Nontrad 2020 combined GME

[petomed]

Like most, philosophy and the idea of wielding wizard healing hands draws me to DO. There is that bit about applicant reinvention that DO schools tend to favor...but does all this go away in 2020?

There are other threads out there regarding the progress towards this transition but this is something everyone should be talking about as a nontrad. My biggest question is...would it not be advantageous to shoot for MD considering the uncertainty surrounding this?

Frankly, I like the DO path for several reasons and really planned applying DO heavy. My understanding is that any future residency will have to somehow offer or incorporate manipulative medicine into their program. Is this true?

Also, it seems with one GME there will still be two metrics for standardized testing--USMLE vs COMPLEX. Will a DO still be expected to take both to gain acceptance into a MD dominant residency, like they do today? Will the previously DO only residencies be forced to accept USMLE scores, since MD's do not receive manipulative medicine training? Does this mean the USMLE will replace COMPLEX?

Nonetheless, DO's and MD's will be forced to compete for all GME positions come 2020, much unlike the state of affairs today. Am I wrong by assuming this would mean going MD instead of DO would be wise?

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[DocJanItor]

It's almost always more advantageous to shoot for MD first. DOs have lower match rates for ACGME residencies and generally need higher USMLE scores than MDs, although this differential is small and decreasing every year. It's not necessarily fair since DOs and MDs now have equivalent education, but there are still older doctors and residency directors who have bias against DOs.

OMM is a fun little tool but is far oversold for what it can accomplish. My DO cousin never uses it in her primary care practice, although she can pop my back like nobody's business. I'm not saying OMM is worthless, but the time you spend on it is never going to be worth the amount you use it in the future. If it's really that important to you, I go to an MD school and they have an OMM elective you can take for part of M2.

The prevailing consensus is that COMLEX will still exist for a time post merger and DOs will have to take it, but that USMLE will still be required for most residencies. That means DOs will still have to take 2 tests and it will still be a huge inconvenience. I'd say that USMLE will eventually replace COMLEX, but we're probably a decade or 2 away from that.