To transfer, or not to transfer?

[Plinko]

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I am new to SDN, and from what I've read thus far, questions such as these are apt to spin out of control into incessant, often immature mudslinging about which is better: allopathy or osteopathy. Inciting such arguments is in no way my intention here. Simply put, now that I am well into my first year of osteopathic medical school I am having doubts about whether or not I made the correct choice in choosing the school I now attend. Essentially, it all comes down to my absolute disdain for OMM. I am at the top of my class in classes such as Neuro, Cardio, MS, etc. When it comes to OMM however I am more than struggling. It's not that I find it hard, but that I cannot concentrate on something I find so incredibly boring. For me, it ranks right up there with obtaining a doctorate in Sanskrit. In fact, this was so much the case that I straight up failed the first semester of it. Beyond the humiliation of faling a class for the first time in my life is my confusion as to how I could not focus on topics that do not present as all that complex. This is all underscored by the fact that OMM is really screwed up at my school. Many of the lectures, yes lectures, and lab sessions are run by third and fourth year medical students. They have total autonomy in when it comes to test questions, etc. On our last test there were four questions that had no right answer that they had to adjust the class mean for. The course director has a more than an adversarial relationship with his students--he's mostly bitter that the school has relegated his class to be essentially worth no credit towards a student's GPA-- and has pretty much handed his job over to his secretary.

I know I want to practice medicine, yet I also know I want nothing to do with OMT. I don't mean to sound harsh, and I certainly don't want to offend anyone who invests much belief and energy into their OMM studies, but I find myself in the middle of a quandary over this and would appreciate any input as to how I should approach my educational future. To put it simply, I was accepted into two allopathic schools out of college but chose my current school because the tuition is in-state and the two allopathic schools were not. I also liked my first impression of the school and also never took to the whole DO vs. MD thing. A doc's a doc in my opinion. Now I'm wondering if it is worth the trouble to transfer to an allopathic school, or whether I should just stick it out and attempt to wade through the OMM coursework for the remainder of my education. I have found six MD programs that have said they'd be happy to consider my application for transfer into their second year class. The tuition is a huge $20K bump, and relocating and starting all over again at a new school is never any fun. It's a heavy decision and I seem unable to find the criteria to decide. Any input, particularly from third and fourth years, PDFs, residents, etc. from DO programs would be appreciated.

 

[prettymean]

Maybe you can try to tansfer into another DO school where its OMM curriculum is more oragnized.

Do you mind if I ask which DO school do you currently attend?

 

[Plinko]

I thought about tranferring to another DO school but the school would undoubtedly be private and thus my tuition costs would skyrocket just the same. My view is that if I am going to transfer, why take the chance on running into the same problems, then be left with an extra $20K a year. As for the school I attend, for now I'd rather not say given the contents of my previous comments. As I am new to this site I am unaware as to what privacy protection measures it has in place, and my designated email address is a school address. Also, I noticed that one of the moderators for this forum is a student at my school. It's all probably harmless, but with issues such as these, such candor is most likely not worth the trouble considering the severity of the possible repercussions.

 

[shindog]

I say go for it.

 

[Ronnie James DO]

You gotta do what you gotta do, I suppose...but surely someone as intelligent as yourself could find a way to stick it out...and (who knows) perhaps even find interest in OMT - given a slightly different attitude or outlook. (especially someone who seemingly has no qualms about the all-to-common DO/MD - who's better than who debate, as evidenced especially by your original decision to become the former)

There are clearly benefits in the training we are receiving in OMM, regardless of whether or not we will choose to practice them in the future. (I know many in my own class who want nothing to do with it either, but even they have found the will to persevere) What it boils down to is whether or not its worth the extra burdens (loads of new stress, and $20k to name a few) to make such a life-altering move at this stage in the game.

Its certainly a decision I would prefer not to make.
In any event, I hope yours will be a wise one.