Hi, if anyone could comment on Ross or SGU. I would appreciate it.
FYI: Very supportive forum here.
FYI: Very supportive forum here.
Ross vs SGU any feed back?
- Thread starter zorran
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I have a couple friends who are at Ross University and they love it. It supposedly has a really great reputation. I also heard that they are getting accredited this year. Also, since they have a trimester system where you basically work through the summer, you get finished in 3-3 1/2 years instead of 4. You only do 2 years in St. Kitts, and then finish up at a US school.
I applied and was accepted to Ross, they didn't make me send a deposit because I was still waiting to hear from some US schools. When I called them to tell them I got in to a US school, so I wouldn't be attending Ross, they were SO nice and SO happy for me.
I applied and was accepted to Ross, they didn't make me send a deposit because I was still waiting to hear from some US schools. When I called them to tell them I got in to a US school, so I wouldn't be attending Ross, they were SO nice and SO happy for me.
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You might want to look at accredited schools in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the UK before trying for unaccredited schools like Ross and SGU. It is a lot easier and less money to practice in the US if you graduate from an accredited school.
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I agree with aussie...from a Ross rep. I've talked to, the average debt for students is about 200k!!! that's pretty steep (although I've worked with a couple of great Ross grads...no experience with SGU folks)
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200k? My debt is over 200k. It's worth it. Nowdays, you'll find that many out-of-state schools will cost you this much - and certainly private schools like Ross, SGU and Western.
I know someone at SGU who loves it there. It sounds great. I also know a couple Ross grads who love their school. The only difference I have found that would make me recommend one over the other: federal Stafford loans are available at Ross, but not SGU (unless something changed recently).
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Ross is for rich people with not so stellar GPA.
Sorry to be so blunt, but that's pretty much the way it is.
Not saying its a bad school but...you're on an island off of an island (no Target/Walgreens/Starbucks, etc), can't bring your own pets, housing limited, and no jobs available to you or your spouse - which is strictly upheld unless your spouse is a doctor or something. Shipping furniture+car? = $$$$$. Tuition? = $$$$. Lots of hands on experience available and quite high tech for being on an island. Oddly scheduled semesters. Have to do 2 years in the US in a partner vet school, which you get paired up with, you don't really get to choose where you go, well you can list 3 preferences but its not guaranteed. Then you have to take more tests to prove your education is legit. They say they'll be accredited this year but forgive me, I've heard that for several years now. But they "look at your entire application to see if you'd be a good veterinarian, not if you've got a good GPA."
Sorry to be so blunt, but that's pretty much the way it is.
Not saying its a bad school but...you're on an island off of an island (no Target/Walgreens/Starbucks, etc), can't bring your own pets, housing limited, and no jobs available to you or your spouse - which is strictly upheld unless your spouse is a doctor or something. Shipping furniture+car? = $$$$$. Tuition? = $$$$. Lots of hands on experience available and quite high tech for being on an island. Oddly scheduled semesters. Have to do 2 years in the US in a partner vet school, which you get paired up with, you don't really get to choose where you go, well you can list 3 preferences but its not guaranteed. Then you have to take more tests to prove your education is legit. They say they'll be accredited this year but forgive me, I've heard that for several years now. But they "look at your entire application to see if you'd be a good veterinarian, not if you've got a good GPA."
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I've worked with many Ross grads, and their medicine has always been good. I haven't met an SGU grad yet.
From what I understand, if you mess up in school grade-wise at Ross, they have no qualms kicking you out, even if it's your last semester there. I hear it's alot of "tough love". Perhaps the people I heard about were true party people (at least one that I heard was kicked), so take that with a grain of salt.
The other thing that I've heard about Ross is the fact that the islanders are not friendly to Americans. I've heard some awful stories, but then again, that could also be true of nearly anywhere outside the U.S. I've never visited the island myself. Let's put it this way: I wouldn't go running through the woods, or fields, at night and alone no matter WHERE I am!
We had a vet assistant, a guy, who got in and went to Ross (I think it was two years ago now), and came home a week or two later and said he couldn't stay there. He said he was told not to leave his computer in his apartment/room because of break-ins, and not to go out after 6 or 7 pm or such, and not to go anywhere off campus alone. He was freaked out and came home.
Contrast that with, I know a few female vets who went there, and they all survived just fine and practice great medicine. The ladies I know graduated over 3 or 4 years ago, and longer. However, the hoops to jump through are still in place, so going with an already accredited school might be easier if you can.
As far as SGU, I have also heard, second-hand, that the students there now are usually very happy, and the islanders are friendly to the students. That animosity you can find on St. Kitts is not evident in Grenada supposedly. They also have on-campus housing (does Ross now too?) but no pets allowed.
There's a yahoo users group for SGU. I'd recommend it. Yes, a school representative is also on the group, but the discussions are candid.
Everything you'll hear about how hard it is or expensive to ship or bring items to Ross are more than likely true. I've heard crazy stories about the -monthly- or less frequently than that, runs to McDonald's in Puerto Rico and such. You need to like seafood! Get ready to eat lotsa fish! It's similar with SGU too. If you require the comforts of home, i.e., the U.S., with refrigerated milk at the store, and are used to eating beef and /or chicken all the time, it may be a rough transition. And of course, since you're on an island, and nearly everything is imported, things are $$.
I do know that if you take a short trip to SGU and later accept admission to the school, they reimburse you for airfare and hotel, as long as you booked the trip through SGU's approved travel agent(s). Contact SGU or get on their yahoo user group to learn more.
Hope this helps. SGU was potentially a Plan B for me. My main problem with leaving the U.S. was my five pets, of which at least four need to come with me, wherever I go. I also attended an SGU open house last year.
From what I understand, if you mess up in school grade-wise at Ross, they have no qualms kicking you out, even if it's your last semester there. I hear it's alot of "tough love". Perhaps the people I heard about were true party people (at least one that I heard was kicked), so take that with a grain of salt.
The other thing that I've heard about Ross is the fact that the islanders are not friendly to Americans. I've heard some awful stories, but then again, that could also be true of nearly anywhere outside the U.S. I've never visited the island myself. Let's put it this way: I wouldn't go running through the woods, or fields, at night and alone no matter WHERE I am!
We had a vet assistant, a guy, who got in and went to Ross (I think it was two years ago now), and came home a week or two later and said he couldn't stay there. He said he was told not to leave his computer in his apartment/room because of break-ins, and not to go out after 6 or 7 pm or such, and not to go anywhere off campus alone. He was freaked out and came home.
Contrast that with, I know a few female vets who went there, and they all survived just fine and practice great medicine. The ladies I know graduated over 3 or 4 years ago, and longer. However, the hoops to jump through are still in place, so going with an already accredited school might be easier if you can.
As far as SGU, I have also heard, second-hand, that the students there now are usually very happy, and the islanders are friendly to the students. That animosity you can find on St. Kitts is not evident in Grenada supposedly. They also have on-campus housing (does Ross now too?) but no pets allowed.
There's a yahoo users group for SGU. I'd recommend it. Yes, a school representative is also on the group, but the discussions are candid.
Everything you'll hear about how hard it is or expensive to ship or bring items to Ross are more than likely true. I've heard crazy stories about the -monthly- or less frequently than that, runs to McDonald's in Puerto Rico and such. You need to like seafood! Get ready to eat lotsa fish! It's similar with SGU too. If you require the comforts of home, i.e., the U.S., with refrigerated milk at the store, and are used to eating beef and /or chicken all the time, it may be a rough transition. And of course, since you're on an island, and nearly everything is imported, things are $$.
I do know that if you take a short trip to SGU and later accept admission to the school, they reimburse you for airfare and hotel, as long as you booked the trip through SGU's approved travel agent(s). Contact SGU or get on their yahoo user group to learn more.
Hope this helps. SGU was potentially a Plan B for me. My main problem with leaving the U.S. was my five pets, of which at least four need to come with me, wherever I go. I also attended an SGU open house last year.
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i met a vet who graduated from ross, he said it's a real nice campus, but i didn't get to speak to him much about the $$ it takes to live there....as for st. george, it seems like an option for me as i am heading toward my reapplication to vet school for the c/o 2012...the advisor i spoke to regarding st. george said that a visit from the avma for accreditation is next month or something and that if we were to apply now, they'd most likely be accredited by thE time we graduate..but i dunno...
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one of my friends just graduated from SGU this past spring and she loved it there. You can't get stafford loans, as far as i know, but its a lot cheaper then ross, so i think it works out. she said one thing she knew about ross was that there were a few kids in her class who transferred from ross, and she said ross was very unsupportive through the first year, because they usually overenroll and try to make at least some of the class flunk out.
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I visited SGU twice and spoke with the people down there and in NJ (their US base). They are very nice. The campus at SGU is beautiful, it beats out any US school that I've visited. I was really determined to go there but after my last visit I changed my mind.
Although the campus is beautiful and the facilities are pretty good. My biggest concern was living off campus. Since I would be bringing pets, you must live off campus. I saw some of the off campus living and it isn't the best, it is a developing country after all. I also didn't like their library at all, it's WAY too small for the amount of students that they have and I'm a library studier type. It would be too loud and noisy for me.
Also, the island is really expensive yet the people are really poor (I don't know how they afford it!) You also need to be careful off-campus. We had our car broken into and stuff was stolen even though it was well hid in the car.
And another thing about the island is I felt like the Grenadian government and people really try to take advantage of you because they know you are not from their. They charge you a $10 or $20 'exit' tax when you leave the island. They tax you on any electronics you bring, etc....
Lastly, they recently changed their rules about bringing pets to the island. It's really hard to bring them on normal airlines as American now doesn't allow them and most don't allow them at all or only during certain times of the year.
But it is a good school and they do offer admissions in both August and January. If you don't mind the inconveniences and being on a small island for 3 years, it's a good option. You can't beat the scenery that's for sure.
If you are seriously considering the school, I would read ValueMD . com, you can see what current students are saying about SGU and Ross. Also, I would recommend visiting the school if possible. SGU would have paid for my trip if I matriculated there but, since I am not going there, I have to pay out of pocket. But I really wanted to see what I was getting into before spending 3 years there. Let me know if you have any questions by PM me. Thanks! Good luck.
Although the campus is beautiful and the facilities are pretty good. My biggest concern was living off campus. Since I would be bringing pets, you must live off campus. I saw some of the off campus living and it isn't the best, it is a developing country after all. I also didn't like their library at all, it's WAY too small for the amount of students that they have and I'm a library studier type. It would be too loud and noisy for me.
Also, the island is really expensive yet the people are really poor (I don't know how they afford it!) You also need to be careful off-campus. We had our car broken into and stuff was stolen even though it was well hid in the car.
And another thing about the island is I felt like the Grenadian government and people really try to take advantage of you because they know you are not from their. They charge you a $10 or $20 'exit' tax when you leave the island. They tax you on any electronics you bring, etc....
Lastly, they recently changed their rules about bringing pets to the island. It's really hard to bring them on normal airlines as American now doesn't allow them and most don't allow them at all or only during certain times of the year.
But it is a good school and they do offer admissions in both August and January. If you don't mind the inconveniences and being on a small island for 3 years, it's a good option. You can't beat the scenery that's for sure.
If you are seriously considering the school, I would read ValueMD . com, you can see what current students are saying about SGU and Ross. Also, I would recommend visiting the school if possible. SGU would have paid for my trip if I matriculated there but, since I am not going there, I have to pay out of pocket. But I really wanted to see what I was getting into before spending 3 years there. Let me know if you have any questions by PM me. Thanks! Good luck.
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There's also a Yahoo group for propective Ross students too (rossvetfuturestudents). I applied and interviewed back in December. They told me that it would take about 5 weeks for them to make a decision..but about 5 days later I received a letter of acceptance dated the day after my interview. Ross was Plan C (Plan A= US school, Plan B= Accredited overseas school). Like most people, I know a few students at Ross that love it there and I know a few good graduates. The living situation is not for everyone..but the school is very well equipped since its owned by DeVry. More than a few vets that have gone to US vet schools (Penn, Tufts) have told me that Ross isn't a bad deal. Check out the the Yahoo group I mentioned for more info. Good luck!
