schools that take 2nd year transfers

[mediocriskid]

I was wondering if anyone knew of a school which took transfer students for their second year. I made a big mistake choosing the school i did and need to get out asap. Any leads are appreciated.

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[Ashers]

I was wondering if anyone knew of a school which took transfer students for their second year. I made a big mistake choosing the school i did and need to get out asap. Any leads are appreciated.

There was just a very similar thread here -- just a little lower on the page.

General consensus in the past re: transfers seems to be -- hardly any transfers after 2nd year, even fewer in between M1 and M2 year.

You can probably find more threads by searching.

 

[njbmd]

I was wondering if anyone knew of a school which took transfer students for their second year. I made a big mistake choosing the school i did and need to get out asap. Any leads are appreciated.

As the previous poster stated, there are few transfers and most are after completion of second year. In order for a transfer to occur, there has to be a compelling reason (not liking your school isn't one) and there has to be a space at the school that you are trying to transfer into. The school that you attend has to agree to allow you to transfer and the school that you want to transfer into wants to accept you.

The two people that I know of that were able to do this successfully did so because of extreme family hardship and luck because there was a slot that opened up within one week of classes starting.

Do also realize that many schools will not fill empty slots in second year but wait until third year to fill them and only have you have passed USMLE Step I. Again, you need your Dean's permission and the school has to want you and you have to have a compelling reason for the transfer.

If you really have a good reason for transfer then start contacting your Dean now. Also beware that making this contact with administration can have potential negative consequences if your reason is not compelling (parents are ill; you are ill and need specific care that cannot be done at your school, immediate family member such as child is ill, extreme hardship etc). Also be ready to document your reason for both schools and be sure that the school that you are transferring into has space. Good luck.

 

[Law2Doc]

I was wondering if anyone knew of a school which took transfer students for their second year. I made a big mistake choosing the school i did and need to get out asap. Any leads are appreciated.

Agree with the others. Having "made a big mistake choosing the school i did" is simply not going to be an adequate reason to get a transfer. Most schools at best will take 1-2 transferees, depending on spots; these folks almost always will have compelling reasons, and you'd need to beat out the other dozen or so folks who also want the spots (in terms of grades, Step 1 completion, and adequate reason). Compelling reasons tend to be limited to spouse relocation or ill family member you need to move closer to, or other family hardship. Picking a med school that doesn't work for you, or provides insufficient exposure to something you are interested in is simply an inadequate reason -- you made your bed and now you have to lie in it. Such is life.

 

[vicksx44]

The AAMC website has a summary of the policies for transferring between med schools. Here's the link:

http://services.aamc.org/tsp_reports/

I am currently an M2 and considering a transfer due to economic hardship and being away from my spouse (which I think are compelling reasons enough). Anyway, if this goes through, I am expecting some challenges starting the junior year in a new system. My main concern is how this will be perceived by residency programs when the time comes for applying to them. Anybody on SDN who has experienced this themselves or who know somebody who went through this?

 

[Blade28]

My main concern is how this will be perceived by residency programs when the time comes for applying to them.

Why would this be a concern? You have a valid reason for transferring (to be with your spouse).

 

[vicksx44]

Why would this be a concern? You have a valid reason for transferring (to be with your spouse).

To be honest, I think my spouse is more concerned than I am with this transfer. I am already anticipating an adjustment period and some challenges that may be involved in transferring into a new system. I guess my concern above is more of a curiosity as to how others have fared and what their experiences were.

 

[njbmd]

The AAMC website has a summary of the policies for transferring between med schools. Here's the link:

http://services.aamc.org/tsp_reports/

I am currently an M2 and considering a transfer due to economic hardship and being away from my spouse (which I think are compelling reasons enough). Anyway, if this goes through, I am expecting some challenges starting the junior year in a new system. My main concern is how this will be perceived by residency programs when the time comes for applying to them. Anybody on SDN who has experienced this themselves or who know somebody who went through this?

Residency programs are not going to care that you transferred unless you transfer and do very poorly. In that case, you will have some difficulty with matching regardless of specialty and you would be out of the running for a competitive specialty. It's your overall performance and your board scores that are the main criteria for specialty/residency match and not where you went to school.

 

[Cancer Man]

I feel your pain. I made the worst, most expensive decision in my life in choosing a medical school. It still smarts to this day. Had I known then what I know now, I would be a much happier person.

There are a few things about transferring you need to know...

1. academic standing. You have to be in good academic standing or you can just forget it.

2. the school you want to transfer to has to have a spot open and you have to convince them that they should give it to you. This will probably be a bit of a challenge.

3. You have to convince your school to let you transfer. Your dean has to write a letter or something. Be on these people's good side. Again, convincing them may be difficult. Hopefully the administration at your school isn't so arrogant to think that they are doing you a favor by denying your application.

4. If you want to go to the "Dark Side" by going from a DO program to an MD one or vice versa ("Dark Side" because that's how some of each view the other) you are going to have to make a pretty good argument.

It is rare to transfer after second year and rarer still between first and second year. From what I have researched, even if you transfered, the school may want you to repeat the previous year. Some schools will accept courses from another but some don't. Sort of like transferring in undergrad which I did.

 

[Rocket3004]

I've always wondered what exactly falls under "extreme personal hardship" when describing a reason to transfer.


I also wonder if there are any schools who will less "extreme" hardships transfer in/out than others.

 

[Law2Doc]

I've always wondered what exactly falls under "extreme personal hardship" when describing a reason to transfer.

The tried and true permissible transfer reasons are almost always spouse relocation or major health issues or family illness. If you don't have one of these, odds drop off precipitously.

 

[LifetimeDoc]

The tried and true permissible transfer reasons are almost always spouse relocation or major health issues or family illness. If you don't have one of these, odds drop off precipitously.

I agree, though I don't see how a major personal health issue would necessitate a move to another school but would instead initiate a year deference or time off and automatic acceptance into the later class year at the same college of medicine.

 

[Law2Doc]

I agree, though I don't see how a major personal health issue would necessitate a move to another school but would instead initiate a year deference or time off and automatic acceptance into the later class year at the same college of medicine.

I guess I was thinking along the lines of having to move closer to family who can look after you or perhaps closer to someplace where you have access to a specific kinds of treatment.

 

[Blade28]

I agree, though I don't see how a major personal health issue would necessitate a move to another school but would instead initiate a year deference or time off and automatic acceptance into the later class year at the same college of medicine.

What I've seen is med students with health problems will often take a leave of absence. They transfer when it's a family member that's very ill.

 

[Green Grass]

How do students that transfer after year 1 typically do on the USMLE Step 1? I assume that the curriculum between the two schools isn't the exact same.

 

[PeepshowJohnny]

How do students that transfer after year 1 typically do on the USMLE Step 1? I assume that the curriculum between the two schools isn't the exact same.

I'd be very surprised if someone has any data on this (I'm too lazy to look.)

But I don't think it's that big of the deal. First and second year curriculum usually stand on their own pretty wel, and most schools are actually quite similar in second year curricula (more variability is seen in first year.)

Only would be a "big deal" if you transferred to a school with a very unusual division of classes, but I'm assuming that would be taken care of before the transfer.

 

[Law2Doc]

How do students that transfer after year 1 typically do on the USMLE Step 1? I assume that the curriculum between the two schools isn't the exact same.

Actually most schools that allow transfers don't allow transfers until after Step I precisely for this reason. If you go from a systems to a subject based program or to a school where things like micro and immuno are first year courses instead of second, you can end up with huge gaps in your education. Thus it's the rare school that allows earlier transferring. So it would be a big deal. Except that we are talking about so few transferee spots in the first place that it's simply not much of an issue.

 

[tex05]

Tulane allows for second year transfers

http://search.som.tulane.edu/admissions/documents/transfer.pdf

 

[farhana]

How do med school fill if there are spots fall open in 2nd year .Does any body know?

 

[Rekt]

How do med school fill if there are spots fall open in 2nd year .Does any body know?

This thread is eight years old.

It's extremely unlikely that you can transfer before completing second year. The spots would remain unfilled. Even if you take step 1 and try to transfer it can be extremely difficult.