Medical school transfer

[prettylittlebird]

My SO just matched at a residency in a different state and I'm considering transferring so we don't have to do four years apart (I'm an M1 and he is doing a 4 year residency). We've been together for three years and I hate the idea of doing long-distance (I mean, I'll do it if I have to obviously but I feel like I have to look into alternatives). I've looked on the forums and found very little about transfers and was hoping to hear from anyone who has successfully done so and would like to share their experience. I've already spoken with my Dean about it and would have the support of my school. Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated!

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[Rekt]

My SO just matched at a residency in a different state and I'm considering transferring so we don't have to do four years apart (I'm an M1 and he is doing a 4 year residency). We've been together for three years and I hate the idea of doing long-distance (I mean, I'll do it if I have to obviously but I feel like I have to look into alternatives). I've looked on the forums and found very little about transfers and was hoping to hear from anyone who has successfully done so and would like to share their experience. I've already spoken with my Dean about it and would have the support of my school. Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated!

Well you won't be able to transfer until after your Step 1 anyway. So at least a year from now. After that, it's nearly impossible and you have to have an extremely compelling reason why. Even then, some schools just outright do not accept transfers. That's why you don't hear much about it.

 

[prettylittlebird]

Thanks for your response. I would only be applying to one institution that I know accepts transfers and has a clearly outlined process. I'll be taking Step 1 in February so I am trying to plan ahead because I like to be prepared. I'm mostly curious about the types of students that achieve a successful transfer and what their reasons were etc. because it will also inform how I do things over the next year (especially this summer).

 

[Moose A Moose]

I'd say your chances of this happening increase dramatically if you two are engaged or married.

 

[prettylittlebird]

@Moose A Moose I think you're right but it's pretty sad that's the case. It seems really wrong that my relationship would be considered less "real" by an admissions committee simply because it isn't conventionally recognized as committed enough. I also am not sure how dramatically my chances would increase based on a detail like this but then again I place very little emphasis on titles and I understand that there are others who are definitely the opposite.

 

[Moose A Moose]

@Moose A Moose I think you're right but it's pretty sad that's the case. It seems really wrong that my relationship would be considered less "real" by an admissions committee simply because it isn't conventionally recognized as committed enough. I also am not sure how dramatically my chances would increase based on a detail like this but then again I place very little emphasis on titles and I understand that there are others who are definitely the opposite.

True, true. I hear you.

... but keep in mind: it's not conventional to transfer medical schools either.

 

[avgn]

Just remember to say that you're engaged. Your question is one best directed at the school you're planning on transferring into. Usually people are willing to tell you the truth about your situation in these cases.

 

[prettylittlebird]

Haha thanks for the tip @avgn that's probably a really good idea. I am planning on talking with the dean of students at the school I'm planning on transferring into but it's always helpful to hear from people who have been through the process already!!

 

[cbrons]

I'd say your chances of this happening increase dramatically if you two are engaged or married.

Thanks for your response. I would only be applying to one institution that I know accepts transfers and has a clearly outlined process. I'll be taking Step 1 in February so I am trying to plan ahead because I like to be prepared. I'm mostly curious about the types of students that achieve a successful transfer and what their reasons were etc. because it will also inform how I do things over the next year (especially this summer).

You would have to be married for it to even be considered and even then its a long shot.

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[cbrons]

@Moose A Moose I think you're right but it's pretty sad that's the case. It seems really wrong that my relationship would be considered less "real" by an admissions committee simply because it isn't conventionally recognized as committed enough. I also am not sure how dramatically my chances would increase based on a detail like this but then again I place very little emphasis on titles and I understand that there are others who are definitely the opposite.

Theyre not going to let anyone who is just dating someone switch schools. If your married, you have a legal tie to that person. Otherwise kids would be asking to move all of the time to be next to their S.O.

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[xffan624]

I knew someone who was trying to transfer schools after taking her step 1 to be with her husband who was active duty military and she had just had her first baby and needed support with childcare while he was deployed, plus she wanted to be closer to where he was stationed. Pretty legit reason right? The result: She ended up taking an LOA our MS3 year and is now starting MS3 down at the school she was trying to transfer from. It does not happen very often.

 

[SouthernSurgeon]

This is one of those things where SDN tends to be unnecessarily extreme.

There are schools that take transfers. Mine did. Family and spouse reasons were the main cause of said transfers. That said, it was only after m2 year.

OP has already given us the most important info - their own school seems supportive and the school in question has a clear process.

not much else to do then except go for it and find out

 

[kavorca]

A person in my class transferred in after 2nd year to be with his wife who was already in my class.

 

[doctorplatelet]

i wonder if also the quality of your application counts... if you totally kill step 1 , have glowing grades and generally fantastic reviews... schools are going to want you.. .. if you flunk courses, get average reviews.. then the said school whatever the policy may not want to take you.. ?

 

[prettylittlebird]

Thanks for all the feedback everyone! @cbrons, not sure why you seem so adamant about your opinion especially since I've heard several stories from people who switched schools to be near an SO who was not a spouse. I'm curious if you're just a naysayer or if you have a friend in admissions who has shared this information with you. @doctorplatelet that's something I'm curious about as well since my school is P/F. There is also Marginal Pass but that doesn't go on your transcript and I haven't had any MPs anyway. I guess I'm not sure how they'd compare your application with someone who goes to an ABCD school. That said, I already know my recommendations from school would be excellent and if Step 1 correlates with the MCAT and my grades then I'm not too concerned about that in particular.

 

[prettylittlebird]

Theyre not going to let anyone who is just dating someone switch schools. If your married, you have a legal tie to that person. Otherwise kids would be asking to move all of the time to be next to their S.O.

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Having a piece of paper saying you're committed to each other for life frankly means very little irl and not having that paper shouldn't preclude you from transferring, that's just ridiculous. It's not like they sit around and after hearing that you want to transfer for an SO they're like oh man that's not a good enough reason cuz they're not married. My understanding of how the process works is that (at least at the school where I am looking to transfer) they will consider your application based on how many spaces they have open and you are considered a more likely candidate for a spot if you have a compelling reason (which includes having a loved one nearby).

 

[kavorca]

I think what the "little piece of paper" gives you is the likelihood of a favor. They may open the spot for you rather than you having to hope for there to be a spot available and that the merits of your application warrant admission.

 

[togaedere]

I sincerely hope that your transfer hopes work out and that your plan is successful. There are many, many people who do not share your view of marriage, however. It's not outside the realm of possibility that not being married may be the reason it doesn't work out -- it just isn't "compelling" enough of a relationship to deem a transfer warranted. I don't know who makes the final decision nor do I know what they are like, but I would bet they have a more traditional view. If so, they absolutely would privilege a person who is trying to transfer to be closer to a spouse, rather than an unmarried significant other. If so, that sucks, it's not fair, etc, but there's a cultural sanction to marriage that carries more weight for a lot of folks. Certainly, even if you do not agree with this view, you can understand that a large amount of people do feel this way?

Having a piece of paper saying you're committed to each other for life frankly means very little irl and not having that paper shouldn't preclude you from transferring, that's just ridiculous. It's not like they sit around and after hearing that you want to transfer for an SO they're like oh man that's not a good enough reason cuz they're not married. My understanding of how the process works is that (at least at the school where I am looking to transfer) they will consider your application based on how many spaces they have open and you are considered a more likely candidate for a spot if you have a compelling reason (which includes having a loved one nearby).

 

[prettylittlebird]

@kavorca that's not how it works (they can only offer as many spaces as have been left open by students taking a leave of absence, research year etc, I've already spoken with an administrator about this) but you and @togaedere are definitely right in that many people feel that marriage carries a lot more weight due to cultural beliefs that are (I tend to think) very widespread. I don't agree with it but I 100% understand it of course. My argument previously was that NOT being married wouldn't kick you off the consideration list as an earlier poster was implying but it would put you lower down than an applicant trying to transfer to be with a spouse.

 

[Shjanzey]

My SO just matched at a residency in a different state and I'm considering transferring so we don't have to do four years apart (I'm an M1 and he is doing a 4 year residency). We've been together for three years and I hate the idea of doing long-distance (I mean, I'll do it if I have to obviously but I feel like I have to look into alternatives). I've looked on the forums and found very little about transfers and was hoping to hear from anyone who has successfully done so and would like to share their experience. I've already spoken with my Dean about it and would have the support of my school. Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated!

I am not sure how much of a chance you would have being that you aren't married/engaged, however I am transferring so I will offer you some advice.

1) Speak to the Dean of the school you want to attend immediately. Outline why you want to transfer, ask for their policies etc. You need to do this now, because just like med school there are deadlines and it generally coincides with the pre-med cycle. As an added touch, when you fly in to see your SO you may want to schedule an in-person visit to the Dean as well.
2) It may help to establish domicile w/your SO in their new state. Not sure how to do this while you are in school, but I imagine over summer break would be a good opportunity which leads to my next point.
3) If you can, try to do research at the institution you are interested in. I did that, and while I don't know if it helped my case, it certainly didn't hurt it. I was also able to drop by the Deans office several times to remind him who I was and seek further advice. I tried to network and get to know people and make sure they were familiar with my face.
4) Be prepared to submit your entire med school application again. It really sucks, but the good thing is that most of it is already on file in AMCAS. You will also have to write an essay explaining why you want to transfer etc.
5) Expect to be driving the communication. I can't count the number of times someone said they would get back to me and if I would have waited I would have never heard back. Usually once a week I would send a reminder or update if I was expecting something from them.

Med schools don't like to take transfers so it has to be an exceptional circumstance. I know some people have mentioned that marriage/engagement would help your case and I agree. I would bring that up with the Dean when you speak with him. You don't wan to leave anything up to ambiguity. Also ask him what his opinion is on your particular case. The Dean at my new institution was very straightforward about this and it really made a big impact on whether I would even invest the time to even try for a transfer.

Good luck, PM me if you have questions.

 

[cbrons]

Having a piece of paper saying you're committed to each other for life frankly means very little irl and not having that paper shouldn't preclude you from transferring

There are legal obligations that come with marriage... but I can see you are very emotional on this subject and not open to hearing anything but reasons why your plan will be successful. Good luck either way...

 

[prettylittlebird]

There are legal obligations that come with marriage... but I can see you are very emotional on this subject and not open to hearing anything but reasons why your plan will be successful. Good luck either way...

No need to be condescending when called out on being negative dude and definitely not only looking for reasons as to why my plan will be successful but as you have nothing helpful to add (still waiting to hear on if you've had first hand experience with any of this, since that would legitimize your stance) I'd appreciate it if you didn't patronize.

 

[prettylittlebird]

I am not sure how much of a chance you would have being that you aren't married/engaged, however I am transferring so I will offer you some advice.

1) Speak to the Dean of the school you want to attend immediately. Outline why you want to transfer, ask for their policies etc. You need to do this now, because just like med school there are deadlines and it generally coincides with the pre-med cycle. As an added touch, when you fly in to see your SO you may want to schedule an in-person visit to the Dean as well.
2) It may help to establish domicile w/your SO in their new state. Not sure how to do this while you are in school, but I imagine over summer break would be a good opportunity which leads to my next point.
3) If you can, try to do research at the institution you are interested in. I did that, and while I don't know if it helped my case, it certainly didn't hurt it. I was also able to drop by the Deans office several times to remind him who I was and seek further advice. I tried to network and get to know people and make sure they were familiar with my face.
4) Be prepared to submit your entire med school application again. It really sucks, but the good thing is that most of it is already on file in AMCAS. You will also have to write an essay explaining why you want to transfer etc.
5) Expect to be driving the communication. I can't count the number of times someone said they would get back to me and if I would have waited I would have never heard back. Usually once a week I would send a reminder or update if I was expecting something from them.

Med schools don't like to take transfers so it has to be an exceptional circumstance. I know some people have mentioned that marriage/engagement would help your case and I agree. I would bring that up with the Dean when you speak with him. You don't wan to leave anything up to ambiguity. Also ask him what his opinion is on your particular case. The Dean at my new institution was very straightforward about this and it really made a big impact on whether I would even invest the time to even try for a transfer.

Good luck, PM me if you have questions.

Thank you SO much. This is incredibly helpful and I really appreciate you taking the time to write everything out. I definitely understand and appreciate the argument that having a more "legitimate" union would be more convincing (my only point previously is that it's unfortunate!). Regarding the research point, I actually worked at this school prior to entering medical school and still have contacts from that time but would you still recommend finding a way to do additional research there? My SO is also very good friends with one of the Deans and she is planning on writing to the Dean of Students on my behalf to get us in touch so I feel pretty well covered on the networking front (his residency program is also affiliated with this school which we're hoping will help).

Thanks again for the advice, I'll definitely get in touch sooner rather than later as it sounds like early preparation is key.

 

[avgn]

There are legal obligations that come with marriage... but I can see you are very emotional on this subject and not open to hearing anything but reasons why your plan will be successful. Good luck either way...

Lol wtf is wrong with you

 

[mehc012]

Lol wtf is wrong with you

Right? I mean,that's just...not even how OP is acting. At all.

OP, for what it's worth (which is admittedly approximately 0.0000001 cent), I not only agree with you on the marriage thing, but wish you the best of luck with your transfer app!

 

[prettylittlebird]

Thanks @avgn and @mehc012

 

[Shjanzey]

Thank you SO much. This is incredibly helpful and I really appreciate you taking the time to write everything out. I definitely understand and appreciate the argument that having a more "legitimate" union would be more convincing (my only point previously is that it's unfortunate!). Regarding the research point, I actually worked at this school prior to entering medical school and still have contacts from that time but would you still recommend finding a way to do additional research there? My SO is also very good friends with one of the Deans and she is planning on writing to the Dean of Students on my behalf to get us in touch so I feel pretty well covered on the networking front (his residency program is also affiliated with this school which we're hoping will help).

Thanks again for the advice, I'll definitely get in touch sooner rather than later as it sounds like early preparation is key.

Sounds like you are in a good place. I would still advise to do research. There will be a committee who will review whether or not to accept you. One thing they look for is ties to the community, interest in the institution, your academic performance, etc. I didn't even want to do research, but it was all a calculated plan to make myself more appealing when the time to transfer came around. Having an abstract and poster with their institutions name on it always looks nice.

Of course everything I have just said is predicated on your discussion with the dean. If they say that there is no chance in hell, it just isn't worth the effort.

 

[prettylittlebird]

Sounds like you are in a good place. I would still advise to do research. There will be a committee who will review whether or not to accept you. One thing they look for is ties to the community, interest in the institution, your academic performance, etc. I didn't even want to do research, but it was all a calculated plan to make myself more appealing when the time to transfer came around. Having an abstract and poster with their institutions name on it always looks nice.

Of course everything I have just said is predicated on your discussion with the dean. If they say that there is no chance in hell, it just isn't worth the effort.

Makes sense to me and yes, I'm planning on speaking with the dean before the end of the month. I also got in touch with a now-resident who transferred into the school in between 2nd and 3rd year to be near his girlfriend and he said the dean is really great and was very responsive when he was trying to arrange a transfer so I'm hoping I can get an honest answer as to whether or not its worth pursuing this at all.

 

[Dreamer1]

Makes sense to me and yes, I'm planning on speaking with the dean before the end of the month. I also got in touch with a now-resident who transferred into the school in between 2nd and 3rd year to be near his girlfriend and he said the dean is really great and was very responsive when he was trying to arrange a transfer so I'm hoping I can get an honest answer as to whether or not its worth pursuing this at all.

Hi prettylittlebird--did you end up being able to transfer?

 

[ChrisMack390]

I know a student who did their first two years at Tufts and years 3-4 at Wayne State. It was due to a relationship though im not sure of that exact legal status of the relationship.

I have no real advice, but thought I'd mention this since you're about to be roasted by 36 SDNers, many of which likely don't know what they're talking about.

 

[Rekt]

I know a student who did their first two years at Tufts and years 3-4 at Wayne State. It was due to a relationship though im not sure of that exact legal status of the relationship.

I have no real advice, but thought I'd mention this since you're about to be roasted by 36 SDNers, many of which likely don't know what they're talking about.

Yes, because an N of 1 is of high statistical significance.

 

[ChrisMack390]

Yes, because an N of 1 is of high statistical significance.

Yes because I claimed that I did a study and was in the process if submitting it to JAMA.

 

[candbgirl]

Hi prettylittlebird--did you end up being able to transfer?

I don't think she has posted in a very long time.


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[prettylittlebird]

So I haven't been on SDN in forever and was surprised to find that people were actually curious about what ended up happening but since it seems like there is interest in updates I can share that I did not end up transferring because luckily my partner was able to transfer into a PGY2 spot at my current institution and things have been going beautifully! If anyone has questions about how THAT whole process works I'm happy to share because while there's certainly a dearth of information on med students transferring schools there is a desert of information on residents transferring so we kind of had to figure it out as we went along...

 

[polynexusmorph]

So I haven't been on SDN in forever and was surprised to find that people were actually curious about what ended up happening but since it seems like there is interest in updates I can share that I did not end up transferring because luckily my partner was able to transfer into a PGY2 spot at my current institution and things have been going beautifully! If anyone has questions about how THAT whole process works I'm happy to share because while there's certainly a dearth of information on med students transferring schools there is a desert of information on residents transferring so we kind of had to figure it out as we went along...

I'm trying to DM you regarding transfer but I'm not allowed to view your profile. I'm looking for your advice.
Thanks!

 

[wysdoc]

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