The problem is, many medical boards have stated that basic science must be attended to in residence. This means, you must physically be in Samoa for your entire basic science portions. Otherwise, you are NOT licensible.

Yes, it is ON-LINE. Your course material is distributed via internet, regardless of what you are required to read. Anyone can "list" over the internet an impressive "required text book"... that's not the issue. The mere fact that you are not on a physical campus in Samoa means your education is on-line -- ASK ANY MEDICAL BOARD in the US. Many medical boards are now requiring you to submit your PASSPORT to proof that you were actually in the host country (Samoa in this case) FOR THE ENTIRE DURATION of your basic sciences.

Now, your transcript MUST clearly stated that you did NOT attend your basic science "in residence," and that your instruction was received over the internet with you physically in the US. If your transcript is "templated" in a fashion to make it look like you were physically in Samoa taking classes sitting in a classroom/lab, then it's consider fraud, and will bar you from licensure for good. And if your transcript is honest and showing you took classes over the internet with "required textbooks" -- well, most medical boards have come out and say that it's not acceptable, and students in these formats will not be licensed.

Bottom line -- if you want to be licensed anywhere in the US, you MUST physically sit in a classroom/lab in the country where the medical school is located for your basic science years. Anything else -- doesn't matter how you spin it... "receiving homework via internet...etc" -- is considered on-line education. And medical boards are resorting to checking passports now. So, this model of OUSM may be good elsewhere, but NOT if you want to be licensed anywhere in the US.

BTW, I am not judging, in anyway, the quality of education OUSM provides, as I have no first hand knowledge. I'm simply commenting on the reality of medical licensures in the various US jurisdictions.

P

__________________
Jean Luc Picard
Academic Hospitalist/Assist. Professor of Medicine, Star Fleet Medical, Earth, United Federation of Planets
Borg-Certified... Resistance is Futile.

In Glock, We Trust... Everyone Else... Keep Your Hands Where I Can See Them.

http://www.odmp.org/search.php?searc...=2001&cause=27
http://www.nypdangels.com/wtc.htm
http://www.hampsteadnh.us/police/A%2...ica%20Died.htm
http://longmontpolice.com/MEMORIAM.HTM

I have checked with my state, and there is no problem with my OUM education in Colorado, as long as I meet the criteria for licensing of international students here. I have checked the licensing boards of many other states and have found that OUM is not excluded from their licensing criteria. There are a handful of states that currently do not accept the OUM curriculum, and I know for a fact that OUM's policy is not to accept students from those states until the states policies are ammended to license students educated under the OUM curriculum. Oceania University of Medicine is keen to play by the rules in order to provide the best education they can for the students and to prevent difficulties when the time comes for those students to be licensed. It is my experience that OUM has the student's best interests in mind, and does not want to compromise the student's ability to use their education in their future careers.

How do I know this? When I was accepted into the OUM program, I was living in Maryland. Shortly before starting school, I moved to California, and was informed by OUM that I would not be permitted to receive my OUM education in California- even in the basic sciences. This was not a problem for me, as the move was only temporary and I was seeking employment in Colorado. When I facilitated my move, OUM was helpful in getting me in touch with other students local to the area and helping me to find a mentor local to me.

As for your comments about classroom time, our basic sciences education does involve classroom work for every single block. As I stated in my previous post, students meet several times a week with physician mentors to go over our course materials and homework. These are face to face sessions, one on one, with physicians who are currently licensed and practicing in a specialty field in our state of residence. In addition to their primary practice, these physicians are also OUM employees, paid by the university for time spent educating students.

Everyone has the right to risk their money and time in whatever way they want. Suggest you review the meeting notes of the State of Colorado medical board and look at their licensing decisions a bit and see if you see any online students being licensed there. May be enlightening.

__________________
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

Sorry to tell you this, you are in for a VERY RUDE AWAKENING when you apply for licensure.

CO does not have problem with you "attending OUM classes" in CO because it has no laws prohibiting private doctors "mentoring" anyone. This is NOT the same as recognizing OUM as a school. (Kinda like St. Chris can operate in UK as a business and physically "teach" in UK, but under UK law, it's a private business, and NOT recognized as a real school.) This is NOT the same as your eligibility for licensure. The key point her eis "meeting criteria for licensure of IMG's" -- and CO does NOT recognize on-line education. Again, OUM's model is the same as IUHS, a fraudulent school. Physical attendence means you MUST be in Samoa, NOT CO. Going to local physicians for mentoring/case discussion DOES NOT cut it. You need to wake up, your basic science is ON-LINE, and does NOT meet licensing criteria. Medical boards will not tell you definitively whether or not they will license graduates from your school until someone from your school actually applies. As far as I know, OUM has no licensed grads in CO (or any state for that matter). And guess what, someone has already called CO Medical Board and described in detail models used by OUM and similar schools (On-line distribution of material with reading list so that students can remain in the US, holding jobs, while attending basic science, using/paying local physicians to be mentors so students can go to physicians offices to discuss cases and shadow physicians as a part of basic science) -- guess what, this is NOT acceptable to CO board for licensure. You may be able to "take classes" in CO, this is not the same as being able to be licensed. OUM is not operating in CO as a medical school (and should not claim to be, otherwise, say hi to your cellmate).

Most states do not have "exclusion lists" of foreign medical schools. This SHOULD NOT be taken to imply their approval of your school or your ability to obtain licensure in those states. In fact, most medical boards will not tell you one way or the other until a graduate from your school has actually applied for licensure -- this is when the education is scrutinized. And using IUHS as a precedent (similar model, abeit a very poorly run example of the model, I'm not saying OUM is of similar quality, merely that the basic model is the same) -- no medical boards we know of will license graduates from this model of education.
By calling medical boards and asking if OUM is "excluded" from licensure means absolutely nothing. Most medical boards give you the stock answer that OUM is not excluded (because they don't have an exclusion list), and will be vague and tell you that as long as you meet criteria, you are "OK." Well, OUM's model does NOT meet criteria. You will find out when you actually apply for licensure.

Sorry to say this, you are in for a VERY RUDE AWAKENING if you think you have any chance of licensure in CO, or anywhere in the US for that matter. Incidentally, CO is one of the tougher states for IMG's in general. Keep your current job, you are going to need it when you graduate from OUM... sorry to be blunt... as a med school faculty in a US med school, I've been to too many licensing-related meetings....

P

__________________
Jean Luc Picard
Academic Hospitalist/Assist. Professor of Medicine, Star Fleet Medical, Earth, United Federation of Planets
Borg-Certified... Resistance is Futile.

In Glock, We Trust... Everyone Else... Keep Your Hands Where I Can See Them.

http://www.odmp.org/search.php?searc...=2001&cause=27
http://www.nypdangels.com/wtc.htm
http://www.hampsteadnh.us/police/A%2...ica%20Died.htm
http://longmontpolice.com/MEMORIAM.HTM

You went overboard with your comment..."OUM is not operating in CO as a medical school (and should not claim to be, otherwise, say hi to your cellmate). "

The student does not go to jail for such a claim, and second, that is provided you can go through the extradition process for such a thing against the owners of any school that might make such a claim, not as easy as you imply. Don't make it so dramatic, good for a TV drama though.

We all agree to one thing...CO medical licensing using this method of instruction is out of the question and, OUM is not operating in Colorado. I do not think they have made such a claim, unless someone can show where they did so.

Not cheering for anyone, just trying to make some clarifications.

you can argue that since instruction is being done in CO by mentors acting as defacto instructors of the school that there is teaching being done by the school in CO....

__________________
OBGYN PGY II
I see light at the end of the tunnel!!!...wait a minute its just another freakin tunnel!

No, if the mentors are not retained or are working for OUM, IUHS or whatever internet program it might be. They are functioning more in a role of coaches than anything else. It won't fly.

either way it won't fly for licensing in colorado.

__________________
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

they are not only mentors/instructors but they also proctor the exams and are responsible for the grades so they are acting on behalf of the school...

__________________
OBGYN PGY II
I see light at the end of the tunnel!!!...wait a minute its just another freakin tunnel!

They are not acting in behalf of the school unless they are under contract, any kind of contract. That will be an assumption on our part. However, if their agreement are similar to those of IUHS (and I have seen those) there is no lanugage in them that even says that the mentor is under an independent contract with the school, it is a contract between the student and the mentor or coach, they work independently, not the school, mentor off the hook, school too. There must be an unequivocable (business)agreement between the mentor and the school to make it implicit.