The Ponce Vs Ciencias Medicas Thread

[Whats_up_doc]

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HI. 😎 I need actual students from PONCE and CIencias Medicas to please tell me how much they like their respectives Schools of Medicine and what are the academic standards (i.e. research activities, honor societies, etc, in order to get in there). What is the average MCAT score and GPA. How are the professors? Do you guys matched in your residencies? Please add any other detail you might think is important. Thanks.

 

[ULTRON]

Adding to your question, are clinical rotations at Ponce held in Spanish? Or English?

ULTRON

 

[adamant]

I am a recent Ponce graduate from New York and I really loved the school. I ended up matching in a great derm program in the States and other classmates matched in Optho, Plastic Surgery, ENT, Radiology, Ortho etc.
I would say honestly that it is a little harder to match into a very competetive specialty coming from here as opposed to a mainland school, but it is much easier than if you are a D.O. or Caribbean grad.
The first 2 years are mostly academic, with classes held in Spanish and English. All the handouts, books, tests etc are in English and we take the Shelf exams at the end of all the major clases. Third year is all in Ponce and all the rotations are Spanish speaking since most patients here have limited English fluency. Fourth year you have 5 months of electives to rotate anywhere you want.
As for admissions it depends if you are from PR or the Mainland. For people for PR they usually require an MCAT above 20 and a GPA over 3.3, for people from the States they require and MCAT over 25 and GPA over 3.3

Hope this information is helpful and good luck.
By the way the UPR only takes PR residents.

 

[boricua_doc]

I am a recent Ponce graduate from New York and I really loved the school. I ended up matching in a great derm program in the States and other classmates matched in Optho, Plastic Surgery, ENT, Radiology, Ortho etc.
I would say honestly that it is a little harder to match into a very competetive specialty coming from here as opposed to a mainland school, but it is much easier than if you are a D.O. or Caribbean grad.
The first 2 years are mostly academic, with classes held in Spanish and English. All the handouts, books, tests etc are in English and we take the Shelf exams at the end of all the major clases. Third year is all in Ponce and all the rotations are Spanish speaking since most patients here have limited English fluency. Fourth year you have 5 months of electives to rotate anywhere you want.
As for admissions it depends if you are from PR or the Mainland. For people for PR they usually require an MCAT above 20 and a GPA over 3.3, for people from the States they require and MCAT over 25 and GPA over 3.3

Hope this information is helpful and good luck.
By the way the UPR only takes PR residents.

5,500 per year tuition at UPR vs 22,000 per year tuition at Ponce; it doesn't take a rocket science degree to figure out wich one is more desirable to get in.

 

[Whats_up_doc]

Funny. Is there any other useful information I can get besides the economic aspect? Money is important but I also care about the academics which you quite did not answer.

 

[FLPAINDOC]

I am a board certified anesthesiologist, in practice for 5 years. I am also a PSM graduate. You won't go wrong with Ponce.

 

[DiveMD]

Funny. Is there any other useful information I can get besides the economic aspect? Money is important but I also care about the academics which you quite did not answer.

I graduated from the University of Puerto Rico, School of Medicine. I am currently working for the Navy as a Diving Medical Officer. Like everything in life, the results of you medical education are more dependent on you than in your school. PR schools are LCME accredited meaning that you will have no problem getting a residency if you are a competitive candidate. All you need is to sit down, study and nail your USMLE’s. Regarding academics, you will have no problem in Ponce. As a LCME approved school, Ponce will follow a board oriented method of education. Additionally, you will see stuff in Puerto Rico that will make you a stronger MD once you go back to USA. Also, Spanish is a great asset in some of the highly desired states in the USA (Cali, NY, FL, etc). In conclusion, you should try to go to a medical school where you are comfortable. I you don’t like Puerto Rico, or know little to no Spanish you should reconsider. Maybe PR is not for you. But if you are looking for a good and diversified medical education, PR could be a great option. Good luck! 👍

 

[Cachito]

I'm a first year med student at PSM. All I can say so far is that I love it here. The classes are small compared to the mainland med schools (60-65 students in each class of the MD program). Having a small class size really allows everyone to become very close even before classes actually start. In general, there are many students from the mainland that represent many well-known universities (e.g. Michigan, University of Georgia, Boston College, Duke, University of Miami, Wake Forest, etc...). Also, much of the class also comprises of Puerto Ricans who both went to college outside of PR or studied in PR. In all, the classes seem to be very diverse compared to what one might experience at Ciencias Medicas (because of their exclusive residency requirements). Also, the learning environment here at PSM is very positive and collaborative. The faculty is very "pro-student." You won't find many cases of students being cutthroat or overly competitive with their peers. Instead, people help each other within their class and even among different classes. (We have 3rd year mentors and 2nd year "padrinos" who give us compilations of old tests, notes, and other resources to use to study.) The students at PSM seem very happy to be in medical school. Sometimes, med school here reminds me of high school. I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing though.
As far as academics is concerned: In previous years, PSM has been very competitive with the other two accredited medical schools in PR in terms of the USMLE Step 1. You may want to get the pass rates of each school to get a feel for how well each school's students prepare for the USMLE.
I am sure you will get a great education at any of the PR schools you choose to go to. Your use of your time and resources are the two main factors that produce success in medical school...more than the institution you attend.
As far as Qualifications at PSM: There are only 60 seats for the entering 1st year MD class; therefore, it is very competitive. However, check the website to get the current minimum gpa and MCAT. In my opinion, if you have an MCAT above a 20, a gpa above 3.3 (approximately), and a solid resume of clinical/research experience, not to mention fluency in Spanish and English, you will be looked at as a competitive candidate. In my experience, APPLYING EARLY makes a huge differences in your chances of getting accepted.

Let me know if you have more questions about PSM.

Good luck,

 

[Zeppelin900]

I'm a first year med student at PSM. All I can say so far is that I love it here. The classes are small compared to the mainland med schools (60-65 students in each class of the MD program). Having a small class size really allows everyone to become very close even before classes actually start. In general, there are many students from the mainland that represent many well-known universities (e.g. Michigan, University of Georgia, Boston College, Duke, University of Miami, Wake Forest, etc...). Also, much of the class also comprises of Puerto Ricans who both went to college outside of PR or studied in PR. In all, the classes seem to be very diverse compared to what one might experience at Ciencias Medicas (because of their exclusive residency requirements). Also, the learning environment here at PSM is very positive and collaborative. The faculty is very "pro-student." You won't find many cases of students being cutthroat or overly competitive with their peers. Instead, people help each other within their class and even among different classes. (We have 3rd year mentors and 2nd year "padrinos" who give us compilations of old tests, notes, and other resources to use to study.) The students at PSM seem very happy to be in medical school. Sometimes, med school here reminds me of high school. I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing though.
As far as academics is concerned: In previous years, PSM has been very competitive with the other two accredited medical schools in PR in terms of the USMLE Step 1. You may want to get the pass rates of each school to get a feel for how well each school's students prepare for the USMLE.
I am sure you will get a great education at any of the PR schools you choose to go to. Your use of your time and resources are the two main factors that produce success in medical school...more than the institution you attend.
As far as Qualifications at PSM: There are only 60 seats for the entering 1st year MD class; therefore, it is very competitive. However, check the website to get the current minimum gpa and MCAT. In my opinion, if you have an MCAT above a 20, a gpa above 3.3 (approximately), and a solid resume of clinical/research experience, not to mention fluency in Spanish and English, you will be looked at as a competitive candidate. In my experience, APPLYING EARLY makes a huge differences in your chances of getting accepted.

Let me know if you have more questions about PSM.

Good luck,

I agree with cachito 100% there. And believe me, I know cachito because we are in the same class. Cachito, which of the other 59 people are you? I'll give you a clue, I live in Parque Monterrey.

See you around and start studying for block...

Zepp

 

[Cachito]

zepp,

Who doesn't live in Parque Monterrey? Give me a better clue than that.

 

[mig26x]

I studied in PSM and lived in Paseo del Principe in BLVD Miguel Pou!! LOL.

Near chillis!!!