Studying medicine abroad

Faith

I'm pretty sure I want to do medicine when I'm finished my current Biology degree. I've already left Ireland for Britain, and have no desire to go back, and now I'm getting tired of Britain! I'd ideally like to study medicine in the US or Canada. I like the idea of it being normal to do it as your second degree over there. Does anyone have any idea about what's involved in getting accepted to programs over there? Is it much harder to get in if you're international? Will I have to graduate near the top of my class in this degree? How much extracurricular medicine-related work should I be doing?

Also, seeing as the US doesn't really like granting visas etc, should I expect to have trouble being able to stay in the country when I've finished my degree?

Cheers!

Vorsprung

From what little I know, money's the big thing, it can cost something like $30k a year in some places to do medicine there.

2Scoops

Well, don't know much about Canada but the American system is pretty straight-forward. You'll need to have done pretty well in your first degree but it's a plus that it's in biology. Some kind of medical volunteer work is usually done by students who apply but I don't know if it really matters or not. There's an entrance exam that you have to take and the one you need should be on the website of the medical school you apply to. Actually, it's a good idea to pick the schools first and then see what you have to do. Some schools are better than others and some are quite hard to get into simply by reputation.

The money issue is important - it's not cheap to study as an out-of-state or international student. Sometimes there are work-arounds that can get you on in-state tuition fees after a year or two - again, specific to each school. It's handy enough to get a student loan, though.

There's no bias against international students that I'm aware of - it goes by previous demonstration of ability, impressive application etc. You just have a few more admin hoops to jump through.

And contrary to popular belief it is dead easy to get a visa for the US... after you've been accepted by the school. Seriously, if you're accepted then the visa is as good as yours. After you graduate, you technically have 60 days to leave the country or enroll in a new course or get some kind of job-related sponsor to extend your visa - usually very easy to do and, of course, there are lots of ways to get a green card in the meantime - as long as you don't mind marrying an American chap;)

InFront

Yeah, seeing as how the Canadians and Americans cross the Atlantic to study medicine in reasonably significant numbers, and don't instead go to another state, or to the other country, it does give the impression that doing so would not be an easy task at all. From US/ Canadians I've spoken to about coming here to study medicine, it wasn't for the green grass. Getting into US medical school with a degree (as they must do over there) seems highly competitive.

2Scoops

The level of competition is specific to the school in question. Most Canadian/American doctors come to Ireland because they don't have to have a primary degree beforehand - ironically, the biggest weakness of Irish medical schools, IMO. The other main reason is that the money is roughly the same or less and, for an American/Canadian, living in Ireland for a few years can be fun.

The fact is, if you're not absolutely committed to a certain medical school, it is easier to get in in America than in Ireland.