BS/MD program forcing students into satellite campus - not sure what to do?

[idk_whatsup]

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This may be beyond SDN, but I was curious if there were any thoughts on my (very specific) situation. For context, I am a third-year undergraduate student in an eight-year, in-state BS/MD program.

The medical school affiliated with my program has a main campus in a fairly well-known city, as well as a satellite "campus" with a small hospital in a much more rural area. All students spend their pre-clinical years at the main campus, but a fraction of students complete their clerkship years at the satellite campus, which has programs pertaining to rural medicine, with a big focus on primary care. Historically, the medical school has asked applicants on AMCAS whether they would like to do their clerkship years at the main campus or satellite campus. I believe they asked us on the original BS/MD application, and they will ask again when we apply through AMCAS as a formality.

This was always advertised to us, extensively, as a choice for those who wanted that type of training. However, several students in the BS/MD cohort one year above me have been assigned to the satellite campus against their wishes. They were not told this until a few weeks ago, so months after finalizing their application materials and therefore locking themselves in with this medical school. They have attempted to negotiate with the medical school to no avail. Essentially, we have these new program coordinators who are insistent on transforming our program into one dedicated to making primary care physicians for the rural parts of our state — this all happened well after we were admitted — so they are now forcing as many people as possible into that pipeline.

I also did my own investigation on this, as I know students at the medical school and a few people who got accepted without the BS/MD. It appears that the medical school was having difficulty filling up the seats at the satellite campus. Therefore, the administration decided to create a lottery — only for the BS/MD students — to fill any leftover spots. The BS/MD students obviously have zero leverage because this was their only acceptance, they have no MCAT, and the medical school waited until after the application season was over to tell them anything, so they could not leave the program. The medical school still has not said anything about this to my cohort.

A part of me is grateful for the guaranteed acceptance, but I also feel like I'm being cheated here. All of the specialties that interest me are more competitive, and I fear that training at a small rural hospital will hurt my chances. I am also interested in pursuing research in medical school, yet the satellite "campus" has no research and is hours away from any solid medical/research institution.

Do you think that doing rotations in a much more rural setting would hurt my chances at matching in competitive fields? Is this also even a justifiable decision by the program? This feels borderline illegal in all honesty but I am not sure how to navigate this, except for maybe leaving the program and applying to other medical schools.

 

[Hollow Knight]

Those coordinators are really quite unethical and that’s sad to see. Makes me laugh when people talk about how high and mighty physicians are supposed to be and then our teachers do stuff like that (my med school and my friends’ med schools have done similar things)

I don’t think it will hurt your chances though. We had a guy from our “rural” program a few years ago match neurosurgery.

Having said that, the research piece is something you will definitely need to look into/work to overcome.

You could always take the MCAT and, if your application is very strong, get out of your program and apply generally. But honestly dude I don’t know if I’d trade an acceptance for stronger research opportunities (unless your MCAT is like crazy high). Most every school has some admins who are sleazebags, that won’t really change wherever you go (that’s really just human beings for ya, wait till you meet sleazebag med students, residents, attendings)

And of course some of the people in charge are absolutely wonderful. It’s a mixed bag.

 

[Hollow Knight]

oh, and DO NOT make a stink at your school over this. Are they wrong? Sure. But your job as a medical student is to brown nose as much as possible and never complain so that you can get the specialty you want. Don’t get labeled as a problem student. That’s a hard label to overcome.

 

[LunaOri]

Do research during the summers, or take a research year after M2 or M3, if you want to do a competitive specialty. A small rural hospital can be more hands-on than a large teaching hospital, and that can be very nice if you are interested in a surgical field.

 

[pazzer2]

I know it seems like the sky is falling, but it really isn't. You'll be fine at the "rural" hospital. There will be fewer residents, students and fellows around. So you'll get a chance to do a lot more than you would in the big city hospital.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

It may be awful, but it's within the administrators' discretion. Administrators can make adjustments without requiring student feedback (to their peril), especially if they see they have unfilled seats at their satellite campus.

What I don't know is how your student support adjusts to this change. Lean on them to find out how much they can help you with your concerns about research. As mentioned, you may get a very solid training experience even if the location is less than preferable to you.

The larger picture is that we need providers in rural locations now, and even if rural health isn't in your own vision, the experience is still brief. You will still graduate with an MD, and the rest of your journey will be dependent on your performance and mentoring. Many places may find it appealing that you have done some clinical experience in rural settings.

Leadership changes priorities at the drop of a whim all the time (see White House). You must learn to adapt and make the best of it.

 

[Med Ed]

Agree with above, rural environments can offer some of the best clinical education you can get. Rural FM docs in particular have to do it all: general medicine, peds, surgery, OBGYN, etc.