FutureMDiA, I am a student at MUA for two semesters now.
Thank you for posting here. Please be sure to keep us up-to-date on the progress of your medical education. You are still in the pre-clinical program (i.e., classwork). The rubber meets the road when you get into clinicals. Will be interested to hear your experience then (I've been posting on this forum for 12 years... no need for you to "fade into Bolivian", as Mike Tyson once said).
First, I want to say that this is an anonymous Internet forum and that every response will have a certain amount of anecdote and opinion no matter how long a user has been posting or how factual they sound.
Yes, clearly. No arguments. There is a lot of balderdash that is passed-off as Gospel on this forum. But (and if you were referring to posters like myself and/or me specifically), you will see that most of the credible posters back-up those opinions and anecdotes with data whenever and wherever possible. You would know this, for example, if you followed my posts. Then again, I've successfully navigated the Caribbean and I have been posting on here (again) for more than 12 years and have over 2,700 posts to corroborate that.
With that being said, MUA is a school that will provide you the opportunity to get you a residency spot if you work hard and are a self-starter. The ECFMG match data shows that MUA students are matching into residencies.
All Caribbean medical schools, at least the ones that are listed in FAIMER and/or IMED and also remain properly accredited in their home country, will provide that opportunity. Many of them will have graduates that match (or are placed) into residencies. Again, and as I've said
ad nauseum on this forum, the key is a long and strong track record of placing graduates in residencies across a spectrum of specialties and in multiple different states.
The decision boils to whether you need government backed loans or whether Cali approval is important enough for you to take a private credit based loan from AUA's bank of lake mill.
There are also several medical boards that maintain comity with California's. You will not be able to practice in those states either.
Also keep in mind that MUA is currently seeking Cali approval and based on Google-able documents from the Medical Board of California, things look promising.
This is a
critical point: even if they get California approval, it is highly probably that you will
not receive credit for any classes that you took
before that approval. In other words, the approval is usually
not retroactive. Classes deemed deficient up to the point of approval will have to be repeated. Take your own advice and
do your homework on this crucial point. Several medical boards make a point to delineate specific dates that coursework is or is not approved. You may have to repeat classes if you
ever want to get a license in a previously disapproved state.
Considering the factors at play, I would not enroll into a caribbean school other than the big 4, MUA, and/or AUA. Anything outside of that is too risky for me, personally. But, people do match from other less known caribbean schools as well (just requires harder work).
I cannot (and won't) give specific advice. There are plenty of schools that will promise you the world. It would behoove any candidate to consider most highly those programs that are already approved in all fifty states, have well-established clinical clerkship (i.e. MS3 and MS4) rotations, and for whom you can easily secure funding.
What most people on these forums fail to realize is that this information is dynamic, not static. A lot of the more frequent posters on SDN look through a static lens. In a few years the Big 4 can become the Big 5 or 6.
I think you assume too much here. Most of us
fully understand that medical board decisions can and do occasionally change. What most
matriculants don't necessarily understand is that those changes are not necessarily retroactive and inclusive. While it is entirely possible that these schools could emerge as viable options, the fact is that there are more U.S. spots - both at MD and DO granting schools - and this bodes will for 'near miss' applicants for getting into a U.S. school whereas, in the past, they would've been "forced" to go the Caribbean route. As a result, the environment in the Caribbean is going to get tighter and more competitive, and the room for additional less well-established programs is going to become less and less. That is speculation. I freely admit that. But, it would behoove anyone considering this route to make the best decision to broaden their chances of getting into residency.
Essentially, I'm saying do your own research and come up with your own conclusions. I did so, and I'm very happy with MUA. I feel like I made the best choice for me, personally. That's the best advice I can give.
Please stay in touch and get back to us in 2-3 years. We would appreciate updates, as well as a way (privately, if necessary) to corroborate what you tell us.
Thanks! And, good luck!
-Skip
