Pre-DO Needs Numbers.....

[blaze1306]

As a pre-Do applying this June I would like to think I already have an idea of what I want to specialize in Radiology or Emergency Medicine. I am concerned however after looking at SDN about the competetivness of Radiology. Where can I get some numbers as to DO competetivness. I'd like to know; from how many DO's that apply(one's that really want to be Radiologist) make it into a DO residency. Do you have to go for a MD residency because of limited DO spots? How many DO residency spots are there? I don't care if the program is ranked,or the most prestigous. I'm under the impression that everyone that graduates from the residency and passes boards has the same chance of landing a good job,reguardless of where they graduated from.I'd just like to get into a good program, graduate and get to work. I hope this is not a delusion.

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[DHMO]

As a pre-Do applying this June I would like to think I already have an idea of what I want to specialize in Radiology or Emergency Medicine. I am concerned however after looking at SDN about the competetivness of Radiology. Where can I get some numbers as to DO competetivness. I'd like to know; from how many DO's that apply(one's that really want to be Radiologist) make it into a DO residency. Do you have to go for a MD residency because of limited DO spots? How many DO residency spots are there? I don't care if the program is ranked,or the most prestigous. I'm under the impression that everyone that graduates from the residency and passes boards has the same chance of landing a good job,reguardless of where they graduated from.I'd just like to get into a good program, graduate and get to work. I hope this is not a delusion.

If you think you want to do radiology, why are you applying for DO? I don't see how the DO philosophy would have any effect on a practicing radiologist.

 

[blaze1306]

I'ts a personal preferance. I'm also a non-trad(30). DO schools seem to be more willing to cater to a non-trad. Is it impossible for a DO to get in Rads?

 

[Koil Gugliemi]

Not impossible, but probably a bit more difficult. A graduate of an allo school for example, might be able to get in with a slightly lower step 1 etc, but osteo graduates may have a bit tougher time, with less wiggle room in their applications. Apply to some allo schools and pick based on what you think would be best. There's plenty of non-trads at allo schools

 

[blaze1306]

Is it possible to apply for match for both EM and Radiology and find out on match day what I get? Assuming step1 numbers are good enough for both.

 

[ericdopt]

I'ts a personal preferance. I'm also a non-trad(30). DO schools seem to be more willing to cater to a non-trad. Is it impossible for a DO to get in Rads?

No, it is not impossible. I, too, was a "non-traditional" student (I'll be 42 when I'm done!). DO was the way I wanted to go, due to my previous career. I had no idea before I applied what I wanted to do, until my 3rd year. I fell in love with Rads for many reasons, not the least of which is the fact that I'll be dealing with anatomy all day. I busted my a**, got phenomenal grades, LOR's and came across very well in my interviews (they reminded me of job interviews). I had many osteo and allo interviews, and will be doing Rads next year (can't wait). While it is harder for DO's, it's not impossible. From my limited experience, I have only run into 1 program (I won't name it) that is not osteo friendly. Good luck and contact me with any specifics.

DHMO- While I'm not going to get into a meaningless battle over "DO vs. MD", I am curious over your statement. Granted, I won't be doing OMT (the vast majority of DO's in practice (IM to Surgery) in fact, do not use OMT..it's just an extra class, not a religion) as a radiologist, I do feel as though the palpatory aspect of OMT and the intense anatomy we had, increased my anatomy knowledge ten-fold In fact, during one of my rotations (to an allo institution), the program director posed many MSK questions that I had no problem answering. He confided that many of his 2nd and 3rd year residents would have found it hard to answer those questions. I could just as easily ask anyone what good is biochemistry (the kreb cycle?)/phamacology/histology (tissue slides, anyone?) /psych/etc...really going to do me as a practicing radiiologist?

 

[Vince]

I might be able to offer some advice. I was a paramedic before medical school and "knew" I was going to go into Emergency Medicine. I liked the DO philosophy when I was deciding to go to medical school and so just applied to DO schools. I was a non-traditional applicant also and so I think that helped getting into DO school.

During my third year clerkships I became somewhat disenchanted with "clinical medicine" and the health care system. So, I changed my mind and went for radiology and successfully matched into an allopathic university program in California.

Radiology is the field for me but never could have predicted that before medical school. It was an EXTREMELY tough road applying to radiology as a DO. Yes, there are DO programs but they are competitive too and not really academic oriented....in other words, they are at community hospitals and not really affiliated with any universities. I wanted to go to a more academic program so I dropped out of the DO match and just went for the MD programs. Many of the DO programs also only take 1-2 applicants a year and usually know who they want prior to interviews so I didn't really like the process.

If I had to do it all over again and "knowing" that I wanted to go into Radiology, I would not have gone to DO school. I don't think you are going to be at an extreme disadvantage being a DO if you want to do EM. There are plenty more DO EM programs and most of the MD EM programs are "DO-Friendly." You just need to be in the top of your class and high board scores.

The question you have to ask yourself is would you rather take a year or two off just to get into an MD program and I don't know if I would want to do that because honestly many students start medical school "knowing" what they want to go into and change their mind, so you might even decide you don't want to do radiology. Also, fields change with respect to competitiveness from year to year, so who knows how competitive Radiology or EM will be in 5 years. I'd like to think Radiology will still be competitive but who knows...that's a new thread all together.

Short answer: Go MD if you really want to do Radiology, but if you get into DO school you can pull it off if you study hard and do well on the boards. You can be an EM doc as a DO, just study hard so you keep your options open. And yes, you can apply to both specialties in the match.

 

[ericdopt]

Vince- Yes, overall I agree with your post. If you know that you want to do Rads (again, most people will change their minds once in the thick of med school), then MD would be easier in general.

Just as an FYI blaze1306- ALL Michigan programs are affiliated with Michigan State. Your diploma will be from a Big 10 Univ. which will be huge for fellowships. Yes, most DO programs are community hospitals. We still read a crap load and the didactics are second to none. Once a week we go to Lansing for lecture, all day. They fly in the best of the best for lectures. I heard last year they flew in Brandt or Helms (can't remember which, sorry).

I would not eliminate anything at your level. As I've said, most people in my class changed their minds frequently on what they wanted to go into. I did the opposite, I crossed off each specialty as I rotated through it until I found one that kept my interest more than 1 week.

Good luck.

 

[Vince]

Vince- Yes, overall I agree with your post. If you know that you want to do Rads (again, most people will change their minds once in the thick of med school), then MD would be easier in general.

Just as an FYI blaze1306- ALL Michigan programs are affiliated with Michigan State. Your diploma will be from a Big 10 Univ. which will be huge for fellowships. Yes, most DO programs are community hospitals. We still read a crap load and the didactics are second to none. Once a week we go to Lansing for lecture, all day. They fly in the best of the best for lectures. I heard last year they flew in Brandt or Helms (can't remember which, sorry).

I would not eliminate anything at your level. As I've said, most people in my class changed their minds frequently on what they wanted to go into. I did the opposite, I crossed off each specialty as I rotated through it until I found one that kept my interest more than 1 week.

Good luck.

I didn't know "ALL" Michigan programs would have a diploma that said Michigan State...interesting...I interviewed at Pontiac and Henry Ford Bi-County Wyandotte and they boasted that but I didn't think Botsford or some of the other programs had that going for them....

I will say that of the DO programs that I interviewed at, I did like Henry Ford Bi-County Wyandotte and Pontiac the most...and they would be ideal if I had a family and wanted to just get a house and be in one area for all five years. I did like the lectures at Lansing, but the drive would have really worn me down after a few years.

 

[Cowboy DO]

No, it is not impossible. I, too, was a "non-traditional" student (I'll be 42 when I'm done!). DO was the way I wanted to go, due to my previous career. I had no idea before I applied what I wanted to do, until my 3rd year. I fell in love with Rads for many reasons, not the least of which is the fact that I'll be dealing with anatomy all day. I busted my a**, got phenomenal grades, LOR's and came across very well in my interviews (they reminded me of job interviews). I had many osteo and allo interviews, and will be doing Rads next year (can't wait). While it is harder for DO's, it's not impossible. From my limited experience, I have only run into 1 program (I won't name it) that is not osteo friendly. Good luck and contact me with any specifics.

DHMO- While I'm not going to get into a meaningless battle over "DO vs. MD", I am curious over your statement. Granted, I won't be doing OMT (the vast majority of DO's in practice (IM to Surgery) in fact, do not use OMT..it's just an extra class, not a religion) as a radiologist, I do feel as though the palpatory aspect of OMT and the intense anatomy we had, increased my anatomy knowledge ten-fold In fact, during one of my rotations (to an allo institution), the program director posed many MSK questions that I had no problem answering. He confided that many of his 2nd and 3rd year residents would have found it hard to answer those questions. I could just as easily ask anyone what good is biochemistry (the kreb cycle?)/phamacology/histology (tissue slides, anyone?) /psych/etc...really going to do me as a practicing radiiologist?

good thoughtful post

 

[nuclearrabbit77]

i would highly recommend the MD route over DO if you intend to do radiology. it's highly competitive and it's hard enough for MD's with high boards and good grades to land interviews at good institutions....i can't imagine how hard it'd be for a DO student.

the only perk doing the DO route is is that there are DO radiology programs that are exclusive only to DO graduates.

 

[-Goose-]

as a radiologist, I do feel as though the palpatory aspect of OMT and the intense anatomy we had, increased my anatomy knowledge ten-fold

did it also increase your ability to exaggerate ten fold?

 

[blaze1306]

Thanks for all the info, it's good to know that the same hard work i'm putting in to getting an acceptance to med-school will help me get into the residency I want.

 

[ericdopt]

did it also increase your ability to exaggerate ten fold?

Sorry Goose, I wasn't aware that I was boasting. Sorry you took it that way. It was just a statement that I felt was true on my part. It wasn't meant as anything other than that.