Knowing where you stand.

I know that there are plenty of blogs out there written by medical students just like me however, I want this blog to highlight what I think is important. I know several other bloggers that compare various Caribbean school, programs, and USMLE prep (and I am sure are more interesting and use better grammar than I) but......I think I want to talk about taking it one step at a time, semester by semester, class by class.  Plenty of people can compare and contrast schools, but talking about going through a semester and surviving is another matter all by itself.  

I learned about the school I am attending from a friend back home.  This friend had a fraternity brother that should be graduating AUA this upcoming spring and he recommended the school.  However, if I would of know what I know now about AUA, I probably would gone ahead and attended the one of the podiatry schools that I was excepted into in the United States.  I know Caribbean schools have a stigma, but I had no idea what I was getting myself into.  I hear plenty of rumors about Ross's program "circling the drain" , or how SGU is nothing but an over priced weeding out program........all which may or may not be true.  Again all of these statements are just rumors and hearsay from students, friends or colleagues that have attended or know individuals that attended these programs.  My point is......every Caribbean school has its reputation and AUA's is quite poor.  From my personal experience the faculty is unorganized, the school is over crowded, and some of the faculty is less than stellar. I wouldn't be honesty if I stated I was confident in my ability or my classmates to match on time.......its a very scary realization.  However, I will boost that my school has several great members in its faculty.  I have to say I was really impressed with our new renal physiologist. When I took an optional lecture from him this spring my mind was blown with his wealth of knowledge and his desire to see us students succeed.  He even created a computer program to help teach renal physio and I credit it for helping me understand the subject better than most of my classmates.  We also have a very amazing biochemistry and cellular biology department that don't play games with the material they teach.  I also think that the pathology and immuno departments are well organized and straightforward.

 Although, all schools (anywhere in the world) have their strong and weak points, I am thankful to be attending medical school and pursing my dream.  Being in the Caribbean, attending a relatively new school is a risk and sometimes it can feel overwhelming academically and financially.  I am just keeping my head up, living the dream and keep adjusting my expectations.