HELP! In need of some opinions!

[robertch8]

I have been fortunate to have been accepted to BGU MSIH and Sackler along with a DO school in the US, Nova Southeastern. I'm very interested in international health which would gear me towards BGU MSIH but at the same time I'm not sure I want to commit to primary care for sure. I want to live in the city rather than the desert, and I strongly prefer Sackler's testing style much more. But I was super impressed with the student body and how bright students were based on my interactions with them over my visit to MSIH earlier this month while at Sackler I liked how laid back the environment was and how much students loved their experience both in the program and beyond medicine.

My biggest concern right now is coming back to the US for residency. I do have a DO option in the US (Nova Southeastern) that I still have a spot on for this instance but I have this huge international itch--this is the time of my life to travel. Is it a huge risk going to either of these schools? Sure, everyone matches now but will it be a problem 4 years from now?

What should I do and where should I go? Any feedback would be greatly appreciated!

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[rabsa]

I have been fortunate to have been accepted to BGU MSIH and Sackler along with a DO school in the US, Nova Southeastern. I'm very interested in international health which would gear me towards BGU MSIH but at the same time I'm not sure I want to commit to primary care for sure. I want to live in the city rather than the desert, and I strongly prefer Sackler's testing style much more. But I was super impressed with the student body and how bright students were based on my interactions with them over my visit to MSIH earlier this month while at Sackler I liked how laid back the environment was and how much students loved their experience both in the program and beyond medicine.

My biggest concern right now is coming back to the US for residency. I do have a DO option in the US (Nova Southeastern) that I still have a spot on for this instance but I have this huge international itch--this is the time of my life to travel. Is it a huge risk going to either of these schools? Sure, everyone matches now but will it be a problem 4 years from now?

What should I do and where should I go? Any feedback would be greatly appreciated!

It sounds like you are well aware with the positives and negatives for each of your options. We can't tell you what to do because the best decision for you depends on your specific needs and goals. You need to do some soul searching and figure out what you really want in life and your career.

If your biggest concern is residency placement, as you mention, then you know the answer: go to NOVA.

That said, I have actually interviewed and been to all of the schools you mentioned. The only thing I liked about NOVA was the idea of warm winters. Other than that, I was not impressed. Personally, I would rather be in Israel--but I know what living there is like, and I am fluent in Hebrew.

 

[jonnboy]

i would choose either one of the two Israeli schools just because it would be such an great experience to be in Israeli at this time in your life. that obviously my opinion and i admittedly have not looked into DO schools too much so I don't know too much about Nova.

g'luck!

 

[QofQuimica]

If your goal is to get into an American residency, there is no question that you should attend an American school--any accredited American school--over an international school. As the number of American grads continues to increase due to there being more US allo and osteo schools and increased class sizes for current schools, opportunities for IMGs to return for residency will get even slimmer than they already are. Plus, you do not need to go to school abroad in order to have an international medicine experience, because you can do an international elective rotation or two during your fourth year. A lot of people do that, myself included. It's even possible to do international electives as a resident in some cases. I'm not sure at this point whether I'll do one, but some of the people in my program have gone abroad while in residency.