Do you need to be a citizen to go to med school?

[yalla22]

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Hi all,

I was wondering if you have to be a US citizen to apply to a us med school and if not, if you need to be a citizen to get a med school loan?


Also, do you need to be a canadian citizen to go to med school there?

Thanks!

 

[MWillie]

Permanent residents are treated same as citizens. Other types of visas, J-1, H, etc... are at a disadvantage when it comes to admissions and loans.

 

[Fermata]

No, you do not have to be a citizen.

Ivy League schools seem to be more friendly to non-U.S. people.

 

[yalla22]

Thanks for the responses!

That news was more hopeful than I thought...

I know an excellent excellent student that currently lives in another country-does not hold a citizenship or visa-is it possible to apply from overseas? if he takes the mcat...

the only problem seems to be getting a loan-i'm wondering if anyone can give me more info about the specifics of this...

 

[KiKat37]

For both applications and loans, you need to be a permanent resident of the US - not a citizen. Some schools, mostly private schools and Ivy Leagues, also accept a few international students (visa F1). Good luck!

 

[yalla22]

thanks kikat,

do you or anyone else know anyone accepted directly from outside the country as an international student??

 

[snuffles04]

Find out from the schools directly. I know if you're international you are at a definite disadvantage at some public schools (not all - like ucla does accept international students). If you are a permanent resident you're at no disadvantage for applications/loans/etc. But still, find out from the schools you're applying to and from MSAR.

 

[Kiroro]

I think the chance of him getting accepted from oversea directly to a US med school is very slim. 🙁
This is because most of the med schools require international students to take pre-med classes in accredited US colleges so that their GPA can be evaluated. I suppose all the international students who got into US med schools are the ones who have been international students since undergrad.

 

[Scottish Chap]

thanks kikat,

do you or anyone else know anyone accepted directly from outside the country as an international student??

Most medical schools do not honor an undergraduate degree that was earned overseas (outside of the U.S. or Canada, that is) - even if you have taken the MCAT. I ran into this issue (please do a search for the thread where I discussed this).

Some schools will honor a foreign undergraduate degree only if you have completed all the prerequisite classes in the U.S. (chemistry/biology/physics/English), and others will only consider you if you have a higher degree from an American school. As far as I could find, SUNY Upstate and Albany were the only two schools that may reserve one or two seats for international students (non-green card holders) who do not have an undergraduate degree from the U.S. It's best to contact the schools before you apply, but you may have to bypass the person that fields the questions via e-mail, and talk to the admissions directors themselves. Many people on the 'front line' don't know for sure so they'll just say "no", I found, when the Dean later says "yes". Good luck! 👍

 

[KiKat37]

Yeah, I agree with the posts above. You have to do at least the pre-req in the US or Canada. For some other schools, it's 90 credits ~ 3 years.