If you were in this situation.....

[DropkickMurphy]

Assuming you were offered spots at both at your state MD school (Indiana in my case) and a top notch DO program (KCOM for example, since they are the flagship school) which would you chose? Just want to see how people think?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[crazy_cavalier]

warning! flame war imminent.

flame war ETA: 3.1 posts from now...

*braces for impact*

 

[DropkickMurphy]

That's kind of what I'm afraid of...please keep it civil guys.

 

[riceman04]

That's kind of what I'm afraid of...please keep it civil guys.

I think to answer that you need to know why you are applying to both....Though you end up involved in the same profession at the same level the two types of med schools dont exist for an arbitrary reason.

 

[drmota]

well, considering you posted this in a pre-allopathic forum, what do you think people are gonna say?
-mota

 

[DropkickMurphy]

That's what I'm not certain about....I want to be a pathologist, and as I said before seeing as how I'll be dealing with dead or at least dead parts of people in most cases, I don't see osteopathic medicine as having significant advantages, but then again having worked around both MD and DO students a considerable amount I must say that most of the DO students seemed far better prepared for their clinical rotations (not that I'm bashing MD education, because it could just be an issue with the allopathic schools that have funneled students through facilities where I have worked). It's this preparedness that attracts me to osteopathy, not to mention that a lot of the teachings are in keeping with the research I am currently doing.

 

[DropkickMurphy]

well, considering you posted this in a pre-allopathic forum, what do you think people are gonna say?
-mota

True....but since there isn't a all-inclusive "premed" forum, where else should I have put this?

 

[drmota]

the thing is, no matter what people tell you, DO and MD programs are entirely different and breed completely different doctors. i've never been to a DO nor do i have any clinical experience to any. your best bet is to spend some time with both (and if you dont really have time to at least try to contact some and get all the info you think you'll need). but reputation should not make any impact on your decision. your state med school would grant you an MD, and as long as you do well on your boards (or even decently well) you'll get into a residency and will practice medicine. A good DO isn't necessarily better than a 'bad' MD, but the same goes for the vice versa. it all depends on what you wanna DO and what kind of patients you want to treat.
-mota

 

[dr.z]

I will pick a cheaper school.

 

[DropkickMurphy]

Personally, I could be happy either way, and I'm going to treat my patients largely the same (particularly if I wind up in path) no matter what the acronym after my name. I've spent time around- both working side by side with, and shadowing- and have seen little measurable difference in their approaches to care, although DO's seem to be a little less likely to dispense pain and anti-inflammatory meds as a sole management for musculoskeletal conditions. Granted, it could just be that the DO's I've been around tend to practice like allopathic docs, but as was said, the end result was the same. Any how the primary reason behind this was not to settle any personal decision (as I'm a ways off from applying), but rather to see whether people are really as concerned with "appearances" as they seem to be, where they are willing to turn down a possibly (probably?) more well rounded education in pursuit of a different honorative.

 

[tank you]

the only difference in going to a top med school vs. state med school is for academic medicine or maybe competitive residencies.

 

[DropkickMurphy]

I'll agree with you there.

 

[LabMonster]

Working with pathologists, I can tell you they typically don't have as much patient time as, say a GP or IM doc. While DO's enter a wide variety of specialties, my experience has been that DO's tend to gravitate toward more patient heavy specialties - ie primary care.

I would go MD if I were certain I wanted to pursue path. Best of luck.

 

[NRAI2001]

What state school and what DO schools?

 

[DropkickMurphy]

We were speaking hypothetically.....no particular schools in mind as I haven't applied yet (and won't be for another couple of years probably).

And yes, I knew DO's tend to gravitate more towards the primary care side of things, but personally you couldn't pay me enough money to be a FP or IM doc (non-specialized). I'd go insane. More power to anyone who can do it, but it's not my cup of tea. It's one of the few things in medicine I am certain about as a career choice- path is what interests me now, but who knows what will catch my eye once I'm in school and actually experiencing all the specialties firsthand.

 

[gozeemer]

After you get accepted go to the school in which you feel compfortable. For some people thats going to be DO regardless and others MD. Personally, I would go to the MD just because that my personal preferance. Also, someone mentioned it earlier...state schools are cheap cheap cheap in comparison to being an out of state student or going private.

 

[AggieJohn]

Well, I think the numbers speak for themselves...

 

[Anastasis]

Why is the last choice even there?

I was tempted to choose that just because you didn't specify that it was to the med schools there - I want to go to the beach if that's a choice.

 

[DropkickMurphy]

Why is the last choice even there?

I was tempted to choose that just because you didn't specify that it was to the med schools there - I want to go to the beach if that's a choice.

I was trying to get a laugh out of everyone with that last option.....a lot of you all seem very tightly wound and probably in need of a good laugh.

 

[Anastasis]

I was trying to get a laugh out of everyone with that last option.....a lot of you all seem very tightly wound and probably in need of a good laugh.

You suceeded in making me laugh - and sent me on a day dream about saying screw the MCAT I'm moving to Jamaica....

sigh... back to real life.

 

[silas2642]

I will pick a cheaper school.

Dude, me too. I only wish I had a state school to apply to.

 

[NRAI2001]

I was trying to get a laugh out of everyone with that last option.....a lot of you all seem very tightly wound and probably in need of a good laugh.

Why would that incite laughter? The carribean produces many good docs every year. Many people who went to the carribean had to make a decision between DO school and MD school in the Carribean.

 

[DrBowtie]

If you want to stay in Indiana, go to IU. It would make it much easier to match into their programs and stay in the state.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

i'd go to your state school just because of the money issue. i prefer the do thing, but if i could go to a state school for $20k a year or less in tuition, i'd be all over that.

 

[CTSballer11]

State MD. I do not know what specialty you may have in mind or any other motives you may have. if you decide to go to IU, you have many options open to you, surgery, derm, plastics, ortho, rad, optho, etc. If you go to a DO it will be much more difficult to match into a competetive specialty.

 

[NRAI2001]

State MD. I do not know what specialty you may have in mind or any other motives you may have. if you decide to go to IU, you have many options open to you, surgery, derm, plastics, ortho, rad, optho, etc. If you go to a DO it will be much more difficult to match into a competetive specialty.

Yea, state MD would probably be a better idea

 

[dbhvt]

Not really surprised at the results (he said as he padded his post count).

 

[cosmicstarr]

I agree with some of the others, save the $$$ and go to your state school if you are accepted.

 

[C.P. Jones]

i have a question....i think it would be cool to be a doctor for a pro sports team

i also have heard that those tend to be DO

DO or not, how does one go about doing that....i'm assuming specialize in sports medicine first...then what, get drafted?

(yes, that is a joke)

 

[DrBowtie]

i have a question....i think it would be cool to be a doctor for a pro sports team

i also have heard that those tend to be DO

DO or not, how does one go about doing that....i'm assuming specialize in sports medicine first...then what, get drafted?

(yes, that is a joke)

FP -> Sports Med (more general care)
or
Ortho -> Sports Med (more surgery)

 

[Lorrayne]

I work in a hospital where DO students do their rotations, and they are usually very honest about the fact that their choices are more limited after school. They say that simply by being a DO they're at a significant disadvantage when being considered for many residencies. A few states even require DO students to do an extra year of rotations to be licensed (I think Penn. does this?). So if you want to specialize, then I would think the MD route would be the way to go.

 

[45408]

the only difference in going to a top med school vs. state med school is for academic medicine or maybe competitive residencies.

yeah, there aren't any bad med schools. There are a few I wouldn't want to go to, but the dean at my Northwestern interview said that there are 125 med schools in the US - 125 good med schools.

 

[KifsterDDS]

Having worked with various specialties as a hospital resident, I can tell you this: functionally there's no difference between DOs and MDs.

BUT.....I never saw a DO in a surgical residency. I'd see them in Emergency Medicine, Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, and Anesthesia. This pretty much falls in line with the notion that DOs typically go into primary care areas of medicine.

Now, I don't know of this is because DOs simply don't have much success getting into surgical residencies or if it's because people who attend and graduate from osteopathic medical schools prefer primary care, or both.

Personally, I'd much rather be in allopathic medical school. The MD degree is, in my opinion, a bit more valuable if you want as many doors open to you as possible.

Assuming you were offered spots at both at your state MD school (Indiana in my case) and a top notch DO program (KCOM for example, since they are the flagship school) which would you chose? Just want to see how people think?

 

[DropkickMurphy]

Just FYI, I know at least (and this is just off the top of my head) 5 orthopedic surgeons, a hand surgeon and a trauma surgeon that are all DO's but I do agree that DO's are more likely to wide up in less competitive specialties. Could it possibly be that it's drilled into their heads that they need to be primary care practitioners? Or perhaps because there are a considerable number of older individuals in DO programs than MD programs that they could seek shorter residencies to be done with it all quicker?