just thought i'd post my impression of the cincinnati open house. dr. jordan presented. it was quite good (although if you browse this forum or studentdoctor.com very often and have thoroughly checked out the sgu website there's not much new info). there were two graduates present. a woman doing ped cards and a 2nd year gen surg guy. they were very helpful in answering questions about life on the island, clinical years, and the residency match. dr. jordan and the 2 grads stayed around for over an hour talking with me and a few other prospective students. i brought up the decel issue, and dr. jordan was very candid in his responses. i feel much more comfortable about that issue now, and the question concerning room at st. vincents. apparently there is now more than enough room at vinnies to accomodate the entire incoming class. dr. jordan, however, made it very clear that an entire incoming class simply will NOT make it to st. vincent together (due to attrition and/or the decel program). after i mentioned a few of the topics (decel, class size, attrition, etc...) that are frequently discussed on this forum, dr. jordan said that i must have been on valuemd.com. i thought that was kinda funny. what is said here is definitely not a secret. overall i think attending the open house was worthwhile. the cd-rom they give out is really well put together; an excellent marketing tool. and it was really nice to finally talk to some sgu people face to face. if anyone else that was in attendance browses this site, i'd be interested in your impression of the open house. anyone who is considering sgu, i recommend going to an open house near you. i also wanted to add that the application deadline for the august '04 class is june 15th. i had looked everywhere for deadline info, but could not find it. so there it is: june 15.

The good folks at sgu do peruse this site. And that's a good thing- many of the issues that have been brought up through these sites make the schools collect data and become more accountable to their students and prospectives.

Having said that, Dr. Jordan, Dr. Rao and indeed the vast majority of sgu profs in my experience really give a ----about the students. And they will be honest with you. THe antomy guys take real pride in their work, dont doubt that.

For the most part, these sites have been a real boon to the students, certainly in terms of preparing emotionally for the IMG experience but also in informing the students of the salient- and often subtle-points about being an IMG. And in keeping schools honest.

What is said here is not a secret perhaps, but remember- school officials dont run or control this site, they can post however and do so as officials.

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

dr. jordan mentioned you specifically when i was speaking with him at the cincy open house. he seemed to think highly of you. let me ask you a question, steph: how strong, tight knit, useful... is the network of sgu grads in residency matching and job placement. one of the doc's at the open house said that she had been asked a couple of times by her director about sgu grads that had applied to their program (like what do you think of him? what do you know about him?...) is this common? if so, do sgu grads stick together, help each other out? i noticed that the last sgu grad to get neuroSx is at george washington U., and that there was another sgu grad on the neuroSx service there. any thoughts?

Oh thank you that's nice to hear. Dr J is a lot of fun actually and really loves being a prof there. He takes it quite seriously but itsn't self-serious.
Firs the easy q: neurosurgery: we have a couple. The essence is if you have to be a neurosurgeon see if you can get in a us med school. If you can live with the reality that its difficult from sgu, go for it. You may have to take the scenic route (i.e. do a prelim year etc) but give it a go.

The first question is harder: as for sgu networkings: its not like "old boy" networking but ive found its one of those things where you constantly hear from someone who is an sgu grad. for instance, Im going to ASTRO (rad onc national convention) and there will be five residents who are from sgu there. Which is amazing for this small field that is extremely competitive. But yes sgu students take care of each other in the sense that most speak very well of the school and promote others if asked about how well trained they are. I suppose that if someone weren't good we wouldnt but fortunately Ive not been faced with that senario yet! But remember PDs always like to hire someone who is a "known" quantity, thus if there is someone who knows the candidate, they'll be asked about them. SGU students tend to stick up for one another. My good frind has ujst been asked to join the renal transplant fellowship team at a major University and has single-handedly opened the door for sgu residents to get involved in that program more since he is so loved there.

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

Hi,

Dr. Bob Jordan presented and gave a great overview of the school and all the programs. The literature distributed was good. A 4th year Canadian student currently doing rotations looking to get into Surgery residency as well as a graduate from 1981, currently practicing in Canada were present. I must say I was quite impressed with the school, facility, and faculty details given by the end of it. The USMLE Step 1 pass rates are also pretty high and the school is recognized in all of the states. Now if the tuition fees were a bit less and made more affordable, there would be no "cons" at all for people considering attending St. George.

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The greatest use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it.
~William James

yes the fees are high no doubt about it. And for some, depending upon their goals, its may not be the best IMG choice for them. However I dont know of anyone yet who's been living in the sewars while trying to repay the loans. Ill let you know when mine come due in 9 mos if i change my tune.

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