Thinking of podiatry- need some advice

[sasoriboi]

Hi all,

So I've kinda been in a bubble of confusion lately. Just finished first year of dental school. Will say that there have been more cons than pros. Basically have gotten to the point where I feel that I do not enjoy most of the things that we do, and because of that, I feel like I'm wasting my time and money. I've felt like this for a while now, and want to go into something else. Ideally, I'd like to stay in a health career. I've always wanted to. I've been looking into options, and have looked into podiatry recently- seems like something I'd like to do, and seems like an interesting career choice. Only thing is, I have no idea where to start. I would ideally like to start by shadowing, and get myself some experience and exposure. But I have a lot of questions:

-How do I apply? I have a strong undergrad GPA (3.9+) and my DAT score was high (23). I know I would have to take the MCAT
-What kind of requirements would I need outside of MCAT/GPA? Shadowing, volunteer, etc?
-How would it looks to podiatry schools if I transferred from dental school?
-When do the cycles run for applying?
-When can you take the MCAT by?
-Will admissions be looking into my dental school transcript and grades?
-Do I have a good chance of getting in, despite the fact that I'm already in dental school?

I'm honestly trying to look into staying in a health career. I'm trying to explore my options with each respective career.

Could I hear some of the pros and cons? I'm still new to all this.

Just a lot of concerns and questions. I'm going through a lot of confusion right now, so any information helps.

Thank you in advance!

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[AttackNME]

What’s wrong with dental school? Why did you get into it in the first place? It’s a great profession. And, are you talking about podiatry or optometry?

 

[sasoriboi]

What’s wrong with dental school? Why did you get into it in the first place? It’s a great profession. And, are you talking about podiatry or optometry?

My mistake, copied some info from a previous post. I think dentistry is a nice field and all, but I just haven't gotten the satisfaction or interest that I've really looked for. Many of the things we do I just don't find interesting or fun.

 

[AttackNME]

What made you think it was fun enough for you to pursue dentistry in the first place?

 

[Weirdy]

My mistake, copied some info from a previous post. I think dentistry is a nice field and all, but I just haven't gotten the satisfaction or interest that I've really looked for. Many of the things we do I just don't find interesting or fun.

First 2 years of any health profession is like that.
Sit your ass down and grind through lectures. Take exams. Repeat.

First year of dental school should not be any different from what you'd see in first year of opto, podiatry, PA.

 

[Cranjis McBasketball]

Hi all,

So I've kinda been in a bubble of confusion lately. Just finished first year of dental school. Will say that there have been more cons than pros. Basically have gotten to the point where I feel that I do not enjoy most of the things that we do, and because of that, I feel like I'm wasting my time and money. I've felt like this for a while now, and want to go into something else. Ideally, I'd like to stay in a health career. I've always wanted to. I've been looking into options, and have looked into podiatry recently- seems like something I'd like to do, and seems like an interesting career choice. Only thing is, I have no idea where to start. I would ideally like to start by shadowing, and get myself some experience and exposure. But I have a lot of questions:

-How do I apply? I have a strong undergrad GPA (3.9+) and my DAT score was high (23). I know I would have to take the MCAT
-What kind of requirements would I need outside of MCAT/GPA? Shadowing, volunteer, etc?
-How would it looks to podiatry schools if I transferred from dental school?
-When do the cycles run for applying?
-When can you take the MCAT by?
-Will admissions be looking into my dental school transcript and grades?
-Do I have a good chance of getting in, despite the fact that I'm already in dental school?

I'm honestly trying to look into staying in a health career. I'm trying to explore my options with each respective career.

Could I hear some of the pros and cons? I'm still new to all this.

Just a lot of concerns and questions. I'm going through a lot of confusion right now, so any information helps.

Thank you in advance!

Stick it out at this point. Grass is not always greener

 

[sasoriboi]

Well the thing is, I love the didactic material. Especially anatomy and biochem. I don't really like a lot of the hands on stuff we do. Like the majority of it, which is a problem.

 

[ftdoc11]

Well the thing is, I love the didactic material. Especially anatomy and biochem. I don't really like a lot of the hands on stuff we do. Like the majority of it, which is a problem.

Can you elaborate on what you mean by the hands on stuff? Podiatry is a surgical profession that also requires a lot of hands on stuff. Unless there is a really good reason why you think doing foot procedures would be infinitely better than working in the oral cavity, I would find it difficult to weave a convincing story.

 

[sasoriboi]

Can you elaborate on what you mean by the hands on stuff? Podiatry is a surgical profession that also requires a lot of hands on stuff. Unless there is a really good reason why you think doing foot procedures would be infinitely better than working in the oral cavity, I would find it difficult to weave a convincing story.

I mean outside of some of the esthetic work, a lot of the field isn't that appealing to me anymore. Like outside of restorative procedures, I don't really enjoy the other areas of dentistry, especially with the amount of work we've done. I'm not saying podiatry would be 10000x better, I just know that I find the clinical sciences part of the academics a lot more appealing, hence why I'd like to do something more in the medical route

 

[Cranjis McBasketball]

I mean outside of some of the esthetic work, a lot of the field isn't that appealing to me anymore. Like outside of restorative procedures, I don't really enjoy the other areas of dentistry, especially with the amount of work we've done. I'm not saying podiatry would be 10000x better, I just know that I find the clinical sciences part of the academics a lot more appealing, hence why I'd like to do something more in the medical route

It sounds like your interests are in primary care. It doesn't sound like theres anything about podiatry that appeals to you.

 

[sasoriboi]

It sounds like your interests are in primary care. It doesn't sound like theres anything about podiatry that appeals to you.

Well I'm just trying to consider all my options right now. I'm trying to have an open mind with everything.

 

[Cranjis McBasketball]

Well I'm just trying to consider all my options right now. I'm trying to have an open mind with everything.

Id close it. Because its distracting from your dental education. You committed to dental and I don't think you would have unless something was pulling you that way. You might just be going through burn out symptoms which is super common. I have friends in dental school who are kinda going through the same stuff wondering if they really like it. Theyre just a little caught off guard with how hard it is. But you are 3 years from being a dentist and 8 from being a podiatrist. Each career is gonna have pros that the other doesn't and negatives the other doesn't. My advice is, since you have finished one year already and are 3 years away, stick it out. Dentistry is a wide open career so that you can cater it to your desires and interests. Don't drop out and start over. Because I guarantee at some point in your first or 2nd or even 3rd year of podiatry you'll be in class studying and thinking "I could be a dentist right now..."

My personal advice, so take it with a grain of salt!

 

[de Ribas]

Id close it. Because its distracting from your dental education. You committed to dental and I don't think you would have unless something was pulling you that way. You might just be going through burn out symptoms which is super common. I have friends in dental school who are kinda going through the same stuff wondering if they really like it. Theyre just a little caught off guard with how hard it is. But you are 3 years from being a dentist and 8 from being a podiatrist. Each career is gonna have pros that the other doesn't and negatives the other doesn't. My advice is, since you have finished one year already and are 3 years away, stick it out. Dentistry is a wide open career so that you can cater it to your desires and interests. Don't drop out and start over. Because I guarantee at some point in your first or 2nd or even 3rd year of podiatry you'll be in class studying and thinking "I could be a dentist right now..."

My personal advice, so take it with a grain of salt!

sasoriboi,

You have got lots of good advice here already. I would consider it all and try to find enthusiasm and refreshed motivation in what you do. You probably had it when you were shadowing and applying to dental schools.

Maybe you are stressed a little. I would not switch at this time. I think what you are stressed about right now is pretty much the same in other professions.

How will you convince interviewers of you decision switching from dental to podiatry program if both are rarely focused and hands on specialties with surgery aspect?

Unless you want to go to M.D. or DO.

 

[sasoriboi]

Id close it. Because its distracting from your dental education. You committed to dental and I don't think you would have unless something was pulling you that way. You might just be going through burn out symptoms which is super common. I have friends in dental school who are kinda going through the same stuff wondering if they really like it. Theyre just a little caught off guard with how hard it is. But you are 3 years from being a dentist and 8 from being a podiatrist. Each career is gonna have pros that the other doesn't and negatives the other doesn't. My advice is, since you have finished one year already and are 3 years away, stick it out. Dentistry is a wide open career so that you can cater it to your desires and interests. Don't drop out and start over. Because I guarantee at some point in your first or 2nd or even 3rd year of podiatry you'll be in class studying and thinking "I could be a dentist right now..."

My personal advice, so take it with a grain of salt!

You're definitely right about all that no doubt. At the end of the day, I just want to do something that will make me happy. And tbh, I dont think dentistry will if I'm going to look at the facts. I know that if I go into something else it'll be more schooling and all, but I wanna enjoy what I do.

 

[de Ribas]

You're definitely right about all that no doubt. At the end of the day, I just want to do something that will make me happy. And tbh, I dont think dentistry will if I'm going to look at the facts. I know that if I go into something else it'll be more schooling and all, but I wanna enjoy what I do.

So, what do you think you would enjoy?

Podiatry is similar to dentistry is certain aspects. How would podiatry be different?

Did you look at PA or NP routes? CrNA ?

 

[Cranjis McBasketball]

You're definitely right about all that no doubt. At the end of the day, I just want to do something that will make me happy. And tbh, I dont think dentistry will if I'm going to look at the facts. I know that if I go into something else it'll be more schooling and all, but I wanna enjoy what I do.

Why did you apply and go to dental school??

 

[AttackNME]

You should consider taking a year pause, I know a few Podiatry students who took a year off to decide if they wanna continue doing this. Starting over is very expensive.

 

[sasoriboi]

I appreciate all the great advice. At the end of the day, I know that I have not felt content with dentistry for a while now, and I know that's a problem. I am just exploring various career paths right now in healthcare, to see if maybe there is something that interests me more. I think that is worth the time and investment, than doing something you do not like, even if it comes with a good salary.

 

[feetsreets]

I appreciate all the great advice. At the end of the day, I know that I have not felt content with dentistry for a while now, and I know that's a problem. I am just exploring various career paths right now in healthcare, to see if maybe there is something that interests me more. I think that is worth the time and investment, than doing something you do not like, even if it comes with a good salary.

Hey man. Idk why everyone here is trying to convince you to not do Podiatry or not go into another field. (Podiatry is great by the way!) You know what will make you happy and what will not. Shadow a podiatrist or two, shadow some doctors and figure out what you really want to do. If you know that Dentistry will not make you happy and you will be miserable doing it, then stop now. But don’t just jump into something else that you might not like either.

Anyways, it looks like no one actually answered any of your questions as they were too busy trying to “solve” your life’s problems, so here’s my attempt.


-Application is on The American Association of Colleges of Podiatric Medicine. It’s actually a pretty simple application process.
-other than MCAT/GPA you will need letters of rec for most schools, and most schools really want to see that you have at least shadowed a podiatrist or two.
- In terms of how it would look, if you have good enough reasons to transfer and have shadowed podiatrists and know that’s what you want, then there wouldn’t be a problem.
- the cycle is basically all year long, but starts in August and ends By July I believe. The sooner you submit once it opens generally is the better chance of getting in at least at the smaller schools.
- you will have to send in your grades for dental school so they will look at that.
- barring a ton of F’s in dental school, your undergrad GPA is great and as long as you get a decent MCAT you could be looking at scholarships at any of the Podiatry programs.


Pros - Decent living, get to do surgery, get to help people daily with pain, generally most podiatrist aren’t working 60-80 hours a week like some doctors, you become a specialist right away, potential to be self employed, satisfying career, not insanely saturated in most places, the field of Podiatry is looking up and making progress.

Cons - 7 years of schooling and training, stinky feet, some doctors don’t take you seriously as a doctor (DPM degree instead of MD), wide variance of salaries, limited license, and although it is now more general there are still differences across states determining what you can or cannot do as a podiatrist.


Im sure I missed stuff or something. Im procrastinating studying for biochemistry, but feel free to ask any questions.

 

[de Ribas]

Hey man. Idk why everyone here is trying to convince you to not do Podiatry or not go into another field. (Podiatry is great by the way!) You know what will make you happy and what will not. Shadow a podiatrist or two, shadow some doctors and figure out what you really want to do. If you know that Dentistry will not make you happy and you will be miserable doing it, then stop now. But don’t just jump into something else that you might not like either.

Anyways, it looks like no one actually answered any of your questions as they were too busy trying to “solve” your life’s problems, so here’s my attempt.


-Application is on The American Association of Colleges of Podiatric Medicine. It’s actually a pretty simple application process.
-other than MCAT/GPA you will need letters of rec for most schools, and most schools really want to see that you have at least shadowed a podiatrist or two.
- In terms of how it would look, if you have good enough reasons to transfer and have shadowed podiatrists and know that’s what you want, then there wouldn’t be a problem.
- the cycle is basically all year long, but starts in August and ends By July I believe. The sooner you submit once it opens generally is the better chance of getting in at least at the smaller schools.
- you will have to send in your grades for dental school so they will look at that.
- barring a ton of F’s in dental school, your undergrad GPA is great and as long as you get a decent MCAT you could be looking at scholarships at any of the Podiatry programs.


Pros - Decent living, get to do surgery, get to help people daily with pain, generally most podiatrist aren’t working 60-80 hours a week like some doctors, you become a specialist right away, potential to be self employed, satisfying career, not insanely saturated in most places, the field of Podiatry is looking up and making progress.

Cons - 7 years of schooling and training, stinky feet, some doctors don’t take you seriously as a doctor (DPM degree instead of MD), wide variance of salaries, limited license, and although it is now more general there are still differences across states determining what you can or cannot do as a podiatrist.


Im sure I missed stuff or something. Im procrastinating studying for biochemistry, but feel free to ask any questions.

no-one said a thing negative about podiatry. This is Podiatry forum.

Most just worry that the reasons OP presented for not continuing Dentistry might be the same in Podiatry.

Podiatry is great field for the right person and right reasons.

 

[footpainhealer]

no-one said a thing negative about podiatry. This is Podiatry forum.

Most just worry that the reasons OP presented for not continuing Dentistry might be the same in Podiatry.

Podiatry is great field for the right person and right reasons.

Yeah I just wanted to make sure he knew that the first 2 years of classwork is the same whether he jumps ship or not. But it sounds like he likes the didactic, but hates the actual dental labs. So in his case, a new field is not a bad idea.

 

[feetsreets]

no-one said a thing negative about podiatry. This is Podiatry forum.

Most just worry that the reasons OP presented for not continuing Dentistry might be the same in Podiatry.

Podiatry is great field for the right person and right reasons.

And no one said that anyone said anything negative about podiatry.

OP posted questions that were not answered. Immediately people jumped the gun thinking that they already knew his/her situation and that he must be thinking about leaving Dentistry for the wrong reasons.

I’m sure the concern is appreciated by OP, and I’m sure there is some good solid advice that OP will take to heart and will help him/her, but everyone here wants to play high school guidance counselor or even psychiatrist, and not all the advice here on these forums is sound. someone comes asking questions and literally none of those questions are actually answered in the responses but instead are trying to solve riddles that weren’t presented.

Over and over OP says he’s disillusioned With Dentistry and has thought about it a lot. Yet people keep trying to push it down the throat that OP should stay doing what he/she is doing. I’m not telling OP to jump ship and join the Podiatry train. I’m simply here to answer his/her questions and not try to put doubts in his/her head when I have no actual clue about the situation and what OP is feeling.

I’m not attacking anyone in this thread or what was said, and I think the concern shown on this post and the Podiatry forums in general is great. I do think however that in this post the concern is a little misguided.

 

[GypsyHummus]

Shadow shadow shadow.

Op, at one point I was deciding between podiatry and dentistry. If it were me and I had to choose between an acceptance at DDS or DPM, I'd choose dentistry because the road is shorter and there is much less government involvement than in medicine.

Podiatry and dentistry have a ton in common. They are both very hands on professions. One thing you might like about podiatry is that it is a bit bigger of an area of the body to work with than the oral cavity. It also give you a lot of specialties in one concentrated area. Pods do a little bit of derm, bit of primary care with diabetics, wound care, Ortho, blood work, internal Med issue, radiology, and even emergency Med with gas gangrene. And much more! Basically the only medical specialties I can think of that doesn't show up in podiatry is phsyciatry, reproductive health, Dental, and ENT.

I also hope u like fungus.

 

[GypsyHummus]

Anouther thing too,

Pod schools are actually relatively inexpensive compared to private MD/DO/DDS schools and I actually think it's one the better returns on investment.

The only other better return would be getting into a state MD school and matching into a surgical specialty like Ortho or ENT or Nuerosurgery.

The quality of pods graduating and paving the way are also much higher. There are a lot of pods I interviewed with who were waitlisted or rejected at DO schools who are now snatched up by pod schools. These students are going to push the boundaries for the profession everywhere. The podiatry of even 10 years ago is not the podiatry of today, and the profession's trajectory is escalating even further, especially since pods residency crisis has been fixed.

I foresee in the next ten years unilateral pay with insurance companies on par with MD/DOs, I see much more in terms of practice rights as well. I do not see podiatrists going higher than the tibial tiberocity, so the rights will expand outward, not upward.

I would get in while the getting is good. In 8 years, I foresee DO level requirements to get into pod school. Pod schools used to let students in with 2.3s and 16 mcat scores. Everyone I interviewed with had a 500+ mcat and a GPA in the 3.2 or higher. I met only one person who in the Pod 1 class that had a 492, and she had a GPA of 3.5.

 

[air bud]

Any of you people thinking about podiatry are crazy. People just starting out looking towards medicine in general are crazy. This is not the future. This is a very old school way of thinking. Yes you will get respect. Yes you will have job security. But there is a ceiling placed on you. Think bigger.
For the record I was top 10 in my class, did a well known residency and have a great job in a multi speciality group. I am counting down the days until I can retire. I will retire not because I am doctor, but because I am smart with money and make other investments. I love waking up and going to work every day. I love surgery, i do a lot. I love people and helping them. But it's not worth it. You are still a pod. The future of medicine is so up in the air. I have a friend that did one of the top 1 or 2 fellowships in the country who just said " hey I have 3 TARs next month, I am 2 months out of fellowship and I get just want some bunions and hammmertoe and the occasional triple.". This is a new generation. If you want to be rich do something else. If you want to work really hard for a good income (but likely to decrease) then go into medicine. But I don't think it is worth this much of your life. Especially podiatry. Be an MD or nothing. Rant over

 

[AttackNME]

Any of you people thinking about podiatry are crazy. People just starting out looking towards medicine in general are crazy. This is not the future. This is a very old school way of thinking. Yes you will get respect. Yes you will have job security. But there is a ceiling placed on you. Think bigger.
For the record I was top 10 in my class, did a well known residency and have a great job in a multi speciality group. I am counting down the days until I can retire. I will retire not because I am doctor, but because I am smart with money and make other investments. I love waking up and going to work every day. I love surgery, i do a lot. I love people and helping them. But it's not worth it. You are still a pod. The future of medicine is so up in the air. I have a friend that did one of the top 1 or 2 fellowships in the country who just said " hey I have 3 TARs next month, I am 2 months out of fellowship and I get just want some bunions and hammmertoe and the occasional triple.". This is a new generation. If you want to be rich do something else. If you want to work really hard for a good income (but likely to decrease) then go into medicine. But I don't think it is worth this much of your life. Especially podiatry. Be an MD or nothing. Rant over

What do you mean by this being the new generation?

 

[de Ribas]

Any of you people thinking about podiatry are crazy. People just starting out looking towards medicine in general are crazy. This is not the future. This is a very old school way of thinking. Yes you will get respect. Yes you will have job security. But there is a ceiling placed on you. Think bigger.
For the record I was top 10 in my class, did a well known residency and have a great job in a multi speciality group. I am counting down the days until I can retire. I will retire not because I am doctor, but because I am smart with money and make other investments. I love waking up and going to work every day. I love surgery, i do a lot. I love people and helping them. But it's not worth it. You are still a pod. The future of medicine is so up in the air. I have a friend that did one of the top 1 or 2 fellowships in the country who just said " hey I have 3 TARs next month, I am 2 months out of fellowship and I get just want some bunions and hammmertoe and the occasional triple.". This is a new generation. If you want to be rich do something else. If you want to work really hard for a good income (but likely to decrease) then go into medicine. But I don't think it is worth this much of your life. Especially podiatry. Be an MD or nothing. Rant over

Please troll somewhere else.

This is Podiatry forum. We all have done enough research.

 

[air bud]

What do you mean by this being the new generation?

What I mean is we aren't interested in spending our free time lecturing at conferences away from our family, away from our free time. We aren't interested in the complex Charcot or complex cavus recon. We want bread and butter lapidus, triple internal brace lateral ankle stabilization. We want to sleep well at night knowing we helped people but not worried somebody getting a very possible BKA or having further problems and pain. We aren't interested in some 3rd year pod student thinking you are a student because you published a bunch of level 4 papers about your experience doing a procedure with a newer piece of hardware that you helped design. Maybe I am not speaking for all new attendings. But I am speaking for myself and my friends. I share these values with multiple other people in who graduated top 10 did great residency programs and have good jobs with hospitals and multi speciality groups

 

[air bud]

Please troll somewhere else.

This is Podiatry forum. We all have done enough research.

No you haven't. I see your posts in the attending forums. You post questions about salary with little insight.

Listen, my comments are pessimistic, yes. I want to challenge anyone thinking about podiatry and medicine in general right now to think bigger. If you think medicine in 7 years is going to look like it does today or when your dad practiced 20 years ago, you are clearly mistaken. The debt you will incur is not worth the outcome, plain and simple.

 

[air bud]

Anouther thing too,

Pod schools are actually relatively inexpensive compared to private MD/DO/DDS schools and I actually think it's one the better returns on investment.

This is an incredibly incorrect statement

 

[de Ribas]

No you haven't. I see your posts in the attending forums. You post questions about salary with little insight.

Listen, my comments are pessimistic, yes. I want to challenge anyone thinking about podiatry and medicine in general right now to think bigger. If you think medicine in 7 years is going to look like it does today or when your dad practiced 20 years ago, you are clearly mistaken. The debt you will incur is not worth the outcome, plain and simple.

Please create your own thread on this matter.

Nothing will look the same in 7 years. Everything is changing. If you are saying that in next 7 years there will be less demand for medicine, lol. If you are saying that there will be less reimbursement for doctors, so be it.

I am going forward anyways because I want to do it besides respect or salary decrease.

Thanks

 

[de Ribas]

This is an incredibly incorrect statement

Did you just come here to question everyone' credibility and establish your own?

There are only 9 POD schools. I think everyone looked at tuition at all 9 schools and knows what these are.

 

[air bud]

Please create your own thread on this matter.

Nothing will look the same in 7 years. Everything is changing. If you are saying that in next 7 years there wilk be less demand for medicine, lol. If you are saying that there will be less reimbursement for doctors, so be it.

I am going forward anyways because I want to do it besides respect or salary decrease.

Thanks

I respect that if this is the case. Your other posts seem to be focused on salary to justify your going g to podiatry school.

 

[air bud]

Did you just come here to question everyone' credibility and establish your own?

There are only 9 POD schools. I think everyone looked at tuition at all 9 schools and knows what these are.

I was not talking about the cost of medical school versus podiatry school. I was talking about the cost of 7 plus years of your life for 150 to 350k a year that is very likely to decrease in the future. Wait until you are staring down 350k in loans making 150 coming out and see how you feel. I am very lucky, I have less than 50k in loans and made more than 200ky first year and likely 300k my 2nd year.

 

[de Ribas]

I respect that if this is the case. Your other posts seem to be focused on salary to justify your going g to podiatry school.

no they are not. I did not create those threads, if you pay attention to my posts then I get involved in various threads and share what I know or ask questions on what I do not yet know.

I care about salary to some extent. I can decide myself what is important for me in my decision making or not.

Please do not troll this thread

 

[de Ribas]

to justify your going g to podiatry school.

how can you assume and conclude what you do not know?

 

[de Ribas]

I respect that if this is the case. Your other posts seem to be focused on salary to justify your going g to podiatry school.

in every profession there are good sides and bad sides. There are thousands of people in medicine who are unsatisfied and we know sad statistics of some MD/DO people. To say that M.D. is better is wrong. Why then so many people quit if they are happy?

Everyone makes their own choice based on their background, abilities, experiences, values, character and other preferences.

 

[GypsyHummus]

Look at tuition of DMU DO vs the Pod or AZPOD vs AZCOM. It's like a 20k difference per year.

This is an incredibly incorrect statement

 

[GypsyHummus]

Eh, MD would be better to go into than anything else, they just have so many more options than any other profession. They also work themselves to death, in undergrad, Med school, residency, and after to make it worthwhile.

I think the best in terms of work life is Dentistry, but the tuition is just so high.

in every profession there are good sides and bad sides. There are thousands of people in medicine who are u satisfied and we know sad statistics of some MD/DO people. To say that M.D. is better is wrong. Why then so many people quit if they are happy?

Everyone makes their own choice based on their background, abilities, experiences, values, character and other preferences.

 

[GypsyHummus]

Well, what else would you have done with a useless undergraduate Biology degree? The alternatives don't look much better. Work in a lab for 40k/year? Do water sampling?

Also, What did you expect medicine to be, sunshine and rainbows? Yeah, ur gonna have complications and no compliment patients and spend more time doing paperwork than with patients. That's why I encourage everyone to shadow and know what they are getting into.

The 7 plus years of life is a big deterrent tho. People don't relize what it means to be young, which is why DDS is so tempting.

I was not talking about the cost of medical school versus podiatry school. I was talking about the cost of 7 plus years of your life for 150 to 350k a year that is very likely to decrease in the future. Wait until you are staring down 350k in loans making 150 coming out and see how you feel. I am very lucky, I have less than 50k in loans and made more than 200ky first year and likely 300k my 2nd year.

 

[de Ribas]

Eh, MD would be better to go into than anything else, they just have so many more options than any other profession. They also work themselves to death, in undergrad, Med school, residency, and after to make it worthwhile.

I think the best in terms of work life is Dentistry, but the tuition is just so high.

M.D. is better. but saying that people in podiatry, dentistry or in any other health care profession other than M.D. are less happy or less satisfied is not true. It' not so much about the profession itself as about best fit for the right person.

There are thousands of teachers out there who teach for 30-40K per year. It is not the easiest job. But a lot of them are satisfied.

around 400 doctors commit suicide every year.

 

[AttackNME]

I was not talking about the cost of medical school versus podiatry school. I was talking about the cost of 7 plus years of your life for 150 to 350k a year that is very likely to decrease in the future. Wait until you are staring down 350k in loans making 150 coming out and see how you feel. I am very lucky, I have less than 50k in loans and made more than 200ky first year and likely 300k my 2nd year.

Sounds like a good situation to me. I still don’t understand what you’re upset about and why you don’t think it was worth it

 

[Weirdy]

Please troll somewhere else.

This is Podiatry forum. We all have done enough research.

Chill.

Airbud has been on here for a while.

While I may not agree with everything they say, they are correct when they point out podiatry does not have the same returns as an MD and that going into the medical field in general is a huge investment of time versus quicker monetary benefits if you were to go into more lucrative fields.

 

[air bud]

M.D. is better. but saying that people in podiatry, dentistry or in any other health care profession other than M.D. are less happy or less satisfied is not true. It' not so much about the profession itself as about best fit for the right person.

There are thousands of teachers out there who teach for 30-40K per year. It is not the easiest job. But a lot of them are satisfied.

around 400 doctors commit suicide every year.

Other health professions don't have the debt and uncertainty ahead. Again, medicine is a great field, we do great things for people. But the opportunity cost of becoming a doctor, especially a podiatrist. Is no longer worth it in my opinion. I will end my trolling here. Again, all I am saying is think bigger. There is too much uncertainty and too much debt for the risk. Yes, you are going to argue that podiatrists are better trained and more opportunities blah blah blah. But Ortho is getting better at foot and ankle. There is a huge consolidation of hospitals and medical groups and it is only getting worse. Ortho is pushing more and more pods out. Take for example Denver. UC is taking over the city and they refuse to hire pods. It is a huge growing city and I have multiple fellowship trained friends that can't find jobs there other than for private practice. In In Philadelphia the Rothman Institute is taking over and pushing pods out. The future is not on podiatrys side other than likely changes to come in the VA system.

 

[air bud]

Sounds like a good situation to me. I still don’t understand what you’re upset about and why you don’t think it was worth it

It is a good situation. My comments are more directed at pre pods who haven't chosen this field yet and haven't started down this path. For those of use who already spent multiple years of school and multiple tens and hundreds of thousands of dollars, our bed is made

But come on AttackNME, you are smart ND well trained and have a good setup. You know what the real world is like. Would you do this all over again in today's medical environment? If the answer is yes, great I am happy for you.

 

[AttackNME]

It is a good situation. My comments are more directed at pre pods who haven't chosen this field yet and haven't started down this path. For those of use who already spent multiple years of school and multiple tens and hundreds of thousands of dollars, our bed is made

But come on AttackNME, you are smart ND well trained and have a good setup. You know what the real world is like. Would you do this all over again in today's medical environment? If the answer is yes, great I am happy for you.

It's hard to say if I'd do it all over again, but the path to get to where I am has been unpredictable and fun and I'm happy so far. My alternative career path was engineering or architecture, but parents encouraged medicine. I have friends in those fields (and many other fields) and can't say any of them would jump to say absolutely they'd do it all over again. I think of life as an extended one time role playing game. In actual games, you have the opportunity to restart any time you want and pick another "class" to play, but in the end I always end up enjoying the class I originally picked and have invested my time and energy to learn. Kinda nerdy but it's my best analogy.

 

[GypsyHummus]

Why do I keep rolling 1's?

It's hard to say if I'd do it all over again, but the path to get to where I am has been unpredictable and fun and I'm happy so far. My alternative career path was engineering or architecture, but parents encouraged medicine. I have friends in those fields (and many other fields) and can't say any of them would jump to say absolutely they'd do it all over again. I think of life as an extended one time role playing game. In actual games, you have the opportunity to restart any time you want and pick another "class" to play, but in the end I always end up enjoying the class I originally picked and have invested my time and energy to learn. Kinda nerdy but it's my best analogy.

 

[air bud]

Sure, I get it. I am the sum of my life experiences and it has made me who I am today. If I hadn't chosen podiatry I wouldn't have met my beautiful amazing wife. But this is for people to take a different fork the first time, not going back and changing the path you took.

 

[GypsyHummus]

Did you work in the real world before podiatry school? You speak as if non medica fields are all fields of gumdrops and smiles. As if it is better anywhere else.

I've worked the 60 hour workweek making a dollar above minimum wage, it's not fun. Sure u don't have the huge liabilities as a surgeon, but you spin your wheels going nowhere for 10 years and get a 2$ raise at the end of it barely making 13$/hour. Would you rather be a podiatrist or a grocery store worker?

People in real estate don't see the big returns until they are 15 years into the grind. They work 70 weeks barley scrapping the 20k mark.

It's not better anywhere else besides the MD world, and they are prolly the ceiling for the "average" person not born into money or wealth.

It is a good situation. My comments are more directed at pre pods who haven't chosen this field yet and haven't started down this path. For those of use who already spent multiple years of school and multiple tens and hundreds of thousands of dollars, our bed is made

But come on AttackNME, you are smart ND well trained and have a good setup. You know what the real world is like. Would you do this all over again in today's medical environment? If the answer is yes, great I am happy for you.

 

[air bud]

Did you work in the real world before podiatry school? You speak as if non medica fields are all fields of gumdrops and smiles. As if it is better anywhere else.

I've worked the 60 hour workweek making a dollar above minimum wage, it's not fun. Sure u don't have the huge liabilities as a surgeon, but you spin your wheels going nowhere for 10 years and get a 2$ raise at the end of it barely making 13$/hour. Would you rather be a podiatrist or a grocery store worker?

People in real estate don't see the big returns until they are 15 years into the grind. They work 70 weeks barley scrapping the 20k mark.

It's not better anywhere else besides the MD world, and they are prolly the ceiling for the "average" person not born into money or wealth.

Yes I have. I worked in outside sales for multiple years. I worked in restaurants. I cleaned carpets. I was in the mortgage business for a year. Then I went back to school. I am perfectly aware of what the real world is like. I remember eating ramen as a 25 college grad since that was all I could afford. I remember going 3 years without health insurance or car insurance because the money I made I wanted to spent drinking and partying. I chose medicine at that time because I was smart and knew it was a safe field. My whole family is in medicine. I was the black sheep that came back to the flock. But people on this forum are smart. They don't have aspirations of being in construction or some field that makes 15 bucks an hour. They are already thinking big. I am saying think bigger. Think outside the box. This is not grocery worker vs podiatrist, this is podiatrist vs something more.