Are you wondering how DO-friendly (or unfriendly) child neurology is as a US medical specialty? Do you want to know your chances of matching in this highly competitive field? Would you love to figure out what child neurology programs a DO would stand the best chance?
This article will give you the most up-to-date information on DO-friendly child neurology programs. Use this information to strategize on whether – and where – to apply to maximize your chances of matching as a DO in child neurology.
Summary:
- Child neurology is a very competitive US medical specialty
- Few residency programs accept some DOs, while none are DO favored.
- Only 11% of child neurology applicants are rejected
- See the full list of searchable residency programs to strategize where DOs have recently been the most welcome
- Be sure to bookmark this page – and sign up for the newsletter – to keep up with the latest residency and USMLE trends and maximize your chances of matching
Table of Contents
What’s the Difference Between a DO and an MD?
Let’s start with some definitions.
DO: Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine
- Licensed physicians trained in “whole body” wellness and treatment techniques in muscle and joint manipulation in addition to mainstream treatments.
Allopathy Vs. Osteopathy
In the US, there are two main branches of registered physician:
- Allopathy: In this path, doctors train in modern, sometimes referred to as “Western”, medicine to treat symptoms and diseases. Doctors who train in this branch are licensed as Doctors of Medicine (MD)
- Osteopathy: These doctors have the same education and licensing exams as MDs but have additional training in muscle and joint manipulation. Doctors who train in Osteopathy are licensed as Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) and have the same residency training and choices as MDs.
COMLEX vs. USMLE
To begin practicing medicine, DOs and MDs must take specific licensing exams:
- COMLEX-USA: This test assesses osteopathic medical knowledge in addition to allopathic medical knowledge in order to become licensed as a DO in the USA.
- USMLE: This test assesses allopathic medical knowledge and is required to become licensed as an MD.
NRMP: “National Resident Matching Program®”
- The organization that administers the “Match.” In the match, the NRMP pairs residency applicants with a residency program.
Note that prior to the 2020 Match, DOs had access to a “pool” of residencies reserved for which only they could match. The current system has merged DO and MD residencies so that every applicant has the same “chance” for matching in their chosen specialty.
For more on how to maximize your match chances and how the “Merge” has changed residency applications, see THE MATCH: Everything You Need to Maximize Your Residency Chances
Child Neurology is Not Very DO-Friendly
Looking at the percentage of spots filled by DOs in the 2022 Match, we can see that child neurology was relatively DO-unfriendly. Only four other specialties had a lower proportion of positions filled by DOs.
However, the match rate for DOs in child neurology (89%) shows the DOs still have a good chance for acceptance in child neurology in the 2022 Match:
Here are the same data represented in a table:
| % DO Applied that Matched | % DO Unmatched | % Positions Filled by DO | Total Positions Offered | Total # All Applicants | DO Senior Matched | DO Senior Unmatched | DO Senior Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| **Radiation Oncology | 0% | 100% | 0% | 185 | 162 | |||
| **Plastic Surgery | 0% | 100% | 0% | 194 | 340 | |||
| Vascular Surgery | 8% | 92% | 1% | 84 | 143 | 1 | 12 | 13 |
| Neurological Surgery | 43% | 57% | 4% | 240 | 379 | 9 | 12 | 21 |
| Dermatology | 50% | 50% | 7% | 544 | 834 | 38 | 38 | 76 |
| Orthopaedic Surgery | 56% | 44% | 13% | 875 | 1,435 | 111 | 86 | 197 |
| Interventional Radiology | 59% | 41% | 12% | 169 | 226 | 20 | 14 | 34 |
| Otolaryngology | 60% | 40% | 6% | 361 | 556 | 21 | 14 | 35 |
| General Surgery | 62% | 38% | 12% | 1,622 | 2,400 | 200 | 125 | 325 |
| Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation | 64% | 36% | 33% | 532 | 725 | 176 | 99 | 275 |
| Obstetrics and Gynecology | 65% | 35% | 16% | 1,503 | 2,044 | 241 | 130 | 371 |
| Anesthesiology | 66% | 34% | 16% | 1,969 | 2,560 | 313 | 161 | 474 |
| Diagnostic Radiology | 67% | 33% | 15% | 1,155 | 1,568 | 169 | 84 | 253 |
| Internal Medicine/Pediatrics | 74% | 26% | 9% | 392 | 458 | 37 | 13 | 50 |
| Psychiatry | 87% | 13% | 18% | 2,047 | 2,560 | 378 | 57 | 435 |
| Child Neurology | 89% | 11% | 9% | 188 | 182 | 17 | 2 | 19 |
| Neurology | 92% | 8% | 15% | 1,014 | 1,249 | 150 | 13 | 163 |
| Pathology | 93% | 7% | 12% | 631 | 827 | 75 | 6 | 81 |
| Internal Medicine | 94% | 6% | 15% | 9,809 | 11,598 | 1,503 | 93 | 1596 |
| Emergency Medicine | 95% | 5% | 25% | 2,921 | 2,813 | 736 | 38 | 774 |
| Family Medicine | 96% | 4% | 27% | 4,916 | 5,055 | 1,345 | 62 | 1407 |
| Pediatrics | 97% | 3% | 19% | 3,016 | 3,153 | 565 | 20 | 585 |
For more on the most competitive DO medical specialties, see this article.
The Most DO-Friendly Child Neurology Residency Programs
Although child neurology is not a DO-friendly specialty, there are still some child neurology residency programs that accept a higher % of DOs. For example, in the most recent GME census, Ohio State filled 33% of its available positions with DOs. Three other residency programs also filled some of their spots with DOs: Colorado (9%), Washington (7%) and Cincinnati (6%). Keep in mind that only 11% of applicants were rejected.
Here is a list of the most (and least) competitive child neurology programs for DOs. It includes data from the most recent National GME Census Survey. Percentages are of all residents in the program in 2020.
| ACGME residency program code | Child Neurology residency name | City | State | % residents US DO graduates | % residents US MD graduates | Osteopathic Recognition | # applications submitted (2021 NRMP Main Match) | % applicants interviewed (2020 NRMP Main Match) | # categorical positions offered (2021 NRMP Main Match) | # categorical positions filled (2021 NRMP Main Match) | # advanced positions offered (2021 NRMP Main Match) | # advanced positions filled by (2021 NRMP Main Match) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1853821092 | Nationwide Children's Hospital/Ohio State University Program | Columbus | OH | 33 | 44 | No | 160 | 38.3 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 1850721023 | University of Colorado Program | Aurora | CO | 9 | 82 | No | 143 | 21.2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1852821034 | Washington University/B-JH/SLCH Consortium Program | St. Louis | MO | 7 | 73 | No | 155 | 47.3 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| 1853821038 | Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center Program | Cincinnati | OH | 6 | 94 | No | 168 | 19.2 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 1850521061 | Stanford Health Care-Sponsored Stanford University Program | Palo Alto | CA | 0 | 100 | No | 115 | 33 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 1851621021 | McGaw Medical Center of Northwestern University Program | Chicago | IL | 0 | 100 | No | 153 | 27.4 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1852421051 | Children's Hospital/Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Harvard Medical School Program | Boston | MA | 0 | 83 | No | 166 | 19.1 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| 1854121041 | Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Program | Philadelphia | PA | 0 | 95 | No | 174 | 20 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 0 |
| 1854821018 | Baylor College of Medicine Program | Houston | TX | 0 | 82 | No | 161 | 40.4 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| 1854821043 | University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center Program | Dallas | TX | 0 | 62 | No | 115 | 36.6 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| Specialty: Child Neurology | ||||||||||||
| 1850121008 | University of Alabama Medical Center Program | Birmingham | AL | No | 89 | 31.1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1850321024 | Phoenix Children's Hospital Program | Phoenix | AZ | No | 106 | 31.3 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1850421085 | University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) College of Medicine Program | Little Rock | AR | No | 99 | 10.5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1850500001 | University of California Davis Health Program | Sacramento | CA | No | ||||||||
| 1850521006 | University of California (Irvine) Program | Orange | CA | No | 86 | 29 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1850521020 | University of California (San Diego) Medical Center Program | La Jolla | CA | No | 105 | 24.6 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1850521062 | UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine/UCLA Medical Center Program | Los Angeles | CA | No | 103 | 27.8 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1850521065 | Children's Hospital Los Angeles Program | Los Angeles | CA | No | 122 | 32.7 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1850521069 | University of California (San Francisco) Program | San Francisco | CA | No | 99 | 26.8 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 1850521075 | Loma Linda University Health Education Consortium Program | Loma Linda | CA | No | 86 | 30.5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1850800078 | Yale-New Haven Hospital Program | New Haven | CT | No | 97 | 37.7 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1851011010 | National Capital Consortium Program | Bethesda | MD | No | ||||||||
| 1851021048 | Children's National Medical Center/George Washington University Program | Washington | DC | No | 286 | 12.5 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1851113100 | Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science (Jacksonville) Program | Jacksonville | FL | No | 60 | 37 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1851118101 | University of Florida College of Medicine Program | Gainesville | FL | No | 137 | 22.6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1851218108 | Emory University School of Medicine Program | Atlanta | GA | No | 141 | 26.7 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 1851221019 | Medical College of Georgia Program | Augusta | GA | No | 93 | 9.6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1851621001 | University of Chicago Program | Chicago | IL | No | 139 | 22.7 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1851721050 | Indiana University School of Medicine Program | Indianapolis | IN | No | 98 | 9.8 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1851831106 | University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics Program | Iowa City | IA | No | 81 | 33.3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1851922096 | Children's Mercy Hospital/University of Kansas Medical Center Program | Kansas City | MO | No | 127 | 19.2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1852021099 | University of Kentucky College of Medicine Program | Lexington | KY | No | 108 | 25.2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1852021103 | University of Louisville School of Medicine Program | Louisville | KY | No | 94 | 16.8 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1852121022 | Louisiana State University Program | New Orleans | LA | No | 115 | 22.8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1852321027 | Johns Hopkins University Program | Baltimore | MD | No | 132 | 27.6 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1852413102 | Boston University Medical Center Program | Boston | MA | No | 161 | 14.7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1852421028 | Tufts Medical Center Program | Boston | MA | No | 133 | 11.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1852431067 | Massachusetts General Hospital Program | Boston | MA | No | 114 | 11.5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1852500053 | Spectrum Health/Michigan State University Program | Grand Rapids | MI | No | 0 | 42.1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1852521030 | University of Michigan Health System Program | Ann Arbor | MI | No | 144 | 38 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1852521052 | Detroit Medical Center/Wayne State University Program | Detroit | MI | No | 64 | 39 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | ||
| 1852621053 | Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science (Rochester) Program | Rochester | MN | No | 122 | 42.1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1852712095 | University of Mississippi Medical Center Program | Jackson | MS | No | 106 | 7.6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 1852821033 | St Louis University School of Medicine Program | St. Louis | MO | No | 210 | 19.4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1853300012 | Jersey Shore University Medical Center Program | Neptune | NJ | No | 0 | 15.4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1853321011 | Rutgers Health/New Jersey Medical School Program | Newark | NJ | No | 191 | 21.6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1853413105 | University of New Mexico School of Medicine Program | Albuquerque | NM | No | 190 | 10.5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1853500095 | Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Program | New York | NY | No | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1853512094 | University of Rochester Program | Rochester | NY | No | 110 | 27.1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1853521002 | Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine Program | Bronx | NY | No | 236 | 31.5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1853521015 | New York Presbyterian Hospital (Cornell Campus) Program | New York | NY | No | 118 | 16.3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1853521035 | University at Buffalo Program | Buffalo | NY | No | 120 | 11.8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1853521054 | SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University Program | Brooklyn | NY | No | 136 | 27.9 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1853521055 | Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell at Cohen Children's Medical Center Program | Lake Success | NY | No | 126 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1853521057 | NYU Grossman School of Medicine Program | New York | NY | No | 133 | 15.3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1853521059 | New York Presbyterian Hospital (Columbia Campus) Program | New York | NY | No | 130 | 21.6 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1853521081 | Stony Brook Medicine/University Hospital Program | Stony Brook | NY | No | 124 | 8.4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1853621003 | University of North Carolina Hospitals Program | Chapel Hill | NC | No | 127 | 11.1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1853621037 | Wake Forest University School of Medicine Program | Winston Salem | NC | No | 135 | 28 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1853621080 | Duke University Hospital Program | Durham | NC | No | 154 | 30.6 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 1853813091 | Case Western Reserve University/University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center Program | Cleveland | OH | No | 128 | 25 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1853821004 | Cleveland Clinic Foundation Program | Cleveland | OH | No | 154 | 17.2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1854023048 | Oregon Health & Science University Program | Portland | OR | No | 112 | 25.6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1854100001 | Geisinger Health System Program | Danville | PA | No | ||||||||
| 1854118042 | Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University/DuPont Hospital for Children Program | Wilmington | DE | No | 220 | 11.6 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1854121012 | UPMC Medical Education Program | Pittsburgh | PA | No | 149 | 27.5 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1854121040 | Tower Health Program | Philadelphia | PA | No | 143 | 15.6 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1854212101 | University of Puerto Rico Program | San Juan | PR | No | 39 | 3.8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1854518107 | Medical University of South Carolina Program | Charleston | SC | No | 111 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 1854712104 | University of Tennessee Program | Memphis | TN | No | 115 | 12.5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1854721042 | Vanderbilt University Medical Center Program | Nashville | TN | No | 150 | 34.7 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 1854818079 | University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School Program | Austin | TX | No | 208 | 20.8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1854831078 | University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston Program | Houston | TX | No | 260 | 31.7 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1854921044 | University of Utah Health Program | Salt Lake City | UT | No | 234 | 29.8 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1855121060 | Virginia Commonwealth University Health System Program | Richmond | VA | No | 108 | 15.2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1855131097 | University of Virginia Medical Center Program | Charlottesville | VA | No | 139 | 20.8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1855421047 | University of Washington Program | Seattle | WA | No | 134 | 28.5 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1855618109 | University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics Program | Madison | WI | No | 80 | 17.9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1855621070 | Medical College of Wisconsin Affiliated Hospitals Program | Milwaukee | WI | No | 128 | 19.8 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Concluding Thoughts
Child neurology is not a very friendly specialty for DOs, but with so few spots and applicants, this isn’t surprising. Only four child neurology residency programs filled a proportion of their available positions with DOs. However, a majority of applicants are accepted as the match rate for child neurology is 89%.
Are you despairing at your chances of matching into child neurology as a DO? Then, check out Never Forget, where you can learn how to master – not memorize – for the impressive USMLE scores to match at your dream residency. And if you’re looking for a residency advisor, look at our residency advisory services.
