Need a New Medical School

[almuhaarb]

Hello I am in need of some help in the form of good information. My background is I am a Kurdish American who was raised in the USA and am a US citizen. I am currently in my second year in a 6 year medical MD program in Iraqi Kurdistan and I am unhappy with where I am and I have been scouring the internet in search of another MD program I can enroll in. Because my first year marks for this medical school were pretty poor because of my personal life I was not studying and applying myself well, I barely passed all of my first year medical school courses and had to redo the Anatomy course because I ended up failing it, I do not think I will be able to transfer into any other 5-6 year medical MD program in a more pleasant location (Europe, Australia, Caribbean, etc.) that is accredited so I am looking to apply fresh as a freshman straight out of high school (unless anyone thinks I have any chance of transferring somewhere) in one of those areas, or another pleasant location anyone may know of that is also accredited. Because of this I am looking for a 5 year medical MD programs only so I don't waste anymore years, specifically ones that are undergraduate (do not require a Baccalaureate degree or MCAT score), and will cost me under $30,000 a year (under $25,000 ideally). My academic achievements are as follows: high school diploma with a GPA of 3.92, SAT I score of 1830, SAT II scores of Biology 640, Chemistry 620 and Physics 510, I've taken AP Biology, AP Chemistry, AP Calculus, and AP European History (for what it's worth) classes and got 90% or better in all of them (with the exception of AP Calculus in which I got an 87%). I took the AP exam for Biology, Calculus, and European history receiving a 4, 3, and 4 for them, respectively. I also completed a year at Hood College (an accredited private college) in the USA majoring in Biochemistry and received a GPA of 3.5 in the first semester but unfortunately, due to various reasons, received a GPA of 2.11 in the second semester making my average GPA for that year a 2.87. I would also like to know whether that year in college in the USA would help me out at all because of the poor GPA in the second semester pulling my average down. If anyone could help suggest a 5 year medical MD program meeting that criteria or a 6 year medical MD program which you think I may still be eligible to transfer into as a 2nd or maybe even 3rd year student with my credentials, being that I am currently in my 2nd year of a 6 year medical program here in Iraqi Kurdistan and would complete this year by the time the next Fall 2015 school year started (which I am looking to apply for elsewhere), please let me know.
Thank you.

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[Mad Jack]

Where do you ultimately want to practice?

 

[almuhaarb]

In the USA, maybe Europe but I plan on working hard enough to pass the USMLE exams.

 

[almuhaarb]

Where do you ultimately want to practice?

In the USA, maybe Europe but I plan on working hard enough to pass the USMLE exams with a good score regardless..

 

[Mad Jack]

In the USA, maybe Europe but I plan on working hard enough to pass the USMLE exams with a good score regardless..

Attending a foreign institution is probably the most foolish thing you could have done if your ultimate goal is practicing in the US. I would recommend going home and doing things the right way, as your chances of matching will be substantially reduced 6 years down the line die to the upcoming residency crunch. If you want to possibly practice in Europe and are not willing to give up on what is quite frankly a sadly uninformed and misguided idea, look into the Polish schools that teach in English (Jagiellonian, etc) which guarantee your degree will be recognized in Europe. Because of the way EU reciprocity works, your chances of ever working there with an Iraqi medical degree are basically nil, and because of the upcoming residency shortage, your chances of matching in the US, even with stellar USMLE scores, will be close to 20-30%. You're throwing six years of your life at a small chance that someday you'll match IM or FM in the middle of nowhere just to "save" 2 years. Rethink your priorities.

 

[almuhaarb]

Attending a foreign institution is probably the most foolish thing you could have done if your ultimate goal is practicing in the US. I would recommend going home and doing things the right way, as your chances of matching will be substantially reduced 6 years down the line die to the upcoming residency crunch. If you want to possibly practice in Europe and are not willing to give up on what is quite frankly a sadly uninformed and misguided idea, look into the Polish schools that teach in English (Jagiellonian, etc) which guarantee your degree will be recognized in Europe. Because of the way EU reciprocity works, your chances of ever working there with an Iraqi medical degree are basically nil, and because of the upcoming residency shortage, your chances of matching in the US, even with stellar USMLE scores, will be close to 20-30%. You're throwing six years of your life at a small chance that someday you'll match IM or FM in the middle of nowhere just to "save" 2 years. Rethink your priorities.

Thanks for your input but I know a dozen doctors who have graduated from the university I am currently enrolled in, passed their USMLE exams with fairly good scores, and had no problem finding residency and permanent career positions in the US-one of whom is a cardiovascular surgeon and another a physician working in a prominent Baltimore, MD hospital. This is especially made possible because this university is board certified by the state of California-a fact that I wasn't "uninformed" enough to overlook nor "misguided" enough to stumble upon your arbitrary pessimistic percentages for projected success with such a degree. I'd rather not go to school in the USA and pay over $200,000 for around 8 years of education as you put it being "the right way" it's not the way for me as I will not only "save" 2 years but I will also "save" an amount of money equivalent to a single-family home that I would spend the next 5-10 years of my career paying off. I am only in a position to pay a little less than that for a European medical school because of recent fortunate circumstances. As I stated in my original post I am just looking for suggestions for 5 year medical MD programs in Europe, Australia, or the Caribbean that are accredited and have a good post-graduate success reputation, no arrogantly toned suggestions to the contrary are appreciated. Thanks anyways.

 

[Mad Jack]

http://jama.jamanetwork.com/Mobile/article.aspx?articleid=1475200

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

In the past, there were plenty of residency positions to go around for IMGs. You could end up in just about any field if you worked hard enough. But those days ended when US medical school enrollment exploded. By the time you graduate, you will be entering a match in which the number of residencies available nearly equals the number of US grads. There is a lot of talk of "US graduates first" legislation in the near future to ensure foreign grads aren't even allowed a shot at matching if there are US grads that need the spot. I'm trying to keep you from making the biggest mistake of your life, because 200k is nothing compared to the cost of starting from scratch at the age of 24. You have a serious case of hubris, believing you'll easily crush the USMLE and beat out US grads for spots when you're already suffering from lackluster performance in your first year of medical school. 21 of 75 students matched from Iranian schools in today's Match environment, something that is a fact. I didn't just pull that 20-30% number out of my ass, it is an optimistic number based on hard data. Once the crunch hits, a 20-30% shot at matching will seem freaking fabulous.

But whatever, disregard all data and assume that anecdotes that precede your graduation date by two decades or more will continue to hold true in perpetuity. Your teenage foolishness will cost you greatly in the long run. Just do me a favor and never, ever forget this conversation. Because I don't want you to be all "woe is me, I was never warned, how could this have happened" when you fail to match and the truth is finally clear.

This isn't the place for foreign medical school advice anyway. Hit up the international subforum or valuemd. Either could get you more info than the nontrad forum by a long shot.