Perception/Harm?

[stiz]

Curious if applying to MD schools is going to hurt my argument as to
'why I want to be a DO', 'Why I like their philosophy more', etc...

And, if applying to out-of-state programs is going to hurt the fact that
the in-state schools desire that you stay and practice in your home state....

And the fact that they may ask about where I applied during the interview...

How do you guys handle these issues?

Thanks

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[ShyRem]

I was honest. I applied to both MD and DO and when asked where I applied, I said I applied places that were good for my family (I have a husband and children), places where my husband could get decent work, had good schools, and were a good fit for me in med school. Flat out told 'em we sat down as a family and crossed off states that we didn't want to live in for 4 years. Then went from there. Didn't seem to hurt me any.

In state is easy. You apply there 'cuz it's cheap, but apply everywhere else in case you don't get in in-state. No one will ask you about that one.

 

[AnaMaria777]

**Applying to MD schools is going to hurt my argument as to
'why I want to be a DO'?**

Well, it all depends on how you state your case. Such a question is likely to show up during an interview, so I would definitely prepare a response, just in case. Luckily, D.O. schools won't even know that you've applied to MD schools, unless you tell them, of course .

 

[Punchap]

Curious if applying to MD schools is going to hurt my argument as to
'why I want to be a DO', 'Why I like their philosophy more', etc...

And, if applying to out-of-state programs is going to hurt the fact that
the in-state schools desire that you stay and practice in your home state....

And the fact that they may ask about where I applied during the interview...

How do you guys handle these issues?

Thanks

I agree with Shyrem. You should apply to schools you would ultimately want to attend, whether MD or DO. I really don't think it will hurt you at all. The schools I interviewed at did not strongly emphasize the difference between the two. I think you should prepare for the questions "why DO?" and why X school? They are not likely to ask "Why DO vs. MD?" because they know a lot of students apply to both. You can simply point out some of aspects of osteopathic medicine that you like without dwelling on why it's better than allopathic.

As far as asking where you have interviewed/applied. I was asked this question at two interviews...just be honest and tell them where you applied. You can even follow it up with reasoning such as location, curriculum structure, etc.

As for the instate/out of state issue...this is not likely to hurt your chances at private out of state schools. There are many state-supported schools that have to meet in-state quotas, this is the case with OUCOM for example (they have a history of being a land grant school, so those out of state students who do get accepted are required to work in OH for five years)...Many schools have preferences for their in-state residents, but many do not. Apply broadly.

 

[theserbatron]

I agree with Shyrem. You should apply to schools you would ultimately want to attend, whether MD or DO. I really don't think it will hurt you at all. The schools I interviewed at did not strongly emphasize the difference between the two. I think you should prepare for the questions "why DO?" and why X school? They are not likely to ask "Why DO vs. MD?" because they know a lot of students apply to both. You can simply point out some of aspects of osteopathic medicine that you like without dwelling on why it's better than allopathic.

As far as asking where you have interviewed/applied. I was asked this question at two interviews...just be honest and tell them where you applied. You can even follow it up with reasoning such as location, curriculum structure, etc.

As for the instate/out of state issue...this is not likely to hurt your chances at private out of state schools. There are many state-supported schools that have to meet in-state quotas, this is the case with OUCOM for example (they have a history of being a land grant school, so those out of state students who do get accepted are required to work in OH for five years)...Many schools have preferences for their in-state residents, but many do not. Apply broadly.

i think shyrem's and punchap's advice is spot on. especially the bits about applying broadly, and when it comes time to interview, having a good sense about why you want to be a physician, why you would want to go to that school, and why you would be a good choice for that entering class.

good luck!

 

[TexasTriathlete]

As long as you understand the reality of DO's, nobody is going to care. That is, when you are asked "why osteopathic", tell them what you know of DO's in practice (NOT the AOA website's definition of what a DO should be).

These people could give two ****s if you applied to MD schools. Some of the faculty will be MD's themselves. Others will have taught at MD schools in the past. Others will be PhD's who don't care one way or another, but are told to ask the question.

Just be honest. Nobody will care. The MD vs. DO stuff is a construct of the pre-med imagination. These people interviewing you aren't concerned with it.

 

[Tensyle]

I interviewed at CCOM and NSUCOM. At the CCOM interview, i had an MD peditrician interview me. At the NSUCOM, I had an MD/JD chief of surgery interview me as part of a panel of 3 people.

They were interested as to why i'm applying DO as well as MD - and I flatly told them that I'm applying to programs where I thought I'd be successful, and that were a good fit for me. To me, it didnt matter MD or DO, because I knew i could become the physician i wanted to be.

I obvoiusly had a good understanding of what a DO is, and was able to answer questions about that too.

 

[TexasTriathlete]

Just say that MD's are totally gay, and DO's rule. Use those exact words.

 

[Bond8204]

These people could give two ****s if you applied to MD schools.

I'll nitpick. As a guy with higher-end stats, in 2 of my 3 interviews they flat out looked at me and said "Well...with these stats, the million dollar question is, if you got into both DO and MD where would you go?"

The first time I sputtered a bit, talking about positives of programs of both degrees. Second time I hardcore emphasized that I would choose where I felt was the best fit, and that their interview date so far left me very impressed and feeling that I would be a great fit there. I was waitlisted at the first and accepted to the second.

To tweak Tex's statement...I don't think they necessarily care that you'll be applying to both MD and DO schools, but because they surely have thousands of applicants who are applying only DO, they're going to check to make sure you're not using DO's as a backup (which is ridiculous because a lot of people do). If you emphasize that it's not a backup, show that you have real world experience with DO's as Tex said, and say something along the lines of this:

I'm applying to programs where I thought I'd be successful, and that were a good fit for me. To me, it didnt matter MD or DO, because I knew i could become the physician i wanted to be.

...you should be fine.