Podiatry requires advanced training, but is not the same as obtaining a medical degree. There are only nine podiatry schools in the US, and attending an accredited one is important for those planning to practice in the US. Another option is attending medical school and specializing in orthopedics.
Podiatry is a specialized medical profession that involves advanced or postgraduate training to obtain a degree that may be called a PhD, DPM (Doctor of Podiatry Medicine), or Pod. D (PhD in podiatry). While this profession is deeply concerned with the medical treatment of ailments of the feet, ankles, and anything from the knee down, it is not the same as obtaining a medical degree. Most medical specialists have been trained at a sequential level to provide the most basic medical care with the greatest advancement in their specialty. Podiatrists could not establish a GP practice if they chose to, as they are not physicians as that term is commonly understood. This is important to understand because it can determine the path of the person looking at podiatry schools: attending a podiatry school in lieu of medical school, or attending medical school and then specializing as an orthopedist, who is also trained to treat foot disorders.
One of the issues when choosing a podiatry school is that there aren’t many. In countries like the US, there are only nine currently. Choosing the best podiatry school can be done in the USA. Schools are located in Arizona, California, Florida, Iowa, Illinois, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Periodically, new schools are added. There are a few podiatry schools in the Caribbean, but anyone planning a practice in the US will want to attend a school that is accredited by the Board of Podiatric Medical Education.
In all cases, people can expect podiatry school to last four years and to be a combination of intense study in the first two years, more or less on par with medical school studies, and then two years of practice, internship and internship. Really, the practical details of where to go may depend on which schools are closest, which are most admired by the applicant, and which schools accept the applicant. Since there are so few, getting in can be competitive.
Another option people have if they want to practice specialized foot practices is to attend medical school and then specialize in orthopedics. Obviously, this is a longer way to go, but there are many more medical schools to attend and more orthopedic residencies. However, orthopedics is not limited to foot care. An alternative option may be available in which licensed physicians apply to podiatry school instead of doing a specialty in orthopedics. This will still take about the same amount of time as medical school and specialty, although some chiropody schools wave in the first year of studies if medical school studies are recent.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
