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Ireland


Guest Jimbo

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Guest Badkarma25

hey avaid,

you're going to ask them why we all had different app dates? cool, try to remember to ask the more important question...when we might hear back! look forward to your response

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Guest sporter1992

Hi Kara,

 

From what I've heard, RSCI interviews 50% in feb and 50% in jun. Replies are sent within one month of being interviewed. I was told that if I were to get an interview, it would be in june. Sucks eh?

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  • 2 weeks later...
Guest avaid

hey guys

how is everything

 

yeah hopefully soon we should be getting a reply. i called and they said by end of march.

 

Good Luck to everybody

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Guest Badkarma25

hey all,

glad some life has been breathed back into this string...so the consensus seems to think we'll hear from trinity and ucd by the end of the month? that's earlier than i was told by AB (they said april or may)...i do hope it is earlier, the waiting is driving me nuts!!! anyone else writing the april 26th mcat? i'd sure love to find out i got into ucd or tcd before then!

badkarma

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Guest avaid

hey badkarma

 

i know it seems that everybody is getting different answers.

well i am sure that when one person receives a reply so will the rest of us.

hey do u think u will take the mcats if u get in

 

talk to u soon

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Guest Nica7

Hey everyone,

I am anxiously awaiting a decision from Ireland schools as well. Just a few questions for those of you in the same boat! Why Ireland and not the Caribbean? Do you think it will be hard to come back to North America afterwards? I have been doing a lot of research on this and I always get responses from other people that it is better to go to a good carib school like SGU- since they are geared for the USMLE. Any advice or input would be appreciated! Oh and out of curiosity - does the idea of having a huge debt after all of this keep you up at night (it keeps me up!)- sure tests our dedication to follow this route!

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Guest Badkarma25

hi there,

i really don't think there are advantages to one type of school over another. st. george's has a great track record, but can it really compare to schools that have been teaching medicine for an average of 150 to 200 years? i hardly think so. and as far as what school prepares you for the usmle, i really don't think it's the school...curricula are the same basically everywhere...about the only advantage to a school like sgu (and i'm not saying it's a small advantage) is the ability to do most/all of your clinical rotations in the states which sets you up nicely for a residency. in terms of reputation, i think it's apples and oranges. i'd personally be more impressed with a european grad over carribean, but my opinion doesn't really count as i'd go to either (though i'm leaning toward ireland)! as far as the debt, it doesn't concern me when i think i'd have to work in the states for a while. i know here in canada the money is good, but you could definitely pay back the debt quicker working in the u.s.

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Guest Badkarma25

hey avaid,

nice to see you here again...i'm not sure what i'd do about the mcat if i found out before writing that i got into ucd or tcd...i think i'd still give it a shot (would probably do better because i wouldn't be under any pressure)...why would i still write? cuz i paid over 1000 for this kaplan course (which isn't all that great so far by the way) so i'd want to get my money's worth...i could back out and save the test fee but the kaplan money is gone so i might as well give it my best shot...so you think we'll hear this month?

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Guest Nica7

Badkarma25 - where did you apply in Ireland? Have you applied to SGU yet. Did you have any infro regarding which of the schools are better- Royal College, Trin, UCD or UCC. Good luck on the MCAT- it is a true pain in the $!

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Guest Badkarma25

hey nica,

i haven't applied to SGU and won't apply to SGU...if i had the grades to get into SGU, i'd do a masters and apply in canada or the u.s. ireland requires lower gpa's but i think that's just the way the european schools are. the guy from AB told me they only use GPA as a very general guideline when assessing north american applicants. i want to be a doctor but i'm a realist too; there is no guarantee i'll be able to practice in canada or the u.s., so if i was one of these people with a 3.5 or higher gpa, i'd be sticking with north america. anyway ot get back to your question, i applied to all 4 irish schools (ucd, tcd, cork, and royal college). what i've heard about the best is that trinity is generally most highly regarded...this is sort of the opposite of what i've seen on the boards here, because a lot of people, particularly the u.s. students seem to be talking about royal college (i think because of affiliations that it has)...once again, this is a logic thing....i think i'd rather go to a university that is a standalone university with all different faculties, rather just a private medical university...i've heard from many people i know who are at school there already that in ireland, the royal college is not looked upon as favourably as the other 3. having said that, royal college HAS been teaching medicine for close to 300 years and i'm sure i'd go there if i got in, but i'm leaning towards ucd or trinity myself. particularly trinity...it's seems to be regarded as the best school over there. hope this helps you, if you have any other questions, just drop me an e-mail, badkarma_25@hotmail.com

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Badkharma,

 

Are you sure that Irish schools require lower GPAs than SGU and other Caribbean schools? Maybe I'm mistaken, but I thought it was harder (wrt GPA) to get into Irish medical schools. Where did you come across this info?

 

Thanks.

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Guest Badkarma25

hey kara,

SGU publishes what they call a recommended gpa (can't remember if it was on their website or if i got an e-mail from them when i asked or if it was literature i got from them in the mail) but the average entering grade is somewhere around 3.5...irish schools don't publish anything like that (a cutoff) but i know many many people with grades nowhere near as high as 3.5 who got in, so that's what i'm basing it on.

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Guest sporter1992

Maybe it's ignorance on my part, but personally, I wouldn't go to a carribean school. I think the stigma of going to such a school would follow you for the rest of your life. Sure, 99% of your patients would never ask, but its the 1% that would bother me. Maybe I'm watching too much Frasier on tv (probably).

 

Also, I think it's probably much easier to get into a carib school compared to ireland (from a gpa perspective). And a degree from Ireland makes it slighly easier to get back into Canada...I know some provinces (I think BC for sure) places Ireland in preferential status.

 

Just my $0.02.

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Guest Badkarma25

hey all,

i wouldn't go so far as to say i woudln't go to a carribean school because i would and will if that becomes a necessary choice...every doctor i know has told me that no one has ever asked where they went to school, so that wouldn't be a big problem for me (telling patients i was educated in the carribean)...having said that, i know that for canadians, an irish degree is definitely more respected and certain provinces (manitoba, saskatchewan, and newfoundland) all have placed irish grads at the top of the foreign pool...as far as getting into one vs. the other, i don't know what's easier. some carribean schools like windsor or iuhs are a complete joke so anyone could get into those. others like ross, auc, and st. george's are almost as tough as canadian and u.s. schools, and i'm pretty sure it's a bit tougher to get into those or at least equal to the irish...i know people who got into irish schools whose marks etc would not have been as high as the average entering grades for the established carribean schools.

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Guest goleafs03

Hey guys...I've been reading through this forum and it seems like everyone's trying to get info about entry grades. I'm new at this "international' stuff, so I'm hoping you more educated folks might be able to fill in a couple of blanks for me.

 

I'm going to be finishing my undergrad soon, and I'm seriously thinking about applying overseas. I wrote the MCAT last year, and I did okay (30+ anyways). My GPA over the last couple of years is alright, 3.5-3.6, though I haven't converted through AMCAS yet. My concern...I'm one of those kids who didn't quite make that crucial "transition" in first year :eek

 

Anyways...my first year GPA isn't going to help me at all...basically a write-off! (Ahh...to be 18) Over my first three years, it actually brings me down to about 3.2. My question...do you guys know how schools like SGU, and Irish schools like UCD (and the others), look at our grades?

 

I'm trying to figure out how a bad first year is going to affect me when I apply...and how my MCAT scores, or doing alright in the last couple of years, as well as improving further in my final year, could help out. I know that here in Canada a lot of schools respect improvement, and a lot will only consider your best 2 or 3 years. But...I don't know how foreign schools approach our applications.

 

Any thoughts you can share would be appreciated, and I look forward to chatting in the future ;)

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Guest avaid

hey goleafs,

 

hey im from toronto too, well im assuming your from toronto. well what i think they look at grades just like any other schhol would in canada or the US. it doesnt make a difference marks are marks and from what i have heard i think that is the main focus. i know SGUhas a rolling admission so there are 3 semester in a year you can apply for which i think gives an individual better chance for getting accepted. i personaly think your grade and mcat scores are right on good for you but dont listen to me call the schools and ask them because they know more than we all know. im sorry i dont know much about how the first year marks matter but i would ask them that to but i think if your overall grades and good that should not be a problem.

i hope this helps

keep in touch

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goleafs03,

 

Wrt Irish schools, they don't seem to give out a lot of info but the admissions officer did mention to me that marks are not all treated equally. They seem to look at the reputation of the university you attended. Not sure how they adjust grades using such criteria. Regardless I do think that a cumulative 3.2 is competitive especially if completed at one of the better known universities in NA.

 

I only applied to Trinity which I'm guessing is more GPA-oriented as no interview or MCAT was required unlike the other Irish schools. On the AB application they ask for cumulative GPA, so I'm guessing that wrt academics this is what they're looking at. Doesn't seem that they consider recent trends in GPA. Non-academic stuff includes a two-page essay, 3 references and a CV.

 

My non-academic stuff is mediocre at best so I'm hoping my academic stuff will pull me through. Like yourself I've had better grades during my latter years. My cumulative is 3.50 cumulative (OMSAS scale). My first year was a write-off. My last 3 full-time years are good (3.88, 3.60, 3.87, OMSAS ). All my courses were taken at U of T, so that may help me. I also applied to Mac...no luck and Pharmacy...won't know until late June.

 

Good luck!

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Guest newbee

Hey Kara:

 

 

Western needs at least 3.7 in your best two years (which you have)!!!

 

Queen's needs a 3.55 in your last two years which you have!!!!!!

 

 

Ottawa only looks at your last three years which in your case is a great 3.78!!!!

 

I'm really curious as to why you didn't apply to the other Canadian Schools. You had a great shot at all of them!

 

What was your GPA is first year anyways?

 

 

Looking forward to your respose

Take care and good luck :)

Newbee

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newbee,

 

I thought of Ottawa but decided against it as I didn't think I would qualify based on my 3.78 GPA, even though I knew I would be close. In fact their cut-off was over 3.8 this year so I saved some dough as my GPA would not have been good enough. I also haven't written the new MCAT so I'm not eligible for the other Ontario schools. So I applied only to Mac and Trinity. I thought about writing the MCAT the past summer but got really lazy and hate interviews. I may write the MCAT this summer but it's been years since I took orgo, physics, inorganic chemistry, so I'm not very confident about it.

 

I'm currently doing a second degree at U of T and so far have good grades that may put me over the 3.84 or so required for Ottawa. But then again my EC's are lame so there's no guarantee, I'll get interviewed.

 

Should I get accepted into Trinity, I have no idea what I'm going to do, as tuition cost may be a major obstacle there. If I continue to do really well this year I may just try for Ottawa next year and also write the summer MCAT or may opt for Trinity if I get accepted assuming I can come up with the cash. And then, again I might opt for pharmacy should I big lucky enough to get an offer. Yep, I still have no idea of where I'm going to be next year.

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