filipino med schools [Archive] - Page 2 - Student Doctor Network Forums

phlipsquad

03-01-2005, 06:35 AM

Well my dad was handling it for me I guess...and didn't see the point in me coming in prior to just get an interview. So I have to have it in May when I arrive there....well that's what I got so far. But I'm still waiting on FEU I guess decision and go from there.

Hey I heard the area near UST floods sometimes..is that true..and how high is the water levels. And do you have to wear a uniform of white shirt and white pants?

Hi Golden,
I know it floods there. Personally for me, who cares? My main concern is studying in a great school, and from what I have been hearing from research and word of mouth in the Philippines, UP and UST are supposed to be the top two medical schools in the country. Hence, I am gonna say yes and enroll for the UST med class for this year. Well, I hope to see you in UST this June. I already found my apartment...right across the hospital and med school. It's all about convenience. Anyone else out there going to UST this June?

car2x

03-02-2005, 08:24 PM

I was wondering if anyone could help me decide on something before applying for a philippine medical school.

I have emailed DLSU and St.Lukes and they told me that they don't require applicants like me to take the "recommended" courses before medical school and I should concentrate on getting a good score on the NMAT.

However, I don't have any science background at all. I'm about to graduate with a BA in Psychology from a Canadian university and would like to get into med school. But, I'm afraid that my lack of knowledge in the sciences could affect my performance in medschool and the NMAT. Although, I am thinking of studying for the NMAT from this coming April until december or next april...would this be sufficient time to study for the NMAT with a private tutor even without any science courses taken in university?

Spartan Doc

03-04-2005, 12:11 AM

Philip- your bravado is commendable. When I first got to FEU, it was in Morayta, next to UST, and I lived right next to UST in fact on P noval. I remember hearing about the floods and saying the same thing... Then the first flood ocurred... And you will quickly learn to care.
The rats that run throughout the street try to find dry shelter,and that usually ends up being your apartment, flood waters reached well above my knees, and streets became impassible by cars and buses. You soon become hypersensitive of the symptoms of leptospirosis, and run mental algorhythms why you don't have it.
Then once those flood waters recede, which can take 2-3 days, you become well aware of dengue fever, and you find yourself throwing a BP cuff on your arm for several minutes and look for petechiae in your antecubital spaces. Oh the fun of living in Morayta.

Golden- Yup, you will wear a white uniform, which brings great prestige, but also makes you an easy target for robbers. I saw your post on another thread about buying a laptop and other questions. I had a laptop, and would recommend one, just hide it in your apartment. With all the medical software and internet sites, being able to bring it places will be a big plus. They do have cable internet service, it is in its infancy and might be a little expensive, but nothing your american dollar can't handle. Stay away from internet cafe's, connections are too slow.

My advice to you guys is this. Be wary of those who have nothing to lose... the philippines is a great place to live, but it is a third world country. You will live amongst some people who have little to nothing, treat them with respect and they will respect you. Treat them poorly and the next thing you know, your laundry is stolen, your apartment is broken into, or they play music at decibels above that interfere with your ability to study.

lastly Henry- FEU is a great school, if you can graduate from there, you will be very, very prepared to handle medicine anywhere you want to practice. Up til about 5 years ago, it consistently ranked top 10 in the philippine boards, and currently has placed many graduates into US residency programs. But it is a tough school to get through. Unlike UST, UP and UE, the fatality rate as you go from year to year is very high. What this means is that nearly 1/2 of the first year students don't make it to 2nd year, and sometimes up to 1/4 of the 2nd year students don't make it to 3rd year. There are multiple factors that cause this, but the main thing is that the testing is not appropriate. Many tests are fill in the blank, which is not typical in medicine. Or the questions so obscure, only those with photographic memory stand a chance. But if you make it through, you will be able to compete with anyone. When I was a clerk, my knowledge base was equal to clerks from UE, St. Lukes and fatima, and equal to the PGIs from UP and UST that I encountered.
But I graduated 3 years ago, FEU may not be as "toxic" as it was and things may have gotten better.

phlipsquad

03-04-2005, 06:05 AM

phlipsquad

03-04-2005, 06:36 AM

phlipsquad

03-04-2005, 06:44 AM

Hey Spartan,
I have a question for you. I really want to get honors in medical school and I am trying to put a positive mindset on this particular goal. It's just that you mentioned in a previous post that medtech grads from the phils did very well, since they have taken some of the classes offered in medical school. Im a biology grad but I have taken Anatomy, Physiology, Histology, Immunology, Biochemistry, Physical Chemistry, Microbiology, Endocrinology, and Genetics. I hope this will help me out. In college, I did my best to challenge mysely by taking tough classes and went beyond the requirements of my major. So, in you opinion, would I have a good chance of getting honors when I graduate? You seem very smart, Did you get honors in med school? Is it difficult to attain. I know as a medical student, you are competing against very very smart people. I hope I'll get honors

By the way Spartan,
Those classes I got mostly A's and B+s (except for a B in Physical Chem ---TOUGHIE). I guess it would be useless to take these classes and bomb them anyway. Thank God I did good in them and hopefully, It will come to good use.

ktownpinay

03-04-2005, 10:31 AM

Spartan Doc

03-04-2005, 10:53 AM

phlipsquad

03-04-2005, 01:20 PM

ktown- don't worry, your MCAT prep should be just fine for the NMAT, the psychology part is not too big a deal. But if I were you, I would use the Philippines as your last option. Try to look at your application to the US med schools and if it has not been successful, try to assess why... is it GPA? do you need research? have you tried applying to DO schools?
I work with several DOs and they are equal to MDs, there is a little bias out there as far as getting into a residency program, but the DO bias is slight compared to the bias against International medical grads.

Philipsquad- honors is a difficult thing to do. i honored in some classes, but for the most part was a slightly above average student in medical school. I have been told that I am a superior resident though.
So what I am trying to say is that honors in medical school does not necessarily make you a good doctor. But what honors can do is put you in a position for residency in a better lifestyle or a more income generating specialty.
Honors in the Philippines though does not necessarily translate into good board scores, There are plenty of students who ranked higher than me in medical school, but when it came to the USMLE... I got better scores. And i think the reason for this is that the testing style in the Philippines is much different from the US.
If I were you, I would study hard, and try to get an understanding of the material. The tests in the philippines don't always test for understanding of important concepts, instead they pick on minor things to see if you have attention to detail. Now if you really understand the material well, this attention to detail will come. But if you try to just memorize the details to ace the test, without truly understanding the pathophysiology, you will suffer later. Especially on the USMLE
Besides grades don't really matter to residency program directors, especially if you are a foreign grad... because the grading and testing manner is not comparable to US schools. What program directors want to see is how well you do on your USMLE.
sorry for my rambling, I am still post call. But in quick summary what I am trying to say is this... study hard with the goal of preparing for the USMLE. If while preparing for the USMLE, that means you ace your classes then icing on the cake.

Is there really a great bias with IMGs versus American grads?
Personally, based on my experiences working with both, I hardly see any (although I hear it exists). I mean, I work as a Pulmonary function technician in NYC (St. Luke's hospital )and I work under 3 pulmonologists. Two graduated from Lebanon and one from NY. One of the FMG graduate is the director of the Respiratory Unit. They are all equal and it seems that even the foreign grad had more of a superiority in the practice (one might consider since he has been there longer). I think once someone proves himself to be a competent doctor, it does not matter where he graduated from med school. In addition, the two docs from Lebanon each have 4 specialties (Pulmonary, Critical Care, Sleep medicine, and internal med). P.S. Since these docs are my good friends, I asked them all a similar question which was " How many times were you asked by your patients where you went to med school?" The NY grad said once and he has been practicing for about 10 years. He told me that patients don't care where their doctors graduated as long as they have heard good things about the person through referrals and as long as they accept their insurance. As for pay, I have friends in accounting and they tell me that the FMG, who is the director, gets paid the most out of all three.

phlipsquad

03-04-2005, 01:49 PM

Hi Everybody, and I just wanted to say thanks for your great responses regarding this topic. Im currently trying to get into medical school here in the states but my future looks really unclear. I'm 22 y/o and live in Hawaii. So my mom just threw at me just recently for me to go to PI in April to take the NMAT.

So here's the thing.
1) I took the MCAT twice and took the Princeton Review. Is that enough to take care of the sciences part of the NMAT or do I need to send for an NMAT book from the PI?

2) I got a sample NMAT test from that testing center and I'm freaking out because it's also asking psychology and ecology questions that the MCAT never asked. I've taken these classes before but it was about 3 years ago and I don't rememeber anything! I'm thinking of investing into a psych book and an ecology book. Is that a good idea?

3) Lastly, how am I supposed to study for this thing in about one month??? I really need help and would appreciate any advice.

Thanks everybody and keep up the good job. I look forward to your replies! Maraming Salamat and as we say in Hawaii, "MAHALO!"

Hey K-town,
Don't freak out, you are more than prepared if you took the MCAT. The NMAT is a much much easier test. It tests all basic science facts and concepts. Anyway, Don't freak out on the psychology. Let me tell you my experience, since I was in the same boat just last year. I am a bio grad and for my social science requirement in college, I only took 2 anthropology classes since I made use of my classes by taking classes that interested me and prepared me for med school- like upper level sciences. Anyway,I freaked out when I found out that there was a social science section in the test. I got nervous since I have never taken a psychology class or sociology class (which made up the majority of the social science section) What I did? I went to google and searched for psychology and sociology notes and outlines from different universities. I read them and tried to comprehend as much as I could ( In 2 weeks). Surprisingly, my social science section , I did better than my physics section (physics was my worst section, cause I hate and am not that great in physics anyway). Nevertheless, there are many other sections and if you do great on them, you will still get a good average score. Anyway, it was a surprise to me to have gotten a score in the 90th percentile, even without having taken sociology and psychology. So, don't stress too much about it! I wish I did not have to.

ktownpinay

03-04-2005, 06:07 PM

Wow, thanks for the words of comfort. Hopefully you're right. So just look for online notes for psych? I'll take your word for it. And trust me, PI is really my last option. But we'll see what happens. Any more advice is more than welcomed! Thanks!

hnerypaoho

03-04-2005, 06:37 PM

-thanks Doc Spartan! you've been very helpful! i hope you're right about the thing it isn't "toxic" now as it was before. coz quite frankly my already 3 years late compare to the average age of the freshman in medicine. but age doesn't matter isn't it?! and i keep thinking that if i was able to pass the board exams for medical technology in the phili 3 years ago. i think i could handle the stressful days in med school. especially feu.. if you could compare among the top school. is there any advantage for feu grads? do they have a good program in "hands-on" or practical training from 1st-4th year particularly in clerkship rotation? and also, if ou won't mind.. are you practicing the profession in the phil? thanks again! GOD BLESS

Spartan Doc

03-05-2005, 12:22 AM

Is there really a great bias with IMGs versus American grads?
Personally, based on my experiences working with both, I hardly see any (although I hear it exists). I mean, I work as a Pulmonary function technician in NYC (St. Luke's hospital )and I work under 3 pulmonologists. Two graduated from Lebanon and one from NY. One of the FMG graduate is the director of the Respiratory Unit. They are all equal and it seems that even the foreign grad had more of a superiority in the practice (one might consider since he has been there longer). I think once someone proves himself to be a competent doctor, it does not matter where he graduated from med school. In addition, the two docs from Lebanon each have 4 specialties (Pulmonary, Critical Care, Sleep medicine, and internal med). P.S. Since these docs are my good friends, I asked them all a similar question which was " How many times were you asked by your patients where you went to med school?" The NY grad said once and he has been practicing for about 10 years. He told me that patients don't care where their doctors graduated as long as they have heard good things about the person through referrals and as long as they accept their insurance. As for pay, I have friends in accounting and they tell me that the FMG, who is the director, gets paid the most out of all three.

What I find is that the older docs don't tend to recognize the discrimination that they face. Just look at other discussions on student doctor network, and you will see the IMG bashing by US grads. Look at the statistics, a majority of IMGs get residency positions in lower tier university programs or settle for primary care residencies. IMG bias is very real.

While it is true that as you get older, start to look distinguished, and gain a reputation, patients will ask less frequently about your credentials. But there isn't 1 month that goes by that I have a patient ask me where I went to medical school, and they don't do it to be judging most of the time, usually its to make conversation... also I am blessed with Filipino genes that makes me look 10-12 years younger than I actually am, so people get curious cuz they think I am too baby faced to be their doc. I don't think my patients respect me less though cuz I am a foreign grad, I get good feedback, but patients do ask.

But getting into a residency program, you will face the bias about being an IMG. Get used to it, accept it and move on. Its just another obstacle, another hurdle. You will just have to work harder and score higher to get where you want to go. And some doors.. such as a dermatology residency, a radiation oncology residency and other high pay, ideal work hour specialties are usually closed except to the extremely exeptional IMG candidates (high scores, research with pubilcations and good people skills)

I did a 1 month clerkship rotation in New York, I felt the bias, all of my friends that have done residency here have felt the bias. But once you gain respect, and people learn to trust you, your where you went to med school becomes less of an issue. But each time you go some place new, you will have to work to overcome the IMG stigma. It just a fact of life.

Hnery- FEU always tries to tout themselves as the producing docs with good practical skills. This usually describes those that attended FEU for medical technology, cuz they are real good at drawing blood and art sticks. Which for clerks is a big deal. But I felt I was no better than students from other schools as far as my practical skills. My opinion is this, the school does not make a good doctor. The students desire and willingness to work hard is what will make you a good doctor. And no.. I am not practicing in the Philippines right now... I am in the US

hnerypaoho

03-05-2005, 02:09 AM

-thanks again doc spartan! i over look the reply you made about bias with IMGs.. eventhough it's rude. but it's a fact right? especially when you came from a third world country.. but on the contrary, we tend to work harder than those US grad and take suggestions with open hands. we are also good in letting our patients feel easy with us, as if we knew them for a long time. so i count on you to build up a good reputation for IMGs like us and kick the butts for all those people who discriminate us.. by the way, i'm a filipino-chinese (chinese in race but born and raised in the phil), what should i do for me to get in to a residency program in us? the only thing i know is pass ths usmle.. do the hospitals in the US give working permit once your're accepted in their programs? thanks again!

GoldenAzn

03-05-2005, 06:52 PM

Hi Everybody, and I just wanted to say thanks for your great responses regarding this topic. Im currently trying to get into medical school here in the states but my future looks really unclear. I'm 22 y/o and live in Hawaii. So my mom just threw at me just recently for me to go to PI in April to take the NMAT.

So here's the thing.
1) I took the MCAT twice and took the Princeton Review. Is that enough to take care of the sciences part of the NMAT or do I need to send for an NMAT book from the PI?

2) I got a sample NMAT test from that testing center and I'm freaking out because it's also asking psychology and ecology questions that the MCAT never asked. I've taken these classes before but it was about 3 years ago and I don't rememeber anything! I'm thinking of investing into a psych book and an ecology book. Is that a good idea?

3) Lastly, how am I supposed to study for this thing in about one month??? I really need help and would appreciate any advice.

Thanks everybody and keep up the good job. I look forward to your replies! Maraming Salamat and as we say in Hawaii, "MAHALO!"

Hey don't worry too much about studying for the NMAT...if you studied for the MCAT you should do okay. Honestly I didn't study for the exam and tried to look at my Kaplan notecards for practice during the airplane flight over to NY for the testing center. And even then I was playing with the games on Delta Song. I actuallly looked at the practice exam for the first time that night at the airport. While yeah it had some new stuff..honestly I think MCAT you did in the pass would be fine. I mean I Christmas treed the number section/code thing (or whatever it was) of the NMAT since I didn't know what to do and guessed on the rest. I scored in the high 80s for the test so you shouldn't really worry about it. Yeah I score low on the parts I had no clue what to do it averaged out with the other scores...that's my 2 cents on it. Good luck when you take it.

DocTan

03-05-2005, 07:21 PM

I totally agree with Spartan Doc. The IMG bias definitely exists. I am preparing to apply to residency in Surgery and most of the hospitals are off limits to IMG's. Even if you have excellent board scores most hospitals never see your application because it is filtered out. From my research on General Surgery programs, I would say 80-100 program out of 252 give IMG's a chance to apply. The other 152 programs wont even take a look at your application. Orthro Surg, Urology, and NeuroSurg wont even give an IMG the time of day. Their are some exceptions, but the odds are really against an IMG. In reality, IMG's typically can find residencies in the fields of IM, FP, Psych, maybe OB/GYN , Gen Surg, ER med. Anyways, for those coming to the Philippines to go to med school, good luck and do your best!

aileen47

03-06-2005, 10:58 AM

hnerypaoho

03-06-2005, 08:19 PM

-hi aileen.. first of all, congratulations by being accepted in feu and ue. well, for me.. i think both schools have a good reputation in terms of board ratings and in the mind of all filipinos. both of the schools have been offering medice course for decades now. but what i heared is, if you want to pursue neurological fields in you residency. choose ue.. coz they provide better facilities for that kind of field there.. but, i must tell you.. if you go to ue.. you have to prepare your lungs for the lethal carbon monoxide that the cars, buses and jeepneys pumps out.. not like in feu, where the hospital or school is located in a secluded place.. where it is quiet and relaxiing.. and if you're looking for challenges and a situation where you will end up in "survival of the fitess".. feu is the school for you.. like doc spartan said, if you're able to graduate in feu.. be confident that you can practice the profession sucessfully anywhere you like.. even during clerkship year.. you will have the same knowledge as with the top ranks schools and medical interns.. for pbl vs taditional.. statistics say that student had harder times studying with the pbl system. and the traditional method is more appropriate for med students. and as for me, i'm also a freshman for this coming school year.. and i'm most likely leaning towards feu.. so, in case you chose feu.. maybe i'll see you around.. may GOD bless us!

DocTan

03-06-2005, 11:41 PM

Hi,
I just got accepted to feu med for the incoming freshman class of 2005. I also got accepted to UERM. I am choosing between feu and UE. I just want to make sure I am making the right decision. What do you guys think? Is feu better than UE? in terms of facilities? medical board rate? tuition fee? educational system? what are the advantages/ disadv of ue over feu? or vice versa? which educational system is better pbl or traditional? Any comments would be appreciated. thank you!

Hi Aileen. Let me first start by saying that both schools have an excellent reputation in the Philippines. So whatever you chose, you won't go wrong. However, with that said, I will comment on your questions.

First of all, you have to ask yourself what your goal is. Is it to stay in the Philippines to practice medicine or go back to the States immediately after you graduate? If you are a fil-am and want to go back immediately I think UE is your choice. Why?

1. PBL- in my opinion PBL teaches you how to think like the USMLE. Look at the facts, most of the top US medical schools are on the PBL system such as Washington University, Harvard, and Hopkins. Why? Because it is easier to learn medicine when you integrate all the subjects and concentrate on the patient as a whole. Basic sciences integrated with clinical practice really helps you apply what you learn when dealing with patients. Since everything in PBL is case based, you are more accustomed to answering clinical vignettes such as on the USMLE. Of course, if you are the type of student that needs to be spoon feed and not very diligent in studying on your own, then PBL is not for you.

2. Affiliation with US hospital- I am not sure if FEU has an affiliate hospital in the US, but UE does. We are allowed to do our clerkships (J-Intern year) in the States. How will this help you? Clinical experience in the US is essential in getting a residency; at least residency directors know that you have some idea of how to practice medicine in the US. Some programs require you to have at least 6 months of training in the US. Secondly, Letter's of Recommendation from US Doctors are golden when applying for residency. In addition, if you are not fluent in Tagalog you will have a tough time in clerkship, because History Taking is mostly done in Tagalog.

Lastly, I have to comment on the location of both schools. It is true that UERM is located along Aurora Blvd which is a very very busy street. And our campus (factory) is not to be desired. But we are located in the center of manila, so going to place like makati, greenhills, and quezon city is pretty convenient. Now that the light rail transit is open, we can get to anywhere in the city by train. FEU is pretty far out and I don't believe that the trains reach the FEU campus. You probably have to take a bus or taxi to get to Makati or Manila.

So...although UERM might not have the best campus, it is located in a pretty convenient
place. PBL is more suited for USMLE, while traditional medical programs are better suited for the Philippine Boards. And clinical experience in the US is essential in getting a residency of your choice. It really comes down to what your goals are.

hnerypaoho

03-07-2005, 05:41 AM

-I would agree on what doc tan said.. he's right! it's all up to us for to get our desired success.. and for doc tan or for those who are reading this message.. we already knew that bias on IMG's do exist.. and no matter how good our medical schools are, discriminations will still be there.. and you're gotta prove something before being accepted in a selected residency program.. so what i think is, no matter which teaching system you went into.. at the end, it's all your hardwork that will get you somewhere.

phlipsquad

03-07-2005, 07:41 AM

phlipsquad

03-07-2005, 08:28 AM

hnerypaoho

03-07-2005, 10:27 PM

-yup! i myself can't stop thinking after 2 years of doubts and obstacles. i'm finally going to pursue my dream.. so if there's anybody here going to feu! just give me a message and maybe we could help each other all the way.. and make our stay there a worthwhile.. God Bless us all!

phlipsquad

03-08-2005, 06:55 AM

hnerypaoho

03-08-2005, 04:55 PM

-so how about you philipsquad? have any school in mind? maybe you could consider feu.. :meanie:

fremitus

03-09-2005, 01:36 AM

I tolatlly agree with hnerypaoho's statement that if you want to go into the neurological field go UE. Anyway, I'm an FEU grad currently doing my internship here at the FEU Medical Center and I have plans of going into a Neurology residency either after Internal Medicine or if possible in a straight program. If I could turn back the hands of time, I might have gone to UE instead, not because I think I would have gotten a better medical education there, but because if at that time I had known that I wanted to go into neurology, I might have gone to UE. But looking back, it might have been more feasible if i went to to UE because I actually live 2 mins from UE. I also agree with the notion that if you want you want to under go "survival of the fittest" go to FEU. But in my opinion, choosing between FEU and UE is basically choosing between Traditional and PBL. Hey hope to see you guys around, especially if you choose FEU and If I go into Internal Medicine there. Good luck! I think either way, FEU or UE, you can't go wrong!

hnerypaoho

03-09-2005, 05:20 AM

-nice to hear from you fremitus! anyway, i want to ask fremitus that, does feu provides an excellent hands-on tranining? how about the internship program? does feu let you guys have rotations in th us?

phlipsquad

03-09-2005, 05:48 AM

-so how about you philipsquad? have any school in mind? maybe you could consider feu.. :meanie:
Hi Hnery,
I already got accepted and will enroll in University of Santo Tomas (UST) for this coming June. I thought about applying to FEU but in the end just chose UE and UST.

phlipsquad

03-09-2005, 09:53 AM

hnerypaoho

03-09-2005, 04:38 PM

Spartan Doc

03-09-2005, 08:59 PM

While UE does have good neurology professors, simply graduating medical school from there will not make you a good neurlogist. You may get a good base of knowledge, but not enough to practice successfully

What really makes a doctor is their residency training. And if you go further, their fellowship training. If you want to be a good neurologist in the Philippines, then getting into neurology residency at UE would be what you want. Going to UE may get you the connections to help you get into their neurology residency program though. And as far as surgery... PGH, Jose Reyes, UST have always had strong RESIDENCY programs. San Lazaro, PGH, has a strong infectious disease program

So keep that in mind, most of the top medical schools in the Philippines will give you a good base of knowledge if you are willing to sacrifice and study hard, and work hard. But choosing a school just for a certain specialty is pre-mature.

Also- about 75% of med students that went in to medical school eyeing a particular specialty end up changing their minds come graduation. So dream big, but try to learn what you can in all your classes, both your favorites and those that you hate. Because you never know where your future is headed until it arrives. You will hear plenty of stories of docs that hated OB in school only to find themselves practicing this their entire career.

As far as PBL... Harvard has scaled back its PBL, this ocurred about 2-3 years ago, because they found their graduates had lower scores on standardized tests and clinically were a little behind compared to other schools. And so while PBL was en vogue about 5 years ago... the pendulum has now begun to swing the other way... With a hybrid of sorts combining PBL and the more traditional methods of teaching.

in regards to affiliation with US hospitals... FEU does not have this, but many fil-ams- me included found clerkships in the US on our own. Going to a school just because they have affiliations is a definite plus though. But there is a high price. Those schools that have affiliations...ie Fatima pay a large amount... I don't remember the exact cost. But because I found the clerkships on my own and not through my school, I did not have to pay nearly as much.

also, searching for a clerkship ended up being a good thing for me, becaue it forced me to learn to contact programs, compare programs, and interact with programs in the US... all essential to obtaining a residency spot.
Besides, who wants to do clerkships with their classmates from medical school... go to a program where you don't know anybody, it will force you to get to know other people, expand your network, and learn to survive on your own.

One thing that med school in the Philippines did not teach me is to survive on my own. Throughout med school, we worked in groups even in clerkship and PGI, the docs are always in groups, see patient together, treat togther, there are lots of group projects etc. The comraderie is fun and I miss that
But in US residency and in practice in general, it is just you and the patient. You don't get to turn to the doc in the next office after each patient and ask... "so what do you think?"

thugqueen

03-10-2005, 12:51 AM

ei guys this is one of my first posts!! :)
i just got accepted to st. lukes college of med

is it in the top ten filipino med schools?
what do you guys think?

hnerypaoho

03-10-2005, 03:59 AM

phlipsquad

03-10-2005, 06:10 AM

phlipsquad

03-10-2005, 06:31 AM

ei guys this is one of my first posts!! :)
i just got accepted to st. lukes college of med

is it in the top ten filipino med schools?
what do you guys think?

Hi Thugqueen,
I heard alot of good things about St. Luke's from a resident friend of mine in the hospital who graduated from UP. He gave me some advice when I applied to schools in the Philippines and mentioned the schools where I should apply to. He said UP, UST, UE, FEU, St. Luke's and DeLasalle are all good ones. Nevertheless, what makes St. Luke's special he said, was their hospital. It's supposed to be the most technologically advanced out of most, if not all hospitals in Manila.

phlipsquad

03-10-2005, 06:56 AM

-well as for ust, i think they are more in general medicine this kind of stuff.. if you really want to be better in neurology. better consider ue.. anyway, just like everybody said.. you won't get wrong with ust, ue and feu.. coz these schools are among of the top ranking! and for me, i'm considering surgery or infectious disease in the future.. and any suggestions would be appreciated!
Hnery,
UST has a very good surgery program/ residency. Personally, I met a friend of my aunt who is a surgeon in LA who graduated from UST. There is also a website which lists some practicing filipino doctors here in the states (www.doctorko.com). It lists some filipino physicians in all specialites. Iv'e looked at this site a few times and for general surgery, I noticed that UP and UST had the majority of surgeons here in the States. Did you ever consider UST or were you already commited to FEU?

phlipsquad

03-10-2005, 07:03 AM

Hnery,
UST has a very good surgery program/ residency. Personally, I met a friend of my aunt who is a surgeon in LA who graduated from UST. There is also a website which lists some practicing filipino doctors here in the states (www.doctorko.com). It lists some filipino physicians in all specialites. Iv'e looked at this site a few times and for general surgery, I noticed that UP and UST had the majority of surgeons here in the States. Did you ever consider UST or were you already commited to FEU?

CORRECTION. I gave the wrong website. Sorry. I posted this website earlier in the thread and assumed it was just doktorko.com. The CORRECT website is www.doktorko.com/index.php P.S. You have to look under general surgery, and also some of the docs listed are practicing in the phils so you just have to rummage through the list and look at the docs link individually.

GoldenAzn

03-10-2005, 01:27 PM

-thanks for the info doc spartan. you're right about eyeing a specialty for now. we freshman still have a long way ahead of us. and we'll never know what path will we run into. but, no matter how hard working or smart are we.. it's all up to God's grace. HE is the one who we should get inspiration from. coz HE is the only "Master Physician" and there is no certain disease that is not curable for HIM.. so guys, before we step in our class at the first day of school. we should drop by the church to offer a prayer and thank HIM..
by the way, is there anybody here that is heading for feu this school year?

I'm still considering between UST and FEU to be honest. I'll be going there around May to figure out which school I want. But I think I'm leaning honestly to UST more.

Hey phlipsquad I sent ya a pm concerning your living arrangments in UST..so I can get an idea of what I should expect. If you have aim...and wanna talk through that pm me back with your sn.

hnerypaoho

03-10-2005, 07:46 PM

phlipsquad

03-11-2005, 05:45 AM

-well to tell you the truth philsquad.. i'd consider several schools, like up, ue, ust, plm and feu.. but it all went down to feu.. the only reason is, i got a humiliating score in nmat exams last 2001. and i didn't consider to take it again coz of the time and money that i would spend on it.. and feu is the only school who accepted me. coz they said that i have a good GPA from my pre-med course.. anyway, i think feu isn't a bad choice. i mean. it has a good reputation and i believe there's also a lot of it's graduates practicing not only in the states but all over the world where's people.. right??
Of course, FEU is a top notch school, and I believe is in the top five. As most of our resident mentors mentioned, it really depends MORE on the student than the school. So good luck in FEU hnery. P.S. Do you know if FEU has a cutoff for the NMAT? I know UE and UST does. It's just that I have a friend who did not get a good grade in the NMAT but is still looking at good schools in the Phils. Nevertheless, I think the NMAT is not really a good indicator of how one will perform in med school. Besides the sciences, the other sections I think are useless.

phlipsquad

03-11-2005, 06:08 AM

I'm still considering between UST and FEU to be honest. I'll be going there around May to figure out which school I want. But I think I'm leaning honestly to UST more.

Hey phlipsquad I sent ya a pm concerning your living arrangments in UST..so I can get an idea of what I should expect. If you have aim...and wanna talk through that pm me back with your sn.

Golden,
I have a sn, but I rarely check my email.The best way is just to post me here in this thread. As for living arrangements in UST, I am on the waiting list for a room in this building which is CONVENIENTLY located across the street from San Juan De dios Hospital, UST's teaching hospital. Since it is still fully occupied, they cannot give me the room for now. The good thing with this building is that they have security guards. It is also close to the med school and most of the foreign students live here. There are two buildings (Condo style) in that same street. I'll keep you up to date with my situation.
P.S. You got accepted to FEU already? It's just that if you did, Don't you have to respond to their acceptance offer by a particular date? I mean, UE gave me two weeks to respond or else they were suppose to give away my acceptance to "another deserving applicant." I just want to let you know that during that 2 week timespan, I did not get my acceptance from UST yet. What a dilemma. Anyway, It's a good thing I got accepted to UST ironically, 3 days after the UE deadline. If not, I would have been unable to go to both, since my response time to UE would have been too late. Sorry for the babble, but did FEU give you a response timeframe? So Golden, If you do have a due date for a response to your FEU acceptance, Be careful! I know you told me your UST interview is still in may? That might be too late for FEU to wait for your decision.

hnerypaoho

03-11-2005, 06:23 AM

I have a sn, but I rarely check my email.The best way is just to post me here in this thread. As for living arrangements in UST, I am on the waiting list for a room in this building which is CONVENIENTLY located across the street from San Juan De dios Hospital, UST's teaching hospital. Since it is still fully occupied, they cannot give me the room for now. The good thing with this building is that they have security guards. It is also close to the med school and most of the foreign students live here. There are two buildings (Condo style) in that same street. I'll keep you up to date with my situation.
P.S. You got accepted to FEU already? It's just that if you did, Don't you have to respond to their acceptance offer by a particular date? I mean, UE gave me two weeks to respond or else they were suppose to give away my acceptance to "another deserving applicant." I just want to let you know that during that 2 week timespan, I did not get my acceptance from UST. What a dilemma. Anyway, It's a good thing I got accepted to UST. If not, I would have been unable to go to both, since my response time to UE would have been to late. Sorry for the babble, but did FEU give you a response timeframe?

-Well, it's not actually a timeframe for a response.. they just notified me that i've been accepted and try to enrol until the 18th of this month. or else, they would give the spot for a "forst come, first serve" basis.. anyway. i think i will ask my friend in the phil. to do the necessary paper works for enrollment. coz i don't want to end up as a "BUM".. and yes! they have a cut-off for nmat. but they give more importance for your pre-med grades. the reason why i got accepted in feu. by the way, are you still in the us? so when will you be heading to the phil? coz you have to settle your things there before entering the first day of school. and do you have any info in which specialty is feu famous of? like ue for neurology and ust and up for surgery..

phlipsquad

03-11-2005, 10:25 AM

-Well, it's not actually a timeframe for a response.. they just notified me that i've been accepted and try to enrol until the 18th of this month. or else, they would give the spot for a "forst come, first serve" basis.. anyway. i think i will ask my friend in the phil. to do the necessary paper works for enrollment. coz i don't want to end up as a "BUM".. and yes! they have a cut-off for nmat. but they give more importance for your pre-med grades. the reason why i got accepted in feu. by the way, are you still in the us? so when will you be heading to the phil? coz you have to settle your things there before entering the first day of school. and do you have any info in which specialty is feu famous of? like ue for neurology and ust and up for surgery..
Hi Hnery,
I am leaving NY May 23. Classes in UST start on June 13. Hence, I have some time to visit my hometown in the Visayan Islands and hopefully, enjoy the beach and the sun before all the hard work for the years to come.
By the way, I do not know what FEU is good at....specialty wise. Sorry.

P.S. To all the incoming med Freshman out there. Do you guys speak Tagalog or Cebuano?

hnerypaoho

03-11-2005, 08:40 PM

bleudsky

03-11-2005, 11:36 PM

bleudsky

03-11-2005, 11:38 PM

to those who are interested about what specialty FEU is known for ----

It's PEDIATRICS!!!

phlipsquad

03-14-2005, 05:41 AM

- I see.. coz i'm heading back to the phil maybe around 1st week of June. and I'm one of those guys that could speak tagalog. but not cebuano.. hey, maybe we might bump up with each other during our clerkship or others! I just hope we could get along when that happened!

Hey Hnery,
Im fluent in cebuano, but unfortunately my tagalog is rusty since I do not use it here in the states. That is why I watch tagalog movies to try to improve my tagalog. I can comprehend pretty much 100 % but when I speak its "taglish" if you know what I mean. I hope I will be fluent ASAP when I go to Manila. I do not want to be talking in English to the local Filipinos. My father was tagalog, though I have not lived with him in 10 years.Anyway, I do hope to bump into you during clerkships. Good Luck.

hnerypaoho

03-14-2005, 05:51 AM

-so why don't you go to cebu to attend med school? coz i heard that they have excellent schools there.. don't worry! you'll learn tagalog in a jippy once you get to manila! and if i were you.. try to learn "Phil-English".. for you to stay out of trouble.. coz some of the filipinos hate people speaking english with an american accent!

phlipsquad

03-14-2005, 09:20 AM

hello!

i'm a newbie here. i'm a 3rd yr medical student in UST.

speaking filipino is an advantage especially when you take your patient's history and perform physical exam and/or when you just check on them. most of the time, your patients come from the lower class level. though they comprehend english, you can't always guarantee that they understand what you told them and when they ask you advices (ie. are we allowed to take a bath, what foods can we eat, etc.), you have to reply to them in filipino.

in case you'd like to know, UST already released the list of eligible applicants weeks ago. they set a deadline for the reservation of slots & compliance w/ their requirements. if u were admitted but didn't comply with the requirements and paid the reservation fee on time, they'll give your slot to someone else (in the waiting list).

hope to meet or bump into some of you at St. Martin De Porres Building. :)
Hi Bluedsky,
Welcome to the Forum! I am quite glad to see a UST med student here in the forum. I am attending UST med this June as a freshman. Bluedsky, I was just wondering if you could give me some advice on doing well in the first year. It's just that I went to this UST forum for med students, and most of the first year are complaining of studying too much and bombing their tests anyway. Is it true that 1st year is the most difficult year? Its just that I am already reviewing some concepts in biochem, anatomy, physiology, and histology....from books in undergrad when I took all those classes. I started memorizing the bones , muscles, fossas, and foramens. You think that would help? What about for biochem? Should I start with memorizing the structures of all 20 amino acids? I'm planning on doing that, though what are the big things you need to memorize for biochem? I remember memorizing krebs cycle, electron transport chain, glycolysis, etc and all enzymes, atps, and pathways involved when I took the class in undergad. Are we going to delve into all this the first year? Im sorry if I am asking too many questions. I wanna start out with a bang! Hopefully make honors! Thanks.
P.S. Hope to bump into you in UST!

bleudsky

03-14-2005, 09:42 PM

phlipsquad,

studying ahead doesn't hurt much - in fact, it'll be to your advantage so that you won't be overwhelmed or surprised by it when you come across it again during the actual schoolyear. for me, the 1st two years are the "difficult years" since you study a lot of things in a limited time. good thing here is they give official hand-outs (hand-outs made by the department) but they still require you to read your books. about exams/quizzes, well that is something we all despise & something u really can't avoid/whine about. what i can advise is to stay focused yet relaxed. when you're finding it hard to concentrate, rest for a while (it won't hurt, right?) and don't forget to sleep. yes you're going to dwelve VERY MUCH on biochem, physiology, anatomy, histology. i think u should just concentrate on the essential amino acids (mnemonics - VP H MATThILL).

God bless!

phlipsquad

03-15-2005, 06:21 AM

hnerypaoho

03-15-2005, 04:25 PM

-anybody here that is heading to feu this year? Maybe we could share good infos about the way of studying there.

bleudsky

03-15-2005, 11:43 PM

phlipsquad

03-16-2005, 05:49 AM

to those aspiring to go to UST

there's a rule now that students NOT on hospital duty (for medical students, it's the 1st to 3rd yrs) are prohibited on passing by the hospital (both clinical and private divisions). unless they plan to change it by june, since many are complaining about it.
Hi Bluedsky,
I know the med school is inside the UST campus. So that means that I , as a first year medical student, cannot pass through the hospital to shortcut my way in to the medical school? I know UST is gated, so do I have to go through another of its gates to get in? It's just that I have already reserved a place, in this building which is located across the street from the San Juan De Dios Hospital (in the same block as Kenny Rogers) I guess I'm just trying to find a shorter (since it is such a large campus) and yes SAFER way to walk around outside campus. I've heard alot about the snatchers. Any feedback please?

phlipsquad

03-16-2005, 06:35 AM

hnerypaoho

03-16-2005, 04:56 PM

Hi SpartanDoc and to all those Filipino residents out there!
How are you guys and ladies! Hope you are not too busy, with being a resident and all. Spartan, I was just curious what type of residency you are in currently? What about all you other residents in this forum. Would you kindly let us know your current residency types? We, as medical students, look up to you guys as our peers! We would just like to know what kind of opportunities are available to Filipino graduates out there. Please let us know.

-Good questions there philsquad! i just had those questions in mind! how about in europe, australia or oceania? are there any filipino med grads having residency there? what does it take to get in? or let's say, d they accept "us"?

bleudsky

03-16-2005, 06:57 PM

Hi Bluedsky,
I know the med school is inside the UST campus. So that means that I , as a first year medical student, cannot pass through the hospital to shortcut my way in to the medical school? I know UST is gated, so do I have to go through another of its gates to get in? It's just that I have already reserved a place, in this building which is located across the street from the San Juan De Dios Hospital (in the same block as Kenny Rogers) I guess I'm just trying to find a shorter (since it is such a large campus) and yes SAFER way to walk around outside campus. I've heard alot about the snatchers. Any feedback please?

as of now, u can NOT pass through the hospital if you're headed to or coming from lacson ave. so, you have to pass through the gate either near the grade school or the one infront of burger king (along dapitan). yeah there are lots of snatchers here. so be careful of your things and don't show your wallets or mobile phones (or any other highly valuable things) in public.

san juan de dios hospital?! i'm a bit confused here. i know that hospital but it's located along roxas blvd (which is far from UST). unless there's another hospital named as that. and kenny rogers? are u referring to the kenny roger's across the clinical division?

phlipsquad

03-17-2005, 05:45 AM

as of now, u can NOT pass through the hospital if you're headed to or coming from lacson ave. so, you have to pass through the gate either near the grade school or the one infront of burger king (along dapitan). yeah there are lots of snatchers here. so be careful of your things and don't show your wallets or mobile phones (or any other highly valuable things) in public.

san juan de dios hospital?! i'm a bit confused here. i know that hospital but it's located along roxas blvd (which is far from UST). unless there's another hospital named as that. and kenny rogers? are u referring to the kenny roger's across the clinical division?
Hi Bluedsky,
Yes, I am talking about the clinical hospital. I have a doctor friend in manila who graduated two years ago from UST, and she helped me with the apartment hunt and recommended this building. I still do not know my way around campus, let alone the streets and stuff. Maybe you would know if I described to you the building. Most of the UST foreign med students live here and it is a stylistic building which stands out from the others along the same street. It is probably a 5 story building with verandas and hanging plants. I hope this rings a bell. I do not have the address with me right now, since I am at work. Anyway, I just made my down payment. By the way, the cross street has a jollibee if that also rings a bell.

DocTan

03-17-2005, 03:10 PM

-Good questions there philsquad! i just had those questions in mind! how about in europe, australia or oceania? are there any filipino med grads having residency there? what does it take to get in? or let's say, d they accept "us"?

As you guys might or might not know the 2005 match was released on March 14th. According to friends of mine it was relatively competitive. Each specialty varies year to year on how competitive they are. In general, most IMG's are in the primary health care fields such as, Internal Medicine and Family Practice. Psychiatry and Pediatrics are also non-competitive. Surgery, Anthes, Emergency Medicine, and Ob/gyn are harder to get into, but not out of an IMG's reach. Great board scores (i.e. higher 220) and clinical US experience could get you into these specialties. OrthoSurg, Neurosurg, Derma, Urology, and Radio are super hard to get into. Rarely do IMG's get accepted into these specialties. In my opinion, board scores of greater than 240 on Step 1 and Step 2, 1 year of clinical US experience, and an audition rotation in that particular specialty at the hospital you want to go to might get you a spot (i.e. orthro, neurosurg, and uro). Although extremely difficult, it is not impossible. With that said, if you are planning to apply to these difficult specialties, formulate a back-up plan.

I know first year in the Philippines is a difficult time. You are adjusting to a new environment and a new system of learning. But keep in mind that graduation is just around the corner and an organized and well thought out plan to obtain residency is your best chance to get the one of your choice. So begin early, check out all the web sites, and do your research. Some web sites I like are scutwork.com, freida, nrmp.org, and ecfmg.org. Good luck to all.

hnerypaoho

03-17-2005, 04:34 PM

As you guys might or might not know the 2005 match was released on March 14th. According to friends of mine it was relatively competitive. Each specialty varies year to year on how competitive they are. In general, most IMG's are in the primary health care fields such as, Internal Medicine and Family Practice. Psychiatry and Pediatrics are also non-competitive. Surgery, Anthes, Emergency Medicine, and Ob/gyn are harder to get into, but not out of an IMG's reach. Great board scores (i.e. higher 220) and clinical US experience could get you into these specialties. OrthoSurg, Neurosurg, Derma, Urology, and Radio are super hard to get into. Rarely do IMG's get accepted into these specialties. In my opinion, board scores of greater than 240 on Step 1 and Step 2, 1 year of clinical US experience, and an audition rotation in that particular specialty at the hospital you want to go to might get you a spot (i.e. orthro, neurosurg, and uro). Although extremely difficult, it is not impossible. With that said, if you are planning to apply to these difficult specialties, formulate a back-up plan.

I know first year in the Philippines is a difficult time. You are adjusting to a new environment and a new system of learning. But keep in mind that graduation is just around the corner and an organized and well thought out plan to obtain residency is your best chance to get the one of your choice. So begin early, check out all the web sites, and do your research. Some web sites I like are scutwork.com, freida, nrmp.org, and ecfmg.org. Good luck to all.

-Thanks Doctan! by the way, would you mind giving me your email ad? coz i have some personal questions that i would like to ask personally.. God Bless..

bleudsky

03-18-2005, 12:30 AM

phlipsquad,

i think i know what building you're talking about. i'm just not familiar with the name of the building. when you're already here, you'll get acquainted with the streets, places where to eat, and even the other buildings inside the campus. on your first day, they'll tour you inside the building so that you won't be confused (asking on what floor is the biochem lab located, etc.).

car2x

03-18-2005, 06:00 AM

just wondering if you guys heard of it from what i know, it's a relatively new school, but i was wondering if you knew their specialization or any reputation remarks?

hnerypaoho

03-18-2005, 06:24 AM

just wondering if you guys heard of it from what i know, it's a relatively new school, but i was wondering if you knew their specialization or any reputation remarks?

-The old San Beda College has a very good reputation when it comes to law. but i'm not sure for medicine. coz they just started 3 years ago.. and the school hasn't join the medical board exams yet. but i heard that they prof merely composed of up grads..

phlipsquad

03-18-2005, 10:19 AM

just wondering if you guys heard of it from what i know, it's a relatively new school, but i was wondering if you knew their specialization or any reputation remarks?
Yup,
Hnery is right. I have heard about it being good in law. Since its medical school is fairly new, we really can't say much about its reputation as of yet.
Car, maybe you should also consider UP, UST, UERM, FEU and St. Luke's. These five have a very good reputation. I believe they are the top 5 medical schools in the Phils based on what I have heard from people in the phils.

phlipsquad

03-18-2005, 10:33 AM

hnerypaoho

03-18-2005, 06:16 PM

Hi Bluedsky,
I was wondering if you could help me with something.I'm slowly reviewing my medical science materials. For first year, Do we have to memorize the organic structures of all amino acids? What about organic synthesis in biochem? Like urea cycle, all the liver pathways etc. Those are biggies too right? I want to start memorizing the biggies. Please let me know.Please... I hope you understand that I am just trying to prepare myself as early as possible. Thanks.

-That's the spirit! I myself was also considering to get to the books as early as of now.. but i don't have any idea where to start and which book to focus on.. anyway, may God bless you with your hard work! i know you'll give a good impression in your first year!

bleudsky

03-18-2005, 06:52 PM

Hello, I was wondering if someone can give me some type of feedback, especially someone who has graduated or is currently enrolled in UST. I know UST is PBL but integrated with modules? Im a little confused? Is it more PBL or traditional.They claim its revised PBL. I hope its still Problem Based Learning in more ways than one, considering I agree with DocTan that PBL prepares us IMGs better for the USMLEs.Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

the coming school year will still use the Integrated curriculum - meaning, more of the traditional curriculum plus the small group discussion (w/c is part of PBL). they use "subjects", not modules.

i'm a student enrolled under the PBL curriculum. we are the ones who have "modules" instead.

for example in the Respiratory Module, we start w/ the discussion of ALL of basics concerning the adult respiratory system (ana, physio, biochem, histo, etc.) then go to the clinical aspects (physical diagnosis, radio, patho, medicine, surgery, pharma, etc.). that way, we're able to integrate and correlate everything. you get the idea? as our former dean said it, the learning is vertical, not horizontal.

the misconception of other students is that they view PBL as a "curriculum for the lazy ones". in fact it's the opposite. though we have wednesdays as our free day, we spend it studying at the library or at Starbucks (or wherever we want to). maybe they just don't see that some of us have time management - that's why we still have time for R & R (rest & relaxation) despite our hectic scheds.

bottom line is, the measure of being a great doctor is not on the type of curriculum you had but it's your attitude towards your patient/s and fellow doctors.

aileen47

03-20-2005, 02:51 AM

asspwet

03-20-2005, 04:57 AM

maia

03-20-2005, 07:27 PM

bleudsky

03-21-2005, 03:58 AM

^^ i don't know about that.

it's very hard to get into UP CM, especially if you're from another school. even those who had their pre-med there (in diliman or in manila) had a hard time because the admission has so HIGH standards (high NMAT score, should be a child of doctor/s who is/are profs at UP or well-known in their profession, graduate in pre-med w/ honors)& they prefer male applicants than female.

aileen47

03-21-2005, 04:34 AM

and lastly what are the subjects being teached in first year med?

Being teached or being taught? heheheheheheh

sorry being taught rather.... :)

phlipsquad

03-21-2005, 05:49 AM

hi!
is it true that UP med does not require prerequisite subjects (like Chem, Trigo, Physics)? for medschool as long as one graduates with a B.S. degree (even if in engineering or economics :o )?
does this also apply to B.S. graduates from other schools or B.S. graduates only from UP? :idea:
Yup,
I heard UP is very difficult to get into. If you can get into UP, then that means you are very competitive here in the States. Anyway, I think they accept from 0 to maximum of 2 foreigners, depending on the year. Also, I heard those that do get accepted are not only super smart, but also know someone in admissions, or has a parent who is a grad from there, etc.

phlipsquad

03-21-2005, 06:11 AM

-That's the spirit! I myself was also considering to get to the books as early as of now.. but i don't have any idea where to start and which book to focus on.. anyway, may God bless you with your hard work! i know you'll give a good impression in your first year!
Hey Hnery,
Since we only have about 2 months left before the beginning of classes, I am trying to have as much fun as possible. This is going to be our only free time for some time! Nevertheless, I am taking a few hours of my weekends to review some key concepts. I have not bought any textbooks yet, but I am reviewing from my undergrad books when I took anatomy,physio, bichem, and histology. These four are high yield subject in medicine, I believe. Am I right, all you med students out there? Anyway. Hope you are doing a 50/50 thing too Hnery! 50 % FUN and 50% studying or let's say preparation. At least that will help us out during our transition period, during out adjustment of attaining study skills and time management. But other than that, I am soooo excited to start! P.S. There is an inkling inside me saying its doable, althought it definitely will be a hard and bumpy road with many challenges. Best of luck to all the incoming Freshman!

hnerypaoho

03-21-2005, 04:37 PM

Hey Hnery,
Since we only have about 2 months left before the beginning of classes, I am trying to have as much fun as possible. This is going to be our only free time for some time! Nevertheless, I am taking a few hours of my weekends to review some key concepts. I have not bought any textbooks yet, but I am reviewing from my undergrad books when I took anatomy,physio, bichem, and histology. These four are high yield subject in medicine, I believe. Am I right, all you med students out there? Anyway. Hope you are doing a 50/50 thing too Hnery! 50 % FUN and 50% studying or let's say preparation. At least that will help us out during our transition period, during out adjustment of attaining study skills and time management. But other than that, I am soooo excited to start! P.S. There is an inkling inside me saying its doable, althought it definitely will be a hard and bumpy road with many challenges. Best of luck to all the incoming Freshman!

-Well, it wouldn't hurt if you review some of the basics in advance. what I heard is, biochem is the subject that most of the students feared. and i agree with that. coz when I took the subject during my pre-med years. it was really though to understand. Maybe because i felt it was not that important for me at that time. anyway, as for me.. I'm just trying to save up some extra money for now. coz medicine is really a money and time consuming course. and we should plan what would be our next step. but I think you're doing great with the advance preparation. coz if only I would have the chance, I will also do the same as well.. by the way, are you finish with the ust requirements? Coz as for feu, they I wouldn't able to finish the process of enrolment if I didn't go there for physical and lab exmas. damn feu!! so I don't have the choice but to go there early or mid-may!

Spartan Doc

03-21-2005, 05:38 PM

Philipsquad- I don't see the point in reviewing right now... there will be plenty of time to stress out about studying in 2 months. Memorizing molecular structures is now won't make that much of a difference in your grade.

Enjoy time with your family, your friends, enjoy life. Because the person that is leaving for the Philippines now, will not be the same person that comes back. Medical school in the Philippines will change the fabric of who you are... Plus you will never again have the time you have now. Go scuba diving, sky diving, go to New Orleans. Get more life experience. Because once you get into med school, then into residency, then start practicing med... you will no longer have the time to do that fun stuff. For the last 6 months, I have only averaged 1 day off a week, I have gone up to 21 days straight working at minimum, a 12 hour day. Now figuring I sleep 7-8 hours.. that gives me 4-5 free hours a day to drive to work, eat, cook, watch a movie... etc. Thats nothing... so enjoy the time you have. I am not complaining mind you, I know its the nature of the beast, and there is no other job I would rather do.. but I sure do miss those days where I could wake up late and waste a whole day doing something fun.

But if you still do insist on studying. Then I suggest you go buy first aid for the USMLE step 1 or at least look through that book. Then go buy the highest recommended reviewer for the basic sciences. In biochem for example this used to be Lippincott's Biochem review ( don't know what it is now.) Physiology it is BRS. Don't waste your time reading text books right now. Read the reviews, they are good summaries of what you need to know.

DocTan

03-21-2005, 08:11 PM

hi everyone.. im just wondering..i live in valenzuela and its very far from u.e? im planning to rent an apartment or dorm? does ue have apartments/dormitories near the university? how much is the rent? is it safe? another is, is it true that if you study in u.e. you have more time to relax because your sked arent that hectic? and lastly what are the subjects being teached in first year med? thanks so much...every comments and suggestions are much appreciated..

Dear Aileen,

Their are many dorms/apartments around the UERM campus. Depending on your budget, housing can range from 4000-20,000/month. Valenzuela is way too far to live if you're planning to attend UERM. I suggest medics home for women, many students live there and it is beside the campus. Many fil-ams live at Robbinsdale Hotel, but I have to warn you it is pricey. It does have its perks, electricity, water, and phone are include in the rent. They have DSL connections if you want to have it in your room. Another option is the allied bank bldg.
It is true that we have lots of independent study time, but I advise you to use it wisely. If you don't study you will have a difficult time passing the Philippine boards or the USMLE. You may be able to get by and pass each module, but the most important thing is what you learned and how much you retained. Keep that in mind.

phlipsquad

03-22-2005, 01:08 PM

-Well, it wouldn't hurt if you review some of the basics in advance. what I heard is, biochem is the subject that most of the students feared. and i agree with that. coz when I took the subject during my pre-med years. it was really though to understand. Maybe because i felt it was not that important for me at that time. anyway, as for me.. I'm just trying to save up some extra money for now. coz medicine is really a money and time consuming course. and we should plan what would be our next step. but I think you're doing great with the advance preparation. coz if only I would have the chance, I will also do the same as well.. by the way, are you finish with the ust requirements? Coz as for feu, they I wouldn't able to finish the process of enrolment if I didn't go there for physical and lab exmas. damn feu!! so I don't have the choice but to go there early or mid-may!
Hi Hnery,
Its the same for me. I have to get a physical in the UST hospital before I can enroll. It shouldn't take that much time. Btw, I am leaving May 23, a little early because I need to buy furniture for my apartment and stuff. I can't believe it comes EMPTY. Anyway, Good luck with everything !

phlipsquad

03-22-2005, 01:12 PM

gynecologist

03-22-2005, 01:22 PM

email me. i am from ust.
dennisdmauricio@yahoo.com

bleudsky

03-23-2005, 01:17 AM

hello to gynecologist! nice to see a fellow thomasian here.

anyway, what year did u graduate? any advice you can give to an incoming medical clerk (like me) and regarding oral revalida (gulp!).. thanks in advance! :)

phlipsquad

03-23-2005, 06:38 AM

email me. i am from ust.
dennisdmauricio@yahoo.com
Congratulations to Gynecologist, who recently matched for ob/gyn residency in NY! He graduated from UST! My fellow Tomasian, we are all so VERY PROUD of you! Go UST!

gynecologist

03-23-2005, 07:38 AM

am a 30 years old male, graduated from a humble medical school in manila last 1998.
i am not the best student in my class.

i did two years of residency in the philippines, and fate made me to look again in the prospect of tackling the USMLE's and matching for a residency slot in the USA.

i studied by myself for the USMLE steps 1 and 2 and the CSA.
got all the books and materials which i thought are necessary and read them. by heart.

also, i assimilated all the pieces of advice i got from everyone. littelest they may seem, but all were nuggets of gold to me.

i sought our 'elders' to write me strong letters of recommendation and asked my school's dean to make me a very good dean's letter.

my personal statement i composed for a whole week. make that two. for it to be outstanding, yet modest and true. i even asked a friend's friend to help me out.

wrote down all my academic accolades and clinical experiences for my curriculum vitae. it was a very short list.

then went to USA for the CSA.
and interivewed to eight programs from the twelve calls i got.

i aimed to leave a good impression with the interviewing faculty. needless to say, that is different from impressing the interviewers.
i was eager but composed.
conveyed i am confident of what i can offer,
yet reassured them i have a lot to learn under their tutelage and care.
i was interesting as i was interested.
smiled alot. becasue i really do smile alot.

followed up my application by sending thank-you letters and letters of intention.

while waiting for the match outsome, i studied and took step 3.

i matched with a university program for ob/gyn.
but i decided to pursue further, and next year, for my second year in residency, i am to transfer to a bigger program,- where there is a fellowship for gynecologic oncology.

i think this is a very likely story for people who went through the match.
but what i like to underscore is that
PREPAREDNESS, FOCUS, HARDWORK, PERSEVERANCE and BEING RESPONSIBLE for the choices we make
are the keys to success. For the Match or otherwise.

And, by the way, I always ask and seek Our Lord God's approval in every step of the way.
Surely, He will lead the way.

gynecologist

03-23-2005, 07:48 AM

Hello to you...
The revalida, to me, is a very good exercise. You get to assess yourself if you are prepared after medical school. It will somwhow reflect your wisdom and how you'd handle doctor-patient savvy. Though it is not the sole criterion to gauge your knowledge and skills.
During our year, there was one magna cum laude candidate, but he did not do good in his revalida (poor patient rapport and poor expression of himself with the tribunal). I know this guy and he is really smart. But they decided not to give him his merit. Everybody in the class frowned on this decision. But came graduation, this guy got a long standing ovation.
From that story, you see, it is important.
Do not stress about it, though. you will have plenty of time to see cases and imbibe knowledge. Then study for it,- in proper time.
Being a lowly student like me, I got a 'benemeritus' grade. So everyone can do well.

bleudsky

03-24-2005, 06:06 AM

wow thanks for the inspiration. :)

my first rotation will be on Medicine (any department will do as long as it's not Obstetrics) and any suggestions on what else should i include on my medical bag, aside from the usual stethoscope, sphygomanometer, tape measure, thermometer? speaking of thermometer, is it wise for me to buy that tympanic thermometer instead of the axillary type? what are the other "toxic departments" aside from Medicine?

lastly, do u have any idea what those "handbook of must knows" are? somebody suggested i should get all copies of these though i don't know where i'll find them. i already have those baby notes (the ones w/ a black leather cover) as a quick reference.

being an AMSA member, i thought of spending my Elective in Germany (coz i want to have adequate experience in Trauma). bad thing is that my elective month falls on a summer season. oh well.. maybe next time..

sweetrose

03-24-2005, 08:05 AM

msharvard

03-24-2005, 09:25 AM

-anybody here that is heading to feu this year? Maybe we could share good infos about the way of studying there.
:) hi! im just new here and i just so happened to read your entry. btw im from the phils and is also heading to FEU this year. hope we could bump into each other out there.anyway i've read a lot of entries (from you and others) with regards to your worries on studying here. and i just want to say something about this from a Pinay's point of view :)

> first, u don't have to be so worried if u can't speak Tagalog/Filipino that well, YET. Most Filipinos do understand English (in fact, our national language now here in the Phils is English! how ironic don't you think? but it's true) and we have so many foreigners here in our country that we are all used of seeing/living/talking to people of any nationalities, in English. so no big deal.

> as for your future classm8s, filipinos r known for being nice and hospitable. (btw u r a fil-am ryt? so u shud know that! :laugh: ) add the fact that i would probably be one of your future classmates, so hassle-no more!! just kidding. seriously i also have those hussles and fussles here in my mind as you do, though im already from the phils, and i think all upcoming freshman do. it's pretty normal and we can't do anything about it. so as one saying goes: just enjoy the ride. like you i'm heading there alone coz my friends all went to UP, UST, PLM and UERM. im from UP by the way, unfortunately, i didn't make it to UP-PGH, 4 d reasons u already know. and FEU is not a popular choice among UP people. actually im not sure y im going there, maybe it's just meant to be. but i do know people who went there and are actually good doctors now. so worry no more coz u are not alone. hope to c u there!

hnerypaoho

03-24-2005, 04:37 PM

:) hi! im just new here and i just so happened to read your entry. btw im from the phils and is also heading to FEU this year. hope we could bump into each other out there.anyway i've read a lot of entries (from you and others) with regards to your worries on studying here. and i just want to say something about this from a Pinay's point of view :)

> first, u don't have to be so worried if u can't speak Tagalog/Filipino that well, YET. Most Filipinos do understand English (in fact, our national language now here in the Phils is English! how ironic don't you think? but it's true) and we have so many foreigners here in our country that we are all used of seeing/living/talking to people of any nationalities, in English. so no big deal.

> as for your future classm8s, filipinos r known for being nice and hospitable. (btw u r a fil-am ryt? so u shud know that! :laugh: ) add the fact that i would probably be one of your future classmates, so hassle-no more!! just kidding. seriously i also have those hussles and fussles here in my mind as you do, though im already from the phils, and i think all upcoming freshman do. it's pretty normal and we can't do anything about it. so as one saying goes: just enjoy the ride. like you i'm heading there alone coz my friends all went to UP, UST, PLM and UERM. im from UP by the way, unfortunately, i didn't make it to UP-PGH, 4 d reasons u already know. and FEU is not a popular choice among UP people. actually im not sure y im going there, maybe it's just meant to be. but i do know people who went there and are actually good doctors now. so worry no more coz u are not alone. hope to c u there!

-Nice to hear that someone out there is also heading to feu-nrmf. coz I'm starting to worry about being by myself. Actually, I'm not fil-am.. I'm fil-chi who was born and raised in the phil.. But I've been living here in taiwan for about 3 years now. it was only for the past months that i realized that I'm not happy with my work anymore and decided to pursue what i wanted since childhood. I'm sorry that things didn't turn out good with UP. but look on the bright side. you're still going to a well reputated school (I hope I'm right).. Anyway, I really do hope that we could be classmates starting this school year and through out the year. Coz we surely ned each ones help to go through this bumpy long road.. by the way, do you have some tips where to find a good but cheap houses around the school? Coz I'm thinking of renting one..

phlipsquad

03-26-2005, 07:03 AM

phlipsquad

03-26-2005, 07:11 AM

hi FRIENDS
i am intrested to study in philippine and i heard abt angeles school of medicne so any one out there guide me what is fee structure and i need to give nmat so what to study and what books to refer\
if any one has information abtbthis then its request to guide me asap,,
thanks
sweetrose
Hi sweetrose,
Angeles University is in Pampanga right? My father was from pampanga. When I was a kid, I use to travel to Pampanga from manila. I think its far from manila and I think its still considered a suburb right? I mean if peace and quiet is what you want, then go for it! I have no idea what their fees are and stuff, but I'm sure you can find the school's website online, just google it. As for the NMAT, where are you taking it? In the states, they offer it only in NY and in California. If you register for it, they will give you 2 sample tests. I think this is more than enough to study from. But if you insist on having more aid, then use the MSA reviewer. I had someone buy this for me from the Philippines. Good Luck with you applications! You should also consider other schools? Like UP, UST,UERM,FEU and St. Luke's. these are very good schools. Take care and good luck.

msharvard

03-26-2005, 08:01 AM

-Nice to hear that someone out there is also heading to feu-nrmf. coz I'm starting to worry about being by myself. Actually, I'm not fil-am.. I'm fil-chi who was born and raised in the phil.. But I've been living here in taiwan for about 3 years now. it was only for the past months that i realized that I'm not happy with my work anymore and decided to pursue what i wanted since childhood. I'm sorry that things didn't turn out good with UP. but look on the bright side. you're still going to a well reputated school (I hope I'm right).. Anyway, I really do hope that we could be classmates starting this school year and through out the year. Coz we surely ned each ones help to go through this bumpy long road.. by the way, do you have some tips where to find a good but cheap houses around the school? Coz I'm thinking of renting one..

yah, i know one. there's this one dormitory near the hospital which was referred to me by the admission's personnel. i just didn't get the name of the dorm but i was able to call them and make a reservation. it's a lot cheaper to live in a dorm than to rent an apartment. the price of a room vary depending on the number of occupants/rm. as i can remember, a room which is good for 2 persons costs 6000 pesos. so just split the bill with ur room8. room good for 1 person is more 5000+ pesos/month. they ask for 2 mos advance and two months deposit. as for apartments, sorry i don't know any but i am sure there's a lot just around the hospital. try to call the admission's office and see if they know some. goodluck!

hnerypaoho

03-26-2005, 06:11 PM

yah, i know one. there's this one dormitory near the hospital which was referred to me by the admission's personnel. i just didn't get the name of the dorm but i was able to call them and make a reservation. it's a lot cheaper to live in a dorm than to rent an apartment. the price of a room vary depending on the number of occupants/rm. as i can remember, a room which is good for 2 persons costs 6000 pesos. so just split the bill with ur room8. room good for 1 person is more 5000+ pesos/month. they ask for 2 mos advance and two months deposit. as for apartments, sorry i don't know any but i am sure there's a lot just around the hospital. try to call the admission's office and see if they know some. goodluck!

-Are there any rooms for one person that you can get it for 5000 pesos? yah i heard about the dorm for 6k! But may point is, if you can get a house lower that 5000, plus elecrticity and water bills. it would sum up around 6-7k/month! and you get the house by yourself and if there's more available rooms, you can ask classmates to move in and split the expenses. coz i heard some bad things living in a dorm. like missing valuable things, have to fall in line just to use the bathroom and some idiots making noises. But maybe I will consider the dorm just to settle in temporarily.. by the way, have you completed your enrollment? coz I have not finished it yet! coz they said that i won't able to complete the process unless I get a PE and lab test! damn school! so I have no choice but to get back early as I planned!

hnerypaoho

03-26-2005, 06:29 PM

Hey Hnery,
I was just looking at your school's website. It looks like FEU has a nice looking hospital!

-Don't be fooled philsquad! Coz i went there last feb for my interview! and I found the hospital unorganized when it architectural basis! I mean is, it seems that they have a wide space for more wards and beds but they just left it blank and wasted! so the patients have to piled up in a crowded ward! and there's more! that wards are the like rooms in jails! there are no airconditoner and they even didn't provide ventilators! so the patients just brought their own electirc fans just to get some cool air! but, I found the medical buliding not bad.. the rooms are airconditioned so there's no hassle to find a spot where the fan can hit you with some cool air! Anyway, maybe they'll improve it in the future. or maybe, there are better rooms or wards that I didn't see like the private or pay wards.. By the way, what's you email ad? so that we could talk further without posting messages here!

loosecannon

03-27-2005, 09:54 AM

hi bluesky! I'm from UST batch 2006. My first rotation is Obstetrics although I'm not exactly sure about this. I'm an AMSA member myself and I've also inquired about doing my electives abroad. I'm willing to give it a go but I'm worried that it might delay my graduation. Do you have additional info regarding this matter? Good luck and regards!

bleudsky

03-27-2005, 05:50 PM

hi there loosecannon! nice to see a batchmate here (& fellow AMSA member here). are you male or female?

we had a meeting about SCOPE last week. ross presented to us the countries for professional exchange (both IFMSA and AMSEP). IFMSA pertains to those for exchange to europe, AMSEP for asia. the difference is IFMSA can allow exchange students in a certain time, AMSEP all year round (except for their local board months). the school allows us 3 weeks to take our electives elsewhere coz they want the last week to be spent at Radiology in our hospital. but if ever you go for exchange, you'll be paying for the entire 4 weeks coz the minimum they require is 4 weeks. in other words, lugi ka ng 1 week. if you extend your stay there (take all 4 weeks elsewhere, then separate pa ung 1 week sa Radio), you will still graduate but you will miss the graduation rites at PICC (meaning, you won't wear your toga).

the countries for AMSEP are indonesia, malaysia, japan, hongkong, taiwan. everyone's aiming for hongkong, even i. but since my elective season's quite early, i missed their deadline of filing for applications.

btw, if you're interested better make up your mind asap so that you can fix the necessary papers. 1 requirement is that you should file your applications 3 months ahead.

God bless! Obstetrics eh? good luck at Fabella. :)

hnerypaoho

03-27-2005, 07:52 PM

GoldenAzn

03-27-2005, 10:20 PM

Hi Bluedsky,
Yes, I am talking about the clinical hospital. I have a doctor friend in manila who graduated two years ago from UST, and she helped me with the apartment hunt and recommended this building. I still do not know my way around campus, let alone the streets and stuff. Maybe you would know if I described to you the building. Most of the UST foreign med students live here and it is a stylistic building which stands out from the others along the same street. It is probably a 5 story building with verandas and hanging plants. I hope this rings a bell. I do not have the address with me right now, since I am at work. Anyway, I just made my down payment. By the way, the cross street has a jollibee if that also rings a bell.

My oldest sister just got back from brief vacation in Manila. She looked for a place for me to stay around UST. Her choice is number one "The Caste" which I think is 5 story based on the picture with veranda and air condition. This one has a security guard. They are asking for a studio apartment 2 months deposit and one month advance at 12,500 pesos per month. Is this the apartment that you got? You must have gotten a better deal. They say that they will pass a notice to present tenants to who will graduate or leave the apartment so that new applicants can check with them before the end of this month of March.

I will try to send somebody to make inquire if there will be an available apartment by the end of this month. These apartment located along dos castillas street, second building from dapitan street. There is another new place that is presently under construction and they say that this is competitive to "the castle." They call it Karenza Place which is the same right in the corner of dos castillas and dapitan street.

To (Bluedsky), you spoke earlier that you can't pass through lacson gate or forbes street. How far is these two apartment buildings from dapitan gate or the nearest gate that I can get in to. If I was going to get one of these apartments? And, what is your opinion on these two buildings that I have mention. Or is there another building that you can recommend? I'm looking for a studio or one bedroom apartment. Preferribly second floor or better becasue of the floods. Of course there has to be air condition. I'm also looking for my own bathroom of toliet and shower. Also what is the price range?

phlipsquad

03-28-2005, 09:05 AM

My oldest sister just got back from brief vacation in Manila. She looked for a place for me to stay around UST. Her choice is number one "The Caste" which I think is 5 story based on the picture with veranda and air condition. This one has a security guard. They are asking for a studio apartment 2 months deposit and one month advance at 12,500 pesos per month. Is this the apartment that you got? You must have gotten a better deal. They say that they will pass a notice to present tenants to who will graduate or leave the apartment so that new applicants can check with them before the end of this month of March.

I will try to send somebody to make inquire if there will be an available apartment by the end of this month. These apartment located along dos castillas street, second building from dapitan street. There is another new place that is presently under construction and they say that this is competitive to "the castle." They call it Karenza Place which is the same right in the corner of dos castillas and dapitan street.

To (Bluedsky), you spoke earlier that you can't pass through lacson gate or forbes street. How far is these two apartment buildings from dapitan gate or the nearest gate that I can get in to. If I was going to get one of these apartments? And, what is your opinion on these two buildings that I have mention. Or is there another building that you can recommend? I'm looking for a studio or one bedroom apartment. Preferribly second floor or better becasue of the floods. Of course there has to be air condition. I'm also looking for my own bathroom of toliet and shower. Also what is the price range?
Hey Golden,
Nice to hear from you again. What you just described is going to be my apartment. I have never heard of it being named the castle. I already got a studio in the second floor with a veranda that faces UST. I made the deposit and 2 months advance for about 35,000 pesos. It's already paid. Im supposed to pay 12,000 a month. If you want to get a spot in this building, then you should sign youself up in their waiting list. As you know, the building is only 5 stories with a limited number of studio apartments. Good
luck!
P.S. In that same building, they also have smaller studio apartments, without a veranda for 10,000 a month. The difference? The 12k has a vernada and is about 400 square feet. The 10 k has space of merely 300 square feet. I guess it would be a bargain to get the bigger one, with only 2 thousand pesos difference. I mean for 100 sq feet more and a veranda, It's worth it!

What is this Karenza? How close is it to UST med school? How much? Will it open this June?

ktownpinay

03-28-2005, 12:20 PM

GoldenAzn

03-28-2005, 01:11 PM

phlipsquad

03-28-2005, 01:30 PM

Hi Everyone,

I'm leaving for the Philippines next week to take the NMAT on April 10th. My only prospective school there is UST. But besides that, i was trying the practice test that the testing center gave and I was wondering if calculators are allowed on this test and if they provide a periodic table. Realistically some of the calculations are very tedious if I were to do them by hand and no periodic table was given in the sample test. does that mean i have to memorize the atomic number of the first 20 or so elements? Please help! Thank you! :)
Hey Ktown,
I felt just like you a year ago, when I took the NMAT here in NY. First of all, there are no calculators allowed. Do not worry about this though. Even if some of the math uses large numbers, just use an estimate by using scientific notations, exponentials. I learned this when I took Kaplan for the MCAT. If they give you some number like 23,456 just use 2 X 10^4th power and calculate, multiply, divide, whatever using these exponentials (algebra). You will be working with much smaller numbers. I hope you know what I mean.It will make things easier. I do not remember about the periodic table being given, but I believe I never used it. I mean, there are 50 questions on chem, and I think only 1 regarding periodic table, if none. TRUST ME..You DO NOT have to memorize the atomic numbers for the elements. EVEN THE MCAT PROVIDES YOU with a periodic table. The NMAT, I am telling you is much much easier than the MCAT. If UST is where you want to go, just make sure you get into the 65th percentile. This is their cut-off. No pressure intended on your part.They do not accept anyone with NMAT scores below 65. Take the practice tests given with the booklet, it gives a rough estimate of what you will usually get. I mean, I think that the practice test were more challenging than the actual thing. I guess they do that to prepare you. For Instance, for me, I got 15 points higher on the actual exam. P.S. I also got too nervous the night before and had 3 hours of sleep. Hence, try not to think about it too much. On a good note, even with 3 hours of sleep, I still aced it. It was so surprising. Once you are doing the test, you will see that it really just tests very simple, basic science and a few I.Q -like things.

I wish I did not have to stress too much that time. I did not realize I was overprepared, with having taken Kaplan. I really wish you take my advice and DO NOT stress about it too much. I wish I did not have to go through that experience.

Anyway,Just RELAX, its really not that bad! If you did an undergrad pre-med here, you will do fine. If you prepared for the MCAT, you are VERY prepared for this test. P.S. Good Luck with the test. Get some sleep! Hope to see you in UST next year!

GoldenAzn

03-28-2005, 01:35 PM

Hey Golden,
Nice to hear from you again. What you just described is going to be my apartment. I have never heard of it being named the castle. I already got a studio in the second floor with a veranda that faces UST. I made the deposit and 2 months advance for about 35,000 pesos. It's already paid. Im supposed to pay 12,000 a month. If you want to get a spot in this building, then you should sign youself up in their waiting list. As you know, the building is only 5 stories with a limited number of studio apartments. Good
luck!
P.S. In that same building, they also have smaller studio apartments, without a veranda for 10,000 a month. The difference? The 12k has a vernada and is about 400 square feet. The 10 k has space of merely 300 square feet. I guess it would be a bargain to get the bigger one, with only 2 thousand pesos difference. I mean for 100 sq feet more and a veranda, It's worth it!

What is this Karenza? How close is it to UST med school? How much? Will it open this June?

Karenza i think is that new apartment that were being built when my sister went there. It looks like it's almost done. But all i got is one pic. But it looks like it's already up from the picture. I'm really leaning towards it because at least everythign is new inside. But I wasn't able to get picture of the inside of both of these two apartments. I got pics of inside of other apartments but they were near mendoza street.

Well if your talking about "the castle" from what i saw in the picture was bluish..and had maybe a mini balcony if..it looks like a balcony but the airconditioner is the middle of said balcony..if it has any. From what I got from the drawing/map....When on dos castillas and dapitan...which is a corner and one block from forbes..which i think is near ust based on the drawing. Well Karenza was being built on the corner if your facing the corner of the street toward UST. The Castle is on the opposite side of the street...and is the 2nd building from the corner of dos castillas and dapitan. Both of the buldings are on the same side of the street of dos castillas.

Hey check your Private message boxes..it's on the top right..i left you my aim sn and a email address if you'd like to talk.

hnerypaoho

03-28-2005, 04:33 PM

:confused:

-Hey philsquad! do you have any idea about AMSEP and IFMSA? Coz the way bluedsky described them, they sound like cool org!

bleudsky

03-28-2005, 04:51 PM

-Hi! I'm an incoming freshman in feu this year.. I just would like to ask what is AMSEP and IFMSA? HOw can you join that org? Coz it sounds great! Is feu also affliated with that org?

IFMSA is international federation of medical students association (well i think). AMSEP - i'm not familiar w/ it though. haha! sorry.

for those interested, IFMSA is affiliated with AMSA or Asian Medical Students Association. luckily, AMSA is affiliated with some medical schools - UST, UP, Fatima, FEU, Perpetual, WVSU.

to all incoming UST freshmen, sorry but u have to wait till the 2nd semester (of 1st yr) for you to join in any organizations/frats/sororities. 1st semester is for your adjustment period.

check out this site: http://www.ifmsa.org/partners

my friend is the current president of AMSA Philippines. i forgot the url site of AMSA philippines. i'll let u guys know about it.

bleudsky

03-28-2005, 06:03 PM

bleudsky

03-28-2005, 06:08 PM

To (Bluedsky), you spoke earlier that you can't pass through lacson gate or forbes street. How far is these two apartment buildings from dapitan gate or the nearest gate that I can get in to. If I was going to get one of these apartments? And, what is your opinion on these two buildings that I have mention. Or is there another building that you can recommend? I'm looking for a studio or one bedroom apartment. Preferribly second floor or better becasue of the floods. Of course there has to be air condition. I'm also looking for my own bathroom of toliet and shower. Also what is the price range?

yeah i did. i don't know why they implemented that rule. it really sucks! i can't estimate by distance but according to my friends (who are staying at The Castle), they said around 15 mins walk to the building via the dapitan gate (infront of burger king), and it'll be longer if u pass by forbes gate (near the UST gradeschool).

well, u can try 'Atlantica Starr', 'Sanctissimo Rosario, and 'Twin Hearts' along Navarra st. (landmark, look for the caltex gas station along dapitan). the price at atlantica is 12,000 while price at Sanctissimo depends on the room. i happen to stay for 3 yrs at Sanctissimo and my room (w/c is good for 1) cost 10,000 per month excluding electricity, phone, cable and water bills; it has a curfew though. many medical students stay on those places.

bleudsky

03-28-2005, 06:23 PM

:confused:

-Hey philsquad! do you have any idea about AMSEP and IFMSA? Coz the way bluedsky described them, they sound like cool org!

it's indeed a cool org! :D

we sponsored a fund raising/fashion show end of the (1st) sem last year w/c involved students from UST and UP Medicine Class 2007. it's just 1 of the activities we did this year.

ktownpinay

03-28-2005, 09:17 PM

Thanks so much Philipsquad and Goldenazn for you help! I'll take your advice and not try to stress out too much. Its just that I took the MCAT a year ago and don't remember everything. Plus i have to read up on psychology and sociology stuff. The social science part is stressing me out the most. Any advice on that? You guys are such a great help for lost souls like me. Thank you so much again!

bleudsky

03-28-2005, 10:31 PM

hnerypaoho

03-29-2005, 01:27 AM

IFMSA is international federation of medical students association (well i think). AMSEP - i'm not familiar w/ it though. haha! sorry.

for those interested, IFMSA is affiliated with AMSA or Asian Medical Students Association. luckily, AMSA is affiliated with some medical schools - UST, UP, Fatima, FEU, Perpetual, WVSU.

to all incoming UST freshmen, sorry but u have to wait till the 2nd semester (of 1st yr) for you to join in any organizations/frats/sororities. 1st semester is for your adjustment period.

check out this site: http://www.ifmsa.org/partners

my friend is the current president of AMSA Philippines. i forgot the url site of AMSA philippines. i'll let u guys know about it.

-Thanks! It surely would be great if I can join one of those org or even both! so I am eligible to join those org right? So, how would I join it? should I call them or med schools in the phil already have the infos?

ktownpinay

03-29-2005, 01:28 AM

you don't have to bring a calculator or memorize the periodic table. u are not allowed to use the calculator function of your mobile phone.

btw, my li'l sis is also taking the NMAT 2 weeks from now. where in manila specifically will u take it?

No clue exactly where in Makati I'll be taking it. Im guessing its at the center for measurement... sounds something like that. Im guessing i'll be seeing your sister there! Is that where your sister's taking it too? I'm flying in from Hawaii to take it and I'm arriving the night before the test. Major jetlag...

hnerypaoho

03-29-2005, 01:28 AM

it's indeed a cool org! :D

we sponsored a fund raising/fashion show end of the (1st) sem last year w/c involved students from UST and UP Medicine Class 2007. it's just 1 of the activities we did this year.

-Thanks! It surely would be great if I can join one of those org or even both! so I am eligible to join those org right? So, how would I join it? should I call them or med schools in the phil already have the infos?

bleudsky

03-29-2005, 05:37 PM

-Thanks! It surely would be great if I can join one of those org or even both! so I am eligible to join those org right? So, how would I join it? should I call them or med schools in the phil already have the infos?

well, FEU is among the affiliated schools of AMSA so you will not have a problem joining it. you just have to follow your school's rules and regulations on joining any organization (if there are). yes, any medical student (up until the level of internship) can join AMSA. you don't have to worry about joining IFMSA coz AMSA is under the banner of IFMSA.

it's cool to meet medical students from other countries. :)

bleudsky

03-29-2005, 05:42 PM

No clue exactly where in Makati I'll be taking it. Im guessing its at the center for measurement... sounds something like that. Im guessing i'll be seeing your sister there! Is that where your sister's taking it too? I'm flying in from Hawaii to take it and I'm arriving the night before the test. Major jetlag...

i see. my sis just got her admission slip yesterday and according to it, she'll be taking at de la salle college of saint benilde at taft avenue in manila.

maricelei

03-29-2005, 07:12 PM

bleudsky

03-29-2005, 11:49 PM

i haven't seen the inside of Karenza, so i can't really say much about that, except that i don't quite like the windows. somebody from the launderette across it mentioned that the interior of the apartments is inferior to the castle, and aparently you're not allowed to cook in there-- am not sure if those are true though. it's "no male visitors" policy (as bleudsky mentioned) would totally put me off though coz that means you can only invite your female classmates for study group and other meetings for group work.

hi there, (former) groupmate! :D

it's true. you're not allowed to cook at Karenza. they didn't build a kitchen area, so if u plan to have a microwave, or oven toaster or hot pot inside ur room, u have to bring a table for it.

one thing i like about it is the toilet/shower area, because they separated it. one door opens to the shower area, the other door is the toilet, & in the middle of them is the sink. thus, u can use the toilet or sink area w/o bothering the one who's taking a shower.

phlipsquad

03-30-2005, 10:55 AM

:confused:

-Hey philsquad! do you have any idea about AMSEP and IFMSA? Coz the way bluedsky described them, they sound like cool org!
Hi,
Sorry, I don't know. I think I am going to join the medical choir..as a stress reliever...singing gives me peace.

phlipsquad

03-30-2005, 12:29 PM

hello to everyone!

it's my first time to post here. am a 3rd year (4th year/clerk in 2 wks :scared: ) student at UST, bleudsky is my classmate. hey reg! hehe! :laugh:

anyway, i think GoldenAzn and phlipsquad are talking about 2 different buildings. phlipsquad's building is the one on lacson, above david's salon, while The Castle is along dos castillas st. I am staying at the castle and i highly recommend it. unfortunately, as what bleudsky said, it's hard to get an apartment there because there is a long waiting list. am currently paying 10500/month but by june the rent is gonna be 11000/month. The nice thing about the apartments in the castle is that they have dividers that separate the bedroom from the living room/kitchen area. My only complaint about the building is it doesn't have an elevator. i don't think it takes 15 minutes from dos castillas to the med building if you go through the dapitan gate. maybe 10 minutes at the most. i still go through the hospital and the guards usually let me through. the trick is to not look at them and just keep walking :laugh:

a lot of the fil-ams are staying at The Castle. am not a fil-am (i come from england) but i tend to be grouped with them (since am the only one from europe and they don't know what to call me i guess). there are 2 fil-ams staying at the building phlipsquad mentioned. that's also a nice building but i didn't quite like the apartments' orientation, and they're smaller than the ones in the castle. the apartments facing lacson are a lot bigger, the only problem is, it's too noisy since it's on the main road. my friend who's staying in one of those apartments said she just got used to the noise.

i haven't seen the inside of Karenza, so i can't really say much about that, except that i don't quite like the windows. somebody from the launderette across it mentioned that the interior of the apartments is inferior to the castle, and aparently you're not allowed to cook in there-- am not sure if those are true though. it's "no male visitors" policy (as bleudsky mentioned) would totally put me off though coz that means you can only invite your female classmates for study group and other meetings for group work.

some of the first year fil-ams right now are staying in the new building along P. Noval. it's called The Galleria i think, and it seems really nice. it's kinda far from the med building though. you might also wanna check out The Mansion on Don Quijote street.

i hope these helped. good luck apartment-hunting! see you guys around! :) :
Hi,
My builiding is not above a salon. It is in the same street as Kenny Rogers, across from the clinical hospital. It is a stylistic 5-story building with verandas and hanging plants. I can't believe I have a contract there already but I don't remember the name of the building. As long as I have a home, Im happy. it's just that I have someone in the phils handling the paperwork.

maricelei

03-30-2005, 03:30 PM

Hi,
My builiding is not above a salon. It is in the same street as Kenny Rogers, across from the clinical hospital. It is a stylistic 5-story building with verandas and hanging plants. I can't believe I have a contract there already but I don't remember the name of the building. As long as I have a home, Im happy. it's just that I have someone in the phils handling the paperwork.

sorry, i meant that david's salon is part of the building. am pretty sure you're talking about my friend's apartment building, her apartment is right above the salon. yes, it is a 5-storey building on the same street as kenny rogers and it has verandas and hanging plants. that is the only building along lacson with hanging plants and verandas.

aspiring doctor

03-31-2005, 06:30 PM

procopio43

03-31-2005, 08:16 PM

-anybody here that is heading to feu this year? Maybe we could share good infos about the way of studying there.
hi hnerypaoho,
I'm a PT here in Florida and heading to Feu around last wk. of May for interview/enrollment.Hope to see you there

GoldenAzn

04-01-2005, 12:17 AM

GoldenAzn,

no, i'm staying at Karenza Place for 1 yr. it costs P12,000. similar to The Castle that every room has their own shower and toilet area, no curfew, u can install your own aircon, have phone lines, cable tv into each room but it has a 'no male visitors' policy and it doesn't have a kitchen area.

my original target was also 'The Castle' and i made reservations for a room as early as 1st sem (of last year). by mid-march i cancelled it coz i already have a room at Karenza w/ loosecannon. rumor has it that few students got a slot coz few tenants will leave the apartment.

So like is it female only apartment complex. Because I am a male..so hence..I'm not allowed to get in myself?

GoldenAzn

04-01-2005, 12:25 AM

hello to everyone!

it's my first time to post here. am a 3rd year (4th year/clerk in 2 wks :scared: ) student at UST, bleudsky is my classmate. hey reg! hehe! :laugh:

anyway, i think GoldenAzn and phlipsquad are talking about 2 different buildings. phlipsquad's building is the one on lacson, above david's salon, while The Castle is along dos castillas st. I am staying at the castle and i highly recommend it. unfortunately, as what bleudsky said, it's hard to get an apartment there because there is a long waiting list. am currently paying 10500/month but by june the rent is gonna be 11000/month. The nice thing about the apartments in the castle is that they have dividers that separate the bedroom from the living room/kitchen area. My only complaint about the building is it doesn't have an elevator. i don't think it takes 15 minutes from dos castillas to the med building if you go through the dapitan gate. maybe 10 minutes at the most. i still go through the hospital and the guards usually let me through. the trick is to not look at them and just keep walking :laugh:

a lot of the fil-ams are staying at The Castle. am not a fil-am (i come from england) but i tend to be grouped with them (since am the only one from europe and they don't know what to call me i guess). there are 2 fil-ams staying at the building phlipsquad mentioned. that's also a nice building but i didn't quite like the apartments' orientation, and they're smaller than the ones in the castle. the apartments facing lacson are a lot bigger, the only problem is, it's too noisy since it's on the main road. my friend who's staying in one of those apartments said she just got used to the noise.

i haven't seen the inside of Karenza, so i can't really say much about that, except that i don't quite like the windows. somebody from the launderette across it mentioned that the interior of the apartments is inferior to the castle, and aparently you're not allowed to cook in there-- am not sure if those are true though. it's "no male visitors" policy (as bleudsky mentioned) would totally put me off though coz that means you can only invite your female classmates for study group and other meetings for group work.

some of the first year fil-ams right now are staying in the new building along P. Noval. it's called The Galleria i think, and it seems really nice. it's kinda far from the med building though. you might also wanna check out The Mansion on Don Quijote street.

i hope these helped. good luck apartment-hunting! see you guys around! :) :

Sry I have a problem sometimes checking this forum. So sorry for the really late response.

So The Castle is the better one eh?

Can you describe the Galleria or the mansion...and how far is it from a gate for me to go into the school basically..through legal ways..without not looking at guards basically way.

Are these studios...all of them or are any 1 bedrooms?

Are there any websites where one can look at picture of these apartment with outside or inside..or like an apartment.com like in america?

Can you tell me the top 5 places...with what amenities can i look forward to(ie...1 bedroom or studio, air condition, rough size, guards if any, how far from a legal place to walk in, curfew or rules I'd have to worry about, rent, does it have an online website, and likelihood of gettin in since there is this wait list thing going on. I really want a 1 bedroom apartment with a living room and kitchen..but alas i'm willing to settle. Also since I won't be able to go look at place and have to have someone place me on a wait list it seems.

Oh yeah I sent ya'll (bleudsky and maricelei a private message)

maricelei

04-01-2005, 01:34 AM

Sry I have a problem sometimes checking this forum. So sorry for the really late response.

So The Castle is the better one eh?

Can you describe the Galleria or the mansion...and how far is it from a gate for me to go into the school basically..through legal ways..without not looking at guards basically way.

Are these studios...all of them or are any 1 bedrooms?

Are there any websites where one can look at picture of these apartment with outside or inside..or like an apartment.com like in america?

Can you tell me the top 5 places...with what amenities can i look forward to(ie...1 bedroom or studio, air condition, rough size, guards if any, how far from a legal place to walk in, curfew or rules I'd have to worry about, rent, does it have an online website, and likelihood of gettin in since there is this wait list thing going on. I really want a 1 bedroom apartment with a living room and kitchen..but alas i'm willing to settle. Also since I won't be able to go look at place and have to have someone place me on a wait list it seems.

Oh yeah I sent ya'll (bleudsky and maricelei a private message)

The galleria is fairly new. I haven't seen the apartments myself so I can't really say much about it except that it's a bit far from the medicine building as it's on the other side of UST (along P. noval). You can also check out Red J building, it's also on Dos Castillas. The building has 2-bedroom apartments and about 4 fil-am clerks are currently staying there. I also heard it's hard to get into. I don't think there's a website for any of the apartments. you'll have to go around and look at them yourself, unfortunately. if you only want apartments near the medicine building then you should look into the following apartment buildings: The Mansion (on don quijote), The Castle, Red J, Karenza (on dos castillas) and the apartment building along lacson that has hanging plants and verandas (i don't think it has a name, it's always referred to as the one with david's salon). if you don't mind walking from P noval then check out The Galleria, and also Atlantica which is on the corner of Dapitan and Navarra street (i think). All these apartments are studio-type except for Red J, which has 2-bedroom apartments. They all have security guards and they have no curfews (not sure about Karenza since it hasn't opened yet;bleudsky will be able to help you more coz she's gonna be staying there... if they don't let guys in, then am not sure if you can even apply for an apartment there :confused: ). you should be trying to reserve a place by now... actually, you should've started last month. am not even sure you'll still be able to get into any one of those apartments. good luck! :)

hnerypaoho

04-01-2005, 06:40 AM

hi.. i'm new here...just some questions that maybe u can help me with...
since u finished from the philippines, was it hard to study again in the US...was it complicated or was helpful to study in the Philippines?
actually i'm phil/can and i plan to study in the Philippines to but i'm afraid when i go back either to canada ir the US i'll have a hard time to get into residency and the competency and quality of education i get in the philippines won't match up to US/Canadian graduates...
what your comment on La Salle - health Sciences Center... is it a bad place to study? i have friends in the phil. that say it's good? what can u say?
hope u'll help me out. thanks :)

-It is true that the quality of education are better in canada and us. But I already talked with a lot od IMGs that are doing pretty good for their residency in the us. Just try to read the past threads. Butfor canada, I think you'll have a harder time to get into a residency there.. maybe with the laws or just being bias.. anyway, if you just work hard i think you'll get what you want. As for la salle, i think it's among of the top 10 in the phil and it's located outside the city of manila. Maybe you can try, UP, UST, FEU and UERM. coz they are the schools that have good reputations in the phil and internationaly.

hnerypaoho

04-01-2005, 06:44 AM

hi hnerypaoho,
I'm a PT here in Florida and heading to Feu around last wk. of May for interview/enrollment.Hope to see you there

-Nice to hear from you! Is FEU still entertaning applications or interviews? Coz what they told me is, the deadline was last January and the enrollment was last middle of March. maybe you should ask somebody to ask them or try to contact them. Anyway, I hope you could push it through without any problems!

bleudsky

04-01-2005, 07:36 AM

So like is it female only apartment complex. Because I am a male..so hence..I'm not allowed to get in myself?

yes, i'm afraid so. you can try at 'The Castle' (like maricelei mentioned). i'm not familiar with the other dorms along Dos Castillas, Don Quijote streets coz i'm quite new on those areas.

bleudsky

04-01-2005, 07:47 AM

you should be trying to reserve a place by now... actually, you should've started last month. am not even sure you'll still be able to get into any one of those apartments. good luck! :)

i agree with maricel. many incoming 1st yr medical students (other than u) are hunting/looking/scouting for potential dorms ever since the list of eligible applicants were released early this year. when i inquired at "Karenza Place", a woman was also inquiring for her niece (who's an incoming med freshman). if not incoming freshmen, incoming medical clerks (especially those who used to travel to and from their respective homes daily for the past 3 years).

my (former) dormmate/batchmate made her reservation at 'The Castle' late last year. unfortunately, she wasn't notified last month if there's a room for her. she figured that there was none. so, she's stuck at our ol' dorm. she didn't look at other dorms coz she was overconfident about it.

maia

04-03-2005, 06:43 AM

hi!
does anybody here know of med schools in the phils that are publicly funded? :luck:

phlipsquad

04-03-2005, 11:11 AM

Hi Bluedsky and Maricelie,
I was just wondering if you know if most of the apartments near UST have Dsl internet connection, especially the one where I am living (the building with the veranda and hanging plants)? What about your aparments, do you guys have it?

bleudsky

04-03-2005, 11:29 AM

phlipsquad, from what i know most of the apartments have individual phone connections but dsl connection depends on the tennants/students if they want it.

loosecannon and i agreed to apply for a phone but not dsl since we deemed it impractical (coz most of the time, we're on duty). if ever we're gonna need internet, there's prepaid cards available.

hnerypaoho

04-03-2005, 10:10 PM

hi!
does anybody here know of med schools in the phils that are publicly funded? :luck:

-Well, as i know of, there are only two government funded medical schools in the phil. UP and PLM.. But i don't think foreigners can get in that easliy. coz even for filipinos. they have the hard time in getting in! So, if I were you, try the private ones. although it will cost a lot, but you'll find a smooth road in getting in. GOD BLESS

phlipsquad

04-04-2005, 01:49 PM

procopio43

04-04-2005, 08:18 PM

-Nice to hear from you! Is FEU still entertaning applications or interviews? Coz what they told me is, the deadline was last January and the enrollment was last middle of March. maybe you should ask somebody to ask them or try to contact them. Anyway, I hope you could push it through without any problems!
Yup! I checked with them and I still have my slot. Will be there by the 24th of May . Thanks for the concern.I haven't checked has to how many enrolees they have at present time though. I know lots of medical schools in the Phil. were affected by low enrolees. Makes me wonder if FEU will continue to be notorious about weeding out its students for this year.

hnerypaoho

04-04-2005, 11:53 PM

Yup! I checked with them and I still have my slot. Will be there by the 24th of May . Thanks for the concern.I haven't checked has to how many enrolees they have at present time though. I know lots of medical schools in the Phil. were affected by low enrolees. Makes me wonder if FEU will continue to be notorious about weeding out its students for this year.

-You have a point there! maybe they will treat us easier, coz of the low enrolees rate. anyway, so are you going to rent a house or stay in dorms?

hnerypaoho

04-05-2005, 12:03 AM

Hey Hnery,
How much is your foreign fee in FEU? It's 10,000 dollars for UST. Nevertheless, it is still a bargain. I mean roughly 25,000 - 30,000 dollars for the whole 4 years (including the donation) This does not even cover 1 year in an American medical school, so I am not complaining. What do you think?

- Well, I'm a Filipino citizen so i don't need any donations to make. however, I think it is also around 10k dollars. you're right about phil med schools are way cheaper compare to us med schools. but still, it would be better for us if we attend us med schools.. for its education and for more chances to get in to our desired residency program.

maricelei

04-05-2005, 01:57 AM

- Well, I'm a Filipino citizen so i don't need any donations to make. however, I think it is also around 10k dollars. you're right about phil med schools are way cheaper compare to us med schools. but still, it would be better for us if we attend us med schools.. for its education and for more chances to get in to our desired residency program.

hi hnery! did u study in a foreign school? i think you should check with FEU whether or not you have to pay the out of state fee. in UST, whether or not you're a filipino citizen, if you went to a foreign school you'd still have to pay the $10,000 out of state fee. i actually gave up $10,000 to go to UST. if i chose to go to UE i won't have had to pay the out of state fee coz i have dual citizenship :(

hnerypaoho

04-05-2005, 03:53 AM

hi hnery! did u study in a foreign school? i think you should check with FEU whether or not you have to pay the out of state fee. in UST, whether or not you're a filipino citizen, if you went to a foreign school you'd still have to pay the $10,000 out of state fee. i actually gave up $10,000 to go to UST. if i chose to go to UE i won't have had to pay the out of state fee coz i have dual citizenship :(

-Well it happens that i graduated in a pre-med school in the phil so there's no need for me to pay the donations. and it's really sucks that ust asked ypu to pay 10 grand. I mean, why did they ask you to pay when uerm didn't ask for it? it should be a fair game right? anyway, I think one of the factors is the diminishing enrolees for the past years. and I believe that all of the med schools are thinking their butts off in ways to survive! by the way, don't tell the immigration officer or someone that you have dual citizenship. coz it's filipinos allowed to have dual citizenship.

procopio43

04-05-2005, 08:19 AM

-You have a point there! maybe they will treat us easier, coz of the low enrolees rate. anyway, so are you going to rent a house or stay in dorms?
I'll be staying with my folks in QC. Will be taking my son with me.Listen, I've red you're a Filipino citizen. So am I, so I was just wonderring as to how you go about with your arrangement to maintain your Immigrant status. I've heard that we need to come back to the States every 6 mos. or file for re-enry or something. I'm still not clear as to how it works. Perhaps you have better info. Care to share? I addition, where did you do your premed?Thanks

phlipsquad

04-05-2005, 01:08 PM

hi hnery! did u study in a foreign school? i think you should check with FEU whether or not you have to pay the out of state fee. in UST, whether or not you're a filipino citizen, if you went to a foreign school you'd still have to pay the $10,000 out of state fee. i actually gave up $10,000 to go to UST. if i chose to go to UE i won't have had to pay the out of state fee coz i have dual citizenship :(
Yup,
That's true for UST...as long as you went to the US for college, filipino citizen or not, you still have to pay the 10k. Maricelei, UE's donation is also now 10 k.That's what they told me during the interview. I do not know about their rules with filipino citizens. I mean, even if you go to the states for college and u are a filipino citizen, you do not have to pay the fee? Really. Never knew that. Anyway, I still want to go to UST, no matter the fee.

Maricelei,
I thought about doing the dual citizenship thing. What are the advantages of doing that? My mom does not want me to do that since she believes that there are no advantages whatsoever. She reminds me that once you come back to the states, they still prioritize the US citizens first (with residencies and opportunities) and if you are dual....its a little odd.. the way she describes it. I don't understand her, but I am doing whatever she wants since she is paying for my education.

hnerypaoho

04-06-2005, 06:16 AM

I'll be staying with my folks in QC. Will be taking my son with me.Listen, I've red you're a Filipino citizen. So am I, so I was just wonderring as to how you go about with your arrangement to maintain your Immigrant status. I've heard that we need to come back to the States every 6 mos. or file for re-enry or something. I'm still not clear as to how it works. Perhaps you have better info. Care to share? I addition, where did you do your premed?Thanks

-Well as I know, it's prohibited for filipinos to have dual citizenship. and I don't know what's their stupid reasons. so don't show your phil passport and american passport to the immigration officer. or just don't tell them you have both of the passport. coz they will confiscate them and put you in an undesirable situation. in case you have a phil passport.. use it to enter phil so that you don't have to leave the country in a short time or requires a re-entry permit or what so ever. coz that is my way everytime i enter phil.. for my pre-med, I went to CEU and graduated witn BS medical technology. and luckily I passed the board exam when I took it last 2002. so why feu and not other schools? coz for me, with my terribly low nmat score. feu is the only practical good school that accepted me.

procopio43

04-06-2005, 07:04 AM

-Well as I know, it's prohibited for filipinos to have dual citizenship. and I don't know what's their stupid reasons. so don't show your phil passport and american passport to the immigration officer. or just don't tell them you have both of the passport. coz they will confiscate them and put you in an undesirable situation. in case you have a phil passport.. use it to enter phil so that you don't have to leave the country in a short time or requires a re-entry permit or what so ever. coz that is my way everytime i enter phil.. for my pre-med, I went to CEU and graduated witn BS medical technology. and luckily I passed the board exam when I took it last 2002. so why feu and not other schools? coz for me, with my terribly low nmat score. feu is the only practical good school that accepted me.
hey hnery, like you, my NMAT score wasn't that good either. And I took it a couple of years back around '99 before coming here in the States to practice. I spoke first with the people from UERM.I made it with their cut-off score but they'd want me to take it again ( I think they required at least within 2 years ol dNMAT). FEU doesn't have problem with it so I had the family took care of the application. I then made arrangement with the personnel there and she told me to just come down for the interview. By the way, how did your interview go ? Was it more for just formality? I'm presently just a Greencard holder here in the States and with some info I heard around, I would need to return every 6 mos. or file for re-entry to preserve my permanent resident status.I'll keep you posted regarding my application. Hope to see you around Campus.

girlie78

04-06-2005, 11:37 AM

Maricelei,
I thought about doing the dual citizenship thing. What are the advantages of doing that? My mom does not want me to do that since she believes that there are no advantages whatsoever. She reminds me that once you come back to the states, they still prioritize the US citizens first (with residencies and opportunities) and if you are dual....its a little odd.. the way she describes it. I don't understand her, but I am doing whatever she wants since she is paying for my education.

Hey Phlipsquad,
I'm actually going through the dual citizenship process right now. I think it is very advantageous to go get a dual citizenship because the fees associated with being a foreign student are much higher than the fees you have to pay if you are a filipino citizen. There is a lot less paperwork you have to deal with (such as the visa you have to renew every six months or so, as well as the fees associated with that). As a dual citizen, you obtain a Philippine passport which allows you to stay in the Philippines for an indefinite amount of time. I totally recommend getting dual citizenship for those that do qualify. If you have any questions about the process, definitely send me a message or email me: girlie1578@yahoo.com

maricelei

04-06-2005, 06:43 PM

-Well it happens that i graduated in a pre-med school in the phil so there's no need for me to pay the donations. and it's really sucks that ust asked ypu to pay 10 grand. I mean, why did they ask you to pay when uerm didn't ask for it? it should be a fair game right? anyway, I think one of the factors is the diminishing enrolees for the past years. and I believe that all of the med schools are thinking their butts off in ways to survive! by the way, don't tell the immigration officer or someone that you have dual citizenship. coz it's filipinos allowed to have dual citizenship.

the dual citizenship bill has only just been passed last year or the year before (i think), so you don't have to worry about having 2 passports :)

hnerypaoho

04-07-2005, 04:10 AM

the dual citizenship bill has only just been passed last year or the year before (i think), so you don't have to worry about having 2 passports :)

-really? well that's good for us! but i still don't trust the phil immigration officers. coz they do anything just to squeeze out some money from you..

hnerypaoho

04-07-2005, 04:25 AM

hey hnery, like you, my NMAT score wasn't that good either. And I took it a couple of years back around '99 before coming here in the States to practice. I spoke first with the people from UERM.I made it with their cut-off score but they'd want me to take it again ( I think they required at least within 2 years ol dNMAT). FEU doesn't have problem with it so I had the family took care of the application. I then made arrangement with the personnel there and she told me to just come down for the interview. By the way, how did your interview go ? Was it more for just formality? I'm presently just a Greencard holder here in the States and with some info I heard around, I would need to return every 6 mos. or file for re-entry to preserve my permanent resident status.I'll keep you posted regarding my application. Hope to see you around Campus.

-My interview went great.. i think they were impressed with my answers. they somehow tried to discourage me in getting to medicine. but i came through with good impressions for them. anyway, i think you'll do fine.. is not scary as everyone think of. just go with the flow.. so what made you decide to go for medicine? coz everybody in the phil are getting themselves into nursing or care giving services. even phil doctors are shifting to those professions. i mean i'm sure that you're already earning a considerable amount of money in the states. so what made you do it?

phlipsquad

04-07-2005, 05:46 AM

Hey Phlipsquad,
I'm actually going through the dual citizenship process right now. I think it is very advantageous to go get a dual citizenship because the fees associated with being a foreign student are much higher than the fees you have to pay if you are a filipino citizen. There is a lot less paperwork you have to deal with (such as the visa you have to renew every six months or so, as well as the fees associated with that). As a dual citizen, you obtain a Philippine passport which allows you to stay in the Philippines for an indefinite amount of time. I totally recommend getting dual citizenship for those that do qualify. If you have any questions about the process, definitely send me a message or email me: girlie1578@yahoo.com
Thanks Girlie,
I definitely thought about it. My mom does not want me to do it, unfortunately. She wants me to come home every 6 months anyway. So not being a Filipino citizen, besides paperwork, what are the disadvantages?

phlipsquad

04-07-2005, 06:15 AM

-My interview went great.. i think they were impressed with my answers. they somehow tried to discourage me in getting to medicine. but i came through with good impressions for them. anyway, i think you'll do fine.. is not scary as everyone think of. just go with the flow.. so what made you decide to go for medicine? coz everybody in the phil are getting themselves into nursing or care giving services. even phil doctors are shifting to those professions. i mean i'm sure that you're already earning a considerable amount of money in the states. so what made you do it?
Congratulations Hnery with your successful interview. Hey, on my UST interview they ask that similar question "Why a doc?" It sounds like a simple question, but could be a way for them to see if you could give a genuine and honest answer, not just saying the "I like helping people" thing.

Anyway, Hnery, I bought this Anatomy Atlas, by Lippencott Wilkins williams. (Supposed to be the best anatomy atlas in the world...so they claim on the book). It is great and so detailed. You should consider it. I started memorizing a month ago and I have memorized about 75% of the skeletal system and muscles, and about half of the nerves.I 've taken anatomy before, so some are just review and I hope this will come to good use...early preparation and all. I will try to have these systems memorized before school starts. Are you still gonna study before school starts, even for a little bit? I am since I am hopeful that it will be an advantage. Please let me know how your study tactics are doing? Please, don't get me wrong, I am not just studying, I am enjoying my last days of freedom also! As a matter of fact, I am going with all my friends to Montreal in the next few days as a last trip for us before I leave. Anyway, I hope you are balancing your time also with having fun and reviewing.

phlipsquad

04-07-2005, 06:44 AM

procopio43

04-07-2005, 09:23 AM

-My interview went great.. i think they were impressed with my answers. they somehow tried to discourage me in getting to medicine. but i came through with good impressions for them. anyway, i think you'll do fine.. is not scary as everyone think of. just go with the flow.. so what made you decide to go for medicine? coz everybody in the phil are getting themselves into nursing or care giving services. even phil doctors are shifting to those professions. i mean i'm sure that you're already earning a considerable amount of money in the states. so what made you do it?
After my premed and getting my license in the Phil. I took my NMAT and applied to St. LUKES.They still have the entrance exam then aside from the interview. I got in.But life was hard then. Especially with a brand new family. To make long story short, I was financally challenged then and didn't bother with the Enrollment.So here I am , after a couple of years , working in the Hospital, earning a pretty decent living and working regularly with doctors around me. Dream's rekindled so I'm deciding to give it another shot.Back in PI. I know life is not too good even for Doctors, that's why some had to shift careers hoping to get to US. I'll be back here to practice when Im done with school by the way. A little familiar with the healthcare system and know a few doctors around , so hopefully that will help.

phlipsquad

04-08-2005, 01:01 PM

After my premed and getting my license in the Phil. I took my NMAT and applied to St. LUKES.They still have the entrance exam then aside from the interview. I got in.But life was hard then. Especially with a brand new family. To make long story short, I was financally challenged then and didn't bother with the Enrollment.So here I am , after a couple of years , working in the Hospital, earning a pretty decent living and working regularly with doctors around me. Dream's rekindled so I'm deciding to give it another shot.Back in PI. I know life is not too good even for Doctors, that's why some had to shift careers hoping to get to US. I'll be back here to practice when Im done with school by the way. A little familiar with the healthcare system and know a few doctors around , so hopefully that will help.
Hi,
Nice to hear from an incoming freshman! Best of luck and success in med school. Procopio, I also know alot of US docs who I am good friends with. I think its a good thing, since once you pass your test and stuff, they can extend their arms and help you with residency opportunities. I even know two doctors who are part of a committee in several residency programs. They told me to make sure they contact them once I start applying for the match. Anyway, I think connections are very important in the medical world or in the everyday world.

hnerypaoho

04-08-2005, 09:08 PM

Hi,
Nice to hear from an incoming freshman! Best of luck and success in med school. Procopio, I also know alot of US docs who I am good friends with. I think its a good thing, since once you pass your test and stuff, they can extend their arms and help you with residency opportunities. I even know two doctors who are part of a committee in several residency programs. They told me to make sure they contact them once I start applying for the match. Anyway, I think connections are very important in the medical world or in the everyday world.

-lucky for you guys that you know some doctors there that might help you out. unfortunate for me, i don't know anybody.. so if thetime comes. i hope you guys could help me out with the residency things.

bleudsky

04-09-2005, 02:42 AM

Hello Bluedsky and Maricelei or any other UST med students,
I'm sorry if I keep asking you ladies questions and taking your time and all. I really appreciate your feedback. So, I hope you will be able to help me with another question.
With memorization of bones, muscles and nerves. How long did you guys spend in these areas. I mean did it take only days, weeks, months for the class to cover all these systems, in terms of memorization. P.S. Do you think it will be an advantage to have memorized most of these things before school starts? Thanks.

well u really have to memorize them ALL by heart, especially the origin, insertion, innervation & action of all 600+ muscles, each tiny detail of a bone, course of each nerve, etc.; they're a MUST! what i did was i made a schedule and memorized them based on how my anatomy textbook put them in a table (for example, today i'll study those muscles in the forearm in both anterior and posterior compartments, then tomorrow or if i still have the nerve to do it today, i'll start to memorize the small muscles of the hand, etc.) thus, i'm sure i didn't waste my time. i admit there are times i tend to forget them, or i just memorize them for the sake of exams. for the entire class? hmm.. i don't know.. it's hard to say.. for the entire schoolyear, it's almost everyday that you have to memorize something.

if i were you, i won't bother yet. i'd rather have fun & make most out of my rest period. you'll have time for memorization. don't worry.

phlipsquad

04-09-2005, 09:09 AM

-lucky for you guys that you know some doctors there that might help you out. unfortunate for me, i don't know anybody.. so if thetime comes. i hope you guys could help me out with the residency things.
Dont Worry Hnery,
All you have to do is volunteer, work, or do your clerkship in an american hospital. There you will develop relations with and possible friendships with docs and residents. This is some advantage, I think, but it is not everything. You still need to get good scores in the USMLE. I guess knowing these docs is just icing on the cake.

aspiring doctor

04-09-2005, 03:49 PM

hi! i'm a canadian citizen and went to pre-med at la salle.. after i graduated 2004 i went to canada to try to get into med..unfortunately canadian medical schools are very rigid.. they don't allow much foreigners at all, plus i had deficient units since my courses at la salle didn't meet their standards..so they advised me to take 4 subjects all over again which will make me wait another 2 years before i can apply and i also have to take the MCAT in august...bummer!!!
anyway i thought it would go backto the phil. to take med.. so i'm trying to look for a good school that meets US/ Canada standards...with US i have hope but getting a residency spot in Canada seems impossible...only 1% of foreign graduates are accepted i guess if u really have high scores on their residency test...or whatever it's called...any canadians out there that is or will be going to the phil. for med???

i got my dual citizenship in i think 2000 or 1999.. i'm wondering how come you have two passports??? i only use my canadian one... all they require is the paper work stating u also are also a filipino citizen...
good advantages with dual citizenship....esp. since the mentality in the phil. is that when you're a foreigner you have a lot of money..they ask for a lot of payments which may not really be needed but just to increase their funds...
i rarely used my canadian citizenship in the phil. which saved me a lot of money...it saves u the foreign fee which is a couple of thousand dollars.. from right now i see no setbacks with dual citizebship.. u enjoy both benefits..

hnerypaoho

04-09-2005, 07:08 PM

hnerypaoho

04-09-2005, 07:12 PM

Dont Worry Hnery,
All you have to do is volunteer, work, or do your clerkship in an american hospital. There you will develop relations with and possible friendships with docs and residents. This is some advantage, I think, but it is not everything. You still need to get good scores in the USMLE. I guess knowing these docs is just icing on the cake.

-I think for me to volunteer or do a part of my clerkship in the us will be kinda hard for me. coz i don't think feu allows you to go to other countries for your clerkship year. as for now, my only hope is to get high scores in usmle for me to get a spot.

phlipsquad

04-11-2005, 07:29 AM

-I think for me to volunteer or do a part of my clerkship in the us will be kinda hard for me. coz i don't think feu allows you to go to other countries for your clerkship year. as for now, my only hope is to get high scores in usmle for me to get a spot.
Really Hnery?
FEU does not allow you to do your clerkships abroad? For UST, we can but some of the electives like surgery and medicine MUST be done in Phils, but you can do the subspecialites like radio, anesthesio, etc abroad. I think for UE, the rules regarding clerkship are less stringent. I think you can do mostly all your clerkship abroad, if you wish.

P.S. Does anybody know if you can repeat your clerkship electives here in the states? Its just that I am definitely going to do my surgery rotation in UST(phils). I want to repeat this in the states? Is that possible ? (I've heard a rumor about this being true.) I know that doing surgery rotation is better in the Phils since you are actually able to do more "hands-on training" than here in the states. I want to repeat it here in the states just as an additional learning tool and experience, considering praticing might be different from the 2 countries.

girlie78

04-11-2005, 08:19 AM

Thanks Girlie,
I definitely thought about it. My mom does not want me to do it, unfortunately. She wants me to come home every 6 months anyway. So not being a Filipino citizen, besides paperwork, what are the disadvantages?

Hi Phlipsquad,

When I was going through the application process at CIM and Cebu Doc, I was told by the registrar and admissions offices that if you do not get filipino citizenship, then you have to apply as a foreign student. This entails numerous fees that are a heck of a lot more expensive than if you were a filipino. Plus the money you will have to pay for plane tickets home every six months as well as the various fees associated with renewing your visa. I understand your mother's concern and if she's willing to shell out all that money, then whatever works for you. Good luck!

phlipsquad

04-11-2005, 08:44 AM

Hi Phlipsquad,

When I was going through the application process at CIM and Cebu Doc, I was told by the registrar and admissions offices that if you do not get filipino citizenship, then you have to apply as a foreign student. This entails numerous fees that are a heck of a lot more expensive than if you were a filipino. Plus the money you will have to pay for plane tickets home every six months as well as the various fees associated with renewing your visa. I understand your mother's concern and if she's willing to shell out all that money, then whatever works for you. Good luck!
Hi girlie,
For UST, I was told that it does not matter what type of citizenship you have, as long as you went to college abroad, then you are considered foreign. If I get a dual, even as a Filipino citizen, I still need to pay a foreign fee of 10,000 dollars, since I went to college here in the states. My mother know about the fees and she is fine with it. I cannot do anything either way to NOT pay it. Although money is important, I just keep it in my mind that I am still saving bucko dollars in my decision of going to school in the phils. I will spend about 25, 000 dollars for the 4 years in the phils. Keep in mind, this DOES NOT COVER 1 year in an american medical school. That's why I chose not to apply here in the states. I hear that the philippines is excellent in preparing medical students to pass the USMLE. I heard about this, that the Philippines is ranked second in the world in terms of getting doctors to practice here (in terms of numbers). Only India has sent more docs here in the states.

I got this somewhere from online:

The following list ranks the top 20 countries where the largest numbers of US physicians trained. This data does not represent citizenship or ethnic origin, it only represents the location of medical schools.

1. India - 19.5% (41,235)
2. Philippines - 9.2% (19,449)
3. Mexico - 5.7 % (12,168)
4. Pakistan - 4.6% (9,755)
5. Dominican Republic- 3.3% (6,988)
6. Former USSR - 2.4 % (5,104)
7. Italy - 2.3% (4,871)
8. Egypt - 2.2% (4,731)
9. South Korea- 2.2% (4,629)
10. China and Hong Kong- 2.1% (4,537)
11. Spain - 2.1% (4,514)
12. Germany - 2.1% (4,302)
13. Grenada - 1.9% (4,183)
14. Iran- 1.9% (4,104)
15. Syria- 1.5% (3,235)
16. United Kingdom - 1.4% (3,112)
17. Cuba- 1.4% (2,999)
18. Taiwan- 1.3% (2,833)
19. Israel - 1.3% (2,735)
20. Lebanon-1.3% (2,719)

* PS. Canada is not on the list, it think since it is considered equal to US med schools.

Now, Hnery, Bluedsky, Procopio an Marecelei, Does this make you feel a little better! What about all our fellow Filipino med students wishing to practice in the states. Any comments on these statistics?

bleudsky

04-12-2005, 04:58 AM

hnerypaoho

04-12-2005, 05:12 AM

thanks for that info, phlipsquad.

the stats are close to the "news" that some people have been telling me here. though i'm not certain if the news i heard was pertaining to USA.

honestly, USA is not my top list coz it's saturated w/ filipino docs practicing or having their residency training. i'm aiming for Canada or UK (maricelei knows why. hahaha!).

-I think I have bad news to tell you about Canada. In what I've read for other threads.. for IMG or FMG to practice in Canada has only 1-2% chances. Even for their own citizens who graduated from med schools outside canada or us have very hard time to get themselves to a residency programs there. But don't give up! there are still 1-2% chances right? Maybe you'll get better Chances in Europe. :)

phlipsquad

04-12-2005, 05:30 AM

thanks for that info, phlipsquad.

the stats are close to the "news" that some people have been telling me here. though i'm not certain if the news i heard was pertaining to USA.

honestly, USA is not my top list coz it's saturated w/ filipino docs practicing or having their residency training. i'm aiming for Canada or UK (maricelei knows why. hahaha!).
Cool,
Good Luck with that. I have visited both UK and Canada and I think they are both equally beautiful places. London has a very high standard of living and is even MORE EXPENSIVE than New York city. It was a shock to me! As for Canada, I have been to Montreal and Toronto. Their prices are much cheaper than the US. Nevertheless, both standard of living are quite exceptional! Good luck with your selection. Bluedsky, I think it is easier to get into those 2 countries than the US right? due to the immigration of sooo many nurses to the states?

phlipsquad

04-12-2005, 05:31 AM

hnerypaoho

04-12-2005, 05:41 AM

Where are your plans of practicing Hnery?

-Well, I'm hoping New Zealand will do. or somewhere in Europe. But the US is still in my list too.

phlipsquad

04-12-2005, 05:43 AM

-I think I have bad news to tell you about Canada. In what I've read for other threads.. for IMG or FMG to practice in Canada has only 1-2% chances. Even for their own citizens who graduated from med schools outside canada or us have very hard time to get themselves to a residency programs there. But don't give up! there are still 1-2% chances right? Maybe you'll get better Chances in Europe. :)

Yes, unfortunately, I agree with hnery, bluedsky. I myself also heard that it is much harder to get into a residency in Canada....much tougher than the states. I had a Canadian friend who went to med school in the Dominican Republic and she told me her chances were almost impossible....and she was a Canadian citizen. Either way, there are many other opportunities out there... and so many countries wanting medical care. I am sure you will be successful in practicing abroad Bluedsky...wherever it may be! Good Luck!
London is a very favorable alternative!

phlipsquad

04-12-2005, 05:58 AM

-Well, I'm hoping New Zealand will do. or somewhere in Europe. But the US is still in my list too.
Let me tell you guys and ladies this too, in case you are interested!
I heard this from somewhere online..also one of those statistics, which unfortunately, I was unable to print, so i cannot directly quote it. Nevertheless, I distinctly remember that in the States, New York and New Jersey have the most number of IMG's practicing compared to other states.
I think New York has close to 40% of their doctors being International Medical Graduates . This is good news to me, since there is no other place in the world I would rather live in than in New York City!

P.S. This is a fact though:
A little over 25% of physicians practicing in the United States are International Medical Graduates.
-Source: American Association of International Medical Graduates

Imagine, 1 in 4 US docs graduated abroad! That does not sound too bleak for me! I hope these stats will inspire us in achieving residencies in the states!

girlie78

04-12-2005, 07:35 AM

Hi girlie,
For UST, I was told that it does not matter what type of citizenship you have, as long as you went to college abroad, then you are considered foreign. If I get a dual, even as a Filipino citizen, I still need to pay a foreign fee of 10,000 dollars, since I went to college here in the states. My mother know about the fees and she is fine with it. I cannot do anything either way to NOT pay it. Although money is important, I just keep it in my mind that I am still saving bucko dollars in my decision of going to school in the phils. I will spend about 25, 000 dollars for the 4 years in the phils. Keep in mind, this DOES NOT COVER 1 year in an american medical school. That's why I chose not to apply here in the states. I hear that the philippines is excellent in preparing medical students to pass the USMLE. I heard about this, that the Philippines is ranked second in the world in terms of getting doctors to practice here (in terms of numbers). Only India has sent more docs here in the states.

Hey Phlipsquad,

Thanks for the stats, although I'm very curious as to the source of these numbers. I totally understand that going to the Philippines is exponentially much cheaper than going to medical school in the U.S. That's the main reason I've decided to go this route as well. It was a matter of paying $1,200 a year at CIM or paying $40K a year in the U.S. It stinks you have to pay $10K for going to a foreign undergrad, but I guess every school is different and yes it does still work out to be a better situation than going to school in the U.S.

The stats on the Philippines being ranked 2nd in preparing med school students for residency in the U.S. is very encouraging, especially since it is what I intend to do. I'm hoping that CIM will offer some way of helping me prepare for the USMLE's. I'll have more of a grasp on my situation once I arrive in Cebu.

Thanks again and Good Luck!

GoldenAzn

04-12-2005, 08:14 AM

procopio43

04-12-2005, 07:19 PM

-I think for me to volunteer or do a part of my clerkship in the us will be kinda hard for me. coz i don't think feu allows you to go to other countries for your clerkship year. as for now, my only hope is to get high scores in usmle for me to get a spot.
Hnery, I saw this past thread(25) from Spartan Doc (FEU Grad) and he mentioned that he did 1 month Internal Med in NY. And that some of his classmates got at least 2-4 mos. You mightwant to check it out.

hnerypaoho

04-12-2005, 10:32 PM

-I see. so it means that feu does allow rotations abroad.. but I wonder, how difficult would it be for feu to let you go? and how much will it cost? coz the truth is. the rate of enrolees had gone down for the past years.. and I bet that feu already changed some of their rules.. Well, maybe I'm just thinking too much. Anyway, I believe that doing some rotations in the phil will be better for our experience rather doing it in the states. Take surgery for instance. I think you woluld be allow to participate during an operation in the phil. and I mean really do the surgery by yourself with supervision. and I don't think that you'll have that experience in the states.

bleudsky

04-12-2005, 11:18 PM

-I think I have bad news to tell you about Canada. In what I've read for other threads.. for IMG or FMG to practice in Canada has only 1-2% chances. Even for their own citizens who graduated from med schools outside canada or us have very hard time to get themselves to a residency programs there. But don't give up! there are still 1-2% chances right? Maybe you'll get better Chances in Europe. :)

Yes, unfortunately, I agree with hnery, bluedsky. I myself also heard that it is much harder to get into a residency in Canada....much tougher than the states. I had a Canadian friend who went to med school in the Dominican Republic and she told me her chances were almost impossible....and she was a Canadian citizen. Either way, there are many other opportunities out there... and so many countries wanting medical care. I am sure you will be successful in practicing abroad Bluedsky... wherever it may be! Good Luck! London is a very favorable alternative!

thanks for this info guys. don't worry my options are still open, even USA.

bleudsky

04-12-2005, 11:23 PM

Cool,
Good Luck with that. I have visited both UK and Canada and I think they are both equally beautiful places. London has a very high standard of living and is even MORE EXPENSIVE than New York city. It was a shock to me! As for Canada, I have been to Montreal and Toronto. Their prices are much cheaper than the US. Nevertheless, both standard of living are quite exceptional! Good luck with your selection. Bluedsky, I think it is easier to get into those 2 countries than the US right? due to the immigration of sooo many nurses to the states?

thanks!

well i can't comment on your last statement though since i haven't heard much of filipino docs practicing in the UK. most are in the USA.

phlipsquad

04-13-2005, 04:53 AM

Hey Phlipsquad,

Thanks for the stats, although I'm very curious as to the source of these numbers. I totally understand that going to the Philippines is exponentially much cheaper than going to medical school in the U.S. That's the main reason I've decided to go this route as well. It was a matter of paying $1,200 a year at CIM or paying $40K a year in the U.S. It stinks you have to pay $10K for going to a foreign undergrad, but I guess every school is different and yes it does still work out to be a better situation than going to school in the U.S.

The stats on the Philippines being ranked 2nd in preparing med school students for residency in the U.S. is very encouraging, especially since it is what I intend to do. I'm hoping that CIM will offer some way of helping me prepare for the USMLE's. I'll have more of a grasp on my situation once I arrive in Cebu.

Thanks again and Good Luck!
Hi Girlie,
Yeah.The reason why I did not apply to the states. My situation was this. I had great grades in my undergad (Cum Laude B.S.Bio). I took the MCAT and had a horrible experience...definitely not my potential. When I took the test, it was in a big hotel conference room. Unfortunately, the test people had assigned seatings. I sat right next to this door...which was the hotel kitchen. I heard pots and pans banging throughout my exam and nobody did anything about it. It is so horrible to even think about and I only wished that I could have erased the experience from my memory. My pre-medical advisor tells me that I just need to take it again, since my practice test was much higher than the actual test. He definitely believes that I can get into an American medical school.....but I have to wait another year and retake the MCATs. I was in the state of depression until, Looking at the Philippines gave me hope... and I do not want to take another year off. I already did that after undergrad.I wanted to move on with my life. Also, the monetary difference is quite considerable. Anyway, I think the Phils is a great choice! Good luck to us all!

P.S. Have fun in Cebu Girlie. Kabalo ka mo Bisaya? I am fluent in Cebuano, although my tagalog is a little rusty. I have been watching tagalog movies almost everyday to polish it up. LOL!

phlipsquad

04-13-2005, 04:57 AM

Yeah I know this is totally random and not going with the current thread...but wanted to say thanks to Bluedsky, Marecelei, and Phlipsquad. I heard news yestereday that I was able to get the place(with room number) I wanted near UST. Thanks again for the help and going through all those question about where to live/opinion. Hopefully I can be able to go down some floors..omg 5th floor so far and no elevators (well from what ya'll said..i'm still hoping there is one at least)..is going to be a trip. But that's what I get for getting it last minute. I was really worried becuase of the wait list.
Congratulations Golden,
It is really great to hear that your living arrangements worked out! So you say its near UST med. Where is your place at? Hope to bump into you at UST!

P.S. Golden, on a positive note, when the floods come, well at least you are on higher ground! You won't be affected! I myself am in the second floor.

phlipsquad

04-13-2005, 05:05 AM

phlipsquad

04-13-2005, 05:18 AM

To all the Phil- Ams going to the Phils for med...especially in the Manila area?
Are you guys practicing your tagalog? Anyway, I think it is definitely an asset to know the language!

phlipsquad

04-13-2005, 05:19 AM

hnerypaoho

04-13-2005, 05:49 AM

Hello Bluedsky,
So clerkships is only a few days away from you huh? You must be excited! Good luck. I saw on the UST website that you guys get to do some rotations in the National Bureau of Crime. Interesting!

I myself am sooooo excited. I am leaving in a month. I am surely gonna miss NYC, my family, relatives, co-workers and bosses though. Nevertheless, this is what I want to do!

-yeah, I'm gonna miss Taiwan too.. especially my family.. But this is what we want! and I believe that we already spent a lot of time thinking of getting here! so God bless us all!

biosailgirl

04-13-2005, 01:21 PM

phlipsquad

04-14-2005, 05:40 AM

phlipsquad

04-14-2005, 05:43 AM

GoldenAzn

04-14-2005, 03:34 PM

Congratulations Golden,
It is really great to hear that your living arrangements worked out! So you say its near UST med. Where is your place at? Hope to bump into you at UST!

P.S. Golden, on a positive note, when the floods come, well at least you are on higher ground! You won't be affected! I myself am in the second floor.

I will be living in the Caste on dos castillas street. Yeah no worries about flood...i made sure it wasn't on the bottom (or I told my contact to get a nonfirst floor since I got some electronics I don't wanna get fryed) while I was perfering a 2nd or 3rd floor honestly. It'll have to be a super bad flood. But after talking to Bleudsky I learned at least I know of a neighbor that lives on the same floor...so at least not all bad...well not sure how big that floor is though. Sup, Neighbor..heheh

Unless I can get lower...but was told chances are very slim since there weren't a lot of residence who left and I got one of the last rooms supposively. But hey beggers can't be choosers...especially since it was very last minute.

Yeah hopefully we can bump into each other. Like I said earlier I left you a private message on this forum...with my contact info for instant messenger/email...so if you'd like you can talk to me there as well since I'm usually online or have it on.

GoldenAzn

04-14-2005, 03:41 PM

To all the Phil- Ams going to the Phils for med...especially in the Manila area?
Are you guys practicing your tagalog? Anyway, I think it is definitely an asset to know the language!

No not been practicing...most of the peeps I know who are flips are AMERICANIZED...ie they don't even know tagalog. But I've been trying to watch some dvds I've got. I understand just scared when I talk really since I can't tell if it's Tagalog..or another language since my mom is from another province in the Phillippines.

GoldenAzn

04-14-2005, 03:58 PM

Hi,
Can anyone help me with a dilemma? Where should I buy a laptop? In the Phils or in the US? What are the advantages of buying it in Phils? US? Is there still that voltage difference...etc ...needing a converter thing. Anyway, I just want to make sure if I buy a Dell, if there are problems that I could have it fixed in Manila. I have always been a big fan of dell. What do you think Hnery or Golden...Where are you guys buying your computer? Any suggestions? Thanks.

Ah man sorry I didn't check this earlier. I had a code from a friend..becuase yestereday they were giving $750 off of a dell laptop that was 1500. But it was for the first 10,000 customers..which took like 45 mins based on the message boards. But I asked about this already from bleudsky and another pinay who goes to medical school there...it's better to get it over here.

I'm personally not getting a laptop unless i seriously need it or it is required. Had two already before...and they were always the lightest one...but when I went studying it was like such a hastle to have a laptop bag and another bag walking around. And especially with the fact that I'll be walking back and forth....while worring about getting sandbaged by someone who wants my laptop. Also I don't like how slow those suckers are...since those chips are expensive.

I'm bring my desktop personally. Yeah shipping the sucker in one of my boxes. But that is me. But yeah dell is hot. I like them a lot. I think though there is no actual place to fix dells in Philippines..no clue though. But I know normally if there is a problem with their computers they ship referbished parts to you..which aren't bad. But I believe you'll have to pay for the freight cost back and fort though..i think they pay up to a certain amount since it's to the philippines. But, I would sure as heck call dell customer service and ask them straight up what is there policy if any before buying a laptop concerning their warranty. This desktop is my 3rd dell...and still loving their warranty...got a new dvd burner asap the next day after I had a problem..so they are super hot i think. That's my 2 cents...though. Also think about getting one from their factory outlet...they got some nice ass deals there for some referbished laptops...if you want it cheaper...also there are always codes for discount...There is a $500 off a $1350 or more laptops for the first 10000 through business right now going on...if it's not finished. Seems they are ending their recent quarter for business and are doing mad discounts.

Hey I went and found some deals for the laptop if your interested for home..not sure how long it'll last. I can't post code I don't think directly on this..but here is the deals right now...for laptops..looks like if you are going to get one you better act fast..good luck whichever you choose...i believe these are for home..not business..but not sure...also you might be able to find a stackable coupon sometimes $30, 35 i noticed...but i think there was a $75 when i did a quick search on ebay.

Save $500 on any Inspiron Notebook purchase of $1499 or more. Coupon expires 4/19/05 at 5:59 am CT or after 3000 uses, whichever comes first.

Save $600 on any Inspiron Notebook purchase of $1699 or more. Coupon expires 4/19/05 at 5:59 am CT or after 3000 uses, whichever comes first.

Save $750 on any Inspiron Notebook purchase of $1999 or more. Coupon expires 4/19/05 at 5:59 am CT or after 3000 uses, whichever comes first.

Save $250 on any Inspiron Notebook purchase of $999 or more. Coupon expires 4/21/05 at 5:59 am CT or after 4000 uses, whichever comes first.

Save $400 on any Inspiron Notebook purchase of $1499 or more. Coupon expires 4/21/05 at 5:59 am CT or after 4000 uses, whichever comes first.

Save $600 on any Inspiron Notebook purchase of $1999 or more. Coupon expires 4/21/05 at 5:59 am CT or after 4000 uses, whichever comes first.

GoldenAzn

04-14-2005, 04:29 PM

Hey everyone!
I just did a search for "sleep" on SDN forums and came upon this forum. I thought how cool, I'm a filipina and they're talking about Filipino med schools. Anyways, my parents tried to get me to go to the Philippines for med school - I think one of my great-great uncle's is a dean at one of the schools there. But I think I'd miss it too much here, plus I heard it was incredibly hard to get back and practice in the US. Is that the case? Will you guys be coming back?
My parents just moved to Orion and I can't wait to visit. I bet it would be awesome to go in the PI, cheap rent, tuition, your own maid and the shopping. I'll be going to a D.O. school in Atlanta come this August and I'll be taking on all kinds of loans. Big, scary loans.

First off congrats on getting into a DO school. First off..ATL is super hot..had many a fun time there. Going to have my last ATL trip with my boyz and gurls up there next weekend. There is a cool group call 3Dot..they are the asian group that do promtions there. They take care of their peeps...and damn always nice to get in free right instead of paying the 10 to 20 covers there...well that's my experience. I like how everything is close..well based on one of my boyz pad which is in midtown. Yes I know I'm not preparing for medical school..it's just I have to say goodbye to my boys and gurls and they live in different places and most of my weekends are all booked until i leave...so yeah I'm a big slacker compared to you phlipsquad.

Here is a link to them...

3 Dot Website (http://www.3dotevents.net/)

Yeah I was thinking about the DO route as well. Here is my 2 cents about this. I talk to some docs...while there is some prejudice between MD and foreign MD..it seems that there is a wee bit more of a prejudice between MD and DO.

Also another reason why I went the foreign route instead was because at least it keeps my option open if I want to have my own clinic in the future. People are lazy and they always look for doctors with MD since that's the stingma now a days of MD as doctors...so it'll be hard to make some money as a DO doctor with my own clinic. Also no one really goes..where did you go to study for becoming a doctor..I mean seriously how many of you people ask where your doctors have studied and looked at their degree...all you cared is that they are REAL doctors and can help you. And in the yellow pages there is no seperation for foreign doctor and us doctor..but also I feel if you do your work good..and have a good reputation then it won't matter either way where you studied...just that you followed your dream.

Now so you don't think I'm talking out of my ass...I did followed 3 DO doctors...2 had their own clinque and another through the hospital. Even one of the DO doctors (who owns part of a spine clinic/his partner was a MD..so he said that's how he got some of his work through the md since they called for the other guy and needed an appointment), is considering going back for medical school and was in contact with a med school so he can get a MD as well..but he'll have to redo like 2 years I heard and then 1 year after for residence..instead of the whole 4. That was one thing that got me like wait hold up..seriously.

The other DO doctor had a very small clinic even though he was a family practiconer. He told me about the hoops he has to go through sometimes for insurance reason..and some pros/cons. He even told me he can help me get in maybe since he was in the board for the Iowa DO School in the past (it think that was it or somewhere in midamerica)..but he told me if you can do the foreign route...you should do that...because it's up to your dreams. But he didn't say it was bad to be a DO doctor...he was supportive and answered a lot of my questoin...i'm not trying to bash DO doctor in no way seriously.

The other DO was from a hospital...he said he did have some prejudice sometimes he feels from his collegues. But he said it's very douable..and it's nice

Truth is...honestly both roads will be hard to fulfill a dream....while I know I will have a huge culture shock from not going back a lot to the PIs...but the road I'm taking is harder but I feel it is my dream..also oh man it'll be loads cheaper taking the foreign route heheh comparing the prices of both the foreign MD route and DO route...but Good luck with your road...so anyways quoting Robert Frost...

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could

I'm hoping the end of that story for me as well will be

I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

hnerypaoho

04-14-2005, 11:20 PM

phlipsquad

04-15-2005, 05:57 AM

First off congrats on getting into a DO school. First off..ATL is super hot..had many a fun time there. Going to have my last ATL trip with my boyz and gurls up there next weekend. There is a cool group call 3Dot..they are the asian group that do promtions there. They take care of their peeps...and damn always nice to get in free right instead of paying the 10 to 20 covers there...well that's my experience. I like how everything is close..well based on one of my boyz pad which is in midtown. Yes I know I'm not preparing for medical school..it's just I have to say goodbye to my boys and gurls and they live in different places and most of my weekends are all booked until i leave...so yeah I'm a big slacker compared to you phlipsquad.

Here is a link to them...

3 Dot Website (http://www.3dotevents.net/)

Yeah I was thinking about the DO route as well. Here is my 2 cents about this. I talk to some docs...while there is some prejudice between MD and foreign MD..it seems that there is a wee bit more of a prejudice between MD and DO.

Also another reason why I went the foreign route instead was because at least it keeps my option open if I want to have my own clinic in the future. People are lazy and they always look for doctors with MD since that's the stingma now a days of MD as doctors...so it'll be hard to make some money as a DO doctor with my own clinic. Also no one really goes..where did you go to study for becoming a doctor..I mean seriously how many of you people ask where your doctors have studied and looked at their degree...all you cared is that they are REAL doctors and can help you. And in the yellow pages there is no seperation for foreign doctor and us doctor..but also I feel if you do your work good..and have a good reputation then it won't matter either way where you studied...just that you followed your dream.

Now so you don't think I'm talking out of my ass...I did followed 3 DO doctors...2 had their own clinque and another through the hospital. Even one of the DO doctors (who owns part of a spine clinic/his partner was a MD..so he said that's how he got some of his work through the md since they called for the other guy and needed an appointment), is considering going back for medical school and was in contact with a med school so he can get a MD as well..but he'll have to redo like 2 years I heard and then 1 year after for residence..instead of the whole 4. That was one thing that got me like wait hold up..seriously.

The other DO doctor had a very small clinic even though he was a family practiconer. He told me about the hoops he has to go through sometimes for insurance reason..and some pros/cons. He even told me he can help me get in maybe since he was in the board for the Iowa DO School in the past (it think that was it or somewhere in midamerica)..but he told me if you can do the foreign route...you should do that...because it's up to your dreams. But he didn't say it was bad to be a DO doctor...he was supportive and answered a lot of my questoin...i'm not trying to bash DO doctor in no way seriously.

The other DO was from a hospital...he said he did have some prejudice sometimes he feels from his collegues. But he said it's very douable..and it's nice

Truth is...honestly both roads will be hard to fulfill a dream....while I know I will have a huge culture shock from not going back a lot to the PIs...but the road I'm taking is harder but I feel it is my dream..also oh man it'll be loads cheaper taking the foreign route heheh comparing the prices of both the foreign MD route and DO route...but Good luck with your road...so anyways quoting Robert Frost...

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could

I'm hoping the end of that story for me as well will be

I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

Regarding the MD vs international grad MD. In my opinion, it really does not matter much to a certain extent. From experience, I work now as a Pulmonary technician in New York City under 3 pulmonologist. Two of them graduated from Lebanon, and one from Mount Sinai med in New York. They all have the same amount of patients, get the same amount of respect, etc. The president of the practice is an IMG. Having worked with patients for 2 years, they never ask where their docs graduated. I mean in the 2 years here, I was asked once or twice. Mostly, what the patients are concerned about, is which doctor accepts their insurance. Also, it is through referals that docs get patients. So if you have alot of doc friends, they will refer their patients to you, and the patient trusts their primary docs, so when they get referred to a specialist, there is no questions asked in their part.

GoldenAzn

04-15-2005, 06:11 AM

GoldenAzn

04-15-2005, 06:13 AM

Regarding the MD vs international grad MD. In my opinion, it really does not matter much to a certain extent. From experience, I work now as a Pulmonary technician in New York City under 3 pulmonologist. Two of them graduated from Lebanon, and one from Mount Sinai med in New York. They all have the same amount of patients, get the same amount of respect, etc. The president of the practice is an IMG. Having worked with patients for 2 years, they never ask where their docs graduated. I mean in the 2 years here, I was asked once or twice. Mostly, what the patients are concerned about, is which doctor accepts their insurance. Also, it is through referals that docs get patients. So if you have alot of doc friends, they will refer their patients to you, and the patient trusts their primary docs, so when they get referred to a specialist, there is no questions asked in their part.

Yeah I understand what your sayin...just that I was referencing the problem between a MD (either international or what not) and DO..that there is some bias there..which I heard was more bias than an international..but not sure.

phlipsquad

04-15-2005, 11:32 AM

-Well, the voltage in the phil is 220V. if I were you, I'm not going to bring a laptop to school everyday. first, the way the studets take their notes in the phil is by writing it on paper or notebook. second, you don't want to be an eye-catcher for the robbers and snatchers. But if you really want to have a laptop, I suggest you to bring an old one or just keep it in your house. or just have a PC instead.
Hi,
Don't worry Hnery,
My laptop is not leaving my room. I just want a spacesaver for my computer. Desktops are too big and bulky and take up too much room. I know about the snatchings, I am DEFINITELY leaving my laptop. in my room always.

Hey Golden,
I checked for Dell notebooks, they have pretty good prices...I could get a good one for $800 dollars...with an original price of $1200, they are slashing prices. Is this what you are talking about in the your previous post? Will this offer not last for some time? Meaning should I buy from them soon?

phlipsquad

04-15-2005, 11:40 AM

Yeah I understand what your sayin...just that I was referencing the problem between a MD (either international or what not) and DO..that there is some bias there..which I heard was more bias than an international..but not sure.
True,
I agree with you. I would rather be a foreign MD than a DO. I am not implying that being a DO is bad, since they are supposed to be EQUAL to MD's, but alot of everyday people do not even know what a DO doctor is. As you were saying Golden, There is that norm that most people think that a doctor= MD...period. If you know what I mean.

phlipsquad

04-15-2005, 11:43 AM

Naw that's not true. Bleudsky told me some of her classmate use a program and type their notes in class...since they are faster typers than writers I guess. So people in the phil do use laptops for school.
I am using the spiral bound notebooks. Much efficient for me. I would rather write than type.

phlipsquad

04-15-2005, 04:52 PM

GoldenAzn

04-15-2005, 09:37 PM

Hi,
Don't worry Hnery,
My laptop is not leaving my room. I just want a spacesaver for my computer. Desktops are too big and bulky and take up too much room. I know about the snatchings, I am DEFINITELY leaving my laptop. in my room always.

Hey Golden,
I checked for Dell notebooks, they have pretty good prices...I could get a good one for $800 dollars...with an original price of $1200, they are slashing prices. Is this what you are talking about in the your previous post? Will this offer not last for some time? Meaning should I buy from them soon?

Well from what I'm gettin they are trying to slash prices for the recent quarter finacial report. Or that is what they are sayin on the forums. Basically those codes as you can see are better off buying earlier..because if they pass the amount of people then those codes die. I do know that there was a way as better coupon that expired just a few days earlier and had the first 10000 people...it got killed in 45 mins. I do not know if the current codes are going to die if thery are still available. But based on the codes...as you can see from what I wrote up...you see the dates when they end and stuff...so it's your judgment call. I just know that since you are currently going to PI and you do not have much time for hastling basically.

Yeah I know about that problem with the desktop size...why I'm buying me an LCD monitor or considreing getting one to have desk space..that's my way around it heheh. And they got a deal..and am about to buy. Just waiting on a gift certificate on ebay i'm trying to buy to make it stack lower.

GoldenAzn

04-15-2005, 09:44 PM

Hey Golden,
How sure are you that Dell will be compatible with their 220 V. I mean, I have heard that you can buy converters and stuff, but is it easy to find those and are there usually any problems with that? You are bringing an American made computer yourself, How sure are you that there will be no arising problems? I am just a little hesitant, but I WANT a DELL notebook.Feedback?

I'm not sure really. If I were you I'd call dell straight up and ask about compatiblity issues you may have. I mean your in NY..it's a 800 number and if you use a cell all the time like me...weekend minutes just came out..so it's a free call. I'll just make sure you ask about their warranty concerning you going to Philippines and if it nulls and voids anything. Also if there is a problem what it there procdure...like I know in US you get free shipping back and forth for like hardware problems..with them even sending a tech to come to your house which they had the one time I had a problem. I know currently I'm bring my desktop with me..so I'm going to roll the dice..but mine does have a 3 yr warranty I added on it for everything basically that I can get..beucaes I love their customer service and very fast service with problems. But, like I have a friend who uses a laptop there and it's a dell from US...she has no problems as of right now...but like I'm not your laptop kehhee and don't know if I'll choke or die becaue of the voltage...

Like I said earlier..you have my contact info in your private message if you wanna talk to me...for faster feedback. I usually don't check this forum to be honest. But I'm typically on aim or yahoo...or email is way as faster. If need be...I'll send you my cell number via email...but like I just don't trust leaving contact info on a forum where people can readily access it...beside email. Well good luck on yoru choice.

bleudsky

04-16-2005, 10:56 PM

phlipsquad,

clerkship's already started last friday (april 15) and even before that (during our orientation) we were already feeling stressed out & tired. i was "on 24 hr duty" from yesterday morning at 7 am till 7 this morning then we automatically started our "from duty" shift w/o taking a bath nor changing clothes (it's the Department of Medicine's policy that NO one will leave the hospital). right now, we're still in the process of adjusting ourselves. luckily, today being a sunday our "from duty" shift was just half day. just imagine the stress you'll be receiving if our "from duty" fell anyday of the week (w/c is from 7 am to 5 pm).

to all fil-ams, start practicing your tagalog coz you'll be DEFINITELY spending your clerkship here since it's part of your medical education. when u interview your patients, the possibility that they didn't finish their education is very high! they may understand english but don't always be sure that they understand you 100%. even the fil-ams in our batch have no choice about this since they can't picky w/ the patients assigned to them by the residents.

fremitus

04-17-2005, 08:44 PM

Fremitus,
Hi. I've been hearing alot of good things about UE with neurology. I would consider neurology as an option for me since I know of a neurologist at work and have shadowed his work. Is UST good in neurology too? I already told UE that I am NOT accepting their offer to enroll. I hope UST is good in neurology too. Any feedback?

Acctually, if God permits that I pass the boards this comming august, i plan on applying for residency at ust. Ust is the only institution in the phils that offers a combined neuro-psych program. At FEU, our neurology faculty members are all graduates of ust antd trained in neurology at ust. We currently have two of our internal medicine grads taking up neurology at ust.

I think UST is very good when it comes to neurology and all other diciplines aside from neurology. So if you ask me, when you choose ust over UE, i thnk you made a wise descision. Remember if you are really interested in neurology, just remain ineterested, I assure you it would really be a rewarding experience.

Good luck!

fremitus

04-17-2005, 08:52 PM

hnerypaoho

04-18-2005, 06:01 AM

I don't mean to be biased because I'm ann feu grad. But specialty wise FEU is known to be highly compitent in OB-GYN, Pediatrics, and Internal Medicine.

-Nice to hear from you again fremitus. good thing that you pointed-out some of the specialties of feu. coz I've been wondering for quite some time now in which field is feu good at. I still got 1 1/2 month to go before i start my med student life. and i'm kinda excited and worried. anyway, i think most of te freshmen feel the same as me. right? well, if you can give some pointers of feu life.. it will would be a big help for me. by the way, can i ask you which hospitals is feu affiliated with for our clerkship? coz some schools have more rotations with their university hospital than in other government or private hospitals.

hnerypaoho

04-18-2005, 06:11 AM

ued2003

04-18-2005, 05:51 PM

Well, get used to the long hours my friend. I went to UERM and those every other day duties seem so far away now, but let me tell you that time is the best time of your medical career. You work long hours, but the underlying factor is that you're not ultimately responsible for the patient. I'm a second year IM resident in the U.S. now. The call is not as frequent, but the mental fatigue is sometimes unbearable. Enjoy this time with your classmates because when you're a resident you'll have all the responsibility plus being tired all the time.

phlipsquad

04-19-2005, 01:27 PM

phlipsquad

04-19-2005, 01:40 PM

I don't mean to be biased because I'm ann feu grad. But specialty wise FEU is known to be highly compitent in OB-GYN, Pediatrics, and Internal Medicine.
Nice to hear from you again. Thanks for the info.

phlipsquad

04-19-2005, 01:46 PM

psychtomed

04-19-2005, 03:36 PM

hnerypaoho

04-19-2005, 05:24 PM

hi! this is my first post but i've really enjoyed reading your messages, specially Spartan_Doc's which were very infomative. i'm an incoming second year med student in feu. for the incoming freshmen, both fil-ams and 100% pinoys, good luck and God bless to all of you :) med school is really hard no matter where you take it, but if we work hard enough, im sure we'll make it! ;)

hnerypaoho, there are many dorms and boarding houses around feu, but the nearest and probably the safest ones to be in are the Marian Dorm and the FJN Dorm (both located just beside feu). FJN has rooms for 3000php/month inclusive of water and electric bills so its much cheaper to stay there (my two classmates who share a room in Marian pay 6000/month each, and that's still w/o the water and electricity). If you're interested in FJN, you'd better reserve a room ASAP since they have fewer rooms for male students (if you're a male :D) Reservation fee is 6000php. :)

-Nice to met you here and thanks for the infos. yup, I've heard about the 2 dorms next to feu. but the problem is, if you want to get the 3k pesos/month.. you have to share the room with 3 more guys. and they sais that the room is not big enough to accomodate 4 persons. and the lack of privacy is a mojor problem too.. I mean 2 persons/room it's ok. but 4 of you in a room is not quite comfortable for me. so I'm trying to get me a house or apartment with two rooms or up and maybe I can share it with someone who is interested of having some privacy. anyways, can you gove some infos about the life style there is feu? and how did your 1st year work out?

psychtomed

04-19-2005, 10:05 PM

-Nice to met you here and thanks for the infos. yup, I've heard about the 2 dorms next to feu. but the problem is, if you want to get the 3k pesos/month.. you have to share the room with 3 more guys. and they sais that the room is not big enough to accomodate 4 persons. and the lack of privacy is a mojor problem too.. I mean 2 persons/room it's ok. but 4 of you in a room is not quite comfortable for me. so I'm trying to get me a house or apartment with two rooms or up and maybe I can share it with someone who is interested of having some privacy. anyways, can you gove some infos about the life style there is feu? and how did your 1st year work out?

-hmm...good point. i didnt quite realize that since im sharing my room with my friends. dont worry though cos there are a lot of boarding houses in the area... im sure you'll find yourself one. Good luck in your house hunting :)

about life in feu... well, feu has the reputation of being 'the most "toxic" med school'. and comparing my efforts in the past year to that of my friends who study in UP-PGH and UST, i think its kinda true. in my first year, most of my classmates found it difficult since we had shifting exams virtually everyweek. there's also practicals, class reporting, case conferences, and 1 or more laboratory manuals that have to be passed at the time of the major exams. fridays are off for the freshmen, but the faculty uses them to conduct their "clinico-anatomical conferences" which the students are still supposed to attend because attendance is checked. you'll also have to do class research in the second sem and defend it. and they say first year is the easiest you'll ever experience in feu. i passed first year with high marks, but then i had to make sooo many sacrifices to do that. if you had medtech or physical therapy as premed, you'll definitely have an edge over the others :) basta, my advice to you is (1) never absent yourself from class, (2) take down your own notes, and (3) read the textbooks if you have time (because they make us buy lecture guides and manuals that are supposed to be summaries of different textbooks, but they're really difficult to read because of the typos and other errors). advice 1 and 2, i think, are the most important. if you have other questions, just email me so that i wont be taking up so much space here.. nakakahiya e. :D

hello po to mr./ms. fremitus! buti ka pa, magiging doktor na! God bless sa board exams :)

hnerypaoho

04-19-2005, 10:25 PM

-hmm...good point. i didnt quite realize that since im sharing my room with my friends. dont worry though cos there are a lot of boarding houses in the area... im sure you'll find yourself one. Good luck in your house hunting :)

about life in feu... well, feu has the reputation of being 'the most "toxic" med school'. and comparing my efforts in the past year to that of my friends who study in UP-PGH and UST, i think its kinda true. in my first year, most of my classmates found it difficult since we had shifting exams virtually everyweek. there's also practicals, class reporting, case conferences, and 1 or more laboratory manuals that have to be passed at the time of the major exams. fridays are off for the freshmen, but the faculty uses them to conduct their "clinico-anatomical conferences" which the students are still supposed to attend because attendance is checked. you'll also have to do class research in the second sem and defend it. and they say first year is the easiest you'll ever experience in feu. i passed first year with high marks, but then i had to make sooo many sacrifices to do that. if you had medtech or physical therapy as premed, you'll definitely have an edge over the others :) basta, my advice to you is (1) never absent yourself from class, (2) take down your own notes, and (3) read the textbooks if you have time (because they make us buy lecture guides and manuals that are supposed to be summaries of different textbooks, but they're really difficult to read because of the typos and other errors). advice 1 and 2, i think, are the most important. if you have other questions, just email me so that i wont be taking up so much space here.. nakakahiya e. :D

hello po to mr./ms. fremitus! buti ka pa, magiging doktor na! God bless sa board exams :)

-thanks again! your infos have been a great help to me.. and i really love to know more about feu. so can i please have your email ad? so that i'll just send you messages there.. thanks! :D

psychtomed

04-20-2005, 01:41 AM

sure! i've already sent you a PM. :)

phlipsquad

04-20-2005, 04:54 AM

sure! i've already sent you a PM. :)
Welcome psychtomed... Nice to hear some new voices in this forum. Are you a foreign student? If not, do you know of any in your class? I was wondering if you would be able to help me out with a question. For those people who bought their computer in the states, people that you would know, Did they have any problems with converters, tech support, etc when in the Philippines? It is just that I am buying an IBM laptop here in the states and am hoping that no problems will arise.Do you know if there is an IBM tech support center in manila? Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Maraming salamat.

psychtomed

04-20-2005, 06:42 AM

Welcome psychtomed... Nice to hear some new voices in this forum. Are you a foreign student? If not, do you know of any in your class? I was wondering if you would be able to help me out with a question. For those people who bought their computer in the states, people that you would know, Did they have any problems with converters, tech support, etc when in the Philippines? It is just that I am buying an IBM laptop here in the states and am hoping that no problems will arise.Do you know if there is an IBM tech support center in manila? Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Maraming salamat.

Hi, phlipsquad! One of my fil-am classmates also bought his laptop in the states and he was able to use it here. I also asked him your questions and he said “there wouldn’t be any problems with converters and other stuff concerning compatibility”, which means you can most probably use your laptop here. :) About the IBM tech support center, I think we do have one in Metro Manila. I checked the IBM Philippines website and found this:

Ask IBM
For answers to general questions about IBM in Philippines,
Call (632) 995-2426 (995-2IBM)

Philippines Head Office
2nd-4th Floors IBM Plaza
8 Eastwood Avenue
Eastwood City Cyberpark
E. Rodriguez, Jr. Avenue
1110 Libis, Quezon City
Philippines

IBM Parts Center
Topy Main Building
G/F NE Section Topy Compound
3 Economia Street
Bgy. Bagumbayan,
1110 Libis, Quezon City
Philippines
Tel: (632) 995-6007

here's the address if you'd like to see for yourself: http://www.ibm.com/ibm/ph/. i guess that's about all the info i can give. i hope you find it useful :)

GoldenAzn

04-20-2005, 09:18 AM

Please...can anyone help me..
For those phil-Ams who bought their computer in the US, did you guys run into any problems, with either converters, maintenance, or tech support. I am buying an IBM laptop here in the US and I hope I will not run into any problems once in the phils. Any feedback? Please..

Don't know if this matters to you...BUT IBM name will be phaseout within 5 years or so if i remember right for comptuers..with those thinkpads being called maybe the same but with another company name on it. A company from China bought out the actual name for all the laptops and pcs if I remember right in a business magazine I read. IBM will be only doing the netservice and what not. The Chinese company will be handling laptops/pcs from then on and I'm not so sure about there customer service if they do handle it or how they do it. I mean IBM will still have a percentage of profit from future sales..but they will not be handling the computer part of it from what I got.

To be honest I'd still do dell..my friend had a IBM it wasn't as good as my dell and didn't last that long. Also dell has way better customer service than IBM. But hey maybe you'll have a collectors item in the future since there won't be IBM thinkpads anymore...don't know if you wanna bank on that.

phlipsquad

04-20-2005, 10:59 AM

Hi, phlipsquad! One of my fil-am classmates also bought his laptop in the states and he was able to use it here. I also asked him your questions and he said “there wouldn’t be any problems with converters and other stuff concerning compatibility”, which means you can most probably use your laptop here. :) About the IBM tech support center, I think we do have one in Metro Manila. I checked the IBM Philippines website and found this:

Ask IBM
For answers to general questions about IBM in Philippines,
Call (632) 995-2426 (995-2IBM)

Philippines Head Office
2nd-4th Floors IBM Plaza
8 Eastwood Avenue
Eastwood City Cyberpark
E. Rodriguez, Jr. Avenue
1110 Libis, Quezon City
Philippines

IBM Parts Center
Topy Main Building
G/F NE Section Topy Compound
3 Economia Street
Bgy. Bagumbayan,
1110 Libis, Quezon City
Philippines
Tel: (632) 995-6007

here's the address if you'd like to see for yourself: http://www.ibm.com/ibm/ph/. i guess that's about all the info i can give. i hope you find it useful :)
Thank you so much psychtomed. I really apprecaite your help!

abdlc

04-20-2005, 11:50 AM

Spartan Doc

04-20-2005, 05:17 PM

I had a Dell laptop while I was in the philippines. I never had any problems the entire four years, I plugged it directly into the wall sockets when I really had to. Laptops are made to be international, so for the most part, their voltage ranges from 90 to 230 to encompass the standards throughout the world.

I would get a surge protector when you use it at home. The philippines is not as backward as you may think. You will always have classmates that can help point you to service centers and stuff if you really need it. Also Dell has contracts with companies in the Philippines to service their products... thus I would not worry.

To all those going to the Philippines soon, Good luck to you. Study hard. I would follow the advice of psychtomed... Read your textbooks. They are the best way to actually learn the material. Learn and understand, don't just memorize to pass exams.

Use the USMLE reviewers to get a quick overview or a quick review. but do not use them to study for your midterms and shifting exams as they will not help you pass. The philppines tests differently.

To UED2003. I feel your pain, I am the Senior resident in the ICU this month and I am tired all the time too. You plan on specializing?

in regards to the DO versus MD.... There is no difference, in fact DOs have more training, as they have to learn manipulation in addition to all the stuff in the MD training. There are several DOs in my training program, they are treated the same and a few actually know more than american trained MDs. As far as stigma MD>DO>International med grad. A DO will get the specialty before an IMG will.

So if you chose International MD over DO, I think you made the wrong choice, your road to specialty will be limited.... Look at the evidence and talk to program directors for fellowship programs. You will see. People that prefer MDs to DOs simply because of title are truly just misinformed.

Besides as a doctor, if patients don't go to you simply because you have a DO behind your name, then you don't want those patients anyway. In all likelihood, they will be the pain med seeking, non compliant ones that simply waste your time.

The only advantage I see that an IMG from the Philippines will have over a DO, is in regards to debt. After all is said and done, we have much less debt. But IMGs for the most part get specialties that pay 150K to 200K, while american grads get the higher paying ones 250K plus with lifestyle, so in the end it ends up equal.

AurA

04-21-2005, 01:30 AM

Hi Hnery,
I am leaving NY May 23. Classes in UST start on June 13. Hence, I have some time to visit my hometown in the Visayan Islands and hopefully, enjoy the beach and the sun before all the hard work for the years to come.
By the way, I do not know what FEU is good at....specialty wise. Sorry.

P.S. To all the incoming med Freshman out there. Do you guys speak Tagalog or Cebuano?

Hi! This thread's been an interesting read for me. Is everyone here Fil-Am? I'm an incoming sophomore in UST and I have friends in UP, UE and FEU. Since I'm bored this summer, I'm very willing to answer any questions you have about medical school here in the Philippines. Hehe... I'm not Fil-Am, but I have a friend who is. She went through a tough adjustment period when she came here. Not to scare you, but if you have any questions in mind, you really have to ask, coz adjustment would be easier if you're prepared.

About the language, yes, you definitely have to learn Tagalog some time before clerkship. Bisaya/Cebuano isn't a very popular language in UST. There are very few of us in our batch who come from Visayas and Mindanao. What section will you be in? I have friends who are incoming freshmen. Some of them can speak Cebuano.

About the laptops: most laptops now have a range of 100-240 I think, you check the adapter. I have a Toshiba, and it serves its purpose. I heard Dell's pretty good too. Oh, and another med school gadget that would be useful is a digital camera. It's great for taking pics of slides for histology, body parts in anatomy, and taking videos of group lectures during lab. Oh, and a PDA would be good too. Great for case discussions (you can D/L Merck manual for free) and for reviewing slides in histology, and scheduling all your exams! Hehe...

That's it for now! Good luck y'all!!!

phlipsquad

04-21-2005, 06:08 AM

Thanks for all your help guys. You do not know how much I truly appreciate this. I am getting an IBM , since my co-worker can get it for me with an employee (50%) discount! I am a Dell fan, but am buying an IBM because of the discount. THANKS!

phlipsquad

04-21-2005, 06:16 AM

Hi! This thread's been an interesting read for me. Is everyone here Fil-Am? I'm an incoming sophomore in UST and I have friends in UP, UE and FEU. Since I'm bored this summer, I'm very willing to answer any questions you have about medical school here in the Philippines. Hehe... I'm not Fil-Am, but I have a friend who is. She went through a tough adjustment period when she came here. Not to scare you, but if you have any questions in mind, you really have to ask, coz adjustment would be easier if you're prepared.

About the language, yes, you definitely have to learn Tagalog some time before clerkship. Bisaya/Cebuano isn't a very popular language in UST. There are very few of us in our batch who come from Visayas and Mindanao. What section will you be in? I have friends who are incoming freshmen. Some of them can speak Cebuano.

About the laptops: most laptops now have a range of 100-240 I think, you check the adapter. I have a Toshiba, and it serves its purpose. I heard Dell's pretty good too. Oh, and another med school gadget that would be useful is a digital camera. It's great for taking pics of slides for histology, body parts in anatomy, and taking videos of group lectures during lab. Oh, and a PDA would be good too. Great for case discussions (you can D/L Merck manual for free) and for reviewing slides in histology, and scheduling all your exams! Hehe...

That's it for now! Good luck y'all!!!
Hi AurA,
Nice to hear from a Fellow tomasian here. My name is Mike and I am starting in UST this June. I am sooo excited to start. I am fluent in both Bisaya and Tagalog but my tagalog needs some polishing (Hindi ko ginamit dito sa states) but Bisaya....sige ra mi ug sulti dinhi. I have a lot of Filipino friends here that still use the language. We choose not to forget our own native tongues. I have been in the states for over 12 years... and I choose to speak in bisaya in front of my parents and other filipino people here. Anyway, Could you please give me some advice on doing good the first year? Thanks.

GoldenAzn

04-21-2005, 11:38 AM

Hi! This thread's been an interesting read for me. Is everyone here Fil-Am? I'm an incoming sophomore in UST and I have friends in UP, UE and FEU. Since I'm bored this summer, I'm very willing to answer any questions you have about medical school here in the Philippines. Hehe... I'm not Fil-Am, but I have a friend who is. She went through a tough adjustment period when she came here. Not to scare you, but if you have any questions in mind, you really have to ask, coz adjustment would be easier if you're prepared.

About the language, yes, you definitely have to learn Tagalog some time before clerkship. Bisaya/Cebuano isn't a very popular language in UST. There are very few of us in our batch who come from Visayas and Mindanao. What section will you be in? I have friends who are incoming freshmen. Some of them can speak Cebuano.

About the laptops: most laptops now have a range of 100-240 I think, you check the adapter. I have a Toshiba, and it serves its purpose. I heard Dell's pretty good too. Oh, and another med school gadget that would be useful is a digital camera. It's great for taking pics of slides for histology, body parts in anatomy, and taking videos of group lectures during lab. Oh, and a PDA would be good too. Great for case discussions (you can D/L Merck manual for free) and for reviewing slides in histology, and scheduling all your exams! Hehe...

That's it for now! Good luck y'all!!!

Well question i have is PDA...never thought about it. Why would I need it, and would it be useful for first year students?

phlipsquad

04-22-2005, 11:11 AM

Don't know if this matters to you...BUT IBM name will be phaseout within 5 years or so if i remember right for comptuers..with those thinkpads being called maybe the same but with another company name on it. A company from China bought out the actual name for all the laptops and pcs if I remember right in a business magazine I read. IBM will be only doing the netservice and what not. The Chinese company will be handling laptops/pcs from then on and I'm not so sure about there customer service if they do handle it or how they do it. I mean IBM will still have a percentage of profit from future sales..but they will not be handling the computer part of it from what I got.

To be honest I'd still do dell..my friend had a IBM it wasn't as good as my dell and didn't last that long. Also dell has way better customer service than IBM. But hey maybe you'll have a collectors item in the future since there won't be IBM thinkpads anymore...don't know if you wanna bank on that.
Hey Golden,
I checked with Dell, they have a Dell sales center in the Phils but DO NOT have any local tech support center (IBM does), you have to send your stuff to the states and back for Dell. Also, in their international warranty, the Philippines is NOT included with Dell. In the end, i am choosing IBM because a co-worker of mine can get me an employee discount, and it has much better features and accessories.. their new thinkpads.

AurA

04-22-2005, 11:41 PM

Philipsquad:
Big Question: How to do good on your first year?
Don't sleep! Just kidding! Well, I'd have to admit that my grades aren't the greatest, especially during the first semester. But I definitely learned a lot. I had to adjust as well coz my undergrad school was pretty different from UST. Anyway, tips for the Thomasian freshmen:

-try to get Samplex (Sample Exams) from the upperclassmen. they're pretty helpful. especially in biochemistry, which is considered as on of the most difficult. but NEVER rely solely on samplex. Use them only for reviewing what you've learned and when you do, you have to understand the logic behind the questions and answers.
-some people in med school are uniquely hard-working. some make reviewers and summaries of the modules. stay close to someone who has copies! hehe...but you have to know if they're reliable
-always participate in case discussions. try to be the lead discussant as much as possible. but you have to give others a chance too.
-love thy subsection. you're going to be with them for four years. hehe
-i'm sure you've heard about the floods. it's not always good when class gets canceled. we once had three major exams (plus reporting and quiz) in one day because of the flood
-if you can and if you're a bit of a techie, try getting a PDA and a digital camera, they're pretty helpful
-unless you're a genius and you have a photographic memory, never cram. it's just not possible in med school. hehe...
-make friends! hehe...you definitely can't do med school on your own.
-and lastly, have fun! weekends are not always meant for studying. hehe

that's all i can recall for now...what's the first letter of your last name? if you're gonna be in section B, i know someone in that section. and practice your tagalog! no offense to the UST ppl, but some of them are a bit hesistant to talk in english.

GoldnAzn: PDAs
bringing your laptop around isn't really practical and sadly, it's not safe. so a PDA would help. Not only for freshmen, also for upperclassmen. why?
-during case discussions, you're gonna need some references with you. If you don't want to bring books physically, you can bring them with you in your PDA. major medical books like harrison's internal med and merck manual can be downloaded for free. you can even download an anatomy atlas. there are lots of websites that offer medical software for PDAs
-also, if you don't feel like studying at home and you have practicals to study for, you can keep pictures of slides and specimen in your PDA
-if you like listening to lectures, you can record them with your PDA
-sometimes, lecturers let students copy their powerpoint presentations. you can review them in your PDA

OK, hope I was able to help! Post whatever questions you have! I'll get back to them as soon as I can

GoldenAzn

04-25-2005, 05:53 AM

phlipsquad

04-25-2005, 06:31 AM

hnerypaoho

04-25-2005, 05:34 PM

Wow. Thanks AurA.
I definitely think your 1st point is quite valuable. I read a book regarding how to do good in pre-med/ medical school.....and the # 1 advice: Attain old test Papers! During my first week in UST, I will hunt for them, either in the Dapitan bookstores, or from upperclassmen who are willing to help a newbie. I hope these students will be willing.... and nice enough to help me out. If there is anyone there, upperclassmen in UST, needing USMLE reviewers to zerox copy, I will be more than happy to let them zerox copy my collection. As long as its before classes or during my free period. Anyway, thanks for the advice. Hope to bump into you in UST.

P.S. My last name starts with "I". I do not even know my section. Do you?

-hey philpsquad! I would like a copy of those usmle! but I don't have any thing in return. So I hope it's alright with you..

bleudsky

04-26-2005, 03:17 AM

-That sounds awful. especialy without taking a bath thing or chance to change your clothes. However, despite of those things. I think your enjoying your duties as clerk. Coz I really enjoyed my internship as med tech no matter how busy and "toxic" I was. so just give all your best! I'm sure you're going to smile back at it when your done. coz I know I did.

for you it may sound awful but that's how things go here, especially when you're rotating in Medicine. the only time that you can take a bath (or freshen up) is around 6 am (but remember you're not the only 1 who'll use the bathroom so u have to be pretty quick) or around lunch time provided that your patient/s is/are stable and you've endorsed them to your team mates.

well being an intern of medtech and a medical clerk are very very different, i tell u. coz i used to be an intern of physical therapy before.

bleudsky

04-26-2005, 03:21 AM

marooner

04-26-2005, 04:08 AM

do you all plan to practice med abroad? i don't want to stir issues here but i have plans on taking residency in US but not practice there... bout you guys? what are your plans?

phlipsquad

04-26-2005, 06:59 AM

-hey philpsquad! I would like a copy of those usmle! but I don't have any thing in return. So I hope it's alright with you..

yeah its ok..Just try to copy it before june 13th (First Day of Class), Hnery. P.S. I will be in manila the 24th of may.

phlipsquad

04-26-2005, 07:06 AM

btw, if i were you i'll deal with the past sample exams when the shifting exams are approaching. there are other things to deal w/ (at the beginning of the schoolyear) than those samplex. besides, you will not run out of resources for them.
True. I found out my apartment is completely empty. I still need to shop for furniture, appliances, etc, and do my physical. Thanks for the advice Bluedsky. Good Luck with the rest of clerkship....and hope you get some rest....even for a little bit!

phlipsquad

04-26-2005, 10:30 AM

do you all plan to practice med abroad? i don't want to stir issues here but i have plans on taking residency in US but not practice there... bout you guys? what are your plans?
Hi marooner!
You just want to do residency here in the states, but practice in the phils? I am assuming you are doing that only for experience? Good for you.
I am thinking of ending up in New York.....hopefully. Anywhere in the states is fine, nevertheless.

hnerypaoho

04-26-2005, 05:30 PM

yeah its ok..Just try to copy it before june 13th (First Day of Class), Hnery. P.S. I will be in manila the 24th of may.

-how come you start your class on the 13th of june? and mine is june 6th? lucky you! it means that you still have plenty of time to have fun! anyways, Thanks a lot! well, i'll be in manila around the 16th or 17th of may. coz you know, there are still things to be done at my school. so how do I get in touch with you in manila? do you have a cel number or something?

asspwet

04-27-2005, 05:07 AM

do you all plan to practice med abroad? i don't want to stir issues here but i have plans on taking residency in US but not practice there... bout you guys? what are your plans?

If you want to polish your clinical eye better do your residency training in the philippines in a government hospital. We may be lack of diagnostic equipment but i would assure you, you will experience a lot of cases that could harldy be seen in the states.

phlipsquad

04-27-2005, 07:15 AM

-how come you start your class on the 13th of june? and mine is june 6th? lucky you! it means that you still have plenty of time to have fun! anyways, Thanks a lot! well, i'll be in manila around the 16th or 17th of may. coz you know, there are still things to be done at my school. so how do I get in touch with you in manila? do you have a cel number or something?
no Hnery I dont have a cell yet. Just email me at phlipsquad@aol.com or catch me in this thread..

AurA

04-28-2005, 02:06 AM

do you all plan to practice med abroad? i don't want to stir issues here but i have plans on taking residency in US but not practice there... bout you guys? what are your plans?

Hey! I never thought I'd here that from someone else! That's exactly my plan! Well, I'm actually also open to training in other countries besides the US. What med school are you in? I'm still contemplating on whether I should take the MLE or not. It's so expensive and it takes so much time! Are you gonna be taking the MLE? I've read a lot about it over the summer, but I'm still not sure if it's worth it if it's only for residency or specializing. What are your thoughts on that? What were you planning to do?

FOR PhilipSquad: You'll probably in section B, I have a friend who'll be in that section. He's ilonggo, but he speaks mostly in english and has a hard time speaking in tagalog. Hehe... you might get along. Hehe...Don't worry about the samplex, I'm very sure they'll pop out in your class. Just DO NOT depend on them. They're just good for reviewing, not for studying. :D

FOR GoldnAzn: Will you be in UST as well? I use an Ipaq, which is PocketPC based. If you're comfortable with a Palm OS, then go for that. I'm not really updated on the specs of the latest PDAs coz mine is 2 years old already, but it should have at least 64 MB internal memory and you can just get SD cards of about 256-512 MB. About the screen, for new PDAs I think they all use the same kind of screen now, so that doesn't matter much. If your laptop has IR, then it would be useful if ur PDA has a port too. It would be nice also if ur PDA had bluetooth and WiFi but their not really that useful. Just remember that having a PDA is NOT really a necessity, but it could help. For software, go to www.merckmedicus.com. Get the merck manual. That would be helpful. For viewing powerpoint, there's a software that usually comes with the PDA.

marooner

04-28-2005, 04:31 AM

snowflake

04-28-2005, 05:59 AM

Hi! I'll be a freshman this June but i still haven't chosen the school that's best for me. I've read a lot of info. about those med schools in this thread which really had helped me a lot. My greatest dilemma now is to know the difference of these top 3 schools as of "NOW". A lot of things changes as time passes. A reply here was posted 2 years ago but I need some FRESH news. Of course asking those schools will be easier but an experience is still the best. I know that career still depends on the student but schools really have factors. I also care about each's reputation. Any fresh graduates here? pls.? help? I got one week left to decide. NMAT is not a problem.

marooner

04-28-2005, 07:34 AM

i saw the UST Med's new curriculum on their website. is that what UST uses up to now?

GoldenAzn

04-28-2005, 08:42 AM

Hey! I never thought I'd here that from someone else! That's exactly my plan! Well, I'm actually also open to training in other countries besides the US. What med school are you in? I'm still contemplating on whether I should take the MLE or not. It's so expensive and it takes so much time! Are you gonna be taking the MLE? I've read a lot about it over the summer, but I'm still not sure if it's worth it if it's only for residency or specializing. What are your thoughts on that? What were you planning to do?

FOR PhilipSquad: You'll probably in section B, I have a friend who'll be in that section. He's ilonggo, but he speaks mostly in english and has a hard time speaking in tagalog. Hehe... you might get along. Hehe...Don't worry about the samplex, I'm very sure they'll pop out in your class. Just DO NOT depend on them. They're just good for reviewing, not for studying. :D

FOR GoldnAzn: Will you be in UST as well? I use an Ipaq, which is PocketPC based. If you're comfortable with a Palm OS, then go for that. I'm not really updated on the specs of the latest PDAs coz mine is 2 years old already, but it should have at least 64 MB internal memory and you can just get SD cards of about 256-512 MB. About the screen, for new PDAs I think they all use the same kind of screen now, so that doesn't matter much. If your laptop has IR, then it would be useful if ur PDA has a port too. It would be nice also if ur PDA had bluetooth and WiFi but their not really that useful. Just remember that having a PDA is NOT really a necessity, but it could help. For software, go to www.merckmedicus.com. Get the merck manual. That would be helpful. For viewing powerpoint, there's a software that usually comes with the PDA.

Thanks for the info I guess i'll look into it. I'll probably get the cheap ass Palm E..but I dunno was looking at the Zire 72, E2, and the T5. Just don't know how much I wanna drop. But question is...bluetooth...they have that tech over there already? And if so what the heck can I use it for then? Naw I don't plan on getting a laptop becuase i don't like how slow it is..

snowflake

04-28-2005, 11:50 PM

Thank you so much for all those who had contributed to this thread. Actually, I'm really new here and I've read a lot of posts. Thank you for each and everyone's opinion it really had helped me a lot. Especially to spartan_doc, FarEstGrapplr2 and wendigo who had started this thread. I'm an incoming first year but I haven't chose my med school yet. My options are FEU, ST. LUKES, UERM and FATIMA. I hope you guys can help me with their differences at this point of time. There'd been a lot of changes which I can't confirm. Maybe you guys can help. Please? :(

marooner

04-29-2005, 03:58 AM

what curriculum does UST Med use now? the traditional or the innovative one?

bleudsky

04-30-2005, 02:02 AM

i saw the UST Med's new curriculum on their website. is that what UST uses up to now?

their website is not updated since june 2004. they use the Integrated curriculum. though i'm not sure what will be the curriculum of the incoming 1st yrs (class 2009).

bleudsky

04-30-2005, 02:09 AM

True. I found out my apartment is completely empty. I still need to shop for furniture, appliances, etc, and do my physical. Thanks for the advice Bluedsky. Good Luck with the rest of clerkship....and hope you get some rest....even for a little bit!

welcome.

i agree with asspwet's statement. even as early as clerkship, practicing in a government hospital will make u harness your clinical skills and decision making, especially in issues of financial constraints since not all are insured. u will practice what labs/ancillary procedures to prioritize (what tests will yield the highest specificity and sensitivity), and what medications will be most suitable, efficacious, safe and cost-effective for your patient/s. the downside is that you will have less time to browse thru or review your textbooks because of the high # of patients (what we call "toxic").

this happens a lot in the ER, wards and OPD.

GoldenAzn

05-03-2005, 02:19 PM

Question i have is for those who have a pda...In the hospital setting would both os work equally or is there a prevelance toward palm os being used more than the other non-palm os? Basically do the software in the hopsital run under the palm os more than they would run under the nonpalm operating system used in hp and dell?

AurA

05-04-2005, 12:55 AM

Hey everyone!

TOP 3 MedSchools: Being from UST, I'd definitely sound biased when I say this: UST, UP-PGH, UE (not in order). A great MAJORITY of the people I know choose these schools. UE uses problem-based learning (PBL) lots of free time, but you can learn at your own pace. UP, i think uses a mix (integrated). It's hard to get into and gives students great exposure. UST uses more of traditional, but also has some PBL stuff (integrated also).

UST Curriculum: The incoming freshmen, batch 2009 have the same curriculum as 2008 (my batch) and 2007. First years have yearly subjects: Anatomy (10), Biochemistry (8), Physiology (8), Neuroanatomy (3), Histology (3), and semestral subjects: Psychiatry for one sem, and Bioethics and Preventive Medicine during the second semester. (numbers in parenthesis are the number of units for each subject). For second year, I don't have the list with me now, but i think there are four yearly subjects: Medicine, Pathology, Pharmacology, and something else. Semestral Subjects include clinical patho, prev med II, surgery, and more. Sorry, I lost my list.

PDA: Bluetooth can be useful because most phones and PDA's now have it. Just in case you need to get afile from someone, it would be easier if you have bluetooth. Don't get zire! its useless! unless you only want an organizer. For the clinics, not a lot of doctors use PDA's. but for those who do, they love their PDA's. It's really half and half for Palm OS and Pocket PC OS. In the Philippines, most computers run on Windows, so Pocket PC would probably be compatible, since it is the PDA equivalent of Windows.

Hope I was able to help y'all! Good luck!

GoldenAzn

05-04-2005, 08:41 AM

AngelxChic

05-07-2005, 09:09 PM

Hi, i'm a clerk now @ UST. just found out a/b this site. I heard that one of you is going to be moving into the Castle??? Please PM me or email me, b/c i got a question for you. I tried looking for that person on these boards, but there are just too many posts.

anyway, if anyone else has questions or whatever, yah, just PM or post here or whatever. i'll be in and out, depending on if i have duty or not.

Angela

bleudsky

05-08-2005, 02:20 AM

hi angela! :D

AngelxChic

05-09-2005, 04:37 AM

hi angela! :D
hi! do you know me? :) you have no user information, so i have no clue who you are.

phlipsquad

05-09-2005, 05:32 AM

Hi,
To those clerks who are doing their clerkships/ or part of it in the states, and are in filipino med schools, Did you guys have to pass USMLE step 1 to attain a clerkship rotation in a US hospital?

Is it a requirement to pass Step 1 to apply or to be accepted to a clerkship as an IMG?

Can someone please help? Thanks you so very much!

maricelei

05-09-2005, 06:35 AM

hi! do you know me? :) you have no user information, so i have no clue who you are.

angela, that's reg! hehe :D

Spartan Doc

05-09-2005, 09:44 PM

You do not need to pass step 1 to obtain a clinical clerkship in the US

loosecannon

05-10-2005, 06:02 AM

hi angela! hi to my rommate Bleudsky. hehe.

bleudsky

05-11-2005, 05:07 AM

hi! do you know me? :) you have no user information, so i have no clue who you are.

ask maricel. she knows who i am. :D

hi also to loosecannon.

phlipsquad

05-12-2005, 05:53 AM

ask maricel. she knows who i am. :D

hi also to loosecannon.

hi bluedsky!
It seems you have alot of friends/ roommates in this forum. Anyway, are you guys all in the same year? If yes, I hope you guys are having some fun in clerkships.

AurA

05-12-2005, 06:57 AM

What are units...are they like credit here where one credit is roughly one hour of class time per week? And how is the class schedule roughly..like were you in school most of the day from like say 8-3 or whatever equivelent time or did you have a lot of off time with weird class schedules?

Hey another question about PDA...what software did you put in it that you use for med school currently as a past 1st year student and current 2nd? Like I know there are other software out there like...epocrates, 5mcc, Stedmans, and so fort have been useful to you for a first year? Also I sent you a pm about a certain program if you have it.

Yup! They're credits. 1 unit= 1 hour of class/week. Class sched is pretty full. My freshman year, 1st sem sched: M:7-4, W:8-12, F:7-12, TTh: 7-4. I swear, that's probably the best sched for the first year. The sched of other classes weren't so great. For the second sem, my sched was kinda weird. Your schedule changes every semester. I warn you though, most exams are scheduled outside class time, so sometimes we had to say goodbye to our lunch breaks. Exams can also be scheduled after class, around 4-5.

PDA software: I put Merck manual only. Sadly, I only discovered that there were also a PDA versions of Anatomy Atlas by Netter and Taber's Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary. You might be able to find copies of this on Limewire or Kazaa if you don't want to buy it. Hehe...For first year, those would be really useful. I didn't get ur pm. Weird. You can e-mail me at abby_md@yahoo.com. Hope I was able to help. ;)

phlipsquad

05-13-2005, 05:29 AM

Yup! They're credits. 1 unit= 1 hour of class/week. Class sched is pretty full. My freshman year, 1st sem sched: M:7-4, W:8-12, F:7-12, TTh: 7-4. I swear, that's probably the best sched for the first year. The sched of other classes weren't so great. For the second sem, my sched was kinda weird. Your schedule changes every semester. I warn you though, most exams are scheduled outside class time, so sometimes we had to say goodbye to our lunch breaks. Exams can also be scheduled after class, around 4-5.

PDA software: I put Merck manual only. Sadly, I only discovered that there were also a PDA versions of Anatomy Atlas by Netter and Taber's Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary. You might be able to find copies of this on Limewire or Kazaa if you don't want to buy it. Hehe...For first year, those would be really useful. I didn't get ur pm. Weird. You can e-mail me at abby_md@yahoo.com. Hope I was able to help. ;)
Hi Aura,
I was just wondering if you live near campus? Do classes start at 7 am? Wow...that's early. I guess I will have to wake up early to eat breakfast. I am a breakfast person.

P.S. Are you a 2nd of 3rd year student?

phlipsquad

05-13-2005, 05:37 AM

hi,
Does anybody know if USMLE review books like BRS physiology, Lippencott's Biochem review, etc are available in Manila bookstores?

Thanks!

marooner

05-13-2005, 09:39 AM

i think lippincott is available here... i think some schools use this book for biochem...

bleudsky

05-14-2005, 06:22 AM

hi bluedsky!
It seems you have alot of friends/ roommates in this forum. Anyway, are you guys all in the same year? If yes, I hope you guys are having some fun in clerkships.

yep we're all in the same year now (clerkship) and we used to belong in 1 section.

1 month down, 11 to go. :D

marooner

05-14-2005, 10:26 AM

Hey guys! you might be interested. this meeting will discuss several helath problems and other related issues in philippines (e.g. dwindling med school enrolees, doctors enroling nursing, exodus of health practitioners, gov't actions, etc...)

What: Informal meeting of doctors to talk about medical problems, issues and other concerns.
Where: 4th Floor, Sonlie Building, 2652 Taft Avenue, Pasay City
(between LRT Libertad and EDSA station)
When: May 28, 2005, Saturday, 5 - 8 p.m.
How: If you or your friends would like to come, please text or call us so we can prepare food.
Why: Our desire is to help fellow doctors. Like a doctors' support group.

- Willie (Cell: 0917-387-6750 & Email: willietong@netasia.net)

WHY YOU SHOULD ATTEND MAY 28, 2005 MEETING:
1. This is just an informal dinner meeting. No expectations, no commitments.
(Students, residents, consultants are all welcome.)
2. Network and connect with other doctors: Take this chance to catch up with old friends and meet new ones!
3. Air-conditioned venue also doubles as a medical museum with the largest collection of picture archives.
4. Two lectures will be given by Dr. Willie T. Ong: (a) Testmanship lecture, and (b)current medical issues and concerns for doctors.
5. Free signed 2005 edition of the Medicine Blue Book.
6. Dinner will be catered. The food is great, I guarantee.

maia

05-15-2005, 07:26 PM

hnerypaoho

05-15-2005, 10:29 PM

AurA

05-16-2005, 12:01 AM

Hi Aura,
I was just wondering if you live near campus? Do classes start at 7 am? Wow...that's early. I guess I will have to wake up early to eat breakfast. I am a breakfast person.

P.S. Are you a 2nd of 3rd year student?

Yep! I live really near. Two minute walk to the dapitan gate. And yes, most classes start at 7 am! So u really have to wake up early. Some subjects give quizzes at the beginning of class, so u really can't be late. And yes, Lippincott Reviews are available here in the philippines. I'm not sure about the BRS Physiology though, but it does kinda sound familiar. Hehe...I'm gonna be in second year in June! One year down, so many more to go! Good luck! Just e-mail me if you have any more questions.

phlipsquad

05-16-2005, 05:45 AM

Hi!

This comes a bit late but I just saw that Silliman University in Dumaguete finally opens its medical school this June.

I'm not sure about the requirements but I heard that they're not too stringent yet because they're a newbie, about 70 students have already pre-enrolled.

SU was recently cited by the CHED and PRC as a top 3 performing school in the past 5 years for nursing graduates (so, i hope this also carries over to the medschool, :D ). And based on board exams, I think SU is pretty good in the health science courses too..

Just spoke to one of the doctors slated to teach anatomy to first years students, he said that they might toughen things up for the students because it's their first time. Methinks: toughen things up compared to what?
Well, I don't really know much, but it seems all systems go for SU medschool!

P.S. I've tried to search their website for the medschool but didn't see it. I'll try to research manually (i.e. walking to the building).
Hope this helps anyone.

Hi,
I actually grew up in Dumaguete and went to school in Silliman (Elementary, until 5th grade). Silliman is a great school and nice campus as well.

I am going to be in Dumaguete for a few days this month, so I will definitely stop by to see if there is indeed a med school there. It would be great if there was...1st med school in Negros Oriental. BTW, I know of a friend who is doing nursing in silliman who told me about the rumors that Silliman was about to open a med school this year! I hope its true, so we can have more docs in Negros.

phlipsquad

05-16-2005, 05:51 AM

-well, this day is my last day here in taiwan. coz tomorrow, i'll be flying my way to phil.. I just want to wish us all the best for our future! and hope to meet you guys personally someday! and please never forget to thank our God for making this all happen. God bless!
Hi,
Good Luck and have a safe trip Hnery! I am also leaving next week! Bittersweet huh? Anyway, Good Luck guys and gals with your studies!

phlipsquad

05-16-2005, 05:55 AM

hnerypaoho

05-16-2005, 03:56 PM

Hi,
Good Luck and have a safe trip Hnery! I am also leaving next week! Bittersweet huh? Anyway, Good Luck guys and gals with your studies!

-yeah! it's quite hard to leave the things that were been part of your life for the past years.. well, i just hope i made the right decision of giving up my life here and pursue to MD. anyways, i hope you guys are taking this matter bit more better than me.. GODSPEED everyone!

hnerypaoho

05-16-2005, 03:56 PM

Hi,
Good Luck and have a safe trip Hnery! I am also leaving next week! Bittersweet huh? Anyway, Good Luck guys and gals with your studies!

-yeah! it's quite hard to leave the things that were been part of your life for the past years.. well, i just hope i made the right decision of giving up my life here and pursue MD. anyways, i hope you guys are taking this matter bit more better than me.. GODSPEED everyone!

phlipsquad

05-17-2005, 11:17 AM

-yeah! it's quite hard to leave the things that were been part of your life for the past years.. well, i just hope i made the right decision of giving up my life here and pursue MD. anyways, i hope you guys are taking this matter bit more better than me.. GODSPEED everyone!
Hi,
Are you in manila already?

phlipsquad

05-20-2005, 05:53 AM

Today is a sad day for me.
My last day at work for Westside Pulmonary here in nyc. I am gonna miss all the docs,nurses and staff. I have really developed strong friendships with these people. It is gonna be hard to say goodbye. Anyway, I will be leaving on monday for the phils. Hope to bump into all of you nice people.

maia

05-20-2005, 06:59 PM

Hi,
I actually grew up in Dumaguete and went to school in Silliman (Elementary, until 5th grade). Silliman is a great school and nice campus as well.

I am going to be in Dumaguete for a few days this month, so I will definitely stop by to see if there is indeed a med school there. It would be great if there was...1st med school in Negros Oriental. BTW, I know of a friend who is doing nursing in silliman who told me about the rumors that Silliman was about to open a med school this year! I hope its true, so we can have more docs in Negros.

Hei!
WElcome back to the PI!
SU School of Medicine is definitely all systems go. They have no minimum NMAT requirements, just came from the Registrar (although I'm not applying) and heard that they were already processing applications, very few though, but it's probably because the announcement came just 2 weeks ago. Website is: http://su.edu.ph.
If anyone's interested, I think i can help.
SU: well, i did my highschool and college at SU. You have a friend from the college of nursing? funny, i just graduated there this March (and still hanging around there until now) Anybody i might know?
hmmm....I hope to bump into you in Dumaguete or SU.

savi

05-20-2005, 07:36 PM

AurA

05-20-2005, 11:15 PM

just would like to ask for your opinion regarding what subjects to take this JUne for completing my premed requirements.
ORGANIC CHEM OR BOTANY?
I already graduated and trying to complet my subjects. most of the schools i want to apply to don't really have subject requisites, but in case i don't get accepted, i'm also trying to meet the subject requisites of other schools such as organic chem and botany.
I already have 20 units of Bio (minimum required is 15), but it doesn't include botany.
I still need 5 units of chem, which i'd like to meet with O-chem.
P.S. I'm stronger in Bio than CHem too. I would like to take botany, but it seems organic chem is the reasonable one, especially since I'm weak in it.
My concern is, whihc of the two would give me a better chance of a good NMAT score this December? I cannot take both at the same time because I'm simultaneously reviewing for December Board Exams.

BTW, what dates or week of December was the NMAT last year?
Thanks

Hi!

Philipsquad: yup! I'm thinking of taking the MLE. Still not sure though, coz its so expensive. Im not really planning on staying or settling in the US. I just want to be able to train in other countries and then practice medicine here. I really want to travel AND practice. Not sure if that's possible. Hehe... Hope to bump into you! Good luck in Manila! Heat wave there right now!

-i think I'd go with ORG Chem. It seems to be useful in med school (biochemistry). On the other hand, there were several botany questions in the NMAT. But if you feel that you already know enough of the other biology subjects and still lack in chemistry, you might want to take Org chem to compensate, as Chemistry and Biology are separate in the NMAT. NMAT last year was first or second week of December, I think. It's really easy. Your score basically depends on the people you'll be taking it with since they score you based on percentile rank. Like the other year, people with a raw score of 700 or 800 something got a rank of 98. But last year, people who has 600 or 700 something got the same rank. Practice the sample exams and learn to budget your time for each subject.Good luck!

Saipan

05-21-2005, 12:37 AM

Savi,

Take the O-Chem. The issue is not the NMAT. The questions on the NMAT are quite basic. The issue is which course will give you the best preparation for med school. You already have the biology, so play to your weakness by taking the O-Chem.

The last two NMATs were held on the second Sunday in December, 12/12/04, and the second Sunday in April, 4/10/04, respectively.

AurA

It's my understanding that the NMAT scores that CEM sends out are normalised scores.

A score of 500 is not a raw score. CEM does not send out the raw scores. A score of 500 equates to a percentile score of 50%. So, 500 is a 50% percentile score whether a person tested this year, or last year. Likewise a score of 700 this year equates to the same percentile score as 700 last year. I think you can confirm this by checking the normalisation tables that often accompany the standard bell curve discussion in a good statistics book.

In addition, the individual subject scores are weighted, so not every score has the same effect on your final percentile.

Saipan

Spartan Doc

05-24-2005, 10:14 PM

Take O-chem,
medicine is becoming more and more molecular, and it is very important to be able to understand this. O chem will give you a good base

Botany is a lot less helpful to a doctor

maia

05-25-2005, 09:35 AM

Take O-chem,
medicine is becoming more and more molecular, and it is very important to be able to understand this. O chem will give you a good base

Botany is a lot less helpful to a doctor

i totally agree with you. but why do some med schools speeecifyyyy taking botany before medschool? i have a friend who has exceeded the required number of bio units but can't proceed yet because she hasn't taken botany! (the bio subjects were: zoo, human ana/physio, microbio, and a social-bio combo).
can somebody please recommend other schools that don't require a specific number subjects and units before acceptance?
thanks

maia

05-26-2005, 05:09 AM

how many times is the NMAT administered in one year?

where do we write or apply for it? how early? thanks :D

hnerypaoho

05-27-2005, 03:14 AM

tantrum

05-30-2005, 12:04 PM

-hi! it's been a while since the last time i've posted messages here. well, i've been in manila for almost 2 weeks now.. and everyday was terrible! first is the heat wave here, undiscipline people especially government staffs and officials! and many more that i forgot to mention. anyways, it was also great to see my old friends and the help that I got from them. so it wasn't that bad.. so for those who are still on their way here.. brace yourself guys! it will turn out the least as you expected.. God Bless!

Hi. I'm new here but i read the entire thread. don't worry hnery. you'll get used to it. Listen to the advices of spartandoc. it's pretty accurate. hopefully, they'll go easy on you at FEU due to the decreased enrollees. In any case, you still have to study hard to solidify your knowledge base.

AurA

05-31-2005, 01:00 AM

NMAT is given twice a year, one during the summer, not sure if it's april or may, and one in December. Most students take the one in December. Sorry about my vague explanation about the NMAT before. I didn't really bother looking up the exact mathematical explanation for the scores. But however you explain it, your score basically depends on how much better you are than the people you took the test with. Less people take it during the summer. Some say, during the summer exam its easier to get a high score, but you can also get a low score just as easily. But it really depends on you. Just do your best and hope that you get something well above 80 so don't have to take it again coz that won't look so great on your applications.

savi

06-03-2005, 07:19 AM

tantrum

06-03-2005, 11:27 AM

Hi!
Does anyone know the requirements for admissions to Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila?
Also, if they require having taken specific unit load or topics in a subject? (e.g. BIO-comparative:5, Botany-5)

I've tried to access their website many times but it's down.
Hope someone can help.
Thanks ahead!
You have to call them. They have their own exam called MCAT (not the real MCAT). Based on other comments, harder than NMAT but easier than the real MCAT in the States.
Also, since it is funded by the city of Manila (public), they prefer students from Manila or at least Philippine residents.

bleudsky

06-04-2005, 05:15 AM

good luck and God bless to all incoming freshmen medical students! school year is fast approaching so you guys better prepare.

as for my co-clerks, we're about to finish 2 months of clerkship! :)

phlipsquad

06-05-2005, 02:05 AM

Hi!

Philipsquad: yup! I'm thinking of taking the MLE. Still not sure though, coz its so expensive. Im not really planning on staying or settling in the US. I just want to be able to train in other countries and then practice medicine here. I really want to travel AND practice. Not sure if that's possible. Hehe... Hope to bump into you! Good luck in Manila! Heat wave there right now!

-i think I'd go with ORG Chem. It seems to be useful in med school (biochemistry). On the other hand, there were several botany questions in the NMAT. But if you feel that you already know enough of the other biology subjects and still lack in chemistry, you might want to take Org chem to compensate, as Chemistry and Biology are separate in the NMAT. NMAT last year was first or second week of December, I think. It's really easy. Your score basically depends on the people you'll be taking it with since they score you based on percentile rank. Like the other year, people with a raw score of 700 or 800 something got a rank of 98. But last year, people who has 600 or 700 something got the same rank. Practice the sample exams and learn to budget your time for each subject.Good luck!

Hi GoldenAzn, Hnery, Bluedsky, and Aura!
Hello to all.
I have been in manila for the past 2 weeks. I am done with physicals and have already enrolled. Golden, what's up with you? How did the interview go? Bluedsky, hope internship is going well. Hnery, Done with physicals?

Aura... you are 2nd year student in UST right? I was wondering if i could email you a personal question..if its ok with you?

Hope everyone is adjusting fine here in the phils! Take care.

GoldenAzn

06-08-2005, 07:18 AM

Hi GoldenAzn, Hnery, Bluedsky, and Aura!
Hello to all.
I have been in manila for the past 2 weeks. I am done with physicals and have already enrolled. Golden, what's up with you? How did the interview go? Bluedsky, hope internship is going well. Hnery, Done with physicals?

Aura... you are 2nd year student in UST right? I was wondering if i could email you a personal question..if its ok with you?

Hope everyone is adjusting fine here in the phils! Take care.

Hey how are you doing? Yeah just got online recently so just came to check. Been in manila for the past 3 weeks or so, gone online but hotel i was staying at had only like 56k so didn't really go online but to once and awhile. Interview was pretty nice and easy. Yeah finished enrolling and just officially moved into the new place yestereday. So I guess adjusting still taking it one day at a time. How about you?

kakai

06-09-2005, 02:14 AM

Hey GoldenAzn and philipsquad! nice to find "batchmates" here. took me a week reading the whole thread. thought i'd read it all before posting up any questions that might have already been answered previously. i plan on taking the MLE too and hopefully land a residency spot in the US sometime in the future. i'm a legal permanent resident of the US (green card holder..) but did college here in 'Pinas. planning to do part of my clerkship in the US. will settle there after med school also. anyway, i have no step1 stuff yet. maybe you guys could help me out? i plan on taking between 2nd and 3rd year. what about you?

Oh yeah, to all the thomasians, are we supposed to be in uniform during orientation? i'm not even sure about the schedule. is it on june14 or june15?

haven't found a place to stay near school even :( . do i stand a chance on finding one next term? coz now i will be forced to commute to school everyday. 2 rides... argh! i promise myself that this will be the last time i will cram anything for med.

go go UST!

MonteeC

06-09-2005, 09:15 PM

AurA

06-09-2005, 11:33 PM

What's up guys? I just wanted to ask a quick question of anyone who went to the PI to study med. Are there medical missions or "medical tagalog" programs affiliated w/ universities that would allow foreign students to participate for either clinical experience or language study? I'm going to be an MS1 in NJ and there's a fairly large Filipino community up here. My tagalog is functional but I have doubts about my skill level's usefulness during diagnosis. Hopefully I could find something like this for my MS1 summer instead of spending my time as a lab rat.

UST freshmen: You're required to attend the orientation which will be on March 15, i think it starts at 8, im not sure. but you definitely have to wear your uniform. you'll have your tour and nameplate pinning ceremony, whatever that is...good luck y'all! hope to see you around. and sorry to say, but it's kinda hard to find a place during the second sem...boarding houses and dorms might still be available although curfew sucks

MonteeC: Are you a member of International Medical Students Association or heard of it? WEll, its affiliated with UST and currently handles clinical exchanges for foreign clerks and interns. send me a pm if you need more info