Go DO or apply again MD

Started by orangeman25
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orangeman25

orangeman25

Full Member
10+ Year Member
I applied both MD and DO this cycle with no luck on the MD side. I'm still relatively young and wanted to know if you all think it's worth taking a few years and fighting again for that MD spot, i.e post bac/new mcat/ new personal statement. Basically a new application.

I'm not really sure what I want to do but kind of sure that it's nothing extremely competitive. In my shoes, would you just run with the DO acceptance or take more time and apply MD? I really can't figure this out

Edit - I applied DO this cycle and was okay with it but as it becomes more certain I'm a little apprehensive
 
orangeman25 said:
I applied both MD and DO this cycle with no luck on the MD side. I'm still relatively young and wanted to know if you all think it's worth taking a few years and fighting again for that MD spot, i.e post bac/new mcat/ new personal statement. Basically a new application.

I'm not really sure what I want to do but kind of sure that it's nothing extremely competitive. In my shoes, would you just run with the DO acceptance or take more time and apply MD? I really can't figure this out

Edit - I applied DO this cycle and was okay with it but as it becomes more certain I'm a little apprehensive
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Its important to realize that whatever you choose (do or MD) you're gonna be that for the rest of your life. I hate people using DO as a backup and I hate people thinking they are settling. If you want an MD its worth it to take time and get it.

If you're indifferent and just want to be a doctor then go DO not worth the time.

If it was me in your shoes I would take DO. You can still match anything you want from DO if you do well enough in med school 🙂
 
A DO will make it very difficult to get into certain specialties. Off the top of my head radiation oncology, ophthalmology, and dermatology are very unfriendly to DO applicants. Surgical sub specialties, while still extremely competitive, are slightly more DO friendly, but not by much.

If your goal is academic medicine in a sub-specialty, your pedigree unfortunately matters.
 
atomi said:
A DO will make it very difficult to get into certain specialties. Off the top of my head radiation oncology, ophthalmology, and dermatology are very unfriendly to DO applicants. Surgical sub specialties, while still extremely competitive, are slightly more DO friendly, but not by much.

If your goal is academic medicine in a sub-specialty, your pedigree unfortunately matters.
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Knew someone would post this. Those specialities aren't easy to get from an MD school either.
 
atomi said:
A DO will make it very difficult to get into certain specialties. Off the top of my head radiation oncology, ophthalmology, and dermatology are very unfriendly to DO applicants. Surgical sub specialties, while still extremely competitive, are slightly more DO friendly, but not by much.

If your goal is academic medicine in a sub-specialty, your pedigree unfortunately matters.
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I'm under impression that it is in some ways easier to make it into some competitive medical specialties, derm for example, by applying to osteopathic programs which are not open to MD graduates.
 
DoctorSynthesis said:
Knew someone would post this. Those specialities aren't easy to get from an MD school either.
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Yes, but easier none the less.

Edit: OP, go to DO school. If you want derm, rally like a BAMF and be the best DO candidate the world has ever seen! This sure beats waisting your time in 2 more years of pre-med purgatory.
 
Forgive me for not having anything really original to add, but I agree with everyone else and wanted to show more support for the 'Go DO' option. Don't turn down what could turn out to be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, OP! If I were in your shoes right now, I'd take that acceptance and be thrilled with it. That's my opinion, anyway.
 
I think if you're going to question your decision and the DO degree for the rest of your life then reapply and hope MD. If not, go DO, don't look back or ever wonder what if, and be an excellent physician!
 
If you turn the DO acceptance down, it's kind of questionable as to why you applied there in the first place. That acceptance could have gone to a candidate who was incredibly excited to go to that school.

In general, when you apply to a school, ask yourself "Would I be OK going here if I got rejected from every other school on my list?"
 
As @Mad Jack once wisely stated DO starts with the D and end with an O, MDs have nothing on this - the choice should be obvious.
 
atomi said:
A DO will make it very difficult to get into certain specialties. Off the top of my head radiation oncology, ophthalmology, and dermatology are very unfriendly to DO applicants. Surgical sub specialties, while still extremely competitive, are slightly more DO friendly, but not by much.

If your goal is academic medicine in a sub-specialty, your pedigree unfortunately matters.
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So you're saying if you want to work in a very specific and small set of fields in a very specific practice environment, you shouldn't go DO.

Okay.
 
Thanks for the feedback all. Honestly I don't know if I can put myself through another two years of pre med hell. You all have been through it so you understand what it is like. It is hell. And to top things off, it would feel even more crappy to do this as I'm older (no offense to the older folks). I would just be extending my 20s with another few years of pre med purgatory; might as well have just taken those years off to do something completely different.

I'm just trying to talk myself into the fact that brand name, prestige, and all that will not be all that important. Or heck, they might be. I just need to learn not TGAF.
 
If it's just the two letters holding you back and nothing else then you should go to the DO school. This feeling erodes after you've been in medical school for a while from spending all your time around medical students and doctors. If you are determined to land a competitive residency, this is a valid concern but you need to be honest with yourself and consider if you would be top of your class/competitive at an MD school. I know I wouldn't!
 
I understand where you are coming from but as people have mentioned go for it. DOs are just as much doctors as MDs. You will still become a physician and with the future merge the differences should be much less apparent. And the advantage to DO schools is that you can apply to both MD and DO residencies!
 
My 2 cents: last year I applied to both MD and DO .. I got one MD interview later to be rejected and another MD school offered me a one year postbacc type deal where I would do their program and get automatically accepted for class of 2019 if I completed it successfully. Long story short is I picked DO school that accepted me (my only true acceptance last year ) instead of waiting another year. Here's why:

1. Money (why waste it when the actually outcome is essentially the same).
2. I really like the DO school I was accepted to and didn't like the MD program I could POTENTIALLY get into(so if you like the DO program you got into, go to it).
3. You will be the type of doctor you want to be if you work for it ( I have yet to run into a DO doctor that didn't love the specialty they were in that did well in school .. or any doctor for that matter).


In short I don't regret my decision at all.
 
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Take the DO acceptance and run with it. I have solid MD stats (3.65/35), but I only have 2 MD ii that I'm waiting to hear back from. Assuming I don't get into either of those and don't receive anymore ii, I'm absolutely taking my DO acceptance and running with it. I'm not a fan of OMM, but in the end a doctor's a doctor, and I'm not going to waste anymore time with gap years just to get an MD (graduated in 2013).
 
orangeman25 said:
Thanks for the feedback all. Honestly I don't know if I can put myself through another two years of pre med hell. You all have been through it so you understand what it is like. It is hell. And to top things off, it would feel even more crappy to do this as I'm older (no offense to the older folks). I would just be extending my 20s with another few years of pre med purgatory; might as well have just taken those years off to do something completely different.

I'm just trying to talk myself into the fact that brand name, prestige, and all that will not be all that important. Or heck, they might be. I just need to learn not TGAF.
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Some ppl seem to thrive under the post-bacc/re-app circumstances. But if you want no part of it, then don't do it. This process is a nightmare if you lack motivation.

Btw, have you checked out pm&r? It's very DO (and lifestyle) friendly, even at prestigous programs.
 
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nm825 said:
Take the DO acceptance and run with it. I have solid MD stats (3.65/35), but I only have 2 MD ii that I'm waiting to hear back from. Assuming I don't get into either of those and don't receive anymore ii, I'm absolutely taking my DO acceptance and running with it. I'm not a fan of OMM, but in the end a doctor's a doctor, and I'm not going to waste anymore time with gap years just to get an MD (graduated in 2013).
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From what I understand, a large proportion of DOs don't even use OMM. My parents live across the street from a DO who works in the ED and she doesn't. I talked to her about her job.
 
orangeman25 said:
You mean caribbean? why?
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Ah no I was kidding around I'm sorry!

In all seriousness: If you cannot see yourself working in anything else but in some very lucrative ROADs specialty at a top tier program and want to subspecialize and become an all powerful physician investigator god in academia, perhaps consider going MD and rescinding your DO acceptance. But again, being at an MD school will not mean much if you don't perform well either. This is why I feel you should just take the acceptance.

As stated above, another year wasted is another year of pay as an attending that you will lose!
 
orangeman25 said:
I applied both MD and DO this cycle with no luck on the MD side. I'm still relatively young and wanted to know if you all think it's worth taking a few years and fighting again for that MD spot, i.e post bac/new mcat/ new personal statement. Basically a new application.

I'm not really sure what I want to do but kind of sure that it's nothing extremely competitive. In my shoes, would you just run with the DO acceptance or take more time and apply MD? I really can't figure this out

Edit - I applied DO this cycle and was okay with it but as it becomes more certain I'm a little apprehensive
Click to expand...
DO; a lot can change in a year or two.
 
nm825 said:
Take the DO acceptance and run with it. I have solid MD stats (3.65/35), but I only have 2 MD ii that I'm waiting to hear back from. Assuming I don't get into either of those and don't receive anymore ii, I'm absolutely taking my DO acceptance and running with it. I'm not a fan of OMM, but in the end a doctor's a doctor, and I'm not going to waste anymore time with gap years just to get an MD (graduated in 2013).
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Good job on your perseverance. You're not too prideful to turn down DO. I respect that.
 
Most people here making suggestions are assuming nothing is going to be dramatically improved next year for your application, you said the same thing yourself. So if what they assume about you aligns with your self assessment, you should listen, and go with DO.

However, you might have a strong attachment to the idea, a rational one or not, of getting an allopathic education. And you might have the academic potential to work on improving the grades and the willingness, the skill to do more meaningful activities. Then by all means wait for not 1 but 2 cycles to reapply--You shouldn't expect to rush a EC that would show commitment and results from now till next June. What is 2 years of living it to the full with so much hope and dreams, when you are 65 and are already financially stable? If you are afraid of a couple more years of uncertainty, trouble and hard work, well then, you pick the wrong career path because that's what you'd have to deal with regardless if you choose MD or DO. Many people ended up having to do extra year(s) to enhance their residency application anyway.

I would also consider if your current decision might make the future you feeling underachieved and regretful despite practically the decision did not produce a worse result. I would not underestimate the important of fulfilling your own dream/desire/fantasy. It's a lot like marriage. Opinions from people with experience should be taken seriously. Practicality should be treated with utmost care. DO is a perfectly fine title to have and it probably makes you just as a fine doctor as you would be if you have an MD. And yet you are the person who's going to walk down the isle and sleep with the guy/girl everyday for the rest of your life.

Personally I had no regret trying again 3 years later. Against many advices of taking the short cuts, I saw where I could be and made it there through working hard and through being patient. I am having a great cycle. Holding one acceptance from a dream school and waiting to hear back from most of the other top 15 schools.

It all depends on if you know why you might have failed, on if you can do something about it, and on if you can do the thing you'll have to do. As much as I love SDN for general information, SDN is not a good resource to find solutions to personal question, because no one has enough information. Talk to your premed advisor if he/she is any good. You might also consider talking to someone consulting medical school applications professionally and pay them to really look at what you had done and to help you figure out your chances and yourself. A lot of time it's about knowing who to ask for help and about willing to pay for the help you are going to receive.
 
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My 2 cents: if you got a DO acceptance, you are going to be a doctor. Congratulations! It may not feel as "prestigious", but you're still going to get an adequate medical education.
 
FFH said:
However, you might have a strong attachment to the idea, a rational one or not, of getting an allopathic education.
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How is it possible to have a meaningful attachment to the idea of "allopathy", particularly when DOs are taught in the same manner as MDs?

Wikipedia defines "allopathic medicine" by the following terms:


"Allopathic medicine is an expression commonly used by homeopaths and proponents of other forms of alternative medicine to refer to mainstream medical use of pharmacologically active agents or physical interventions to treat or suppress symptoms or pathophysiologic processes of diseases or conditions."

DO school will teach you about the use of pharmacologically active agents and physical interventions to treat and suppress diseases and conditions. If that's what you want, you will get it in DO school.

Congrats on getting accepted to your dream school, however. For me, my dream school is just "any U.S. medical school that will take me." Well, maybe not LUCOM.
 
Where would you like to be in November 2022? Would you like to be finished with your residency and working as an attending physician or would you like to be working for peanuts as a first or second year resident? The decision you make in this cycle can mean a big difference in your 2022 income.

You want to be a doctor. You've been admitted to medical school. Ignore the adjectives; just do it.
 
LizzyM said:
Where would you like to be in November 2022? Would you like to be finished with your residency and working as an attending physician or would you like to be working for peanuts as a first or second year resident? The decision you make in this cycle can mean a big difference in your 2022 income.

You want to be a doctor. You've been admitted to medical school. Ignore the adjectives; just do it.
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Maybe "a big difference" in the 2022 income, but not a big one at all in terms of life time income.

Frankly, I'm a little disappointed to hear that on this matter, income difference, especially a small one, was all that the famous LizzyM had to say.
 
Doug Underhill said:
How is it possible to have a meaningful attachment to the idea of "allopathy", particularly when DOs are taught in the same manner as MDs?

Wikipedia defines "allopathic medicine" by the following terms:


"Allopathic medicine is an expression commonly used by homeopaths and proponents of other forms of alternative medicine to refer to mainstream medical use of pharmacologically active agents or physical interventions to treat or suppress symptoms or pathophysiologic processes of diseases or conditions."

DO school will teach you about the use of pharmacologically active agents and physical interventions to treat and suppress diseases and conditions. If that's what you want, you will get it in DO school.

Congrats on getting accepted to your dream school, however. For me, my dream school is just "any U.S. medical school that will take me." Well, maybe not LUCOM.
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If you treat your medical education like any other trade school and if you aim is to strictly apply the trick of trade after you graduare, then sure, any credited medical school, allo or osteo alike, will do.

Top allopathic schools do not just "teach you about the use of pharmacologically active agents and physical interventions to treat and suppress diseases and conditions", they educate future leaders in medicine who redefine what it means to be a physician in this new age and to rewrite wikipedia entries. EDIT: It may or may not be relevant for the OP, but it's worth to point out that there are huge differences in missions between medical schools and in what people can get out of their medical education.
 
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FFH said:
Maybe "a big difference" in the 2022 income, but not a big one at all in terms of life time income.

Frankly, I'm a little disappointed to hear that on this matter, income difference, especially a small one, was all that the famous LizzyM had to say.
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The OP is clearly more interested in attending med school sooner than later. This thread is pertinent to his specific dilemma. The differences that you're alluding to don't seem to apply here.
 
orangeman25 said:
I applied both MD and DO this cycle with no luck on the MD side. I'm still relatively young and wanted to know if you all think it's worth taking a few years and fighting again for that MD spot, i.e post bac/new mcat/ new personal statement. Basically a new application.

I'm not really sure what I want to do but kind of sure that it's nothing extremely competitive. In my shoes, would you just run with the DO acceptance or take more time and apply MD? I really can't figure this out

Edit - I applied DO this cycle and was okay with it but as it becomes more certain I'm a little apprehensive
Click to expand...

About what?
 
atomi said:
A DO will make it very difficult to get into certain specialties. Off the top of my head radiation oncology, ophthalmology, and dermatology are very unfriendly to DO applicants. Surgical sub specialties, while still extremely competitive, are slightly more DO friendly, but not by much.

If your goal is academic medicine in a sub-specialty, your pedigree unfortunately matters.
Click to expand...


Anedotal n=1 of course, but my brother sees a DO ophthalmologist. He's good. I think in time, these perceived differences will become less and less--and entrance into DO will be, in time, every bit as competitive as allopathic. Actually I have already seen so much of this change over the last 20 years.

Person in suit, not the suit--bottom line.

Also, all these titles are confusing to the GP.
MD should be MAD, and DO should be DOM. Oh wow. Neither of them look good. LOL.
Thing is, GP get can be confused about doctor of osteopathic medicine vs doctor of allopathic medicine. And to make matters worse, nurses and everyone else is getting a doctor label, which is totally fine, but confusing in healthcare settings like clinics and hospitals. Maybe the doctors of nursing should be DON. Sounds like something out of the Godfather. Alphabet mess.
 
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Cyberdyne 101 said:
The OP is clearly more interested in attending med school sooner than later. This thread is pertinent to his specific dilemma. The differences that you're alluding to don't seem to apply here.
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I politely beg to differ. The post only mentioned it might be troublesome to work on the app more and to reapply. What difference that I mentioned do not apply? please clarify? 😵

orangeman25 said:
I'm still relatively young and wanted to know if you all think it's worth taking a few years and fighting again for that MD spot, i.e post bac/new mcat/ new personal statement. Basically a new application.
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As a matter of fact the OP was considering the opposite of rushing things.
 
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