That is why I am asking the questions... There are things I really like about Saba, but that is a concern of mine. I am looking to go into primary care (haven't decided between FP/GP or IM)... I posted a thread about it, and would happily take opinions or info... Part of my concern about some of the other schools is where people match for residencies, etc... anyway, I am looking for thoughts and opinions about going to a carib school vs US...
Ok. Here is the deal, straight up and honest. If you get into a US school, you need to go there. Period. No discussion. If you go Carib over US, you have made a mistake and are a fool. As far as DO vs MD, well, that is a decision everyone must make. Better residency chances with US DO? Yup. But not everyone likes that medical philosophy, and that's just a personal opinion, in no way putting down the DO schools.
And I need to explain to you how this whole "get a degree in 3 yrs thing works". It's probably not 3 yrs. You will spend 20 months on your island of choice. Then, you need to study for Step, let's say two months. You will lose a few weeks moving, so round it to 3. Then you have to wait for your scores before you can start clinicals. Takes 1-2 months, call it one. That's 4 months, and you haven't started clinicals yet. Let's say by some miracle of God you do them all back to back. 72 weeks for Saba, so 1.5 yrs (and this is being crazy lucky with scheduling). So, that's 18 months, right? Now, here's the part they don't tell you. You have to Match in March with everyone else. So, let's say you start in January 2011. Here is the timeline:
Jan 2011 - Start Basic
August 2012 - Finish Basic
November 2012 - Take Step 1
December 2012 - Get Scores
January 2013 - Start Clinicals
July 2014 - Finish Clinicals
September 2014 - Apply for Residency
March 2015 - Match (7 months after clincals ended)
July 2015 - Start Residency
Looks good right? Here is the problem. Coming from the Caribbean, you MUST have your residency applications sent out in September. If you don't, you are being foolish. If you miss this window because clinicals don't work out, you have to study a month longer for Step, any scheduling conflict that puts you off by a few months (let's say by 3-4), then you have to wait until THE NEXT YEAR to match. So, 2016. Is that timeline do-able? Yup. But be careful when someone tells you 3 years. It will take some great scheduling and some luck to make that happen (but it is possible). I hope this helps you and your decision process, whatever you decide.