transferring to us med school

[swan02]

hey guys,
i was wondering if anybody has information on transferring to a US medical school. I have been trying to find information about this from all kinds of sources, but haven't much success. I go to Ross, am a 2nd semester, and find it almost impossible to get any information from campus. They almost discourage you from thinking about transferring, and I guess I can see why.

now ....please......before everyone shoots me down by saying "its impossible to transfer, everybody wants to do it, but nobody really can," I just want to get some information. i know the chances are slim to none.

has anyone here been able to transfer in the past, in what year did they transfer, and what did it take?

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[Phil Anthropist]

Hi there! I think we had a brief e-mail exchange over the summer (re: Rosalind Franklin's program). You were really helpful with that. I've reconsidered going that route for various reasons. But anyway, I have an obnoxiously long email regarding transferring from foreign med schools that I thought I sent you (it's still saved in my e-mails). If you'd like me to resend it, let me know. I hope all is going well at Ross!

Also, it's more likely to transfer into the third year than the second year (but even at that it's rare). I know for a fact that a lot of the SGU students are applying for entry into the third year of a particular med school (apparently there's an unbelievable amount of openings this year). Actually, my best friend is in the process of trying to transfer to a US allopathic school for this Fall.

 

[NRAI2001]

How difficult is it to transfer to US schools from other carribean schools besides ROSS (more specifically from st. georges)? Phil, I know u said that ur friend is trying to do so this year as a third year and that there are a lot of spots this year, but is this year an exception? How successful have students and how difficult has it been to transfer in past years?

 

[Phil Anthropist]

Well, transferring to a US med school is largely based on attrition, people taking the year off (research, getting married, death of a loved one, working, etc.), and US allo students transferring to other US allo schools because of extenuating circumstances (death in the family, spouse at other medical school). In other words, openings need to be available.

Some of these schools will also take transfers from other US allo and US osteo schools (and of course other foreign schools), so it's tough. The one my friend is shooting for is a US school that isn't incredibly popular. Not bad, just not a med school that's highly competitive for the general applicant pool. The students who will try to get in there will probably be DO students, foreign students, and med students at allopathic schools hoping to go back to their home state. For whatever reason, this particular school has an unreal amount of openings.

This is the way it's going to be with a lot of schools. There's a surprising number that take foreign medical students, but most years there are few if any open spots at each of these schools.

Also, transferring is a pretty complex process. You've got to get LORs from your UNDERGRAD professors, interview, get a letter from the academic dean of your med school, etc.

Another difficult hurdle that you'll have to face is timing the USMLE. A lot of the med schools have very early deadlines to apply as a transfer. Some are so early that there's no way you can take the USMLE Step 1 on time. The people who tend to be able to time the test better are the ones who enter in the January term (as opposed to the Fall). This is an advantage of starting at a foreign medical school later. The big disadvantage is that you'll also match a whole year later than if you entered in the Fall term. And if you're gonna match a whole year later, you might want to consider an enrichment postbac first.

If I recall NRAI2001, I thought I ran into you a few times in the postbac forum and you've got pretty good stats as it is. Have you considered going for a special masters like Rosalind Franklin, G-town, etc.?

 

[NRAI2001]

Well, transferring to a US med school is largely based on attrition, people taking the year off (research, getting married, death of a loved one, working, etc.), and US allo students transferring to other US allo schools because of extenuating circumstances (death in the family, spouse at other medical school). In other words, openings need to be available.

Some of these schools will also take transfers from other US allo and US osteo schools (and of course other foreign schools), so it's tough. The one my friend is shooting for is a US school that isn't incredibly popular. Not bad, just not a med school that's highly competitive for the general applicant pool. The students who will try to get in there will probably be DO students, foreign students, and med students at allopathic schools hoping to go back to their home state. For whatever reason, this particular school has an unreal amount of openings.

This is the way it's going to be with a lot of schools. There's a surprising number that take foreign medical students, but most years there are few if any open spots at each of these schools.

Also, transferring is a pretty complex process. You've got to get LORs from your UNDERGRAD professors, interview, get a letter from the academic dean of your med school, etc.

Another difficult hurdle that you'll have to face is timing the USMLE. A lot of the med schools have very early deadlines to apply as a transfer. Some are so early that there's no way you can take the USMLE Step 1 on time. The people who tend to be able to time the test better are the ones who enter in the January term (as opposed to the Fall). This is an advantage of starting at a foreign medical school later. The big disadvantage is that you'll also match a whole year later than if you entered in the Fall term. And if you're gonna match a whole year later, you might want to consider an enrichment postbac first.

If I recall NRAI2001, I thought I ran into you a few times in the postbac forum and you've got pretty good stats as it is. Have you considered going for a special masters like Rosalind Franklin, G-town, etc.?

Yes I remember you from the Rosalind Franklin threads, and ur suggestions and comments were extremely insightful.

I am just looking to see what other options are available. I have no problems attending a carrib school (some people may not due to prestige..etc) but I am just looking way into the future considering that I may want to eventually do a competitive residency.

The thing is I will be applying to US allo schools this summer. My original plan was to finish up with my classes this summer and do a masters in the fall at either Ros. Frank or GT. But i decided that I would drop a few classes this semester so taht I can concentrate on taking the mcat. SO I will still be at Cal in the fall. If i m not accepted to a US school I was considering going to the carrib in the spring semester of 2006.

I ve heard that people who were borderline (which I believe that I am) to get into US schools in the first place have a bit of an easier time transfering out of the carrib considering they do well their first year there, but this was just from one person who heard this from a cousin who went to SGU.

 

[Phil Anthropist]

If you're going for a REALLY competitive residency, it's best to stay in the US system at all costs. And by that I mean stuff like rads, rad onc, urology, ortho, ent, ophtho, neuro surg, etc. Residencies like PM&R, anesthesia, EM, ob-gyn, primary care, etc. can be realistically obtained coming from the Caribbean. I take it you're not considering DO schools...

See my friend thought he was interested in Family Practice. After his first year of med school he did this summer program for med students that was essentially a big shadowing program. Consequently, he got interested in specialties like rads. HUGE change from family practice, let me tell ya!

I'm not sure if I'm reading this right (probably not!)... So you're filing AMCAS in the Summer of 2005. And if you don't get into a US med school, you'll start at a Caribbean school in the Spring of 2006 (i.e., the semester right after the Fall of 2005)? The problem is that some acceptances are offered in the Spring and if you're on a waitlist, it's possible that an acceptance will come in May (at which point applicants with multiple acceptances can only hold on to one acceptance). I even know one guy that had his first week of classes at Loyola, got off a waitlist at Vanderbilt, and headed down there for med school (that was like late August!). If I remember correctly, SGU only has start dates in August and January...Ross I think has three separate start dates, but don't quote me on that...So I'm not clear on when you would enter a Caribbean school for Spring of 2006. If you're thinking January, that's really early if you're still in the application cycle. But again maybe I'm just not reading what you said correctly

Regarding your borderline applicant comment, I have heard something similar. I heard that if you've been waitlisted before and do well at a foreign school, you have a better shot at transferring. Honestly, I don't think there's any way you can really evaluate the validity of that statement. So I can't confirm or refute such a statement. Anything that I've heard would be second-hand info and possible hearsay! However, I have heard of waitlisted applicants that did exactly that (went to a Caribbean school and did well, then transferred back). Whether their waitlisted status had anything to do with their successful transfer...who knows

 

[NRAI2001]

If you're going for a REALLY competitive residency, it's best to stay in the US system at all costs. And by that I mean stuff like rads, rad onc, urology, ortho, ent, ophtho, neuro surg, etc. Residencies like PM&R, anesthesia, EM, ob-gyn, primary care, etc. can be realistically obtained coming from the Caribbean. I take it you're not considering DO schools...

See my friend thought he was interested in Family Practice. After his first year of med school he did this summer program for med students that was essentially a big shadowing program. Consequently, he got interested in specialties like rads. HUGE change from family practice, let me tell ya!

I'm not sure if I'm reading this right (probably not!)... So you're filing AMCAS in the Summer of 2005. And if you don't get into a US med school, you'll start at a Caribbean school in the Spring of 2006 (i.e., the semester right after the Fall of 2005)? The problem is that some acceptances are offered in the Spring and if you're on a waitlist, it's possible that an acceptance will come in May (at which point applicants with multiple acceptances can only hold on to one acceptance). I even know one guy that had his first week of classes at Loyola, got off a waitlist at Vanderbilt, and headed down there for med school (that was like late August!). If I remember correctly, SGU only has start dates in August and January...Ross I think has three separate start dates, but don't quote me on that...So I'm not clear on when you would enter a Caribbean school for Spring of 2006. If you're thinking January, that's really early if you're still in the application cycle. But again maybe I'm just not reading what you said correctly

Regarding your borderline applicant comment, I have heard something similar. I heard that if you've been waitlisted before and do well at a foreign school, you have a better shot at transferring. Honestly, I don't think there's any way you can really evaluate the validity of that statement. So I can't confirm or refute such a statement. Anything that I've heard would be second-hand info and possible hearsay! However, I have heard of waitlisted applicants that did exactly that (went to a Caribbean school and did well, then transferred back). Whether their waitlisted status had anything to do with their successful transfer...who knows

I meant January when I said Spring. I m not sure what residency i m gonna go for, but whatever i do i want to specialize. So I might do IM and then specialize. But I was really thinking about radiology or some of the other surgery residencies (like ortho or plastics).

I guess I m kind of in a rush bc I feel like i m waisting too much time. A younger cousin of mine finished undergrad in 3 years and is going to SGU next year, and my parents are kinda on my back for wasting too much time. If all goes well and I am accepted somewhere I will have taken a year off. If I don't then that ll be two years off. In two years u could have almost completed a residency (3 years off if you consider my cousins situation).

 

[Phil Anthropist]

For a fellowship in IM you might be okay. IM is not a very competitive specialty in general (but of course there are some specific IM programs that are extremely competitive). If you're going for a subspecialty in IM, it's more important that you shine in your IM residency.

If you're thinking along the lines of rads or ortho, you've really got to think about the disadvantages of going to SGU. Sure SGU might have about 3 ortho and 5 rads matches per year, but these are very rare considering the class size. The word on ValueMD is that one of the students who got ortho at Brown scored 250+ on both USMLE Step I and USMLE Step II. I can't confirm that, but what I can tell you is that these are definitely atypical applicants. It is WORTH IT to spend a year or two to try and get in a US med school. I realize that getting into Cali schools is cut-throat, but really any US allo med school will put you in a much better position.

You said you're worrying about wasting your time. I will tell you right now that you risk wasting your time by going to the Caribbean. Well maybe not really "wasting your time," but you are severely decreasing the likelihood of matching into something like rads or ortho. If you're going for ridiculously competitive specialties like those, IT IS TO YOUR ADVANTAGE TO GO TO A US ALLO SCHOOL. Now again, if you're considering a competitive FELLOWSHIP in IM, you might still be okay. But for RESIDENCIES, Caribbean schools WILL make it very difficult, but not impossible, to obtain highly competitive positions.

I think you're better off spending a year in a program like Rosalind Franklin's, dropping the $52k or so, working your ass off, and getting into CMS. Now some people will argue that CMS is not much better than SGU in terms of matching. These people are not well informed. You will have a HUMUNGOUS advantage over going to school in the Caribbean. Granted CMS doesn't match like Harvard, but it still will put you in a much better position. Furthermore, you would still match at the same time if you start CMS in August 2006 as you would if you started January 2006 in the Caribbean. So you're not really wasting time.

And don't compare yourself to your cousin or go just because your parents are pushing you. You've gotta lay down the law and tell them what you want!

 

[NRAI2001]

If someone was successful in transfering out, would having taken a year or two at a carrib school still put them at a disadvantage, even though they graduated from a US school?

 

[Phil Anthropist]

If someone successfully transfers from a Caribbean school to a US med school, there shouldn't be any disadvantage. I've heard one story of a Program Director that supposedly wouldn't get one highly qualified individual because he spent his first two years in a Caribbean school. It didn't matter 'cause his qualifications were get him an excellent match anyway. Keep in mind this could be total BS. But really if you're in a US school you shouldn't have any disadvantage whatsoever.

 

[NRAI2001]

If someone successfully transfers from a Caribbean school to a US med school, there shouldn't be any disadvantage. I've heard one story of a Program Director that supposedly wouldn't get one highly qualified individual because he spent his first two years in a Caribbean school. It didn't matter 'cause his qualifications were get him an excellent match anyway. Keep in mind this could be total BS. But really if you're in a US school you shouldn't have any disadvantage whatsoever.

Hopefully i will get in somewhere when i apply this summer. If not i ll have to choose between Rosland Franklin SMP or SGU.

Do u think going to the carribean will effect ur chances or getting a fellowship after completing a IM residency?

Phil where do u go to school?

 

[swan02]

hey phil
ofcourse i remember you and i still have that awesoe e-mail you sent me....sorry to hear that you turned away from the Ros Frank program.....but for the other post, it is a great program, and I would recommend it over the gtown program because of much better chances of getting into med schl....get a 3.0, and you're in....

i was hoping to find someobdy on this board who transferred themselves recently, but that obviously hasn't worked....so Phil...you are my sole resource! haha

my gpa at ross isn't a 4.0, but i'm doing okay....i dont' know if i can try and transfer into 2nd year....i know its a shot in the dark either way, but if its possible, i want to know whats the way of doing it....how i go about it....

anyway....any information is always welcome

 

[Phil Anthropist]

swan02--

There's a guy on ValueMD that successfully transferred from SGU a few years back (I don't go on that website much, so I honestly can't remember his screen name). In fact, I think he made some recent posts about openings at the US allo med school he graduated from. He'd be a solid source. It's my finals week (trimester system) so I'm a little busy right now, but I can try and get back to you if I find out the guy's SN or how you could get in contact with him.

My main reason for not applying to RFU this year is that I don't intend to take the MCAT until August. It falls on like the 20th or something and RFU's MS program starts several weeks before that (early August, I think). Also for personal reasons, I don't feel that I should apply until I've created an applicant profile that I can be proud of. Yes, I'm insane.

If you're looking to transfer into the second year...I think Drexel might be your best bet. I honestly don't know what their openings look like for 2nd year entry. Wouldn't hurt to give 'em a call though. Check out this website (bottom of the page): http://www.drexel.edu/med/mdprogram/admissions.asp
It hasn't been updated in a long time, so you might want to call to get more up-to-date info.

I think George Washington might have openings this year too, but a USMLE Step I score is required even for 2nd year entry. I think we can all agree that's insane. So I think Drexel's your best bet (and again, I don't know if they have openings).

NRAI2001--

I'm really anal retentive about my anonymity, so I don't post my school on SDN. But I graduated from my undergrad last May and I'm taking classes a la carte at a no-name private liberal arts college known for its rigorous premed curriculum. I'm shooting for grad programs next year followed my an MPH (special one year program or my state school) before applying to med school.

My understanding (I could be wrong) is that great fellowships are easier for FMGs to obtain than great residencies. Carib grads match into a lot of IM residencies at university hospitals. A lot of university hospitals have many of their own fellowship programs as well. So if you're doing IM there, do well, and the faculty likes you, you've got a good shot at continuing there for a fellowship. If you really shine and serve as a Chief Resident, you'll be in really good shape.

You've really gotta get an idea of what you want though. If you're considering ortho and radiology, the Caribbean is not the best option. I also think most people would agree that these are two very different specialties. Well, they're both extremely competitive and bring in a lot of money, but in practice, lifestyle, approach...I think these are radically different.

 

[NRAI2001]

swan02--

There's a guy on ValueMD that successfully transferred from SGU a few years back (I don't go on that website much, so I honestly can't remember his screen name). In fact, I think he made some recent posts about openings at the US allo med school he graduated from. He'd be a solid source. It's my finals week (trimester system) so I'm a little busy right now, but I can try and get back to you if I find out the guy's SN or how you could get in contact with him.

My main reason for not applying to RFU this year is that I don't intend to take the MCAT until August. It falls on like the 20th or something and RFU's MS program starts several weeks before that (early August, I think). Also for personal reasons, I don't feel that I should apply until I've created an applicant profile that I can be proud of. Yes, I'm insane.

If you're looking to transfer into the second year...I think Drexel might be your best bet. I honestly don't know what their openings look like for 2nd year entry. Wouldn't hurt to give 'em a call though. Check out this website (bottom of the page): http://www.drexel.edu/med/mdprogram/admissions.asp
It hasn't been updated in a long time, so you might want to call to get more up-to-date info.

I think George Washington might have openings this year too, but a USMLE Step I score is required even for 2nd year entry. I think we can all agree that's insane. So I think Drexel's your best bet (and again, I don't know if they have openings).

NRAI2001--

I'm really anal retentive about my anonymity, so I don't post my school on SDN. But I graduated from my undergrad last May and I'm taking classes a la carte at a no-name private liberal arts college known for its rigorous premed curriculum. I'm shooting for grad programs next year followed my an MPH (special one year program or my state school) before applying to med school.

My understanding (I could be wrong) is that great fellowships are easier for FMGs to obtain than great residencies. Carib grads match into a lot of IM residencies at university hospitals. A lot of university hospitals have many of their own fellowship programs as well. So if you're doing IM there, do well, and the faculty likes you, you've got a good shot at continuing there for a fellowship. If you really shine and serve as a Chief Resident, you'll be in really good shape.

You've really gotta get an idea of what you want though. If you're considering ortho and radiology, the Caribbean is not the best option. I also think most people would agree that these are two very different specialties. Well, they're both extremely competitive and bring in a lot of money, but in practice, lifestyle, approach...I think these are radically different.

Yea, I m not exactly sure what i want right now, but it would always be nice to have the option once i m done with med school. Realistically some residencies can not be obtained by FMGs. If i will choose to persue one of these residencies i don't know. If i knew for sure that I wanted to do IM, family practice....etc i would have no problems going to the carrib., but i don't want to spend 4 years and then realize that I won't be able to persue what i really wanted to do.

 

[swan02]

Hey Phil,

i was gonna suggest to you to look into the MIS program which starts after the august mcat date....however I think RFU got rid of the MIS and only has AP now....look into it though...if they still offer MIS, you might wanna try out the program....the flip side is, unlike AP where you need to make a 3.0 overall, in MIS you are out if you get a C in any of the courses....the only med schl courses you take though are physio, neuro, biochem....AP you take embryo, MCB, genetics as well....

no rush...but I'll love you forever and ever, if you find me that guy's e-mail!

 

[Phil Anthropist]

Hey Phil,

i was gonna suggest to you to look into the MIS program which starts after the august mcat date....however I think RFU got rid of the MIS and only has AP now....look into it though...if they still offer MIS, you might wanna try out the program....the flip side is, unlike AP where you need to make a 3.0 overall, in MIS you are out if you get a C in any of the courses....the only med schl courses you take though are physio, neuro, biochem....AP you take embryo, MCB, genetics as well....

Dearest Swan,

I also heard RFU's Medical Imaging Sciences was going to be cancelled. But even if the program does still exist, I think
56 credits in one year
WITH medical courses is a scary proposition. The curriculum is also physics-heavy and Phil vehemently loathes physics.

no rush...but I'll love you forever and ever, if you find me that guy's e-mail!

IF?! IF?!
This is a conditional statement!!!


What about all of our summer letters?! Did these mean nothing to you?!

Lies...all of this about unconditional love...nothing but...empty...meaningless lies...

and I thought we had something special...




I'll PM you the info you're looking for






.

 

[NRAI2001]

Dearest Swan,

I also heard RFU's Medical Imaging Sciences was going to be cancelled. But even if the program does still exist, I think
56 credits in one year
WITH medical courses is a scary proposition. The curriculum is also physics-heavy and Phil vehemently loathes physics.

IF?! IF?!
This is a conditional statement!!!


What about all of our summer letters?! Did these mean nothing to you?!

Lies...all of this about unconditional love...nothing but...empty...meaningless lies...

and I thought we had something special...




I'll PM you the info you're looking for






.

Wut Phil? Who is this home wrecker ur talking about?

 

[Sheral]

I saw your posts about transferring to a US school from a Caribbean one....I go to St. Matthews in Cayman and they use a Honors/Pass/Fail evaluation. How would the US school compare you to everyone else who is transferring? Do you all think that one would have to have all honors to get back in to the US with my school's system of grading?

 

[saanjana]

Wut Phil? Who is this home wrecker ur talking about?

haha...phil's calling me a home wrecker! what a dork ! haha....

but i'm surprised that nobody else on this thread has transferred successfully into a US school....

 

[saanjana]

Dearest Swan,

I also heard RFU's Medical Imaging Sciences was going to be cancelled. But even if the program does still exist, I think
56 credits in one year
WITH medical courses is a scary proposition. The curriculum is also physics-heavy and Phil vehemently loathes physics.

IF?! IF?!
This is a conditional statement!!!


What about all of our summer letters?! Did these mean nothing to you?!

Lies...all of this about unconditional love...nothing but...empty...meaningless lies...

and I thought we had something special...




I'll PM you the info you're looking for






.

haha...hey phil! i finally found my own post....hehe....as for the medical imaging program...though its "physics intensive," trust me those classes are a total joke.....all the exams are repeated from previous years so practically everyone aces them.......infact, this program is especially good if you are applying to other schools....you get grades for your MRP courses in 1st and 2nd semesters, which you can put on your med schl aps (and they all end up being A's).....you don't get grades for your med schl courses until the end of 3rd semester .....and if all 3 of them are Bs or higher...you got yourself into chicago med. if the program still exists, you should get in touch with some of the students who went through it....a bunch of my friends who didn't get into med schl from the program are still finishing the masters in imaging....its supposed to be a lucrative field (financially that is....)

as for my "conditional love"....haha....well....i only go for applied physio boys!
hehe...j/k

 

[Phil Anthropist]

haha...hey phil! i finally found my own post....hehe....as for the medical imaging program...though its "physics intensive," trust me those classes are a total joke.....all the exams are repeated from previous years so practically everyone aces them.......infact, this program is especially good if you are applying to other schools....you get grades for your MRP courses in 1st and 2nd semesters, which you can put on your med schl aps (and they all end up being A's).....you don't get grades for your med schl courses until the end of 3rd semester .....and if all 3 of them are Bs or higher...you got yourself into chicago med. if the program still exists, you should get in touch with some of the students who went through it....a bunch of my friends who didn't get into med schl from the program are still finishing the masters in imaging....its supposed to be a lucrative field (financially that is....)

That's really interesting, swa...er I mean saanjana! Chances are that I will enter a one-year biomedical science program this Fall. I haven't decided yet, but after that I'm considering (1) a special one-year MPH (2) a special domestic volunteering op--along the lines of Healthcorps (3) another hard science masters. If I do enter a biomedical sciences master's program this Fall, Rosalind Franklin's AP program might be seen as repetitive by adcoms if I enter it for the Fall of 2006. If MIS is still around, I might look into it for the Fall of 2006. Imaging sciences ARE very lucrative. Radiology and Radiation Oncology are two imaging specialties that can be very lucrative. I'm not sure what field of medicine I'll be best suited for at this point (I was interested in PM&R at one point, but I'm not sure now and I'm trying to keep my options open). I would lie if I said that money/financial stability isn't a major draw to medicine, but for me, it's far from my primary goal. I couldn't see myself going into something like Plastics or Dermatology...probably not ortho/ENT/ophthalmology either. I am interested in imaging sciences though, so we shall see...

 

[Phil Anthropist]

as for my "conditional love"....haha....well....i only go for applied physio boys!
hehe...j/k

*sob*

Why are you only telling me this now?! And now you're suggesting that I look into Medical Imaging Sciences INSTEAD of Applied Physio...why???

Such is my lugubrious existence *sigh*

haha...phil's calling me a home wrecker! what a dork ! haha....

but i'm surprised that nobody else on this thread has transferred successfully into a US school....

Dork? Such harsh words!!!



Like I said before, my good friend is attempting to transfer this year (into the 3rd year). Obviously there's no guarantee, but I do think he has a shot. If he successfully transfers, I'll hook you AND Sheral up with the 411. Wow, I'm such a pimp.

Oh and to the user that PMd me (you know who you are, the one with a username that starts with J ), send me an email address by PM and I'll get back to you.

 

[Sheral]

Like I said before, my good friend is attempting to transfer this year (into the 3rd year). Obviously there's no guarantee, but I do think he has a shot. If he successfully transfers, I'll hook you AND Sheral up with the 411. Wow, I'm such a pimp.

Looks like i've got some competition.

 

[s204367]

I'm bored here at the hospital, and came across the carribbean board....Someone had a question about transferring out, and success after that. My med-school roommate transferred from SGU to U ov Vermont, then matched in Ortho at UCSF. He is a $ now, and heading to Aspen for a VERY competitive ortho sports fellowship. ANother friend here at COlumbia transferred from SGU to Columbia med( not sure who he know for that one), and finished ortho at Columbia. So yes it does happen. However, my roommate, who was AOA at UVM and > 250 on steps I and II, did not get some ortho interviews other friends of mine less competitive did...I think the SGU scarred him, but obviously he overcame it.
UVM seems to take one SGU grad per year...

 

[NRAI2001]

I'm bored here at the hospital, and came across the carribbean board....Someone had a question about transferring out, and success after that. My med-school roommate transferred from SGU to U ov Vermont, then matched in Ortho at UCSF. He is a $ now, and heading to Aspen for a VERY competitive ortho sports fellowship. ANother friend here at COlumbia transferred from SGU to Columbia med( not sure who he know for that one), and finished ortho at Columbia. So yes it does happen. However, my roommate, who was AOA at UVM and > 250 on steps I and II, did not get some ortho interviews other friends of mine less competitive did...I think the SGU scarred him, but obviously he overcame it.
UVM seems to take one SGU grad per year...

One SGU grad a year? Do u mean into their residency programs or into their med school as a transfer?

 

[berkeleyboy]

One SGU grad a year? Do u mean into their residency programs or into their med school as a transfer?

I think he's talking about transfer into the 2nd year. U of V only accepts foriegn students that have completed their basic sciences and taken the usmle into their 2nd year. So this guy had to repeat the second year to go to a US school. Looks like it was worth it for him.

 

[NRAI2001]

I think he's talking about transfer into the 2nd year. U of V only accepts foriegn students that have completed their basic sciences and taken the usmle into their 2nd year. So this guy had to repeat the second year to go to a US school. Looks like it was worth it for him.

I think i would repeat my second year if i could transfer to a US school.

 

[NRAI2001]

but i m rick james biatch

 

[s204367]

He had done second year, plus half of his third year......Then he trensferred to UVM, did 6 months of research, and started with us in our clinics.......A huge advantage to have already done the majority of his clinics, then start up with a group of newbies to the clinic......He's gotta be the SGU posterboy.........SGU to UCSF ortho.....Yeah, for him it was worth it........UVM takes one preson per year on average into their med school. At least while I was there there was one per year. Some of UVM's faculty teach at SGU( Hamlin and McCorey).....

 

[sameha]

Hi there! I think we had a brief e-mail exchange over the summer (re: Rosalind Franklin's program). You were really helpful with that. I've reconsidered going that route for various reasons. But anyway, I have an obnoxiously long email regarding transferring from foreign med schools that I thought I sent you (it's still saved in my e-mails). If you'd like me to resend it, let me know. I hope all is going well at Ross!

Also, it's more likely to transfer into the third year than the second year (but even at that it's rare). I know for a fact that a lot of the SGU students are applying for entry into the third year of a particular med school (apparently there's an unbelievable amount of openings this year). Actually, my best friend is in the process of trying to transfer to a US allopathic school for this Fall.

Is this about transferring from a medical school in the Caribbean to a medical school in the US? if it is..then i am not sure i understand what the list is saying? Also i need an expert advice on something...If someone goes to the Caribbean for medical school (to an accreidted medical school by the US), how easy it is to get a general medicine (internal medicine) residency in the US (how many apply and how many get one)? How about a residency like surgery..( i heard once you graduate from the Caribbean, it is almost impossible to get a residency in surgery...is that true)....Plus assuming it is easy to get a general residency in the US, then how is the Caribbean worse (considering the lower GPAs and lower scores they require )than trying to go though the headache of securing an admission to a US medical school in the first place?? please advise.

 

[ny skindoc]

Is this about transferring from a medical school in the Caribbean to a medical school in the US? if it is..then i am not sure i understand what the list is saying? Also i need an expert advice on something...If someone goes to the Caribbean for medical school (to an accreidted medical school by the US), how easy it is to get a general medicine (internal medicine) residency in the US (how many apply and how many get one)? How about a residency like surgery..( i heard once you graduate from the Caribbean, it is almost impossible to get a residency in surgery...is that true)....Plus assuming it is easy to get a general residency in the US, then how is the Caribbean worse (considering the lower GPAs and lower scores they require )than trying to go though the headache of securing an admission to a US medical school in the first place?? please advise.

If you make it through a caribbean program and pass the boards its easy to get an internal medicine program someplace in the USA. Almost all other specialties including surgery are possible depending on your record.
The reasons its worth going through the headache of securing a place in a US school is that getting into competitive residencies such as radiology,optho,ortho,urology ENT etc is much more likely from a US school.In addition caribbean grads generally do not compete at top hospitals and overall have more limited options compared to the average grad from an American med school(there are a few exceptions of course).In addition some caribbean med schools have high attrition rates whereas few people admitted to US schools ever drop out.Overall its a much smoother and less pressured road going to a US school,well worth the effort of getting in.Going to a caribbean school will have many headaches of its own.

 

[gflanag]

since I am interested in transfer rates lemme see what we've got so far...

-we know of a few schools who have accepted transfers
-this usually depends on year to year which schools lose students for
different reasons

?