Could someone tell me what the quality of the online basics sciences program is and how accepted is it from the US medical associations, hospitals, and residency system?

stay away from online (medical) programs...

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Carpe Diem
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St. Matthew's University School of Medicine
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Indeed fully online programs will end up with you having a degree you can't license........

az skeptic

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Moderator - State Licensing Forum

Still skeptical after all these years.
This is it. There are no hidden meanings.WYSIWYG

http://www.internetmedicalschool.homestead.com

http://www.chiropractormds.homestead.com/index.html

Med students learn interaction with patients from 2nd year in medical school, that can never be replaced with online learning. Online learning is an adjunct to traditional learning. Clerkship, together with online learning is a great idea, only as an adjunct !!!. For schools offering online learning as a primary, can not get their graduates proper licensure requirements. Online learning together with attendance and FULL clerkship, of 2 years. 36 months should be the minimum standard for any MD degree, where 24 months should be allocated to patient's observations under clinical settings, in conjunction to academia.
Hope this helps,

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Thanks for your information, but isn't the USMLE Step 1 the great equalizer and if you can pass it and pass it with a good score wouldn't that allow you to get into clinical rotations and then residency and of course licensure?

I'm not a student at IUHS but I am taking my basic sciences online. It is true that some states are against any portion of your medical education online. There are medical students and people who feel that you can't learn medicine online. That's just what they think. No one can tell you how you learn and the way you should learn. Alot of this has to do with history's Diploma Mill which are known to give advanced credit for life experience's unrelated to medicine and medical schools which don't have a campus or physical location. As a result, many states have either banned or shun any medical school that has an online program.

However, as time goes by, many schools are incorporating techonology into their curriculum. Today, many medical schools are doing away with cadavers and putting anatomy online for their students. Students are now able to download powerpoints on lectures without having to go to class. There are medical school's that are strictly PBL. Some medical schools from the first day of class put their students in patient contact while other's will not let you near a patient until your 3rd and 4th year of school. I know plenty of medical student who spend the majority of their time studying from notes and other resources rather than attending class only going for the first few days of class or attending those classes which are mandatory for them to attend.

As it stands right now, distance learning is becoming more active in many medical schools and schools across the nation, though few have gone so far to allow students to do their entire basic sciences online. The few schools that have done so, are the laughing stock for the medical community and those who feel you can't learn from reading. This explains why most students who choose this route stay away from forums like this. Since there are 3 medical schools that offer this distance learning approach to medicine, there are hundreds of student taking this different, unusal route to learning medicine. Yet you don't hear from most of them. Then again why should you when they are the laughing stock of the medical community. What point would it be for them to post on this site or other medical student site only to be shunned. You soon learn not to go where your not welcomed.

As far as state licensing is concerned, as I said before, there are some states which have banned any medical graduate from licensure if they have taken this route. Then there are some states which don't really care as long as you pass the boards. The decision to attend one of these schools has to be made on the account of how important it is for the individual to have freedom of movement because you will be limited in terms of where you can become licensed. You also have to be willing to be shunned and made to feel incompetent by some people. This will become less and less over time, but right now, it's still the beginning.

I personally know students who are in residency right now after completing their basic science online, not just in the US but aboard as well. They have no problem and have yet to be turn away by a patient saying that they would not want a doctor who did their basic sciences online. Reality of the situation, most don't care as long as your a competent physician. That's what matters in the end. Not how you learned. Then again, you have patients who won't let a medical student come near them nor will they allow a MD to work on them. I know lots of people who use Allopathic medicine as a last resort. I've worked with people who will not go to an Allopathic physician and would only see a D.O. or ND (Naturopathic Physician).

I will not sit here and tell you what a PD is looking for because I don't know what a PD looks for in an applicant. I'm sure it's more than what school you went to or how you learned your basic sciences. I doubt that anyone one this board is a PD in a residency program who can say that you won't get a residency. Even if they were, they can only speak for their own program not for all programs. Same with licensure laws. One state can only speak for their own state laws and rules, not every state. If one state will not accept you, then there are others whom may.

If all this sounds like too much work, then you should go to a medical school where there is less hostility. There are plenty which you wont have to go through this hassle. In the end, you must weigh your own situation to the issue. You have to be willing to face what comes with making that decision. Took me a while to learn this. But at some point you have to forget what others are saying and make it happen. Make them the liar.

Lastly, I like to point out that some try to make distant learning out to be something it's not. You can't complete 4yrs of medical school in 2yrs. You can't do your entire medical education online. You still have to do your 3rd and 4th year just as any other medical student. You still have to pass the USMLE and perhaps other test as well before becoming licensed to practice medicine. You still have to put in the hours of study just as any other medical student or it will show on the board exams the quality of education you recieved. And, it takes lot more dedication and sometimes time to do your medical education through distant learning. By no means is this an easy route to becoming a physician. You have be disciplined enough to study and complete your lessons on time. If you have taken a distant learning course in college, then you should know what I'm talking about. I took a couple of classes in college which were distant learning and I found it much harder than knowing you have a class at 8am which you must attend. You must be disiciplined enough to set time aside for study, review and exams. If you think this is a pie in the sky, then I would advise you to take a distant learning CME course and use that as a judgement of what the first 2yrs of medicine through distant learning is like.

Good luck

If you really want to get licensed without more headaches than necessary, it's probably a good idea to avoid internet schools for the time being.
(an understatement, I'm sure)

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Saba University School of Medicine

• Step I (234/98) [x]
• Internal Med [x]
• Infectious Disease [x]
• Ob/Gyn [x]
• Family Med [x]
• Pediatrics [ x]
• Cardiology[x]
• Surgery [ ]

Perhaps this is true if you go to a state which prohibts such schools, but for those that don't, you'll have no problem.

If I did a law degree online and tried to go anywhere but california, I would have problems since california is the only state that allows people to do law degrees online. See my point.

Since I have no desire to work in the states which prohibt me from becoming licensed, then I will have no problems with getting licensed. Not everyone want to have the ability to move all over the US. I'm happy where I live and have no plans on moving to another state. You may think this sucks but that's you. I have no need to be able to be licensed in all 50 states nor do I wish to be licensed in all 50 states. Does this limit me? Sure it does in terms of moving out of my state, but I have a whole state that has no such law which many of you continue to try to make exist when it doesn't. I have no desire to be in a competitive residency program so I have no worries here. My goal is to work in IM and subspecialize in Nutrition. The medical school that I attend will get me there. The state I live in has no law which prohibts my medical school nor the way I study to become a physician, so who really has the issue here? It sure isn't me because I'm making my dream come true and I'm not the one on this site trying to bring someone else's dream down because I don't agree with the way they are learning medicine.

Again, think as you will people....I'm making my dream come true rather you agree or don't agree...and this is becoming really boring having to defend my decision....I wonder why I keep coming to these forum.

Hi, I was wondering if you could please tell me which are the 3 online med programs that you mentioned since I'm truly interested in finding more about it.
are there only 3? or more? please give me the names if you could.
please reply. thanks.

Ok then. Give us a list of licensed grads from IUHS or any other foreign internet med school, and the states that have allowed such licensures. I have a $2 wager to lose if you can. (I'll call the state boards to check.)

But even if you can:

My point is that internet schooling is really new in medicine, and anyone who goes that route might have to "take one for the team" to the tune of $100,000+ to find out if licensure can be obtained that way. So if that's cool with you, more power to ya.

Bottom line:

Prospective students should look to see the USMLE pass rate of schools they are interested in first, second the percentage of the class that graduated with their class and passed the USMLE, and third the number of grads that got licensed in the states out of those who passed.

Check with the medical boards in the states you might practice in to see what the rules for licensure are, and if your school can help you meet those expectations. And don't forget that when you participate in the Match, you might need to go to another state to get the job you want.

Finally:
Don't believe everything you read. (Except my sig below.)

__________________
Saba University School of Medicine

• Step I (234/98) [x]
• Internal Med [x]
• Infectious Disease [x]
• Ob/Gyn [x]
• Family Med [x]
• Pediatrics [ x]
• Cardiology[x]
• Surgery [ ]