Take DO school or reapply next cycle MD?

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submarinegunner

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I have been accepted to DO schools in the east coast, I have nothing against DO's but I want to get into more competitive specialties (Anestehsia, PM&R, Rads) so its gonna be harder and just more hoops to jump through as a DO. My weak spot was my MCAT (502). I have a 3.5 GPA and I am a URM (latino) so I think with a stronger MCAT I have a shot at MD next cycle? Is it worth pushing it a year?

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Your mcat is within a standard deviation of latino matriculants, although probably in the lower quartile. You could take the mcat and see where that gets you. There is a possibility even after mcat you would fail to get into medical school.

PMR, anasthesia, and Rads are possible through DO . thou, with your standardized test history they may be off the table if you are unable to perform well enough in DO or MD school on step.
 
Take the acceptance. It is a blessing to be able to attend med school whether it is DO or MD. But if you are thinking or denying to attend a more competitive MD program, then know that regardless of where you attend, you will have to work hard to achieve competitive specialties. Also, personally I would accept because med school is a long process, the sooner you start the sooner you can begin the career of your dreams.
 
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Anesthesia, PM&R and even Radiology aren't really that competitive and are opened to DOs. Plus your GPA is below average and MCAT is super low for MD. Retaking the MCAT, you'd have to score in the 515+, are you sure you can go from a 50ish percentile to 92-94 percentile while also losing one more year which is equivalent to one year $250K of attending salary? On top of that when reapplying schools will be asking you if you have previously been accepted to any medical school, and to that you are forced to answer yes, and automatically get black listed. In my opinion, it's not really worth it man. Take your DO acceptance and run with it.

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Anesthesia, PM&R and even Radiology aren't really that competitive and are opened to DOs. Plus your GPA is below average and MCAT is super low for MD. Retaking the MCAT, you'd have to score in the 515+, are you sure you can go from a 50ish percentile to 92-94 percentile while also losing one more year which is equivalent to one year $250K of attending salary? On top of that when reapplying schools will be asking you if you have previously been accepted to any medical school, and to that you are forced to answer yes, and automatically get black listed. In my opinion, it's not really worth it man. Take your DO acceptance and run with it.

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AMCAS Only cares about matriculation to MD schools. MD schools do not care about DO acceptances, and DO schools do not care about MD acceptances. The two systems do not talk. But you are right regarding needing a higher mcat score. Some schools average MCATs others only take the most recent.
 
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AMCAS Only cares about matriculation to MD schools. MD schools do not care about DO acceptances, and DO schools do not care about MD acceptances. The two systems do not talk. But you are right regarding needing a higher mcat score. Some schools average MCATs others only take the most recent.
But then if he fails to improve his MCAT, he'll have to apply DO again, and that's when he's in trouble.

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AMCAS Only cares about matriculation to MD schools. MD schools do not care about DO acceptances, and DO schools do not care about MD acceptances. The two systems do not talk. But you are right regarding needing a higher mcat score. Some schools average MCATs others only take the most recent.

True, but forfeiting a DO acceptance may hinder OP's chances at a DO acceptance down the road if they fail to get into MD next cycle.

Personally, I would take the DO acceptance and run with it. Not worth losing 1-2 years of attending level salary. Also, I believe those specialties are doable for a DO. Though taking the DO may hinder your chances for matching at a top program for those specialties.

I hate to be the guy... but why, OP, would you apply to DO if you weren't sold on attending the school?
 
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True, but forfeiting a DO acceptance may hinder OP's chances at a DO acceptance down the road if they fail to get into MD next cycle.

Personally, I would take the DO acceptance and run with it. Not worth losing 1-2 years of attending level salary. Also, I believe those specialties are doable for a DO. Though taking the DO may hinder your chances for matching at a top program for those specialties.

I hate to be the guy... but why, OP, would you apply to DO if you weren't sold on attending the school?

If I had the choice to turn down the DO before the acceptances come in the mail should I do that?
 
True, but forfeiting a DO acceptance may hinder OP's chances at a DO acceptance down the road if they fail to get into MD next cycle.

Personally, I would take the DO acceptance and run with it. Not worth losing 1-2 years of attending level salary. Also, I believe those specialties are doable for a DO. Though taking the DO may hinder your chances for matching at a top program for those specialties.

I hate to be the guy... but why, OP, would you apply to DO if you weren't sold on attending the school?


So I actually Just called AACOMAS and this is false because many people on this forum have been saying " If you turn down a DO acceptance, all DO schools will know that and you kill your shot at going DO again". I called them this morning and they verified that schools will not know if you have been accepted to a school last cycle unless you have been accepted to their specific school. So its not as big of an issue as everyone blows it up to be on here. not as a risky as a move
 
So I actually Just called AACOMAS and this is false because many people on this forum have been saying " If you turn down a DO acceptance, all DO schools will know that and you kill your shot at going DO again". I called them this morning and they verified that schools will not know if you have been accepted to a school last cycle unless you have been accepted to their specific school. So its not as big of an issue as everyone blows it up to be on here. not as a risky as a move

Most of the schools (if not all) I applied to this cycle specifically asked in their secondary application whether or not I was accepted to or have applied to osteopathic medical school in the past. I am pretty sure that AACOMAS does not play a role in this matter.
 
Most of the schools (if not all) I applied to this cycle specifically asked in their secondary application whether or not I was accepted to or have applied to osteopathic medical school in the past. I am pretty sure that AACOMAS does not play a role in this matter.

True but if they don’t have a record of it it’s a very subjective response on your behalf. You can always say you applied but weren’t accepted
 
but I want to get into more competitive specialties (Anestehsia, PM&R, Rads) so its gonna be harder and just more hoops to jump through as a DO.

Those aren't competitive specialties

So I actually Just called AACOMAS and this is false because many people on this forum have been saying " If you turn down a DO acceptance, all DO schools will know that and you kill your shot at going DO again". I called them this morning and they verified that schools will not know if you have been accepted to a school last cycle unless you have been accepted to their specific school. So its not as big of an issue as everyone blows it up to be on here. not as a risky as a move

Wrong. Almost every secondary I filled out asked about previous acceptances. It's not an AACOMAS thing, it's the schools that ask.

You can always say you applied but weren’t accepted

And then you are lying on your official application and if the school ever found out, that is grounds for instant expulsion all the way up to graduation. Do you really want to risk your entire medical career on something so stupid?


If you didn't want to go DO then you shouldn't have applied DO.
 
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True but if they don’t have a record of it it’s a very subjective response on your behalf.
Those aren't competitive specialties



Wrong. Almost every secondary I filled out asked about previous acceptances. It's not an AACOMAS thing, it's the schools that ask.



And then you are lying on your official application and if the school ever found out, that is grounds for instant expulsion all the way up to graduation. Do you really want to risk your entire medical career on something so stupid?


If you didn't want to go DO then you shouldn't have applied DO.
Those aren't competitive specialties



Wrong. Almost every secondary I filled out asked about previous acceptances. It's not an AACOMAS thing, it's the schools that ask.



And then you are lying on your official application and if the school ever found out, that is grounds for instant expulsion all the way up to graduation. Do you really want to risk your entire medical career on something so stupid?


If you didn't want to go DO then you shouldn't have applied DO.

Think you guys are kind of missing the point. It’s the fact that Besides just re applicant status There’s no record kept Of whether you been accepted to a school. So you’re starting over from scratch.
 
True but if they don’t have a record of it it’s a very subjective response on your behalf. You can always say you applied but weren’t accepted

You're treading in murky waters bro. I don't see how those types of questions asking about previous app cycles/ acceptances can be "subjective." They seem like pretty objective Y/N questions to me.
 
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Think you guys are kind of missing the point. It’s the fact that Besides just re applicant status There’s no record kept Of whether you been accepted to a school. So you’re starting over from scratch.

Nope. I got the point. I just think its foolish to lie on secondary apps. IMHO.
 
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Think you guys are kind of missing the point. It’s the fact that Besides just re applicant status There’s no record kept Of whether you been accepted to a school. So you’re starting over from scratch.

Someone is missing the point here but I can assure you it isn't us... if you really believe there isn't a record of that somewhere then I've got some time shares in Bora Bora to sell you.
 
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Lying on your application is a sin punishable by straight up destruction of your medical career forever.

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True but if they don’t have a record of it it’s a very subjective response on your behalf. You can always say you applied but weren’t accepted
That's not what subjective means. That's what lying means lol.

None of the specialties you listed are even competitive, and I would even make the argument that the one field where being a DO gives you a unique, actually applicable perspective is PM&R since you can actually utilize OMM.

You should be happy you have an acceptance to medical school-- it's not like you were a 3.8 with a 509 who just barely didn't make it into an MD school.
 
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Would you be ready to score your highest on an MCAT retake in January or February? That would get you a score in April or May or so, so early enough to change course if you score well -- or not.

You would be out a fairly substantial deposit, and there are still no guarantees.
 
I can give you a reapplicant's perspective. As somebody who had a pretty high undergrad GPA and did fairly well on the MCAT, I wasn't accepted into any MD schools the first time around, and I really wish that I'd applied to DO schools then. It's a pain in the butt to not only have to reapply (maaajor drain on my savings) but I found it emotionally draining because my first application cycle was so disappointing. I can only say that if I were in your shoes, I'd take the DO school acceptance because @DrStephenStrange is right. You'll be pushing your career back a year and there is NO guarantee that you'll be accepted into any MD school the second time you apply either. I've reapplied to MD schools and also applied to DO schools this time and have two DO acceptances and no MD acceptances yet. Just my perspective. Hope everything works out for you in the end.
 
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Every year!!! HAHA
Why did you pay money, write essays, and then travel to interviews.... and then say F it I'm gunning for MD!
 
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I have been accepted to DO schools in the east coast, I have nothing against DO's but I want to get into more competitive specialties (Anestehsia, PM&R, Rads) so its gonna be harder and just more hoops to jump through as a DO. My weak spot was my MCAT (502). I have a 3.5 GPA and I am a URM (latino) so I think with a stronger MCAT I have a shot at MD next cycle? Is it worth pushing it a year?

I haven't read this thread but you should go DO. Your specialty interests may change and it's not worth applying another cycle with the significant possibility of not getting accepted.
 
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If you don’t want to go there then turn it down.
Make sure the seat is filled with someone who wants to be there.
You will figure life out just fine without going to a school for four years you hate.
 
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As a DO currently going through the anesthesia match right now, I'll say it's easily attainable for an average to even below average DO. There are people in my class interviewing at Stanford, Cleveland Clinic, Hopkins, MGH, etc. You'll be fine going DO.
 
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I have been accepted to DO schools in the east coast, I have nothing against DO's but I want to get into more competitive specialties (Anestehsia, PM&R, Rads) so its gonna be harder and just more hoops to jump through as a DO. My weak spot was my MCAT (502). I have a 3.5 GPA and I am a URM (latino) so I think with a stronger MCAT I have a shot at MD next cycle? Is it worth pushing it a year?
By all means, give up your seat to someone who wants to be a doctor now.
 
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MS3 here. Take the acceptance and run. Don't waste another year of stress and uncertainty for an MD acceptance. Every specialty you mentioned is open to DOs. Congratulations on your acceptance.
 
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