VCOM vs. SGU (Plz help)

[monicat123]

Hello!

I have recently been accepted for VCOM-Carolinas for fall 2017. I have also been accepted for SGU in January 2017. My boyfriend just started SGU and I spent a month attending lectures, exploring the island, and getting acclimated. I really want to be close to him, but I also dont want to make a bad call. I know it is too early to plan for a certain residency, but I've worked in the ER for the last four years and I'm pretty comfortable with the idea of pursuing EM. I have shadowed other specialties and cannot picture myself doing anything except ER. I am really really struggling with this decision and could some solid advice.

Why VCOM?
-Nice, stand-alone medical school.
-Good curriculum; uses blocks
-Affiliate hospitals all along the Appalachians
-30 mins from some serious mountains!
-Only 2 hrs from my dads and I know one person there from undergrad
Why not VCOM?
-Very isolated
-No diversity
-Affiliate hospitals all along the Appalachians
-Professional dress code (not a big factor, but I was hoping to wear sweatpants)

Why SGU?
-Big school
-SO MUCH DIVERSITY on campus and off from clubs to extracurricular activities
-Obviously my boyfriend
-Affiliate hospitals in California and New York
-New change in curriculum utilizes systems based learning
-MD will help in certain countries that don't recognize DOs yet (I'm interested in global health)
Why not SGU?
-Stigma
-Pressure for steps to be higher than AMG for the same residency placement
-Not finding a residency? especially for EM?

The money is essentially the same, so this is not a factor in my decision. I am struggling with the long distance relationship because he's obviously studying hard in medical school, but I imagine this getting worse if I attend VCOM. He really means the world to me and I feel I am a better person and student in his company. Please give me honest advice, but try to understand where I am coming from. The way I see it, I can work hard to be anything and everything I want, but I can't buy or earn the connection/chemistry I have with him. I'm lucky to have even found him.
On the other hand, I need to make sure I do everything in my power to become one hell of a physician. I have dreams and plans, which include working in the ER and public/global health. What if hopeless romantic = complete idiot?

PLEASE HELP!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Dr.Jekyll75]

I have a classmate whose boyfriend is at Ross same issue. She thought about going there question did up going to MSU. Your relationship will survive, it's only a year and a half. You put yourself at a better chance of obtaining your dreams and a DO school versus a Caribbean school.


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile

 

[sazerac]

I'm lucky to have even found him.

No, you are lucky to have an acceptance to a medical school in the United States.

 

[Unico]

Another con for SGU is that only about 50-60% of those accepted actually get through the first two years on the island.

Your future as a physician vs a relationship, it's not a hard call. Always put yourself first 'cause no one else will (unless it's your parents). Seriously, avoid the Caribbean like the plague (I'm speaking from experience).

Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile

 

[Goro]

Do not consider any carib diploma mill unless you really like the idea of being unemployed and deeply in debt. You're exactly the gullible mark that they prey upon.

The point here isn't that there are successful Carib grads. The point is how many additional obstacles to success you face by going to a Carib school.

The pool of US applicants from the Caribbean is viewed differently by Program Directors. The DDx for a Caribbean grad is pretty off-putting: bad judgment, bad advice, egotism, gullibility, overbearing parents, inability to delay gratification, IA's, legal problems, weak research skills, high risk behavior. This is not to say that all of them still have the quality that drew them into this situation. There is just no way to know which ones they are. Some PD's are in a position where they need to, or can afford to take risks too! So, some do get interviews.

Bad grades and scores are the least of the deficits from a PD's standpoint. A strong academic showing in a Caribbean medical school does not erase this stigma. It fact it increases the perception that the reason for the choice was on the above-mentioned list!

Just about everyone from a Caribbean school has one or more of these problems and PDs know it. That's why their grads are the last choice even with a high Step 1 score.

There was a time when folks whose only flaw was being a late bloomer went Carib, but those days are gone. There are a number of spots at US schools with grade replacement for these candidates.

It's likely you'll be in the bottom half or two thirds of the class that gets dismissed before Step 1. The business plan of a Carib school depends on the majority of the class not needing to be supported in clinical rotations. They literally can't place all 250+ of the starting class at clinical sites (educational malpractice, really. If this happened at a US school, they be shut down by LCME or COCA, and sued.

The Carib (and other offshore) schools have very tenuous, very expensive, very controversial relationships with a very small number of US clinical sites. You may think you can just ask to do your clinical rotations at a site near home. Nope. You may think you don't have to worry about this stuff. Wrong.

And let's say you get through med school in the Carib and get what you need out of the various clinical rotation scenarios. Then you are in the match gamble. I don't need to say a word about this - you can find everything you need to know at nrmp.org.

You really need to talk to people who made it through Carib into residency, and hear the story from them. How many people were in their class at the start, how many are in it now? How long did it take to get a residency, and how did they handle the gap year(s) and their student loans? How many residencies did they apply to, how many interviews did they get, and were any of the programs on their match list anything like what they wanted?

A little light reading:

https://milliondollarmistake.wordpress.com/

http://www.tameersiddiqui.com/medical-school-at-sgu

Hello!

I have recently been accepted for VCOM-Carolinas for fall 2017. I have also been accepted for SGU in January 2017. My boyfriend just started SGU and I spent a month attending lectures, exploring the island, and getting acclimated. I really want to be close to him, but I also dont want to make a bad call. I know it is too early to plan for a certain residency, but I've worked in the ER for the last four years and I'm pretty comfortable with the idea of pursuing EM. I have shadowed other specialties and cannot picture myself doing anything except ER. I am really really struggling with this decision and could some solid advice.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Your boyfriend made a bad call. Don't follow in his footsteps by making the same mistake. You have a US acceptance. SGU should not even be an option for you, boyfriend or not.

 

[Shotapp]

Go to VCOM-CC. Your chance of becoming a doctor is 100% (except if you fail out). Whereas the Caribbean, your chance of becoming a doctor is not even close to 100. Take the path of least resistance.

 

[MusicDOc124]

There seems to be a misconception on DOs abroad. Do you plan on moving abroad and LIVING and WORKING there? If not, it shouldn't be an issue. Are you looking into mission trips or things like doctors without borders and operation smile? They don't care if you're an MD or a DO. Just be licensed from where you are coming to help.

Also, having an MD isn't all inclusive. Some countries only accept a US MD if you went to a particular list of schools (apparently - I haven't looked this up yet). Also, if you do want to move somewhere - MD or DO, you'd have to take their national exams in their language, so unless you'd be going to UK, Ireland, or Aus, hopefully you'd speak other languages!

Some places will only let you sit for their exam also if they can't fill a position in the first place.

 

[Chimichica]

I am going against the grain and say of you and your bf have a great relationship and that's where you want to be, then go to SGU. Only because a break up on the middle of med school unless you have some great coping mechanisms may throw you off track...hard. that is unless you break it off before hand. And just because you go to SGU doesn't mean you have to practice in the states. At SGU you have the option to do US or British clinical and residencies. You guys might not even end up living here. I'm saying it depends on your relationship status and I really feel you and the bf should be making this decision together. I say this because my bf will be following me no matter If I go to China, but we have loved each other for over 10 years. So it may be different in your case.

Sent from my SM-G900T using Tapatalk

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

I am going against the grain and say of you and your bf have a great relationship and that's where you want to be, then go to SGU. Only because a break up on the middle of med school unless you have some great coping mechanisms may throw you off track...hard. that is unless you break it off before hand. And just because you go to SGU doesn't mean you have to practice in the states. At SGU you have the option to do US or British clinical and residencies. You guys might not even end up living here. I'm saying it depends on your relationship status and I really feel you and the bf should be making this decision together. I say this because my bf will be following me no matter If I go to China, but we have loved each other for over 10 years. So it may be different in your case.

Sent from my SM-G900T using Tapatalk

If OP cares about being a doctor in the US, this is terrible advice. Do not go to SGU.

 

[futuremdforme]

I am going against the grain and say of you and your bf have a great relationship and that's where you want to be, then go to SGU. Only because a break up on the middle of med school unless you have some great coping mechanisms may throw you off track...hard. that is unless you break it off before hand. And just because you go to SGU doesn't mean you have to practice in the states. At SGU you have the option to do US or British clinical and residencies. You guys might not even end up living here. I'm saying it depends on your relationship status and I really feel you and the bf should be making this decision together. I say this because my bf will be following me no matter If I go to China, but we have loved each other for over 10 years. So it may be different in your case.

Sent from my SM-G900T using Tapatalk

IMO you don't make career-altering decisions for a boyfriend. A fiance, maybe. A spouse, yes (but still maybe not this choice). But not a boyfriend.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

IMO you don't make career-altering decisions for a boyfriend. A fiance, maybe. A spouse, yes (but still maybe not this choice). But not a boyfriend.

You shouldn't let your spouse go to SGU in the first place. A boyfriend, maybe since you're just dating and it's his life. When you're married, it's both your lives.

 

[gamieg]

I am going against the grain and say of you and your bf have a great relationship and that's where you want to be, then go to SGU. Only because a break up on the middle of med school unless you have some great coping mechanisms may throw you off track...hard. that is unless you break it off before hand. And just because you go to SGU doesn't mean you have to practice in the states. At SGU you have the option to do US or British clinical and residencies. You guys might not even end up living here. I'm saying it depends on your relationship status and I really feel you and the bf should be making this decision together. I say this because my bf will be following me no matter If I go to China, but we have loved each other for over 10 years. So it may be different in your case.

Sent from my SM-G900T using Tapatalk

oh man.

yeah, definitely make that decision together because if your boyfriend understands the reality of going to SGU and the road ahead yet STILL recommends that you go there to be with him, that'll demonstrate the caliber of his "love."

 

[Dr.Jekyll75]

I feel that it's more of OPs issue than he bf. if her bf said go to the Caribbean's with him then there's something off. But if it's her thinking that this will hinder her , then she needs to do some self reflection and realize that at the end of the day it's about her .


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile

 

[WGSgrad]

That seems like a lot of pressure to put on your relationship...so if you are thinking about this in the context of your relationship (which I wouldn't advocate) I still think there is an argument to be made against going to the Caribbean...


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile

 

[atomi]

It depends. How quickly are you trying to declare bankruptcy?

 

[BombsAway]

It depends. How quickly are you trying to declare bankruptcy?

Not sure if they even could

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Not sure if they even could

Bankruptcy doesn't discharge student debt.

 

[Tabiyou]

There is a reason why 26 people voted VCOM and why 1 voted SGU. You said he is your bf, not husband. Within the 4 months that I have been in school there have already been several break ups. You guys can survive 4 years via long distance.

 

[Dr.Jekyll75]

OPs made up her mind about choosing SGU + bf, she just needed someone to tell her to do it


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

OPs made up her mind about choosing SGU + bf, she just needed someone to tell her to do it


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile

Probably, but I at least feel better letting her know it's a terrible idea.

 

[BombsAway]

Dear hopeless romantic,

I recommend you turn off 'The Notebook' and watch 'Atonement' instead.

One tells the story of things eventually working out. The other is tale of grasping at a dream, but the only way it can exist is in your imagination.

TLDR; 7 billion people on the planet, no one is special anymore. You'll find another person that completes you. I'll bet you 4 years tuition at SGU.

 

[TheTao]

If diversity was/is an issue, why even apply someplace like VCOM?