my pet peeve

[Echinoidea]

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Does anyone else notice that when someone posts in the pre-allo forum that they "bombed" the MCAT with an abysmal score, everyone chimes in with "apply at a DO school". WTF? I worked my arse off for a 3.7 and a 28R and I only applied (and was accepted) to DO schools because I WANT to be a DO, not because it was the only option available. Sorry for the rant, it's just that everyone is posting their MCAT sob stories and I'm sick of seeing our education treated as a last resort.

 

[Robz]

I tend to think of it in these terms. First they need to start a whole new application process. Second, usually they need a DO or MD letter of recommendation when AMCAS does not require it at all. Third, they need to have an understanding of the profession in applying. Fourth, I usually can tell when someone is only half heartedly trying something out, that should come up in the interview. I agree that when people blow the MCAT, people shouldn't start shouting "the go DO bus" cause a average of 24 or 25 is not that much lower than an average of 27. What, that's like 10 question difference on the test? I have a very laid back approach to the whole process. Sometimes people have their opinions and nothing you can do will change them except be the best you can be.

 

[Fin-Nor]

i totally agree...

omg i got a 32p... what do we do? we are doomed!!!!!!!!

 

[that dr. jack]

i was ready to hang myself when i saw my scores last year, but then i got smart and relaized all the obsession over the MCAT is lame.
there's only one doctor that i know who remembers and boasts how he did on the MCATs and he's a total a$$clown. he's not even close to being the best surgeon i've ever known.

 

[Shinken]

It comes in waves. After April of next year it will start all over again.

People get so hung up in numbers, it's kind of sad sometimes.

 

[Idiopathic]

Yeah the above thread is by a person who got a 17, so someone advised him/her to apply to osteopathic schools. I love it.

 

[Runtita]

Grrr....

At my KCOM interview last week, there was one person who was obviously there because he considered KCOM a "safety". You could just tell by his attitude.

My feeling is that, for the most part, these people get sorted out by the adcoms. That's a big part of the interview, anyway- meeting someone in person and seeing how they are for real vs. on paper.

 

[luckystar]

My pet peeve is people posting the same post in a dozen threads 🙄

 

[twaspatz]

sorry, thought this was a PRE-osteopathic forum. My pet peeve is posters who can't find the right forum

 

[luckystar]

Originally posted by twaspatz
sorry, thought this was a PRE-osteopathic forum. My pet peeve is posters who can't find the right forum

😛 Then you must be quite peeved because half the people who post in Pre-osteo are current med students trying to give advice/opinions to pre-meds who ask for it.

 

[Adapt]

It's good to see some pre-DO students with competitive stats. I was starting to believe that only people with around 21 MCATS only chose DO schools. I'm glad to see those with competitive stats who actually choose DO over MD.

 

[Runtita]

Slickness,

I only applied DO and I didn't have a 21.

😉

 

[Robz]

They are out there. I know you you know but, remember the average matriculant has 8's on the MCAT where MD is around 9. GPA incredibly close as well. I just think that some people like to try and point out the outliners in the accepted curve.

 

[Febrifuge]

(I've just read the original post, so if the thread is drifting in another direction, I'll catch up later.)

Here's how I look at it: I'm older, my undergrad GPA is nothing special, and from an academic point of view, all I have is some good test scores from the ACT I took 450 years ago. I'm not close to the profile of the typical premed.

But when I figured out that I could be an excellent doctor, a friend (who is now an MD) supported me. First, she mentioned a few things I could do to be sure this is the right thing to do (which I have, and which have tended to support the idea that I would kick ass physician-style), then outlined some ways I might set about making it happen. One of those things was to check out DO schools as well as MD.

That's because DO schools seem to do a better job of accepting people like me. You could frame it as "DO schools accept people with lower test scores" (and then jump to silly conclusions from there), or frame it as "DO schools are more receptive to people who will be good physicians, even if the hard cold numbers don't make the other premeds tremble in awe."

As it happens, I also really dig on the ideas that are specifically kept as part of the core philosophy, so I think I'd be likely to flourish at the right DO school, maybe even more than I would at the right MD school.

Personally, I'm glad that there's still a fair amount of ignorant stupidity and willful misunderstanding around the DO degree, at least among premeds. That should mean fewer myopic gunner-type academic superstars for me to try to sweep aside, when the time comes. 😎

 

[Monkeyguts]

(esp. at KCOM, where they requre 3 quarters of anatomy instead of only 2 reg. semesters).

I guess I'm not understanding this one. I was under the assumption that 3 quarters = 2 semesters.

 

[twaspatz]

Well, I'm not 100% sure as far as actual class hours, now that you mentioned it you're probably right. I just assumed that there was a little more, as was told that there is more stressed on spinal anatomy, etc, and that KCOM included more anatomy hours than some.
Probably should have checked for sure before I posted that, but maybe someone else will have some information?
My fault, sorry.

 

[WillowRose]

2 semesters is roughly equal to 3 quarters....basically the same number of hours in fewer weeks. It might feel harder just because the quarter is over sooner!

Febrifuge....You are going to kick ass physician-style. (Funny that I first typed "kiss ass"...LOL probably do some of that too) I like to think that DO's hold to their core philosophies even when making admissions decisions--they consider the whole person, not just the symptoms of our MCATs and GPAs!

I'm quite proud to say that I think (at least if I was younger..hehe) I'm fairly competitive at the schools I applied to. I may only be competitive at my state school because it's my state school, but that's something by golly! But if I have the choice and all the family responsibilities fall into place, I will very likely go DO. Unless I just fall in love with an MD school.

The doctor who wrote my LOR for my MD apps is actually a Yale grad...and she *encouraged* me to go for it. Now that makes me feel good! She didn't have anything to say about DO vs MD...didn't seem to care that there was any "difference" between the two other than some different techniques. She's a pediatrician so she probably wouldn't have been using a ton of OMM anyway!

oh well...if I complained about all my pet peeves, I'd be up all night..... Unfortunately, I have a class to teach tomorrow. BLEH! Another day of dealing with a bunch of lame brains who are only there because they have to have a science with a lab to graduate and they thought biology would be easier than chemistry. They didn't count on having *me* though, did they? 😛

Will~