Apply to Caribbean Medical Schools

[medaspirant]

Hey Everyone,

 

This forum is for the students who are applying to Caribbean medical schools for pre med or MD.

 

Please feel free to give your suggestions so that we all can choose the right one for us.

 

Thank you.

[medaspirant]

St. George's University

Ross University

Saba University

St. Matthews University

St. Martinus University

 

I am kind of confused as to which school would be the best one for me. I am looking at the curriculums and to me, 2 semesters a year schools are good. They are like US/Canadian med schools. I am not sure if someone else has any ideas about what else to consider to choose the med schools in the Caribbean.

[medaspirant]

St. George's University - http://www.sgu.edu/future-students/index.html?gclid=CJ-vqJWM2bwCFeRi7AodFXwAXg

 

Ross University - https://www.rossu.edu/

 

Saba University - http://www.saba.edu/saba/

 

St. Matthew's University - http://www.stmatthews.edu/

 

St. Martinus University - http://www.martinus.edu/

[Mashmetoo]

Look, I think the best option for you is to not apply to a Caribbean school. The age of Caribbean schools getting decent easy matches in the US for non-US citizens is coming to an end. Look South to the US.

[medaspirant]

Ok, thank you. I will look for it!

 

Thank you again for the information.

[leviathan]

Everyone said 2012 was going to be the last year of matching from Carib schools. Then 2013, now 2014, etc...I was one of those people who has been vocally pessimistic.

 

I know a fair number of people applying this year and they got a good number of interviews and should all match, although maybe not at the most ideal locations or programs. I'll have to wait and see how things go next month, but 2013 had greater than a 90% match rate at Saba, and I'm thinking 2014 will be the same.

 

I agree with Mashmetoo that a DO school is still your better option. As time goes on, even a DO school might not be a good choice because of the same issue of MD graduates increasing and MD residency programs preferring MDs and also preferring those who do not require work visas (Canadian students).

 

The only 'safe' bet is still to go to a Canadian school, then your risk goes up by varying amounts as you look at US DO, then US MD, then foreign MD/MBBS schools.

[medaspirant]

I am trying to figure out which school to go to. St. George's and Ross are too expensive for me. I am not sure if I would get accepted to Saba or not but I have applied for it and St. Martinus. Let's see how it goes!!

[leviathan]

I would steer clear of any school outside of Saba SGU AUC and Ross. Those are the only schools with 50 state approval in the US.

[Edict]

Everyone said 2012 was going to be the last year of matching from Carib schools. Then 2013, now 2014, etc...I was one of those people who has been vocally pessimistic.

 

I know a fair number of people applying this year and they got a good number of interviews and should all match, although maybe not at the most ideal locations or programs. I'll have to wait and see how things go next month, but 2013 had greater than a 90% match rate at Saba, and I'm thinking 2014 will be the same.

 

I agree with Mashmetoo that a DO school is still your better option. As time goes on, even a DO school might not be a good choice because of the same issue of MD graduates increasing and MD residency programs preferring MDs and also preferring those who do not require work visas (Canadian students).

 

The only 'safe' bet is still to go to a Canadian school, then your risk goes up by varying amounts as you look at US DO, then US MD, then foreign MD/MBBS schools.

 

Thanks for keeping it real and turning around on the issue.

[leviathan]

^^ Haven't turned around on the issue yet. I'll wait to see how the 2014 match goes and how my friends / classmates do first, but I do wonder if there is a discrepancy between the posted number of residency spots and PGY1 applicants and what actually exists. The numbers themselves would tell you that a lot of people are going to have a bad time this year and next year.

[medaspirant]

I finally got accepted at Ross University and St. Martinus University, Curacao. A "special" thanks to 'leviathan'. Leviathan, the information provided by you was great and helpful in making my decision. I talked to some of the students at Ross and St. Martinus, Ross' students were greatly helpful and everything looked great except the drop out after first semester. I, then, talked to St. Martinus students, both, who started and who transferred from another medical school in the Caribbean and their feedback was very informative. The administration, faculty, facility, dorms etc. are very good, though I haven't seen it personally, but hearing from students is different than school administration. Also, the tuition between the two school has a HUGE difference. The good thing with both schools is that they both are approved for Canadian Student Loans - that's GREAT! I am planning to make a final decision towards St. Martinus!! Please let me know if there is any other information that I should know. Thank you again Mr./Ms. leviathan for the information.

[Mashmetoo]

I finally got accepted at Ross University and St. Martinus University, Curacao. A "special" thanks to 'leviathan'. Leviathan, the information provided by you was great and helpful in making my decision. I talked to some of the students at Ross and St. Martinus, Ross' students were greatly helpful and everything looked great except the drop out after first semester. I, then, talked to St. Martinus students, both, who started and who transferred from another medical school in the Caribbean and their feedback was very informative. The administration, faculty, facility, dorms etc. are very good, though I haven't seen it personally, but hearing from students is different than school administration. Also, the tuition between the two school has a HUGE difference. The good thing with both schools is that they both are approved for Canadian Student Loans - that's GREAT! I am planning to make a final decision towards St. Martinus!! Please let me know if there is any other information that I should know. Thank you again Mr./Ms. leviathan for the information.

 

Did you look at US DO schools at all like we talked about?

[Methodnike]

I would steer clear of any school outside of Saba SGU AUC and Ross. Those are the only schools with 50 state approval in the US.

 

AUA (American University of Antigua) has 50 state approval also, as of 2011.

That would be my 5th choice.

[medaspirant]

Thank you very much for more information. I have absolutely nothing against Ross, Saba, St. George, AUA or any other school that is approved in 50 states, but my financial situation is not that I cannot afford to pay their fee even if I get student loan. Also, I recently heard about the Canadian student who graduated form St. Martinus in 2013 and scored over 260 in USMLE which is very rare and their USMLE pass rate is very good too. That's the best option I can think of after the schools that you have suggested. I also talked to the current students, both basic sciences and clinical and they are absolutely happy and they gave me information that was very helpful for me to prepare and make my final decision. I haven't signed off my offer letter yet, but this is the feedback I got so far. I have a question if you could help please. Do you know how much loan could I get if I decide to go to Ross?

[cookiemonster99]

Thank you very much for more information. I have absolutely nothing against Ross, Saba, St. George, AUA or any other school that is approved in 50 states, but my financial situation is not that I cannot afford to pay their fee even if I get student loan. Also, I recently heard about the Canadian student who graduated form St. Martinus in 2013 and scored over 260 in USMLE which is very rare and their USMLE pass rate is very good too. That's the best option I can think of after the schools that you have suggested. I also talked to the current students, both basic sciences and clinical and they are absolutely happy and they gave me information that was very helpful for me to prepare and make my final decision. I haven't signed off my offer letter yet, but this is the feedback I got so far. I have a question if you could help please. Do you know how much loan could I get if I decide to go to Ross?

 

I strongly urge you to rethink your decision to go to a medical school where it's geared towards people who couldn't get into a canadian or us school.

 

There are 2 main reasons: the primary one being that you are an IMG and the second one is that you are a Canadian citizen and matching into the US is like going through another hurdle. So you have 2 hurdles to jump through.

[Edict]

Thank you very much for more information. I have absolutely nothing against Ross, Saba, St. George, AUA or any other school that is approved in 50 states, but my financial situation is not that I cannot afford to pay their fee even if I get student loan. Also, I recently heard about the Canadian student who graduated form St. Martinus in 2013 and scored over 260 in USMLE which is very rare and their USMLE pass rate is very good too. That's the best option I can think of after the schools that you have suggested. I also talked to the current students, both basic sciences and clinical and they are absolutely happy and they gave me information that was very helpful for me to prepare and make my final decision. I haven't signed off my offer letter yet, but this is the feedback I got so far. I have a question if you could help please. Do you know how much loan could I get if I decide to go to Ross?

 

Anyone who scored over 260 on the USMLE for sure worked their ass off and did way more than the curriculum. I don't think the match situation is completely dire. PGY-1 spots went up another 2000 from 2012 to 2013. We'll see what happens in the next year.

 

Canadians who go abroad tend to have better MCAT and GPAs than Americans because of the difficulty of Canadian medical schools. America has a lot of community hospitals that are comprised almost entirely of IMGs (surely not the most ideal match, but a match none the less).

[advair250]

Anyone who scored over 260 on the USMLE for sure worked their ass off and did way more than the curriculum. I don't think the match situation is completely dire. PGY-1 spots went up another 2000 from 2012 to 2013. We'll see what happens in the next year.

 

Canadians who go abroad tend to have better MCAT and GPAs than Americans because of the difficulty of Canadian medical schools. America has a lot of community hospitals that are comprised almost entirely of IMGs (surely not the most ideal match, but a match none the less).

 

Many of the top students at the Caribs are Canadians, and they are more likely to do well because they come in as stronger students. The low stats US students are the ones that are going to get shut out of the match.

[leviathan]

Thank you very much for more information. I have absolutely nothing against Ross, Saba, St. George, AUA or any other school that is approved in 50 states, but my financial situation is not that I cannot afford to pay their fee even if I get student loan. Also, I recently heard about the Canadian student who graduated form St. Martinus in 2013 and scored over 260 in USMLE which is very rare and their USMLE pass rate is very good too. That's the best option I can think of after the schools that you have suggested. I also talked to the current students, both basic sciences and clinical and they are absolutely happy and they gave me information that was very helpful for me to prepare and make my final decision. I haven't signed off my offer letter yet, but this is the feedback I got so far. I have a question if you could help please. Do you know how much loan could I get if I decide to go to Ross?

I'd be extremely leery about going to any Caribbean school, especially an unknown quantity like St. Martinus. They might provide you with a decent education, but there's also a high chance that they won't. One student scoring 260 does not make a good school. For a frame of reference, every semester there are at least 5-10 Saba students who get >260, even some who have scored in the 270s and 280s. No, I'm not joking or just spreading rumors as I personally know the people who have scored that high.

 

Either way it's a bad idea to go to a school that is not approved in California, Texas, Florida, New York and other major states. Before you know it, other states will adopt their approval lists and bar you from practice as well. What if Canada joins in with the US to form another licensing body like LCME to adopt a list for foreign schools, suddenly your degree becomes useless.

[leviathan]

AUA (American University of Antigua) has 50 state approval also, as of 2011.

That would be my 5th choice.

For starters they aren't approved in Kansas. That might change but they aren't 50 state approved yet.

[medaspirant]

How do you know all of these details? Are you a medical student who graduated from one of the Caribbean medical schools? At this point, I don't know who I can trust upon, to be honest with you. One says, go to Caribbean school - another says don't. I also have personal friends who have been Caribbean schools and they are doctors today. I understand that the top 4 schools are making more doctors than any other school, but I have a budget that I can afford. These schools are approved for Canadian student loan funding. What's the hitch? I am sorry for sounding irritating but the information I am looking for is not there.

 

For starters they aren't approved in Kansas. That might change but they aren't 50 state approved yet.

[leviathan]

How do you know all of these details? Are you a medical student who graduated from one of the Caribbean medical schools? At this point, I don't know who I can trust upon, to be honest with you. One says, go to Caribbean school - another says don't. I also have personal friends who have been Caribbean schools and they are doctors today. I understand that the top 4 schools are making more doctors than any other school, but I have a budget that I can afford. These schools are approved for Canadian student loan funding. What's the hitch? I am sorry for sounding irritating but the information I am looking for is not there.

 

 

I'm a resident in Canada who graduated from Saba. As I originally told you I think things will probably be OK, but that's a big $200,000 gamble to make on the word 'probably'. You would be much, much safer applying to an osteopathic (DO) school, and a guaranteed quality of education. Have you looked at those?

[leviathan]

Anyone who scored over 260 on the USMLE for sure worked their ass off and did way more than the curriculum. I don't think the match situation is completely dire. PGY-1 spots went up another 2000 from 2012 to 2013. We'll see what happens in the next year.

The spots didn't go up, they actually just included all of the programs who no longer could do pre-matches and thus became part of the match.

[medaspirant]

Ok, thank you for your quick response. You being resident from one of the Caribbean school gives me some relief that these schools make doctors but you have to choose the right one and I am kind of 99% sure that St. Martinus is a good school. I have talked to their students and they are very happy with the education. They told me that one thing about the administration that there is transparency and no politics at all. They keep their promises. I have talked to the administration as well and they are very upfront about everything. They almost had a reference to the other websites or articles whenever I needed a clarification. Anyways, thank you for your valuable time to post these informative posts here. It definitely helped me big time!! Many thanks again! I will post again if there are any questions. I can always ask the current students, but graduates have much better prospects. Thank you again.

 

I'm a resident in Canada who graduated from Saba. As I originally told you I think things will probably be OK, but that's a big $200,000 gamble to make on the word 'probably'. You would be much, much safer applying to an osteopathic (DO) school, and a guaranteed quality of education. Have you looked at those?

[Mashmetoo]

Ok, thank you for your quick response. You being resident from one of the Caribbean school gives me some relief that these schools make doctors but you have to choose the right one and I am kind of 99% sure that St. Martinus is a good school. I have talked to their students and they are very happy with the education. They told me that one thing about the administration that there is transparency and no politics at all. They keep their promises. I have talked to the administration as well and they are very upfront about everything. They almost had a reference to the other websites or articles whenever I needed a clarification. Anyways, thank you for your valuable time to post these informative posts here. It definitely helped me big time!! Many thanks again! I will post again if there are any questions. I can always ask the current students, but graduates have much better prospects. Thank you again.

 

I'm beginning to think that you sound like someone who works for "St. Martinus"

G'luck to you. You'll need it.

[medaspirant]

I'm beginning to think that you sound like someone who works for "St. Martinus"

G'luck to you. You'll need it.

 

You are funny!