Are you wondering how DO-friendly (or unfriendly) otolaryngology 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 otolaryngology programs a DO would stand the best chance?
This article will give you the most up-to-date information on DO-friendly otolaryngology programs. Use this information to strategize on whether – and where – to apply to maximize your chances of matching as a DO in otolaryngology.
Summary:
- Otolaryngology is a very competitive US medical specialty.
- Few residency programs accept some DOs, while 3 programs were DO favored.
- In 2022, the total number of DOs Applicants was 35. Of those, 21 matched, for a 60% match rate.
- 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
Otolaryngology is Not Very DO-Friendly
Looking at the % of spots filled by DOs in the 2022 Match, we can see otolaryngology (6%) was relatively DO-unfriendly. Only two other specialties had a lower proportion of positions filled by DOs.
However, the match rate for DOs in otolaryngology (60%) shows the DOs still have a good chance for acceptance in otolaryngology 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 Dermatology Residency Programs
Although otolaryngology is not a DO-friendly specialty, there are still some otolaryngology residency programs that accepted a higher % of DOs. For example, in the most recent GME census, 3 residency programs filled 100% of their spots with DOs: McLaren Health Care, Ascension Macomb-Oakland, and Philadelphia College.
Here is a list of the most (and least) competitive otolaryngology programs for DOs. It includes data from the most recent National GME Census Survey. Percentages are of all residents in the program in 2020.
Specialty: Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
ACGME residency program code | Residency program 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) | # of positions offered (2021 NRMP Main Match) | # of positions (2021 NRMP Main Match) |
2802500138 | McLaren Health Care/Oakland/MSU Program | Pontiac | MI | 100 | 0 | No | 130 | 11.3 | 2 | 2 |
2802500139 | Ascension Macomb-Oakland Hospital Program | Warren | MI | 100 | 0 | No | 126 | 15.1 | 2 | 2 |
2804100142 | Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine Program | Philadelphia | PA | 100 | 0 | Yes | 117 | 8.8 | 3 | 3 |
2803300065 | Rutgers Health/New Jersey Medical School Program | Newark | NJ | 39 | 61 | No | 0 | 15.8 | 4 | 4 |
2801411116 | Tripler Army Medical Center Program | Tripler AMC | HI | 20 | 80 | No | ||||
2802021127 | University of Kentucky College of Medicine Program | Lexington | KY | 13 | 88 | No | 324 | 11 | 4 | 4 |
2801621118 | Southern Illinois University Program | Springfield | IL | 10 | 70 | No | 243 | 12.6 | 2 | 2 |
2802821058 | University of Missouri-Columbia Program | Columbia | MO | 9 | 82 | No | 270 | 16 | 3 | 3 |
2805511113 | West Virginia University Program | Morgantown | WV | 8 | 83 | No | 259 | 15.8 | 3 | 3 |
2802121043 | Tulane University Program | New Orleans | LA | 7 | 93 | No | 413 | 11.9 | 3 | 3 |
2803021061 | University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Medicine Program | Omaha | NE | 7 | 93 | No | 270 | 14.5 | 3 | 3 |
2802521137 | Wayne State University School of Medicine Program | Detroit | MI | 5 | 95 | No | 323 | 19.1 | 4 | 4 |
2804121095 | University of Pennsylvania Health System Program | Philadelphia | PA | 4 | 92 | No | 448 | 8.4 | 5 | 5 |
2800121010 | University of Alabama Medical Center Program | Birmingham | AL | 0 | 100 | No | 358 | 15.8 | 4 | 4 |
2800421012 | University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) College of Medicine Program | Little Rock | AR | 0 | 100 | No | 294 | 13.9 | 3 | 3 |
2800521013 | University of California Davis Health Program | Sacramento | CA | 0 | 100 | No | 385 | 11.6 | 3 | 3 |
2800521014 | University of California (Irvine) Program | Orange | CA | 0 | 100 | No | 352 | 11.3 | 2 | 2 |
2800521015 | University of Southern California/LAC+USC Medical Center Program | Los Angeles | CA | 0 | 100 | No | 366 | 9.4 | 4 | 4 |
2800521017 | UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine/UCLA Medical Center Program | Los Angeles | CA | 0 | 100 | No | 361 | 11.9 | 5 | 5 |
2800521021 | University of California (San Diego) Medical Center Program | San Diego | CA | 0 | 100 | No | 374 | 14.7 | 3 | 3 |
2800521022 | University of California (San Francisco) Program | San Francisco | CA | 0 | 100 | No | 351 | 10 | 5 | 5 |
2800521023 | Stanford Health Care-Sponsored Stanford University Program | Stanford | CA | 0 | 96 | No | 379 | 10.5 | 5 | 5 |
2800521117 | Loma Linda University Health Education Consortium Program | Loma Linda | CA | 0 | 100 | No | 284 | 8.6 | 4 | 4 |
2800522020 | Kaiser Permanente Northern California Program | Oakland | CA | 0 | 100 | No | 281 | 11 | 2 | 2 |
2800721024 | University of Colorado Program | Aurora | CO | 0 | 100 | No | 455 | 9.1 | 4 | 4 |
2800821025 | University of Connecticut Program | Farmington | CT | 0 | 100 | No | 330 | 10.1 | 3 | 3 |
2800821026 | Yale-New Haven Medical Center Program | New Haven | CT | 0 | 88 | No | 402 | 10.8 | 4 | 4 |
2801032027 | MedStar Health/Georgetown University Hospital Program | Washington | DC | 0 | 100 | No | 446 | 6.4 | 3 | 3 |
2801121028 | University of Florida Program | Gainesville | FL | 0 | 100 | No | 370 | 13.7 | 3 | 3 |
2801121029 | University of Miami/Jackson Health System Program | Miami | FL | 0 | 95 | No | 456 | 14 | 4 | 4 |
2801131030 | University of South Florida Morsani Program | Tampa | FL | 0 | 100 | No | 309 | 14.7 | 3 | 3 |
2801221031 | Emory University School of Medicine Program | Atlanta | GA | 0 | 89 | No | 462 | 9.5 | 4 | 4 |
2801221032 | Medical College of Georgia Program | Augusta | GA | 0 | 100 | No | 345 | 13.1 | 3 | 3 |
2801621033 | McGaw Medical Center of Northwestern University Program | Chicago | IL | 0 | 93 | No | 450 | 11.8 | 3 | 3 |
2801621035 | University of Chicago Program | Chicago | IL | 0 | 100 | No | 454 | 12 | 3 | 3 |
2801621036 | University of Illinois College of Medicine at Chicago Program | Chicago | IL | 0 | 100 | No | 433 | 14.9 | 3 | 3 |
2801631037 | Loyola University Medical Center Program | Maywood | IL | 0 | 100 | No | 442 | 12.3 | 3 | 3 |
2801721038 | Indiana University School of Medicine Program | Indianapolis | IN | 0 | 100 | No | 397 | 15.5 | 4 | 4 |
2801821039 | University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics Program | Iowa City | IA | 0 | 89 | No | 393 | 18.2 | 5 | 5 |
2801931040 | University of Kansas School of Medicine Program | Kansas City | KS | 0 | 100 | No | 367 | 13.8 | 4 | 4 |
2802021041 | University of Louisville School of Medicine Program | Louisville | KY | 0 | 92 | No | 308 | 16.1 | 3 | 3 |
2802121121 | Louisiana State University (Shreveport) Program | Shreveport | LA | 0 | 93 | No | 242 | 14.8 | 3 | 3 |
2802131042 | Louisiana State University Program | New Orleans | LA | 0 | 100 | No | 364 | 11.3 | 4 | 4 |
2802321047 | Johns Hopkins University Program | Baltimore | MD | 0 | 92 | No | 407 | 11.5 | 4 | 4 |
2802321048 | University of Maryland Program | Baltimore | MD | 0 | 100 | No | 426 | 7.4 | 3 | 3 |
2802421049 | Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary/Harvard Medical School Program | Boston | MA | 0 | 96 | No | 398 | 12 | 5 | 5 |
2802431051 | Boston University Medical Center Program | Boston | MA | 0 | 100 | No | 448 | 13.9 | 4 | 4 |
2802512053 | Henry Ford Hospital Program | Detroit | MI | 0 | 100 | No | 344 | 11.9 | 3 | 3 |
2802521052 | University of Michigan Health System Program | Ann Arbor | MI | 0 | 100 | No | 439 | 9.8 | 5 | 5 |
2802621056 | Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science (Rochester) Program | Rochester | MN | 0 | 100 | No | 389 | 9.3 | 5 | 5 |
2802631055 | University of Minnesota Program | Minneapolis | MN | 0 | 100 | No | 396 | 10.3 | 4 | 4 |
2802721122 | University of Mississippi Medical Center Program | Jackson | MS | 0 | 93 | No | 257 | 14.1 | 3 | 3 |
2802821059 | St Louis University School of Medicine Program | St Louis | MO | 0 | 100 | No | 376 | 8.8 | 2 | 2 |
2802821060 | Washington University/B-JH/SLCH Consortium Program | St Louis | MO | 0 | 97 | No | 429 | 14.7 | 5 | 5 |
2803500142 | Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (New York Eye and Ear Infirmary/Mount Sinai) Program | New York | NY | 0 | 100 | No | 407 | 17 | 6 | 6 |
2803511074 | New York Presbyterian Hospital (Columbia and Cornell Campus) Program | New York | NY | 0 | 100 | No | 406 | 11.3 | 4 | 4 |
2803513135 | University at Buffalo Program | Buffalo | NY | 0 | 100 | No | 285 | 15.8 | 2 | 2 |
2803521073 | NYU Grossman School of Medicine Program | New York | NY | 0 | 100 | No | 421 | 10 | 4 | 4 |
2803521078 | University of Rochester Program | Rochester | NY | 0 | 100 | No | 338 | 15.8 | 3 | 3 |
2803521123 | SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University Program | Brooklyn | NY | 0 | 100 | No | 347 | 8.2 | 3 | 3 |
2803521133 | Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine Program | Bronx | NY | 0 | 100 | No | 386 | 12.5 | 4 | 4 |
2803611082 | Wake Forest University School of Medicine Program | Winston-Salem | NC | 0 | 100 | No | 416 | 10.9 | 3 | 3 |
2803621080 | University of North Carolina Hospitals Program | Chapel Hill | NC | 0 | 100 | No | 452 | 11.2 | 4 | 4 |
2803621081 | Duke University Hospital Program | Durham | NC | 0 | 90 | No | 452 | 12.3 | 4 | 4 |
2803821083 | University of Cincinnati Medical Center/College of Medicine Program | Cincinnati | OH | 0 | 100 | No | 445 | 12.8 | 4 | 4 |
2803821124 | Case Western Reserve University/University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center Program | Cleveland | OH | 0 | 100 | No | 453 | 12 | 4 | 4 |
2803822085 | Cleveland Clinic Foundation Program | Cleveland | OH | 0 | 100 | No | 449 | 12.1 | 4 | 4 |
2803831087 | Ohio State University Hospital Program | Columbus | OH | 0 | 100 | No | 460 | 10.3 | 5 | 5 |
2803921088 | University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center Program | Oklahoma City | OK | 0 | 92 | No | 283 | 13 | 2 | 2 |
2804021089 | Oregon Health & Science University Program | Portland | OR | 0 | 100 | No | 411 | 6.4 | 3 | 3 |
2804111091 | Penn State Milton S Hershey Medical Center Program | Hershey | PA | 0 | 91 | No | 340 | 12.1 | 3 | 3 |
2804121093 | Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University/TJUH Program | Philadelphia | PA | 0 | 100 | No | 446 | 14.9 | 5 | 5 |
2804121096 | UPMC Medical Education (Pittsburgh) Program | Pittsburgh | PA | 0 | 91 | No | 444 | 10.4 | 5 | 5 |
2804231098 | University of Puerto Rico Program | San Juan | PR | 0 | 100 | No | 50 | 14.5 | 2 | 2 |
2804521100 | Medical University of South Carolina Program | Charleston | SC | 0 | 100 | No | 450 | 10.8 | 4 | 4 |
2804721101 | University of Tennessee Program | Memphis | TN | 0 | 100 | No | 369 | 13.8 | 4 | 4 |
2804721125 | Vanderbilt University Medical Center Program | Nashville | TN | 0 | 100 | No | 452 | 9.8 | 5 | 5 |
2804811103 | University of Texas Medical Branch Hospitals Program | Galveston | TX | 0 | 100 | No | 298 | 13.2 | 3 | 3 |
2804821102 | University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center Program | Dallas | TX | 0 | 100 | No | 435 | 9 | 4 | 4 |
2804821105 | University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston Program | Houston | TX | 0 | 100 | No | 412 | 14.8 | 3 | 3 |
2804821106 | University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio Joe and Teresa Lozano Long School of Medicine Program | San Antonio | TX | 0 | 100 | No | 330 | 17.6 | 2 | 2 |
2804831104 | Baylor College of Medicine Program | Houston | TX | 0 | 100 | No | 454 | 12.8 | 5 | 5 |
2804921107 | University of Utah Health Program | Salt Lake City | UT | 0 | 100 | No | 397 | 8.9 | 3 | 3 |
2805121109 | University of Virginia Medical Center Program | Charlottesville | VA | 0 | 100 | No | 441 | 9.2 | 3 | 3 |
2805121110 | Eastern Virginia Medical School Program | Norfolk | VA | 0 | 100 | No | 346 | 12.9 | 3 | 3 |
2805121111 | Virginia Commonwealth University Health System Program | Richmond | VA | 0 | 100 | No | 373 | 13.1 | 3 | 3 |
2805421112 | University of Washington Program | Seattle | WA | 0 | 100 | No | 405 | 13.7 | 4 | 4 |
2805431005 | Madigan Army Medical Center Program | Tacoma | WA | 0 | 100 | No | ||||
2805621114 | University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics Program | Madison | WI | 0 | 93 | No | 386 | 10.8 | 3 | 3 |
2805621115 | Medical College of Wisconsin Affiliated Hospitals Program | Milwaukee | WI | 0 | 100 | No | 369 | 13 | 3 | 3 |
2800300142 | University of Arizona College of Medicine-Tucson Program | Tucson | AZ | No | 284 | 8 | 2 | 2 | ||
2800331134 | Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science (Arizona) Program | Phoenix | AZ | No | 365 | 6.7 | 2 | 2 | ||
2800500118 | Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Program | Los Angeles | CA | No | 226 | 11.3 | 2 | 2 | ||
2800511007 | Naval Medical Center (San Diego) Program | San Diego | CA | No | ||||||
2801021130 | George Washington University Program | Washington | DC | No | 411 | 5.2 | 2 | 2 | ||
2801031132 | National Capital Consortium Program | Bethesda | MD | No | ||||||
2801100001 | Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science Program | Jacksonville | FL | No | ||||||
2801621034 | Rush University Medical Center Program | Chicago | IL | No | 421 | 9.3 | 2 | 2 | ||
2802400053 | Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Harvard Medical School Program | Boston | MA | No | 0 | 11.8 | 2 | 2 | ||
2802431050 | Tufts Medical Center Program | Boston | MA | No | 426 | 8.2 | 2 | 2 | ||
2802500140 | Henry Ford Macomb Hospital Program | Clinton Township | MI | No | 154 | 6.9 | 1 | 1 | ||
2802500141 | Beaumont Health (Farmington Hills) Program | Farmington Hills | MI | No | 353 | 6 | 1 | 1 | ||
2802500143 | Detroit Medical Center Corporation Program | Detroit | MI | No | 100 | 8.6 | 2 | 2 | ||
2802800061 | Kansas City University GME Consortium (KCU-GME Consortium)/Freeman Program | Joplin | MO | No | 335 | 10.9 | 1 | 1 | ||
2803113139 | Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV Program | Las Vegas | NV | No | 219 | 15.3 | 1 | 1 | ||
2803212136 | Dartmouth-Hitchcock/Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital Program | Lebanon | NH | No | 271 | 7 | 1 | 1 | ||
2803300064 | Cooper Medical School of Rowan University/Cooper University Hospital Program | Camden | NJ | No | 227 | 14.3 | 1 | 1 | ||
2803421126 | University of New Mexico School of Medicine Program | Albuquerque | NM | No | 261 | 11.1 | 2 | 2 | ||
2803500001 | Westchester Medical Center Program | Vahalla | NY | No | ||||||
2803500141 | Stony Brook Medicine Program | Stony Brook | NY | No | 250 | 10.4 | 1 | 1 | ||
2803500143 | Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell Program | New Hyde Park | NY | No | 265 | 12.5 | 2 | 2 | ||
2803521063 | Albany Medical Center Program | Albany | NY | No | 292 | 2 | 2 | |||
2803521079 | SUNY Upstate Medical University Program | Syracuse | NY | No | 322 | 3 | 3 | |||
2803800125 | OhioHealth/Doctors Hospital Program | Columbus | OH | Yes | 139 | 10.4 | 1 | 1 | ||
2803800126 | Western Reserve Hospital Program | Cuyahoga Falls | OH | No | 119 | 8.2 | 1 | 1 | ||
2803800128 | Kettering Health Network Program | Dayton | OH | No | 130 | 10.1 | 1 | 1 | ||
2803800129 | St Elizabeth Boardman Hospital Program | Boardman | OH | No | 107 | 15.2 | 1 | 1 | ||
2803900089 | Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences Program | Tulsa | OK | Yes | 8 | 5 | 1 | 1 | ||
2804100002 | St Luke’s Hospital – Anderson Campus Program | Easton | PA | No | 0 | 2 | 2 | |||
2804100003 | Allegheny Health Network Medical Education Consortium Program | Pittsburgh | PA | No | 0 | 1 | 1 | |||
2804100143 | UPMC Medical Education (Erie) Program | Erie | PA | No | 138 | 10 | 1 | 1 | ||
2804112090 | Geisinger Health System Program | Danville | PA | No | 221 | 10.7 | 2 | 2 | ||
2804121092 | Temple University Hospital Program | Philadelphia | PA | No | 409 | 10.4 | 2 | 2 | ||
2804800001 | Methodist Hospital (Houston) Program | Houston | TX | No | 0 | 0 | ||||
2804800139 | Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center at Lubbock Program | Lubbock | TX | No | 206 | 12.8 | 1 | 1 | ||
2804812138 | Texas A&M College of Medicine-Scott and White Medical Center (Temple) Program | Temple | TX | No | 235 | 7.4 | 1 | 1 | ||
2804821131 | San Antonio Uniformed Services Health Education Consortium Program | JBSA-Fort Sam Houston | TX | No | ||||||
2805011108 | University of Vermont Medical Center Program | Burlington | VT | No | 254 | 8.6 | 1 | 1 | ||
2805121120 | Naval Medical Center (Portsmouth) Program | Portsmouth | VA | No |
Concluding Thoughts
Otolaryngology is a highly competitive specialty for DOs. That said, there are still some places for DOs with over 13 residency programs accepting at least one DO. However, DOs hoping to match in otolaryngology will find it more competitive with only a few programs accepting any DOs.
Are you despairing at your chances of matching into otolaryngology 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.