Hey guys so I'm actually posting this for a friend, she tried to start an account last week but for whatever it was denied. So don't kill the messenger lol. So I will explain this as best I know and if anyone wants to speak with her directly PM me and I'll give you her email.
So basically she was a US MD student out west in a top 50 program and has the student loans built up from that school but no degree yet. She completed her basic science courses, passed step 1 (low score, first try), and went on to complete some rotations before having to ultimately withdraw from her school due to health-related issues. I believe she had to retake some courses and I do know she took a leave of absence during her rotations on recommendation from the school due to her health issues. According to her, she decided to leave school to focus on her health but was told that if she left her only options would be schools in the Caribbean. So fast forward a bit she is now healthy and married (and no not to me haha), and was seeking to complete her degree. Her original school will not take her back for whatever reason, and she apparently doesn't feel that transferring to another US school is possible at this point. Hence seeking the LAST option, by going to the Caribbean.
Apparently her options would come down to one of the Big 3 Caribbean schools, which would require her to do what they call 5th semester before starting back from scratch on Clinical rotations.
Or several other options from schools out of the Big 3 which have all accepted her and are willing to let her start directly into rotations some even giving her elective credit for some of her previoius rotations. So reducing the amount of time that it would take her to graduate and therefore reducing the cost to complete her MD. From what she tells me the schools she is considering is Xavier University, Avalon University, AUIS, or St. James.
Her concerns are:
-With the Big 3 Caribbean schools will be charging essentially 3 times the tuition as some of these other programs, which is money she could save and instead use some of to apply to 100s of programs during the Match to increase her chances. The other concern is because of the timing of things with the extra semester, it would push her chance to enter the Match by an entire year. So she would essentially have that extra period of time, and with her maternal clock ticking she wants to have kids this decade (her words not mine).
-With the list of other options, her concern is if she will be able to get all the rotations back to back as you do with US schools, and that they are smaller programs with smaller match numbers and not as well known. Being that she won't ever be on the island or taking any courses through the school the concern for how well the school educates the students isn't as important as how helpful they might be with Match. Also, she is completely ok with going into family medicine or peds.
Ok so any advice for her or if anyone from one of these schools she is considering outside of the Big 3 has anything to add about the quality of clerkship rotations or entering the match with one of those schools that would be great.
So basically she was a US MD student out west in a top 50 program and has the student loans built up from that school but no degree yet. She completed her basic science courses, passed step 1 (low score, first try), and went on to complete some rotations before having to ultimately withdraw from her school due to health-related issues. I believe she had to retake some courses and I do know she took a leave of absence during her rotations on recommendation from the school due to her health issues. According to her, she decided to leave school to focus on her health but was told that if she left her only options would be schools in the Caribbean. So fast forward a bit she is now healthy and married (and no not to me haha), and was seeking to complete her degree. Her original school will not take her back for whatever reason, and she apparently doesn't feel that transferring to another US school is possible at this point. Hence seeking the LAST option, by going to the Caribbean.
Apparently her options would come down to one of the Big 3 Caribbean schools, which would require her to do what they call 5th semester before starting back from scratch on Clinical rotations.
Or several other options from schools out of the Big 3 which have all accepted her and are willing to let her start directly into rotations some even giving her elective credit for some of her previoius rotations. So reducing the amount of time that it would take her to graduate and therefore reducing the cost to complete her MD. From what she tells me the schools she is considering is Xavier University, Avalon University, AUIS, or St. James.
Her concerns are:
-With the Big 3 Caribbean schools will be charging essentially 3 times the tuition as some of these other programs, which is money she could save and instead use some of to apply to 100s of programs during the Match to increase her chances. The other concern is because of the timing of things with the extra semester, it would push her chance to enter the Match by an entire year. So she would essentially have that extra period of time, and with her maternal clock ticking she wants to have kids this decade (her words not mine).
-With the list of other options, her concern is if she will be able to get all the rotations back to back as you do with US schools, and that they are smaller programs with smaller match numbers and not as well known. Being that she won't ever be on the island or taking any courses through the school the concern for how well the school educates the students isn't as important as how helpful they might be with Match. Also, she is completely ok with going into family medicine or peds.
Ok so any advice for her or if anyone from one of these schools she is considering outside of the Big 3 has anything to add about the quality of clerkship rotations or entering the match with one of those schools that would be great.
