Medical I am currently accepted to a DO program that starts in June, however, I am waiting to hear back from two M.D. programs that start in August.

[Goro]

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Hi,

I am grateful for my D.O. acceptance, however, I would prefer to go to one of the M.D. programs. I feel that they were a better fit and I want to go into Ortho. I interviewed in March at 2 M.D. programs. I have not heard back from one of them and I was put on a waitlist for the other. The D.O. school I am accepted at starts early June and the M.D. programs I am waiting to hear back from have a lot of waitlist movement in June/July. My question is if I am accepted to one of the M.D. programs after starting at the D.O. school would I be able to leave and matriculate M.D.? I know this must be difficult for the D.O. school but the reality is there is a good chance I won't hear back from the M.D. programs until June/July and this school choice can significantly affect my chances of matching into a competitive specialty. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

You'll need to check in with the schools as to their policies, but at my school, we've had people leave after matriculating for our state MD school.

 

[TheBoneDoctah]

I had someone at my school leave in their second year and go to the MD school down the street. It happens. You gotta do what is best for you and your future. Whatever you choose to do, make sure you are professional about it though. Thank them for the opportunity and explain what happened.

 

[MusicDOc124]

With a start date of august but beginning with DO in June, with June or JULY movement, could be a yes or a no. I know of two people who had waitlist movement for MD after matriculation to DO. One was able to go because it was only 1-2 weeks in and no exams/quizes were held yet. The other was 3-4 weeks in when we'd already had a quiz and exam. The offering school rescinded once they learned the student had already begun taking exams. I will say though that there may have been a misinterpretation or miscommunication here, and I cannot verify that.

Basically just examples if how it may or may not work. I agree with the above that it will be school specific based on their policy.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Until the MD and DO education communities come up with appropriate traffic rules to prevent such pilfering from happening, I think theoretically you can do it. (It won't happen because of collusion issues, so AACOMAS schools can't access the AMCAS Choose Your School tool.) I agree you need to be very careful because there is a point in attending your DO program where your tuition cannot be refunded (and don't expect any of your other fees to be refunded either). Certainly once you complete the orientation process, you are otherwise locked in as "matriculated", and that is reported back to AAMC or AACOM. @MusicDOc124 is right that it is a school-by-school/university-by-university policy for their tracking of enrollment and anticipated budget dollars.