PCOM vs allopathic gap year

[happypremed1]

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I dont see myself doing surgery. I don't think I have the smarts or the hand skills for it, so thankfully I won't have to worry about it lol.

Do the people that match into surgery have to have good hand skills coming in? I mean they rank people based on step scores, LORs, grades, etc. On surgical rotations, you'll get good reviews if you don't screw up. There are not many things a med student can do in the OR anyway.

 

[Dr. Zombie]

Do the people that match into surgery have to have good hand skills coming in? I mean they rank people based on step scores, LORs, grades, etc. On surgical rotations, you'll get good reviews if you don't screw up. There are not many things a med student can do in the OR anyway.

So how does one know if they will be good in surgery if the rotation doesn't let you do much.

 

[happypremed1]

So how does one know if they will be good in surgery if the rotation doesn't let you do much.

I wondered that too. I think most people have it figured out after anatomy and the surgical rotations.

 

[wjs010]

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/19/health/patients-costs-skyrocket-specialists-incomes-soar.html

The following are median annual compensation by specialty for physicians who are paid by hospitals or health networks.

$920,555
Orthopedic surgery: hip and joint

$820,569
Orthopedic surgery: spine

$707,252
Surgery: neurological

$583,837
Cardiology: invasive-interventional

$516,081
Dermatology: Mohs surgery

$488,200
Gastroenterology

$425,006
Hematology/Oncology

$378,009
Anesthesiology

$345,726
Ophthalmology

$300,000
Obstetrics/Gynecology: General

$264,863
Neurology

$220,000
Internal Medicine: General

$166,754
Pediatrics: child development

Source: Medical Group Management Association

Umm ... Are those ortho numbers accurate? Dear lord.

 

[cliquesh]

Umm ... Are those ortho numbers accurate? Dear lord.

The numbers are from the MGMA physician salary survey. I have the 2010 version. In 2010, ortho:hip&joint average was $597k, but the 90th percentile was $879k. The average for spine was $710k.

 

[fw5tape6kq]

OP, I was in the same situation 2 years ago. Pretty much the same stats with an outcome of 3 unfruitful wait lists. I realized I had weaknesses in my application and flipped them to make them my strengths. I'm now an MS1 at a fantastic MD school. I'd reapply especially if this was your first time filling out a primary.

And it seems like the majority of my class didn't come straight from undergrad or took multiple years off. You'll be in good company.

I got some great advice from an SDN poster about my primary when reapplying. OP, I'd be willing to look yours over if you want.

That would be great. I can definitely use some insight on potential improvements.

 

[fw5tape6kq]

Funnily enough, some of us are looking beyond earning potential. Regardless of the field, you have more options/interview if you apply to residency as an MD. More options means you have more say in where you end up, and you are likelier to match somewhere you felt was a good fit. As someone who has been down a career path I hated, I can confidently say that it is worth $200k lifelong earning to spend your residency in a location you like and among people you like. It may not be fair, but even in less competitive fields, there are plenty of programs that are biased against osteopathic applicants.

Aren't there osteopathic hospitals though - ones that give precedent to osteopathic applicants? This is something people never explained to me. I understand why it might be difficult to become a plastic surgeon resident as a DO at an allopathic hospital, but what about at an osteopathic hospital. Are there simply too few around?

 

[cliquesh]

Aren't there osteopathic hospitals though - ones that give precedent to osteopathic applicants? This is something people never explained to me. I understand why it might be difficult to become a plastic surgeon resident as a DO at an allopathic hospital, but what about at an osteopathic hospital. Are there simply too few around?

There are no "osteopathic" hosptials. There are hospitals where there are a lot of DOs, though. At any rate, Yeah, there are too few speciality positions. There are, for example, 7 DO plastic surgery fellowship programs, and most of them, except for PCOM's program, only take 1 fellow each year.

https://www.natmatch.com/aoairp/stats/2013prgstats.html
http://opportunities.osteopathic.org/

 

[hallowmann]

That would be great. I can definitely use some insight on potential improvements.

OP, I'm sure you have probably made your decision already, but I stumbled across this and thought I'd give my two cents.

If you had a PCOM acceptance (not just some guy trying to rope in to committing to a program), you might see more people saying, go DO rather than risk it. The thing is, you don't. You don't really have much to lose by taking an extra year. With your stats, you really could get into any DO school, provided you fix whatever is wrong with your app.

I'd wait out this cycle, send LOIs and updates to the schools you are waitlisted at, and then if nothing comes out of them, apply early and BROADLY (and I mean broadly, because you clearly didn't do that this time around) to many MD programs (low-mid tier). Many MD programs would likely take you on stats alone, provided you aren't a weirdo at the interview. Next cycle you should also throw in apps for your 3-4 favorite DO schools for good measure.

If after fixing your app, applying early and broadly, and still not getting into MD school, then at that point go DO.

Everyone says things like if you really just want primary care or you know you don't want to do a fellowship. The thing is, you have no idea what you want at this stage. Things change in 1-3 years let alone the 10 between you as an applicant and you as a soon to be attending considering a fellowship. Most people don't even know what most fields are like at this stage to know what they want to do for the rest of their lives. Why limit yourself now?

I'm happy and proud to be where I am as a DO student. I too was waitlisted at MD schools. Unlike you, however, basically all DO and MD schools were a reach for me given my GPA. Given my situation, it wasn't worth the wait, especially considering being a non-trad already a few years older than the average matriculant. You, however, are in a different situation.