When people ask me "Why Podiatry" I always preface by saying that no one grows up saying 'I want to be a foot doctor!'
It was only brought to my attention as an option by my pre health advisor when I received my MCAT scores. The selling points for me were:
1) Low liability, highly procedural specialty- Physicians don't get paid to ensure health, they get paid to provide treatment. Podiatry is extremely hands on, and makes billing (and ultimately revenue) more straightforward and less smoke in mirrors required than your local family practice doctor. That is not to say that DPM's don't get too creative with coding/billing. For low liability- as one DPM put it to me- "If I cancel every appointment in my office tomorrow- who cares? It's the foot. You're not going to die".
2) I know I'll be a Podiatrist when I graduate. Most MD/DO first years dream of Dermatology, Plastics, Orthopedics- however, most of them go into internal medicine, managing Grandpas kidney and hypertension medication. Total snoozefest and monetarily becoming exceedingly less practical. I like a sure thing, and Pod gives me a sure thing.
3) This point is overlooked a lot, and I didn't realize the value of this point until I was a first year student: Our board examinations are minimum competency. Meaning, whether you get 100% or one point above passing, you pass. Your scores aren't released to residencies. You just have to be minimally competent. MD/DOs take USMLE Steps, and Step 1 test is a score that basically determines the entire trajectory of your professional career. No thanks. Not interested.
4) I like the philosophy of being an expert of one region of the body, as opposed to one system.
Those are the big ones, for me.
