Thread: Compilation of Important Information for Prospective and Current Students

Why Lublin?

This is the Medical Campus. You should use Google's Street View to get a feel for the school's substantial infrastructure.

Main Medical Campus:
Collegium Pharmaceuticum: at about: 4 Doktor Witolda Chodźki, Lublin, Lublin Voivodeship, Poland
https://maps.google.com/maps?q=4+Dok...ed=0CA4Q8gEwAA
Collegium Universum: at about : 1 Doktor Witolda Chodźki, Lublin, Lublin Voivodeship, Poland
https://maps.google.com/maps?q=1+Dok...ed=0CBgQ8gEwAA
Collegium Anatomicum: at about: 4 Doktor Kazimierza Jaczewskiego, Lublin, Lublin Voivodeship, Poland
https://maps.google.com/maps?q=4+Dok...ed=0CAsQ8gEwAA
Collegium Medicum: at about: 11 Radziwiłłowska, Lublin, Lublin Voivodeship, Poland
https://maps.google.com/maps?q=11+Ra...ed=0CAsQ8gEwAA
PSK-4(aka: Samodzielny Publiczny Szpital Kliniczny nr 4): at about: Doktor Kazimierza Jaczewskiego 8 Lublin, Poland
https://maps.google.com/maps?q=Dokto...ed=0CAsQ8gEwAA

Dean's Office and Administration: at about: Aleje Racławickie 1, Lublin, Poland
https://maps.google.com/maps?q=Aleje...ed=0CAsQ8gEwAA

The Medical University of Lublin is one of 2 schools in all of Europe that allow and have organized all of years 3 and 4 of your medical education to be completed (at the hospitals listed below) in the United States.
--- So what does this mean? This means that after your second year of medical school, after you take and pass the USMLE step 1 exam, you can leave Poland and return to the USA. Students then complete all of years 3 and 4 in America and then they graduate. I thought this was self explanatory, but apparently it is not.

Going to school at Lublin is a great option that is best used once you exhaust your chances with the osteopathic and big 4 in the Caribbean (St. George, AUC, Ross, SABA).

I just recently started my rotations in the states, and I can tell you that everyone is on the same level when they get here. There will always be gunners who try to make their peers look bad, but ultimately the knowledge from step 1 keeps everyone in the same game.

About the Lublin 4 year program:

Nobody is going to MAKE you do anything. If you are alright with just getting by under the radar, Lublin is not for you. The majority of your education will come from you choosing to take the material seriously, finding study groups to keep focussed, and deciding not to cheat yourself even when the opportunity is there.
One of the biggest differentiators of Lublin to Carib schools, is the final exam policies. In most european schools (including the polish program at Lublin) it is customary to have up two 2 retakes for final exams. The retakes dont get any easier, and, in fact, they are almost always more difficult than the first exam, but they give you a chance. There is no serious threat of "failing out" of Lublin. That being said, about half of my class did not graduate on time- meaning that they repeated enough classes to have to stay longer in Lublin.

Lectures and Labs:
The material covered is all very relevant and important for practicing medicine. If you pay attention, all the high yield items on step 1 are covered in depth. The only, substantial, problem with classes here are the types of questions on the tests. The current format is alot like undergrad type questions (shorter fact based questions and less differentials) and not so much the clinical vignettes that are needed to be comfortable with Step 1.

It is because of this lack of comfort with the test that most MUL students take about 4-6 months off after year 2 to do Kaplan and prep for the step.
Take this into account when scheduling your education.

Rotations:
MUL actually does a pretty great job with setting up rotation schedules. Many Caribbean schools will schedule rotations one at a time at distant hospitals as dictated by availability. This is typically not the case with Hope. For the vast majority, rotation schedules are scheduled for the entire year with little to no discontinuity between rotations. For example, I was just given my 3rd year rotation schedule. I am scheduled to do all of my core electives at Wyckoff Heights MC. Each of my core electives are scheduled back to back for an entire year. The stability that this provides is invaluable, because it allows an active student the opportunity to be very active at the hospital (outreach, research, connections, etc).

Having said all of that, Hope currently only has active rotation spots in the suburbs of Chicago (Adventist Hospital systems in Hinsdale and La Grange), WHMC in NYC, Niagra Falls (only for Family med right now), and they are just about to open spots with Kalieda Health Systems in Buffalo (For electives only).

One must also realize that Lublin and Silesia students are FAR outnumbered by the class sizes at Ross, AUC, AUA, and SABA. All Hope students put together at WHMC make up maybe 15-20 percent of the medical student population (most Hope students are rotating at WHMC), which is dominated by Ross and AUA.

Residency options:

From what I've seen and researched, there is not an additional stigma attached to students coming from Lublin as compared to any other FMG.
In my opinion, scores on Step 1 and 2 are the only significant differentiator between Polish and Caribbean residency applicants.




Biggest Benefits of choosing Lublin:

1) GradPlus Loans - This is a luxury that most Caribbean Medical Schools can not offer. This puts you in the same financial boat as most American Medical Students

2) European Union Certification- By graduating from an EU accredited facility you add an additional layer of confidence that your school is legitimate. In addition, graduates of MUL can practice anywhere in the EU without having to take additional certification exams.

3) Accreditation in all 50 States.

4) Normal sized classes (Typically about 30-40 per year. Vs. the ridiculous 300-400 per class at Ross, AUA, etc.)

5) All students must pass NBME shelf exams (1st year) and BOTH the NBME Step1 (2nd year) and Step2ck (3rd year) comp exams before being allowed to continue on. NO OTHER EUROPEAN SCHOOL IS THIS STRICT yet. (updated as of july 2011)
Note: If students can not pass the nbme step 1 comp exam after their 3rd attempt, they must start clinical rotations in Poland. MULublin will not allow you to sit for the Step 1 exam until you pass the NBME Step 1 comp (the same goes for step 2ck, except that you can continue rotations in the states without worry)



Biggest Disadvantages of choosing Lublin:

1) Not all of your peers will be as serious about their medical education as you think they should be.

2) Cultural and Language barriers- There are some classes (mostly in your first year) where the professor's english skills will not be great. Having said that, it is no different than having a foreign TA teach you chemistry. (Its annoying but not insurmountable).
Ironically, the cultural barrier I speak of in this situation is not Polish, but rather Indian. The vast majority of the American students at Lublin are of Indian-American descent. There can be alot of 'high-school' level drama that may keep you from finding the ideal study group situation (again its annoying but not insurmountable).

3) Poland is cold.

4) Poland is 5000 miles away from your family.






Bottom Line:

If you:
1) have a strong background in Science (Bachelors in Biology etc.)
2) are self motivated and do not require alot of guidance to read and learn material
3) are mentally capable of living 5000 miles away from home
4) WANT TO BE A PHYSICIAN

then Lublin is a smart and very reasonable choice.

@shap: First and foremost welcome.

It sounds like you will be joining the BIS (begin in spring) program at Lublin. I am finishing up now (BIS class of 2008), so perhaps I can be useful for guidance or advise.

Some info on the BIS program: - Just a quick reminder to relax, there are a lot of unique issues that complicate the BIS program that you should be aware and prepared for. First, traditionally class size of the BIS programs are very small (<20). Next, there may be some students in your class that seem less serious than you are when it comes to their education. As I have said in my first post, it is important to rise above that and get as much out of your classes as you can. Finally, during the first few weeks there may be some organizational glitches in which one of you or your classmates will have to take a leadership role to get ironed out.

Even after all of that stuff - the BIS program was good for me because I got ample interaction with my professors in a very personal basic sciences experience.


Now to your questions:

Books: There is a bookstore in Chodzki that sells english textbooks for about the same price. They will also have some of the books for sale during orientation. Also remember that making copies of books is legal in poland and it is really useful (and cheap) to get books for the smaller classes (embryo, ethics, genetics, etc) When I started I brought the BRS Anatomy book, BRS Physio, and clinical anat by moore. I cant remember the other books, but they were kind of unnecessary because I could buy most of them in Poland. Also books are super heavy and keeping to the 50lb max per bag is not so easy.
One recommendation: Make sure you have the First Aid for Step 1 book, and also
******GET (from internet) AND PRINT OUT THE KAPLAN STEP 1 LECTURE NOTES FOR EACH SUBJECT.
------------------Knowing those lecture notes in and out = a high score on Step 1.
******START EARLY AND CORRELATE THOSE LECTURE NOTES WITH THE MUL CURRICULUM AS YOU LEARN IT!!!!

Next question: Apartments
The "dorms" that HMI sets you up with at Langawica 26 are not the best that you can do for your money. They are not very close to any of the main teaching buildings. I lived at the dorms for a semester, then i got an apartment near the REAL (thats the name) grocery store on chodzki. I shared a 3 bedroom apt with 1 person and it was about $400 a month. There are a few bodegas near the dorms that people depend on.

Next question: English
I'd say 90% of the American students at Lublin speak very little polish, and they get by just fine. The majority of people speak enough english for you to accomplish all of your needs.

Next question: Climate
Its very similar to Chicago in the winter. There is less wind, but also less sunlight (more overcast and dreariness). The spring (end of march-early april) is beautiful and really nice though. Bring a good coat, earmuffs, snow boots, gloves.

Originally Posted by bidiboom

Dr.Hokie is it for 4 year program only, or is it the same for 6-year program as well?

Years 3-4 of the 6 year program are the same as years 1-2 of the 4 year program.

Years 1-2 of the 6 year program are taught in a similar fashion, but with no NBME exams (they dont exist). There is also quite a bit more free time in these years because they are just for completing pre-med courses.

A few more questions, thank you for your cooperation DrHokie. I'm bringing some slightly older Kaplan Step 1 books to go over while I'm studying in Lublin, to make the Step 1 process a bit easier. I also want to get as many practice questions as possible to go over hopefully nightly. Anyways, to the questions..

Should I find electronic adapters for some of my stuff while I'm here or is it easy to find in Poland?

How available are American products in Lublin, like, foods and such? I was going to load up on some cereals and maybe some cup of noodles thinking there wouldn't be much of that over there, just for the initial transition.

How were your years initially compared to undergrad? Miles more intensive? I've heard quite a few horror stories about the first couple of semesters of med school and I want to brace myself.

A criticism I've heard about Lublin is that the classes don't prepare you as well for the Step 1 as they should, how true is that? Were you taught a good majority of the Step 1 materials during your first 2 years? Are the NBME exams in the format of the Steps?

Any more bits of advice you'd like to give that you'd wish you'd known for when you first went out there?

As the days go by I'm getting a bit more nervous/excited, incredible how nothing really compares to this step I'm taking with my life. Won't even really feel it til I'm there, any tips would be very helpful.

sorry dbl post

1) Kaplan Books: even older kaplan lecture books are great, just be aware that you will want to be annotating these books with your own notes from class, and it might be most optimal to use the same kaplan lecture notes that you would use to prep right before step 1 test time. With that said, not much has changed in the kaplan lecture books since like 07.
2) Adapters: I would bring 1 or 2 just so that you dont have to immediately go to tesco (like walmart) as soon as you get there. They use the Europlug in PL, if you go to radioshack they will have them.
3) USA product/food availablitly: In Lublin they have 2 very large superstore chains, Tesco (which is the british version of walmart, you can find Tesco's all throughout western europe and the UK) and REAL (which is the french version of Target but with more focus on groceries)
Go to tesco.pl to see what products they dont have--- they pretty much carry everything.
4) Course Intensity: It really depends on how you study. As I described earlier, there are quite a few quizzes/exams every week. For example: Year 1 classes are Anatomy, Biochem, Phys, Histo, Embryo, and First Aid. Each of the big 5 have a lecture and a lab associated with it each week.
I found the BIS schedule on umlub.pl

MONDAY
8.00 – 9.30am Human Anatomy (lecture) lecture hall Coll.Anatomicum
10:15 – 11:45am Histology (labs, gr. 1-4) QUIZ LIKELY
1:30 – 3:00pm Biophysics (lecture) lecture hall Coll.Anatomicum
3.45 – 6:00pm Human Anatomy (lab, gr.1 – 6) QUIZ LIKELY
6:30 – 8:00pm Health&Safety (lecture) March19 – March 26 lecture hall Coll.Anatomicum
6:30 – 8:00pm Medical Sociology (lecture) April 2 – May 14 lecture hall Coll.Anatomicum

TUESDAY

8:00 – 9:30am Epidemiology (labs, gr. 1, 2)
9:45 – 11:15am Biochemistry (lecture) Coll.Universum room 22
12:00 – 2:30pm Biochemistry (labs, gr. 1, 2) QUIZ LIKELY
3:00 – 4:30pm Parasitology (labs, gr. 1, 2) QUIZ LIKELY
5:00 – 6:30pm First Aid (labs, gr. 1, 2)


WEDNESDAY
8:00 – 9:30am Ethics (lecture) Coll.Novum room 316
10:30 – 12:00pm Human Physiology (lecture) lec.hall Coll.Medicum
12:00 – 2:00pm Histology (lecture) Feb.15 – March 7 lec.hall Coll.Medicum
12:00 – 2:00pm Embriology (lecture) March 14 – Jan.6 lec.hall Coll.Medicum
4:00 – 5:30pm Biostatistics (labs, gr. 1, 2) Coll.Anatomicum room 42 QUIZ LIKELY
7:30 – 9:00pm Biochemistry (lecture) Coll.Universum room 22

THURSDAY
8:00 – 9:00am Hygiene&Nutrition (lecture) lec.hall Coll.Medicum
9:30 – 11:45am Human Anatomy (lab, gr.1-6)QUIZ LIKELY
12:30 – 2:00 Medical Psychology (lecture) Coll.Universum room 22 Feb.16 – April 26
2:15 – 4:30pm Biophysics (labs, gr.1, 2)QUIZ LIKELY
5:00 – 6:30pm Medical Psychology (labs, gr. 1, 2) Coll.Universum room 22 Feb.16 – April 26

FRIDAY
8:00 – 9:30am Hygiene&Nutrition (labs, gr.1, 2)
11:00 – 12:30 Medical Sociology (labs, gr. 1, 2) Library of MUL room 314
1:30 – 3:00pm Biochemistry (lecture) Coll.Universum room 22
3:30 – 5:00pm Human Physiology (labs, gr. 1, 2)QUIZ LIKELY
6:30 – 8:00pm Embriology (labs, gr. 1, 2) Feb.16 – June QUIZ LIKELY

5) Curriculum correlation with Step 1 readiness: What you have heard is true to a certain extent. The way your knowledge is tested is very analytical and fact based. For example, in Anatomy lab you will have to memorize the arteries that make up the Circle of Willis, and you will be tested on which one is the most likely to form an aneurism, but that information is weighted the same as knowing that the accessory meningeal artery passes through the foramen ovale in the middle cranial fossa. For step 1, knowing anything about the accessory meningeal artery is considered low yield. What I am trying to say is that if you read the textbooks that you are supposed to, you will not only do well on the course work, but you will build the necessary base from which kaplan lecture notes can be used to highlight the "high yield" info that is tested most frequently on step 1. If you read the text books that you are supposed to, you are literally equal/better than every other medical student out there.
6) NBME exams: Yes they are in the same format as the USMLE. These shelf exams have been proven to be very close indicators of actual USMLE board scores. For me my NBME score was 10pts less than my Step 1 score.

7) Advice: Don't listen to anyone about what one med school is compared to another. It doesnt matter if you study at Yale, Ross, or in somebody's basement in Siberia, the quality of your education, at least for the basic sciences years, is directly dependent on your work ethic and how much you read and are driven to succeed. If you want to succeed badly enough, coming from PL is not a handicap. I have rotated with students from all over the carib, from SUNY Buffalo, and from osteopathic medical schools in NY. The only difference between all of us is confidence levels. So my advice is to study hard (read what you are supposed to), don't cheat yourself, take every opinion with a grain of salt, and be confident in knowing that you have the exact same tools as every other medical student.

Is the school administration making any changes in terms of the American program and gearing it towards the USMLE or is that not a priority? I understand they have implemented the NBME exams for some basic science classes although are they planning to do any other changes such as revising exams/tests/quizzes into USMLE style?

Ive been out of Basic Sciences for a couple of years now, but when I left they were trying to change anatomy to make more of the questions USMLE based. When I took physiology, the department head began using kaplan-style questions as our weekly quizzes. One of the current 1st or 2nd years would have to answer this one.

Clarifications:
The Medical University of Lublin is one of 2 schools in all of Europe that allow and have organized all of years 3 and 4 of your medical education to be completed (at the hospitals listed above) in the United States.
--- So what does this mean? This means that after your second year of medical school, after you take and pass the USMLE step 1 exam, you can leave Poland and return to the USA. Students then complete all of years 3 and 4 in America and then they graduate. I thought this was self explanatory, but apparently it is not.

Third post updated with cost analysis

I'm going to Lublin in Fall and had some questions. Is it better to have a housing situation setup before or after you arrive in Poland? Should I get there before orientation? Thanks in advance!