So, I have narrowed my schools to AUA and UMHS. I visited the UMHS campus which is beautiful and very modern. I know that the school has the potential to be successful in the future because of Dr. Ross's experience. I recently attended an AUA seminar and was impressed with all the information provided. I am curious what other people think about the two schools.

what the heck is umhs?? i think you haven't done your homework if most people don't even know what school you are talking about.........

It's a new Med school that just opened this year in St. Kitts. Dr. Ross, the founder of Ross University, is the one that has founded UMHS.

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AUA & Ross Forum Moderator

UMHS should not be considered a viable option for years until they prove themselves. if you were accepted into AUA, that is much safer choice. good luck

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I'm like Internationally-known

I think UMHS is actually a very good alternative to AUA. It may not have the NY approval yet but that doesn't really matter. Their campus is complete (because it's also a nursing school), the equipment and labs are far far ahead of what AUA has available and they're getting the necessary WHO approvals which is what counts. They will also have clinicals in NY and 5th semester in Florida like AUA. I'm sure Dr. Ross has a lot of political connections back in the US so getting certain approvals shouldn't be tough. The only thing UMHS needs to work on right now is getting more professors since they seem to have a shortage (they won't have a full med 3 staff in May).

AUA has an established reputation now with results (grads in residency) so right now it's a safer bet. The loan situation is a little concerning since it requires a co-signer now and since I've been here we went from Nelly Mae/Sally Mae to SLX to whatever we have now in a period of 3 semesters. That said, AUA's new campus is coming along nicely and they're already working on California approval. The professors here at AUA are also great so you get what you pay for.

Bottom line is that both schools are a good choice, personally I was/am very tempted into looking at UMHS but the lack of a full med 3 staff put me off.

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"If I have black pen and I want a red pen what do I do? I GET A RED PEN!" -Dr. S.

IMHO, I'd wait to ask these questions until (at least) their very first semester begins! Way too soon to go there, unless you're the gambling type Dr. Ross or not, who knows what might happen in the first year. Nice website though! Wish we could say the same about AUA's current one...

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American University of Antigua
College of Medicine, MS-I (Fall 2008)

You're right that NY approval is relatively easy to get and doesn't matter that much. But, this school has no clinical affiliations. Chances are that, being a new school, it's going to start with hospitals that every school starts with. Over time, maybe 2-3 years from now, they will start offering Greenbook core rotations, etc. So, being one of the first students is a bad idea despite the fact that many think it might have a promising future. Being one of AUA's first clinical students was certainly not fun.

I don't know why it matters that these guys have a great facilities on the island. the point of being on the island is to pass the required courses and leave. your performance on step 1 depends on how the fifth semester is - and i have seen no information about this school's fifth semester. no one ever sees or cares about your basic sciences grades unless you fail a course which is bad. for example, i think that windsor is a horrible school but they have a really solid fifth semester program - one that is better than AUAMiami (but worse than AUABaltimore, and about equivalent to AUAMichigan.)

Also, I don't really get why this Dr. Ross guy's relationship with this school indicates that its going to be great academically. I think the fact that he's involved means that the school will grow fast and make lots of money. But, that's about it.

Yeah the website is really nice. I wish I went to school with people who look as good as those in their stock photos.

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Sree

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Don't know what a Greenbook rotation is? Click here.
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If you have a question, post it at the AUA forum. I can't respond to PMs due to Step 2 coming up very soon.

i have to agree that a new school is always a risk, and considering the huge investment that one puts into medical education it is more than wise to go with a school which has a history. however, i think it would be unsafe to not consider it as well. weither we are conservative or not about the way we will invest the money, this school presents some very interesting aspects that a person shouldn't ignore. sree has a point: one cant judge a school by its facilities, but if aua had those facilities it would be in the big 4. for me the biggest issue is the clinical sites. until that issue is resolved, despite my intense interest for this new school, i have to go with sree, umhs is a huge risk even with M Ross backing the school

You don't know for sure if they'll have greenbook rotations or not. Comparing them to AUA isn't quite fair since UMHS is much further along than AUA was when it first started. UMHS admissions directors told me they'd have greenbook so we'll see.

See above. Though I'm sure there will be growing pains with the school, they already have experience dealing with administrative issues since it is an existing nursing campus.

Having great facilities is conducive to a better learning environment. Also having more resources at your disposal helps you prep for the Step 1 more than you would at a school that has the bare minimum. Come on Sree, that's common sense.

Though this isn't relevant to the topic, why do you think Windsor is a horrible school? I have several friends that go there and they say it's great.

Same reason why AUA was marketed so well because of Neil *****'s prior affiliation with Ross; it shows that the administration has a proven track record that will help with critical things like attaining greenbook rotations and getting relevant state approvals. Would you have felt as comfortable about AUA if the Spartan administration was running it? I definitely wouldn't have.

Using stock photos is something practiced by web developers everywhere.

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"If I have black pen and I want a red pen what do I do? I GET A RED PEN!" -Dr. S.

You are right you can't compare the two b/c one has IMED listing and one doesn't. One is in theory and one is in reality a medical school. One has ACGME rotations and one may or may not, probably so.

Nursing school and medical school is apples to oranges.

The following schools are affiliated with their nursing program this has no bearing on medical school clinical affiliations as you can tell by the list.

1. Seminole State College (Oklahoma)
2. Blue Grass Community and Technical College (Kentucky)
3. Jefferson Community and Technical College (Kentucky)
4. West Kentucky Community and Technical College
5. University of Turabo (Puerto Rico)
6. Essex County College (New Jersey)

Until proven otherwise any new school is a risk no matter who runs it. The market of Caribbean schools is reaching saturation, IMO. The ability of any new school to compete is going to become more difficult. Ross, SGU, and other schools are staking a claim and aggressively pushing others out of clinical sites. IMO, eventually the 20 caribbean schools will be widdled down to 7-10 or so that are really strong. I think that process is starting and will progress as US states scrutinize Caribbean schools more and the adoption of the CA list by more states. This will be a good thing as there are some schools that are shady and lower the reputation of all caribbean schools.