Not really but really International student question

[trinitee22]

I plan on applying to Medical school this year fir admissions in Fall 2009 and I'm taking the MCATs in a couple weeks (good lord, it's so close...). I've already secured a number of recommendations etc and pretty much have gotten the ball rolling on the application process.

My concern is that I am not a US citizen I tried to become a permanent resident and it fell through. I came to the US after completing secondary school (high school) and graduated from college in 3 years. I've spent the last two of years working in a lab at one of the top 10 medical institutions and seeing all the medical students/doctors around me motivates me even more to want to finally start my own medical education. I know that a lot of schools do not even consider international students (which sucks) and others may accept a small number of them but they may not be eligible for financial aid. I know it works out for some people since my best friend was accepted and received aid from Yale.

Does anyone have any advice or any resources I could maybe check out because the more research I do the more I sort of get disheartened at how slim my chances may be although save for the whole not being a US citizen part, I think I'll be a pretty competitive candidate or at the very least have as good a shot as the next person.

Any and all advice is appreciated.

Thanks!

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[Gpan]

I plan on applying to Medical school this year fir admissions in Fall 2009 and I'm taking the MCATs in a couple weeks (good lord, it's so close...). I've already secured a number of recommendations etc and pretty much have gotten the ball rolling on the application process.

My concern is that I am not a US citizen I tried to become a permanent resident and it fell through. I came to the US after completing secondary school (high school) and graduated from college in 3 years. I've spent the last two of years working in a lab at one of the top 10 medical institutions and seeing all the medical students/doctors around me motivates me even more to want to finally start my own medical education. I know that a lot of schools do not even consider international students (which sucks) and others may accept a small number of them but they may not be eligible for financial aid. I know it works out for some people since my best friend was accepted and received aid from Yale.

Does anyone have any advice or any resources I could maybe check out because the more research I do the more I sort of get disheartened at how slim my chances may be although save for the whole not being a US citizen part, I think I'll be a pretty competitive candidate or at the very least have as good a shot as the next person.

Any and all advice is appreciated.

Thanks!

So you've been in this country for at least 5 years. Why not apply for citizenship? It opens a lot of doors.

 

[175961]

So you've been in this country for at least 5 years. Why not apply for citizenship? It opens a lot of doors.

Applying for citizenship is probably the best thing to do, it might take awhile to get from start to finish though. Maybe you can get married to an American citizen in the mean time, I think that helps and/or speeds up the process

 

[trinitee22]

So you've been in this country for at least 5 years. Why not apply for citizenship? It opens a lot of doors.

This year will be 6 years since I've been here but the law is such that the only way you can become a permanent resident is through marriage or your employer. My employer last year tried to start that process but unfortunately it fell through. Either way getting the green card takes on average about 2 years and I don't know if I want to wait so long to try to get something I'm not even guaranteed to get at the end of the day. That's why I've decided to "roll the dice" as it were and see how it turns out this time around. No question about it, becoming a permanent resident will make my life and med school application process SO MUCH EASIER but it seems to be eluding me right now

 

[trinitee22]

Applying for citizenship is probably the best thing to do, it might take awhile to get from start to finish though. Maybe you can get married to an American citizen in the mean time, I think that helps and/or speeds up the process

Good advice, but trust me it sounds easier than it really is. Don't get me wrong, I love my bf but am in no hurry to get married to #1 stay in the US and #2 to make it easier to get into medical school.....Wait a minute...let me rethink that... LOL

 

[trinitee22]

bump

 

[scarletgirl777]

bump

There is a green card lottery though, you could try that...you might want to consider applying to medical schools in other countries and obviously you will have to apply to as many schools as possible, espeically if you don't have off-the-chart stats.

 

[Blade28]

Have you looked at the MSAR/med schools' websites to see which programs accept non-citizens/permanent residents?

 

[MDpride]

All schools treat PERMANENT RESIDENT and CITIZEN equally.

I am Permanent Resident and applied to any schools I'd like to.

 

[plauto]

Have you looked at the MSAR/med schools' websites to see which programs accept non-citizens/permanent residents?

noncitizen is not the same as permanent resident. Permanent res is the same as US citizen when it comes to med school admissions and loans. I think the OP would "give a kidney" at the moment to have a green card (be a permanent resident)

 

[Blade28]

noncitizen is not the same as permanent resident. Permanent res is the same as US citizen when it comes to med school admissions and loans. I think the OP would "give a kidney" at the moment to have a green card (be a permanent resident)

No I know. That's why I was asking about either non-citizens or non-permanent residents.

 

[justapremed]

I was in exactly the same boat as you until I got my permanent residency 2 months ago, I got lucky... I'm not sure about your financial situation, but from what I've read before, I think that if you can prove them that you can pay for all years of medical school without financial aid (really rich) and have an amazing, amazing application, you will probably make it... to those schools that do accept international applicants. I think as an international applicant, an average or a simply above-average application won't do... or the fact that you can't show them flat out that you're capable of paying for all of your med school expenses... though, anyone, correct me if I'm wrong.

I know it's really disheartening but I think the only reason I stayed on this pre-med path was because my plans for getting a green card didn't quite fall through, it just took an extremely long time, so I still had a shot at being a permanent resident at the time of applying...

I guess it's entirely up to you though, since you already have everything ready to go and have done all the work!

 

[Tropicana]

Getting into med school as an international is harder but not impossible. The bigger issue is financing your education. As others have said, you will have to demonstrate an ability to pay for 4 years of med school which very few are able to do. But the MSAR does give you info on which schools accept internationals. I was in your position 10 years ago - I applied, interviewed at several schools, got waitlisted and eventually declined. The bottom line is that even for schools that accept internationals, preference will be given to perm residents and us citizens. So I went back to school, got an MPH and about 5 years later, got my greencard through my job. I decided to reapply to med school and got in. Realistically, you may want to focus on getting perm res. I know how hard it is but typically, you need a masters degree to increase your chances of your app being approved - so if you don't have a masters, you may want to go back to school. Other options you mentioned should also be considered. Depends how badly you want it...

 

[plauto]

Another thing you can do is to get a job in a field where there is a shortage of manpower....nursing or teaching for instance. Then while you make some money you'll also be working towards the green card. I'd talk to a good immigration attorney and find out how to improve your chances to get permanent residency thru a job. I know how upsetting it is though. Good luck!

 

[trinitee22]

Thanks to everyone for their comments/advice. It really is disheartening because I think, all things considered, if I were a permanent resident I'd be a pretty competitive applicant. Not that I am not without it, I guess because I'm international it's sufficient grounds to throw my application into the "reject" pile

I had tried to get my green card through my job last year and went to an immigration attorney and everything was ready to go, but then, the medical institution that I work at had this policy that they'd only apply for the green card if I were an MD or PhD. Um Hello!!! that's what I'm trying to do! Such a vicious cycle... The field I currently work in has a serious shortage of people so the immigration lawyer told me that I could most definitely get a green card, but I can't get one if my employer has that policy of theirs. I even considered changing jobs to try to get a visa but the time it would take to start over and convince the new employer to sponsor me would take forever.

So basically I had to decide which one was more important to me right now, becoming a permanent resident or pursuing my dream and applying to med school. I may be a bit of an idealist but I figured I go for it this year and see what happens if I apply as an International student and if I'm successful, it was mean to be. I really don't want to consider the alternative right now, so I'm rolling the dice and taking a chance this cycle. The immigration process is really soooooo draining and difficult for people trying to do it the legitimate way.

I also realised last week that the med school in the state I live doesn't even interview, let alone accept internationals, although I've lived here and paid taxes for almost six years

Sigh....it's so stressful but I know I have to try to stay positive and that something hopefully will work out somehow.