Thoughts on Studying Medicine in the Philippines

[Gandyy]

It seems like we're on the same page now. You don't necessarily need a 3.7/31 to get into a US MD school, and we don't know what the OP should be considering for a plan without more info.

We were on the same page before you made that last post, but you do like to argue.

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[Mad Jack]

I am a U.S. Citizen. I have heard success stories from IMG that are US Citizens. Though it is true that it is nearly impossible for Non-citizen IMG to be able to practice medicine in the U.S.

They succeeded in the past. Unfortunately, the number of US graduates has exploded, pushing IMGs further and further out of the match. By the time you graduate, IMG match rates will have dropped to about 25% or less due to school expansion, and those matches will be in undesirable fields.

 

[StudyLater]

Mimelim says this was for white applicants only.

Whoops. I can't read. Ignore me.

 

[Mad Jack]

Its not non-sensical at all. Why would you not apply to a handful of DO schools in an application cycle? Its almost always a good idea to apply to a few DO schools. I'm not saying for OP to apply right now. I'm saying for OP to apply to DO schools when OP gets their application together. OP can apply to US MD schools if their application is up to par.

6500 people out of 24k applicants is approximately a 25 percent shot. Those are not good odds at all. 1600 applicants out of 24k are horrible odds and a 200 people out of 24k applicants I dont need to say much about.

Grats on getting in with less than 3.0 by the way. The rest of your app must have been incredible. Or you might have killed a SMP?

Because you'll be considered a reapplicant next time around and likely throw a chunk of money away.

 

[Gandyy]

Because you'll be considered a reapplicant next time around and likely throw a chunk of money away.

Sigh, cmon Jack. I'm saying when the OP has the best possible application they should apply DO. Thats why I said in bold that they should not apply right now.

 

[mimelim]

Its not non-sensical at all. Why would you not apply to a handful of DO schools in an application cycle? Its almost always a good idea to apply to a few DO schools. I'm not saying for OP to apply right now. I'm saying for OP to apply to DO schools when OP gets their application together. OP can apply to US MD schools if their application is up to par.

6500 people out of 24k applicants is approximately a 25 percent shot. Those are not good odds at all. 1600 applicants out of 24k are horrible odds and a 200 people out of 24k applicants I dont need to say much about.

Grats on getting in with less than 3.0 by the way. The rest of your app must have been incredible. Or you might have killed a SMP?

The bolded is NOT correct. I want to emphasize this because it is a very common mistake and one that can significantly hurt applicants. If you have the same stats as those 24k people, you do NOT have a 25 percent chance of getting into medical school. The correct statement is: "Of all 24k students with those stats, 25% were admitted to medical school." This is a population statistic and has nothing to do with an individual. It can be used as a broad benchmark to compare the relative importance of academic metrics, but outside of that, trying to read into it too much can be hazardous to your application. There are plenty of people with those stats that have a 90%+ chance of getting into medical school if they apply smartly and broadly. There are likewise plenty of people that have a <1% chance of getting in, even with scores well over the average.

 

[Mad Jack]

Sigh, cmon Jack. I'm saying when the OP has the best possible application they should apply DO. Thats why I said in bold that they should not apply right now.

I was skimming, missed that.

 

[Gandyy]

The bolded is NOT correct. I want to emphasize this because it is a very common mistake and one that can significantly hurt applicants. If you have the same stats as those 24k people, you do NOT have a 25 percent chance of getting into medical school. The correct statement is: "Of all 24k students with those stats, 25% were admitted to medical school." This is a population statistic and has nothing to do with an individual. It can be used as a broad benchmark to compare the relative importance of academic metrics, but outside of that, trying to read into it too much can be hazardous to your application. There are plenty of people with those stats that have a 90%+ chance of getting into medical school if they apply smartly and broadly. There are likewise plenty of people that have a <1% chance of getting in, even with scores well over the average.

Another instance of how I know very little about statistics. Thanks for the informative correction.

 

[lakas12]

Philippines is not a first-world country. How are you sure that their medical curriculum is on par with the US?

Many medical schools in the Philippines (particularly in Manila) have medical curricula that are on PAR with the U.S. and are qualified for ECFMG as long as they are on the list in the World Directory. With that said, the quality of education is a far cry from the U.S. and arguably Europe's since they are not applying the latest modern medical technology in their medical education. Some med schools even have accreditation in some U.S. Our Lady of Fatima University for example, is accredited by IL and NY state board of education. (Click HERE for the page and it's at the bottom)

I have relatives who are practicing physicians there and a friend of mine who went to the same school for undergrad as me that is now a medical student there with plans to come back for residency, that's to how I know about the schools there.

 

[el_duderino]

I just looked at your posting history, and saw that you posted in July that your GPA is 3.1 and your sGPA is 2.6, and that you had to take gen bio twice and got a C both times.

What was the problem in gen bio? Also, do you realize that medical school is basically like an entire semester of biology every 2 weeks?

 

[lakas12]

Applying to medical school, whether DO or MD, when your application is non-competitive or you are simply not prepared academically, mentally, or emotionally is a waste of time and money. Even if you do get accepted to a program, if you are not prepared for it you will likely fail and ruin your chances.

We do not know if the OP is ready for medical school, and we do not know if the OP has any hope of an acceptance to a DO program. Encouraging him to do so is poor advice in the absence of additional information.

More info:
I believe I have extensive EC as I have done works in social justice, hospital volunteering, university chorus, and research - I could get more in depth with these if you private message me. As far as MCAT, I have no taken it yet as I got stuck in this transition and my progress with premed classes and decided to take on the summer of 2016. I did formulate alternative plans for getting in to medical schools.

route 1:
Take the Medical Entrance Exam for Medical Schools in the Philippines on Oct.24 in LA --> apply to medical schools there and start in the following school year there.
route 2:
If I get A's in BOTH of my science courses this semester (Human Anatomy w/ Lab + Plant Ecology) --> MCAT summer 2016 --> post bac for either academic enhancer or SMP --> Apply to schools here in the U.S.
route 3:
If I don't get A's in BOTH of my science courses --> post-bac for career change --> possibly apply to PA schools here in the U.S.

What do you guys think?

 

[gyngyn]

I have relatives who are practicing physicians there and a friend of mine who went to the same school for undergrad as me that is now a medical student there with plans to come back for residency, that's to how I know about the schools there.

I'll wager that hundreds of people have had your friend's aspirations.
In 2013, only 65 made it through medical school in the PI to even become eligible for residency in the US.
Only 23 of them matched into any program.

 

[lakas12]

I just looked at your posting history, and saw that you posted in July that your GPA is 3.1 and your sGPA is 2.6, and that you had to take gen bio twice and got a C both times.

What was the problem in gen bio? Also, do you realize that medical school is basically like an entire semester of biology every 2 weeks?

that part of general bio was the class I took during my early years as undergrad and at the same time a lot of circumstances were happening that affected my emotional and psychological well-being and my academic perfomance.. with that said I started having better grades towards the latter part of my undergrad.

 

[el_duderino]

More info:
I believe I have extensive EC as I have done works in social justice, hospital volunteering, university chorus, and research - I could get more in depth with these if you private message me. As far as MCAT, I have no taken it yet as I got stuck in this transition and my progress with premed classes and decided to take on the summer of 2016. I did formulate alternative plans for getting in to medical schools.

route 1:
Take the Medical Entrance Exam for Medical Schools in the Philippines on Oct.24 in LA --> apply to medical schools there and start in the following school year there.
route 2:
If I get A's in BOTH of my science courses this semester (Human Anatomy w/ Lab + Plant Ecology) --> MCAT summer 2016 --> post bac for either academic enhancer or SMP --> Apply to schools here in the U.S.
route 3:
If I don't get A's in BOTH of my science courses --> post-bac for career change --> possibly apply to PA schools here in the U.S.

What do you guys think?

I think two things:

1) You're not getting into a US medical school without extensive GPA repair. Your best shot is to retake some of the science classes you've gotten Cs or lower in, get a good score on the MCAT, and apply DO.

2) Going to medical school in the Philippines would be a complete waste of time for you. The reason US medical schools won't touch you right now is because nothing in your academic record to indicate that you're anywhere near ready to handle the brutal curriculum of medical school. The reason the schools in the Philippines will probably accept you is because they don't care whether or not you complete the program as long as they can get your money.

 

[lakas12]

I'll wager that hundreds of people have had your friend's aspirations.
In 2013, only 65 made it through medical school in the PI to become eligible for residency in the US.
Only 23 of them matched.

I'm well aware of that and it's far below 50% Med schools in the Philippines are NOT selective at all about their students so long they meet their eligibilities, submit proper documentations an have money.

 

[lakas12]

I think two things:

1) You're not getting into a US medical school without extensive GPA repair. Your best shot is to retake some of the science classes you've gotten Cs or lower in, get a good score on the MCAT, and apply DO.

2) Going to medical school in the Philippines would be a complete waste of time for you. The reason US medical schools won't touch you right now is because nothing in your academic record to indicate that you're anywhere near ready to handle the brutal curriculum of medical school. The reason the schools in the Philippines will probably accept you is because they don't care whether or not you complete the program as long as they can get your money.

Yes we are on the same page on 1), but not sure about 2) as I did have heard successful stories from other people that took that path, though I believe it MIGHT be a waste of time if I choose to get on a highly competitive residency specialty as an IMG that I literally would have 20% chance or even less of getting that.

 

[el_duderino]

Yes we are on the same page on 1), but not sure about 2) as I did have heard successful stories from other people that took that path, though I believe it MIGHT be a waste of time if I choose to get on a highly competitive residency specialty as an IMG that I literally would have 20% chance or even less of getting that.

As an IMG from the Philippines, assuming you pass the USMLEs and graduate (which are far from a sure thing, given your academic record), then every specialtiy is highly competitive.

 

[tortelliniboy]

We are saying you'll be lucky to have any residency let alone anything competitive or in a location you want. In order to even achieve that or be seen on near equal footing you'll have to absolutely wipe the floor with your AMG counterparts. At this point it'd be magical thinking to think you can do that given your past academic performance

 

[deleted716403]

More info:
I believe I have extensive EC as I have done works in social justice, hospital volunteering, university chorus, and research - I could get more in depth with these if you private message me. As far as MCAT, I have no taken it yet as I got stuck in this transition and my progress with premed classes and decided to take on the summer of 2016. I did formulate alternative plans for getting in to medical schools.

route 1:
Take the Medical Entrance Exam for Medical Schools in the Philippines on Oct.24 in LA --> apply to medical schools there and start in the following school year there.
route 2:
If I get A's in BOTH of my science courses this semester (Human Anatomy w/ Lab + Plant Ecology) --> MCAT summer 2016 --> post bac for either academic enhancer or SMP --> Apply to schools here in the U.S.
route 3:
If I don't get A's in BOTH of my science courses --> post-bac for career change --> possibly apply to PA schools here in the U.S.

What do you guys think?

Route 2.
Forget about the Philippines. Do grade replacement and apply for DO.

 

[gyngyn]

I'm well aware of that and it's far below 50% Med schools in the Philippines are NOT selective at all about their students so long they meet their eligibilities, submit proper documentations an have money.

It's not just that they are poorly selected and trained in medical school.
Even if you do well, ERAS software is commonly used to screen out IMG's before the residency interview.
Only go to medical school in the PI if you would be satisfied working there with little expectation to work as a physician in the US.

 

[MyNameWasUsed]

Yes we are on the same page on 1), but not sure about 2) as I did have heard successful stories from other people that took that path, though I believe it MIGHT be a waste of time if I choose to get on a highly competitive residency specialty as an IMG that I literally would have 20% chance or even less of getting that.

You've heard of success stories of people who probably did extremely well in PI MD school which increased their chances of coming back here for US residency. I'm still stuck on what makes you think you will be able to excel in PI MD school? People don't change over night. Take the MCAT, score well, prove me wrong.

 

[lakas12]

You've heard of success stories of people who probably did extremely well in PI MD school which increased their chances of coming back here for US residency. I'm still stuck on what makes you think you will be able to excel in PI MD school? People don't change over night. Take the MCAT, score well, prove me wrong.

Going to a med school in PI doesn't happen over night either. I'm proud to say that have been doing extremely well in my upper div bio courses compared to how I was doing freshman year... It's my progress right now + my past together make better indication on my future outlook than my past alone.

 

[NewHorizons]

Going to a med school in PI doesn't happen over night either. I'm proud to say that have been doing extremely well in my upper div bio courses compared to how I was doing freshman year... It's my progress right now + my past together make better indication on my future outlook than my past alone.

Your idealism doesn't change the general consensus that going to the Philippines is less than ideal.

 

[lakas12]

Your idealism doesn't change the general consensus that going to the Philippines is less than ideal.

I'm very well aware of that.. I just made this thread to discuss the idea of going there as I presented that going there is one of my options.

 

[getdown]

I'm very well aware of that.. I just made this thread to discuss the idea of going there as I presented that going there is one of my options.

Yes, and I believe the consensus is that you should not go to the Philippines. Those success stories you heard were probably several years ago when IMGs actually still had spots to fill. As someone mentioned above already, with the current opening of new MD schools here in the US and stagnant numbers of residency positions, it's unlikely that by the time you're applying there'll be ANY openings that would take an IMG over an AMG. So even if you did do really really well, scored top 1% of your USMLEs there is only a very, very small chance of you getting back to the US. US programs will always favor US medical school graduates over foreign grads. Just try to get in a US program and if you don't succeed switch careers like NP, PT/OT... they still make decent money.

 

[MyNameWasUsed]

For reals. Everybody's told you not to go out of this country for MD and if you are still considering it then i think you've made up your mind.

 

[el_duderino]

"Hey guys, you know a lot more about this topic than I do. Should I do this thing?"

"No, we are in universal agreement that you should definitely not do the thing."

"Cool. I'm thinking I might do the thing."

 

[DrKavita]

Hi, I am looking for medical admission in Philippines.

What is the monthly living cost in Philippines - Manila?
Stay
Travel
Food

Thanks for the assistance

Rgds

 

[NotWayneBrady]

"Hey guys, you know a lot more about this topic than I do. Should I do this thing?"

"No, we are in universal agreement that you should definitely not do the thing."

"Cool. I'm thinking I might do the thing."

These threads happen every day. Validation-hunting is rampant here.

 

[The Knife & Gun Club]

Hi, I am looking for medical admission in Philippines.

What is the monthly living cost in Philippines - Manila?
Stay
Travel
Food

Thanks for the assistance

Rgds

Did you not just read the last page and a half of highly educated people saying "DONT GO TO THE DAMN PHILLIPINES"?!?!?!?

 

[NotWayneBrady]

Did you not just read the last page and a half of highly educated people saying "DONT GO TO THE DAMN PHILLIPINES"?!?!?!?

 

[NotWayneBrady]

Yes we are on the same page on 1), but not sure about 2) as I did have heard successful stories from other people that took that path, though I believe it MIGHT be a waste of time if I choose to get on a highly competitive residency specialty as an IMG that I literally would have 20% chance or even less of getting that.

My usual whining aside, the only point I can make is that this is faulty reasoning. The climate is changing, anyone who has succeeded in moving from PI to US residency in the past cannot speak for how it will be 4 years from now. However the current circumstances say it's terrible, and only going to get worse.

Also it has been said, but +1 for every specialty becomes competitive as an IMG. You are going to be competing for FM / IM residencies; competitive residencies for US grads (ortho, plastics, ENT, etc.) should not even be on your radar if you take the PI route.

 

[lcm2020]

Classic SDN thread.

OP ignores or fights posts that say it's a terrible idea (It is), and then tries to convince everyone that this will work.

Sure it may work, but your chances are so low that it should not even be an option.

Even with that low GPA, you just need to retake your bad grades and use DO grade replacement. Changing a C to an A for 10ish credits makes a HUGE difference for the GPA.

 

[frosted_flake]

Uh no.

I was going to say... if that is the case I am done!