Where would you go: U of Queensland or SGU?

[neuromancer]

I'm trying to decide between attending the U of Queensland (Australia) and St.George's.

 

Ideally, I want to work in Canada or U.S. after graduating.

 

The costs are similar so not really a deciding factor.

 

However, U of Q means 4 years mostly in Australia while SGU offers rotations in States and a few in Canada.

 

Where would you go and why?

 

Thanks

[Slashsev]

depends on where you want to stay but

 

SGU 100%

 

MD> DO> IMG

[canuck]

You would be an IMG either way, but here are some Pros and Cons of both schools:

 

UQ PROS:

 

-If you do internship/residency in Australia you should be able to come back to Canada without much issues.

 

-CFPC recognizes the Australian Family Medicine training. http://www.cfpc.ca/International_Accreditation/

 

-You would have no issues getting electives in Canada.

 

-UQ School of Medicine is well known around the world.

 

-You can do your rotations in the US (Oschner Clinical School), if you are an American citizen or PR.

 

 

UQ CONS:

 

-Very very far away.

 

-Aussie med curriculum is not tailored towards the US system, so studying for the USMLE might require more time.

 

-Extremely large class. ~500/year

 

 

SGU PROS:

 

-American tailored curriculum, so better prep for USMLE.

 

-Rotations done in the US (but this might be changing for Canadians). Read fine print on side of page. http://www.sgu.edu/media/top-reasons/school-of-medicine/reason5.html

 

SGU CONS:

 

-Stigma of going to Carribean school.

 

-Might have trouble getting Electives in Canada. (Some schools wont accept applications)

 

-Only options for residency are in the US and Canada.

[kpm]

I wouldn't go to either if you ideally want to work in Canada or the US.

[neuromancer]

Thanks for the PRO/CON list, Canuck.

 

If Canadians could not do rotations in US for whatever reason in the future ... what would SGU do to instead? Send students to UK?

 

That 'fine print' made me a bit nervous.

[canuck]

Thanks for the PRO/CON list, Canuck.

 

If Canadians could not do rotations in US for whatever reason in the future ... what would SGU do to instead? Send students to UK?

 

That 'fine print' made me a bit nervous.

 

Students will most likely do their rotations in UK or in some Carribean hospitals. Of course if this happens, you would be at an even greater disadvantage for residency in the US.

 

Who knows, it might not affect Canadians whatsoever, but they say there's still a possibility.

[leviathan]

Nice list and I agree with what you say, canuck. I think SGU also has large class sizes, so I don't think that's a con specific to UQ.

 

As for USMLE, I read on another forum about a guy who got 276 on Step 1 from UQ, so assuming he was telling the truth, it's definitely possible to do well. Just do Kaplan review and stuff while you are in pre-clerkship.

 

Lastly I would worry about going to SGU / other carib schools because the US matches may fall dramatically in the next few years. At least in Australia you have the option of applying to all of Australia, USA, and Canada for residency and hoping you get lucky somewhere.

[Slashsev]

"Canadian SGU students currently appear to be unaffected by this issue, however this is subject to change without notice and will be addressed accordingly if necessary"

[Robin Hood]

Both are bad for Canada.

[Methodnike]

I'm trying to decide between attending the U of Queensland (Australia) and St.George's.

 

Ideally, I want to work in Canada or U.S. after graduating.

 

The costs are similar so not really a deciding factor.

 

However, U of Q means 4 years mostly in Australia while SGU offers rotations in States and a few in Canada.

 

Where would you go and why?

 

Thanks

SGU

Great residency placement, US clinical rotations. Much higher chances to match in the US.

[nosuperman]

I'd pick Australia over the Caribbean, but SGU over UQ, just based on what I've seen concerning their curriculum and how they run their schools. As someone above mentioned, I'd also pick DO over IMG.

[leviathan]

SGU

Great residency placement, US clinical rotations. Much higher chances to match in the US.

Doubt it will be this way in 4 years for Canadians, in which case Australia at least gives you the chance to match somewhere. I hope I'm wrong for the sake of everyone going there but only time will tell.

[Slashsev]

esp after the DO expansions

[Dr. Jan Intor]

Any QU students on lurking around on these forums? Would really appreciate an insiders look at the school. thanks