Island Med Student

I’ve received a lot of emails regarding Ross’s clinical clerkships, so I thought I’d write a short post and tell everyone what I know. I have to confess though, that since I haven’t actually been through the process yet, I can’t claim to know much. The only info I have is from what Ross has told me, and what I’ve heard from students who are in their clerkships or have already graduated. Once I actually begin my rotations, I’ll be able to write more intelligently about them.

You do your first four semesters of basic sciences here in Dominica. You can then do your fifth semester (advanced intro to clinical medicine) in Miami, or you now have the option to do it at the hospital here in Roseau (you have to actually get accepted to do it here, though I’ve heard it’s not all that competitive anymore). You then have to take and pass the USMLE Step 1. Once you’ve done that, you are eligible to begin your clinical rotations at various hospitals. (Actually, there may be a few rotations that you could do w/o having passed the Step 1, but I’m unclear as to how that works, and you’d still have to eventually pass it, but I think they might let you start tentatively.)

Here are the current required and elective clerkships according to Ross’s website:

Medicine – 12 weeks
Obstetrics/Gynecology – 6 weeks
Pediatrics – 6 weeks
Psychiatry – 6 weeks
Surgery – 12 weeks
Family Medicine – 6 weeks

The 30 additional weeks are spent in elective clerkships; these must include eight additional weeks of Medicine, which may be spent in general medicine or in medical subspecialties, and four additional weeks of surgery, which may be spent in general surgery or in surgical subspecialties.

You are supposed to do your clerkships at one of Ross’s approved hospital affiliates. You can view that list here. However, you may be able to do your clerkship at a hospital other than one on the list. There is a form that you have to complete, and a process that you have to go through in order to do this. Not all exceptions are granted. From what I’ve heard, you have a better chance if you can make a good case as to why you want to go to a different hospital, and it helps if you have a good GPA and good USMLE Step 1 score. (A good example would be if your spouse is working at a specific hospital, and you want to stay close to them.) Keep in mind that Ross has to pay the hospital for you to do your clerkship there, so you have to have a good case if you want them to approve your request.

Another thing to keep in mind is that not all of Ross’s clerkship sites are ACGME approved. To view a list of ACGME approved clerkships, go here. So, what does it meant to be ACGME approved? Well, you can read their website for more information, but what it comes down to is that being ACGME approved is a good thing. When you eventually start applying to residency positions, if you did your clerkships in ACGME approved programs, it will definitely make you look a little better. Now, it’s not absolutely necessary. You can still get into a residency without having trained in those programs, but it will certainly up your chances of getting into a competitive residency program. In addition to that, it can affect your ability to get licensed in certain states such as California and Texas. You should definitely research the licensure laws in your own state to be safe.

Once you have passed the USMLE Step 1, you are then eligible to start your clinical clerkships. Now, which clinical clerkship you get matched to is a combination of many factors such as which positions are available, where you want to live, your Step scores, your relationship with certain hospitals, etc. I’ve read about people complaining on the ValueMD site about not getting clerkships, getting crappy ones, etc. However, I don’t know how valid the complaints are. I’m sure I’ll get a lot of comments about this, but the people WHO I have spoken with (who have either graduated or are currently doing their clerkships) have not complained that much. They have told me that they got decent clerkships, and I even know a few folks who were able to get clerkships at non-Ross-approved sites. So, what I am saying is that according to what I can ascertain, most people shouldn’t have problems getting a decent clerkship. But I can’t speak about the complainers, because I don’t know their stories. Now, I’m not saying that you will get the best clerkships in the States, and everything will go smoothly, and you’ll have the best teachers in the world, and life will be full of rainbows. That’s just not reality. But what I am saying is that I don’t see why you can’t get a decent clerkship, especially if you did well on the Step 1. However, I’m sure I’ll get some comments on this!

Anyway, that’s about all I know with respect to Ross’s Clinical Clerkships. As I said before, I am not the foremost source of information on this topic. I haven’t been through the experience yet, and I never like to speak about anything unless I have first-hand knowledge of the topic. So, please take this information with a grain of salt. This is merely what I’ve been told by Ross, and heard from other students.

I hope that at least answers some of your questions out there. Please send me an email if you have any more questions, or if you want to correct anything I said. Thanks!

NOTE: I use “clerkships” and “rotations” synonymously.

UPDATE: For a newer list of Ross affiliated schools (with ACGME approval info), and a more detailed explanation of how to obtain clinical clerkship positions, please see this PDF. (Thank you Proby for sending this to me!)