As my user name would imply, I am not a medical student. I am not a doctor. I am, however, a potential patient. As such, I would prefer to find a physician who had sought out the best possible education he or she could acquire, not just a 'seat at the USMLE'. In most other professional areas, the idea of self-taught professionals went out centuries ago, and since then the field of medicine has obviously changed more dramatically than most. Please don't misunderstand--it is always up to the student to get the most out of his or her education, but in this day and age I do not think that future doctors should focus only their ability to pass an exam. They should actually want to learn and retain the information. They should want a positive learning environment. They should want the tools and technology to best understand their field. They should want the best teachers (and while there are and have been some excellent teachers at SJSM, they rarely last long, because even teachers need to make a living , and need a positive environment in which to work). I realize that not everyone who wants to be a doctor can attend a US medical school, or even one of the 'better' Caribbean med schools. And I am not saying that SJSM students may not one day make excellent physicians. However, as in most fields, the better one's education, the better's one's chances at being good (and not just successful) in one's career. My advice--don't settle if you don't have to. And if you do, keep your expectations low...