Got accepted to AUA THIS semester, should I go?

[Sumbody1245]

Title. The main reason to go would be to save time, I understand the risks of choosing an international grad school, but saving 2 years of your life should be seriously considered. I want to match into anything but Family Practice and Internal Medicine, and I realize the odds are stacked against me especially going to AUA, but its not impossible to say the least.

My other option was to stop working this semester, take the MCAT, and try to get into a higher tier international medical school. But at the end of the day, isn't an international med school an international med school?

Take into account I've been out of school for a while and I'm very rusty on practically everything, maybe I need to study for the MCAT to be prepared for med school? Or does med school start from square 1, trying to prep you for Step 1? Thanks for any replies beforehand!

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[Nymphicus]

Take into account I've been out of school for a while and I'm very rusty on practically everything, maybe I need to study for the MCAT to be prepared for med school? Or does med school start from square 1, trying to prep you for Step 1? Thanks for any replies beforehand!

I feel there's a dissonance between feeling confident enough to specialize from an offshore medical school but not feeling like you can do well enough on the MCAT. Remember that the Caribbean is an expensive and risky business, where you are gambling not only money but also time.

 

[Sumbody1245]

I feel there's a dissonance between feeling confident enough to specialize from an offshore medical school but not feeling like you can do well enough on the MCAT. Remember that the Caribbean is an expensive and risky business, where you are gambling not only money but also time.

I never said I wouldn't do good on the MCAT. I made 22 on it blind after not being in school for 2 years, b/c AUA said they started requiring the MCAT to apply but don't take it into consideration.

The thing is, I don't want to waste a semester for nothing, if there's not a big difference between AUA and Ross or something. Because lets be serious American med schools don't give a DAMN what your MCAT is if your GPA is as low as mine.

 

[Nymphicus]

AUA http://www.auamed.org/graduate-success?order=field_specialty_value&sort=asc

Ross http://www.rossu.edu/medical-school/residencyappointments.cfm


Probably not much difference. I'm not an expert on Caribbean schools though.

 

[Sumbody1245]

AUA http://www.auamed.org/graduate-success?order=field_specialty_value&sort=asc

Ross http://www.rossu.edu/medical-school/residencyappointments.cfm


Probably not much difference. I'm not an expert on Caribbean schools though.

Thx for the response, and yes the residency placements of both schools looks mediocre, but not disheartening.

As a medical student, do you feel that studying your arse off the first year could compensate for not remembering practically anything from undergrad? Or are there huge swaths of knowledge you are already assumed to know by this time?

 

[Mad Jack]

Keep in mind that of those students that actually complete medical school in the Caribbean, only SGU, Ross, and AUC have >50% match rates. The highest matching school is SGU, at around 60%, while AUC and SGU match around 50-55% of applicants. Sackler in Israel has the highest match rate of any international school, with over 70%. Everywhere else, as a USIMG, you will have a <50% chance of matching at ALL if you graduated RIGHT NOW. Four years from now, however, the match will be tighter, and IMG match rates will probably be lower. Are you willing to take on over 300k in debt for a less than 50% chance of matching into anything, let alone into a specialty? If not, don't go. If so, well, good luck, because it's not looking good for anyone that's a USIMG in the near future, and worse still for those that didn't go to any of the four schools mentioned above.

 

[Sumbody1245]

Keep in mind that of those students that actually complete medical school in the Caribbean, only SGU, Ross, and AUC have >50% match rates. The highest matching school is SGU, at around 60%, while AUC and SGU match around 50-55% of applicants. Sackler in Israel has the highest match rate of any international school, with over 70%. Everywhere else, as a USIMG, you will have a <50% chance of matching at ALL if you graduated RIGHT NOW. Four years from now, however, the match will be tighter, and IMG match rates will probably be lower. Are you willing to take on over 300k in debt for a less than 50% chance of matching into anything, let alone into a specialty? If not, don't go. If so, well, good luck, because it's not looking good for anyone that's a USIMG in the near future, and worse still for those that didn't go to any of the four schools mentioned above.

Yeah I read that stat a lot, and it was even in the AUA conference I attended, but keep in mind they are letting people with as bad stats as me into med school. I would assume at least half of them would fail out lol. AUA has me worried because they recently had a cheating scandal or something similar. I guess I just have to study hardcore and not pay half a **** to what my peers are doing.

We are buying our way through the system to save several years when we think we have the aptitude, that's all there is to it. I don't know what to make of all the doomsaying about the Caribbean though, since it was around since back when I graduated. Any relevant articles to back up your claim would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Mad Jack]

Yeah I read that stat a lot, and it was even in the AUA conference I attended, but keep in mind they are letting people with as bad stats as me into med school. I would assume at least half of them would fail out lol. AUA has me worried because they recently had a cheating scandal or something similar. I guess I just have to study hardcore and not pay half a **** to what my peers are doing.

We are buying our way through the system to save several years when we think we have the aptitude, that's all there is to it. I don't know what to make of all the doomsaying about the Caribbean though, since it was around since back when I graduated. Any relevant articles to back up your claim would be greatly appreciated.

All the numbers you need are in this report. AUA is the only medical school on the island so far as I know, so if you look at match results for the island, you get the match results for the school. 180 USIMGs matched, 207 failed to match, for a matcg rate of 46.5%, per page 27 of the ECFMG outcomes report.

http://www.ecfmg.org/resources/NRMP...atch-International-Medical-Graduates-2014.pdf

I know you think you're awesome and whatnot, but when it comes to medicine, past performance is the greatest indicator of future success. Think carefully about throwing your financial future away on less than a 50/50 chance (and growing worse every year) of matching to what will likely be primary care if anything at all.

 

[bedevilled ben]

All the numbers you need are in this report. AUA is the only medical school on the island so far as I know, so if you look at match results for the island, you get the match results for the school. 180 USIMGs matched, 207 failed to match, for a matcg rate of 46.5%, per page 27 of the ECFMG outcomes report.

http://www.ecfmg.org/resources/NRMP...atch-International-Medical-Graduates-2014.pdf

I know you think you're awesome and whatnot, but when it comes to medicine, past performance is the greatest indicator of future success. Think carefully about throwing your financial future away on less than a 50/50 chance (and growing worse every year) of matching to what will likely be primary care if anything at all.

100% agree with all of this. So many students come down here to SGU and think they are going to be in the top 10% of the class. Med school is hard, and there are lots of really really smart people down here with lots of very different reasons for coming here.

Also just wanted to point out, that the total placement rate for these schools is a fair bit higher than the NRMP data suggest. They define "matched" as "matched into first choice speciality" not "got a residency". So while only something like 65% of SGU/Ross students match into their preferred speciality, the actual total number placed in residency is more like 85% for SGU (not sure of the statistics for Ross but I imagine its similarly high). Still, the Caribbean is a risky decision, now more than ever. Put yourself in the best position possible to take advantage of whatever opportunity comes your way.

 

[darklabel]

OP, psych isn't terribly difficult to match into as a USIMG. Besides that, idk what USIMGs can realistically expect to match in besides IM and FM.

I do agree with what everyone is saying. wait one more semester and go SGU. If you want to specialize in something like surgery, ENT, gas, rads, etc, you'll have a more difficult time from the island, especially if you're not attending SGU. As its usually said, its much easier to say "Hey, my poor MCAT and/or GPA is a fluke, I will work hard now and beat the other 200+ people! and get a Step score above the national average" then to actually do so.

Good luck!