<p>Well first off I apologize in advance if the question has been answered already or if this questions is “stupid.” </p>
<p>I want to know what are the specifics of a DO. I have read that they are doctors of osteopathic medicine and they are more preventative, but when comparing a MD doctor and a DO what are the main differences? What would be typical of a DO? I know you can’t answer it specifically because it differs from specialty to specialty, but I just want a general overview.</p>
<p>Recently I read a post by princessND about a post-baccalaureate program for those who do not make it into medical school. How does a post-bacc work and in the end will the person be going to medical school, how do the chances of getting into Medical School break down when doing a post-baccalaureate, and does someone have to take the MCAT too? I would like some general information on this too.</p>
<p>Thanks in advance for any information on the following two topics. I greatly appreciate your time! </p>
<p>Yes, DOs tend to have more of a focus on holistic care, but a DO has the same knowledge base as an MD, plus what is known as “Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine” (OMM). OMM is a system of treatment using musculoskeletal manipulations. Not all DOs actually use OMM in their practice.</p>
<p>There are DO’s in every specialty of medicine - DOs have their own residency programs for DO’s only and they can also take the MD licensing exam and apply to MD residencies. They are fully qualified physicians that have the same type of (unlimited medical practice) license as MD’s (although granted by a different governing body than MDs). Not much more to say than that.</p>
<p>Yes, you’ll have to take the MCAT even if you do a post-bacc - it is a requirement for application to all US med schools.</p>
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<p>Well you have to make a distinction between a post-bacc and what is known as a Special Masters Program (SMP). A post-bacc is just what it says, coursework that you take after earning a bachelors degree in order to increase your qualifications for medical school. You can do a formal post-bacc, which is a program offered by a university with a formal list of classes with the express purpose of increasing GPA for medical school (and some of these will confer a certificate for completion), or an informal post-bacc, in which you just pick a college and go take classes there to improve your GPA. Among the formal post-baccs are programs for “career-changers” or for people who never took the med school pre-reqs. These programs just put you through all the pre-reqs and usually an MCAT prep course. Success rates vary wildly. Some of the career-changer programs actually have decent success.</p>
<p>The Special Masters Programs are basically an audition for medical school. They are put on by medical schools and you will take actual medical school courses (usually with the med students and graded against their curve). Most of these programs will grant you a masters degree upon completion. The number of medical school courses varies by program, as does the success rate. Some of them (EVMS, University of Cincinnati) have amazingly high linkage with their own medical school, accepting upwards of 85% of their graduates into their medical school class the next year. Others (Georgetown, Tulane, BU) have much lower acceptance rates into their own school or acceptances during the masters program year. But these programs are by far your best chance to get into medical school - but they are considered a last resort. If you do well, you’ve proved to adcoms that you can handle the med school curriculum despite any past issues, but if you do poorly, you’ve basically permanently torched your chances at med school.</p>