I am currently a 5th semester student at MUA and feel compelled to share some hard won information with incoming students. The MD program at MUA is demanding... probably more so than a traditional US program. The same volume of information is delivered and tested upon in a condensed time frame in an environment similar to your last camping trip. If you of the opinion that attending a Caribbean medical school is the "easy" path, I would strongly advise you reconsider your choice. I am proud to say that I have done well in the program... but my accomplishments are directly proportional to the time I invested in achieving my goals.

Life on Nevis is demanding in and of itself. Obviously there are modern amenities such as the internet and cable TV. However... if you are a fast food addict.. prepare for a massive withdrawal. There is no FAST FOOD. Finding foodstuffs that suit your your palate is a HUGE challenge.

Enough of the bad.... Here are some tips that will help you succeed and enjoy your life on Nevis.

#1) Get here a week early before starting your first semester. The week will help you get acclamated. Starting your first day of classes with your eyes spinning like pinwheels is a BAD idea. No food.. no phone... no internet... no hope. Truth be told... a good number of your future classmates will pack up their dog and pony show and quit the first couple weeks.

#2) Do not be deluded. If someone told you that you do not need a car in your current situation.. most likely you would consider them insane. Multiply that by 5 on Nevis. There is no 7-11 around the corner. Food, sundries, booze are a long way away. Believe me.. you can rely in the school van for transport in the short term... but wasting an hour waiting for a ride will mean a whole lot more when you are in the throws of attempting to master anatomy and histology. Bottom line... be looking for wheels the minute you hit the island.

#3) Housing... live in the dorms. Period. You will have plenty of time to sort this out later.

#4) Your ATM card will work here.

#5) Any text books, desk lamps, tables, TV's, DVD's, microwaves, etc... (items of daily living that you WILL eventually want or need) are being sold by departing students. If you like paying full fare, enjoy the hassle and expense of shipping items to the island, and avoiding a discount.. ignore this bit of advice.

#6) Get a USB thumb drive. Zip drives are dinosaurs. Obviously you know you must have a laptop with "powerpoint" capabilities. If you hate windows.. this will be a problem.. all lectures are in powerpoint format.

#7) Pack light... bring your laptop, printer, and plenty of ink. The dress code is T shirt and shorts.. and scrubs for the first semester. You have many opportunites to round out your wardrobe when you go home for the break.

#8) Be flexible... time here is measured in caribbean minutes... which translates to days, weeks, or months back home. "Be right wid you mon" means sometime early next week. Be patient.. the locals are really wonderful people, but they move at a much more relaxed pace. This can be a problem because you will be anything but relaxed and you will think the day should be extended to 28 hours because you do not have time to wait.

If you made it this far... you are serious. There are 100's of further tips I will share. Drop me an e-mail if you have any questions.




Good luck

well said.

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ppl been asking whether they get notes on cds or if they have to use a pen drive..

i havent been down there in a while so anyone care to answer what common practice is these days?

some professors provide notes on cds. other professors upload class notes on to the classroom's computer and you have to download it onto your pen drive or zip drive.

i personally have a usb pen drive. i find it more convenient to carry and a faster transfer rate than a zip drive. i tend to bring my laptop with me to class and so its easier to plug in a usb pen drive then tote along a zip drive and the zip disk. but there are other students who use a zip drive.

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drrose, thanks a lot for all of that information (even though you probably won't see this message as you posted yours two years ago)!