combined MD/DO programs

overall, MD programs are clearly better than DO programs in every imaginable aspect--there is absolutely no denying that. why do you think in the DO section of this forum, more than half of the threads are DO students asking if they have a shot at getting into allopathic programs?? you won't find one thread in the MD section asking how an MD student can get a DO spot.

i'm not here to bash DO residents/physicians, just say that i would not want to train at a DO institution, plain and simple. and i think a combined program would be bad for BOTH MD and DO residents--i think its a sign of a program in trouble, that is not getting enough quality MD residents. so in an effort to get more applicants (and possibly BETTER DO applicants), the program is opening its door to DO residents. something about that program is not appealing to MD residents (be it poor operative experience, bad location, little/no didactics/teaching, etc.), and i would not recommend that place for DO applicants as well.

Yea I totally understand because a DO applicant that is just as strong as a MD applicant (board scores, research, experience) is obviously an inferior applicant, because they went to a DO school. You all will have to realize that once you get out there, that your all orthopedic surgeons and that maybe just maybe some of those DO surgeons are going to even be BETTER than you...but no you wouldn't want to train with one though...give me a break
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doesn't sound like a good idea for MD or DO physicians. to me, it sounds like a program circling the drain, trying to make themselves attractive to more candidates, because they're having difficulty getting quality MD residents. this would be a red flag for me, and i would not even waste the $25 (or whatever) to send my application there.

regardless of the MD vs. DO argument, this is a bad idea--especially in orthopedic surgery. general surgery is totally different, where there are unfilled slots every year--a combined program may actually be a decent idea. but in ortho, no way.

I am being brutally honest here. I am a 3rd year med student who will be applying for ortho. I have nothing against DO programs. But I, as an MD, do not want to be associated with the training of a DO program. If that means a combined MD/DO program...No thanks. I will not apply. I probably am going to get some flack for this...but like I said I am being honest. There are plenty of MD programs out there that I will be applying to. Many people may say that I don't know what I am talking about as a med student...and maybe I don't...but it is how I feel.

brickrocket -

first off, nice name. i dont want to even know what it means.

I think it would be good for the DO's to have the combined program, but I dont think that I would have applied to the program, and I doubt that the other students from my school would have, unless they were trying to make sure they got in.

Now, Im not saying I have a problem with DO's (two of the people in my wedding were DOs), but for such a competitive thing as ortho, having a DO in an MD program brings up the question of "Why do they have to have a DO? Are they not matching MDs?" Its similar as having an FMG, but to a lesser extent, I think. Any deviation from norm raises eyebrows, and I dont think a program like that would attract the top applicants, who would spend their time and money on established places without combined MD/DO programs. Im sure the training would be fine, but the applicants would be worse and the final graduates might be as well. Who knows.

This isnt FP or medicine we're talking about here.

Just my opinion.