Hi All
I'm a currently practicing PA interested in med school, only option is a carib program, no MCAT's. I have been looking at the U of heath sciences-Antigua, anyone familiar with their 3 year degree for physician assistants, courses via internet or anything else about the program. My state board has approved grads of the school meting licensure requirrements to practice here, so that's not an issue. Any and all info will be appreciated.
Cheers,
kathy

The US Fed State Med Boards has recommended to all states not to accept degrees from diploma mills that offer courses by mail/internet. You should also have none of your previous training accepted for credit by a med school, especially one not accredited to high standards, if you ever want to practice in the USA or Canada.

The US Fed State Med Boards has recommended to all states not to accept degrees from diploma mills that offer courses by mail/internet. You should also have none of your previous training accepted for credit by a med school, especially one not accredited to high standards, if you ever want to practice in the USA or Canada.

I have contacted the med board in ALabama, and this school is not on the list of unacceptable programs. Students are able to sit for USMLEs, the program is WHO listed, chartered and recognized by the council on FMG education. There is a program where students with allied health degrees and 5 years clinical experience are required to spend 4 weeks every 3 months in class on campus. I was interested in hearing from current/former students having any experience with this program, or any one with other legit knowledge. Aprreciate your reply, thanks!

It is a very big risk concerning liscensure if you use online programs.
Another option is to go to carib schools that offer advanced credits for PA, which will allow you to graduate in about 2 and 1/2 years.
Windsor in St Kitts and Hope University in Belize are schools that offer advanced credits.
It is still a risk to transfer advanced credits, but I beleive that it is a definite lesser risk than doing online classes.
Some US school do offer advanced credits.
Check with the boards.
Good luck! :)

It is a very big risk concerning liscensure if you use online programs.
Another option is to go to carib schools that offer advanced credits for PA, which will allow you to graduate in about 2 and 1/2 years.
Windsor in St Kitts and Hope University in Belize are schools that offer advanced credits.
It is still a risk to transfer advanced credits, but I beleive that it is a definite lesser risk than doing online classes.
Some US school do offer advanced credits.
Check with the boards.
Good luck! :)
Thanks for the info and the good wishes. Although you do the basic courses online with this program, you still need a US board certified doc as a mentor while completing them. As stated in an earlier post, have contacted state board of licenses and the will allow practice in my state with a degree from this program. It's really scary the info you need to really check into before attending foreign programs, wish there was a site with all the specifics..if so, I haven't found it. Somethings are a little vague to me.
Thanks again for the reply

Did you know that people frequently register usernames and post messages on here that are actually employees, part-owners, etc of the carib med schools that they are affiliated with? If you do a search you find alot of common new user type questions followed up with answers and a pseudo-defense of the school in which the question is being asked. So beware. If you want to get licensed in the USA I wouldn't do ANY online courses or get any type of advanced credit for a previous degree.

Did you know that people frequently register usernames and post messages on here that are actually employees, part-owners, etc of the carib med schools that they are affiliated with? If you do a search you find alot of common new user type questions followed up with answers and a pseudo-defense of the school in which the question is being asked. So beware. If you want to get licensed in the USA I wouldn't do ANY online courses or get any type of advanced credit for a previous degree.
No, I wasn't aware of that, but will keep the information in mind. I do trust the medical licensing board in my state, can only assume they know who is eligible for licensure and who is not. May be a large assumption when dealing with the state, but what choice do I have? !!! Appreciate your posts, thanks a lot for the info :)

I'm kind of curious as to why you're even bothering to ask this question here. A bunch of people have told you that it isn't a good idea, and that you will have problems later on practicing, but you're just ignoring the advice and seem to be waiting for someone to give you the answer you want. If you're going to go there regardless of warnings not to, then why even bother on here?

There are alot of fake users on these internet forums that do this type of stuff to pseudo-advertise for their school. They set up that valuemedical website and all it is are a bunch of fake users doing their advertisements under the guise of posts to the forums. Some pseudo-advertisements come in the form of questions, some come in the form of bragging about how someone got a 4.0GPA and chose to go to Island University. It's a shady thing, but remember that carib med schools are all for-profit. The owners at even the crappiest schools make big big bucks.

I'm kind of curious as to why you're even bothering to ask this question here. A bunch of people have told you that it isn't a good idea, and that you will have problems later on practicing, but you're just ignoring the advice and seem to be waiting for someone to give you the answer you want. If you're going to go there regardless of warnings not to, then why even bother on here?
What I am trying to do here is to obtain some factual information, or practical information from someone who has hands on experience with these types of programs, but so far all the assistance I seem to be getting are opinions, and we all know the line about them. I am getting the feeling that anyone seeking deserved advance standing due to their previous training and more importantly, experience is rather unwelcomed. My intent is not to be argumentative with anyone, I have no ax to grind here. But when I contact my state medical board and am told that graduates from a specific program are eligible to practice in the state, do I call them liars? Anyone with any personal experience with these programs? I would love to hear from you about those experiences. Again, thanks for your post, good luck to you.

There are alot of fake users on these internet forums that do this type of stuff to pseudo-advertise for their school. They set up that valuemedical website and all it is are a bunch of fake users doing their advertisements under the guise of posts to the forums. Some pseudo-advertisements come in the form of questions, some come in the form of bragging about how someone got a 4.0GPA and chose to go to Island University. It's a shady thing, but remember that carib med schools are all for-profit. The owners at even the crappiest schools make big big bucks.
Being new to this sort of thing, and maybe somewhat uneducated, this thought never ocurred to me. I appreciate the insight, I am always seeking informaton about things which I have scant knowlege, thanks again!

When you contacted the state, did you just give them the name of the school? Or did you specify that you would be recieving advanced standing and completing courses online?

Many states are not aware of what specific schools offer what sort of curriculum. But, you will find that most (if not all) states actually do not recognize internet based offshore schools, nor will they recognize advanced standing.

BTW, your concept of "deserved" recognition is very much debateable. I am of the opinion that medical school credit comes from medical school, not from PA school. There is a very large difference, in my experience, in both breadth and depth of knowledge. Unfortunately, "life experience" doesn't typically transfer to school credit at legitimate universities.

Bottom line: if you want to be an MD, go to medical school. All the way through, and not online. Do it at a reputable school. Realize that state laws change, and many are getting more and more strict every day as far as licensing international doctors are concerned. Perhaps today your state is ok, and perhaps it is because they are pretty clueless about this specific school. Far better to go to a school that actually has a grad working in your state, so you can have some evidence that the school survived whatever scrutiny exists in the licensing process. Having somebody tell you that the school is ok won't hold a lot of water or offer much comfort if several years and thousand dollars down the line you don't actually get a licesne.

PM azskeptic. He has a lot of information about grads of this school that were unable to even list the degree after thier name, and will set you straight about the very real limitations you will suffer if you attend this school.

Again, thanks for your post, good luck to you.

No, good luck to your future patients, who will be getting a doctor that felt it unnecessary to attend med school for real. Online medical degrees...holy crow, I never thought I'd see the day. :eek: