Which School?

[Guest ioncannon97]

Hi, I am an undergrad student in Saskatchewan who has the opportunity to go to med school here in Saskatoon after 2 undergrad years or I could wait and do three or more years to apply to more prestigiuos schools like Toronto, Queens, etc. My main reasons for going to med school here would be saving a year and the small class size (only 55 students). My main reason for going to school in a place like Toronto would be the reputation of the school for residency spots. Which of the above do you think is more importent. i.e. save year plus small class vs. better reputation of school. I have full confidence that I would recieve a great medical education in Saskatoon but I wonder if this school's reputation is good enough to land a great residency spot. If I do apply to Ontario schools I think I will be competetive (4.0 G.P.A on converted OMSAS scale, 36 MCAT, two research summers, 2 years volunteer etc.) So what do you think? Should I wait or go to school here and save a year? Would I even be considered for a school like Toronto since I am out of province.

p.s. i said above G.P.A was 4.0, this is assuming my finals go as planned.

[Guest PeterHill0501]

ioncannon97...

 

Just for interest...my father grew up in Saskatoon. He went to Watson public school...do you know it? I've got a great picture I can send you of the school if you do...the picture is about 65 years old with the entire school population standing out front. Bye the way...apparently back in those days all students were in the same class, regardless of grade!

 

With respect to your question about which school to attend...I'm no expert but here are my several cents worth. I think the primary factor you should be considering is your happiness. At the end of your medical education you will have to pass the same test (i.e., LMCC) and have the same knowlege. As far as I can see, you should have no disadvantage with respect to getting a residency program of your choice, as long as you do well...regardless of what medical school you've attended. I believe it certainly is easier in some respects to get into a school within your own province, however, with a 4.0 average (and assuming you would interview well) you would have a great chance of gaining entry into whatever school you applied to. I guess another thing to consider is the small class size...there's a lot to be said about that. Personally, I like smaller, more intimate classes...I think it provides an opportunity for interaction that you won't get in larger classes...however, that's a matter of personal style and preference.

 

The bottom line is...you should do what feels right for you.

 

Peter

[Guest JSS02]

So you're completing your second year of undergrad right now, have already written the MCAT and scored a 36, and have already been accepted by U. Sask. for meds? I'll let people that are already in med school answer your question regarding residencies, but personally I'd have a lot of trouble turning down ANY school just to reapply again the next year!

[Guest Ian Wong]

It's a little fuzzy at the moment (now been in the hospital for some 24 consecutive hours on call), but I distinctly remember having a conversation with one of my attendings recently about Sask. med. The students who come out of their program are extremely strong clinically, and make excellent residents. The program in Sask. turns out great doctors. As to how their success is in matching, I couldn't tell you.

 

If nothing else, the population base and living environments of Toronto and Saskatoon are pretty radically different. Toronto is pretty huge and has a huge multicultural aspect as a result of its big population. It's also a training ground for pretty much every residency in the book, while the same cannot be said for Saskatoon. I'd apply, and during the interview process you have the opportunity to see the medical school and meet some of the students. All the ones that I met in 1999 on my interview there were fantastic, and very enthusiastic about their school. I'd apply and then use that opportunity to have them answer some of your questions.

 

Ian

UBC, Med 3

[Guest Liana]

I think the general consensus around here is that it doesn't matter which Canadian school you attend as far as residency matching. The only *slight* advantage to attending U of T would be that you might be able to make connections with the people who ultimately decide whether you're chosen for those competitive U of T residencies. That can be a good thing, but it doesn't seem to play a major role.

 

As for any other "prestigious" school, such as Queen's as you mentioned, you'll be in the exact same boat for applying for residencies at U of T or any other university outside of your own. You still won't have the connections unless you managed to do some of your clinical electives there, and that option is open to someone at Saskatchewan as well.

 

Universities in Ontario have more competition in the number of applicants for each spot than Saskatchewan, and, with the exceptions of Mac and Ottawa (which has a preference for Ottawa and Francophone applicants and disadvantages everyone else from Ontario and out of province applicants alike) there's no preference for Ontario residents at the Ontario schools (UT, UWO, Queen's). With your GPA, you should have a very strong chance at getting accepted to UT, which tends to use marks as the major deciding factor, although as for Queen's, you'd need good interview skills and a little bit of luck, since your GPA and MCAT are only used in deciding whether or not you have an interview.

 

That said, however, I would still argue that Saskatchewan is your better bet. If you want to be close to your family and close to home, that's obviously a strong selling feature about the school. However, one thing that you touched on was USask's small class size. What's great about this (and especially when compared to UT's ~200 student class) is that you have a better chance to get to know most of your peers, and can probably make better connections with your profs and the doctors within your hospital. That means, when it comes time to apply for residency, you may have references from doctors who know you quite well, or who have known you over a long period, whereas at UT, there are so many students that, even if you try to make connections with those who will ultimately decide your fate, you may only know them in passing (and they may actually perceive you as more of a nuisance, sucking up to them just for residency).

 

Ultimately, the choice is up to you to decide. Unless you're thinking about going into research or academic medicine, the name of your school shouldn't matter much at all. You may as well choose a school for the quality of the 4 years it can provide you.

[Guest Ian Wong]

This is something that I don't think most med applicants worry about too much, but anyway, here goes. This is an old thread I wrote a while back about what I think getting into a residency is like. As someone who is now well over halfway through my Med 3 hospital rotations and who has seen our Med 4 class go through the CaRMS match, my opinion hasn't changed much if any.

 

pub44.ezboard.com/fpremed101frm25.showMessage?topicID=34.topic

 

Ian

UBC, Med 3

[Guest kosmo14]

Just a quick comment about residencies and USask. In my interview I asked the 4th year medical student about the match this year and she and the member from the Faculty of Medicine informed me that of the 56 that participated from U of S, 55 got thier first choice. They proceeded to tell me that one of the reasons is due to the clinical experience the students get during thier 3rd and 4th years. Our hospitals absolutely depend on these medical students and therefore they get much more hands on experience than most. This is just what I was told in the interview. A few of the upper year medical students here have told me that you are at no disadvantage for residencies by going to U of S. They all said show an interest in the area you would like to go into and do the electives available in that area, and you have just as much chance as anyone else. This is what I have been told and I am choosing U of S based on this advice (assuming I get in to more than one).

[Guest Liana]

That makes a lot of sense.

 

I've heard that at U of T, there are so many residents and everything is so specialized, that you really don't get to do a lot during clinical rotations; whereas, somewhere smaller, you'd have a lot greater opportunity to actually get involved in a lot of the cases.

[Guest ioncannon97]

thanks for the response everyone. I still haven't made up my mind but I did some research and found out that U of S is ranked third for matching their residents for first choice of discipline, so I think that's pretty good. I'm leaning towards U of S now and will probably go here (i haven't got the acceptance letter yet but unless my application mysteriously dissapears, i will get in, at the expense of sounding arrogant).

[Guest ioncannon97]

Sure, i'd like to see that pic! I haven't heard of Watson, but its probably changed its name. As for all people being in the same class, that maybe true. I'm told Saskatoon has grown ten-fold in seventy years so if population right now is only 225000, then back then it was probably 20000 or so.