Opportunities In Kingston

[Drosophila]

Hi all,

 

I was accepted to Queens and UofA and I’m so grateful and excited. However, I'm having such a tough time deciding which to choose! Both seem like great programs and places to live. I hope someone can help me with one main concern I have with studying medicine in Kingston. It’s a much smaller place than Edmonton with fewer hospitals. I still have no idea what kind of medicine I want to practice and I was hoping I could shadow various types of physicians before clerkship. Does living in a smaller place mean less opportunities to shadow various specialists? Do many students have to commute to larger cities nearby like Toronto, Montreal or Ottawa for such opportunities? 

Also, are most of the clerkship placements in Kingston?

 

Thank you in advance for your help!

[Maverick]

In on this, have a similar question in the ama thread would love to hear opinions.

[Epona]

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[MD_WOLF]

Am reposting from the AMA thread 

 

Just my 2 cents, one of my close buddies actually did his undergad at UBC before going to Queens for med. He also had the same idea about moving into a small town and trying out something different for a change. He ended up not liking it because he only realized how much he loved and gotten used to being in big city once he moved to Kingston. So if you are a big city person, thats a very important factor to keep in mind because 4 years is a long time of your life. When it comes to residency, program directors don't really care which school you come from, they like competent people from everywhere. Here at UofT at least, ive seen way more residents who did their med school at UBC for example than from Queens. Another factor to keep in mind is that clerkship is a very demanding time, and having your established support network around (family and friends) is a big bonus. As for the opportunities, I think that you will have way more resources and subspecialties at a big school like UofA, hence more exposure and chances to make meaningful connections, and also much more research opportunities too to solidify your chances for CaRMS. 

[neuraorta]

On 5/14/2017 at 3:15 PM, MD_WOLF said:

Here at UofT at least, ive seen way more residents who did their med school at UBC for example than from Queens. 

I feel like UBC having 288 students versus Queens' 100 plays a pretty big role in that...