Transferring Medical Schools

[justanothermedstudent]

Hi there,

Due to personal/familial reasons, I am heavily considering transferring medical schools to be closer to my family. I was wondering if anyone has transferred medical schools in the past and could shed some light on the process/how they went about contacting the school they were interested in. For reference, I am a Canadian medical student who is looking to transfer to another Canadian school. I understand that most schools only allow transfers at the beginning of third year. Please PM me if you have any relevant information that can help me out.

Thanks

[Bambi]

I have no knowledge or relevant information but I would think you will have a serious uphill battle to accomplish this.

[IMislove]

The only one I've seen was the transfer page western has: https://www.schulich.uwo.ca/med_dent_admissions/medicine/transfer_students.html

UBC had this to say: 

Student transfer opportunities into the UBC MD Undergraduate Program are rare. Transfers are exclusive to third year and are possible only if there are vacancies in the class. In order to be eligible, students requesting transfer must be in good standing in a Canadian or US medical school accredited by the Committee on Accreditation of Canadian Medical Schools and the Liaison Committee on Medical Education.

Students who meet the above criteria and wish to be considered for transfer should contact the Assistant Dean, Admissions at deanadmissions.md@ubc.ca.

https://mdprogram.med.ubc.ca/admissions/after-you-apply/post-acceptance-conditions/

 

Not sure about other schools but im guessing you would need extremely extenuating circumstances. Best of luck with things.

[shikimate]

UWO does accept transfers, I know of 1 person who did 2 years at another Canadian school then transferred to UWO to start clerkship due to family reasons.

[ChemPetE]

Very old alumni here but I recall Calgary having documentation for a transfer policy. It would be rare but not unheard of by any means

[indefatigable]

In the past I looked into this.  The only other schools that consider transfers are University of Ottawa and Memorial.  

Transfers can generally only occur at the end of second year assuming that this is just before clerkship; otherwise it's not possible from what I saw.  

University of Calgary currently does not accept transfers into their program according to their FAQ - given the differences in timeline, I'm not too surprised.

[carmsregrets]

19 hours ago, indefatigable said:

In the past I looked into this.  The only other schools that consider transfers are University of Ottawa and Memorial.  

Transfers can generally only occur at the end of second year assuming that this is just before clerkship; otherwise it's not possible from what I saw.  

University of Calgary currently does not accept transfers into their program according to their FAQ - given the differences in timeline, I'm not too surprised.

I know people who transferred to U of C, U of A, UBC, and western. You will need an extenuating circumstances though.

[indefatigable]

1 hour ago, carmsregrets said:

I know people who transferred to U of C, U of A, UBC, and western. You will need an extenuating circumstances though.

UBC, Western, Ottawa and Memorial are the only schools that have an official transfer policy that I know of.  

For the Alberta schools, I suppose the UofA is open to program transfers?  - otherwise the FAQs seem to mention that it's not a typical policy.

[UofA] "Generally, no; however, we will review all submitted requests for transfer on a case by case basis. We do not accept students in transfer from other medical schools.  Please submit a detailed letter as well as any supporting documentation to MDAcademics@ualberta.ca."

https://www.ualberta.ca/medicine/programs/md/applying-to-medicine/faq.html

[UofC]"10. Is it possible to transfer into the U of C MD program?  The University of Calgary, Cumming School of Medicine does not consider transfer requests."

https://cumming.ucalgary.ca/mdprogram/future-students/admissions/applicant-manual/admissions-faq

 

[carmsregrets]

2 minutes ago, indefatigable said:

UBC, Western, Ottawa and Memorial are the only schools that have an official transfer policy that I know of.  

For the Alberta schools, I suppose the UofA is open to program transfers?  - otherwise the FAQs seem to mention that it's not a typical policy.

[UofA] "Generally, no; however, we will review all submitted requests for transfer on a case by case basis. We do not accept students in transfer from other medical schools.  Please submit a detailed letter as well as any supporting documentation to MDAcademics@ualberta.ca."

https://www.ualberta.ca/medicine/programs/md/applying-to-medicine/faq.html

[UofC]"10. Is it possible to transfer into the U of C MD program?  The University of Calgary, Cumming School of Medicine does not consider transfer requests."

https://cumming.ucalgary.ca/mdprogram/future-students/admissions/applicant-manual/admissions-faq

 

yes, i know transfers that happened to u of a 1 year ago and at u of c 2 years ago. maybe policy changed.

[ChemPetE]

That’s a shame re u of c. I would still pursue it in the same fashion like u of a, and also write them a compelling letter. No downside still with a potential upside

[ChemPetE]

Found more info, from the U of C academic calendar:

 

Admission of Students by Transfer

The Committee is able to consider requests for students from another Canadian university to take clerkship education at the University of Calgary in mandatory clerkship courses, or their equivalents, for the entire clerkship year provided that:

1. There is support from the Associate Dean UME at the University of Calgary and the counterpart at the Canadian university from which the student is transferring. This must include justification for the request and confirmation of good academic and professional standing in the university from which the student is transferring. 
2. There are sufficient resources at the University of Calgary, such that the transfer student will not displace University of Calgary students. 

These requests can be considered in the same manner that the Committee will consider requests from University of Calgary students for extensions to clerkships and special leaves of absence.

Students accepted for transfer will become a University of Calgary student, and will, upon completion of all the requirements for an MD degree, be conferred a University of Calgary medical degree. 

For more information on Medical Student Transfers, refer to: Medical Students Transfer Policy.

Also, here is a link to their transfer policy as of 2016: https://cumming.ucalgary.ca/sites/default/files/teams/4/Policies/M/Medical School Transfers - Updated June 13%2C 2016.pdf