Observerships or Externships

[GATO]

oh, and when you submit paperwork to ERAS, try to make sure that every piece has your AAMC ID no on it somewhere. This will just help prevent loss/misdirection of your precious papers!

Thank you , Dr. imcatwoman.
Last night accidentally I found out this site (http://ecfmg22.securesites.net/eras/). I can mail them (Dean's letter, PS, LORs) to ECFMG. It serves as the designated Dean's office for IMG in My ERAS website after the ERAS Token is issued.

GATO.

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[kimo]

i am IMG i want to do an externship in order to get LOR but i didnot make step one usmle
can any one till me how to go externship with out step one in ANY hospital in usa or any ather way to get any recommendation letter as time is not enough now to pass step one
please i want answer asap
thanks

 

[Winged Scapula]

i am IMG i want to do an externship in order to get LOR but i didnot make step one usmle
can any one till me how to go externship with out step one in ANY hospital in usa or any ather way to get any recommendation letter as time is not enough now to pass step one
please i want answer asap
thanks

You'll have to check with individual programs as to whether or not they require passing Step 1 as a condition of doing an externship.

FYI, you do not want to do a rotation in just ANY hospital if you are considering coming to the US for residency. Some states require that your rotations be done in hospitals with ACGME or ACOM accreditation; ie places which have residencies.

BTW, when are you contemplating doing this externship? It can take several months for an IMG to get approved to do one - have you applied anywhere yet?

 

[kimo]

i found some electives from aamc.org but ihave some questions
1-what is the malpractice coverage will be required from me or my medical school ( in egypt) ?
2- is it easy to be accepted in medical school doesnot require step one or there is comptetivness after fulfil elagbility criteria?
3-how can i get medical insurance in usa from egypt?
thanks

 

[Winged Scapula]

i found some electives from aamc.org but ihave some questions
1-what is the malpractice coverage will be required from me or my medical school ( in egypt) ?

As smq notes above, in general, the required malpractice coverage is 1 million USD per occurence/3 million aggregate coverage and it must be good in the US. Talk with your medical school to see if they will provide it; otherwise you should look for US schools that will provide it for you, as to date, we have not found individual coverage for students that is reasonably priced.

2- is it easy to be accepted in medical school doesnot require step one or there is comptetivness after fulfil elagbility criteria?

It is not easy to find an elective that does not require passing USMLE Step 1, as most programs will use it to assess that you possess at least a baseline adequate level of knowledge. After that, in general most schools will only allow visiting clerks after all their home students have registered for courses and you have the necessary malpractice and health insurance. Competitiveness for electives varies but in general, if you have completed all the requirements, assignments are given on a first come, first served basis, rather than being based on academic qualifications.

3-how can i get medical insurance in usa from egypt?
thanks

Not sure. I've heard of some people purchasing individual travel health insurance when they come to the US, but see if you can find some policies in Egypt which will cover you while in the US.

 

[FaddyAcids]

This is where you can purchase malpractice insurance, I was told it costs around $70 a month.. depends on where you're planning to do the electives.

http://www.academicins.com/

[email protected]

 

[Winged Scapula]

This is where you can purchase malpractice insurance, I was told it costs around $70 a month.. depends on where you're planning to do the electives.

http://www.academicins.com/

[email protected]

Do you know if they offer coverage for STUDENTS, because the quote below from their website does not seem to indicate that is the case:

"Academic offers professional medical liability insurance to full-time medical and dental school faculty, residents, foreign physicians training or practicing in the United States, and allied healthcare professionals. Coverage may be designed for an entire medical school faculty, a clinical department, or, in some cases, for individual faculty members."

 

[kimo]

1-observship is it also should be doneat final year or can be done after graduation?
2- is it needs requirments and special criteria?
3- can i obtain LOR from it?
thank
this forum is awsome

 

[Winged Scapula]

1-observship is it also should be doneat final year or can be done after graduation?

An observership is a last resort and is commonly done after graduation when the physician no longer has the option of the highly preferable externship/elective.

2- is it needs requirments and special criteria?

Not anything in particular, but will vary from rotation to rotation.

3- can i obtain LOR from it?

Perhaps, if you do well, but it will not be worth nearly as much as an LOR from someone who interacted with you in a clinical fashion, allowing them to observe your skills.

 

[FaddyAcids]

Do you know if they offer coverage for STUDENTS,

yes I emailed them they do offer malpractice insurance for international students doing electives in the US..

 

[Winged Scapula]

yes I emailed them they do offer malpractice insurance for international students doing electives in the US..

Thank you...that then is the first reasonably priced resource anyone around here has come up with.

 

[FaddyAcids]

You're welcome.. they have different prices though depending on where the elective is going to be done, the price I've mentioned was for VCU..

 

[benzendejas]

Hey I got a question...I am a US Citizen International Medical student in Mexico, in my last year of med school and I am planning on doing some clinical elecitives in the US.......I have 2 questions for anyone who can answer them.....
1. about the MSPE ........when visiting students programs ask for a deans letter as part of a requirement ..do they refer to the MSPE? or just a LOR?
2.- I am going crazy trying to find a malpractice insurance.....anyone has an idea on where can a US citizen international student may purchase it for a reasonable price to do a 1 onth externship?????

 

[Loanna]

Hallo everyone! I have another question, regarding externships for FMG's. If an FMG is doing a year-long postdoctoral research fellowship on a J1 Research type of visa, and at the end of the fellowship wants to do an 8-week long externship, can he do that? Is it possible to somehow make the appropriate changes visa-wise? Should I contact the U.S consular in my home country or any other authority while my staying in the U.S to make the necessary arrangements, in case of course something like that is possible in the first place. I appreciate any input!

 

[fidelity]

You should aim for at least a 3-month externship/observership.

 

[forgetit]

I've come across programs that require 12 months..

 

[US32]

I know that alot of people just come in on a tourist visa/visa waiver to do the USMLE CS, however you'd probably need a student or working visa for externship. However, for observership or volunteer work, you are neither working nor studying, so I don't know what sort of visa you would need. Again the program that you do your externship/observership with would know what sort of visa you need as they will probably be the ones sponsoring it. I came in with a Visa Waiver and that was fine with the hospitals/physicians that i worked with.

Dear Catwoman,
Where did you get your observership? I'm a foreign graduate with GC but finding a hard time to get an observership due to malpractice insurance.
Thanks

 

[US32]

I would say you'd better have a LOR from someone that knows you well than a US LOR from someone that doesn't know you well enough. I was told during an interview that they wish I had brought more LOR from foreign physicians that had more contact with me.

 

[Shoushu]

I would say you'd better have a LOR from someone that knows you well than a US LOR from someone that doesn't know you well enough. I was told during an interview that they wish I had brought more LOR from foreign physicians that had more contact with me.

That's interesting. Most weigh little on foreign LORs. Most programs want 3 LORs, right? And they prefer all to be US LORs, for recommendation of clinical skills or how one could possibly survive in American system.

Is there a limit (ex. you bring 5 or 6 LORs, or 8 to 10, which sounds like overkill. )?

 

[gutonc]

That's interesting. Most weigh little on foreign LORs. Most programs want 3 LORs, right? And they prefer all to be US LORs, for recommendation of clinical skills or how one could possibly survive in American system.

Is there a limit (ex. you bring 5 or 6 LORs, or 8 to 10, which sounds like overkill. )?

Yes, the limit for any one program is 4. You can have 100 LORs sitting in ERAS but you can only send 4 to any one program.