Time to complete from start to finish at SABA

[nsgirl]

Hi all,
I am applying to Saba and have a question re the length of curriculum.

On the website it states 10 terms with 3 per year.

When I called and spoke with the admissions office I was told that if I start Jan 07 for example I would not graduate until June 2 2011.

However 10 terms from Jan 2007 works out that the last term is the Jan 2010 term - which makes me think that June 2010 should be the graduation date - I was told this is not the case but the woman could not explain to me what the extra time is for perhaps you guys have some insight?

I was also told the class of Jan 2007 is full and then not full by numerous people from Saba including admissions officers and interviewers... is it usually this confusing to try to get a straight answer?!

[Boulderunner]

As the slots for a term fills it becomes more competitive. I applied very late for sept and did not get in and so reapplied very early for the jan term and got in no problem. As far as finishing Jan 2010 or June 2011 Im not sure,

[KingMo]

Problem is that if you start in January 2007, it's a very tight squeeze to finish in June 2010...that's 3.5 years. Reason being is that you pretty much have to consecutively do everything, including rotations, with no breaks. If you miss a rotation (namely one of the big ones), you're screwed and can't graduate till the following June then. It's doable and has been done, but they may be erring on the side of caution and anticipating obstacles.

Or maybe it was just a typo. 8-)

[rdecastro]

Hi all,
I am applying to Saba and have a question re the length of curriculum.

On the website it states 10 terms with 3 per year.

When I called and spoke with the admissions office I was told that if I start Jan 07 for example I would not graduate until June 2 2011.

However 10 terms from Jan 2007 works out that the last term is the Jan 2010 term - which makes me think that June 2010 should be the graduation date - I was told this is not the case but the woman could not explain to me what the extra time is for perhaps you guys have some insight?

I was also told the class of Jan 2007 is full and then not full by numerous people from Saba including admissions officers and interviewers... is it usually this confusing to try to get a straight answer?!

The admissions office is correct - you'd be done in Jan, but the GRADUATION ceremonies for all 3 terms are in June each year. Since residencies start in July, this is not an issue.

The only people who know if the class is full are the admissions office....we students (and potential students) haven't got a clue.

[psycpixie]

What is the deal with 40 vs. 48 months?

When do people usually take breaks- do they take a full semester off?

What is the time lag between finishing basic sciences and starting clinicals?

Sorry if this has already been asked, I tried a search but didn't find answers...

[wolfvgang22]

What is the deal with 40 vs. 48 months?

When do people usually take breaks- do they take a full semester off?

What is the time lag between finishing basic sciences and starting clinicals?

Sorry if this has already been asked, I tried a search but didn't find answers...
There is a a scheduled break of 2 or 3 weeks between each basic sciences semester. Trust me, you will need them. However, don't take a full semester off or a "leave of absence" if you can help it during basic sciences; it might look shady on a transcript, and you might not want to come back, and you will forget too much.

After basic sciences many people take a couple of months off to study for the step 1. I will be taking the Falcon review course in January, and be ready to take the step 1 by April 1st. So basically I'm taking two months for step 1. Other people study on their own for two months. This is not unusual. In fact, some from the semester ahead of me that finished in August are still on the island studying.
But there is nothing preventing students from jumping right in and taking step 1 directly after finishing 5th semester of basic sciences on Saba. The dean of clinical sciences has been encouraging this option, with the proviso that you do Kaplan questions every night starting in first semester and be a Kaplan machine by 5th semester. A few do that. Most don't.

Regarding clinicals, you do clinicals when spots are open. The dean of clinical sciences says no one has to wait for clinicals, unless you want/need to be in a special rotation in a special place, in which case you might have to wait sometimes. From what the school tells us, you still usually take a week or so off in between each rotation. And don't forget, you will have to study for and take the step 2 CS and CK along the way, which will probably eat up a couple of weeks.

Maybe ducman can chime in here, too. He is at exactly this point in the process, about to take the step 1 and start clinicals.

For me, I don't worry about 40 vs. 48 months unless I am applying for a student loan. I just want to do well on the step 1, and keep moving from one stage to the next without failure. If you fail, or worse, just barely pass the step 1, nothing else really matters.

[ducman]

Wolfie... no reason to add anything. That was a very thorough answer.

I finished up Basic Sciences in August and was one of the few people who jumped right in and took Step I. I shall post my experience in the USMLE forum soon - just been running around spending time with family and friends.


as Wolfie stated, I also would not recommend taking a semester off unless it is for a health emergency or family reasons
majority of students take Step I in 2-3 months after completion of Basic Sciences
the clinical department in Gardner is great and accomodates your preferences for clinical locations. They realize that if you are not happy with the location , you shall not be happy with the clerkship (and more importantly, not do well)
be prepared to move around if you have special requests (you only want to do greenbook rotations)
students usually take 1-2 months off to study for Step 2Hope that helped

[psycpixie]

Thanks! Very informative.