<p>Hey all!
I'm currently a sophomore at Brown planning on studying abroad for a semester the second half of my junior year, and I was wondering on what effect study abroad has on medical school admissions in terms of 1) do interviewers like it because they don't see that many pre-meds that have studied abroad? and 2) I'm currently thinking about applying for med school thru the "standard route" ie applying in my senior year; will it adversely affect me if all those grades come back Pass/Fail since that's the only way Brown transfers study abroad grades?
I should also note that this program is a comparative health care systems study abroad program where we travel around and learn about the health care in different countries around the world; I think it ties into what I want to do quite a bit.
Thanks in advance for any advice!</p>
<p>(as a preemptive strike against any attacks what I said in the first question, I plan on studying abroad either way, not just to impress an interviewer; I was just curious if anyone knows if this is something that would come up during interviews)</p>
<p>I would also be interested to hear the answer to your question. The one thing i have heard is you should not take any of your medical school pre req classes as pass/fail or as study abroad. My daughter is in the same situation as you (except none of her study abroad options include comparative health care systems which she would probably be really interested in!) and will be abroad for a semester in her Junior year. Her school also does the study abroad grades as p/f.</p>
<p>1) You can bring up topics that YOU want to discuss in the interview...do like Sarah Palin did in the VP debate - answer the actual question superficially then move on to what you want to talk about.</p>
<p>2) It's not like you're getting a numerical score on the interview - it's a conversation. It's a check to make sure you're not socially inept, crazy or unstable. It's a chance for you to sell yourself. The idea that they're going to "like" any particular thing you say has much more to do with how you say it than if they've heard about it before. Certainly there's a big difference between you telling one great story (hopefully funny or exciting) from your trip than "oh, it was a fun 6 months" and then sitting there. There's also a big difference between one great story and you going through every single last detail of your trip.</p>
<p>3) Don't take pre-med reqs abroad. Just don't do it. Seriously. There are zero instances where taking them abroad is a good idea.</p>
<p>4) You'll only be adversely affected if you fail all those courses.</p>
<p>5) I wouldn't worry about the comparative health issues. It's something more to talk about I suppose, but if you can't figure out how going abroad is going to make you a better physician in and of itself (which is how you need to frame all your extracurricular activities), then you probably shouldn't be going.</p>
<p>If you want to study abroad you should, even if some adviser tells you not to, part of standing out in the crowd of med school apps will be knowing yourself and pursuing your passions not rote lock step following the usual path. So, go for it if you want.</p>
<p>Depending on the country you may be required or allowed to provide your transcript. I am thinking when BRM says don't take prereqs, he means the basics- bio/chem/phys/calc- you can probably do fine taking other math & science courses, though be warned, you may find taking upper div science courses in a new and different environment results in a few Bs!</p>
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3) Don't take pre-med reqs abroad. Just don't do it. Seriously. There are zero instances where taking them abroad is a good idea.
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<p>I disagree with this being an absolute rule. If your university has an actual campus/school abroad and they offer pre-med reqs there, then I think it's fine. However, if you're trying to take pre-med reqs at a foreign institution, then I think you may run into problems.</p>
<p>Being the State-schooler that i am, I don't know about these or how common they are, but it still boils down to "why risk it?". Problems with grades getting reported properly, issues with transcripts, uncertainty of professor/facilities quality, possibility everything is going simply be reported as Pass/No Pass...there's just far too much going on. And besides, who wants to study abroad and end up taking a demanding course load - even if it's just one course? Just doesn't seem reasonable to me.</p>
<p>All my courses taken abroad - for my major, pre-med, or otherwise - showed up on my transcript as "[MyUniversity] in London". That's why I think I was never questioned about it.</p>
<p>Although D would love to take a semester abroad , it just doesn't work out schedule-wise. Soooooo.....she took a Maymester language immersion in Spain and is now considering a Maymester Upper-level Bio (Topics in Genetics, I think) and Art History through the University of Ga. Still, the conflict with applications is still there. She would have to have her apps ready to go before she left.</p>
<p>curmudgeon- is your daughter at UGA? If so, has she been happy with the honors program there and their pre-med program? UGA seems to offer a lot of study abroad options for their honors students. My daughter is a high school senior now and interested in pre-med but is being led by some (peers) to think she has to go to a very top tier school - I hate that this prestige business is such an issue.</p>
<p>I don't go to UGA, but I went to a student conference there last year hosted by some of their honors students and was very impressed. They did very well in the national fellowships, including two students getting the Rhodes (one of those students being premed who had just come back from Harvard's second look).</p>
<p>Apparently the U of Sussex in UK does have some experience with U.S. pre-med students and study abroad. Just wanted to let ya'll know in case you're interested.</p>
<p>Definitely study abroad. You will learn a great deal about yourself, the world, and being independent. All good things for an aspiring doctor. It's also one of the sweetest ways to travel and just be away from the States for 6 months.</p>
<p>I did a medical program in London which has given me a much better insight into the realistic practice of medicine, the concept of socialized healthcare (and why it's really not always good), and definitely a ton of talking points should I decide to go into medicine.</p>
<p>When I was searching for study abroad summer programs after my freshman year, I was looking for anything biology related so I could get credit. If I'm remembering correctly, Boston University has a London internship that is hospital related. It'd be an interesting way to check out another medical system, plus you could catch some Arsenal games (exhibition only, unfortunately).</p>