DO question.

 

[SCooFS]

Thanks everybody! I have lots of experience with under-served communities and that is the main reason I am interested in DO. There seems to be a real commitment to the groups that need it. I will bone up on my DO knowledge and do what I can to get some more experience. Thanks for all your insights!

 

[JimmyB123]

Depends on a lot of factors. Great EC and a forgiving state? Shouldn't be too hard.

I know someone that got into UMiami with a 3.7/29. UMiami! One of the sweetest schools in the south

But all in all, I think it's getting pretty darn competitive and you need at least a 30 on the MCAT

 

[Simpson]

Nice

 

[Henry101]

Okay, how about a spin off to this question.
How about if we submit our primaries without referencing DO shadowing but send in a DO shadowing LOR. The reason is that I probably won't be able to shadow one by the time to submit primaries but I am sure I can shadow one for enough time to get an LOR by the time secondaries/interviews come.
Is it fine to not include DO shadowing in primaries but send a letter to schools afterwards?
Is it fine to send LORs in batches to schools (using interfolio)?

 

[MedNation907]

Okay, how about a spin off to this question.
How about if we submit our primaries without referencing DO shadowing but send in a DO shadowing LOR. The reason is that I probably won't be able to shadow one by the time to submit primaries but I am sure I can shadow one for enough time to get an LOR by the time secondaries/interviews come.
Is it fine to not include DO shadowing in primaries but send a letter to schools afterwards?
Is it fine to send LORs in batches to schools (using interfolio)?

Update your primary app when the shadowing is over.. If it's enough to get an LOR, it's good enough to list as an experience. I would wonder why you have no DO shadowing experiences yet an LOR..

edit. I'm not necessarily saying it would hurt you, but it's just more sensible to include it in the primary.

 

[Henry101]

Update your primary app when the shadowing is over.. If it's enough to get an LOR, it's good enough to list as an experience. I would wonder why you have no DO shadowing experiences yet an LOR..

edit. I'm not necessarily saying it would hurt you, but it's just more sensible to include it in the primary

Yes. Sorry. I forgot that we could update our primaries. Of course I would add it once I started it.
Thank you for your reply though. I really appreciate it.