#of seats vs. applicants

[MDmiracle]

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I have heard on this board that osteopathic schools are harder to get into because of the number of applicants per seat. Just in case anyone was curious I did the math from incoming class size on the aacom website and there are 3000 seats available. The last application cycle had 7100 applicants so if that holds true with no major jumps in applications there are about 2.3 applications per seat. About on par with allo I think. So I hope this waylayed some fears in that we all have a better shot than we, read me, thought. 🙂

 

[Dr JPH]

To play devils advocate:

Remember that a large percentage of "MD wannabes" will apply osteopathic as a backup or safety, thereby increasing the number of osteopathic applications.

A good portion of these people will not be accepted to MD institutions and join the osteopathic community, but a larger portion will be accepted into an MD school somewhere and they never had any intention of becoming a DO.

I don't know of many people who want to be DOs and apply to MD schools to "cover their bases" or for the feeling of security.

I think a more appropriate way to look at things would be to see what TYPE of applicants are applying to theses schools.

An interesting factoid that is tossed around is that the average age for a first year osteopathic student is a bit higher than that of an allopathic student. (25.4 years for DO I beleive)

Personally, I feel that the osteopathic approach to medicine and to a patient requires a more mature attitude.

Of course, I can name a good deal of people in my class who do not fit this mold.

But when it all comes down to it, does it really matter which is harder to get into? Not in the least. There are plenty of people who apply to MD schools who wouldnt consider becoming a DO. There are also plenty of people who apply to DO schools who wouldnt consider becoming an MD (raising my hand).

 

[MacGyver]

Originally posted by MDmiracle
I have heard on this board that osteopathic schools are harder to get into because of the number of applicants per seat. Just in case anyone was curious I did the math from incoming class size on the aacom website and there are 3000 seats available. The last application cycle had 7100 applicants so if that holds true with no major jumps in applications there are about 2.3 applications per seat. About on par with allo I think. So I hope this waylayed some fears in that we all have a better shot than we, read me, thought. 🙂

Your analysis is flawed. The AACOM website doesnt give # of applicants, it gives # of applications.

Since everybody applies to more than 1 school, the number of applications gives an inflated view of difficulty.

 

[DOtobe]

I smell a flame war coming on...better douse the fire!

 

[Shinken]

I can attest from personal experience that DO schools are harder to get into than MD schools.

I interviewed at an MD school this past Friday and the doors to the health sciences building where the interviews were being held were huge! Went through with no difficulty, even with other people going in at the same time. On the other hand, all DO schools I've gone to have small cramped doors. It's difficult to make it past the doors when other people are also trying to get in or out. Yes, DO schools are definitely harder to get into.

😛

 

[oceandocDO]

Your analysis is flawed. The AACOM website doesnt give # of applicants, it gives # of applications. Since everybody applies to more than 1 school, the number of applications gives an inflated view of difficulty.

No, your analysis is flawed. The AACOM website is correct, as the number of applications does equal the number of people applying, as there's only one application no matter how many number of schools you apply to.

Plus, look here, then scroll down to "Will you get in, what are your chances,"...the slide show illustrates over 7100 APPLICANTS, not applications.

Anyway, if your theory held, and the average person applied to 5 D.O. schools, there would only be about 1400 people applying, when there's about 3,000 D.O. seats in the country.

 

[DrQuinn]

Originally posted by Shinken
I can attest from personal experience that DO schools are harder to get into than MD schools.

I interviewed at an MD school this past Friday and the doors to the health sciences building where the interviews were being held were huge! Went through with no difficulty, even with other people going in at the same time. On the other hand, all DO schools I've gone to have small cramped doors. It's difficult to make it past the doors when other people are also trying to get in or out. Yes, DO schools are definitely harder to get into.

😛

 

[DOtobe]

Shinken...

That was hysterical!

 

[MDmiracle]

Actually, this thread had nothing to do with the difficulty of getting in to either program, MD or DO. It was more for solice in the fact that there is a 50% chance of getting in. It is for those people who, like myself, are getting discourage because of some weakness in their application, in my case GPA. People keep sputing off all of these numbers and statistics that tend to make non-perfect applicants get a little down on this whole process. This thread was meant to give them a little hope. Also, it was therapy for me to do the numbers and see for myself.

Flame On! 🙂

 

[Shinken]

MDmiracle, I agree with you. All the statistics, average numbers, etc. don't help those that don't have stellar numbers. I was happy when that MDapplicants.com website was created, but as soon as I started looking into schools I wanted to attend I was very depressed!

Anyway, hopefully I'll manage to become part of the entering class of 2004 in some school. My story could be fairly "inspirational" given my background and stats.

Hopefully you weren't offended by my previous post (wasn't intended as a flame at all). Just trying to lighten things up and prevent this thread from becoming a "my DO can beat your MD anytime" flame war. Although, come to think about it, threads in this forum rarely turn into that.

P.S. Is there such a thing as a "perfect" applicant anyway?

 

[Buster Douglas]

Originally posted by Shinken
All the statistics, average numbers, etc. don't help those that don't have stellar numbers.

But, hey... osteopathic schools do have a reputation of looking past the numbers. Some osteopathic schools are even known to brag that they'll turn down the >30 MCATs and >3.7 GPAs and produce better doctors than schools that have such narrowed criteria for determining academic potential. Maybe the door is getting smaller, but hopefully the proportioned values of personality, experience, and scores haven't changed all that much. 🙂