Caribbean Medical School STATS

Hello!

When applying to schools abroad, one of the easiest ways to find out the information you need is via internet. Once you get the contact number to the school, you can call and talk to an academic advisor who would not only send you some catalogs about the program, but also an application just in case you decide that you would like to apply.

You will see that when you view these catologs that there are many medical schools that offer clinicals in the States. If you feel comfortable with the information that you see, you can call an academic advisor at that school as mentioned above, and get more information.

Hope this helps!

 

Hey Silvereyes, are you not a college student? If I were you, I would be more interested in doing well at the present place you are instead of looking at studying abroad. St. George is the best international school, considering the opportunities that it provides their graduates. However, people do not start college thinking about a foreign medical school. Please, for your own sake, believe me, do your best right now, and aim to get accepted in the US. Study hard right now.

 

Silver eyes, you must have serious self confidence problems, you just started college and now you make it sound lie you re already doomed.. What the hell is this, get tough. I cant believe you.

 

Your peers are right, SilverEyes. If you make your back up plan now, don't be suprised if you find your mind rationalizing during study time in light of it. Keep your eyes on THE ONE prize.

 

Buck up, suck it up. It is true that you should make a hard attempt to get into a US school. St. George's is a fine school, but why the recent interest? Lately, all I've seen outta this forum are questions about SGU. Why not try to find out more about the US and its schools? Sure, it may seem like a cool deal to go to the caribbean, but it's not so great. IT IS NOT THE US!! I'm not going to sit here and talk bad about a particular school, but living in the caribbean is MUCH MUCH different than living in the US. Plus, you'll have very few opportunities to go to the beach, so it's not the fun-in-the-sun fantasy you may think it is. (FYI: It rains alot down there) Also, get the notion out of your head right now that you'll end up at NYU or Cornell for residency. Although there are a few out of every class that go on to great programs, the MAJORITY of graduates DO NOT get the high-profile residency positions. Now, I will come to their defense to say that graduates get pretty good ones (mostly in IM, FP, PEDS, ANES, PMR, etc.), though. Also, if you want anything like Neurosx, Derm, Ortho, Ophtho, etc., don't go to the caribbean EXPECTING to get into these fields. Very few have attained such positions, and had to score EXTREMELY well on the USMLE to get them. It sounds to me, though, that you're confusing clinical rotations with residency positions. They are not the same. SGU has most of their clinicals on the East Coast (NY&NJ) mostly and some in England, and Grenada. I don't know of any students doing rotations out of Stanford, etc. if that's what you're asking. Here's a secret: St. George's is NOT the best foreign school out there. There are other, more renowned institutions in Ireland: RCSI and UCD as well as Australia. Nonetheless, I think you should try to shoot for a US school, despite the pre-med anxiety you may be feeling. Good luck. Now go study!

 

I know of a St Georges graduate who practices CV surgery so it can be done.Be aware it will be an uphill battle compared to what will face a US grad.You will have to prove yourself to get into a good categorical surgery program, and exel there to have a chance at a cv fellowship.There is prejudice against foreign grads in these types of programs. However if you are outstanding you will be recognized. Perhaps realizing all this you will make the extra effort now to get into a US medical school..it will facilitate your goals.

 

SGU has rotations at San Joaquin GH in California. Many if not most of the UCs do not take foreign med students for rotations, unfortunately.

 

CV surgery is not impossible, nor is it likely. You have to be EXCEPTIONAL (IMG or not) and often have to wait for many highly-qualified US graduates to pass up positions in order to get a look. My advice is to not go to the caribbean if you MUST do a surgical subspecialty. I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but that's the way it is.

Good luck

 

Atlas,

I was looking at your earlier post and was wondering if you could explain what makes schools in Ireland and Australia better than St. George's? I was under the impression that St. George's was definitely the way to go if you had to go to a foreign medical school.

 

Mika,

Although it is merely my opinion, I seem to share this view with many medical professionals. Caribbean schools were created with the intention of capitalizing on American pre-meds who couldn't get into a US school. Irish and Aussie schools usually cater to citizens of those repspective countries, are not considered "offshore", hold better reputations within the medical community, and have existed for nearly 300 years! SGU and Ross have been on the scene for 20 years or so and have only recently established some level of recognition. The Royal College of Surgeons and Flinders in Australia are considered among THE BEST international medical schools. I'm not the judge of this, but I see why. Graduates have had enormous success in getting residency placement in highly competitive programs. I frequently hear of graduates from RCSI getting surgery, IM, Rads, EM, etc. at institutions like Hopkins, Wash U, etc. I know they're at Wash U for a fact because I've spent significant time at the school of medicine the last few years and I can vouch for their prescence. I've heard that 99% of RCSI graduates getting a residency spot and I believe it. SGU shares similar marks. I think what sets them apart with respect to residency placement is that at RCSI, reps from Harvard, Hopkins, etc. come calling and recruiting graduates! This is no joke. RCSI and Flinders are high up in the ranking of top medical institutions in the WORLD! That is why I said if you have the means to go and are not accepted by a US school, please consider it. Although it may be tough for you to believe one person, so I recommend that you investigate this topic in more depth on your own. If you have further, more specific questions, I'll be happy to try to answer them.

P.S. Sorry for the delay in my response. Been busy!

Atlas

 

Hey Atlas. I do think that schools like Flinders and RCSI are good and held in high esteem by at least some of the US med establishment. Is there any source out there that gives an indication of exactly how good these international schools are? I tried the Gorman Report, but it makes no mention of Flinders (I suppose because F;inders started its grad med prog in 1996).

 

I believe there is, but I don't know of its exact location. You might want to search for such a resource in a powerful search engine like Google.

Atlas

 

Ijust thought that I would add my two cents worth. I am a US citizen who chose (albeit by default) to attend a Caribbean medical school. I attend The American University of the Caribbean in St. Maarten. I agree with most posts that encourage students to apply to US schools....even waiting for years if you can. In my case, I had crappy undergrad grades and no one in their right mind would accept me. My MCAT score sucked and I was mostly lost. It took me a few years in graduate school to grow up enough to be serious about school. But by then, the damage was done. So, I then went the Caribbean route. I believe my school (AUC) provided me with the information I needed to be a good (if not great) doctor. I scored a 232 on my USMLE step 1 and am currently completing my third year core rotations in England. I guess school is what you put into it. I look at AUC as the only ones who were going to give me a chance to fulfill my dreams. So I took full advantage of it, and I have no regrets to this day. (Although I would go to a US school in a heartbeat if given the chance.)

As far as residencies go, I do not know of anyone at my school that has graduated and notlanded a residency. Students who performedwell in basic sciences and clinicals all landedgreat residencies at very prestegious schools. So you can getto where you wantto go at a Caribbean school, but you have to work your ass off! Use admission to a schoolin the Caribbean as a last resort. Tuition is outrageously expensive and so is island life. The biggest downside is that students are generally regarded by the school owners only as a source of income, not at scholars.

Please feel free to email me privately if you so desire.

[email protected]

 

I have to agree with Russ. AUC is a school where you get out of it what you put into it. All schools are like that in some way. I know a couple AUC grads personally and some in my area appear to be doing well for themselves. It is not uncommon for caribbean students to do well on the USMLE because there is nothing else for them to do but study. Many people, do in fact, attend schools like AUC and ROSS because they couldn't get in anywhere else and they were given the chance. Many turn this chance into an opportunity. I also agree that OF THOSE THAT MAKE IT TO TAKE THE USMLE and PASS, they will more than likely get something as far as residencies are concerned. You WILL NOT see many AUC grads running around Hopkins or Wash U for their training. If you must train at these places, go somewhere else. Although there are exceptions to everything, for the most part, many graduates land decent-to-fair resdencies while some scrape up with the crappy ones. Keep in mind, you'll get this everywhere from any school, but it so happens that alot of IMGs take a back seat to US grads in terms of residencies. I know graduates from SGU and AUC who are doing either a residency or a fellowship at a prestigious school of medicine, but it's not very common. If you go to a caribbean school, make sure you can handle the work, and study hard. They have the highest dropout rates of all medical schools. It's also important, when searching for a school, that you find out how many students start, how many are left that are eligible to take the USMLE, how many sit for it, and how many pass. Those are key figures. I think caribbean schools are good opportunities, especially the Big 3. Study hard and you'll become a doctor.

Atlas

 

Atlas,

I just wanted to say thanks for the detailed response on the Ireland and Australian schools! I was just wondering how Flinders managed to make a name for itself so fast considering that its grad med program just started in 1996 and only produced 2 grad classes so far? Is there program that amazing?

 

Mika,

Nothing amazing about it. Flinders is an AUSTRALIAN medical school and it's purpose is to train AUSTRALIAN doctors. It's not about the quality of a program but it's about the reputation of medicine of that country, which has absolutely no stigma, at the very least, in a traditional sense. If you ask ANY doctors or professors in medicine in American, the worse answer you would get for Australian graduates or doctors is, "I really don't know." Why? People make assumption, big ones too. First, Australia is a developed country, second it's considered the "west", third it's a white country. Haven't you realised that most of international committee or joint research or some sort of collaboration involved mostly western, developed, and caucasian countries? That's why when you see an IMG who gets unreal residencies at some BIG name place, they are either from Germany, England, Australia, South Africa, or Ireland.

 

Mika, I think there's a point to KungFuMaster's comments. But, I also think that Flinders has made a great name for itself in medical research (clinical, basic). That, I'm sure, helps its reputation. How much--I don't know.