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RECENT POSTS
The USMLE Step 1 and Step 2 CK with Dr. McInnis
In our interview today I talk to Dr. Mike McInnis, Chief Educator at Doctors in Training, a small company that focuses mainly on USMLE (United States Medical Licensing Exam) and COMLEX (Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination) board prep for the medical student. We talk in-depth about the USMLE Step 1 and Step 2 board exams.
One of the most important things about the USMLE Step 1 is that it one of the main determining factors in your residency application. Similar to a great MCAT score giving you an opportunity to go to the best medical schools, an excellent USMLE Step 1 score will give you many more opportunities when you are applying to residency. Think of the most competitive residency programs like the most competitive medical school. Typically the students that score the highest on the Step 1 will have the best opportunities to get into the best, most competitive residencies.
Blueprint MCAT Online Course Review — Personalized MCAT Prep
M Prep is a small company that competes against the big boys like Kaplan and The Princeton Review. I'll review their Anytime eCourse here and show how I think they are a company that you might want to look towards when looking into your MCAT preparation needs.
You may already know of M Prep from their free MCAT question of the day service they offer on their site - mcatquestion.com.
The Nontraditional Medical Student: A Different Path to Med School
Liza Thompson started working with premed students 20 years ago. She has worked with directly with non-traditional medical students during that time with two different postbaccalaureate (postbac) programs at Goucher and Johns Hopkins. She now runs an advising company for medical school applicants and postbac applicants called Thompson Advising.
We've covered some non-traditional student stuff before. If you haven't seen those posts and podcasts, check out the links in the main article.
We talk exactly about what a postbac program is, the different types of post-bac programs and some tips on selecting one. We also discuss do-it-yourself (DIY) postbac programs.
6 Myths of Osteopathic Medical School
Session 26 is a great interview with Patrick and Jonathan, two 3rd year DO (Osteopathic) Medical Students at Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine. They wrote A Brief Guide to Osteopathic Medicine which is published on AACOM.
They thought there was a gap in the understanding of what osteopathic medical school is and they wanted to fill that gap.
We talked about what their friends and families reactions were when they were admitted to an osteopathic medical school. An initial reaction that Jonathan's family had was for him to wait or go to medical school overseas.
We also got into a discussion about the recent post that I wrote about if we even needed a DO degree. Patrick respectfully disagreed with my argument that osteopathic physicians should stick to primary care so they can practice OMT.
The biggest thing we talked about was this amazingly helpful guide that they wrote. One of my favorite parts was the 6 Myths of Osteopathic Medical School.
Top 5 Keys to a Successful Internship
With medical school winding down for 4th year medical students, and the thought of being THE doctor on the wards looming large in most minds, we thought we would put together a list of the top 5 keys to being a successful intern.
If you have any other thoughts on what it takes to be a successful intern, let us know in the comment section below!
Interview with Bow Tie Ben, 4th Year Med Student
Ben Azevedo, better known as Bow Tie Ben, as of this recording is a 4th year medical student. I first found out about Ben when I saw this article and video. I was amazed that a medical student was taking the time to make bow ties during medical school. He wasn't making them for him. He actually has a business that he runs at New Orleans Bow Ties!
I reached out to Ben because he seemed like the perfect example of a student who is actively involved with something outside of medical school. We often talk about the need for balance in life. Medical school can easily engulf everything that you do, and if you don't put an effort into fighting it, that is all you will do. We as humans need balance, need a break from all the studying and need to get away from medicine so that when we go back into it, we have a fresh mind, ready to absorb all the new info we need to learn.
Preparing for a Career in Medicine: Clinical Experience
Medical experience is enormously valuable to premedical students for a variety of reasons. Observing physicians and understanding what they do on a daily basis helps premeds understand the challenges and rewards of the medical profession and envision themselves as physicians. Spending time with doctors also helps premed students clarify and solidify their goals, confirming with certainty that they want to pursue a career in medicine. Observing or volunteering also helps premeds understand the ways in which hospitals or clinics function and the teamwork involved in providing good medical care.
Sustained clinical experience proves to both yourself and the medical schools that you have a good understanding of the medical profession and are committed to it. Clinical work also serves as inspiration, helping you power through the challenges of your premedical courses, reminding you of your ultimate goal.
Interview with Dr. Greg Polites of MedPrep at Wash. U.
Dr. Greg Polites must wander around the campus of Washington University in St. Louis with a flock of adoring fans like Justin Beiber anywhere in public.
Dr. Polites is an Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine at Washington University School of Medicine. He's also on the admissions committee and the coursemaster for the Practice of Medicine course for 1st and 3rd year medical students there.
For premeds at Wash. U, he's the instructor for MedPrep, a course that has very similar goals as we do here at the Medical School Headquarters. Upwards of 90% of all premed students at Wash. U take the MedPrep course on their way to medical school.
Interview with Medical Student Blogger Allison Greco
Allison Greco is the brains behind the blog MD2B, which you can find at md2bgrecoa3.com.
The MD2B is coming true in just a few short weeks (as of this posting) as Allison is graduating from Jefferson Medical College and will start her Internal Medicine residency at Jefferson in July.
Should We Even Have a DO Degree?
I just did a web search for “why go to a DO school”
The top two results that I received:
- Reapply or go to DO school?
- Why are Osteopathic medical schools treated like the plague
I’m sure you could do “MD vs DO” too and get similar results.
In the interview that I had with ATSU KCOM, I asked what they thought about this general philosopy of “my grades aren’t good enough for an MD school, I should just go to a DO school instead.” Their response”
A little disappointment actually, because the curriculum is the same, so it’s not any easier than any med schools out there. But I do feel a little disappointment, and I even interviewed a kid the other day that iterated to that. He said, "Well my dad, who is a physician, said, 'Your grades aren't good enough, try a D.O. school.'"
