If time and money was no issue, which one of these would you choose?

i am in a position right now where i have been accepted by st matthew university in grand cayman and charles 1st faculty of medicine. its 4 year in grand cayman from jan 2008 or 5 year in charles from october this year( i have got 1 year exemption). my main concern is that i want to practice in us. with regards to licence and residency in us , which of these two universities should i choose?

i understand that smu is delisted in california and indiana but i mainly want to practice on the east coast, ideally boston.

Can a charles graduate or a charles student please comment.

hey there...i think you should do a search about the well-known carribean medical programs in the european medical school forum...that'll really help....i think SABA and the Ross are the best...but i don't know about St. Matthew Univ.....

secondly coming to europe, i'm planning to join the Charles First faculty this October....and after a thorough research, i found out that there are several charles univ. grads who are currently practising in the US. The First Fac. is CA approved, so that entitles you to work in CA (along with the 49 other states).....the others are not yet approved though.....

i would personally suggest that you attend a carribean school (provided it's good) coz they do prepare you better for the USMLEs as opposed to the european med school which don't care about the USMLEs...however, if you're willing to work hard, then you can prepare for the USMLEs simultaneously (there is a kaplan centre in prague from what i've heard).....so all you need to do is work hard and you'll get there.....

Also realize if you get advanced standing at Charles, you will most likely run into licensing issues in the future, thereby making the advantage of going to a Cali approved school a moot point. If the curriculum is normally 6 years, do all 6 years; if it's normall 4 years at SMU, do 4 years.

I'd personally do SMU, if I were you; you're only out of the US for 18 months, as opposed to 6 years at Charles (because, like I said, the 5 year idea is a bad one, IMO).

Hello, thanks Shrey for your input I guess I am now in the same situtation that you were in a year ago? that is that I am planning to go to a EE medical school and I have narrowed my selection to : Charles first Uni, Hadrec Kravoe, Zagreb, Debrecen. All english programs. Can you give me some advise? how is you experience at Charles? do plan to work in the US?What are the pros and cons of charles? Thank you in advance you are a real help. Would you choose any other school now that your in CHarles and Eastern Europe?..

hey there Mister,

Charles First Fac. is really huge and quite spread out (and the CR is part of central europe). The HK faculty is really nice (in fact i just went there today). The people in the HK faculty are very friendly as opposed to those in the 1st fac. (not that they're not friendly but they usually get so many students every year that it's quite hard to meet all of them).

Pros of Charles First fac:
1) CA recognized. (and yes i do plan to work either in the US or the scandinavian countries....but US is my first option).
2)Huge faculty
3) relatively inexpensive (although getting an apartment can be a bit of a problem)
4) Center of city; best clubs, pubs (prague's the new central european party capital)
5) friendly place

Cons :
1) Have to learn czech
2) Some professors are crappy (but that's there pretty much anywhere)
3) Living expenditure
4) Weather (if you're not used to the freezing winters)
5) the faculty is a bit disorganised
6) too many distractions

Pros of HK faculty:
1) very very friendly place
2) very cheap compared to prague
3) very well organised
4) good professors
5) calm place (very well suited for study).

Cons:
1) Not in the center (takes about an 1 hr 30 min to get to prague)
2) not much of a social life
3) Not CA recognised (but the HK students normally do better on their USMLEs)

I don't know much about Zagreb but i don't think it's CA recognised. Debrecen is CA recognised but I wouldn't recommend it because the language can really be a problem (czech isn't so tough as hungarian). But the medical schools in Europe are pretty much the same in terms of quality. They have a lot to offer for those who take advantage of the program. But you're pretty much on you're own (unlike in the US where spoon-feeding is quite common). Ultimately it's do-able and it can also be a lot of fun (especially in cities like Prague). If you put you're mind to it, then i'm sure you'll do well here......just be prepared to work hard......(but like i said, it can be a lotta fun too)

For now, I would stay away from SMU (and all other carib schools, except SGU, AUC and Ross). I had a blast at first faculty, did very well, got a sweet residency. And, when I am all finished, I am eligible to work in all 50 states (which, IMHO, is the most important thing...foolish to limit yourself, and who knows what other states will adopt the CA list in the future...)

best of luck

Thanks Shrey I really appreciate it

This is not a flame-- but generally having a blast (good times on a regular basis) does not equate to doing very well. There are those who can do it, but if you are not one of those people I would suggest not going to C.R. Way too many distractions-- beautiful women being number one.

If you do not get accepted to SGU, AUC or Ross-- I would do some research and seriously consider SMU. I am here now and like the school a lot. Really good professors and geared toward USMLE. The island is modern and plenty of things to do after exams like waverunners, harley davidson tours, scuba and bars. Shelf exams are incorporated into the program which gives you an idea of what to expect for USMLE.

Kinda some random thoughts here on my part, but let me know if you have any questions. No regrets about coming here whatsover--even with the recent issues with loans.

good times aside, the CR, along with many other places are still a far better choice the SMU now.

any school that is disapproved anywhere is a huge risk at this time. SMU may be a great place, but the fact is that the diploma simply is not as well recieved stateside.

prague was great for me. distractions were there, sure. but, if you cannot look past them and focus, you will have trouble anywhere. if you need a school with no distractions, go to SABA.

stay away from disapproved schools. period.