Thread: Should i accept the acceptance???

Hi Guys,
I am in a tough spot:
1. I got an acceptance from AUC for Jan 2012. They need deposit by next thursday.
2. I had an interview at Ross on Monday and all things are pointing to an acceptance according to interviewer. Hopefully should know by next wednesday
3. I got an email from St. George's for an interview but it hasn't been scheduled yet.

Can someone please offer some advice and your reason for it.
How do you guys compare the availability of clinical spots/rotations and residencies between AUC and Ross?

Thanks ahead of time

Originally Posted by russki1313

Hi Guys,
I am in a tough spot:
1. I got an acceptance from AUC for Jan 2012. They need deposit by next thursday.
2. I had an interview at Ross on Monday and all things are pointing to an acceptance according to interviewer. Hopefully should know by next wednesday
3. I got an email from St. George's for an interview but it hasn't been scheduled yet.

Can someone please offer some advice and your reason for it.
How do you guys compare the availability of clinical spots/rotations and residencies between AUC and Ross?

Thanks ahead of time

I was in the same position as you. I ultimately chose AUC.

In retrospect I think I would've waited for SGU depending on if I thought I would get in or not. Only because the name "American University of the Caribbean" is so tacky.

Originally Posted by russki1313

Hi Guys,
I am in a tough spot:
1. I got an acceptance from AUC for Jan 2012. They need deposit by next thursday.
2. I had an interview at Ross on Monday and all things are pointing to an acceptance according to interviewer. Hopefully should know by next wednesday
3. I got an email from St. George's for an interview but it hasn't been scheduled yet.

Can someone please offer some advice and your reason for it.
How do you guys compare the availability of clinical spots/rotations and residencies between AUC and Ross?

Thanks ahead of time

Forget about Ross.
Tell AUC that you will have an interview with SGU and ask them if they can postpone the deposit.
Also, ask SGU to fasten the process+tell them about AUC.

Originally Posted by AphtaLyfe

I was in the same position as you. I ultimately chose AUC.

In retrospect I think I would've waited for SGU depending on if I thought I would get in or not. Only because the name "American University of the Caribbean" is so tacky.

If you want to look at it that way, the name "University of Medicine and Health Sciences" is probably the least tacky. I mean no-one, except those that researched carib schools, would have the slightest idea that it is a Carib school. Each one of us knows why we ended up in these schools to begin with and instead of regretting every moment of the rest of the lives, we should be thankful that we even got a second chance and that we were able to pursue our dreams. You will have opportunities to overcome that stigma and for that, you really have to work hard and be miles ahead of the AMGs in residency. But hey you can remove the dark spot. IMO, I would choose AUC over SGU or even Ross over SGU simply because they are much cheaper than SGU. In terms of obtaining residencies, there is not a marginal difference between the three but SGU probably has the lowest attrition rate and if you're one of those that needs help with studying or can't obtain your optimal results through self study, then SGU followed by Ross is your best choice.
PS, why do people think AUC is better than Ross? I'm a potential applicant to both schools so I wanna know why AUC would be preferred over Ross.

Ross has huge class sizes and high attrition rates, it's the Devry approach to 'education as a business' that I fear AUC will take now that Devry bought us out...as soon as they can build lecture halls that can manage 300+ students on our campus (honestly though, we could use a couple new lecture halls...some new projectors too!). We're a fairly small school and I prefer it that way.

If you can get into all three did you consider US DO? That is the better option as you get DO and MD residencies and DO stigma is slightly less than Carib MD. If Carib only then not Ross (for reasons stated) so its between SGU and AUC depending on what you want.

Originally Posted by cms

If you can get into all three did you consider US DO? That is the better option as you get DO and MD residencies and DO stigma is slightly less than Carib MD. If Carib only then not Ross (for reasons stated) so its between SGU and AUC depending on what you want.

I agree that they should be considering a DO school. However, the carib stigma only goes as far as residency. Once you've got the spot, I'd still prefer to be from carib MD than DO. Nobody really knows or cares where you went to med school, but they definitely know if you're a DO.

i agree. nobody cares where the old chairmen of departments graduated from, all they see is the MD after the name... whereas DO follows u everywhere

Originally Posted by VisserThree

i agree. nobody cares where the old chairmen of departments graduated from, all they see is the MD after the name... whereas DO follows u everywhere

To be in the field you want and be a DO or be an MD in a field you dont? Depends on where you want to be....

Hello there,

I am going to offer you a piece of advice - definitely choose AUC over Ross. I honestly don't know much about SGU except that at SGU, you're sharing your classes with nursing students and vet students and have to pay an obscene tuition. Also their island isn't as developed as ours. It goes without question St. Maarten is the best island to end up on. This may seem a small factor, but consider the fact that living on ANY island is an EXTREME hassle - even here things are rough, but I can assure you that it's much better then SGU and its 10 fold better then Ross. I know graduates from all 3 schools (actually I know a couple kids who failed out of Ross too) and AUC graduates definitely surpass Ross and SGU students during both their clinicals and residency. They blow away the attending physicians at whichever hospital they end up in. Our pass rate on USMLE step 1 alone is extremely impressive. 94% pass and 30% of those got over 99 percentile in the most recent class to take their step. Most of all, AUC, because of their smaller class sizes, have the opportunity to provide a beautiful support system for you while in medical school. My class is like a family. I know multiple students and friends who go to Ross now (only because they got rejected from AUC) and they loathe every minute of it. They feel like Ross just wants to take your money and fail you. They have to do this considering they accept upwards of 400 students a semester and don't have enough residency spots for half of them. At AUC, the attrition rate is much lower, and the professors are always available to help you. You get the feeling that they really care about you doing well and becoming a good physician. They try to help you in every way possible to reach that goal. Choose AUC - you won't regret it.