But I also still believe that you can become a top doctor without attending a top-tier school! I really appreciate your insights and candidness. If you were surprised, Im not sure why because for our class, they literally had a mandatory lecture in Term 1 where we learned all about WMPG correlation to Step scores, and why it was important for us to do well in order to get a residency. The amount of resources available online is insane. There are lots of scholarships and many offer grants as well, Im looking at a $10,000/yr grant for prior military service. Like being released into the ocean with weights to make sure you never see the sunlight on surface ever again.. sometimes we get away with mistakes (being poorly trained) but dont envy US. I went to Ross and I was dismissed bc I did not want to repeat. One great physician told me, knowledge is one thing people cant take away from you. I graduated for American University of the Caribbean. You dont need to be a genius to be a doctor. As a provider you have no opportunities to change a system that has been designed by non-medical bureaucrats. Hello, Stop going to the beach every afternoon. I had about 6-8 very close friends that I went through the process with. She called me after the meeting crying and said she was sorry. It was very difficult for me emotionally to be away from my family so inevitably, I chose my family over medical school. However, very fast pace curriculum and dont you learn anything deeply. Always lived at home, never had a job, mommy and daddy took care of everything, cant cook, bath when told only, etcand then you get a diamond every now and then. Still, this thread is an interesting read if youre looking for more insight into exactly whats going on at Saba (and what it might be like). They actually started getting better the further we moved along in semesters. I knew my calling was medicine and even after being well informed of the risks of attending an international medical school I applied and was accepted to every one I applied to without much troubles at all. Kissing Butt worked. My family member has failed two semester and appeal for financial aid. no problem, no undergraduate degree, cmon down, no academic documents/proofs, AUAs got ya! One thing I would tell you is not to judge newcomers so harshly in the moment and understand that everyone reaches their potential at different rates. Have faith & please join me. The failure in the eyes of my family. Amazing. If you Vacation is from Christmas to early Feburary (sweet! The school also offers workshops on different areas as test taking skills, how to deal with anxiety and depression, and how to study for a specific subject. I dont know how to answer that. Yet, school position is, they have more than the minimum seat requirement for institution to qualify as one. If it was your family at jeopardy, would you say the same worse yet, they are or they claim they are medical school. I left after the first semester because I could see the dangerous journey I was embarking on. We also have free shuttles from the school to other places in the town (running frequently, 7 days a week from 7 AM to 2 AM or later). Remember this is your DREAM, never forget that. California approval is a good indicator of quality because their board is very strict in evaluating a school. In my first semester at AUA, last semester only 20% of my class of about 500 (I may be off on the class size number but it pretty close) passed. even though Im like 3 years late to this party. taining to what was expected/tolerated of US Grads, and what WE could Recently my sis talked to be about almost quitting residency again.. but her husband convinced her otherwise. You learn to understand the struggles of locals and how they survive so that even the cook gives you free food and knows your name. You learn how to make relationships with the right people if you are smart and people that keep you on track. I am not surprised as this would benefit the bottom line. I am now trying to decide which one to go to. Apply to them knowing that there is a high attrition rate, but also know that if you work hard and you stay focused, I dont see any reason why you couldnt succeed. i am looking to apply to Ross, SABA and AUC. However, against all these warnings, if you do decided to apply, Keep in mind, AUA will take EVERYBODY. Contact Dr. Wible. For example AUC (a big three program in the Caribbean) does offer clinical rotations in England but none of the AUC students can complete postgraduate work / residency training there. VIDEO FROM THE NEW YORKER We also have free academic tutoring either for a group of up to eight students offered by the school, as well as, one-on-one free tutoring services offered by the honors society in the school. Even had the dean of medicine call me into his office that was essentially harrasment. Remember, the MCAT is required for the May term! So why come here? Sciences tuition: $16,975. Many of my old classmates did finish, many are in residency. Theyre for profit. I need to know my chances as an Indian student. The local population has developed a relationship with the university administration which allows them to use extortion, for example, to keep up to three months deposit from each student that rents, without justification, or to extract other off-lease payments. We were both premed/biochem majors from a top undergraduate university whose pass rate for prerequisites were 50%, so were used to being under a lot of what seems to be unfair stress. These are the students who started something and are going to finish, even if it means living in a box. Island conditions were diplorable and I personally had a room infested with cockroaches and spiders. I am particularly interested to know whether these students are more likely to end up in hospitals of last resort, where they may be more likely to get away with mistakes. We are given a vague outline and need to get through the tests and STEP with high scores. They will not post that on their wonderful brochures! I am hoping to enter the May 2018 Class. Out of the 53,371 applicants in 2019, just 21,869 matriculated into an allopathic medical school. Do you feel deceived? I read this with great interest as a specialist trained in Quebec 35 years ago. Hello, please does any know about SABA university and if it is a good school because am thinking of applying there. Or is it a surprise the poor conditions? I have friends who bombed out of the big three and did finish med school at an even lower tiered school. I know of many students who do well and excel and even get residencies in big name hospitals. If you want it bad enough they give you the opportunity and once again I think I got a great education with study skills that have carried me into residency! We Dreaded this, so many actually transferred to the Caribbean schools, or did the Old Fifth Pathway year, typically in NYC. My friends in Cali med schools couldnt believe how many modules they were packing into our terms. I cant really tell you as even if I had obtained a residency my best hope would be to stay even. Somehow I managed to struggle through undergrad earning 2 Bachelor degrees, one in Biochemistry and one in Medical Technology (otherwise knowns as Clinical Laboratory Science). I want to fill you in on what really goes on behind the scenes at my medical school and maybe you can help inform other students about what happens here before they make a huge mistake. You need to ask yourself: am I one of those 10 students? in Human Biology. Youre getting a second chance to be a doctor. A little bit about me. Or it doesnt apply to AUA because they dont teach students anything except garbles up students financial aid money?! Saba students earn top residencies at medical centers across the US and Canada. Cancel your social media profiles. theyd hit you with it. As soon as you are a pre-med, the world will ask a lot from you and they will never stop asking you to be perfect. I totally agree with everything youve stated and Im glad I withdrew when I did because that one semester cost me $30,000. You see that with relationships, after many years marriages that no-one ever thought will fail, fail. Hospital Volunteer Opportunities Near You, Is Ross University A Good Medical School? The fact is the 750 number is out-dated and the student to library seating ratio has been worsening with their swift marketing tactics to bring in more students every semester(me included-got suckered into their libel). No McAT? 80% of lectures and labs are mandatory, which I believe is inconvenient for many of us. Hi Dr. Wible, Everyone has different experiences about their transition at Caribbean medical schools. Dont listen to all that, you can succeed in the Caribbean and as an older student. If youre someone who has excellent grades and excellent test-taking skills, you will almost guaranteed match after four years. Also, you will have to teach yourself majority of the time, but like I said if you are dedicated you can do it, take it from someone who basically taught herself all of medicine coming out of high school. Failed out My name is Dahn Shaulis. I will take it a step further by stating that many of these places, unfortunately, have wicked people who prey on the students due to the perception that they are wealthy foreigners. However, Caribbean medical schools offer an alternative for people like my son, whom all grade in Canadas university is 92% and over, and MCAT was on the top and he did not received any admission or even interview for admission to any Canadas medical university due to this spot are offered for international student who pay more money. I know this because im not 20 obviously and I know how schools are accredited, so I also know when someone is stretching the truth a lot. The majority of My lawyer eventually Comparison is one of those things that will always make it hard to deal with things that life throws at you. My last point will be this. Caribbean school should be your last resort and when youve decided its your last resort, make sure you compare the top 3 and see which suits you best (St. George, Ross, AUC). When picking your medical school, or your job and location; examine yourself. So many of my colleagues are just a shell of themselves, though prior to med school they too were healers and humanitarians. I graduated from AUC back in 1998 and my experience was very different from the one described above. Like do you feel you were placed in a hospital where there was a good amount of patho-physiological diversified cases. I wanted to finally speak up. This practice is used against faculty as well, who also have to rent, creating an overall environment of stress and anxiety for everyone at the university that makes it not worth living there, even if you can afford losing thousands arbitrarily. You just have to put the hours in and learn it. OMG. Pluses are that class sizes are small. I live in the US and have been out of school for about 4 years. Hey, could you let me know about the pros and cons of studying at all saints St. Vincent and the grenadines? Perhaps that is true for some, but for many the fact that they realize that a school has just trashed their dreams or making it extremely difficult for them to attain it, is heartbreaking. My heart goes out to you all. The school initially allowed it and let them move on throughout Med 1 med 4. In fact, the mental stress of not being able to pursue your dreams is far worse than the stress any medical student may face academically. The school where I attended my Medical Technology School training closed in 1999 and I could not get a transcript. The rumor was that the school was planning on setting up a for-profit quiz bank that would make money for the owner of the school. I have a B.sc in human anatomy and wish to study medicine in a carribean university because they are cheaper than the those in the US and better than most of our Universities over here. And you wont feel that desperation to finish until you have invested so much of your soul, money, sanity for the hope of coming out the other end a doctor. Test-takers move up the ladder; not the best doctors necessarily. Do NOT LET HIM CHOOSE AUA! What year did you apply to US med schools? Why does your comment about minorities seem like they just give any minority a seat at Med School dont they also have the requisite grades? Its such a long haul, there really isnt any reason to jump into a less than perfect scenario. More unique is when you find people that really have the passion and heart for taking care of underserved patient populations. One word = corrupted. They do not have to tell the student. I am very happy to be here in the Caribbean. But, in 2016, only two hundred and thirteen students received an N.H.S.C. This is touching. Your generalization based upon a few Caribbean graduates is rather harsh and ill informed. I was even inspired to write about my Caribbean experience on a forum that might help other future medical students which Ive added below. Yet the goal to expland and expedite all INTO ONTO THE USA neurtralizationat warp speed PS curing COVI the internationalist were permitted to take their entrance exams into Med Schoolon their own. I was once a newcomer myself and someone may have thought I was incapable, but they were wrong, I was highly capable, just not confident yet. No we dont have it, but you can get the 4th edition if you like, theres not much of a difference Sadly, medicine as we know it today, is a business from start to finish. There are pros and cons about attending Caribbean medical schools. Decelerate twice and you are dismissed. Saba is also one of the most estabilished and long running schools in the Caribbean, founded in 1993. I cant vouch for the others. When, I become a doctor, my goal is to spread the word that no one attend the Caribbean medical school. I luckily met you, Dr. Wible, and found out there were options for these feelings and that I was not alone in this process, med school can be hard. I am also SGU student and this is very inaccurate and misleading. Been there, done that. Thank You for this message. SJSM would have you believe that they put a lot of money into their faculty, and that is why the campus facilities are so rudimentary. These schools want high quality doctors and have reputations to uphold. Be blessed. I am one of the lucky few who actually passed the first two years of school in Grenada, at SGU. Everyone will ask you for the money. Ive heard so many disappointing stories from hard-working students, many of which participate in student government or other volunteer groups whose goal is to add value to SJSM and the students. Its equipped with a nice and big gym that is located in front of the schools beach. 4 Is it hard to get into Saba medical school? While students from Canada are eligible for federal loans through the Ministry of Education in their province of residence. (but if you want in on a little secret, the highest paid professors at a US school get paid for their research! I was reprimanded when I asked what the screening practices were that allowed a criminal to teach us medicine. I saw them dismiss hard-working students who were already in 4th term and close to already over $300k in debt. We have a lot of student organizations in case you want to show off your leadership skills. Florida has a couple. 100%USMLE Step 1 Exam first-time pass rate (2021)- a consistently strong performance. 2022 Saba University School of Medicine. Our fail rate is just higher in the first 2 semesters, so if you make it to the 3rd semester, hardly anyone fails after that. Hello dears, Overall I was a student with a steller academic and EC record. they never reveal the attrition rates and i dont think theyll start anytime soon. The amount of knowledge you are expected to consume and the rate and consistency is so insane. Currently I feel like a clown auditioning for a circus. there are also other factors that make a student decide on their school like the cost of tution. In Nigeria, its sad to say that almost every single medical school is like that. Im still trying to understand the reasoning behind the current modal of physician training that we have. Dont let this end your dreams, but let it catapult you forward. Medicine isnt what it used to be. Saba graduates have enjoyed great success in securing residencies. USA residency spots are funded by Medicare if Im not mistaken, so again we see the tax payers subsidizing this cycle. Pros of the school: The school's website is available here. If you cheated or something, theyd I believe that my application was simply filtered out due to my low MCAT score with no consideration that I still did better than many students who took the exam and I have been out of school for 30 years. Although its not that much of a big deal, it could look odd on some residency applications. We prepare them for the MCAT. I wish I could recommend SJSM to other med school hopefuls. [3] In 2006, the people of Saba, Sint Eustatius and Bonaire agreed to dissolve the Netherlands Antilles. The admin only cares about money and their curriculum is set up for student hardship and even failure. The loans are private and the rates are through the roof. Given that every semester, despite AUA or Caribbean med school reputations, reddits, sdn, etc., student size grows. The alumni association periodically brings graduates from the US and/or Canada to the school to talk about tips for residency, how to adapt in our transition when we return to the USA for clinicals, and how to study for USMLE, among other topics. Could you guys give the honest opinions? My advise to any pre-med is to be INFORMED. You are literally living at a cruise ship destination! Additionally, if you have the study material for Step 1 and have learned it well, you will pass every class with more than a 70% aka a C. Furthermore, if you cannot score a 70% or better on NBME subject exams, how do you expect to score well on Step 1? At the end of the day, its about affecting the world around us positively. The other big schools with federal loan programs do not take transfers, or they do but with USMLEs which I never took. Financially, I did not have resources to finish in 4 years. Also keep in mind that these schools do let a surplus of students in, even students who dont quality. The will to succeed and genuine drive of these physicians eclipses most of my US trained peers. We got them to retreat from that Sorry, you go there just to memorize few booklets to pass the boards without even having the basic knowledge of treating the patients. But that is just a facade so that it seems like everything there is good. From my research, students who wish to study medicine but do not get in, oftentimes apply to English-language programs in Poland, Hungary, or Romania to study medicine there (if they can afford it) and then get their degrees validated by the EU as MD-Romania for example. The reality is that some of you shouldnt be in medical school. This is a real school. I do believe that a reasonably strong candidate should be able to get a DO spot as I know people who got in on the second and third application cycle. On top of that, there are not enough residency slots in almost every medical specialty and that is not presently being adequately addressed. In March of 2014, Phillip passed the U.S. medical-licensing exam, with one year of Cuban medical school left. My biggest concern for any Caribbean school is the ECFMG 2023 policy that would essentially be shutting down all access to the US. You can not reason anatomy, pharmacology, or histology. Any tips from others here will be greatly appreciated. All of the time and sacrifice I made. You will get discouraged and depressed sometimes. Whether or not the system of selection is fair or not, those who will not let their dream dye, do consider attending a Caribbean med-school a serious option. Less expensive than the bigger Caribbean schools Many of us miss our families; we missed family celebrations and parties at our best friends house. What school if you dont mind sharing. 1) Faculty turnover is outrageously high, and the university will spend a year at a time short-staffed on a subject. An Insight into Coupons and a Secret Bonus, Organic Hacks to Tweak Audio Recording for Videos Production, Bring Back Life to Your Graphic Images- Used Best Graphic Design Software, New Google Update and Future of Interstitial Ads. I did well but still the rude awakening of seeing how all they care about is the money and not the student was the straw that broke the camels back. Please Thanks. Let me stay focused on the Caribbean ones. A bachelors degree in 6 months?? A second chance to be away from my family over medical school AUA will take EVERYBODY dreams, let! See the dangerous journey i was dismissed bc i did not have resources to finish, many in... 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