Easier to acquire a Residency?

[swoops49]

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Hi,
I don't know where exactly to post this but I figured people applying for or in residency would be better to answer this question of mine.

So I am in a medical school in India called Manipal. I went to India over Caribbeans because I thought it would give me better clinical experience and make me a better doctor. But I have just found out how important US clinical experience is.

I am wondering if it is better for me to drop out of my first year of medical school here and take the MCAT and apply for the Caribbeans since they do have US rotations. I am really confused cause I have flipped flopped around a lot and if I leave school in India and try for the Caribbeans I will waste atleast a year maybe two.

Basically is it worth me dropping top medical school in India and attempting to join a Caribbean Med School. Will my chances of getting residency in US be much better if I do this. Thank you all for your help.

 

[howelljolly]

Hi,
I don't know where exactly to post this but I figured people applying for or in residency would be better to answer this question of mine.

So I am in a medical school in India called Manipal. I have a biology and BBA degree from a top 20 US University. My GPA there was 3.0 and my science GPA was probably the same or a little less. I went to India over Caribbeans because I thought it would give me better clinical experience and make me a better doctor. But I have just found out how important US clinical experience is.

I am wondering if it is better for me to drop out of my first year of medical school here and take the MCAT and apply for the Caribbeans since they do have US rotations. I am really confused cause I have flipped flopped around a lot and if I leave school in India and try for the Caribbeans I will waste atleast a year maybe two.

Basically is it worth me dropping top medical school in India and attempting to join a Caribbean Med School. Will my chances of getting residency in US be much better if I do this. Thank you all for your help.

Absolutely not. you've made it into one of the top tier med schools in India, and in that particular school, you have the priviledge of doing away rotations in the US, including in NY, during your clinical years. Find out how to make that happen. Stay in that school, do some away rotations in the US, you'll be fine.

 

[dragonfly99]

I don't know anything about your particular medical school in India.
However, I do know that there are quite a few residents from Indian medical schools in the US. Of course, going to med school over there vs. here in the US makes it hard, or even impossible, to get certain US residencies (i.e. dermatology, plastic surgery). However, there are a lot you can still definitely get (IM, family practice, psych, pathology) and a lot you can still probably get if you do well on the US medical licensing exam and your medical school clinical rotations during 3rd and 4th years (ER, anesthesia, maybe general surgery, etc.). I don't think that moving to the Caribbean is going to help you at this point. For one thing, it will probably cost you a lot of money and time (and make you look unfocused, as you have pointed out).

I'm not expert on being an IMG, but one thing I do know is that it's important to do plenty of clinical rotations in the US while you are in medical school. This makes sense as you want to learn as much as you can about practicing in the US and how hospitals run in the US. If you are a citizen/permanent US resident, that will make things better in terms of being able to get a US residency, since the program knows they don't have to deal with worrying about getting you a VISA and they know you are familiar with US culture, etc.

I don't know for sure, but would think a US permanent resident or US citizen who attending a good medical school in India and had appropriate rotations in a US hospital would do just as well in the US Match as someone who attended one of the better Caribbean medical schools. As far as transferring to any but maybe 2-4 of the top schools down there, I DEFINITELY would not do it because based on their USMLE pass rates and their dubious residency placements, or lack of any significant history of residency placements of student into US residencies, some of those places are probably not providing a very good education. Some of them are basically just diploma mills. I think some US hospitals are definitely familiar with some foreign schools (i.e. ones in India and Pakistan, etc.) particularly if they have taken students from there in the past, and will respect your degree if they have had good experiences in the past with students from your school.

 

[howelljolly]

What DF99 said.

But, if the choice is between staying were you are, vs. dropping out and going to a Carib med school, for the sole purpose of getting US clincal experience (USCE) as a med student, do not do that. You have the same opportunity to gain USCE at Manipal, as you would in a Caribbean school.

Really, the only way you could be in a better position for gaining a good residency is to drop out, take the MCAT, and get into a US school.

I'd caution you about what USCE you want to obtain. Though USCE is a good thing, it is very heavily scrutinized... and you may end up shooting yourself in the foot by obtaining it. I would consider doing your Cores in the US, and your electives back in Manipal.

 

[BlondeDocteur]

Isn't Manipal a sort of Mothership for Non-Resident Indians returning to get professional degrees? The medical course seems 100% geared towards practice outside of India-- they stress USMLE prep and grant an MD, which isn't even recognized in India! With all that in place, I would think they'd make arrangements for US electives to get their grads into residency, no?

 

[flumazenil]

pretty sure an MD is recognized in india..the MBBS is the bare minimum you get after completing medical school...in india you can do further training and they grant an MD but most do not opt to get it...

 

[howelljolly]

pretty sure an MD is recognized in india..the MBBS is the bare minimum you get after completing medical school...in india you can do further training and they grant an MD but most do not opt to get it...

Nah, she's about right...

Fairly recently there was a problem with Manipal's accreditation in India.

And, the MD granted by Manipal is not recognized as an MD in India, only as an MBBS. Im sure you can get a license to practice, maybe as though you were an IMG over there. 😛 The MD in India is a 3 to 5 year long basic science research doctorate that they can go for after their MBBS and residency. I had a professor who had trained in India, and had no problem with reminding me that his MD is better than my MD.

 

[swoops49]

First of all thank you all for your prompt reply. But mostly for you such informative reply. Yeah I guess it not wise for me to leave but I was just really nervous after finding out how important an externship is. Because USMLE score are something I have complete control over. Just how i study and how much I work at it. But an US clinical seem more based on contacts, school affliations, etc. Manipal is geared towards internationals in their KMCIC program but I am doing the MBBS because I feel it will help me be a better doctor. And as for accredition they here are saying the case is cleared and they have it now and so is the MCI website. But im waiting on the IMED to update their website before I relax on that point. Just still a bit nervous about the clinicals. But again thank you so much for your prompt and extremely helpful replies. Helps me atleast feel a bit more in control.

 

[Tipton]

"Graduation Years" has been updated for KMC on IMED: 1953-current.

A few months ago it was 1953-2008.