Question about DO medical school

[Baaaark]

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I have a few questions, which are somewhat controversial, but I promise I'm just looking for an answer, not an argument.

1) It seems with certain medical schools and DEFINITELY with law schools, there's a level of prestige that comes with graduating from a certain college. Do any of you know if this is the case with DO school? You don't have to say which ones are more prestigious (that would start a fight). I wouldn't think there would be since there are fewer schools, but I could be wrong.

2) Is there a different "attitude" at a DO school than an MD school? I mean, I know they teach you some other things, but do the schools in general have a different method of teaching, or is this mostly something you see from school to school? I ask, cause all of the DOs I know (three) seem to have ENTIRELY different personalities than the MDs I know. I didn't know if this was learned behavior or just who they were.

That's pretty much it. I really hope to not start a flame war with this, and if a mod thinks it might, please don't hesitate to delete this. I'm not in the business of creating arguments, but I would like to know some things about DO school that you won't find in a booklet or website.

 

[TexasTriathlete]

1. This is an entirely different deal than law. Don't worry about prestige. It sounds nice, but its mostly going to come down to how good you are. In law, you better go to a top school, and do well. Your board scores will probably mean more than where you go to school, long-term.

2. DO schools are likely to have a little older student body. So yeah, that will probably mean a different attitude. Probably more laid-back, in general.

Posted via Mobile Device

 

[cbrons]

I have a few questions, which are somewhat controversial, but I promise I'm just looking for an answer, not an argument.

1) It seems with certain medical schools and DEFINITELY with law schools, there's a level of prestige that comes with graduating from a certain college. Do any of you know if this is the case with DO school? You don't have to say which ones are more prestigious (that would start a fight). I wouldn't think there would be since there are fewer schools, but I could be wrong.

2) Is there a different "attitude" at a DO school than an MD school? I mean, I know they teach you some other things, but do the schools in general have a different method of teaching, or is this mostly something you see from school to school? I ask, cause all of the DOs I know (three) seem to have ENTIRELY different personalities than the MDs I know. I didn't know if this was learned behavior or just who they were.

That's pretty much it. I really hope to not start a flame war with this, and if a mod thinks it might, please don't hesitate to delete this. I'm not in the business of creating arguments, but I would like to know some things about DO school that you won't find in a booklet or website.

Come man... you just got through saying how you're friends dad was a DO and how you're excited to pursue this. Who cares about prestige? Prestige is for lame-os.

 

[Dedikated2liftn]

I have a few questions, which are somewhat controversial, but I promise I'm just looking for an answer, not an argument.

1) It seems with certain medical schools and DEFINITELY with law schools, there's a level of prestige that comes with graduating from a certain college. Do any of you know if this is the case with DO school? You don't have to say which ones are more prestigious (that would start a fight). I wouldn't think there would be since there are fewer schools, but I could be wrong.

2) Is there a different "attitude" at a DO school than an MD school? I mean, I know they teach you some other things, but do the schools in general have a different method of teaching, or is this mostly something you see from school to school? I ask, cause all of the DOs I know (three) seem to have ENTIRELY different personalities than the MDs I know. I didn't know if this was learned behavior or just who they were.

That's pretty much it. I really hope to not start a flame war with this, and if a mod thinks it might, please don't hesitate to delete this. I'm not in the business of creating arguments, but I would like to know some things about DO school that you won't find in a booklet or website.

In regards to your first question, unless you're enrolled in a top 10 program (Harvard, Hopkins, WashU, etc.), I really don't think it's going to make a huge difference. Unlike law schools, getting matched is much more a reflection of how an individual did during medical school, and not necessarily the institution attended. How DO schools stack up against one another, I'm ultimately unsure (DOs?). In regards to your second question, I'll answer the best I can. Since I'm not attending a DO school I cannot say for sure; however, the primary goal of both MD and DO institutions is to prepare students to pass licensing exams (sure, there's other things, but if you break it down, this is ultimately what you're looking at). Since DO students are allowed to take either the USMLE or COMLEX, I'd assume the material taught is almost identical (correct me if I'm wrong DO students). As far as the personality thing goes, I'll think that it depends greatly on the individual and not the degree (I've got plenty of future MD peers who are asses and others who are extremely kind).

 

[TexasTriathlete]

The most important thing about prestige here is so that your mom can brag about you.

No, it is nothing like law school in terms of importance.

Posted via Mobile Device

 

[Baaaark]

Come man... you just got through saying how you're friends dad was a DO and how you're excited to pursue this. Who cares about prestige? Prestige is for lame-os.

I know. Its not a deciding factor, but I am curious. If you go to a low-tier law school, you sometimes can't even get a job in law (it happens especially in places like New York or Florida). My answer wasn't going to influence my decision, but I was curious. But like I said, there's so few DO schools in comparison to MD or law schools, that its not as much of a factor. Sorry if I sounded trollish. I have a tendency to sound that way because I ask so many questions (my mind is a sponge!)

And thanks to everyone for the answers. Individual personalities always seem to overpower any trend or generalization. I should know this by now... 🙂

The most important thing about prestige here is so that your mom can brag about you.

No, it is nothing like law school in terms of importance.

Posted via Mobile Device

My mom would brag about me if I were a janitor at a med school... 🙂 She doesn't care what I do as long as I'm happy (thanks, mom!)

 

[DrMidlife]

1. Say I'm an AOA residency program director. I've got a bias in favor of some schools (maybe my alma mater) and a bias against other schools (also maybe my alma mater). I will have an opinion about PCOM, for instance, that comes from this prioritized list:
...1. how BAD the worst PCOM resident was here lately
...2. how good/bad my colleagues from PCOM are
...3. how good/bad the average performance was of all recent PCOM grads

So a PCOM applicant to my residency is up against these biases, which could win or lose a tie against another applicant. I'm only human.

If I'm an ACGME PD, I've got the same priority list. When I'm looking at an MD applicant, I have my biases for/against their school. If I'm looking at a DO applicant, I may have a bias for/against DO's in general, or if I bring in lots of DO's already, I may have a per-school bias.

Regardless, if you want to be bias-proof, you need grades, evaluations, board scores, audition rotations and a winning personality. Don't put yourself in a tie game.

From my perspective, prestige douchebaggery comes after a doc graduates from Harvard/Mayo/Stanford and expects something that he/she hasn't earned from the world.

2. Tough to generalize student attitude. I'm pretty sure that the percentage of DO students who are irredeemable douchebags is about the same as MD students. Comes with wanting the physician title that is (arguably) universally respected - douchebags, again, want the title without having to earn the respect.

If there's a different attitude at DO schools, I'd bet it's gratitude that we get to be doctors. You see plenty of this at MD schools as well, but in my experience, MD students are more likely to show entitlement, that they deserve to be doctors. Douchebags.

Personally I have a much better time around folks who've fallen down a couple times on the way to success and self-awareness. People who've never failed or struggled are REALLY boring.

End over-generalization.

 

[Baaaark]

Midlife, your post is very informative and you are obviously a very intelligent person. Thank you for taking the time to reply to my questions.

I think the whole medical experience is only what you make of it. For a sociology nerd who likes to round people into little groups, this is a tough pill to swallow, but its the truth nonetheless. We can't all fit under one blanket.

And I'm sure there's probably more difference in attitude between what geographic region you go to school (i.e. mid-west vs. northeast), than there is between specific schools. I just need to keep telling myself this.

Once again thank you very much, sir.

 

[DrMidlife]

Once again thank you very much, sir.

That's ma'am, but I can see how all the douchebaggery could cause confusion. Not terribly ladylike to throw that around. But SDN won't let me say ****wad.

 

[Chocolate Bear]

That's ma'am, but I can see how all the douchebaggery could cause confusion. Not terribly ladylike to throw that around. But SDN won't let me say ****wad.

I think you should be able to call em like you see em and still be called a lady. Keep it up, ma'am. 👍😎

 

[Dedikated2liftn]

1. Say I'm an AOA residency program director. I've got a bias in favor of some schools (maybe my alma mater) and a bias against other schools (also maybe my alma mater). I will have an opinion about PCOM, for instance, that comes from this prioritized list:
...1. how BAD the worst PCOM resident was here lately
...2. how good/bad my colleagues from PCOM are
...3. how good/bad the average performance was of all recent PCOM grads

So a PCOM applicant to my residency is up against these biases, which could win or lose a tie against another applicant. I'm only human.

If I'm an ACGME PD, I've got the same priority list. When I'm looking at an MD applicant, I have my biases for/against their school. If I'm looking at a DO applicant, I may have a bias for/against DO's in general, or if I bring in lots of DO's already, I may have a per-school bias.

Regardless, if you want to be bias-proof, you need grades, evaluations, board scores, audition rotations and a winning personality. Don't put yourself in a tie game.

From my perspective, prestige douchebaggery comes after a doc graduates from Harvard/Mayo/Stanford and expects something that he/she hasn't earned from the world.

2. Tough to generalize student attitude. I'm pretty sure that the percentage of DO students who are irredeemable douchebags is about the same as MD students. Comes with wanting the physician title that is (arguably) universally respected - douchebags, again, want the title without having to earn the respect.

If there's a different attitude at DO schools, I'd bet it's gratitude that we get to be doctors. You see plenty of this at MD schools as well, but in my experience, MD students are more likely to show entitlement, that they deserve to be doctors. Douchebags.

Personally I have a much better time around folks who've fallen down a couple times on the way to success and self-awareness. People who've never failed or struggled are REALLY boring.

End over-generalization.

I thought the purpose of this was not to start a flame war.

 

[DrMidlife]

I thought the purpose of this was not to start a flame war.

Didn't intend to. I called everybody a douchebag, pretty much.

 

[Baaaark]

Didn't intend to. I called everybody a douchebag, pretty much.

lol, you can make it a flame war all you want now, as I got my answer.

Sorry about the gender confusion. We need to have e-pants and e-skirts so we can tell what sex everyone is. Some people's genders are so ambiguous with the handle they use (like "Baaaark," lol). BTW I'm a guy.

So thank you, mam. 🙂

 

[DragonWell]

The best way to get objective information for your first question is to look at match lists and lurk in some of the residency forums and see if you can find a bias for certain schools. I suspect you won't.

My personal opinion is that while there is some stratification of MD schools, with ivy-league, big name schools probably conferring some advantage, there is not much difference when it comes to DO schools. A specific school might help you get into a specific program if it rotates many students through the hospital and matches many grads there, but part of the reason board scores are weighed so heavily in the match is that they standardize students across schools.

In regards to your second question, sure you can point to some demographic differences, but unless someone has been through both programs preferably at multiple schools 😉, I don't think speculating about attitudes amounts to much. In the end, whether in med school or in life, there will be some people you can't stand and some wonderful people, and the only attitude that really matters is the one you bring with you.