DO and MD

There are many paths to claiming the title of "Doctor", but there are only two paths through medical school.

DO

Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine

If you earn a DO degree, you will be a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine. Congratulations! You can practice in any healthcare setting and in any specialty and subspecialty. You will be a full-fledged physician capable of seeing patients, writing prescriptions, and all the doctor stuff that comes with the physician title.

Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine learn Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine (OMM) during medical school. With this practice, DO physicians practice osteopathic medicine to treat the whole person, not just the disease. This could include lifestyle changes, mindset, and attitude, or it could suggest surgery and drugs.

MD

Doctor of Medicine

If you earn an MD degree, you will be a Doctor of Medicine. Congratulations! Same as a DO, you can practice in any setting and in any specialty. You are a physician, and you can also do all the doctor stuff.

Doctors of Medicine study allopathic medicine, where they treat a person's disease with treatments that include drug prescriptions and surgery. 

What's the difference?

Both degrees will lead you to become a physician, and both degrees allow you to choose any specialty in any location.