I'm not sure about the truthfulness of all the charges against AAIMG, although some of them probably are valid. You do have to wonder where they would get their funding from. But I highly doubt that any of the "approved" schools have forked out any money. For whatever it's worth I have contacted their so-called president on a couple of occasions, and received a reply within a few days. On the other hand, I can tell you that the MUA rating hasn't been changed for over a year. One thing to keep in mind is that even if they are bogus, this may not be common knowledge among residency program directors. I can tell you for a fact that one PD I interviewed with had checked the AAIMG site to try get a handle on some of the newer Caribbean schools.

As far as MUA goes, I am one of the small group of alumni currently doing residency in the U.S. All of us are transferees from other schools; I don't think MUA's original Basic Science class will be graduating until next year. In terms of Nasim's original questions, I don't know much about #1 or 2. Maybe the admin. could give you some of that info. But I can tell you that at least 2 MUA alunni (myself and one more) are doing residency on H1, and I know of a couple others on J1. I also have a friend who managed to get a spot in Canada (not listed on the website for some reason). I actually don't know of any graduates who've passed their boards but haven't been able to get a residency spot. I'm not sure how much this actually reflects on the school, but I haven't had any major complaints since I transferred back in 2000 (aside from some questionable rotation placements). They were actually pretty helpful with residency and license applications. Overall I think MUA is a decent choice, and definitely cheaper than most others.

__________________
Stephen Sloan, M.D.
PGY2 Internal Medicine
John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County (the NEW Cook County Hospital)

Any hospital PD that uses the AAIMG to judge a students school background should be thoroughly evaluated and had their credentials checked. I very seriously doubt that any reputable institution would rely on such an unsubstantiated, mysterious, and controversial website. I really think that most PD's will check with their state credentialing agencies or comparative education offices to investigate or confirm a schools status in that state. It is appalling to think that ANY PD would be so unproffesional.

__________________
BTS4202
St. Christopher's COM
4th Year
http://www.mdparadise.com

"If there really is a God, He has a lot of explaining to do"
- Dennis Leary

Hi Steve, thanks for the info. I will be asking the school detailed questions when the time comes. However, I have one additional question for the group. Can you elaborate on what you meant by "questionable rotation placements"? Is there something to be aware of in terms of clinical rotations?

Regards,

Nasim

Not everything you read on the Internet is true. The Internet is not
a regulated form of communication. People have the chance to use the
Internet for good as well as bad purposes. Unfortunately, the AAIMG is not a valid organization.

The AAIMG was created by an individual or an organization from a foreign
medical school. It was created to discredit its competitors. I believe this website gives a fair assessment of who the AAIMG is:

http://www.fowma.com/bogus_asso.htm

Unfortunately, FOWMA is not a valid organization too and it was created by an individual trying to protect his school. However, this person's analysis of the organization seems to be fair.

Note that the AAIMG is a Nevada based company. Now why would a US company based on the west coast need to use a Russian web hosting company when there are a number of qualified IT professionals on the west coast of America?

Use of Hotmail addresses for business purposes is a violation of
Microsoft's terms of agreement. You can read this at:

http://www.hotmail.com
Click on: the FAQs link.

Why is there no phone number or fax number?
Most organizations have at least a telephone number.

Also, there is no valid organization in the US which accredits foreign
medical schools. This is because foreign medical schools operate outside of our country. The only qualified US organization to validate the quality of education overseas would be the US Department of Education. The US DOE has created a committee for this purpose called the National Committee on Foreign Medical Education and Accreditation. Note this organization doesn't accredit medical schools like the LCME but the NCFMEA only reviews the standards that a foreign country uses to accredit its medical schools.

http://www.ed.gov

Who funds the AAIMG?

The US DOE doesn't!
It must cost a lot of money to make all those trips.

How up-to-date is the information?

Foreign medical school's change their curriculum constantly to keep up
with US standards.

Also note, that medical schools like SGU and Ross have gone through the
rigorous process of approving their medical school standards and have been approved by the US DOE not the AAIMG.

http://www.sgu.edu/
Click on Medicine | Accreditation Standards

http://www.rossmed.edu
Click on Ask Questions & FAQ | How is Ross University accredited.

I recommend you make a campus visit and decide what is best for you.

Let me ask you something: do you really think most PD's can afford the time -- or could be bothered -- to thoroughly check into the legitimacy of all the new Caribbean schools out there? Whether you like it or not, I'm sure there must be quite a number who do rely on sites like AAIMG. And unless/until AAIMG is officially discredited and forced to shut down, there's nothing you can do about it. So you'd be better off at least acknowledging this fact, and to be prepared at interview time in case they do ask any questions related to "deficiencies" of your school.

Nasim, I'm not trying to scare you, but when it comes time to doing rotations you should make sure you ask some questions before you jump into anything. In a couple of cases I was assigned rotations in non-ACGME approved hospitals, which I only found out about because I made sure to check things out for myself ahead of time. In some states that may not really matter, but Illinois for one is very strict so I doubt these rotations would've been acceptable. By now MUA is more established so this may not be as much of an issue, but 2-3 years ago they were having a hard time finding spots for everyone who transferred. Anyways, just something to keep in mind....

__________________
Stephen Sloan, M.D.
PGY2 Internal Medicine
John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County (the NEW Cook County Hospital)

Although in your case, you may have had a PD ask you about the AAIMG.. that is definately NOT the norm. I am sure that I am teeling you things that you already know but PD's are people of great respect and professionalism. A person does NOT get to a position like that in life by believing random websites related to medical education. I would actually rethink my decision to even attend a residency where a PD informed me that he/she used that website as their basis of evaluation of my medical credentials.

__________________
BTS4202
St. Christopher's COM
4th Year
http://www.mdparadise.com

"If there really is a God, He has a lot of explaining to do"
- Dennis Leary

FYI: though the AMA is a horrible advocate (in my view) of IMGs, they are the big guns. Here's the organization you should worry about (not the AAIMG) as per AMA: Q. Does the AMA recommend any foreign medical schools and is there any organization that accredits medical schools throughout the world?

A. The AMA does not accredited, approve or rank medical schools outside the United States nor is there any organization that accredits medical schools throughout the world. However, it is important to know that ECFMG certification requires that a medical school must be listed in the current edition of the International Medical Education Directory published by the ECFMG’s Foundation for Advancement of International Medical Education and Research. You can view the Directory at http://www.faimer.org/

The AMA’s section on Medical Education (link) provides valuable resources and information

__________________
Steph
If you get a warning, put on yer manpants and stop whining about it.

Nasim-

Some food for thought...

See if you can access the AAIMG website. I only come up with a Gisich Art Gallery. That may something about the foundation. I don't think I'd base my opinions on this so-called AAIMG now that it's link goes to some kind of foreign art gallery.

it is still up..at www.aaimg.com
whether observations here are valid or not, it should at least raise some awareness for prospective students...to at least raise these same information and check with the targeted schools..if they are not true then you've learn something...if they are TRUE, then again, you've learned something

peace

hello,

i took a look at aaimg now that is it no longer an art gallery. i agree with most of what is listed under MUA Nevis. i cannot comment on the clinical training program because i am only in my second semester. for section IV, f: in regards to a missing student health clinic. this is correct. however, a student health clinic is underway for construction and i am understood it is to be completed by the middle of next year.

also, this is listed as deficient under MUA that i would like to address:

Section III. Basic Science Campus
e. There are facilities for quiet study time or research available to students.

the library is available for students to study until 11pm most nights and on the weekends i believe they close a little earlier. there is also a small classroom students can study in that remains open 24 hours.

regards.

__________________
veritatem dies aperit