is DO your 1st choice?

[MSUSpartan642]

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So many people say that you should have an interest in OMM if you apply to a DO school. I don't agree with this at all. Should you have a strong interest in histology or embryology as well? OMM is just a course like any other and like it or not you will take it if you attend a DO school. I don't think having an interest in something should be a prequalifier to deciding on something when in the end it's something you'll likely never use.

For example. I applied to two engineering schools for undergrad. Got into both. One required some biblical studies and the other women's studies. I chose the second school because of price. I rarely paid any attention in women's studies and to this day that course was a hoop and nothing more. School's know you want a degree, and that you will need to to through them to get said degree, so if you want it you'll have to dance when they say. OMM is just another course.

Get ready to dance some more.

All medical schools are going to include those courses though. If you go to a MD school your not going to be able to just cut out histology. What is the biggest curriculum difference b/w osteopathic schools and allopathic? OMM. I dislike when people spew contempt for OMM and then go to a DO school though. I'm not saying that just because people don't like OMM they shouldn't pursue DO though 🙄.

 

[mechanictodr]

All medical schools are going to include those courses though. If you go to a MD school your not going to be able to just cut out histology. What is the biggest curriculum difference b/w osteopathic schools and allopathic? OMM. I dislike when people spew contempt for OMM and then go to a DO school though. I'm not saying that just because people don't like OMM they shouldn't pursue DO though 🙄.

I can agree with that last part. I know very little about OMM since I have yet to take the course so I only hold the typical skepticism that most premeds have towards it. I'm pretty sure that I will never use it since most DO's don't, but I will take it and do my best to score well. An A is an A after all.

 

[GraceEuphoria]

In my conversations with DO schools admissions and faculty, there is no police making sure every pre-DO is indoctrinated into DO philosophy. The so-called tenets of osteopathic medicine unites the profession but it does not identify it. It would be hard to find an MD physician who would disagree with the DO philosophy even if they are not taught it explicitly in their school or training.

So why do adcoms care? Well, DOs have a unique history and my guess is that adcoms just want to make sure you are familiar w/ it. It's what unites the profession so if you want to become a DO, you should have some basic idea of where the profession has come from. If you have no idea what a DO is at a DO school interview, it shows lack of interest and foresight on your part.

So at least the schools who I have talked to, DO adcoms agree that there is no concrete difference between MDs and DOs practice (aside from OMT) and training. Of course, exceptions with people do exist, but this has been my observation for the most part.

👍 This is what I always try to tell people...it's not that having the OMT training and a belief in holistic treatment makes you different or better than MDs. It's just a preference. I want to learn OMT, so DO appealed to me more.

The DO "path" did not make these doctors better. If they were MD's they would have most likely been equally competent. The individual is what makes the doctor not the title (MD/DO). If you enjoy and want to learn OMM I think that is what should draw you to osteopathic over allopathic.

Also 👍

Sometimes this whole debate reminds me of my experience in high school. I transferred to a charter public school in my city that went full time and it ended up taking money away from the other public schools in the area. The school emphasized global, technologically based learning with a high number of AP courses available (and is now IB accredited). People in the public school system resented all of us...we got called everything from the smart kids to the rich kids (despite it not costing money). Point being is that the entire two years I spent there I had to defend my decision and explain what the school was really all about. The multiple attacks in the newspaper and by people to my face made me seriously defensive. I feel like it's the same thing here. Students who choose to go pre-do spend their entire time during preparing for and actually attending DO school telling people what is, why it's not the exact same as allopathic, why they chose it, etc. And then there are the people who attack it left and right and cause the defensive responses. The defensive responses then end up sounding slightly ridiculous at times because people have to fish for a trivial difference between the two. Why can't it just be good enough to say I just want to be doctor? 🙂

 

[COMedic2Doc]

👍 This is what I always try to tell people...it's not that having the OMT training and a belief in holistic treatment makes you different or better than MDs. It's just a preference. I want to learn OMT, so DO appealed to me more.


Also 👍

Sometimes this whole debate reminds me of my experience in high school. I transferred to a charter public school in my city that went full time and it ended up taking money away from the other public schools in the area. The school emphasized global, technologically based learning with a high number of AP courses available (and is now IB accredited). People in the public school system resented all of us...we got called everything from the smart kids to the rich kids (despite it not costing money). Point being is that the entire two years I spent there I had to defend my decision and explain what the school was really all about. The multiple attacks in the newspaper and by people to my face made me seriously defensive. I feel like it's the same thing here. Students who choose to go pre-do spend their entire time during preparing for and actually attending DO school telling people what is, why it's not the exact same as allopathic, why they chose it, etc. And then there are the people who attack it left and right and cause the defensive responses. The defensive responses then end up sounding slightly ridiculous at times because people have to fish for a trivial difference between the two. Why can't it just be good enough to say I just want to be doctor? 🙂

Well said, and I for one just want to be a Doctor. 😎

Com'on people as already previously stated, these are all petty arguments, arguments which focus energy on something that is absolutely all-consuming with no positive result to benefit ourselves or our future patients. Why not focus energy on researching what each of us can control to benefit medicine in the future, which is the excellent and professional care of patients no matter what politics may give us in the future.

 

[noshie]

Tried to read this thread, got through 2 pages and my head exploded... You guys are way way way too uptight sometimes. Someone asks a simple and interesting question and everybody starts throwing poop all over the place... Ugh.

 

[isasmommy]

Hey everyone,

I am a little displeased with the notion that premeds that are choosing to go the md route are 18 year old immature people...I for one have a one year old child and I'm married. I definately do not have mommy and daddy paying the bill for me. I agree that people should decide what school they go on many factors: location, cost, and ability to get in. However, as someone that is wondering what the true distintion between MD and DO is I find it disheartening that we can't talk about the REAL differences and admit to them that there are between the two so that people can make educated guesses about where they would like to apply.

I don't have any MD or DO schools that close to where I live so my husband and I are planning on moving wherever necessary and accruing whatever debt necessary to achieve my dream of becoming a physician. I just wish I could really know why people choose one over the other: prestige, ability to match into residencies, job placement, all sorts of things that factor in once you are done with school and are important in being able to sustain a family financially. If anyone can help me out that would be nice.

 

[DbDan]

Hey everyone,

I am a little displeased with the notion that premeds that are choosing to go the md route are 18 year old immature people...I for one have a one year old child and I'm married. I definately do not have mommy and daddy paying the bill for me. I agree that people should decide what school they go on many factors: location, cost, and ability to get in. However, as someone that is wondering what the true distintion between MD and DO is I find it disheartening that we can't talk about the REAL differences and admit to them that there are between the two so that people can make educated guesses about where they would like to apply.

I don't have any MD or DO schools that close to where I live so my husband and I are planning on moving wherever necessary and accruing whatever debt necessary to achieve my dream of becoming a physician. I just wish I could really know why people choose one over the other: prestige, ability to match into residencies, job placement, all sorts of things that factor in once you are done with school and are important in being able to sustain a family financially. If anyone can help me out that would be nice.

I'm lost as to what you are even saying here... No one ever said that all MD students are 18 year old rich kids, they said the people who come in here preaching MD is the only true doctor and bash pre-DO like they are inferior are likely immature and uninformed.

People chose one ove rthe other for all the things you listed. Cost, location, "fit", prestige, etc. To be completely honest, the DO and MD differences have diminished over the years. Practice wise, DOs are fully licensed to practice the same as MDs. They take different boards for full license and sometimes have different residencies (many DOs do MD residencies). Not to be a jerk but you should probably also do some research on DOs if you plan on applying to DO schools. There are hundreds of DO vs. MD difference threads all over the website.

 

[jzrull]

in being able to sustain a family financially.

Regardless of the current state of physician reimbursement, as injust as it is in my opinion, any physician will be be able to support a family financially (again, in my opinion). But I digress, for family finances are both dependent on the family and really not any of my business in the first place.

The osteopathic medical field is growing, nobody would deny that. The bulk of this country, however, still doesn't even know what a D.O. is or does. So when it comes down to statistics, I would put money on a large majority of applicants who, upon hearing that there is a different batch of medical schools granting a degree with the letters D.O. in it, they fail to further research those schools because a) they infer that the different letters mean unequal licensing or b) they infer that a D.O. degree is inherently inferior merely because they have never heard of it. Skepticism due to lack of knowledge. It's like when all those parents would keep their kids home from school during the initial AIDS pandemic in the 80's because they had no idea how people developed HIV/AIDS...Okay it's nothing like that, but skepticism and fear due to lack of knowledge.

 

[The Poet Sings]

Regardless of the current state of physician reimbursement, as injust as it is in my opinion, any physician will be be able to support a family financially (again, in my opinion). But I digress, for family finances are both dependent on the family and really not any of my business in the first place.

The osteopathic medical field is growing, nobody would deny that. The bulk of this country, however, still doesn't even know what a D.O. is or does. So when it comes down to statistics, I would put money on a large majority of applicants who, upon hearing that there is a different batch of medical schools granting a degree with the letters D.O. in it, they fail to further research those schools because a) they infer that the different letters mean unequal licensing or b) they infer that a D.O. degree is inherently inferior merely because they have never heard of it. Skepticism due to lack of knowledge. It's like when all those parents would keep their kids home from school during the initial AIDS pandemic in the 80's because they had no idea how people developed HIV/AIDS...Okay it's nothing like that, but skepticism and fear due to lack of knowledge.

i got an image of people in a hospital running and hiding whenever a DO came near HAHAHA. like they had ebola and were actively spewing it on everyone.

 

[Nasrudin]

My experience reading here in the past indicated to me that the pre-osteo sdn community is a lousy place to critically evaluate the professional career pathways after medical school years 1-2 and beyond.

For all of the reasons being described. The pre-osteopathic student in immediately thrown into a culture in the constant process of describing itself to the genuinely interested and to a host of imbeciles as well. This is a confusing place to get the facts. And even the facts are slippery and often potentially contentious subject matter here.

My technique is to think yourself in an ideal practice situation. Doesn't matter if it's just fantasy. The seeds of any future reality are planted somewhere. Then you trace your steps back from there. Read prodigiously about the obstacles navigated by those who have gone before you. The search functions and archives of sdn are an amazing tool. And this is from someone who is not a fan of sdn's idle and often shallow and divisive chatter in the present tense.

To give myself as a case study to illustrate the technique. I am going into MS-1 with the presumption of Emergency Medicine as a career--subject to change if something unexpectedly captures my imagination or I don't perform well enough. But I know enough from working in the ED that I think it's coolest thing I can imagine doing. Now. I also happen to know I want to end up on the west coast. Literally on the Pacific Rim.

So then, using the search function, I comb the resident, medical student, and mentor forums for narratives of my predecessors who had a similar starting point. In my case an east coast Allopathic school without a home Emergency Medcine residency program, which is the lack of two assets location to where I want to match/work and an official SLOR from a Emergency Medicine PD. Both of these things I learned were of some importance during my reading. Seeing any benefits to my technique yet.

So I learn what my obstacles will be and what it will take to overcome them and to put myself in the best position possible for a difficult match. You will also in this process read about DO's entering the match and what they do to do it successfully. And how they do it in tough competitive matches in places like coastal California.

That is where you will find the best information on the consequences of the choices you make at this level.

Here. Not so much. I'm not here to step on any toes. But I did find my pre-osteopathic investigations fraught with frustrations. So I will just leave it at that and wish everybody the best in their careers.

 

[GraceEuphoria]

Not to revive a thread that I think has seen its last day, but I just thought I'd throw out there that despite it having been found so ludicrous that I stated there are MDs who express regrets about not having gone DO...

The article posted on the front of SDN (the interview with the medical tox doc) mentions just that. Quoted from the article:

"What information/advice do you wish you had known when you were a premed?
I wish I had considered osteopathic schools. I didn’t really know about them, or what they taught. I have had a lot of osteopathic colleagues who know some great treatments for musculoskeletal ailments that I never learned."


Am I immaturely trying to make my point? Perhaps. 😛 However, it's a valid one to make and I will still stand by it. Ultimately, to the OP and everyone else, it's all about what is the best fit for you!

 

[VCU07]

Looks like you have the last laugh.

 

[GraceEuphoria]

Looks like you have the last laugh.

Haha I'm not sure if you're being serious or sarcastic, but either way I guess it doesn't really matter. I just thought it was an interesting quote to stumble upon after the fact 🙂

 

[millepora]

Accept it, move on, who cares. The fact of the matter is that it is human nature to stratify within a group. When I was doing my acting internships, there were some Harvard kids looking down on Tufts kids who were looking down on Stony Brook kids who were looking down on Meharry kids who were looking down on DO kids who were looking down on Caribbean kids who were looking down on PA kids who were looking down on.....

Haha, I thought this was pretty funny, and very true of human nature.

I think it is also human nature to be haughty, which causes the ascending latter. The CNA believes they can do the RNs job, the RN believes they can do the PA and/or the physician's job, and the PA believes they can do the physician's job.

 

[koennen]

Not to revive a thread that I think has seen its last day, but I just thought I'd throw out there that despite it having been found so ludicrous that I stated there are MDs who express regrets about not having gone DO...

The article posted on the front of SDN (the interview with the medical tox doc) mentions just that. Quoted from the article:

"What information/advice do you wish you had known when you were a premed?
I wish I had considered osteopathic schools. I didn’t really know about them, or what they taught. I have had a lot of osteopathic colleagues who know some great treatments for musculoskeletal ailments that I never learned."


Am I immaturely trying to make my point? Perhaps. 😛 However, it's a valid one to make and I will still stand by it. Ultimately, to the OP and everyone else, it's all about what is the best fit for you!

He "mentions just that?" Exactly where in the above quote does that physician state that he "regrets not having gone DO?" The question posed was whether there was any information/advice that he wishes he had as a pre-med. He answered only that he wishes he had "considered" osteopathic schools. He does not state that had he considered osteopathic medicine he would have "gone DO." That is conjecture on your part. Further, even if true, that does not equate to him "regretting" the path he did choose.

You still fail.

Haha I'm not sure if you're being serious or sarcastic, but either way I guess it doesn't really matter. I just thought it was an interesting quote to stumble upon after the fact 🙂

Is that an admission that your assertion had no basis in fact at the point in time that you originally made it?

Looks like you have the last laugh.

Last laugh? Really???

 

[ccc2009]

He "mentions just that?" Exactly where in the above quote does that physician state that he "regrets not having gone DO?" The question posed was whether there was any information/advice that he wishes he had as a pre-med. He answered only that he wishes he had "considered" osteopathic schools. He does not state that had he considered osteopathic medicine he would have "gone DO." That is conjecture on your part. Further, even if true, that does not equate to him "regretting" the path he did choose.

You still fail.



Is that an admission that your assertion had no basis in fact at the point in time that you originally made it?



Last laugh? Really???

wow... i don't think you intended to come off as an ass*** in that post.. but you definitely did.

and suggestion to a MOD, this thread seems to be heading downhill fast..i think abrupt closure is in the horizon

 

[The Poet Sings]

wow... i don't think you intended to come off as an ass*** in that post.. but you definitely did.

and suggestion to a MOD, this thread seems to be heading downhill fast..i think abrupt closure is in the horizon

i think they intended to. there is no way anyone would write that and expect it to come off any other way.

 

[ccc2009]

i think they intended to. there is no way anyone would write that and expect it to come off any other way.

well its only slightly disheartening , since their status says the person is a medical student.. so one would have expected a slightly higher level of maturity and approach.

 

[The Poet Sings]

well its only slightly disheartening , since their status says the person is a medical student.. so one would have expected a slightly higher level of maturity and approach.

expect the unexpected and you'll never be surprised by what people say and do...

 

[DoctorPenguin]

Tried to read this thread, got through 2 pages and my head exploded... You guys are way way way too uptight sometimes. Someone asks a simple and interesting question and everybody starts throwing poop all over the place... Ugh.

Couldn't agree more.

I've asked questions about MD vs. DO, but it was never about which letters were "better". I think some of us premed students want to know what our options are, since taking one route over the other would open up different opportunities, or offer a "path of least resistance" as many like to call it. It's important to know!

Although I must admit, at first my attitude towards DO was meh... I was ignorant but I came to these forums to learn more about it and thanks to those who actually answered the seemingly "stupid" DO vs. MD questions, my outlook completely changed. 👍

It seems there are many premed-ers here who want to remain ignorant and focus their minds on which degree would get them the most money, fame, chicks 😉 , but I wish current medical students are able to see past this and continue to help the rest of us, by helping them!


To answer the point of the thread, no DO was not my first choice, as I mentioned above. If I get accepted into a TX allo school that's where I'm going since it's close to home... unless it's TCOM, in which I have a dilemma. But after that, DO all the way. OMT is so attractive. Imagine all the things you can do with it, in and out of the hospital. 😉 I say we make a thread with OMM pickup lines, EH? EH?

Just kidding!!

 

[HockeyDr09]

He "mentions just that?" Exactly where in the above quote does that physician state that he "regrets not having gone DO?" The question posed was whether there was any information/advice that he wishes he had as a pre-med. He answered only that he wishes he had "considered" osteopathic schools. He does not state that had he considered osteopathic medicine he would have "gone DO." That is conjecture on your part. Further, even if true, that does not equate to him "regretting" the path he did choose.

I fail.

Technically you have no evidence to back your claim here. That would make your comment conjecture as well. You cannot definitively say that he didn't wish he went D.O (sounds ridiculous, but just showing how ridiculous your point was). Whether you like it are not, he mentioned the D.O pathway in a positive light. Deal with it and stop posting in a Pre-Osteo forum, you haven't added anything constructive.

 

[koennen]

Technically you have no evidence to back your claim here. That would make your comment conjecture as well.

I made no claim, genius. GraceEuphoria claims the physician says he "wishes he had gone DO." I merely point out that if you look at his words you find, in fact, that he said no such thing.

So, technically ... you're an idiot. But thanks for playing.

You cannot definitively say that he didn't wish he went D.O (sounds ridiculous, but just showing how ridiculous your point was).

No I can't and I didn't try to. Nor can GraceEuphoria definitively say that he "wishes he had gone DO," which is what she claims. He said what he said. And what he said isn't what GraceEuphoria said he said. So, what exactly was my "point" which you found ridiculous, Einstein?

Whether you like it are not, he mentioned the D.O pathway in a positive light. Deal with it and stop posting in a Pre-Osteo forum, you haven't added anything constructive.

Doesn't bother me in the least. I would have gone DO without blinking an eye if that was the only choice I had. Nothing wrong with going DO.

What annoys me is the pre-DO type who come on here and make ridiculous statements like:

- I was accepted to a top five school, but I chose to go DO

- DO is the future of medicine

- It's actually more difficult to get into a DO school than to get into an MD school.

... and of course GraceEuphoria's classic

- I know MDs who wish they had gone DO

(and, yes, all of those statements have been made on SDN in the past month)

If it makes dealing with your inferiority complex easier to believe that this crap is true, then go with it. But I'll continue to call BS when I see it and post in whatever forum I damn well please.

Have a great day and work on those reading comprehension skills.

 

[HockeyDr09]

I rarely, if ever "feed trolls". You guys are right now is not the time to start. Ignore list 🙂

 

[JamesLMT]

The internet has been around long enough to know that you don't feed trolls. If this were a scholarly debate on the topic then yes, go for it. But he is a troll and would still deny everything even if you had a world renown M.D. came into this forum and stated that "he rather have been a D.O." Personally I think it's a waste of time to spend any further effort on this character. You can always tell when to stop a debate when names start to get thrown around, stooping to his level doesn't help either. Just take the high road and let this thread die.

 

[VCU07]

As long as there is more than one path to the same end there will be debates on which is better. Calling others idiots shows immaturity and is an unacceptable way for a med student to talk. If this is to continue then maturity on all parties is warranted.

 

[DoctorPenguin]

The internet has been around long enough to know that you don't feed trolls. If this were a scholarly debate on the topic then yes, go for it. But he is a troll and would still deny everything even if you had a world renown M.D. came into this forum and stated that "he rather have been a D.O." Personally I think it's a waste of time to spend any further effort on this character. You can always tell when to stop a debate when names start to get thrown around, stooping to his level doesn't help either. Just take the high road and let this thread die.

Preach it brotha' 👍

 

[JeetKuneDo]

Lol lots of hatred in this page of the thread.

 

[JaggerPlate]

Lol lots of hatred in this page of the thread.

Well, I mean think about the enormous differences between the two groups arguing ... it's pre-medical/medical students versus ... uhhh ... pre-medical/medical students!!!??? 🙄

Keep it in perspective guys ...

 

[jellyfishnh]

DO schools are my 1st choices. Like many of you said, it's the school that matters, not the initials. I've worked with several DOs and they're all awesome. Plus, I like DO's philosophy about the holistic care a lot more than MD's =)

 

[Ioriscrub]

I too have worked with and shadowed DOs I was very impressed by. Personally I would be happy with either kind of school and my decision would boil down to other factors like location.

 

[sylvanthus]

.

 

[Sunny Side Up]

All I can say is I sure would hate to have this guy as my doctor with his antagonistic nature! You can tell he likes to argue.

 

[GraceEuphoria]

Haha yeah this has just gotten funny honestly. I've never encountered someone quite so keen on nitpicking every single little thing about a statement. I think if were him I would be less concerned about what I said and more concerned about the fact that every person that is posting on here says they'd never want to have him as their physician

And based on some minimal SDN stalking I did initally after these ridiculous responses, I discovered interesting posts made by this character with respect to not getting in at PCOM I think...? 🙂 Oh, but I guess I'll leave it alone before I get myself in trouble lol. I'm a lover not a fighter anyway.