<p>Hey Everyone,
I'm Neil from Glen Rock, New Jersey and I was wondering if you guys could help me out with some opinions/advice.</p>
<p>I would eventually like to become a doctor and as of now I'm just very confused as to what route I should take out of the options available to me.</p>
<p>I love Georgetown and I'm currently accepted in the NHS as an International Health Major. However I wasn't offered any aid whatsoever which isn't terrible but still a factor nonetheless.</p>
<p>I was also accepted to the King's College London School of Medicine. In this case, I would be directly matriculating to med school as in the UK, medicine is an undergrad degree. The problem with this however, is that finding a residency back in the US is going to be slightly harder since I will be a foreign grad. Cost-Wise, KCL will cost me a little more to about the same as 4 years at Georgetown, but I will graduate with a degree in medicine meaning no further university fees to be paid afterwards. I also really loved KCL when I visited for my interview and of course London is an amazing city.</p>
<p>And then at UPITT, I got some scholarship money, which would help to pay later for med school if I stay in the US but I haven't visited and am not so sure about it.</p>
<p>Any opinions and or advice?
To be quite honest, I find advantages to all three but am having serious trouble deciding between all three since I've heard good things for all of them.</p>
<p>Thanks so much and I really appreciate any help :)</p>
<p>hey! I was actually in the same exact position as you. I had an invitation to interview at St. George’s in London. I ended up writing them an email saying I wasn’t going to attend the interview. I was trying to decide if I should go or not but after doing research on my chances to match for residency I opted not to. I’m interested to do surgery and cardiothoracic to be specific. Even as a US citizen, I would be at a disadvantage because I would be considered a FMG (foreign medical graduate) and US graduates are given priority. Also, if you’re interested in doing surgery or specializing in popular fields such as pediatrics, plastics or ortho most places don’t even accept people that graduate overseas and those that do are extremely competitive for FMG or IMGs. I know that spending 3+ years studying for undergraduate here isn’t what you would like to do but trust me you would have better chances if you stay and follow the American route to become a doctor. It is not impossible but they make it harder for you to match for a competitive residency if you study abroad. For example, 94-8% americans (green card holders/citizens) match for residency and 40-50% internationals match. Not bad but think about it. That number doesn’t only include the UK. It includes all countries in the world besides the USA. Canada, UK, Australia, India etc. There’s more competition which means you need higher GPAs and higher USMLEs scores. At the end of the day, I thought about it and I felt I was making it harder for myself and those 3 extra years didn’t seem too bad because I knew I wanted to end up working in a competitive field and I wanted to live in the USA and not stay in the UK. Also, imagine if you do not match after you finish med school at King’s. You would go ahead and do your F1 and F2s (I read that you would have to take an extra year if I’m correct because to apply for residency you need to have graduated med school but the dates you graduate don’t match or something like that. check that as well). Well you could try again during your F1 but remember, F1 and 2s don’t count in the US. Even if you stay and work for years in the UK you still need to take the exams and start your residency in the US. You will not be able to skip that.</p>
<p>I’m sorry for my long essay… It’s too late, I’m falling asleep so I’ll leave it at that but if you have any more questions please feel free to message me. BTW I was between Pitt, BU and St. Georges. Staying in the US was a possibility thanks to BU. They gave me a great FA package that would pretty much let me graduate with no debt. So that’s another thing to consider. Georgetown is well known for pre-med but at Pitt you would also have great opportunities. Think about the money. Save it for grad school :)</p>
<p>Thanks for your in depth and comprehensive response.
I guess I need to sit down a little further and think more about where I truly want to work. I’ve already done a ton of research this past year on the difficulties of gaining residency as US-FMG and even had the chance to talk to some doctors. </p>
<p>I still think that I would like to live in the UK, but I’m getting some conflicting advice from numerous different sources. </p>
<p>If money is not an issue Georgetown. If you decide to change your major, which 50% or more of premeds do, Georgetown has many other top tier programs. Pittsburgh, however, is also a top research school, so if saving for grad school is a major factor follow the money. Good luck.</p>