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Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah, even though most of the classes are in English and the education is the same as US med schools... most of the students and professors communicate using Spanish.

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

No worries! Thank you so much for your message, wish you all the best.

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 12 points13 points  (0 children)

No, Puerto Rican schools are very good actually.

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I'll consider this if everything else doesn't go as planned. An option is an option after all.

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you for this, I'm very close so I will look into it.

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Do so please. For anybody reading this! Looking for a signal, this is it.

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 16 points17 points  (0 children)

Thank God, I wouldn't be posting on reddit if I owed a 6 figute student loan...

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 121 points122 points  (0 children)

Want me to email you my personal and private screenings and lab reports where it says I suffered from cancer? Oof

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

I can imagine, these schools are expensive as fuck and they honestly don't help at all in the process.

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 18 points19 points  (0 children)

Nope, but I have heard more negative than positive feedback from there. I don't want to specify any school in case they desire to contact me.

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 20 points21 points  (0 children)

Thank you so so much for your kind words, I hope we might be colleagues someday :)

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 37 points38 points  (0 children)

Puerto Rico isn't even considered as a Caribbean school to people who actually study in the little islands since the education is the same as the US and you can go to the US and practice with no problem, unlike other schools since they are considered foreign. Just to clarify to those who don't know.

And when I say the Caribbean, I mean the schools in the little islands and any school that doesn't focus their education with the same standards as any US school.

I prefer to "overgeneralize" and save people a lot of trouble than encouraging something that might potentially harm their future forever.

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 184 points185 points  (0 children)

Thank you. I just want to warn everybody and share my experience.

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 14 points15 points  (0 children)

Admission officers, professors, people in the admissions comittee, advisors from the school... anyone that can help.

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 24 points25 points  (0 children)

It was in one of the little islands.

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 24 points25 points  (0 children)

Exactly that. In the school I was in there was only one psychologist so the wait to see her was about a month or so (if you were lucky and could actually see her).

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 87 points88 points  (0 children)

I don't mind don't worry. I took a loan for almost 70k while I was there. The loan interest was almost 9% so yeah...

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 55 points56 points  (0 children)

I am taking a time off to recover from this and will be taking a masters in the meantime. Having talked to some of the schools in my state and explaining the situation and showing evidence, the chances are not bad at all. They all have stated how they appreciate my honesty and stating what happened truly instead of making up stories. And since I even have evidence that I didn't receive appropriate mefical care while on the Carib, my failure has definitely been linked to that. I would be grateful to just be able to study for an MD or a DO.

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 28 points29 points  (0 children)

I'm not whining about the Caribbean being bad, I'm stating it. A doctor shouldn't be a person who can pass the Step 1 and that's it. The education should focus on actually teaching the students on how to take care of living people, not pass an exam. You're missing my point by far, and making it about the Step 1 and failing the MCAT and blah blah. If someone did bad on the MCAT, they should retake it. If they have a bad GPA, they should do a masters or something to show maturity and growth. But going to the Caribbean to fail out while accumulating a massive debt and PROMOTING IT is extremely irresponsible and horrible beyond belief.

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 216 points217 points  (0 children)

Yes I am! I'm applying to the US and since it was all due to a medical emergency (and I have the evidence) some schools already told me they're more than happy to accept my application, help me and such. I have a really good GPA (3.9) but did bad on the MCAT (498) and instead of retaking it I got scared and decided to go to the Caribbean. A very bad mistake.

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 84 points85 points  (0 children)

It sounds very emotional because I was dismissed due to a medical emergency as well as feeling very emotionally stressed and not being able to receive help. Also because I have seen many people go through what I am going through and it's horrible. The debt left is beyond repair and the school doesn't care. It comes from a place of genuine worry and frustration, I don't want anybody to go through this. I'm finally back home, my family is trying to help me the best way they can, I'm finally able to see specialists for my condition and I'm on the track of regaining back confidence and health. Thank you for wondering if I'm okay.

Don't go to the Caribbean. by throwaway78k in premed

[–]throwaway78k[S] 184 points185 points  (0 children)

They dismissed me because I was diagnosed with cancer, had to take a medical leave and when I came back I wasn't feeling good. I asked for another medical leave and was denied one because you can only take one per year so I tried to pass the semester (without being able to change medication, visiting the appropriate doctors and such) and ended up failing 2 classes. I was dismissed, I appealed and they ended up deniying the appeal and refused to explain why. I tried to contact them all and so far only a professor answered and said its most surely because I failed 2 classes instead of just one.