Sackler in 2008 or apply to US schools for 2009?? PLEASE ADVISE

[suum quique]

I am a nontraditional applicant who completed all the science prereqs in postbac during the past 2 years. I will be taking the MCAT in April. My overall GPA is about 3.3 and I have lab and clinical research experience as well as volunteering and other ECs.

I would like to start med school ASAP. I really need your advice on whether I am making a dumb decision wanting to apply to Sackler and if accepted start this fall, (without trying to apply to the US schools for fall 2009).

Of course the main concern is transition back to the US, residency, licensing… I don’t mind living in Israel for the next 4 years. I just really want to know how many more obstacles am I subjecting myself to by becoming an IMG.

Would you go with Sackler without applying to the US schools first?

thanks, everyone

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[jake0213]

Hi, I would say the answer to your question depends on where you see yourself in 5 years. If you want to go into optho, neuro, derm, radiology, etc. those can be difficult residencies to secure as a foreign student. However, Sackler is a great program - which btw has become more competitive in the last few years so I would apply ASAP - the vast majority of residencies will still be available to you from Sackler. I loved my interview there and will most likely attend this Fall if accepted. (FYI- most people are able to do 3 years in Israel, and begin rotations back in the states during their 4th years, so there is that flexibility if you're interested in that.)

Hope that helps. I would say get the ball rolling, you never know if a US med school is a sure thing next year anyways. And once everyone gets to his/her residency years, where you went to school becomes irrelevant.

 

[suum quique]

thanks, jake, I really needed to hear that