need advice on options for med school

[chicagoml]

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Hi....here with a request that is similar to many others. I've gotten tons of info from this website - thanks to posters with so much info, etc.

(I know this probably belongs in the UK/Ireland thread also - I'll put it there.)

A little background - I am a 30-year old full-time worker and graduate student. Did the 4-year undergrad thing and never thought I was up for doing medicine. My undergrad GPA is not so hot - about a 2.7 from Vanderbilt....lots of reasons for that.
I currently work in healthcare - I'm in health info management. Also, I'm about to finish my MBA with a 4.0 GPA, which is good. That will end in December. The MBA course has been a little over 2 years, so I'm able to juggle school and work. I just started a health info mgmt course - it's online, and a lot of work. However, I'm managing....again, able to handle a lot of "non-fun" activities in life (i.e. not socializing a huge amount).
I've been researching my options for getting into medical school. The 3 I've come up with are:

1. take science classes on my own time - I need to take at least 8 of them. I figure that's 4 quarters of academic work. I could start in January 2006. From there, I'll figure out MCAT classes, the timing of the exam (April '07 earliest), applications, etc.

Pros: I can continue to work and pay for school as I go (and have employer pay for some of it)
Cons: time; potential disorganization of taking one or two classes at a time; not having the "right" people to write letters of recommendation when the time comes

2. apply to a post-bacc course. Earliest entry would be Jan 2006. Take the MCAT in April or August '07.

Pros: structure; being part of a group moving toward the same goal
Cons: expense; might have to cut back on hours worked

3. medical school in Ireland. I could potentially apply for a fall '06 start.

Pros: might not have to take MCAT, can start earlier
Cons: all the obvious ones - being a foreign medical graduate, trying to secure a residency in the U.S., far from "home" (ironic, since I was born in Ireland and spent my first 11 years there).

I know that I can apply for the fall '06 Ireland round of admissions - I took biology and physics in college, but would definitely want to take those classes again in order to come out with a better grade. It looks like I fit the rest of the requirements for the Atlantic Bridge Program.
Any thoughts on this? Suggestions? Advice?
Thanks!

 

[njbmd]

Hi there,
You might want to look into the post bacc option over here. You are probably a good candidate for a post bacc with linkage since you have taken very few of the pre-med courses and are essentially a non-science major. This might take one to two years but you would be guaranteed a seat in a medical school.

Your option of going overseas is a good one except for the facts that you mentioned. It is a little easier for graduates UK and Ireland (Royal Colleges not offshore schools located in UK) to secure residencies in the US but you would be facing the up-hill battle of being a FMG. If you elect to remain in Ireland, then this is the option to take.

You could take your remaining pre-med courses on your own; do well, take the MCAT and apply here but it might take you up to two years to complete your coursework depending on your schedule.

Good luck!
njbmd 🙂

 

[AusMeds]

chicagoml,

I have the EXACT same background as you - uncompetitive undergrad and competitive grad degree - both non-science. I'm currently studying med in Australia having chosen a variation of your option 3 (substituting Oz for Ireland).

My advice would be to think of the admissions process as a lottery and the more tickets you have - the better your chances. So pursue ALL your options (and perhaps a couple of others) until one of them gets you a guaranteed offer of admission.

As for becoming an FMG, this is a path that one needs to consider very carefully with a full understanding of the increased risk vs. studying at home. It's not for everyone. For example, if a competitive specialty like surgery is your goal, it will be much much tougher as an FMG; however, if less competitive specialties like family practice are your aim then becoming an FMG in Ireland or Oz are very valid options. Note also that many people think they want to do something like family practice before starting med school - then change their minds part way through when exposed to other disciplines. When one becomes an FMG, one has less flexibility to change their mind.

I chose Oz when I was accepted because family practice is where I want to be and it would have taken me another 2 - 3 years (while working full-time) to get all my pre-reqs to apply in the U.S. So, even if it takes me an extra year to get the FP residency I want and to get back home, I'm still ahead.

There are two other options to add to your list. One is to look at Australia as the programs here are 4 years instead of the 5 or 6 in Ireland which represents a significant savings in tuition and living. The second option is to look at one of the top Carribean schools given that their programs are designed to get people through the USMLE's and into U.S. residencies. There are different sets of pros and cons with each of these - but they are two additional valid options.

Good luck!

 

[Unch]

As a Canadian/American dual citizen studying med in Ireland, I can add that the prospects are only going to improve over the next 4-6 years it takes you to get to a residency. I know in Canada there is such a chronic shortage of FMs and GPs that the whole IMG stigma is decreasing by the year. The same, roughly speaking, can be said about the US. And the first IMG countries to be well-considered are the Commonwealth countries. In Canada anyway, UK, Ireland and Oz are considered to be equivalent degrees while other countries are still slightly more stigmatized. If you're focused on specialties, i can't really say because it's all so variable.