Letter from a D.O. Is it important?

[friedcfood]

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How much is a letter from a D.O. worth? I know some school require one, but what about the schools that recommends it? 😎

 

[ez073323]

friedcfood,

Below is a reply that i gave a month or so ago to basically the same question... its not really an answer, just an opinion and some more info... the bottom line is that if you can get a DO letter, just DO it!

Brian



Although the admissions process is very mysterious and difficult to predict/understand, I feel that there is one perspective one can take that will basically answer all of your "do I need to" questions...

Just pretend you are on an admissions committee, and imagine what they are looking for in an applicant... What do ad coms want?? An applicant that is well informed about what he/she is getting into, right? An applicant that has shown a distict desire to practice medicine, right? (and of course has shown the ability to do well in classes/boards,etc.) So how does one convey the fact that that one is well informed/has a distinct desire to practice medicine? Providing care to people!!!, better yet providing care to people in a healthcare environment!!, better yet providing care to people in a healthcare enviroment under the supervison of a physician!

I am not saying that it is essential to work in the healthcare field to know you want to be a doctor, but with a competitive as the application cycle is, you really have to do everything you can to put yourself in a good light in the eyes of the admission committees.

I interviewed at Touro yesterday, and their dean of admissons eloquently summarized the situation that we are getting into.. He said that the a significant portion of the population will be easy to provide care to.. they will be cordial and you will enjoy your job when dealing with them... but there is also a smaller portion of the population that are basically a$$es and you will not enjoy providing care to them, but they deserve no less care than you would provide those who are a joy to deal with. In my opinion, If you have done activities that display that you have this characteristic of providing care to everyone all the time, you have come a long way in developing yourself as a person, applicant, and doctor.

here are some other pertinant threads...

http://www.studentdoctor.net/forums...&threadid=58255

http://www.studentdoctor.net/forums...&threadid=58828

http://www.studentdoctor.net/forums...&threadid=57139

Brian Enriquez
[email protected]

 

[Idiopathic]

My school required one. When I remarked that I actually didn't know any D.O.'s, they suggested that I just find one out of the phone book. When I did find one, she turned out to be a grad of my school and a fairly prominent pediatrician. Had I not been sold on being a D.O., she would have destroyed any desire I had. She just wasn't representative of what the school is about. But, she wrote me a great letter and the rest is history. This may or may not be relevant to your situation, but it is always better to get the letter than to not get the letter.

 

[Stillfocused]

It can be almost essential.

 

[futuredo32]

I think it depends on where you want to go to school. If a school recommends it, I think they really want one. MSUCOM and KCOM are 2 schools that I know of that don't recommend one or require one. Not having a D.O. recommendation will severely limit your options on which schools you can apply to.🙂

 

[littleengin]

I actually was asking myself this question in jan. Yes, some school require them and others don't. Therefore, you gotta do your reading. KCOM dosen't I know that for a fact.

 

[biofreak126]

I didn't have a DO letter. Only an MD letter. I got into AZCOM, Western, and Touro, and declined interviews at CCOM, UHS, and DMU. So a DO letter is not absolutely essential as long as the rest of your application is good.

 

[lady bug]

Since you put so much effort/time/money into the application process, you might as well take an extra step and get a DO letter to give yourself a stronger application. It helps schools see that you've been exposed to the philosophy and understand what osteopathic medicine is about. Also, you never really know what could come out of a shadowing experience. I had some wonderful opportunities to participate in clinical research and other projects b/c of a DO whom I shadowed. Its a win-win situation.

 

[ridgemit]

I'm planning to apply this summer. I've been studying abroad in Scotland for a year and will be back in the States mid-June. I haven't shadowed a DO yet and I was planning to do it in the summer at the same time as I'm applying. (I'm assuming the letter of recommendation isn't required for the primary application.) Is that okay or would it have been better for me to have done it already? But since I only recently began exploring the osteopathic option, I kind of don't have a choice.

Thanks.

 

[ez073323]

ridgemit,

you are correct in assuming that your letter of rec won't be requested until you receive a secondary, but the sooner you have it hand the better...

Ah, the hoops we jump through for medicine!

Brian Enriquez
[email protected]