Studying medicine in the Caribbean is a wise decision as it offers lifetime benefits. The island medical schools are well-equipped with adept medical facilities that align with the present-day medical standard. Securing admission to a medical school in the United States is becoming more and more challenging with constantly increasing competition. According to the AAMC(Association of American Medical Colleges), only 48 medical schools accepted international student applications. Caribbean medical schools are ideal for international students as they offer a higher acceptance rate.
The accredited Caribbean medical schools offer a multitude of advantages, including the opportunity to do clinical rotations in the United States and Canada. Caribbean islands are home to nearly 60 medical schools, all distinctly different in accreditation, recognition, acceptance, attrition, USMLE (the United States Medical Licencing Examination) pass rate, etc.
In this article, we intend to make medical aspirants understand why it is worth studying medicine in the Caribbean. Here are some aspects of medical schools that contribute significantly towards making medical studies in the Caribbean worth it.
Let’s get started.
- Accreditation
Top-notch Caribbean medical schools are fully accreditated to offer excellent education and high-quality clinical rotation. The Accreditation Commission on Colleges of Medicine (ACCM) accredits the MD program offered in the Caribbean medical schools. The United States Department of Education, via NCFMEA (the National Committee on Foreign Medical Education and Accreditation), reviews the standards that countries like the Caribbean use to accredit medical schools. Studying at an accredited medical school in the Caribbean ensures that the school offers education according to the national standard.
- Curriculum
Caribbean medical schools offer a standardized system-based curriculum that integrates the study of basic science and clinical medicine program during the MD program. Additionally, the curriculum of the Caribbean medical schools inculcates the preparations for the USMLE examination. USMLE plays a vital role in the career of the International Medical Graduates. Hence, passing USMLE decides whether or not they match into the US residency program.
- Financial Aid
Medicine is among the notorious expensive higher education. With the increasing cost of pursuing medical studies more and more, medicine graduates find themselves in debt. Besides being the less expensive alternative, Caribbean medical schools also offer financial support to students in the form of loans and scholarship programs that the economic burden.
- Clinical Rotations
The most important part of studying medicine is clinical rotations. As medicine is a practice-based field, students get hands-on experience working with real patients in a hospital setting through clinical rotations. Moreover, the students in rotations are supervised by an expert and experienced professionals who train them for the real world. Most importantly, pursuing medicine in the Caribbean can allow you to do your clinical rotations in top teaching hospitals in the United States and Canada.
- Class Size
Small class sizes promote student-teacher interactions fundamental to the student’s experience. This also ensures one-to-one attention during the basic science program, and the support remains even during the clinical rotations.
These are some crucial factors that can make studying in the Caribbean worthwhile. Trust us, Caribbean medical schools carefully construct their medical program around these parameters to offer an excellent medical education. Apply to a top-notch Caribbean medical school to secure a promising career in medicine.
