Interested in studying Medicine in Europe

[Dr.One]

Does anyone know how hard it is to get into European medical school (except England)? I have a BS degree from America in a non-science field, and Im taking an Access to Medicine course in England this year that covers all the chemistry, bio, and physics that you would need in med school. I was told by somebody at the University of Jena in Germany I could study there as long as I learn German. But I would also go to Holland, Italy, Spain, not Poland though.

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[brightblueeyes]

Does anyone know how hard it is to get into European medical school (except England)? I have a BS degree from America in a non-science field, and Im taking an Access to Medicine course in England this year that covers all the chemistry, bio, and physics that you would need in med school. I was told by somebody at the University of Jena in Germany I could study there as long as I learn German. But I would also go to Holland, Italy, Spain, not Poland though.

Do you speak any European languages apart from English? You would need to speak Dutch to go to a Dutch or a Flemish Belgian med school. Similarly, you would need Spanish for a Spanish med school and Italian for an Italian med school. As far as I know, there are no exceptions.

On the off chance that you really like the Netherlands, Dutch isn't an especially difficult language for an anglophone to learn. Some Dutch sounds take some getting used to but Dutch grammar is easier than German grammar.

 

[med_heidelberg]

Hi,

well in terms of getting in, you have to take a language exam, and these are pretty difficult. A few semesters of german or what not doesnt really cut it. You have to be fluent, i.e. lived in the country for some time. The exam is pretty long, it is all day and quite exhausting. I did score well on the DaF without studying (was in grad school and had no time to) but I have been told I have a gift for foreign language. I wouldnt recommend studying in a foreign language unless you really know the language well, because medicine is tough as it is without the added complication.

In the German universities, it is actually more difficult to get a spot as a foreigner than it is at an American med school. The acceptance rates are around 5% or less. They receive tons of applications from students all over the world, so you have to compete on a pretty high level. They also dont have many spots for foreigners, some schools have just 10 or so; my school has 25. I have heard good things about Jena though, they supposedly have great facilities.

There are of course advantages to studying in Europe (its Europe! most Americans come here for vacation and you get to live here), very little or no tuition, and excellent training, but the language issue definitely makes it harder. If you can get into a US school, that would be a lot easier in the long run.

 

[Dr.One]

Well, I am a British citizen, but I lived in America for most of my life - however, I have no greencard or anything so I can't really return there very easily. I am having a very hard time getting my American qualifications recognized in England. Ive called EVERYONE and nobody even cares. Also, they want to see GCSE's which I havent taken. apparently because i am british i have to apply through ZVS or something. I studied German when I was young, and I also was practicing it a lot in America. I thought about going there to take an intensive 9 month long course to bring me up to testdaf standard. how do you like heidelberg? is it very beautiful and fun there?

 

[tlew12778]

You can get a UK passport from the Embassy in DC.

With an EU passport, you do not need a visa for any EU country.

No EU school will care about your BA or BS. Med school in Europe is a combined BS/MD so you would be starting all over again. There is no post-bac here.

Where will you want to practice ultimately? If you plan to return to the US to practice, you should seriously consider the US or the Caribbean as you will be prepared to take the USMLE. The European med schools do not prepare you for it. You would also be applying to residency programs in the US (presumably) as an FMG.

 

[Dr.One]

I think I would rather practice in Europe, rather than America. It all depends on what happens in the world between now, and 5/6 years from now. Its a crazy place these days. If no schools care about my degree, what qualifications will they look at when I apply?

 

[med_heidelberg]

it isnt true per se that European schools dont care about your degree. Heidelberg for example does care and recently implemented new admission standards to give weight to applicants who have completed another degree or certification, especially one that is relevant to the field of medicine (biology, EMT training, etc).

They look at your GPA as the main factor. If you did an Abitur or the equivalent (like an International Baccalaureate Diploma) that is the main thing, but if you have a university degree, I believe they factor that GPA in as well. Starting next year there is a Medizinertest given in Baden-Württemburg, I think now its still optional but it will soon be required for med school admissions in this state. It is supposed to be an intelligence test . I dont really have any information on it, but a Google search may help you learn more. If you are applying next year, its possible you will have to take this exam .. even if you are foreign. Not 100% sure though.

To answer your other question, Heidelberg is certainly a beautiful city, but the stress of med school makes you oblivious to that most of the time. But living in an aesthetic place is definitely nice.

I thnk you can get sample TestDaFs online somewhere. I would suggest you practice those and see how do you do. If you have had german before and have been fluent at some point, its possible you dont really need 9 months to prepare.

European schools do not prepare for the USMLE per se but the curriculum is quite rigorous and the students that do take the USMLE tend to score very well. We learn some things here in more detail than is covered in US med schools, like anatomy and biochemistry.

 

[ALUMed]

I would agree with Med_Heidelberg, German medical students tend to score very well on the USMLE, so that should not be much of a problem. I know a bunch of foreign students here in Freiburg who came to Germany without being fluent in German. After taking their Sprachkurse they did quite well on their language exams and are studying very successfully now...so the language barrier shouldn't be too much of a hurdle for you.
If you consider studying Medicine in continental Europe, I would recommend Germany, the Netherlands, or maybe France. Coming from the US, I can speak highly of the medical education here in Germany. From a fellow student who transferred to the Netherlands I have heard, that medical schools there are very good as well, and the same goes for France. The east German medical schools (e.g. Dresden, Leipsic, Jena) often have very nice facilities, as many were modernized after reunification, though the big names are naturally a safe bet for an excellent education (Heidelberg, Freiburg, Tuebingen, Munich, Berlin). Good luck in any case!!

 

[tlew12778]

They might take your GPA into consideration but they'll still make you do the combined BA/MD since it's a joint degree in Europe. It's not like the US where you can do a post-bac program (if you didn't do the basic requirements in undergrad) then regular med school.

It is my understanding that you cannot practice in France if you are not a French citizen. However, a French degree is valid in the entire EU and I think the US recognises the French residency.

They will look at your HS transcripts, I am sure they will look at any undergrad transcripts, plus your entrance exam and interview if they do the latter. When I said they don't care about your undergrad, I meant that you would still have to do the standard 6 years.

 

[med_heidelberg]

You can also get some courses waived if you have already completed them in the US or elsewhere. The process takes awhile and is a great example of German bureaucracy, but it is possible. Its called "Anerkennung von Vorstudienleistungen".

You can either send your transcripts directly to the Landesprüfungsamt for review or you can contact the professors at your university in Germany directly and get them to write a Schein for you. They will then review your transcript and syllabi and decide if they are going to give it to you or not. Then you send those Scheine to the Landesprüfungsamt for recognition. I did this and didnt have to take biology, chem, biochem, physics, genetics, and an elective. That knocked off an entire semester and 1 summer for me. Also I had a lighter load in some of the semesters. I had no problems with getting the Scheine from the profs, but I have heard of others that had issues, probably because they came from less well known universities in the US.

You still have to take those subjects on the first board exam, but not having to sit through those courses is a definite plus. It is often the case that the semester exams at the respective universities are more difficult than the board exam itself.

 

[Dr.One]

how are you all finding germany in general? i have lived in america for most of my life, but now i live in a bad area of england. i have to admit - its rather depressing here. people are generally quite rude and grumpy and the weather is grim.

 

[116408]

i live in a bad area of england. i have to admit - its rather depressing here. people are generally quite rude and grumpy and the weather is grim.

Ah, but i also know couple of places in the states that are the pits..

But hey, i wouldn't complain if i could do my residency at Stanford..

 

[med_heidelberg]

Well its germany, so the weather is bad and the people arent as friendly as Americans, but once you get used to the differences, its not a bad place to be at all. People just take longer to warm up.