International student- Residency

[medicinewithoutbarriers]

Hi,
I am a first year pod student and also international. I have been worried about being able to get into a good residency program at the end.
During my interview, I made sure to ask about their residency success rates and I was assured that there would be no problem. I just had to be on top of it and start searching earlier than my class mates. Do you know of any international student that graduated on time, and started a good residency program immediately?

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[NobodyDPM]

Hi,
I am a first year pod student and also international. I have been worried about being able to get into a good residency program at the end.
During my interview, I made sure to ask about their residency success rates and I was assured that there would be no problem. I just had to be on top of it and start searching earlier than my class mates. Do you know of any international student that graduated on time, and started a good residency program immediately?

A good friend went through this. He is a citizen in the US now. He did three years of residency.

Check on a couple of things. One, if there is something called "Optional Practical Training" which allowed him to stay for an additional year of training after his student visa expired. If you can do this, do it before you go through the below process.

You have two other options. First is a J-1 visa, which will allow you to stay for training, but requires you to leave the US after your training is done. The other is an H1-B1 visa, which is a non-immigrant visa. You will need to talk to an immigration attorney. I can ask my buddy who he used, but this was 20 years ago. If you need that info, send me a PM.

 

[dtrack22]

I made sure to ask about their residency success rates and I was assured that there would be no problem

You were lied to. Good luck, hopefully you don’t need it…

 

[medicinewithoutbarriers]

You were lied to. Good luck, hopefully you don’t need it…

I just realized the likelihood during a conversation with some of the professors about board pass rates. It appeared that some students took it 2-3 times before finally passing. We weren't told this during interview. They said it was 94% which I assumed was for all first-timers.

 

[heybrother]

There's a recent painful thread about a Canadian student getting screwed. You should look for it.

 

[NobodyDPM]

There's a recent painful thread about a Canadian student getting screwed. You should look for it.

I can't seem to find it. Link, please?

 

[Feli]

I went to Barry... we had tons of Caribb, Canadian, intercontinental, etc etc international students who did fine and got average or even good residency matches.

You will definitely be limited to only about half of the podiatry residency programs - or less, but there are still many good ones. Most others just don't understand the process, have had problems, don't want to spend the money, can get fine residents without doing visa headaches, etc.

TAKE IT INTO YOUR OWN HANDS. Get an immigration attorney, do your own visas, etc... don't expect residency hospitals to do it for you. They seldom will. Good luck.

 

[NobodyDPM]

I went to Barry... we had tons of Caribb, Canadian, intercontinental, etc etc international students who did fine and got average or even good residency matches.

You will definitely be limited to only about half of the podiatry residency programs - or less, but there are still many good ones. Most others just don't understand the process, have had problems, don't want to spend the money, can get fine residents without doing visa headaches, etc.

TAKE IT INTO YOUR OWN HANDS. Get an immigration attorney, do your own visas, etc... don't expect residency hospitals to do it for you. They seldom will. Good luck.

No money to spend. The student is expected to fund the visa process.

And yes, very good advice.

 

[heybrother]

I can't seem to find it. Link, please?

What are my options?

I am currently an incoming PGY1, and an international student from Canada. I was told that my program would sponsor my J1 visa, however during the process, I was told that the ECFMG does not sponsor Podiatrists for the J1. The program is not willing to work with me to help me figure this out...

forums.studentdoctor.net

 

[NobodyDPM]

What are my options?

I am currently an incoming PGY1, and an international student from Canada. I was told that my program would sponsor my J1 visa, however during the process, I was told that the ECFMG does not sponsor Podiatrists for the J1. The program is not willing to work with me to help me figure this out...

forums.studentdoctor.net

Thanks. Problem with that whole situation is that he isn't technically an ECFMG. Somebody screwed up. ECFMG means you graduated from a foreign medical school. Not that he is a foreigner who graduated from an American school. One has nothing to do with the other. And any institution can apply for a J1. Some chose not to, but he should have looked into that before applying.

Honestly, any Canadian who is looking to stay in the USA for residency should talk to an immigration attorney by year 3 in school at the latest. The rules do change. It can cost a bunch to hire an attorney, but it's worth every penny.

 

[medicinewithoutbarriers]

Thank you all for your responses. It seems that being proactive would pay off in the long run. I made an appointment with the residency and clerkship coordinator at my school and I will be contacting an immigration lawyer to understand the visa process.

Thank you again!

 

[ion]

A good friend went through this. He is a citizen in the US now. He did three years of residency.

Check on a couple of things. One, if there is something called "Optional Practical Training" which allowed him to stay for an additional year of training after his student visa expired. If you can do this, do it before you go through the below process.

You have two other options. First is a J-1 visa, which will allow you to stay for training, but requires you to leave the US after your training is done. The other is an H1-B1 visa, which is a non-immigrant visa. You will need to talk to an immigration attorney. I can ask my buddy who he used, but this was 20 years ago. If you need that info, send me a PM.

H1-B, not H1-B1, fyi

 

[Feli]

You will do good.

Most of the schools, unfortunately, will just tell you what you want to hear (pre-pod, clerkship, etc etc).

Your best bet is other students who have navigated the process successfully. You will be pretty limited on which residencies will actually help you with the process, which will consider you but you have the process all on you (attorney $$$), and which programs give you a hard nope.