Question about Flinders

[Atlas]

Hi there. This message is directed towards any students or graduates of Flinders University in Austrailia. I've recently drawn an interest in the school as a potential back-up plan if the US route doesn't work out for me. I have a few questions I'd like answered. I visited their website and had a hard time finding the information I was looking for, so I'll post my questions here in hopes of an honest, accurate response.

1.)What are the general education requirements for the school? Are they the same as the US schools?
2.)'' Avg. GPAs/MCATs of ACCEPTED students
3.)'' Tution/Living costs?
4.)How do you pay for the plane trips back and forth? Out-of-pocket or loans?
5.)What is the entering class size for international students?
6.)Roughly, how many applications do they receive for every entering class?
7.)How many times a year does the school have an entering class?
8.)What are your personal opinions of the school/Austrailia?
9.)What kind of residency placements do graduates get in the US?

Thank you for your time

Atlas

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Atlas]

One more thing...how long is the program? Is it 4, 5, or 6 years in length? Do you do all of your rotations in Austrailian hospitals?

Thanks again

 

[Winged Scapula]

Originally posted by Atlas:
•Hi there. This message is directed towards any students or graduates of Flinders University in Austrailia. I've recently drawn an interest in the school as a potential back-up plan if the US route doesn't work out for me. I have a few questions I'd like answered. I visited their website and had a hard time finding the information I was looking for, so I'll post my questions here in hopes of an honest, accurate response.

1.)What are the general education requirements for the school? Are they the same as the US schools?
2.)'' Avg. GPAs/MCATs of ACCEPTED students
3.)'' Tution/Living costs?
4.)How do you pay for the plane trips back and forth? Out-of-pocket or loans?
5.)What is the entering class size for international students?
6.)Roughly, how many applications do they receive for every entering class?
7.)How many times a year does the school have an entering class?
8.)What are your personal opinions of the school/Austrailia?
9.)What kind of residency placements do graduates get in the US?

Thank you for your time

Atlas•

Hi Atlas,

As a recent graduate of Flinders I am happy to help you obtain information. However, because some of the questions you've asked required extensive answers which have been answered before, I shall refer you to:
http://network54.com/Hide/Forum/75738

as well as
http://www.studentdoctor.org/cgi-bin/ubbcgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=12&t=000078
http://www.studentdoctor.org/cgi-bin/ubbcgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=12&t=000253
http://www.studentdoctor.org/cgi-bin/ubbcgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=12&t=000342

On to your questions that I believe are not addressed elsewhere:

1) you are not required to take the typical US pre-med courses; however, you would be SERIOUSLY urged to do so. Nearly everyone who failed exams or failed a year were non-science majors and had not taken the pre-med courses. I am unaware of any Americans who had not done the typical US pre-med prep.

2) I do not know what it is currently. When I started it was about the same as for most US schools. They are getting more applications then ever, so these numbers may have increased (just as they have in the US).

3)Tuition is currently set at $30,000 AUD. With the exchange rate hovering around 53 cents, that would be about $17,000 USD/year. Living in Adelaide is extremely cheap. I have addressed this in other threads.

4)Trips back and forth to the US are paid for either through loans or out of your pocket. There is enough loan money available to finance some trips home. However, it is expensive and to be honest most of my classmates had parental help in addition to the loans - this allowed them to go home for every vacation, to buy cars, etc.

I paid for everything myself but was still able to afford at least 1 trip home per year just from loan monies. The total loan amount available is $33,500 USD ($18,500 - loan fees from Federal loans and $15,000 - loan fess from alternative sources).

5) Used to be 23 but I hear it has been raised. Another applicant told me 30 - since she is not an official source I cannot comment on whether that is correct.

6) 23-25 a few years ago; I suspect it is about the same or greater currently.

7) 1 entering class per year; starts in February and runs through November for the first 2 years. Starts in January for years 3 and 4. No alternative start dates allowed.

I've also addressed questions 8 & 9 extensively elsewhere. Residencies arrange from the expected primary care fields of Peds and IM to others of us in General Surgery, Ortho, and Radiology. To be honest, there just haven't been enough Americans going through to have a real clear picture. However, if you do well on the USMLE, get good LORS and grades, you will likely be very competitive for *most* fields. The students who matched into Ortho and Rads had lots of connections, research, etc. do it might require a fair bit of extra work.

Hope this helps. Please feel free to ask if you have any more queries.

 

[Winged Scapula]

Originally posted by Atlas:
•One more thing...how long is the program? Is it 4, 5, or 6 years in length? Do you do all of your rotations in Austrailian hospitals?

Thanks again•

It is a 4 year program. You may do up to 18-24 weeks of electives during your 4th year and if approved, you may do them in the US or elsewhere abroad. To be approved you must be in good academic standing and have permission from the curriculum advisors. All other years and rotations are done at hospitals in Australia, the vast majority at Flinders Med Centre (the university public hospital), Flinders Private and the Repatriation Hospital (the local VA).

Hope this helps.

 

[Nurse2Doc]

Kimberli~
I did read your post RE: spouse/student employment, and I have been in correspondence with Flinders, but perhaps you may be able to answer a couple of ?? for me
1)Would it have been feasible for you to work, even the visa limited 20 hours? I am a RN and have been begged, pleaded, and bribed to work in Austrailia as a traveling nurse, and am curious if there are provisions/exceptions made for nurses (there must be something if they are offering me 6 month travel assignments???). I am ignorant as to the visa/work/student process and the companies offering me the travel assignments may very well be less than forthright, so any info you may offer is duely appreciated. Also, our son is in middle school, and while we believe the experience would be wonderful for him, will his education (7th grade & beyond) be comparable to US schools (will he be able to transition back into mainstream US schools when it is time to come home?)
Thanks for your valuable time.

 

[Winged Scapula]

Hi...

I do not know the specifics of the traveling nurse program but do know that it was very popular for Irish nurses, for example, to come to Australia for a limited period of time. Most of these were in rural areas, so you must make sure obviously that you would be posted in Adelaide or its suburbs. I never met a traveling nurse working at Flinders or any of its allied facilities/hospitals, so suspect that you would be most likely posted to an outer suburb hospital (which can be anywhere from 25 min - 1 hour drive from Flinders and still be considered in Adelaide and its suburbs). You would obviously need a car if you are planning on doing that.

It is definitely feasible to work during the first 2 years; you are required to attend PBL and other sessions (ie, lectures, practicals, clinical skills sessions, etc.) for about 20 hours per week. They expect that you spend another 35-45 hours per week in independent study. However, you can do this whenever you want and if you feel like you can work some additional hours and still do well on the exams, then go for it. It might be worth waiting a semester to see how you adjust.

It will even be possible to work during 3rd and 4th years as the hours required of you in Oz will not be the same as those required in the US. You are generally not asked to stay on the wards or in the OR after 5 pm or on weekends; taking call with the residents is optional and hardly anyone does it (and those that do tend to be the Americans). You WILL still have to study and read and you may find it difficult to be on the wards all day, study AND work, but I had classmates who did it (again these are the people who took off as early as possible, never came in after hours or on weekends).

While I did not have any classmates with children your son's age, my general impression is that the level of educational quality is Australia is *much* higher than that of most US public and private schools. In general, Australian high school students take much harder courses and more of them than we did; I assume the same to be true for grammar and junior HS. All students wear uniforms (so he should be prepared for that) - even at public schools. I am sure the experience would be wonderful for him and I doubt he will suffer educationally (with proper tutoring should be need it)bbut rather would thrive if he were happy. The question is not whether he will get the same quality education in Australia but whether he will be prepared for the rigor of the education after having trained in the US. After talking with Australian students and knowing my classmates I remained convinced that the quality of US education at the primary and secondary level is sub-par compared to Oz and the UK. This statement will cause a lot of flak I'm sure, but unless you have lived abroad as I have, and have a basis for comparison, I think the argument("USA Number 1!) doesn't hold any water.

Hope this helps.

 

[DrPeace]

I don't know about Australia but I can ASSURE you that almost any NON-American high schools are better than American ones..hehehe But as for universities, I think the U.S. of A provides the best "college" education on earth because they have so much MONEY. In London, almost all high school graduates know calculus and all the English poets. We had to take the A-level which encompasses 8 different subjects. You should worry about whether your kids can keep up with the "British" style of education if they want the best out of it.

Kato

 

[Nurse2Doc]

KIM~~Thank YOU! Your advice is gold and taken to heart. We (my family & I) have been seriously considering this decision and your input is graciously considered!

 

[omniatlas]

I agree Dr Peace. I was british educated in Hong Kong for 9 years but finished up high school in America. I did one year of A-levels which is basically college level material your last two years of your british highschool education before you enroll in a University. I took A-level Math, Chem & Bio -- my friends thought I was psychotic but it paid off in the long run -- the stuff we learned really helped in US-college. What I don't like about the British system is that they segregate the youth depending on your A-level grades. If you don't make the cut with your sciences then, you'll probably never ever make it into medicine! Shocking isn't it? But then again how do you know you want to go into medicine at such an early age (17!) -- some do, some don't and enroll into a British medical school and end up dropping out after finding out that it wasn't their calling!

I prefer the liberal-arts route which our institutions in America are built upon -- it makes you a more interesting person!

Originally posted by DrPeace:
•I think the U.S. of A provides the best "college" education on earth because they have so much MONEY. In London, almost all high school graduates know calculus and all the English poets. We had to take the A-level which encompasses 8 different subjects. You should worry about whether your kids can keep up with the "British" style of education if they want the best out of it.

Kato•