Originally posted by Molybdenum
Any of you guys thinking about DO or caribbean med school instead of taking one or two years off? you will become doctors earlier...
If an applicant has applied less than 3 times, I would recommend giving the allopathic route another shot if and when you are able to improve your credentials. I would talk to family members, fellow pre-meds, and pre-med advisors about what in your application needs work. Admissions offices from schools that rejected you may also be able to offer some insight, but are less likely to do so than the sources I just mentioned. I applied during my senior year of college with an August MCAT score <27 and not surprisingly received 0 acceptances and 1 late interview. So I started working and taking grad courses and retook the MCAT in April of 2000. I received a 29 and applied to 21 schools with a 3.62 undergrad and 4.0 grad GPA. I received 7 interviews, 2 holds for interview, and the rest rejections. I had to wait through all of the waitlist hell, but was eventually rewarded with 2 acceptances and just finished my first year at a top 50 allopathic school. So the final advice I would give would be:
1) Do NOT reapply until you have "fixed" what is weak in your application. An MCAT score of 30 is not really a weakness unless you have a low GPA, are aiming for top 10 schools, or are a CA resident (and even then plenty of CA ppl get in with that score or lower). An MCAT <27, GPA<3.2, lack of enthusiasm or positive attitude in interviews, weak letters of recommendation, etc. are problems that can be corrected. Like I said before, ask those around you for advice.
2)Don't assume that just because MD schools did not accept you that DO schools automatically will. DO schools are also tough to get into. I think you have to ask yourself if you would truly be happy being a DO and if you would be happy in the DO environment. Although I was planning to apply a third time to MD schools and was going to apply DO as well, I am truly happy to have been accepted to SLU and TUSM since I know deep down that I would never be happy out in Kirksville, Missouri with many people who are older and have kids. I think having kids is great and KCOM is a wonderful school, but I strongly prefer an urban environment with more cultural offerings and a large student population. Many DO schools are in a suburban/rural environment; just something to think about.
3) A Carribean school will NOT necessarily get you into a residency faster. Many Carribean schools will not give you time off to take the USMLE I and II, so you may have to take a leave of absence (or multiple leaves) to complete these exams, thus losing time. Also, you may have to jump through more red tape in applying to residencies and going on residency interviews than U.S. MD students, and some Carribean schools have 5 or 6-year programs for a regular MD. I would not go this route without giving it a great deal of thought.
GOOD LUCK! BTW, I noticed this thread b/c NYMC waitlisted and rejected me last year. I received my first acceptance on July 16 but did not bother to withdraw from NYMC's waitlist.
I totally think that you'll need DSL (per your previous post) since you are sort of addicted to SDN 
