This is the 2nd article of a series of places that student often overlook in the application process but have real potential for success. Medical School"I want to be a doctor." The phrase that usually comes right before a student (with an average GPA and average test score for their high school) tells me that Johns Hopkins, Duke, and Harvard are at the top of their list. While I am not in the dream killing business, I have to take some time to educate the family on why their star of a student, who is ranked near the middle of their class in grades/scores, who has no significant hook, and the family has no X-factor (ex., first generation, underrepresented country, champion tuba player) that may make it even remotely likely that they could secure a seat at a school that is not likely going to be the choice of a school that will accept 1 (or 0) of our students this year. Let's slightly gloss over the obvious fact that most students who go down this path will change their mind. Statistically in the US, a vast majority of students will change their major two or more times in undergrad alone, not to mention the many diverted career paths that are likely afterward. Students who express an interest in medicine but face difficult admissions to undergrad alone will find the work in university competitive and difficult. While there are those that will stick it out, these students again face extremely limited seats for medical school, causing them to change their minds or seek options outside of the USA. That, and non-US citizens have almost an impossible chance of getting into medical school as medicine is a graduate-level program in the US. There is an alternative. I have preached on the power of big fish, small pond before. I have been gradually getting more aggressive with my advising students like the above to look at Liberal Arts colleges, thereby increasing the chance that they will make that journey towards professional school. But recently I came across a better option for the truly committed. St. George's UniversityThis is a school of medicine located in Grenada, an island in the West Indies, which is near South America. But why should you go here?
Financial aid can be applied for US citizens and there are scholarships for students. There are placements around the world, and graduates have worked in all 50 states and over 50 countries. Also, Google a picture of the place and you will think medical school exists in paradise. At some point you have to ask yourself, if medicine is my goal, wouldn't this be a great place to start? Medical Doorway If you are interested in studying medicine, dentistry, veterinary, pharmacy, or physiotherapy in UK, Europe, or the Caribbean, check out Medical Doorway. This agency supports the application to medical universities in the above locations free of charge. The programs themselves are in English, but you often need to obtain a visa and Medical Doorway will help with that. What's even better is you can get a degree in some respected universities for a fraction of the cost of other parts of the world. For example, Gomel State Medical University in Belarus is under $4500 USD per year in fees. Accommodation can run under $600/year. If you are looking for return on investment, you really cannot beat this. Other destinations in Europe include Cyprus, Malta, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Latvia, Poland and the UK.
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AuthorOlder blog posts were for the UCLA Ext course "Using the Internet for College Counseling" Archives
February 2023
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