Interesting question

[Columbia22]

So lets say you're at a DO interview (you've had some MD interviews also), and your interviewer asks you if you've applied to any MD schools...how then do you go about answering "why osteopathic medicine", as opposed to allopathic? I mean, it would'nt make sense to go on talking about the glories of OMM and why osteopathic medicine is such a great match for you if you have also applied to MD schools. Any opinions?

 

[Amy B]

The adcoms know that a lot of people apply to both. They aren't going to be shocked by that info. You can say it was to increase your odds of an acceptance. You could say it was because you liked the city but there weren't any DO schools there so you had to apply MD. There are lots of explainations to why a person applies to both. For ex: I applied to Marshall because there is no DO school in Huntington, WV.

 

[Aaron Earles]

Amy B: You applied to Marshall? I applied there as well. Did you interview there yet?

To answer your question, most schools know that you are applying to both MD and DO schools. Questions like this are sometimes asked to "pressure you" to see how you react. I applied to Marshall U, WVU, and Louisville, along with PCSOM, VCOM, and WVSOM. Every place I interviewed asked me if I applied to the alternative school. DO schools will ask this question also to see if you understand the DO philosophy.

I was asked by a couple schools were I would go if I was accepted to other schools.

I agree with Amy B's response. The reasons that I gave for choosing osteopathy was that its principles and philosophy were in proximity with my own philosophy. I currently work in a hospital in Huntington, so I used my experiences working in Cardiac Rehablilitation as well. But honestly, schools wont decline to interview you based solely on whether you applied to both DO and MD school. Good luck with your interviews.

 

[Amy B]

I ended up withdrawing my application to Marshall after VCOM came through for me back in October. I did contact Ms. Warren to discuss my application before I withdrew it. She said as an out-of-state student I wouldn't be interviewed till after January. I told her I needed to start house hunting and employment hunting for my husband and couldn't wait that long. SHe said she understood but they made no exceptions, all out-of staters are interviewed later in the process. I told her I would have to withdraw my application and turn down interview offer due to getting my acceptance to VCOM. She wished me luck at the school I chose.

WVA is loyal to their in-staters which is what I think a school should be like. Not like VCU/MCV in Richmond which takes 46% out-of staters.😡