Strange situation, need advice.

[makalino]

Hey guys,

 

I am a 22 year old male currently studying at the Medical University of Gdansk in Poland. I just finished my 3rd year of studies am going into the 4th year of the 6 year program this upcoming October. I am originally from Vancouver, BC, where I was born and raised. However, I am of Polish origin, and do speak Polish. Although I study in Europe, my plan is, and always has been, to return home after finishing. I intend on writing my USMLE Step 1 next summer.

 

After graduating from high school in 2006, I went to the University of Calgary for 1 year, majoring in Biological Sciences. After hearing about medical school in Poland, I decided to take a leap of faith and apply. Considering I spoke Polish, had family in the Gdansk area, was extremely hungry to study medicine, I jumped the gun a little bit. I thought: "I'll go to Poland for 6 years, write a few board exams, and return home at 25 as a Doctor." The thought was very appealing.

 

I am beginning to have second thoughts being overseas. I'm not positive the school has prepared me well enough for my board exams, although I have been studying myself on the side. Since it is theoretically a 6-year program designed for european students, the school doesn't give time off to do a clinical rotation during my 5th-6th year of study. Also, I have found out that the school doesn't even have an affiliation with a US hospital. I'm not sure a decent board exam score will be enough to get me back home, and especially back in BC.

 

I talked with a friend today, and he suggested I stay in Poland until after I finish my Step 1 USMLE. After that, he recommended that I transfer into the 3rd year of a 4 year program in a Caribbean medical school that has rotations set up in US hospitals. He argues that this way, I can get my theory out of the way in Poland, and get my clinical experience in the US for 2 years. I don't even know if it's possible to transfer from Poland, and to be completely honest, it sounds a little too good to be true.

 

This is pretty much where I get stuck. Do I:

 

1. Stay in Gdansk, finish what I started, and hope for the best. Worse case scenario, I end up in England while waiting to come back.

2. Write my USMLE Step 1, and after the 4th year transfer to the clinical years of another school. (if it's even possible)

3. Drop out completely and return to Calgary to start where I left off. I'd eventually apply for medical school just like everyone else. (If I did this, I'd essentially loose 3 years of my life, and lots of money, but maybe it's worth it. But then again, I'm not sure what I'd do if I didn't get in, especially since most people get rejected the 1st try)

4. Something else?!??!??

 

I really need your help on this one. I don't want to end up graduating from Gdansk and not being able to come back home.

 

Thanks guys, really appreciate it!!

Matthew

[Slashsev01]

id suggest writing the usmle I and doing really well on it...

at least u will have the us as a backup and have rotations there potentially...

 

but again u will be treated like an international when applying from poland and not have much hospitals to pick from

[bloh]

You should ask Caribbean schools about #2 and see if it's possible. I'm going to go on a limb and say they won't let you. My reasoning is that it costs Caribbean schools money to send their students on clinical rotations in the states, while cramming 500+ students in lecture halls for the first 2 years costs them relatively little while they charge you with high tuition costs. It wouldn't make financial sense for them to allow you to skip, but it's worth trying.

 

 

As for #1:

You still have 3 years of school left. In that time, you could come back to Calgary, finish your bachelors and potentially have an acceptance letter to a Canadian school.

 

Conversely, if you stay in Poland, you'd have no clinical experience outside Poland, no meaningful reference letters from people that matter and therefore an incredibly difficult task at getting a residency spot in Canada. You should look into how difficult it is to actually get a job as a foreign doctor in Canada. There's a reason many eastern European and East Indian physicians work as taxi drivers (and it isn't because they like driving).

 

 

 

I asked myself a similar question last year. What would I do if I didn't get into a Canadian school in 1, 2, 3 years (I was in no hurry lol, and I'm older than you - if that gives you any perspective). I considered US schools and Carribbean schools and at the end decided that if I didn't get into Canadian schools, I'd do something else with my life. The stress, the financial cost and the uncertainty of it all really killed it for me. Luckily, it worked out for me on the first try.

 

good luck.

[switcheroo]

IMGs have an incredibly difficult time getting into residency in Canada. But I wonder if there's another option than dumping all the work you've done in Poland and picking up where you left off in Calgary? I wonder if any medical schools in Canada would consider the work you've done at university in Poland to satisfy the prerequisites for admission? As in, your Poland training could be "pre-medical" (as much of it was, I assume, since you're only in year 3 of 6--though I could be wrong) and open up doors for entry to medical school in Canada? Might be a bit of a long shot, but maybe worth looking into?