Best med schools in Europe

[doc227]

Does anyone know what the names are to some of the best med schools in europe? What kind of stats would an American undergrad seeking admission have to have? How hard would it be to obtain an American residency?

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[neilc]

from what i have heard, the irish schools are good, english schools are nearly impossible to get into for north americans, germans schools are doable, but you must speak or learn german. polish schools are doable, but i have heard from a lot of unhappy students...i go to school in prague and love it, at charles university. remember, though, if you go to a non-english speaking country, you need to learn the native language even if the lectures are in english. otherwise you will get very little out of your clinicals.

all said, i am happy in prague. i am learning medicine, i live in a killer city, i am learning a new language, and the cost is very reasonable, even though i hve six years of school. do your homework and remember med scholl will give you back exactly what you put in almost independant of where you go. good luck.

 

[leorl]

is it hard to learn czec??!!! That's cool!!

Yeah, the Irish schools are very well regarded especially Royal College of Surgeons (www.rcsi.ie) but $$$, and there's the famed Trinity College (www.tcd.ie), University College Dublin (www.ucd.ie) and University College Cork (www.ucc.ie). The Dublin schools are very good, and UCC is probably as well, but I don't know too much about it although the people are very nice.

I think some French ones as well...but wouldn't go there for a great hospitable experience especially if you can't speak fluent french, but I don't know too much about that. Just their medical system is ranked #1 internationally.

Schools in the UK too, but it's hard to find one that lets in north americans - maybe univ. of manchester. Oxford and cambridge too, but they're godawfully hard to get into. Try king's college. Could also try scotland - univ. of edinburgh or st. andrews, but again...dunno their admissions of international students. Also if you want a UK school, could check Northern Ireland, and then Queens Univ. would be the only place to look at (it's beautiful).

 

[cliona]

HI
I go to University College Dublin (UCD) and it's a great school. There are about 70 foreign students in my class- mostly North Americans and Malaysians. We get on really well, and they all seem to like it here. Lots of people- Irish and American- do the SMEllys (USMLE) and the program is suited to that.You can sit them in Dublin or Belfast. Most go back to the states and I don't think getting a residency there is a problem, as long as your USMLE scores are good- which is really up to you. Some of my friends have gotten really good scores in part 1 over the past few months. IT's 6 years for us Irish, but the north Americans do 1st &2nd year combined which is pretty heavy but at least it's then done in 5. If you have any questions about Dublin etc email me.

 

[neilc]

nahhhh...czech is not too hard. but, it is a factor. if you are living in a foreign country, it is pretty easy to force yourself to learn the language. in fact, i think it is pretty rude to move somewhere and not attempt to learn the native tongue. just think how easy it is to get frustrated in america when someone does not speak english.

but, i really enjoy my program! tuition is 10,500 us per year, and the 8,000 left on the stafford is plenty to live off of for the year in prague. i work in the summers, so i can live pretty large in prague for around 10,000 a year, which includes food, rent, travel, books and everything!

 

[mies]

Some info about Belgium and The Netherlands:

Belgium has a 7-year degree program. Programs are in French or Dutch, no English programs exist. You must prove you are fluent in the chosen language before you enroll. In the Flemish community there is an entrance test, only administered in Belgium on set dates, which covers MCAT-material and some psychological testing. In the French-speaking community enrolment for preclinical years is unrestricted, but there is a limited number of clinical spots. No need to explain there is a cut-throat competition in the preclinical years.
Tuition is very low, as all medical programs are heavily governement-funded.

The Netherlands have a lottery-system for admissions. Only if you are Dutch and if you have very high grades for your high school finals, you are free to enroll in a medical school of your choice. The remaining spots are distributed in a (weighted) lottery. Many Dutch students come to Flanders for their medical training.

I would recommend North American students to go to the UK/Irish/English-speaking Eastern European programs. Other European countries are not catering to English-speaking students (why would they?).