DO School List

[rkdesp]

Hi there -

My advisor is of no help right now - mostly because she's overwhelmed with thousands of students. So I just wanted to have some suggestions regarding my school list for the DO program. I will also be applying for the MD programs but I'll worry about that later.

ATSU
DMUCOM
CUSOM
PNWU - 2nd time applying
WVSOM

I realize the list is short but this is my 3rd time applying for the DO programs and a lot of other programs have a GPA cutoff or I would be applying for the 3rd time. Last year, I got an interview at MSU and got rejected because they said I was out of state and they weren't convinced I knew enough about osteopathic medicine. That being said, I'm having a lot of trouble shadowing any physicians right now because of California/San Diego County laws. I don't see the point of applying to the same school for the 3rd time if my application really change much except for more scribing/working/volunteering.

My stats:

Resident: California

Undergrad gpa - 2.67
Post bacc gpa (no degree) - 3.84
cgpa - 2.8, sgpa - 2.9

MCAT (old) - 9, 9, 11 (bio); i will probably take this again

Volunteer - 1000+ hrs
Medical Scribe - over 2.5 yrs, 1000+ hrs for trauma, family medicine, addiction, ENT, ortho trauma
Shadow - 800+ hrs for multiple specialties

I will be going to apply to 1 yr Master's program. So far, I have applied to EVMS, Drexel, and working on BCOM MSBS.

My advisor keeps on insisting that LECOM and Midwestern have a master's program that guarantees entrance to their DO programs and as soon as I confirm those programs I will apply but I think they are 2 yr programs and I'm really not interested in anything other than 1 yr.

Thanks for all the advice!

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[Aspiring_Future_D.O.]

I am in the same boat, a 3rd time applicant. Remember: success = passion + persistence; by re-applying you demonstrate your resiliency and that you welcome challenges.

It's not surprising we had the same experience with Michigan State, their administration were not convinced I knew enough about osteopathic medicine (though I am determined to become a D.O.) and told me personally that "MSU isn't worth your[my] time as an OOS student" (biggest disappointment was re-applying to the program after admissions strongly advised me to re-apply since, "second-time applicants have a better chance")

• WVSOM is a great school - they tend to accept a 50:50 mix of In-state and OOS students, prospective admission is good and their program is great. (est. 1974)
• Consider OU-HCOM and they have a great established program (est. 1975)
• PSSCOM, despite the negative reviews on SDN - they are a top ranked nationally recognized graduate school (est. 1997)

My biggest concern as a 3rd time applicant is lowering my standards to attend a new D.O. school with no COMLEX results or residency placement data. This being said, I do not feel it is appropriate to underestimate ability to be a good doctor by reducing candidacy to a statistic since MCAT and GPA trends for matriculating/applicants since the 1990s has been steadily increasing. The interview will speak louder than the credentials on paper, when you verbally communicate why you want to be a physician and it aligns with your passion/character/integrity exhibited in the interview the admissions boards will sense your genuine humanitarian values-hopefully resulting in an admission offer.

Keep up the good work, you are a competitive applicant, you have what it takes to succeed. Don't give up hope! (yet)

 

[Faha]

I do not recommend reapplying this year. In the coming year take additional science and non science courses in order to raise your cGPA and sGPA to 3.0. Also retake the MCAT. If you can reach 3.0 in your GPA your chances will improve. Schools you could apply to in 2018 include:
ACOM
ARCOM
BCOM
WCU-COM
LMU-DCOM
UP-KYCOM
WVSOM
VCOM (all 3 schools)
UIWSOM
NYIT-Arkansas
RVU-Utah
LUCOM
any new schools that open by 2019 (there will be several )

 

[rkdesp]

I am in the same boat, a 3rd time applicant. Remember: success = passion + persistence; by re-applying you demonstrate your resiliency and that you welcome challenges.

It's not surprising we had the same experience with Michigan State, their administration were not convinced I knew enough about osteopathic medicine (though I am determined to become a D.O.) and told me personally that "MSU isn't worth your[my] time as an OOS student" (biggest disappointment was re-applying to the program after admissions strongly advised me to re-apply since, "second-time applicants have a better chance")

• WVSOM is a great school - they tend to accept a 50:50 mix of In-state and OOS students, prospective admission is good and their program is great. (est. 1974)
• Consider OU-HCOM and they have a great established program (est. 1975)
• PSSCOM, despite the negative reviews on SDN - they are a top ranked nationally recognized graduate school (est. 1997)

My biggest concern as a 3rd time applicant is lowering my standards to attend a new D.O. school with no COMLEX results or residency placement data. This being said, I do not feel it is appropriate to underestimate ability to be a good doctor by reducing candidacy to a statistic since MCAT and GPA trends for matriculating/applicants since the 1990s has been steadily increasing. The interview will speak louder than the credentials on paper, when you verbally communicate why you want to be a physician and it aligns with your passion/character/integrity exhibited in the interview the admissions boards will sense your genuine humanitarian values-hopefully resulting in an admission offer.

Keep up the good work, you are a competitive applicant, you have what it takes to succeed. Don't give up hope! (yet)

Thanks!

what's psscom? and I already applied to ou-hcom and this would be my 3rd time applying if i do choose to apply. i heard wvsom requires a do letter? and i'm struggling to get a do to shadow -- ugh...

 

[rkdesp]

I do not recommend reapplying this year. In the coming year take additional science and non science courses in order to raise your cGPA and sGPA to 3.0. Also retake the MCAT. If you can reach 3.0 in your GPA your chances will improve. Schools you could apply to in 2018 include:
ACOM
ARCOM
BCOM
WCU-COM
LMU-DCOM
UP-KYCOM
WVSOM
VCOM (all 3 schools)
UIWSOM
NYIT-Arkansas
RVU-Utah
LUCOM
any new schools that open by 2019 (there will be several )

i would except i finished the post bacc program last year so.....

 

[Faha]

i would except i finished the post bacc program last year so.....

You can continue taking additional courses at a local college (community college would be fine) in order to raise your sGPA and cGPA to over 3.0 With your current GPA's you will be screened out by many schools.

 

[rkdesp]

You can continue taking additional courses at a local college (community college would be fine) in order to raise your sGPA and cGPA to over 3.0 With your current GPA's you will be screened out by many schools.

i completely understand your reasoning but my gpas last year with grade replacement was 3.1 and 3.4 and here i am still....

 

[Aspiring_Future_D.O.]

Thanks!

what's psscom? and I already applied to ou-hcom and this would be my 3rd time applying if i do choose to apply. i heard wvsom requires a do letter? and i'm struggling to get a do to shadow -- ugh...

My bad, I got keyboard happy, meant to type PCSOM (Pikesville, KY)

 

[luckyely91]

OP, which schools did you already apply to in the past? You mentioned that this is your third time applying - from my personal experience, if you reapply to the same school, your application will standout a little more, and they know that you are very interested in attending. It happened with me and ATSU-SOMA; I applied super late the first cycle, but got in in September when I applied super early.

I would also recommend improving your GPA. Your GPA will present a big red flag to MD schools.

 

[zukunft195]

If you take some more post-bacc classes and push your cGPA and sGPA above a 3.0, you will get past most of the cutoffs and drastically improve your odds.