Africa and Middle East Sackler

[futuremed]

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Hi,
I am new to this forum and am thinking about applying to the Sackler American program. I was wondering if anyone knew about their amdission stats-(MCAT/GPA). I tried to contact their office, but got no infromation. I would greatly appreciate any input.

 

[beyond all hope]

I suspect that due to the recent violence, the GPA/MCAT cutoff will be pretty low for Sackler. Or more likely, knowing Dean Shenkman, they'll simply be less students.

I graduated from Sackler. It's a great program. You'll get fantastic training and have a great time. You will have a little harder time getting a competative residency, though, and Israel can be a pain in the butt sometimes.

 

[futuremed]

Thank you so much for your reply,
I would really appreciate if you could tell me a little about your experience with finding residency after graduating from Sackler (considering that you are looking/found for one in the U.S.A.) What made you feel that you were at a disadvantage? How hard is it to place into a surgery residency or emergency medicine?
Thank you again for your time.

 

[beyond all hope]

I'm doing an EM residency right now. I was the only one in my class who didn't get their first choice (I got #3 on my rank list).

Being an FMG does make it harder to get interviews, but once you've got the interview, I don't think it changes much. The match software allows PDs to filter out FMGs applications, so I was rejected very early by some of the snootier places.

US grads with my scores got twice as many interviews as I did, but hey, I started turning down interviews after the first 10.

If you're sure you want to be in a really prestigious residency, you might consider Sackler twice. However, I feel that the education and experience more than made up for it.

Pros
#1 - great rotation schedule - the WORST schedule I had as a med student was 8-4 M-F. U.S. med students frequently do 6 days a week, 12 hours a day, with q3-5 call.
#2 - taught by attendings, not residents (this is a big deal, trust me) = much better education
#3 - being in Israel
#4 - lots of vacations, and only 4-6 hours by plane from Europe

Cons
#1 - Harder to get competative residency
#2 - being in Israel

 

[hope280]

anyone have any interview advice for someone interviewing at sackler tomorrow.

 

[brooklynboy]

I have a couple of questions - I would appreciate any feedback:

1. Does anybody know any information about sackler's waiting list. When (time frame) and how do they get back to applicants on the waiting list. How long is the list and how many people do they take off the list and offer a position?

2. Concerning the residency placement. I have heard that sackler's graduates are offered residencies as if they are us graduates , and they don't go through the same process as other img graduates. I called the national residency match office and they said that sackler's graduates are considered img and go through the normal channels that other img graduates go through - so which one is it (A response from a sackler graduate would really help to clarify this).

Thanks

 

[beyond all hope]

1. Waiting list? Call Marsha and find out where you stand. Israelis never mince words, and so neither should you when trying to get into Sackler. Don't be afraid to keep politely pestering them - that's how I got my interview. That's not considered rude in Israel, it's called chuzpah and it's respected (to a limit, of course).

2. Sackler is a foreign school. We are considered IMGs. We have to do everything other IMGs do. The only difference is the Sackler program is well-known and respected by many program directors, especially in NY/NJ, so we don't have as many problems as some IMGs do getting residencies (although it's still not as good as being a US grad).

 

[futuremed]

Hi everyone,
I have a question regarding the two clinical years at Sackler. Do you absolutely need to know Hebrew in order to succesfully complete them? Also, is it possible to complete them in United States?
Thank you for answering.

 

[beyond all hope]

Very helpful but not necessary. Most Sackerlites never learned more than a few words of Hebrew.

No, you cannot do your clinical years in the U.S. 1.5 years are done in Israel, .5 in the U.S. Believe me, it's better this way. The 3rd year in Israel is way better than what the med students get in the states. The first part of 4th year in is the U.S., and the second part of 4th year is a joke no matter what med school you go to, so why not be by the beach/Europe?

 

[archon218]

Do Sackler students attain competitive residencies like orthopedics, or plastics.

 

[futuremed]

Thank you for answering my questions. I was wandering when will the applications be available for fall 2005? Also, does Sackler have an expiration policy for the MCAT. I took mine in spring 2002, will it still be valid?
Thanks again.