Hello all,
A friend of mine is in a foreign med school and told me that they have track which allows you an extra semester–a kind of decelerated track which gives you the option of slowing things down.
Does anyone know of a school here in the states with the same option?
Thanks
From the University of Minnesota Medical Education website:
“Minnesota is the first public medical school to offer a flexible M.D. program in which students entering in 2005 have the option of finishing medical school in as few as three and a half and as many as six years.
In addition, students will be charged for only 11 semesters of tuition, even if they elect to take more time to complete their degrees.”
See www.meded.umn.edu for more information.
HTH
Susan
Ohio State has an Independent Study Program that allows you to take five years. From their website:
“5 Year Option
The ISP also offers a 5-Year option (3 years to complete the Basic Sciences). It has special appeal for students with special needs (e.g., family, work, or research). A fixed rate of tuition for each of the schedule options has been formulated. Students may choose or switch to the 5 year option anytime in the first year with permission of the program director.
A tuition plan for the ISP has been approved which provides for a fixed tuition for students in the 4 or 5-Year options and allows students to know exactly what their financial obligations are. Students in the 4-Year students have a six (6) quarter obligation, and the 5-Year students a seven (7) quarter obligation. Fees are paid for Autumn, Winter, and Spring quarters regardless of when exams are taken.”
See the ISP website.
GW has a 5-year program that is offered to students who are thought to be good candidates overall but identified as needing “strengthening in academic skills,” or something like that. To be honest I don’t remember exactly how it works, but I presume it’s described on their website. When I was there you couldn’t apply for this program, you had to be identified as someone who’d benefit from it.
In networking with other OPMs over the years, it’s been my impression that there are quite a few schools with such programs, but they’re known by many different names and they’re quite variable in how they operate and who qualifies for them.
Mary
Quote:
GW has a 5-year program that is offered to students who are thought to be good candidates overall but identified as needing “strengthening in academic skills,” or something like that. To be honest I don’t remember exactly how it works, but I presume it’s described on their website. When I was there you couldn’t apply for this program, you had to be identified as someone who’d benefit from it.
How does the admin at GW “look at” students who decelerate? I know at UNC, the admin really frowns on students who utilize this option.
I also know an MD/PhD graduate who decelerated her first year while at GWU. Is it possible that the reasons for being placed in the program have changed over the years?
Post deleted by joewright
Many medical schools make this kind of arrangement in one way or another. In many cases, they do not charge extra tuition. However, you must attend at least half-time in order to receive federal financial aid benefits and many other kinds of benefits. As the above posts suggest some only do it for people who are having academic difficulty. However others are more flexible. I would advise NOT asking about this during interviews; ask about it once you are accepted and making a decision between different places, or find ways to find out well before you start applying.
joe
When I interviewed at the Univ of Arkansas - loooooooong ago - at the time of acceptance, they offered to everyone the option of a 4 or 5 year plan. According to the Dir of Admissions, the 5 year plan had become so popular that the school was considering dropping the 4 year plan altogether.
OTOH, where I chose to attend, KCOM, the 5 year option is only for those who are struggling academically.
It appears that there is substantial variability in whether or not alternative schedules are offered & under what circumstances a person is deemed eligible. Therefore, unless alternative schedules are overtly mentioned in the school’s literature or on the website & it explicitly states the options are open to all - not as a punitive or remedial situation - I would not mention it during interviews nor make any inquiries prior to gaining acceptance.
Quote:
How does the admin at GW “look at” students who decelerate? I know at UNC, the admin really frowns on students who utilize this option.
I also know an MD/PhD graduate who decelerated her first year while at GWU. Is it possible that the reasons for being placed in the program have changed over the years?
To answer the first question: At least when I was there, a student could not apply to the five-year program. The administration identified students and offered them admission to the five-year program. So the administration actually had a lot invested in these people and they weren’t considered second-class citizens.
It’s entirely possible that the reasons for being identified as a student who would benefit from the 5-year program have changed over the years. I always found it pretty nebulous myself. I was particularly interested to discover that students who had not expressed any interest or desire in the 5-year program might nonetheless be identified as good candidates for that program and offered an acceptance ONLY for the 5-year program.
Maybe their website explains it more clearly now. I certainly developed the sense that it was all rather mysterious, not well-delineated at all and intentionally so - meaning that they could have a broad array of reasons why they might feel someone should have the extra year, and they weren’t hemmed in by a lot of specifics.
Mary
The Robert Wood Johnson School of Medicine in New Jersey has a flex curriculum, too.
Quite a number of schools do this however not too many advertise it. Basically you do the first 2 years of “regular” medical school in 3 years. Clinical years are the same.
Just don’t ask for it at the interview. 