UC Merced "Fast-Track" MD

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.

scottyT

Real Member
15+ Year Member
Joined
Mar 19, 2006
Messages
412
Reaction score
0
The LtGov is proposing that forthcoming UC Merced school of medicine be turned into a "fast-track" BA/MD program that would aggressively recruit Central Valley denizens to address the critical shortage there. It sounds like the program would be BA+MD in 5 years with some sort of tie-ins for residency in the Central Valley.

http://www.ltg.ca.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=393&Itemid=1

Members don't see this ad.
 
While the GP shortage in some rural regions is a serious problem, I don't think that creating a 'Fast Track' medical school is the best idea. You have to jump through all these hurdles for a reason. What's next? Online MD degrees?
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Interesting. Last I checked, the UC merced med school was supposed to be built in my hometown (Fresno). Merced doesn't have enough hospitals or something.

Such a program might help my little brother get into med school in the better part of a decade, but doesn't affect any of us here much.
 
Interesting. Last I checked, the UC merced med school was supposed to be built in my hometown (Fresno). Merced doesn't have enough hospitals or something.

Their original plans have been put on hold with the budget crisis.

Does anyone know if there is evidence that this sort of program actually helps with the physician shortage in rural areas? This sounds a bit like what UNM does with their combined program.
 
While the GP shortage in some rural regions is a serious problem, I don't think that creating a 'Fast Track' medical school is the best idea. You have to jump through all these hurdles for a reason. What's next? Online MD degrees?

Online MD? I don't think so. This type of training is more in line with the European/rest of the world model, which seems to work fine. Most countries have a bachelor of medicine/surgery as the entry level physician degree AFAIK.
 
Online MD? I don't think so. This type of training is more in line with the European/rest of the world model, which seems to work fine. Most countries have a bachelor of medicine/surgery as the entry level physician degree AFAIK.

This is bad. I know. I lived in Europe for several years. Many students don't really know if Medicine is right for them when they are just 18. Why are non-trads so valued here in the US? Additionally, college serves as another barrier to 'weed-out' applicants.

Asian countries are now catching on and replacing the existing English BSSM (or whatever it's called) with the American BS then MD system. Singapore, for example, has both systems (Duke-NUS).

Obviously we are not going to see an online MD program (well, hopefully). My point is to show you that skipping three years of college is basically cutting corners, just like many online degrees.
 
Interesting. Last I checked, the UC merced med school was supposed to be built in my hometown (Fresno). Merced doesn't have enough hospitals or something.

Such a program might help my little brother get into med school in the better part of a decade, but doesn't affect any of us here much.


i read that clinicals would initially be held in fresno at community with UCSF providing some aid to start, but i was under the impression that UC Merced would hold the basic science years at their campus.
if only they could upgrade fresno state into a UC:laugh:, the whole med school in the central valley would be so much more practical
ps im originally from the NO as well
 
i read that clinicals would initially be held in fresno at community with UCSF providing some aid to start, but i was under the impression that UC Merced would hold the basic science years at their campus.
if only they could upgrade fresno state into a UC:laugh:, the whole med school in the central valley would be so much more practical
ps im originally from the NO as well
Either way, Fresno is less than an hours drive from Merced.
 
if only they could upgrade fresno state into a UC:laugh:, the whole med school in the central valley would be so much more practical
ps im originally from the NO as well

well at the very least bring fresno into the pac-10 (and hawaii, lets make it the pac-12).
 
McGill does a fast-track pre-med program where you do one year of undergraduate then go directly to medical school. Although there are gripes about the program, in the end I think the students end up fine. You grow up quick in a program like that.
 
well at the very least bring fresno into the pac-10 (and hawaii, lets make it the pac-12).

a very important aspect when considering schools to admit to the pac-10 is that each school must have significant research/great academics. thats straight from the pac-10 commission. this was specifically geard towards byu and utah...but as you can see, is applicable to fresno st and hawaii as well.both are fine schools, but are not academic powerhouses and do not have enough research going on. all pac 10 schools must be research institutions.
now, in my opinion, i dont think they will ever add any teams, as adding any two teams would req that they come from the same state as they are keeping with the two schools from each state theme, except for cali..ie. arizona-ua and arizona state, washington:uw and wsu...oregon: oregon state and univ of oregon...thats why utah and byu were considered in the first place..but as you know..byu is geared towards undergraduate education rather than research in addition to utah not have enough going on
 
i read that clinicals would initially be held in fresno at community with UCSF providing some aid to start, but i was under the impression that UC Merced would hold the basic science years at their campus.
if only they could upgrade fresno state into a UC:laugh:, the whole med school in the central valley would be so much more practical
ps im originally from the NO as well
That will NEVER happen. We were trying to push CSU Long Beach to UC status since we have almost 40K students, a ton of research, an urban city and already offer doctorate degrees. BUT there is this stupid thing called "The Master Plan" that does not allow CSUs to provide doctorates (PhD, MD, JD etc) and establishes the UC system as the sole provider of these degrees. The few CSUs that offer doctorates either did so before the Mast Plan was written, or have had to jump through a TON of hoops to do so. Bogus.
 
Members don't see this ad :)
This is the lt governors pipe dream. If it ever happens i'd estimate maybe nothing solid for another 5-10 years.
 
That will NEVER happen. We were trying to push CSU Long Beach to UC status since we have almost 40K students, a ton of research, an urban city and already offer doctorate degrees. BUT there is this stupid thing called "The Master Plan" that does not allow CSUs to provide doctorates (PhD, MD, JD etc) and establishes the UC system as the sole provider of these degrees. The few CSUs that offer doctorates either did so before the Mast Plan was written, or have had to jump through a TON of hoops to do so. Bogus.

man, uc long beach would be dope!
 
That will NEVER happen. We were trying to push CSU Long Beach to UC status since we have almost 40K students, a ton of research, an urban city and already offer doctorate degrees. BUT there is this stupid thing called "The Master Plan" that does not allow CSUs to provide doctorates (PhD, MD, JD etc) and establishes the UC system as the sole provider of these degrees. The few CSUs that offer doctorates either did so before the Mast Plan was written, or have had to jump through a TON of hoops to do so. Bogus.
Fresno State offers a tiny handful of doctorates right now, and last I checked there were plans to offer more.

I think they just added a doctorate in physical therapy two or three years ago.

And as for adding us to the PAC-10, we've still never even (outright) won the WAC. Many of us think that winning our current conference is really what Pat Hill (the coach) should concentrate more on. Then again, everyone did see what happened to Hawaii in '07....

Edit: minor typos.
 
Last edited:
Fresno State offers a tiny handful of doctorates right now, and last I checked there were plans to offer more.

I think they just added a doctorate in physical therapy two or three years ago.


And as for adding us to the PAC-10, we've still never even (outright) won the WAC. Many of us think that winning our current conference is really what Pat Hill (the coach) should concentrate more on. Then again, everyone did see what happened to Hawaii in '07....

Edit: minor typos.
its a joint program with ucsf
 
BS/MD = bad idea
:thumbdown:

too many cut corners
wouldn't be fair to all the other 4 year MD schools
 
That will NEVER happen. We were trying to push CSU Long Beach to UC status since we have almost 40K students, a ton of research, an urban city and already offer doctorate degrees. BUT there is this stupid thing called "The Master Plan" that does not allow CSUs to provide doctorates (PhD, MD, JD etc) and establishes the UC system as the sole provider of these degrees. The few CSUs that offer doctorates either did so before the Mast Plan was written, or have had to jump through a TON of hoops to do so. Bogus.

because the master plan of the california university system establishes UC as the research wing and the cal state system as the general teaching wing
 
I couldn't imagine going into med school after only a year of college. I was too much of a ****up freshman year.
 
because the master plan of the california university system establishes UC as the research wing and the cal state system as the general teaching wing
Hahaha. The Master Plan was written over 40 years ago, however, things change. The CSU system is the largest university system in the country and over twice as large as the UC system. It should have a graduate and research department. Unfortunately, there are other forces preventing CSU expansion besides mere legislation
 
BS/MD = bad idea
:thumbdown:

too many cut corners
wouldn't be fair to all the other 4 year MD schools

While I don't have any information or authority to speak on the subject of healthcare accessibility in the Central Valley, whenever I hear a comment about fairness in the context of medical education, I like to remind myself and everyone else, that it's not about being fair to applicants, or even to medical schools. It's about being fair to, and doing what is best for, the patients. Right from the start of the admission process, the question should ideally be "What is best for the patients, and the people that we are trying to serve?". This is, from my limited understanding, how admissions committees evaluate applicants, and IMHO, should also be how we evaluate when or when not to implement programs like the fast-track. If this is a way to provide more care to the population in need, while still maintaining the quality of doctors, then the people in charge should try and make it happen.

I can speak on one other subject with a small amount of knowledge, and that's the existence of a similar program in Quebec. From what I've seen, the administrators I've talked to, etc. the 5yr MD students (fast-track) seem young at first, but end up being competent in the end. I think they grow up quickly. It's my personal feeling that it would be less stressful for the fast-track kids if they were required to take 1 more year in university to fully acclimatize, but that's a different story. Another example would be the existence of many European countries who train doctors right out of highschool.
 
well at the very least bring fresno into the pac-10 (and hawaii, lets make it the pac-12)
No thanks. We want a new BCS conference that is a WAC/MWC merger.
The proposed members: Boise, Hawaii, Fresno, La Tech, Nevada, BYU, Utah, TCU, and Air Force.

EDIT: Partial credit for this idea goes to schoolsucks.
 
That will NEVER happen. We were trying to push CSU Long Beach to UC status since we have almost 40K students, a ton of research, an urban city and already offer doctorate degrees. BUT there is this stupid thing called "The Master Plan" that does not allow CSUs to provide doctorates (PhD, MD, JD etc) and establishes the UC system as the sole provider of these degrees. The few CSUs that offer doctorates either did so before the Mast Plan was written, or have had to jump through a TON of hoops to do so. Bogus.
How does a CSU even become a UC? I mean, in theory.
 
Last edited:
I think it's a good idea.

There's some 3-year med school's in Canada, and quite a few will let you in after your second year of undergrad, then you're awarded a BSc degree in something like "medical science" along with your MD, so I guess it's a 6yr BSc/MD program.

I think shortening the program is a great way to graduate more doctors. I think the 4+ years of undergrad some people go through is unnecessary.
 
I think it's a good idea.

There's some 3-year med school's in Canada, and quite a few will let you in after your second year of undergrad, then you're awarded a BSc degree in something like "medical science" along with your MD, so I guess it's a 6yr BSc/MD program.

I think shortening the program is a great way to graduate more doctors. I think the 4+ years of undergrad some people go through is unnecessary.

To clarify...

There's two 3-year MD programs in Canada. They go for 11 months per year (no summers off). And, many MD programs in Canada want 3-4 years undergrad/pre-med.
 
While I don't have any information or authority to speak on the subject of healthcare accessibility in the Central Valley, whenever I hear a comment about fairness in the context of medical education, I like to remind myself and everyone else, that it's not about being fair to applicants, or even to medical schools. It's about being fair to, and doing what is best for, the patients. Right from the start of the admission process, the question should ideally be "What is best for the patients, and the people that we are trying to serve?". This is, from my limited understanding, how admissions committees evaluate applicants, and IMHO, should also be how we evaluate when or when not to implement programs like the fast-track. If this is a way to provide more care to the population in need, while still maintaining the quality of doctors, then the people in charge should try and make it happen.

I can speak on one other subject with a small amount of knowledge, and that's the existence of a similar program in Quebec. From what I've seen, the administrators I've talked to, etc. the 5yr MD students (fast-track) seem young at first, but end up being competent in the end. I think they grow up quickly. It's my personal feeling that it would be less stressful for the fast-track kids if they were required to take 1 more year in university to fully acclimatize, but that's a different story. Another example would be the existence of many European countries who train doctors right out of highschool.

Couldn't agree more. Plus I would assume those 6 year programs are highly intensive. They are not cutting any corners (except maybe they don't have to take the MCAT), but they are still taking all the classes for a BS degree and MD. And regarding the existence of medical school programs right out of high school, this is also prevalent in many asian countries...and they end up still producing very competent doctors.......
 
Just thought my avatar belonged in this thread. Felt relevant.

And JimmerJammer, that conference would be sick...but the way we play, I am not sure if we belong :(. But could you imagine some of those games :rolleyes:
 
How does a CSU even become a UC? I mean, in theory.
They don't. BUT, the argument at Long Beach was:

-Our student body was 36k, larger than every UC other than UCLA.
-We award the more Masters degrees than any school in the state.
-Have a ton of scientific research going on in all fields, especially marine bio (it's a beach school), medicine (the VA is adjacent to campus), healthcare, (there are no university hospitals in Long Beach)
and some other stuff...

Being a UC would substantially increase the endowment which would help maintain research funding, offer more doctorate programs for qualified students, maintain high quality service to a metropolitan city... etc.

But it will NEVER happen.
 
HI does anybody know when the Accelerated Medical Program Starts for UC Merced?????? I heard they are accepting students for 2010.
Please help!!! Thanks!!! :)
 
HI does anybody know when the Accelerated Medical Program Starts for UC Merced?????? I heard they are accepting students for 2010.
Please help!!! Thanks!!! :)

Um, they don't even have a medical school yet.
 
Who from here attends or attended Fresno State? Go Bulldogs!!:rolleyes:
 
California has 38,000,000 residents. By various measures it is one of the top 10 economies in the world. However, the entire UC system has only 695 spots for MS1's. California, with all of its wealth, exports about 1,000 medical students per year on a net basis.

It's time for the people of California to have a real residential property tax, charge realistic undergraduate tuition at UC and CSU campuses, close some prisons and open some medical schools.:mad:
 
California has 38,000,000 residents. By various measures it is one of the top 10 economies in the world. However, the entire UC system has only 695 spots for MS1's. California, with all of its wealth, exports about 1,000 medical students per year on a net basis.

It's time for the people of California to have a real residential property tax, charge realistic undergraduate tuition at UC and CSU campuses, close some prisons and open some medical schools.:mad:

What's with the hate here? Yikes...

Yes, I would love to have more medical schools in California, and I would love it if California applicants didn't have to scatter to the four winds here. But hopefully there's a better financial solution than just slapping on some property taxes and "closing some prisons".

Oh, and thank you, gotzchopstickz, for reviving a 9 month-old thread. No, this program does not yet exist, primarily because the medical school has not yet been opened. Does sound like a good idea, though.
 
Top