Prehealth - Choosing a Health Profession

Health practitioners diagnose, treat, and strive to prevent illness and disease. While all of them practice the art of healing, they differ in methods of treatment and areas of specialization. Physicians--both allopathic and osteopathic--perform surgery, and prescribe medications, exercise, and proper diet. Optometrists specialize in eye care and Podiatrists treat foot diseases and deformities. Dentists emphasize not only the treatment but the prevention of problems associated with teeth and gums. Veterinarians treat animals and inspect meat, poultry, and other food as part of public health programs. A variety of health professions are briefly described below, all worthy of exploration.

ALLIED HEALTH PROGRAMS

Academic and professional programs in the healthcare professions exist in many other areas as well. Many students choose to enter a graduate or certificate program in an allied health area after graduation. Doctoral-level programs exist in chiropractic and naturopathic medicine. Graduate programs exist for nursing, physicians’ assistant, physical therapy, occupational therapy, medical technology, medical physics, dental hygiene, speech-language, pathology and audiology, pharmacy, and nutrition. Certificate programs exist in these areas and others: anesthesiology assistant practice, blood bank technology, cardiovascular technology, cytotechnology, electroneuro- diagnostic technology, emergency medical services, medical assisting, medical illustration, medical record administration, nuclear medicine technology, ophthalmic medical technology, perfusion, radiologic technology, respiratory therapy, sonography, and surgical technology.

DENTISTRY

Doctor of Dental Surgery (D.D.S.)
or Doctor of Dental Medicine (D.M.D.)

Dentists examine teeth and tissues of the mouth to diagnose and treat diseases or abnormalities. Students preparing for dental school follow the typical premed curriculum exactly. Like medical school, dental school consists of four years of postgraduate study. Upon receipt of degree, newly-graduated dentists many enter practice immediately or continue specialty work in graduate school. Thus the second degree, coming after the D.D.S./D.M.D., is a master's degree in one of the dental specialties: pedodontics, endodontics, periodontics, orthodontics, prosthodontics, or oral surgery. General dentists do not earn the master's degree in any specialty, but specialists must do so.

Application to dental school is made through the American Association of Dental Schools Application Service (AADSAS). The process is identical to that used with AMCAS. The student should apply at the earliest possible date, which varies by school. Eighty-five percent of dental schools are AADSAS participants. Individual dental schools to which a student applies will screen applicants' files before sending those in whom they are interested supplementary application materials. Competitive students are interviewed subsequently.

The Dental Admission Test (DAT) is required. Although the DAT and MCAT are very similar, there are two major differences: The DAT contains no test questions on physics, and the DAT has a section on three-dimensional perception (Perceptual Ability Test).

NURSING

Registered Nurse (R.N.)

A degree in nursing will qualify graduates for entry into the very high demand field of health care. Nurses of all types are needed in great numbers to meet the needs of a growing number of patients with health problems. Many employers pay highly competitive salaries and offer bonuses to newly hired nurses.

OPTOMETRY:

Doctor of Optometry (O.D.)

Optometrists examine eyes to diagnose vision problems, detect signs of eye disease, and other abnormal conditions. The O.D. degree requires four years after college but no internship or postgraduate work beyond that. Newly-graduated optometrists are often employed by other optometrists or by ophthalmologists. Their duties include routine vision analysis and prescription of corrective lenses. They are trained to recognize ocular pathology and when indicated, refer patients to an ophthalmologist (physicians, usually holding an M.D., who specialize in medical eye care, eye disease and injuries, perform eye surgery, prescribe drugs, and other eye treatments). Students preparing for optometry have virtually the same prerequisites as premeds and take the usual premedical curriculum. They should observe one or two optometrists at work. There are 17 optometry schools in the U.S.

There is no standardized application service for applying to schools of optometry. Students should apply at the earliest possible date, which varies by school. Schools mail supplementary application materials to acceptable students. Competitive students are interviewed subsequently. The Optometry Admission Test (OAT) is required.

OSTEOPATHIC MEDICINE:

Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.)

The percentage of Doctors in osteopathic medicine has greatly increased in the United States. They are trained in every medical and surgical specialty and are licensed to perform the same work as M.D.s. Students preparing for osteopathic medical school take a typical premed curriculum which differs in no way from that of other premed students. Osteopathic medical school is a four-year program very similar to allopathic medical school, but including an additional training sequence in 'manipulative' therapy, traditionally the hallmark of osteopathic medicine. The major difference between osteopathic (D.O.) and allopathic (M.D.) medicine is that a higher percentage of osteopathic physicians practice general or family medicine (compared to allopathic physicians). Geographic distribution of osteopathic physicians is also different: most are concentrated in ‘pockets,' including, but not limited to, large areas of Missouri, Texas, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Florida.

Application to osteopathic medical schools is made through the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine Application Service (AACOMAS). The procedure is identical to that used with AMCAS. Experience with an osteopathic physician is encouraged before application. The student should apply at the earliest possible date (June-July). Individual osteopathic medical schools receive the students’ AACOMAS application. Schools mail supplementary application materials to acceptable students. Competitive students are interviewed subsequently. The MCAT is required.

PODIATRY:

Doctor of Podiatric Medicine (D.P.M.)

The D.P.M. degree requires four years after college and an optional one-to-two year surgical residency, often at a teaching hospital. This is a surgical speciality and involves little medical practice. Procedures of the podiatrist range from clipping toenails to major surgery. These operations are usually limited to the ankle and the foot, where the podiatrist is akin to the orthopedist in those areas. There is virtually no competition for places in podiatry schools, although there are only seven in the U.S. Students preparing for podiatry school take the same curriculum as premedical students.

Application to a college of podiatric medicine is made through the American Association of Colleges of Podiatric Medicine Application Service (AACPMAS). The procedure is identical to that used with AMCAS. The student should apply at the earliest possible date. Schools mail supplementary application materials to acceptable students. Competitive students are interviewed subsequently. The MCAT is required.

PUBLIC HEALTH

Master of Public Health (M.P.H.)

Public health practitioners help identify, solve, and prevent community health problems; they also promote public awareness of health maintenance. Public health areas include: health services administration, public health practice and program management, biostatistics, epidemiology, nutrition, biomedical and laboratory practice, health education, environmental sciences, occupational safety and health, and international public health. A publication entitled Reach, produced by the Association of Schools of Public Health, provides an overview of the public health field. Also, beneficial is a visit to Tulane’s School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. There is no centralized application service for application to schools of public health; individual schools differ in their application procedures. In general, a student applies during the fourth undergraduate year. The Graduate Record Exam (GRE), Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) or another standardized test is required for admission.

VETERINARY MEDICINE:

Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (D.V.M.)

Veterinarians diagnose medical conditions, perform surgery on sick and injured animals, and prescribe and administer medicines and drugs. There are only 27 veterinary schools in the United States. It is, therefore, highly unusual for a student to be accepted at any out-of-state veterinary school. Preparation for veterinary study is markedly different from preparation for medical or dental school. Although prevet students follow a premed curriculum in college and are expected to excel in it, experience with both animals and veterinarians is extremely important. Preveterinary students should make every effort to obtain diversified experiences as soon as possible; vacations and free hours should be spent at veterinary facilities, and working for a number of different veterinarians is strongly encouraged.

The standardized application service for applying to schools of veterinary medicine is the American Veterinarian Medical Association. Students should apply at the earliest possible date, which varies by school. Veterinary schools require either the MCAT or the GRE.