St. Mathews or SABA

[HussainGQ]

Which one would be the better choice??St. Mathews is more expensive than SABA in terms or tuition, plus it is also in the British Camyan Islands(which can be pretty pricy for somebody who does not have a bank account here. But what about St. Mathews reputation in the U.S??IS it better, worse, or about the same as SABA?? I have heard that the school has issues with the island(property ownership or something), and that stability of the program is a concern... is this true??Are there any issues with the school that I should be aware of? I have generally heard nothing but good things about SABA, except size of the island, and lack of stafford loans. But is it worth paying a little extra tuition for St. Matt?? Let me know what you think.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[docbarry]

Both have pretty good reputations.. I would base my decision on the school that is most affordable. There are no issues with the school that I know of at this time.. There are lots of BS rumors about Carribbean medical schools. Most of it is false jargon ...but in some cases it can be true. In this case both SABA and ST. Matthews are pretty well known programs and respectable for the Carribbean. Either one will work.. Good luck with your choice and future endeavors... Doc Barry

 

[cooldreams]

so, do u goto the carrabean for school or for vacation? the ppl i know wuld say for vacation from school.

so like... if u went to sko in the carribean... where will you go for vacation??

 

[hndrx1a]

Why, to Kansas, of course!

 

[cooldreams]

Todo!! i dont think we're in kansas anymore!!.... we're off to see the wizard.. the wonderful wizard of oz... becuz becuz becuz ... uhh... becuz i furgot...

 

[erichaj]

You are asking the wrong question.

It should be:

ROSS OR SGU?

EH

 

[Skip Intro]

Which one would be the better choice??St. Mathews is more expensive than SABA in terms or tuition, plus it is also in the British Camyan Islands(which can be pretty pricy for somebody who does not have a bank account here. But what about St. Mathews reputation in the U.S??IS it better, worse, or about the same as SABA?? I have heard that the school has issues with the island(property ownership or something), and that stability of the program is a concern... is this true??Are there any issues with the school that I should be aware of? I have generally heard nothing but good things about SABA, except size of the island, and lack of stafford loans. But is it worth paying a little extra tuition for St. Matt?? Let me know what you think.

St. Matthews fairly recently (i.e., within the past few years) moved from Belize to the Caymans. There were many, many problems for the school in Belize. When the administration at Ross changed the rules on us in the middle of a semester resulting in several people getting screwed-over (which Ross is prone to do on occassion if they don't like how "the numbers" look), many transferred to St. Matthews. Some loved it at the time; others regretted doing so later.

As far as Saba goes, I know too little of the school to comment.

In general, I would make this blanket statement: choose your school not based upon the Caribbean portion of your education, but the quality, availability and strength of the U.S. clinical rotations you will return to in the U.S. along with the school's willingness to work with you to get electives and externships where you want. This makes a HUGE difference when it comes time to asking for Letters of Recommendation (LoRs) for your residency application, the perceived strength of your training to that point, (etc.) and the residency program that you ultimately end-up at. In that regard, you currently only have three really viable choices for off-shore schools, and in this order: St. George's, Ross, and American University of the Caribbean (AUC).

In my opinion, the rest of the Caribbean schools are a gamble for getting the residency you truly want, unless you've already satisfied in your mind that you will be content with a residency in primary care in a non-competitive program.

-Skip

 

[cooldreams]

so like, why didnt you guys consider a DO school??

 

[Skip Intro]

so like, why didnt you guys consider a DO school??

Just never did. Nothing wrong with the "DO option". I've trained along side with a lot of DO's from NYCOM, PCOM, LECOM, and Touro who happen to rotate with us (or, perhaps, we with them) at teaching hospitals here in NYC. My general impression is that we (Carib students) are just about in the same boat as you guys.

-Skip

 

[JattMed]

so like, why didnt you guys consider a DO school??

Why would they?
Your question implies some sort of self styled superiority or arrogance over these people that went Carib'.
You assume they are in an inferior position than you-'how can one choose Carib' over DO-oh JESUS this cannot be!'.
Who are you to judge?
The public in general thinks of DOs as allied health professionals akin to PTs, OTs, and masssage therapists to list a few.
I would never choose DO, and I am sure the people that went Carib' would sell their mothers before becoming DOs.
So for them to take a gamble and go Carib' for an MD is not a big ask.
At least in residency they are fraternized as fellow MDs and not stigmatized as DOs cum chiropractors cum homeopaths.
I will consider any Carib' grad as my equivalent, however DOs I wouldn't.
As the saying goes........
PhD's are only PhDs since they couldnt get into MD programs and DOs are only DOs because they couldnt get into Allopathic MD programs.
Come on now Hoss, let's jus' call a spade a spade!

 

[Skip Intro]

Why would they?
Your question implies some sort of self styled superiority or arrogance over these people that went Carib'.
You assume they are in an inferior position than you-'how can one choose Carib' over DO-oh JESUS this cannot be!'.
Who are you to judge?
The public in general thinks of DOs as allied health professionals akin to PTs, OTs, and masssage therapists to list a few.
I would never choose DO, and I am sure the people that went Carib' would sell their mothers before becoming DOs.
So for them to take a gamble and go Carib' for an MD is not a big ask.
At least in residency they are fraternized as fellow MDs and not stigmatized as DOs cum chiropractors cum homeopaths.
I will consider any Carib' grad as my equivalent, however DOs I wouldn't.
As the saying goes........
PhD's are only PhDs since they couldnt get into MD programs and DOs are only DOs because they couldnt get into Allopathic MD programs.
Come on now Hoss, let's jus' call a spade a spade!

I, for one, completely disagree with this unncessarily inflammatory post. And, I advise others not to take the "troll bait" and get into a needless war over the tired and worn-out old "Carib MD vs. D.O." debate.

Suffice it to say that I've worked with all types: U.S. grad attendings, "true" foreign attendings, D.O. attendings, U.S. IMG attendings, and residents consisting of any number of those. I've also sat through classes side-by-side with U.S. students, both Osteo and Allo, and can tell you this unequivocally - achievement and aptitude is 100% dependent on the individual. Just because you choose a certain path or were granted an admission (or were not granted an admission) to a particular school doesn't amount to much in the long run. Once you're out in the "real" world, people will only care if you can do a good job. That's the bottom line.

Hopefully that's the end of the debate... at least on this thread.

-Skip

 

[cooldreams]

so like, why didnt you guys consider a DO school??

i was just honestly wondering. i thought the caribbean would be cool, but i might get too distracted from med sko... thas just me though...

 

[awdc]

i was just honestly wondering. i thought the caribbean would be cool, but i might get too distracted from med sko... thas just me though...

Actually, there's nothing to distract you on the islands Ross and St George's are located on. AUC is a different story but I would imagine is not any more distracting than attending med school in southern California, or NYC, or Miami, etc.

 

[HussainGQ]

okay come on seriously guys........please.... let's keep the discussion here about St.Mathews and SABA. There are other threads where you can discuss becoming a DO rather than going to Carrib........ so anybody else have any input about St. Mathews??

 

[cooldreams]

i know when i went to undergrad engineering, i was like out in the middle of no where in this really small town. is that what the caribbean schools are like then?? i always imagined sunny beaches and hot naked women running around yea i kno... day dreaming too much....

 

[Leukocyte]

You are asking the wrong question.

It should be:

ROSS OR SGU?

EH

I agree. Why go to other Caribs if you can go to one of the "Older/Pioneer schools"...SGU, Ross, AUC?

 

[cooldreams]

I agree. Why go to other Caribs if you can go to one of the "Older/Pioneer schools"...SGU, Ross, AUC?

what difference does it make? at any sko, you are still going to get a medical education, are still going to practice where you planned on. the only thing stopping is you, is you. so... what differenece?? US-MD, US-DO, IMG-MD, what difference? US-MDs complaing about top teir skools vs lower teir skools vs DO schools vs IMG schools.. and visa versa all the way around... in the end we are doctors... again... what is the difference???

 

[Skip Intro]

what difference does it make? at any sko, you are still going to get a medical education, are still going to practice where you planned on. the only thing stopping is you, is you. so... what differenece?? US-MD, US-DO, IMG-MD, what difference? US-MDs complaing about top teir skools vs lower teir skools vs DO schools vs IMG schools.. and visa versa all the way around... in the end we are doctors... again... what is the difference???

The only real difference is your access to residency programs, depending on what route you take. Again, if you want to do neuro, optho, derm, (etc.), you better go to a top U.S. allopathy school. Otherwise, you can do well, as you say, provided you score well on your boards, get good recommendation letters, and are just generally a nice, all-around presentable person who's easy to get along with.

-Skip

 

[cooldreams]

The only real difference is your access to residency programs, depending on what route you take. Again, if you want to do neuro, optho, derm, (etc.), you better go to a top U.S. allopathy school. Otherwise, you can do well, as you say, provided you score well on your boards, get good recommendation letters, and are just generally a nice, all-around presentable person who's easy to get along with.

-Skip

dood... that is not completely true... there are img-mds and us-dos in those residencies like you say. so it can and has been done. further to that point, do's have their own residencies that only they can get. just fyi... you dont have to goto harvard medical school as a 19 year old from oxford and founding director of the organization who cured cancer to be able to get into neuro.

 

[Skip Intro]

dood... that is not completely true... there are img-mds and us-dos in those residencies like you say. so it can and has been done. further to that point, do's have their own residencies that only they can get. just fyi... you dont have to goto harvard medical school as a 19 year old from oxford and founding director of the organization who cured cancer to be able to get into neuro.

Sorry, I should have said "neurosurgery", that's what I meant at least.

Otherwise (and to further clarify), I think that, if you look at residency appointments from the 'big three' as it currently stands, you'd have to rank most DO schools > SGU > Ross > AUC. That's just the way it goes. There are always exceptions to the rule, but generally speaking the COGME doesn't hide their opinion that they expect DO's, USIMG's, and other "true" IMGs to carry the bulk of the "primary care" responsibilities in this country, while preserving the specialty spots for American allopathic grads.

http://www.cogme.gov/rpt11.htm

-Skip