Logistics of Attending Caribbean Medical School

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Shortly after receiving my acceptance letter from Saba University I immediately went out and purchased a short white coat, overjoyed that medical school was now a reality. I felt as if a huge burden lift off me and I could breathe again. It was as if the wind filled my sails again and I could take on anything! If you have gotten accepted to Saba University School of Medicine then you already know that the admissions department is very thorough in giving you check lists and correspondence regarding the next steps. The following is my recap of all the things to consider and get in order before your ship-out date.

• Letter of Intent to Enroll and seat deposit ($750)
• Financial Aid: fill out your FAFSA in January, complete Master Promissory Notes for the Direct Loans available, and Loan Entrance Counseling before Admissions sends your Aid Offer ($17,850/semester on the island, $20,700/semester for 3rd & 4th years)**Note: they won't disperse the financial aid until after the start of the semester so there's really no tuition or housing fee payment deadlines if you're utilizing U.S. Direct Loan.
• Passport, you'll have to send copies to your New Student Coordinator
• Housing Application and Fee, on-campus housing is required for the first semester ($2950)
• Student Health Record/Proof of Immunizations, you'll have to get a TB skin test and labwork proving you have all necessary vaccines and get the newest flu shot before you leave.
• Health Insurance & Insurance Letter, the school uses Insurance Center of New England ($556/year) while you're on island
• Apostilled FBI-issued police clearance, you have to get fingerprinted by a detective or other approved company like IdentiGO to complete the background check ($37.95 + $150)
• Travel itinerary: I found cheap one-way plane tickets from Nashville to Atlanta to St. Martin through Jet Blue for $116 and booked a ferry from St. Martin to Saba for $56

What to bring to the island: 

• Laptop, I purchased brand new because my undergrad laptop is 7 years old and low on hard drive space. You will also need to purchase a 2-year international warranty, Microsoft Office, Anti-virus/spyware, and HDMI video output ports, also bring a surge protector. 
• Scrubs and a white coat, bring at least two pairs of scrubs: one for gross anatomy and one for clinical. I think it goes without saying, but you will be expected to have appropriate attire for class so bring business casual and professional clothes as well as light summer clothes, the average daytime temperature is 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
• You will need to bring school supplies, dissecting kit, rubber gloves, and textbooks with you, there is no bookstore and the office supply stores on Saba will be very expensive.

Personally I'm big into meal prep, so I will bring all my spices with me, I have no doubt that food expenses during the two years on the island will be costly and I still want to enjoy the familiar flavors of home and eat healthy while on Saba. Some other things to keep in mind, if you have certain products you know and love, say.... Crest 3D White toothpaste, Garnier Fructis Style pomade, Orbit Wintergreen chewing gum, or Celestial Seasons blueberry tea, stock up on it!!

Since I have been working in healthcare full time since finishing my undergraduate degree, I was able to build up decent savings, an HSA, and several small low-risk investments. I recommend you to purchase as much as you can with the cash you have available now, within reason-don't drain your emergency fund or savings, and utilize the financial aid disbursement for tuition, housing, and expenses that incur after day one of classes. For me financial aid has hands-down been the most intimidating part of this process. I finished undergraduate debt-free so the thought of having an excess of $200K in student loans is frightening. 

Meaning & Inspiration

"If there's no meaning, there'll be no inspiration" ~August Burns Red, Lifeline

Photo Credit: August Burns Red 

This quote holds such deep meaning to me. When I first listened to the song in 2017 I was at a pivotal point in my life both personally and professionally. I was a non-traditional pre-med student working an entry level job in healthcare as a medical billing specialist. Setback with my MCAT scores was keeping me from acceptance into medical school. I was in a bad place mentally because I was hanging everything on the prospective job: my sense of self-worth, happiness, and professional identity. Yes, I was committed to doing whatever it took to become the physician I desire to be, but my MCAT proved to be the biggest hurdle in my pursuit. More than pushing myself intellectually and academically to do well on the exam I realized my tenacity wasn’t lacking but rather I was my own worst enemy in my ‘no compromise’ aspiration to become an osteopathic physician. I was self-limiting opportunities because, “it’s not in my plan”

My biggest mistake in the process of pursuing medicine was the blinders I held to my own eyes. It really started in 2014 when I began my first application cycle investigating medical school programs. From 2014 through 2017 I pursued entrance into osteopathic medical programs while studying and re-taking the MCAT. Osteopathic philosophy was the most attractive feature and captivated me as an idealistic pre-med student, I was convinced it was the most practical way to practice medicine. As I’ve matured and worked in healthcare now for 4 years I’ve realized I don’t have to compromise those philosophies. A physician is a leader who leads with conviction – osteopathic medicine was the movement, the subsector that I closely identified with.

More than anything in 2017 I came to terms with my faith as the driving force, the motivation and inspiration behind my pursuit and desire to serve others with medicine. I returned to my theist roots and pressed into my spiritual community which has since become the best decision I could make. Personally I have never experienced liberation like I have in admitting that I don’t have all the answers and I’m not dictating my own life purpose. It’s a relief to trust in a higher being that guides and leads me in accordance with His plan and purposes. My tattoo reminds me that despite my failings and shortcomings, I have a unique purpose and all I have to do is ask. No matter if I’m in the highest of highs or lowest depression I can look up amidst the chaos and know there is a God and he works all things for my good – given I serve, trust, and love him with all that I am and have to give.

Inspiration and creativity for me personally is contingent on my spiritual state and faith. When I get impatient and act in my own strength I lose sight of my own sense of purpose. In the fall of 2018 a thought came into my head – one that I said I’d never consider: applying to international Caribbean medical programs. At first I immediately thought back to my commitment as an undergraduate that I would not consider Caribbean schools even as a last resort because of the “stigma” and reputation. After seriously considering my options and researching different programs I realized the “stigma” was overstated, inaccurate, and exaggerated. After just 3 months of strong consideration I pulled the trigger and applied. I never had any doubt I was/am a good candidate for medical school despite my low MCAT scores and I wasn’t surprised when the invitations to interview rolled in my email inbox.

I’m overjoyed that I received an offer to attend Saba University College of Medicine. I couldn’t have made it this far without the support of my community or without the inspiration from my creator who motivates me to live and love Him and others with all that I am.

Medical School Personal Statement

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I started writing and drafted my first personal statement as a freshman in college. At that point I had already shadowed physicians in pediatrics, general surgery, and internal medicine. I was very involved with many different extracurricular activities from working nearly full-time, leadership in campus organizations, and volunteer involvement with my church. There were several pivotal points throughout college that served as inspiration and motivation to write my personal statement. I am not a particularly good writer, I articulate myself as I might speak, which can explain my excessive use of commas and exclamation points as well as my problem with run-on sentences (LOL). 

With all that being said, just write. Start early. Start today. A shadowing experience might prompt inspiration, write about it. Maybe you traveled abroad and experienced healthcare in a developing country, write about it. You might have a stimulating conversation with a professor about the opioid epidemic, state of healthcare in your nation, anti-vaccine sentiment, overmedicalization, moral injury, medical ethics, or capitalism as it relates to healthcare business. Write about it! The sooner you can articulate your passion for medicine and answer the question why you choose medicine, the easier it is to prep for your medical interview. 

I'm a journaler, always have been, there is something so special and therapeutic about putting pen to paper (or in my case now: typing up drafts) and spilling your thoughts out onto paper. It's so important in personal and professional development to process your successes and setbacks, strengths and weaknesses and how to overcome them. Never stop working on yourself! Take self-development seriously, self-reflection and insight about how to continue on to your desired destination. Often the biggest hurdle is taking the first step, so get a notebook or create a OneNote section dedicated to the ideas, experiences, quotes, and fragmented paragraphs that will shape up to be your own personal statement. 

Though I started drafting my personal statement in 2012, I actually wrote and re-wrote it three times for the three times I applied to medical school. In terms of practical tips on writing your personal statement here's my opinion:

• Get a Grammarly account: hands-down the most useful writing tool on the web.
• Give your "final" drafts to English professors, other pre-med students (peers), and friends who are good at grammar to proofread your writing. Make sure you have good input regarding personal statement content as well as grammar, structure, punctuation/etc.
• Tell your story: it may be helpful to format your personal statement chronologically, that's how I did mine since I logged all my impactful experiences as they occurred, otherwise concisely emphasize your unique perspectives that led to you choosing medicine avoiding the "I love science and people" cliche. 
• Watch your word count. Stay on topic and don't overdo it! Make sure the transitions between paragraphs are cohesive. Think: communicate simply.

I hope that this is practical and helpful advice if you're a pre-med student, if you want to read my personal statement you can access it here.

"Put gaps in your life: moments to reflect, prepare, meditate, and breathe." ~Jody Adams

Thoughts on Identity and Attitude: MCAT Preparation

"Competence means keeping your head in a crisis, sticking with a task even when it seems hopeless, and improvising good solutions to tough problems when every second counts." ~Chris Hadfield

Getting an offer to medical school depends on many variables and circumstances that are entirely outside of my own control. It always made sense to me that an offer to medical school is not an entitlement. I'm not hanging everything on the prospective job: my sense of self-worth, happiness, or my professional identity. I will do whatever it takes to become the physician I desire to be, though I'm convinced that success is feeling good about the work I do throughout the long, unheralded journey that may or may not end up with me wearing a white coat. Of all the variables outside my control there are two things I can control: my preparedness and attitude during the journey. My attitude is what keeps me feeling steady and stable heading in the right direction. So I consciously monitor and correct, if necessary, because losing attitude would be far worse than not achieving my goal.

Be confident, know your motivations, know why you want to be a physician, and above all else don’t give up. Surround yourself with positive intelligent people who are living and successfully doing what you are striving to become. I strive to be competent. It's the most important quality to have in anyone's pursuit to become successful, and especially a physician. Competence encompasses ingenuity, determination and being prepared for anything. Academic mastery is my goal - I will be the best most competent internal medicine physician I can possibly be. Thinking like a physician is a matter of changing perspective - reduce stress by sweating the small problems; imagine the worst thing that could possibly happen. 

During my gap years after undergrad I worked for a private medical billing company called Covenant Surgical Partners. During the first five months of employment I was in a hardcore prep/study mode for my 2nd MCAT attempt. I was studying rigorously 3+ hrs./day either before or after work 5 days a week and 6 hrs. every Saturday with one day off. I was enthusiastic about studying and re-learning the concepts from my pre-med coursework and had developed a rigorous plan before my September test date. My employer was so very encouraging during the process they were as excited for my future as I was, then I got my score back, though I knew it was sub-average I thought for sure I had a chance since other aspects of my application made me a strong candidate. But after a second application cycle and rejection I began to doubt everything about pursuing medicine and consequently became complacent. 

My biggest fear, failure, began to creep into my life and consequently I fell into a brief depression. I can't quite pinpoint what changed in my life that motivated me to get back on the horse and prepare for my third MCAT attempt, but I have a feeling it was my community. When I surrounded myself with the right people, positive voices encouraging me (despite my setbacks) my meaning and motivation for pursuing the dream and scoring well on the MCAT skyrocketed. Also when I stopped hyper-focusing on myself, performance, over-analyzing the tiny details instead of the BIG PICTURE, and focused my energies back on serving others I felt even more inspired to complete another Anki deck of MCAT prep or power through 15 more AAMC question bank questions. 

By August 2018 I made some big life changes, I moved out of my parents house and took a management position with Visionworks Doctors of Optometry. Still pushing for admission into D.O. schools I was studying for hours everyday and using my paid time off to take full-length practice exams. I had virtually no social life outside of church and work. Blinders were on and I was determined. September came around and I took the MCAT for the third time - scoring exactly the same as my second attempt. I felt:
Relieved it didn't drop. 

Frustrated it didn't raise closer to the national average. 

I had a dilemma on my hands. Every D.O. admissions counselor for the schools I planned on applying to told me if I scored less than 500, regardless of the other positive factors from my portfolio, my application will not be considered. Disappointed, I yet again felt my journey to the summit was stunted by my own intelligence attributed to the score of a standardized test. I felt short-changed, osteopathic medicine claims holistic patient-centered medicine but when it comes to admission standards they could not look past 490 - my best work. Convinced I had a strong application with a 3.7 GPA, B.S., 343 shadowing hours, extensive leadership/extracurricular involvement, relevant healthcare employment/volunteering, and a clear sense of purpose communicated through my personal statement, I still didn't have what it takes for their standards. All I needed was for an admissions board to give me a chance. That was when I abandoned the notion that I would ever become a D.O. It was in November 2018 that I considered Caribbean schools as the route to my summit. 

Why I chose Saba University School of Medicine

Saba University School of Medicine is, in my opinion, one of the better Caribbean school choices. In my pre-interview research of the school there were several factors that made their program much more appealing than the other island institutions: 

• USMLE prep/emphasis in curriculum & 99% first-time pass rate/outcomes on STEP 1
• Modern curriculum organ-system approach with a research module
• Excellent residency placement in competitive programs such as Johns Hopkins, Yale, and Mayo Clinic
• Small class size: 90 students each entering class translating to extensive student-teacher interaction. 
• Remote learning environment: un-distracted medical school experience, supportive learning environment, non-traditional student demographic (offering wider peer perspectives into medicine/healthcare.)
• Affordable medical education: ($17,850/semester on the island, $20,700/semester for 3rd & 4th years)
  

After my phone interview with Bill Purnell in early January 2019 I realized how the program is a perfect fit for me. There is nothing more appealing to me than a medical program that values exactly what I do: relationships. I believe that Saba's unmatched reputation is grounded in the quality of physicians produced because of the emphasis placed on student success through personal individualized training and mentorship resulting from the small class size. The foundation of high-quality medical care is placing value in the therapeutic patient-physician relationship, this is the training I will undoubtedly receive. 

What is most attractive about SUSM is the professors and instructors are 100% focused on student success and teaching. Physicians are often referred to as doctors- one who teaches- and I can think of no better school to complete my medical sciences education at than at SUSM where the faculty are here for my long-term success as a physician and not just USMLE success. An important role of a 21st century physician is their ability to teach practical-contextualized medicine promoting good health and holistic wellness. As a physician I hope to be known by my outstanding communication and reputation as one who teaches medicine.

Read more about The Best Caribbean Island You've Never Heard of here.

Why Caribbean Medical Schools?

A lot of friends and family members ask me why I chose the Caribbean for medical school. My answer often is some version of the following: Attending Saba University School of Medicine provides me an opportunity to achieve my personal and professional goals. They gave me a chance to prove myself and fulfill my calling. 

I cannot become a physician without proper training and instruction from a reputable well-established medical program. Medical school is foundational and a critical stepping-stone that will allow me to achieve my personal career goal of becoming the best physician I can possibly be. Medical curriculum, regardless of the school, will train me how to think about the body and its dysfunctions in an analytical evidence-based method.

Becoming a physician will take more than someone who reliably makes good decisions when the consequences really matter. It will take years of serious, sustained effort because I need to build a new knowledge base, develop my mental capabilities, and dramatically expand my technical skill set. The biggest thing that will change is my mind. Medical school will train me with the how to approach medical science, and since medicine is an apprenticeship profession- mentorship with experienced physicians will train me how to think like a physician.

**the following is a post I wrote the week of my admissions phone interview with Saba University College of Medicine, January 2019:

I will do whatever it takes as long as it takes to become the best practitioner I can be. Caribbean medical school is an opportunity to make my career in medicine a reality. All through undergraduate I was fed the negative stigmas associated with Caribbean schools - and quite frankly I believed them without verifying the "facts" I was blindly believing from my pre-med advisor. It's been 2.5 years (almost 3) since I graduated with a bachelors of science and 4 years since I started preparing and taking the MCAT. 

Despite the setbacks of not making it past secondary applications in the AACOMAS cycle due to sub-average MCAT scores I persisted and demonstrated resiliency by faithfully studying for and re-taking the MCAT 3 times. Though my MCAT score is not at 500 I believe I am a competitive applicant and candidate for medical school - I do not want to be underestimated by my MCAT, I am intelligent and have a lot to offer the medical community because of my desire to serve others for good! 

I am determined and committed to succeed as a physician, everything I've completed in my adult life, academically, and professionally has brought me to this point and to quit now would be a loss of 7 years of effort, time, money, and resources. I will become the physician I strive to be. If the Caribbean schools accept lower MCAT scores then they will give me the chance and opportunity to make my professional and personal goal a reality.

“Skill can be taught, tenacity cannot.” ~Atul Gwande

Medicine is an Apprenticeship Profession: Why I Choose Medicine

The following is a post I wrote in May 2017 during my first gap year from undergrad, I was working for a medical billing company at the time and was taking an 11 month study break before a job transition into clinical optometry management, and a third MCAT attempt. I felt burnt out, exhausted, and disheartened with my perceived failure and rejections from my second AACOMAS application cycle. At best I hope this post demonstrates to pre-med students how to effectively cope with depression during a gap year before medical school:

• Don't stop shadowing physicians! Seek out physician-mentorship, there are plenty of doctors out there who want to pour into the next generation of healthcare providers. 
• Work on yourself. Don't lose sight of why you still choose medicine everyday. Enjoy life, live balanced, build healthy habits, learn to budget, do something unrelated to medicine - take time to reflect and grow spiritually. 
• Community. Surround yourself with positive encouraging people. If you're discouraged and dealing with setbacks like a poor MCAT score, who you surround yourself with will make all the difference. 

Make the most of your gap year before medical school and know that everyone's path looks different, emulate strategies, don't assume that what works for someone else will work for you. 

Photo Credit: Google Images

Medicine is an apprenticeship profession, I learn how to be a doctor by studying doctors. I choose to model my career off the advice and success of physicians who practice medicine the way I hope to.

Since I started my journey to become a physician I am reminded of all the experiences, accomplishments, and failures that have brought me to this point in my healthcare career. After shadowing various physicians and working in healthcare, I know that there is nothing more challenging and rewarding to spend my life’s pursuit. I have decided to be a family practitioner because it is the most practical and meaningful way that I see fit to serve others.

It is my desire to serve and fascination with patient-centered medicine that inspires me to become a physician. Passion does not exist without suffering; it exists as a dichotomy: suffering compels me to pursue and attain what I believe is worthwhile. I cannot bear to see others in pain, I hope to make a lasting difference and alleviate even some of the suffering in the world. My hope is to meet the physical, mental, and spiritual needs of people in a community who would otherwise not be receiving top quality care, serving where the most need is. The daily challenges of my journey life remind me of my purpose to use medicine as a means to benefit others and serve intentionally with everything that I am and have to give.

In an era marked by healthcare reform and population surge, there is an ever increasing need for rural primary care physicians in the U.S. The need for healthcare is consistent, but the need for great physicians is paramount to meet this need. Medicine is an apprenticeship profession, I learn how to be a doctor by studying doctors. I am thankful to have many outstanding role models in medicine who are supportive and encouraging in my pursuit. The following paragraph is a notable story from my past 5 years of direct physician shadowing that greatly influenced my decision to pursue family practice.

In the summer of 2014 I had an amazing opportunity to participate in a 3 month pre-med volunteer internship at the Jackson-Madison General Hospital in Jackson Tennessee. During the program I shadowed first-year resident Dr. Heather Perry (D.O.) at the UT Family Practice residency. After spending several 12 and 24 hour shifts delivering babies, admitting patients from the ER, rounding and determining treatment plans, I knew that this is exactly what I want to spend the rest of my life doing. Being a physician is a great responsibility, observing Dr. Perry conduct herself under the stresses of managing multiple patients while learning a new medical charting software exhibits the importance of multitasking and adapting osteopathic medicine to the changes in conventional medicine. My exposure to a wide variety of specialties and 250+ physician shadowing hours has collectively inspired me to serve with excellence, holding myself to the highest standards of professionalism and responsibility for the greater good.

Since first applying to medical schools in 2015 and again in 2016, I have completed a B.S. in nutrition, increased my MCAT score, and gain experience in healthcare with an ambulatory surgery management company. My exposure to the medical revenue cycle (billing, contracting, coding, and collections) equips me with first-hand knowledge of how to run a successful private practice and recognize who I need on my revenue management team, further driving my desire to become a clinical family practitioner. I have the personal character and professional demeanor of an outstanding physician. I am a sensitive and compassionate humanitarian and believe holistic-patient centered medicine is the best fit for my strengths and personal philosophies regarding health, wellness, and order. 

I can confidently say that I will become a successful family practitioner because I choose to model my career off the advice and success of physicians who practice medicine the way I hope to.

Challenges and Sacrifice

This post was originally written in July 2017 before my 3rd MCAT attempt. I was at the tail end of a depression and was groping for encouragement, for light at the end of what seemed to be an endless tunnel. Whether you're reading this as a pre-med student struggling with the MCAT or GPA, or you're looking for encouragement amidst what seems impossible: don't give up! This entry is raw, transparent, and vulnerable for me to share. 

Photo Credit: Google Images

Challenges do not define me, I choose to be defined by how I respond, not react, to all challenges I encounter. I am a perfectionist to a fault. Arguably it’s my worst weakness. I will not settle for second best – I always give my best work: I cannot offer more than I am capable of. I always choose to work within my capacity but am always improving and pushing my limits. I will not quit in the face of challenges, instead I welcome challenges. I choose to take on challenges for the sake of successful accomplishment simply to know I can and will do anything I set my mind to.

In high school I was bad at chemistry, no matter how hard I studied and invested time into additional tutoring I could not pass a test to save my life. In college as a pre-med student I minored in chemistry, a subject I once hated. You see I was so bad at chemistry I knew there would be nothing more worth my time than to minor in a challenging subject. To make my endeavor easier I majored in nutrition and food science, applying chemistry to food science was an easy correlation in my mind.

Ultimately I will become a physician, so nutrition and food science is a fitting mix of human physiology, biochemistry, and practical everyday knowledge. I managed to do well in all my college classes, however on my journey to become a physician I have encountered a much larger challenge to conquer - the MCAT. After spending thousands of dollars on AAMC prep courses and hundreds of hours studying in two years and a four-year college degree later, the MCAT is the only credential keeping me from admission to a medical program.

One of the first physicians I shadowed told me, “The hardest part of medical school is getting in.” I choose a career in medicine after extensive physician shadowing/mentorship and know what I am getting into and what it will take to be the physician I strive to become. Sure there will be setbacks and disappointments, to date I have applied to medical school twice in two years and essentially earned a sub-average MCAT score twice. Everything academically and professionally completed up to this point is in preparation for my career in medicine. To give up would be foolish, I let myself down by giving up now. This journey to medical school is not easy, which is why I choose to do whatever it takes as long as it takes because I am compelled to become the best physician I can possibly be.

"[Many people] think all the world's problems can be fixed without any cost to themselves. We don't believe that. There's a lot to be said for sacrifice, remorse, even pity. It's what separates us from roaches." ~Paul Farmer, excerpt from Mountains Beyond Mountains (pg. 40)

Introduction: Perspectives from a Medical Student

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This blog will function more or less as an extension to my personal journal, which will document my journey through medical school and shed insight on the unique pre-medical experiences and opportunities that paved the way to acceptance.

A little background on me, I graduated from Middle Tennessee State University in 2016 with a bachelors of science in Nutrition & Food Science minoring in chemistry with a concentration in pre-medical studies. My university, like most, did not have a "pre-med program" rather it was a pre-med pathway consisting of academic advisers who make sure you're taking all the prerequisite classes needed for admissions into medical school. When I started undergrad I knew medicine was the route for me because of my interest in anatomy and biology in high school as well as my love for working with and serving people. What really solidified my calling to medicine was experiencing medicine firsthand in Mexico on a gap year mid-term missions trip after high school. I ended up contracting typhoid fever from bad tejuino and witnessed the realities of clinical medicine in a third-world developing country. Before I even returned to the U.S. in 2012 I applied and got accepted to MTSU. 

As a college freshman, and being an ISFJ personality type, I immediately began shadowing physicians, developing my personal statement, building relationships for letters of recommendation, getting involved with student government, and healthcare organizations on campus. I read the book, Get Into Medical School: A Strategic Approach by Kaplan and did everything I possibly could to make myself the best most competitive candidate for medical school by being involved on campus, my church, and logging hundreds of shadowing hours. Amidst the business of my social life and classes I thoroughly enjoyed the process and made some amazing friendships with many other like-minded pre-med students. 

My senior year in college I took the new 2015 MCAT, now the MCAT had not gone through any major updates since the 1990s so I really didn't know what I was getting myself into. Basically the MCAT was now 7 hrs. long, had new bell-curve scoring system (472-528) with a greater emphasis on 4 new subjects, Biochemistry, Critical Analysis and Reasoning, Psychology, and Sociology. After 3 attempts over 3 years, disappointment, and personal crisis I came to terms with my standardized test taking abilities and personally accepted rejection from every medical school I applied to in the U.S. Instead of giving up or reconsidering my career in healthcare all together, I sought counsel and was advised to consider Caribbean schools as an opportunity to achieve my calling to medicine.

In January 2019 I applied to the "Big Four" Caribbean schools landed interviews and got accepted to all four and chose to attend the best one (in my opinion), Saba University College of Medicine. Since I just accepted a management position at an optometry practice I decided to start in January 2020. It's now October 2019, 80 days before I ship out to the Dutch Caribbean. I am so beyond stoked to start this next chapter of my life and career!!

Over the next few posts I want to address some ideas, experiences, and perspectives I had during my pre-med and gap years before medical school starts, I hope it is useful to other pre-medical students, prospective Caribbean students (Saba U.) or individuals considering medical school.