Why DO instead of MD?

[camshark]

I just am wondering if DO schools ask at all why you want to be a DO at interviews and do you answer it the same as tho they just asked you why you want to be a physician? I just dont really understand so much about do VS md since they are essentially the same except added omt. I also understand for some reason it seems to be "easier" (not that its easy by any means) to get into DO school. That may be the reason why I am trying more for DO schools b/c they do grade replacement, etc but i certainly dont want to tell the admissions that...so how do you answer why you chose a DO degree?

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[Isoprop]

they will ask. and you need a good answer. being honest but not too honest might work here. tell them that you want to be a good physician and you applied to schools that you thought would best help you meet that goal. after some exposure and research, you found that the degrees are almost identical so you applied to both do and md schools that you thought would be a good fit for you.

i used a similar explanation and people seemed fine with it.

 

[patel2]

I just am wondering if DO schools ask at all why you want to be a DO at interviews and do you answer it the same as tho they just asked you why you want to be a physician? I just dont really understand so much about do VS md since they are essentially the same except added omt. I also understand for some reason it seems to be "easier" (not that its easy by any means) to get into DO school. That may be the reason why I am trying more for DO schools b/c they do grade replacement, etc but i certainly dont want to tell the admissions that...so how do you answer why you chose a DO degree?

1. brief speech about how OMM is another tool for you to use as a doctor. don't oversell omm if you don't know anything about it, just pay lip service. Just stick mostly to "why physician" when they ask why DO, if you don't have a specific interest in DO philosophy.

2. as isoprop suggested, go the route of 'what's more important to me is fit, md or do, and while both are great routes to being a physician, your school stands out because...'

3. as you note, do NOT mention that you think DO schools are more forgiving about things like grade replacement. Any hint of DO=your backup means insta-rejection.

 

[Kevin Baker]

They ask. Honestly, I feel the best policy is to say you want to be a physician and then answer why you want to attend that particular school over your state MD school. The longer you spend talking about potential differences between mds and dos is another chance to flub a sensitive question. I'd brush up on DO history in case an interviewer pushes you but there is no need for your answer to take more than a few seconds. All the school wants to know (imo) is whether you'll attend if admitted or go MD.

 

[PressPforPi]

1. brief speech about how OMM is another tool for you to use as a doctor. don't oversell omm if you don't know anything about it, just pay lip service. Just stick mostly to "why physician" when they ask why DO, if you don't have a specific interest in DO philosophy.

2. as isoprop suggested, go the route of 'what's more important to me is fit, md or do, and while both are great routes to being a physician, your school stands out because...'

3. as you note, do NOT mention that you think DO schools are more forgiving about things like grade replacement. Any hint of DO=your backup means insta-rejection.

Can't stress that enough.

 

[Powdermonkey]

While the degrees allow you to practice similarly, DO philosophy is something different. Having worked with both DOs and MDs in the same setting I can tell you there is a subtle difference in the way that DOs approach patients and the differential. And I'm not even talking about OMT here.

DO school is NOT just MD school with some OMT. There isn't quite as much emphasis on genetics, embryo, molecular bio and a few other basic science courses. I'm by no means saying that we don't learn them as well or as in depth, but there is a definite difference in time spent in those subjects. At my school we spend more time learning about the physical exam and how to properly examine patients than at most MD schools I'm sure. For me it works out great because I don't really care about research and knowing the names of the carriers of some crazy protein. Just give me the basic idea and let's move on. I want to learn how to treat patients. It's worked out well for me so far too.

I've taken both COMLEX and the USMLE and I can tell you that they are two different beasts of a test. While they both test the same concepts, the embryo, genetics and biochem on the USMLE was a nightmare for me to study for. If I had majored in basic science in college it might have been different, but I hated every minute of biochem so it was my worst subject. And genetics just sucks.

All of the OMT, cranial and chapman's points arguments aside, don't just go to DO school to be a doctor. Or because you couldn't get in to MD school. There is a distinct philosophy associated with osteopathic medicine that we need to keep around. We aren't just "MDs who can manipulate." There's the whole "wholistic", "patient centered" treatment approach that DOs claim to have, but any physician MD or DO who is a good physician will approach the patient's this way. We just are taught that way in school. I think learning OMT and having to practice on each other every week really lends itself to a better understanding of how to approach patients and read their body language. Are they in pain? Are they guarding? If I press on the abdomen do they cringe? What if I press harder? We learn so much about how to use our hands to better guide our senses which helps us form our impression of the patient and just how sick they are in our minds. Anyone can go up to a cholecystitis or an appendicitis and push on their belly, but if a light tough will do, why push as hard as you can?

Just my $0.02. Some late night ramblings while on surgery...

 

[Prncssbuttercup]

I visited a DO school last fall... I was asked then (not and interview, just a tour) why I was considering DO over MD. I am lucky enough to have researched it thoroughly before I went, and have discussed the differences with my family. MY family is actually MORE supportive of the DO philosophy than MD. I used that as my "why DO" answer. I told them once I had explained that a DO can do MORE things than an MD (and my family makes full use of Chiropractors) they said, well do that, it sounds better! That seemed to make them very happy... Anyway, that's my personal philosophy, if I can do more, why not?

 

[nardini46]

Talk about philosophy of osteopathic medicine. Do your research. If you can read The DOs osteopathic medicine in America. The book may be overkill but at least you will know the beginning and slow evolution of our field.

Reading the wiki article on osteopathic medicine is enough for interviews though.

 

[fiznat]

Every school I interviewed at asked this question.

I answered by saying that I noticed a difference in the attitudes and bedside manners of the physicians I've met. I said that I felt DO's spent more time with their patients, and seemed to focus on establishing a patient/provider relationship that was therapeutic in a particular way. I said that the DO emphasis on preventative care and "treating the whole person" resonated with my experiences as a paramedic, and finally, that I thought I would be able to become the best possible provider for my patients through an osteopathic education. Obviously I expanded on each of those points more, but that's the basic outline I had prepared for my interviews. I stayed away from the OMM stuff because I didn't think I could speak intelligently on the subject, and also I'm still yet unsure of it's role in medicine.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

God.. sounds like DO school interviews are a pain. Do these ADCOMs really think all of these pre-meds are this convoluted enough to believe that DO's are somehow in practice different than MD's? I mean in all honesty... treat the whole person? DO philosophy?.. jeez... do they really think we are buying it?

 

[BairN]

God.. sounds like DO school interviews are a pain. Do these ADCOMs really think all of these pre-meds are this convoluted enough to believe that DO's are somehow in practice different than MD's? I mean in all honesty... treat the whole person? DO philosophy?.. jeez... do they really think we are buying it?

who cares.......the question is still asked. It's advisable to have a legit answer.

 

[Iswhatis]

God.. sounds like DO school interviews are a pain. Do these ADCOMs really think all of these pre-meds are this convoluted enough to believe that DO's are somehow in practice different than MD's? I mean in all honesty... treat the whole person? DO philosophy?.. jeez... do they really think we are buying it?

Yes, because most pre-meds are machines told to listen, memorize, regurgitate, oh, and volunteer for an acceptance (like it's some cookie cutter formula).


I think this pre-med veneration for osteopathic medicine is misunderstood in modern medicine. To contrast MD and DO solely on a whole person approach is antiquated (over 100 years old) and, in my opinion, indicates either no understanding of the current medical field, or very poor reasoning capabilities. Of course ADCOMs want to perpetuate this notion of "separate yet equal", but sooner than later they need to realize that the DO contribution to medicine has been embraced by other "less caring" health groups. To continue this "DO's care more" crap only makes the profession look arrogant and separatist, which is the exact opposite impact that Dr. Still envisioned...

 

[fiznat]

To continue this "DO's care more" crap only makes the profession look arrogant and separatist, which is the exact opposite impact that Dr. Still envisioned...

Cool-- give this a shot in an interview and LMK what happens.

Not that I don't agree with you, but if we're going to continue being honest here- this isn't the only ridiculous hoop that med school applicants are expected to jump through. Part of the benefit of becoming a physician is that we are granted an unrestricted licence to practice medicine (for the most part) as we see fit. Until that day....

 

[Iswhatis]

Cool-- give this a shot in an interview and LMK what happens.

Not that I don't agree with you, but if we're going to continue being honest here- this isn't the only ridiculous hoop that med school applicants are expected to jump through. Part of the benefit of becoming a physician is that we are granted an unrestricted licence to practice medicine (for the most part) as we see fit. Until that day....

I'm not sure what ridiculous hoops you're talking about, but I certainly wouldn't include perpetuating nonsense as a "hoop".

 

[fiznat]

I'm not sure what ridiculous hoops you're talking about...

Oh I'm sorry, I thought you were a pre med...

 

[Iswhatis]

Oh I'm sorry, I thought you were a pre med...

Yeah, I am a pre-med. 😕

 

[DrFraud]

who cares.......the question is still asked. It's advisable to have a legit answer.

And what exactly encompasses a legit answer? one that validates the opinions of the interviewers, or one that honestly explaines how you got to a certain point in life and where you would like to go.

Very often DOs that I work with will say to their patients "I am everything that an MD is plus......." and this is where I start to loose my patience. This is the same type of stuff you can read on the opening page of the AOA website that suggests that care from DOs is superior in quality to that provided by MDs. Really do you think MDs have an interest in providing supstandard care or offering anything less than utilyzing the best availible treatments to help patients. To say this during an interview as a basis for applying to a DO program, at least for most pre-meds, is complete nonscense.

If you were on an adcom at a DO program, would you reject a candidate because they said " My first choice is becoming an MD because.......but my second choice is going DO because..........

I guess you would have to reject this person because giving the "proper' answer is often considered appropriate during interviews, even though we all say we like honest people, in the end what tends to happen is that we select those who regurgitate pre-made answers that validate egos rather than those who speak their mind in an honest way about their career choices, even when most people on an ADCOM know that applicants are often pretty clueless.

I guess another way I would put it is this. Lets just say Harvard Medical School invited you to an interview and asked you about the differences of DO vs MD. How many applicants to DO programs would give the same answer to the Harvard Adcom that would be given to the LECOM Adcom? If you are someone who would give different answers, in the end you are not really being honest with yourself.......

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

And what exactly encompasses a legit answer? one that validates the opinions of the interviewers, or one that honestly explaines how you got to a certain point in life and where you would like to go.

Very often DOs that I work with will say to their patients "I am everything that an MD is plus......." and this is where I start to loose my patience. This is the same type of stuff you can read on the opening page of the AOA website that suggests that care from DOs is superior in quality to that provided by MDs. Really do you think MDs have an interest in providing supstandard care or offering anything less than utilyzing the best availible treatments to help patients. To say this during an interview as a basis for applying to a DO program, at least for most pre-meds, is complete nonscense.

If you were on an adcom, would you reject a candidate because they said " My first choice is becoming an MD because.......but my second choice is going DO because..........

I guess you would have to reject this person because giving the "proper' answer is often considered appropriate during interviews, even though we all say we like honest people, in the end what tends to happen is that we select those who regurgitate pre-made answers that validate egos rather than those who speak their mind in an honest way about their career choices, even when most people on an ADCOM knows that applicants are often pretty clueless.

Meh.. it's annoying.. but I think this pales in comparison to the ass kissing you did during your rotations and will be doing during your residency.

 

[DrFraud]

Meh.. it's annoying.. but I think this pales in comparison to the ass kissing you did during your rotations and will be doing during your residency.

Well you can call it what ever you want, but I think in the end smooth talkers are often selected before the more honest people out there, and for me personally, I would rather be around the people who I can ask - Did you check this or What was this value" and know I was getting a straight answer rather than a contrived answer - People who contrive are generally less reliable and often cause a lot of proplems with regard to patient care and morbidity because you can never trust them.

When a patient's well being depends upon the honesty of a colleague, and I have seen this happen too often, you can see where it starts.......it's sometimes pretty sad to see how little a person can care about their patients in comparison to how much they might care about their perception by colleagues and supervisors or getting a fellowship, etc.....

....and then you can see why I think that ADCOMS picking the folks who give the 'smooth talker' refined proper answer rather than the honest 'this is how I got to this point and this is where I want to go' type of answer really are not neccissary helping the health care professions.

 

[NurWollen]

Well you can call it what ever you want, but I think in the end smooth talkers are often selected before the more honest people out there, and for me personally, I would rather be around the people who I can ask - Did you check this or What was this value" and know I was getting a straight answer rather than a contrived answer - People who contrive are generally less reliable and often cause a lot of proplems with regard to patient care and morbidity because you can never trust them.

When a patient's well being depends upon the honesty of a colleague, and I have seen this happen too often, you can see where it starts.......it's sometimes pretty sad to see how little a person can care about their patients in comparison to how much they might care about their perception by colleagues and supervisors.

....and then you can see why I think that ADCOMS picking the folks who give the 'smooth talker' refined proper answer rather than the honest 'this is how I got to this point and this is where I want to go' type of answer really are not neccissary making the best choices.

Ironic given that other thread about academic honesty violations...

 

[fiznat]

I would rather be around the people who I can ask - Did you check this or What was this value" and know I was getting a straight answer rather than a contrived answer - People who contrive are generally less reliable and often cause a lot of proplems with regard to patient care and morbidity because you can never trust them.

I think this is a bit of a leap. What about answering the "why our school" question? I guess you would suggest that applicants give adcoms a realistic and completely honest assessment, right? "You are my safety school." Ha ha yeah right.

I respect your passion on this issue, but these things aren't black and white. Suggesting that applicants who massage interview questions will necessarily become dishonest clinicians is a bit ridiculous.

 

[DocEspana]

And what exactly encompasses a legit answer? one that validates the opinions of the interviewers, or one that honestly explaines how you got to a certain point in life and where you would like to go.

Very often DOs that I work with will say to their patients "I am everything that an MD is plus......." and this is where I start to loose my patience. This is the same type of stuff you can read on the opening page of the AOA website that suggests that care from DOs is superior in quality to that provided by MDs. Really do you think MDs have an interest in providing supstandard care or offering anything less than utilyzing the best availible treatments to help patients. To say this during an interview as a basis for applying to a DO program, at least for most pre-meds, is complete nonscense.

If you were on an adcom at a DO program, would you reject a candidate because they said " My first choice is becoming an MD because.......but my second choice is going DO because..........

I guess you would have to reject this person because giving the "proper' answer is often considered appropriate during interviews, even though we all say we like honest people, in the end what tends to happen is that we select those who regurgitate pre-made answers that validate egos rather than those who speak their mind in an honest way about their career choices, even when most people on an ADCOM know that applicants are often pretty clueless.

I guess another way I would put it is this. Lets just say Harvard Medical School invited you to an interview and asked you about the differences of DO vs MD. How many applicants to DO programs would give the same answer to the Harvard Adcom that would be given to the LECOM Adcom? If you are someone who would give different answers, in the end you are not really being honest with yourself.......

I see no issue (and i doubt you would either, but we'll find out) with my comment of "oh, its just a different option. It's a MD with some extra physical therapy-like techniques in the curriculum".

Also, I answered I'd definitely take MD over DO. They took me and appreciated the answer. So that's not a wrong answer. I did mention that I had already been on interviews without an acceptance in the northeast MD schools, and would prefer the area more than anything, but do honestly think prestige of one degree would be nice over the other, though I personally view the two as simply two different options to the same goal.

 

[TriagePreMed]

You "loose" your patience and MD "supstandard" or complete "nonscense" LOL. Is it that hard to install spell check on firefox or google? I bet you use IE.

Get over yourself dude. Everyone MD/DO is full of **** in at least one answer. The question is more about weaving out people who are unprepared or blatantly using DO as a backup that won't make them happy.

Also, you're a CaribMD. In your interview when they asked "why do you want to come to this school?" did you answer "because nobody in the US would take me?"

And what exactly encompasses a legit answer? one that validates the opinions of the interviewers, or one that honestly explaines how you got to a certain point in life and where you would like to go.

Very often DOs that I work with will say to their patients "I am everything that an MD is plus......." and this is where I start to loose my patience. This is the same type of stuff you can read on the opening page of the AOA website that suggests that care from DOs is superior in quality to that provided by MDs. Really do you think MDs have an interest in providing supstandard care or offering anything less than utilyzing the best availible treatments to help patients. To say this during an interview as a basis for applying to a DO program, at least for most pre-meds, is complete nonscense.

If you were on an adcom at a DO program, would you reject a candidate because they said " My first choice is becoming an MD because.......but my second choice is going DO because..........

I guess you would have to reject this person because giving the "proper' answer is often considered appropriate during interviews, even though we all say we like honest people, in the end what tends to happen is that we select those who regurgitate pre-made answers that validate egos rather than those who speak their mind in an honest way about their career choices, even when most people on an ADCOM know that applicants are often pretty clueless.

I guess another way I would put it is this. Lets just say Harvard Medical School invited you to an interview and asked you about the differences of DO vs MD. How many applicants to DO programs would give the same answer to the Harvard Adcom that would be given to the LECOM Adcom? If you are someone who would give different answers, in the end you are not really being honest with yourself.......

 

[HockeyDr09]

And what exactly encompasses a legit answer? one that validates the opinions of the interviewers, or one that honestly explaines how you got to a certain point in life and where you would like to go.

Very often DOs that I work with will say to their patients "I am everything that an MD is plus......." and this is where I start to loose my patience. This is the same type of stuff you can read on the opening page of the AOA website that suggests that care from DOs is superior in quality to that provided by MDs. Really do you think MDs have an interest in providing supstandard care or offering anything less than utilyzing the best availible treatments to help patients. To say this during an interview as a basis for applying to a DO program, at least for most pre-meds, is complete nonscense.

If you were on an adcom at a DO program, would you reject a candidate because they said " My first choice is becoming an MD because.......but my second choice is going DO because..........

I guess you would have to reject this person because giving the "proper' answer is often considered appropriate during interviews, even though we all say we like honest people, in the end what tends to happen is that we select those who regurgitate pre-made answers that validate egos rather than those who speak their mind in an honest way about their career choices, even when most people on an ADCOM know that applicants are often pretty clueless.

I guess another way I would put it is this. Lets just say Harvard Medical School invited you to an interview and asked you about the differences of DO vs MD. How many applicants to DO programs would give the same answer to the Harvard Adcom that would be given to the LECOM Adcom? If you are someone who would give different answers, in the end you are not really being honest with yourself.......

Well you can call it what ever you want, but I think in the end smooth talkers are often selected before the more honest people out there, and for me personally, I would rather be around the people who I can ask - Did you check this or What was this value" and know I was getting a straight answer rather than a contrived answer - People who contrive are generally less reliable and often cause a lot of proplems with regard to patient care and morbidity because you can never trust them.

When a patient's well being depends upon the honesty of a colleague, and I have seen this happen too often, you can see where it starts.......it's sometimes pretty sad to see how little a person can care about their patients in comparison to how much they might care about their perception by colleagues and supervisors or getting a fellowship, etc.....

....and then you can see why I think that ADCOMS picking the folks who give the 'smooth talker' refined proper answer rather than the honest 'this is how I got to this point and this is where I want to go' type of answer really are not neccissary helping the health care professions.

If you think DO applicants are the only applicants who use "contrived" answers, you are sorely mistaken. For virtually any interview, for any job I can think of, applicants conform their answers into what the employer wants to hear. Have you ever heard of the cliche question "what's you greatest weakness?". I'd bet you've never heard anyone say, "I'm always late, I procrastinate, and I like to take naps under my desk when people aren't around". Usually you're met with answers like "I work too hard". Unfortunately, it's a part of the process.

All DO adcom's want to know is if you know anything about osteopathic medicine, and its history. I don't see why that's such a big deal. Also, there have been many posters stating that they answered the "why DO" question by saying they applied to all medical schools in their state, and that they just really want to be a physician. I've never heard of anyone getting an instant rejection because they didn't answer "why DO" correctly.

 

[DrFraud]

If you think DO applicants are the only applicants who use "contrived" answers, you are sorely mistaken.

My issus is not with DO applicants who use contrived answers but rather with any applicant who uses a contrived answer, and any ADCOM that prefers this to honesty.

If you are someone that I have to work with, my opinion is that patient care is superior by those who are trustworthy vs. those who are better at giving contrived answers.

 

[HockeyDr09]

My issus is not with DO applicants who use contrived answers but rather with any applicant who uses a contrived answer, and any ADCOM that prefers this to honesty.

If you are someone that I have to work with, my opinion is that patient care is superior by those who are trustworthy vs. those who are better at giving contrived answers.

I don't think anyone would disagree with you here. I just find it hard to make a correlation with applicants who form their answers around what Adcom's want to hear, to physicians "who are better at giving contrived answers".

If what you're trying to say is that you'd rather work with an honest physician than a lying/cheating physician, then I'd have to agree with you. I'm not sure who wouldn't.

 

[patel2]

My issus is not with DO applicants who use contrived answers but rather with any applicant who uses a contrived answer, and any ADCOM that prefers this to honesty.

If you are someone that I have to work with, my opinion is that patient care is superior by those who are trustworthy vs. those who are better at giving contrived answers.

it doesn't stop with med admissions, though. The kids going on derm interviews surely are BS'ng about how much they want to advance the field through research and treat extremely interesting skin conditions...not how they are counting the days till they can open up a laser spa, do botox all day and live the awesome lifestyle they have always dreamed of (as a side note, I'm not hating on derm at all.)

Someone on the allo board summed it up well.

"Part of the problem is that we're conditioned to act like those things don't matter. You'd never get into medical school if you answered the question "why medicine?" with "well, I want a steady career, that's intellectually stimulating, with good pay, and reasonable hours." Then once we're in school, we can't really say those things because our classmates will judge us negatively. Then come residency interviews, and I can't imagine that going over very well with PD's."

It's all part of the game, and as applicants our only choice is the embrace it. IMO, the problem doesn't reside with people BS'ng and choosing to play the game, the problem comes when people become self-righteous and stop being honest and true to themselves.

 

[DrFraud]

I don't think anyone would disagree with you here. I just find it hard to make a correlation with applicants who form their answers around what Adcom's want to hear, to physicians "who are better at giving contrived answers".

That's because you are not a resident yet. Spend a few years dealing with people who would rather go home early and give you false information about a patient rather than staying late and providing optimal care, or watching people making something up to cover up not knowing about something important, or just to pass work onto you, and you will understand better what I am saying here.

The types that are very good at giving contived answers to Adcoms are also often very good at weasling their way through a program at the expence of patient care.

 

[HockeyDr09]

That's because you are not a resident yet. Spend a few years dealing with people who would rather go home early and give you false information about a patient rather than staying late and providing optimal care, or watching people making something up to cover up not knowing about something important, or just to pass work onto you, and you will understand better what I am saying here.

My apologies, I didn't realize you were a resident with years of experience, and that you have the ability to discern which candidates conformed their answers to please adcoms while on the wards.


Edit:
Sorry, I forgot the 🙄 (I thought it was obvious)

 

[DrFraud]

My apologies, I didn't realize you were a resident with years of experience, and that you have the ability to discern which candidates conformed their answers to please adcoms while on the wards.

U dont have to apologize. When you become a resident, and you have to deal with a patient care situation that arises do to someone giving you made up info, and you will better understand....

 

[TriagePreMed]

DrFraud, stop running around on this. Straight up answer. When AUC asked you why you wanted to go to their school, did you say "because no US school would take me?" We both know that's why you're there to begin with.

 

[fiznat]

That's because you are not a resident yet. Spend a few years .....

....The types that are very good at giving contived answers to Adcoms are also often very good at weasling their way through a program at the expence of patient care.

This is so blatantly ridiculous, I'm almost starting to get a whiff of troll. Anyone else?

 

[BairN]

drfraud, stop running around on this. Straight up answer. When auc asked you why you wanted to go to their school, did you say "because no us school would take me?" we both know that's why you're there to begin with.

bingo!

 

[DocEspana]

This is so blatantly ridiculous, I'm almost starting to get a whiff of troll. Anyone else?

Oh he's a troll on every forum. This is what he does. Most of us use him to bounce talking points off of and strengthen our own arguments, because while we may think his points are evasive, vague, and often unsubstantiated: they are the ones you'd hear from a lay person if they wanted to try to prove you wrong on something. so its worth practicing here.

Also: he does this on every forum ive ever seen him on. And I've seen him on ValueMD, where he does the same quality of trolling to other offshore schools. My analysis, and it is just that, is that he'll argue almost anything if it will flare up opinions, rather than him necessarily feeling strongly (or at all) about what he's saying.

 

[shushumiga]

DrFraud=troll.

I have seen him on ValueMD where he does exact same thing as on this forum. Poor guy, has nothing to do all day.

 

[Longshanks]

DrFraud=troll.

I have seen him on ValueMD where he does exact same thing as on this forum. Poor guy, has nothing to do all day.

His ego is hurt from his having to scramble into a pre-lim out in the boondocks after going to his offshore school, so he now feels the need to troll pre-meds. Notice how when he tries to troll actual students and residents he goes back to his corner with his tail between his legs quite easily. I mean what "intern" has all this time on their hands to post and troll on multiple med related forums? 🙄

 

[TriagePreMed]

Did DrFarud get perm banned or temp banned? It's about time with all that trolling.

 

[DocEspana]

Did DrFarud get perm banned or temp banned? It's about time with all that trolling.

IT HAPPENED!!! VIIIICCCTORY!!!

 

[fiznat]

I hope it wasn't just because of this thread.....

 

[patel2]

In what way does he troll on ValueMD? I thought the guy was a genuine AUC/offshore>>>>>>>DO

 

[DocEspana]

In what way does he troll on ValueMD? I thought the guy was a genuine AUC/offshore>>>>>>>DO

nope. He is just someone who enjoys inducing arguments to see if people's heads explode. I respected him for a while because some of his comments were very smart, but the more I learned the more I realized he never cited anything and then realized he would just misrepresent or totally make up his values and 'facts.' Obviously lost respect when his good points were not based on actual data that frequently.

 

[Sinfest]

Good-bye Fraud

 

[Tapepsi]

I just am wondering if DO schools ask at all why you want to be a DO at interviews and do you answer it the same as tho they just asked you why you want to be a physician? I just dont really understand so much about do VS md since they are essentially the same except added omt. I also understand for some reason it seems to be "easier" (not that its easy by any means) to get into DO school. That may be the reason why I am trying more for DO schools b/c they do grade replacement, etc but i certainly dont want to tell the admissions that...so how do you answer why you chose a DO degree?

Think long and hard about this and take the above advice to formulate a convincing answer. I wasn't prepared for this question when I interviewed at one D.O. school and gave a horrible answer which showed I clearly didn't know. Even with above-average stats and a good interview besides that one question I was rejected, not even waitlisted.

The question really caught me by surprise b/c at every MD school I interviewed at not one of them asked "So why MD and not DO?".

 

[HH Holmes]

The question really caught me by surprise b/c at every MD school I interviewed at not one of them asked "So why MD and not DO?".

This is probably due to the fact that DO schools sometimes assume that certain applicants apply DO as a safety to MD schools. I mean, even as an interviewee at a BS/DO I was asked 'Why DO?". I was completely honest in my answer; I actually believe in the DO philosophy and am driven to learn what an osteopath does differently than an allopath. This also led to a personal anecdote about an ED physician who turned me on to osteopathy.

Without being rude, I explained that I had stats for many BS/MD programs, but chose DO programs instead. Is this the same as traditional medical school interviews? No... But I think it's somewhat similar.

In reality, adcoms will know if you're BSing or not. They've interviewed hundreds, if not thousands of medical students and have probably asked that question to all of them. They know the typical cookie-cutter response, and they also know a meaningful and "true" statement. Just be honest, OP.

 

[n3xa]

1. brief speech about how OMM is another tool for you to use as a doctor. don't oversell omm if you don't know anything about it, just pay lip service. Just stick mostly to "why physician" when they ask why DO, if you don't have a specific interest in DO philosophy.

2. as isoprop suggested, go the route of 'what's more important to me is fit, md or do, and while both are great routes to being a physician, your school stands out because...'

Yeah, I'm going with this route. The schools that I am shooting for are great numbers-wise, but there are certain things that PCOM offers that I would *love* to get involved in.

My limited shadowing experience led me to believe that DO=MD. I really didn't see a significant difference between the two aside from the title at the end of the day.

 

[Darkskies]

I have my first DO interview fairly soon and I'm still unsure how to have a solid answer for this question. Would a cliched answer really come off as a negative? How did all of you handle the question? If the interviewer asks you if you would take an MD over DO, would it really be all right to answer honestly and say 'Yes'? I still think it would be hard for me to do that..

 

[DocEspana]

I can tell you that i honestly answered. I told them that I applied to both schools and that I didn't view there to be a significant difference between the degrees to me. I explained that to me the region was much more important than anything else and that I didn't care what degree I earned as long as I was learning someplace where I would enjoy living and I was given the tools to succeed.

Got accepted with that line of thought. Something similar should work. I worry that saying you'd prefer DO over MD is a poor comment to make at some interviews, but saying you view them equally is always a safe bet.

 

[DrWily]

I said I liked that there was an emphasis on holism in the curriculum which I liked and also that I'm intrigued by OMM because I like to work with my hands (I work on my cars/motorcycles myself).

Obviously I put things like I'm into motorcycles and cars on my primary application as part of my interests/hobbies otherwise that wouldn't have flown well.

Interviewers didn't even bat an eye at my response. They probably heard this sh~t 1000 times, so just play the game.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

While the degrees allow you to practice similarly, DO philosophy is something different. Having worked with both DOs and MDs in the same setting I can tell you there is a subtle difference in the way that DOs approach patients and the differential. And I'm not even talking about OMT here.

DO school is NOT just MD school with some OMT. There isn't quite as much emphasis on genetics, embryo, molecular bio and a few other basic science courses. I'm by no means saying that we don't learn them as well or as in depth, but there is a definite difference in time spent in those subjects. At my school we spend more time learning about the physical exam and how to properly examine patients than at most MD schools I'm sure. For me it works out great because I don't really care about research and knowing the names of the carriers of some crazy protein. Just give me the basic idea and let's move on. I want to learn how to treat patients. It's worked out well for me so far too.

I've taken both COMLEX and the USMLE and I can tell you that they are two different beasts of a test. While they both test the same concepts, the embryo, genetics and biochem on the USMLE was a nightmare for me to study for. If I had majored in basic science in college it might have been different, but I hated every minute of biochem so it was my worst subject. And genetics just sucks.

All of the OMT, cranial and chapman's points arguments aside, don't just go to DO school to be a doctor. Or because you couldn't get in to MD school. There is a distinct philosophy associated with osteopathic medicine that we need to keep around. We aren't just "MDs who can manipulate." There's the whole "wholistic", "patient centered" treatment approach that DOs claim to have, but any physician MD or DO who is a good physician will approach the patient's this way. We just are taught that way in school. I think learning OMT and having to practice on each other every week really lends itself to a better understanding of how to approach patients and read their body language. Are they in pain? Are they guarding? If I press on the abdomen do they cringe? What if I press harder? We learn so much about how to use our hands to better guide our senses which helps us form our impression of the patient and just how sick they are in our minds. Anyone can go up to a cholecystitis or an appendicitis and push on their belly, but if a light tough will do, why push as hard as you can?

Just my $0.02. Some late night ramblings while on surgery...

Can someone comment on this? I've never heard of DO schools being limited or not lecturing material such as this at a comparable level to MD schools?
[Edit]: How would you even know this was a major difference unless attending both an MD school and a DO school? Maybe your weakness in Biochem was due in part to a mindset that Biochem would not be on your DO boards and as such you forgot the majority of it or didn't pay much mind to it?

 

[Mbeas]

Oh, Dr. Fraud...how I miss thee.