AUP COM: Philosophy, Motto, Mission, Vision, Goals...

http://www.scribd.com/doc/265567164/AUP-Offers-Scholarships-for-COM-Inaugural-Class

http://www.myfinancemd.com/who-wants-to-be-a-filipino-doctor-faqs-on-top-20-philippine-medical-schools-tuition-fees/

Comparative Chart of Medical School Tuition Per Semester

http://www.llu.edu/medicine/medical-student-education/curriculum/outline.page?
Loma Linda University School of Medicine 

LLU Medicine Curriculum

LLU Medicine Curriculum

LLU Medicine Curriculum

LLU Medicine Curriculum

http://www.aup.edu.ph/5/content/college_medicine

http://www.aup.edu.ph/5/sites/default/files/pdfs/Application%20Process%20Flowchart.pdf

http://www.aup.edu.ph/5/sites/default/files/pdfs/com_flyer_page_1b.pdf

Php 20k discount/sem for members of Class 2019

NMAT />80

NMAT>/60

https://www.cem-inc.org.ph/nmat/about-nmat

http://www.aup.edu.ph/5/sites/default/files/pdfs/com_flyer_page_2.pdf

http://www.aup.edu.ph/5/sites/default/files/pdfs/com_recomendation_form_2.pdf

https://www.aamc.org/download/349990/data/lettersguidelinesbrochure.pdf

Letter of Evaluation for a Medical School Applicant!

Thank you for agreeing to write a letter of evaluation for a medical school applicant!

Guidelines

1. Provide an accurate assessment of the applicant’s suitability for medical school rather than advocate for the applicant.

2. Briefly explain your relationship with the applicant: –how long you have known the applicant; – in what capacity you have interacted (e.g., faculty, pre-medical advisor, supervisor, etc.); and – whether you are writing based on direct or indirect observations.

3. Quality is more important than letter length. Focus on the applicant rather than details about the lab, course, assignment, job or institution.

4. Only include information on grades, GPA or MCAT scores if you are providing context to help interpret them. Grades, GPA, and MCAT scores are available within the application. 

5. Focus on behaviors that you have observed directly when describing applicants’ suitability for medical school. Consider describing: – The situation or context of the behavior – The actual behavior(s) you observed – Any consequences of that behavior 

6. Admissions committees find comparison information helpful. If you make comparisons, be sure to provide context. Include information about: – the comparison group (e.g., students in a class you taught, students in your department, co-workers, etc.) – your rationale for the final comparison

Key Areas of Interest

A.) Unique Contributions to the Incoming Class

– Describe obstacles that the applicant had to overcome, and if applicable, how those obstacles

led to new learning and growth

– Explain how the applicant may contribute to a medical school’s diversity, broadly defined (e.g.,

background, attributes,experiences, etc.)

Note: If you write about any information that could be considered potentially sensitive, confirm with the applicant that s/he is comfortable with the inclusion of that information.

B.) Core, Entry-level Competencies

Describe how the applicant has, or has not, demonstrated any of the following competencies that are necessary for success in medical school.

Thinking & Reasoning Competencies

Critical Thinking: Uses logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems

Quantitative Reasoning: Applies quantitative reasoning and appropriate mathematics to describe or explain phenomena in the natural world

Scientific Inquiry: Applies knowledge of the scientific process to integrate and synthesize information,

solve problems and formulate research questions and hypotheses; is facile in the language of the sciences and uses it to participate in the discourse of science and explain how scientific knowledge is discovered and validated

Written Communication: Effectively conveying information to others using written words and sentences

Science Competencies

Living Systems: Applies knowledge and skill in the natural sciences to solve problems related to molecular and macro systems

Human Behavior: Applies knowledge of the self, others, and social systems to solve problems related to the psychological, social, and biological factors that influence health and well-being.

Interpersonal Competencies

Service Orientation: Demonstrates a desire to help others and sensitivity to others’ needs and feelings; demonstrates a desire to alleviate others’ distress; recognizes and acts on his/her responsibilities to society, locally, nationally, and globally

Social Skills: Demonstrates awareness of others’ needs, goals, feelings, and the ways social and behavioral cues affect peoples’ interactions and behaviors; adjusts behaviors appropriately in response to these cues; and treats others with respect

Cultural Competence: Demonstrates knowledge of social and cultural factors that affect interactions and behaviors; shows an appreciation and respect for multiple dimensions of diversity; recognizes and acts on the obligation to inform one’s own judgment; engages diverse and competing perspectives as a resource for learning, citizenship, and work; recognizes and appropriately addresses bias in themselves and others; interacts effectively with people from diverse backgrounds

Teamwork: Works collaboratively with others to achieve shared goals; shares information & knowledge with others and provides feedback; puts team goals ahead of individual goals

Oral Communication: Effectively conveys information to others using spoken words and sentences; listens effectively; recognizes potential communication barriers and adjusts approach or clarifies information as needed

Intrapersonal Competencies

Ethical Responsibility to Self and Others: Behaves in an honest and ethical manner; cultivates personal and academic integrity; adheres to ethical principles and follows rules and procedures; resists peer pressure to engage in unethical behavior and encourages others to behave in honest and ethical ways; and develops and demonstrates ethical and moral reasoning

Reliability and Dependability: Consistently fulfills obligations in a timely and satisfactory manner; takes responsibility for personal actions and performance

Resilience and Adaptability: Demonstrates tolerance of stressful or changing environments or situations and adapts effectively to them; is persistent, even under difficult situations; recovers from setbacks

Capacity for Improvement: Sets goals for continuous improvement and for learning new concepts and skills; engages in reflective practice for improvement; solicits and responds appropriately to feedback.

http://docs.adventistarchives.org/docs/RH/RH19601117-V137-46__B.pdf#view=fit

The Adventist Review and Sabbath Herald, Vol. 137, No. 46  November 17, 1960 

p 32

http://documents.adventistarchives.org/Periodicals/RH/RH19610216-V138-07.pdf

The Adventist Review and Sabbath Herald, Vol. 138, No. 7 February 16, 1961 

p 32

USMLE-based Medicine Curricula

Duke1

Duke2

Harvard

Stanford

UCLA

JohnsHopkins

http://www.ecfmg.org/resources/ECFMG-2013-annual-report.pdf

pp 21, 23

http://www.valuemd.com/asian-medical-schools/221491-philippines-schools-affordable-intl-schools.html

 Why are Philippines schools much more affordable than other intl.schools?

The primary purpose of Philippine Medical schools is to train doctors for the Philippines. The secondary purposes include training doctors as an "export" product for much of the world. What has been emerging as a tertiary purpose is training US citizens for practice in the US. When I took the NMAT in LA, there were only 4 people there that weren't pretty obviously of Filipino descent (at lot of them looked like they might be of mixed descent though).

Filipino schools don't really cater to foreigners. The only partial exception is Fatima. The only other school that routinely lets students do clinical training in the US is UERM. There are some things you give up when studying in the Phillipines:
you don't get a USMLE based curriculum. 
You don't get a wide range of US clinical training sites
You don't get a bunch of classmates that are US citizens similar to yourself
You aren't as close to the US
the curriculm is a little different than the US based one-so you may need a little extra clinical training
You don't get the accelerated curriculum possible at AUC, Ross or Saba-which means you take an extra calendar year
Anyplace other than Fatima tends to flunk students out in large numbers


Why are Carribean schools more expensive? They are in middle income countries-everything is more expensive there-and a lot rely on US faculty at least partially. Saba uses more Indian faculty and is closer to Fatima in price-but is more expensive
because of the cost of doing business in the middle income Caribbean. (Tuition for Saba is about $100K vs $60K for Fatima with US clinical training)

The Philippines is a lower-middle income country-but with some sound basic infrastructure(comparable to India in PPP GDP/capita).

For many US students, the hassles aren't worth the extra $40K-unless they have family ties to the Philippines.

* * *

The biggest disadvantage of attending a Filipino medical school is no US clerkships (or in case of Fatima they are possible but MOST are NOT green booked which means no licensure in 13 states if you go that route...). Most US students choose a filipino school on the basis of their connections with US hospital, but end up doing most clerkships in the Philippines once they find out the costs and disadvantages of blue-booked rotations.

The fact that the curriculum is not USMLE based, I consider that an advantage. Im studying for the USMLE now, and let me tell you - it IS very different. BUT, the non-USMLE training I got in the Philippines is helping me answer a lot of "what da freak" questions that come out on NBMEs. A short to the point USMLE review is making me a better rounded physician than graduating from a glorified USMLE prep program like some Carribbean schools.

Now here are some clear ADVANTAGES of Filipino schools vs. Carribbean:
1) Cost is 1/6th - 1/10th
2) No USMLE politics. Many if not most Carribean schools artificially bolster their USMLE passing rates by DENYING their students the right to take the exam when they choose. Until you pass their shelf exams, they simply won't sign the forms required for you to take the USMLE. And some even charge you tuition while you are trying to pass their shelf exams. Filipino schools dont do that.
3) No rent/food mafia. Carribean schools engage in dirty scams of their students by banning local food vendors within a certain radius of the school, by buying up all rentals around the schools then jacking up the cost far beyond the cost on the island. In the Philippines your living costs would be fractional.
4) In Philippines you have real practicing doctors teaching you subjects. Most Carribean schools dont have hospitals. The people who teach there are doctors who cannot engage in clinical practice. That says a lot about their motivation. Also thats why they are so expensive - the school must compensate these doctors for loss of practice while they teach.
5) No worries regarding clerkship. All foreign clerkships are considered Green Book by US states. But if you attend a Carribbean school, they may not always have green booked spots for ALL their students. You end up either extending your graduation, or doing blue book rotations which effectively slam the door on about a dozen state licensures. Imagine you paying a premium for one of those "50 US state, or 49 US state" carribean schools, and find out 3d year or 4th year you will be giving up 13 states because of scheduling and limited clerkship spots. Ouch.
6) Flexibility after graduation. Your debts are minimal, you can try to match for a specialty of your choice. And if you graduated from one of the "Harvards" of the Carribean? Someone please calculate the interest rate on a $350,000 loan that some of the grads of these schools have. Losing a year with such a debt is very damaging. You'll likely settle for whoever takes you.
7) I know some wont view this as an advantage, but especially non-filipinos like myself get to experience a very different and somewhat closed-to-outsiders culture from the inside. Many foreign medical students never do that and its ok - the Philippines lets such students limit their interactions with local flavors. Taxis, western food places, gated dormitories are all affordable. But for someone who is anthropologically inclined, the cutural and linguistic experience of studying in a foreign setting that is not artificially shielded for foreign sheep (like carribbean schools), but interacting with local classmates, is worth going the distance. No matter how hard one studies, life doesnt stop for 4 years. Ive lived it in the Philippines much more than my friends who went to Carribbean schools.

* * *

As I've mentioned before, US clerkships are NOT a strong point of the Philippine option. However, several choices do exist:
1) If you go to Fatima, take ONLY the green book rotations, and not any other. This is not guaranteed, spots are limited, politics abound. But their Family Med rotation in chicago, and i think OB/GYN? rotation in Maryland are green booked. Remember you only need a single rotation for LORs you dont need a full year of US clerkships.
2) Extend your graduation date and do an elective clerkship in the US. This can be done relatively painlessly, provided that you have a full year of clerkship under your belt (near graduation in the Philippines), and you've applied to a hospital that is foreign friendly. Its also cheap - no referral fees necessary, you pay like $300 for a month's worth of malpractice insurance, and you're good to go. Remember that no elective clerkship is actually fitting with your Filipino school requirements, so you'll be delaying your graduation by a month or so as a result. Well worth it tho, especially if attending a less expensive school than fatima.
3) Graduate first, and do the third party thing. Unlike the elective clerkship WHILE YOU'RE STILL A STUDENT, after graduation you do need a third party to get a foot in the door. In addition, it WILL NOT BE A CLERKSHIP. A clerkship after graduation from med school is ILLEGAL. It will be an observership where you shadow a physician, but NOBODY WILL LET YOU TOUCH PATIENTS. This is where companies like Ameri***** really screw students - they promise them the real deal, but legally, it simply cant happen. So your LORs will reflect the lack of patient contact and wont be as strong as the elective option above.
4) Arrange a core clerkship on your own? They say its impossible. Ive never heard anyone do it. And yet, there is no law that says you cant. Perhaps one could use their ingenuity and do it, but don't hold your breath on this option. 

These are the options as I see them...

* * *

As a third year medical student (in the Philippines), I havent yet experienced clerkship. I've heard some rotations are pretty brutal. OB/Gyn will leave you sleepless for 36 hours. Pediatrics might make you do 10 patient histories on a single night of duty. You never know what to expect. Other rotations, I've heard, are less "toxic" (filipino english expression I've grown to enjoy). 

The 72 month rule you mentioned applies only to California state licensure. There are three ways to breach the gap between filipino 52 hour clerkship and Cali 72 hour requirement:

1) Extend your graduation. Many filipino schools will accommodate you for this - more slave work and tuition for them. Plus you can get your US LORs by doing visiting elective clerkships during that time.
2) Contact the state of california AFTER your graduation, and have them send you to an official post-clerkship training site where they will let you work those hours. Actually, Im wondering if in this case its hands on enough that the LORs would also be meaningful. Its worth exploring as an alternative to extending one's graduation. Of course if you'll be busy interviewing for residency spots, you won't have a lot of time to do this. But if, for example, you plan to lose a year anyway by doing prolonged USMLE study post-graduation (as some graduates choose to do), one could divide up the extra year between USMLE study and California approved clerkship "make up".
3) California board allows you to count your residency for the missing clerkship hours as long as you dont count that residency time towards your actual residency. In short, no double-counting of hours. Extend your residency program to be able to apply for Cali licensure.

Finally, in terms of native dialect - it depends. First of all, different areas of the Philippines speak different languages, so Tagalog is what you'll speak in and around Manila, while Cebuano is the language for schools like Southwestern and Cebu Doctors in Cebu, while West Visayas State University is located in the areas that speaks Ilonngo. 

Secondly, the answer to your question is it depends on you. I know foreigners who have come out of clerkship without speaking a single word of the native dialect. Officially you are not required to study the language, and doctors and administration will accommodate you if you have no inclination to do so. During rotations you will be partnered with a native who can translate, or assigned patients who speak english. Of course 3 years of basic science study in the Philippines will surely teach you at least some BASIC local language, unless you are in the special section of Fatima where your daily interactions will be limited to other foreigners. For me, I want the most out of my clerskhips, and I love to learn languages, so Ive picked up basic conversational Tagalog & Cebuano. Remember speaking correctly is NOT important - being understood or understanding is far more essential. But even that is not really required, since the filipino medical programs are officially english language based.

* * *

http://www.valuemd.com/asian-medical-schools/128001-concern-52-weeks-clerkship-philippines-medical-schools.html

Concern about 52 weeks clerkship from Philippines medical schools!

I just graduated from a med school in the Philippines. There is no problem with the 52 weeks of clerkship. The problem you will encounter will depend on the state in which you wish to be licensed. For example, California requires 72 weeks of clerkship. This could be remedied in various ways including doing the "internship" or petitioning to the state board to reconsider the length required in weeks, to be credited as work put in as hours. We, as clinical clerks in the Philippines have a more stringent clerkship schedule, in that we are on "duty" every 3 days for 24-36 hours (depending on the rotation.) Thus, we have put in a comparable amount of hours vs. american school clerks who generally have 40hour weeks with MAYBE 1 on-call per week. 

The other problem you must take into consideration is you must make sure that you take enough weeks of clerkship in each specialty to satisfy the requirements in each state. I cant remember off the top of my head but its something like 12wks Family Med, 12wks Int med, 8wks surgery, 8wks ob, 8wks pedia (like I said Im not too sure on the exacts of this requirement) but in the Philippines (or at least at my school) we were required to do 2mo each specialty, with 2 mo of electives. Well if you don't plan well you might still be deficient in Family med. You get what I mean? Any how. good luck! You can make it...

* * *

Ok...i checked the application for licensing for the state of california...you need 72wks of clinical clerkship and 40 of those weeks should be in your core specialties...broken down as the following

·             8wks Surgery

·             8wks IM

·             6wks Ped

·             6wks OB

·             4wks FM

·             4wks Psych

I guess the rest of the 32 wks you can invest in any other way you want. You can EITHER extend your clerkship to finish those 32wks in the Philippines or US...OR graduate and do externships back in the US...but you will have to pay and get proper documentation etc...Its better NOT to graduate and extend if you ask me...also when it comes to taking USMLE. If you graduate before taking the exams you will need additional documentation like diploma and transcripts.