Will shadowing a DO have equal weight when applying to allo. schools?

[Alex1803]

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I was wondering if shadowing a D.O. would have a positive, negative, or little effect on applying to M.D. programs?

 

[diosa428]

Well a DO is still a doctor. You don't actually have to SAY they were a DO if you're concerned about it.

 

[CostalShowers]

Any medical-related shadowing is a positive in the application process.

If you're asking whether there would be a difference b/t shadowing a DO vs. and MD, my guess is that there is no difference from adcom point of view.

 

[rcmustang65]

If anything it might have a small positive effect. It shows that you are interested in Medicine and have explored options in a variety of different fields (assuming you shawdowed a MD as well).

 

[eastsidaz]

I was wondering if shadowing a D.O. would have a positive, negative, or little effect on applying to M.D. programs?

Not like you'd have to mention it. You'd just say you "shadowed a physician" on your AMCAS, and I doubt the specific degree would come up at interviews.

 

[Law2Doc]

Any medical-related shadowing is a positive in the application process.

If you're asking whether there would be a difference b/t shadowing a DO vs. and MD, my guess is that there is no difference from adcom point of view.

When a lot of older docs went to med school, a DO was not what it is today. So sure, it is a positive experience, but not all of the older allo clinicians who might interview you would necessarilly regard the experience or any ensuing LOR the exact same as an MD. Also bear in mind that there are regional biases -- parts of the country where there are lots of DOs and they are well regarded by MDs, and parts of the country where there really are few, if any. So if a school you are interested in is in the latter area, it's probably better to have an MD.

 

[GujuMD]

they won't find out that you shadowed a DO unless you tell them or if the DO writes you a LOR. DO is still a doctor and you are getting exposure to the medical field, so it won't affect you in a negative way. but if you were to get a letter from a DO, they could ask you why you chose to shadow a DO and not an MD.

 

[NonTradMed]

Shadowing any doc is good, saying specifically you are shadowing a DO doc to an MD application may not be so good. I say this because when I shadowed a doc who was DO and asked him to write me a recommendation, I sent him my school's recommendation form. My school has a prominent MD school attached to it and he thought I was applying to that MD school so he told he wouldn't write me one since it may (presumably) look bad for me. I told him that I would only apply to DO schools with his recommendation and he seemed mollified. So, from that experience, i would say specificially mentioning a DO doc may appear negative. But this doc was also old school----he may have remembered the days back when MD and DOs were at each others' throats. Personally, I'd just put down your shadowned a doc and leave it at that, unless you are applying to DO schools, then stating it was a DO doc would probably look good.

 

[45408]

Not like you'd have to mention it. You'd just say you "shadowed a physician" on your AMCAS, and I doubt the specific degree would come up at interviews.

That's what I wrote on my AMCAS. They were all MDs anyways, but I just described their specialties - I shadowed an anesthesiologist, orthopedic surgeon, etc. Not a big deal.