Best Caribbean Medical Schools

What are the best Caribbean medical schools? Which schools will give you the greatest chance of landing a residency position in the United States following graduation? We’ll answer these questions below.

This post ranks the top Caribbean medical schools on the following criteria: attrition (dropout) rates, USMLE Step 1 pass rate, class size, residency match rate, match list strength, incoming student statistics, housing costs, and location.

These schools are then ranked overall following the analysis. To see the final rankings and skip the analysis, click here

The Top Caribbean Medical Schools

There are many medical schools in the Caribbean, but only a handful will allow you to practice medicine in all 50 states in the US. Those schools include St. George’s University School of Medicine (SGU), Saba University School of Medicine, American University of the Caribbean (AUC), Ross University School of Medicine, and The American University of Antigua (AUA). 

SGU, Saba, AUC, and Ross (commonly known as the “Big Four”) have been around for a while, unlike AUA (which was founded in 2004).  Because AUA is newer and less established than the others, it will not be discussed in this post. However, I believe AUA is a viable option as well, so feel free to look into this school also.

Therefore, I will only be ranking SGU, Saba, AUC, and Ross.

Attrition Rates

Not all Caribbean medical students end up graduating. Some leave for personal reasons, and some also can’t keep up academically. 

Since I was unable to find most of the Caribbean medical schools’ published attrition rates online, I instead conducted a simple study to make a guestimation for each school. I reached out to at least ten students and alumni from each school and asked them what they thought their school’s attrition rate was. I then averaged their responses. 

Here are the estimated attrition rates for each school:

Note: SGU was the only school I could find that publishes an attrition rate for their school (7-12%). However, this number doesn’t appear to be a hard average.

AUC’s estimated attrition rate is the lowest of all four.  However, SGU is not far behind, and the attrition rate on their website is very low. AUC and SGU both seem like good options to me.

Just to put things in perspective, the dropout rate at an allopathic (M.D.) medical school in the US is only 4%.

Why do the best Caribbean medical schools appear to have such high attrition rates? In my opinion, a decent number of students who gain admission to Caribbean medical schools have failed to get into US medical schools, and oftentimes aren’t the cream of the crop or don’t have the strongest academic backgrounds.

These students oftentimes just can’t make it through the rigors of medical school. Larger average class sizes at Caribbean medical schools probably also play a role.

Whatever the reason, the attrition rates at the Big 4 are higher than those on average at US allopathic medical schools.

USMLE Step 1 Pass Rate

The USMLE (The United States Medical Licensing Examination) is an exam taken by medical students interested in practicing in the United States. Step 1 of the USMLE is the first part of the three-part exam and is usually taken after the second year of medical school. A high pass rate on this exam is indicative of a medical school preparing its students well for a career in medicine.

First-time USMLE Step 1 Pass Rate:

The average pass rate for students at US/Canadian (M.D.) schools for Step 1 in 2017 was actually 94%. SGU, AUC, and Saba surprisingly actually all had higher pass rates than this. Saba’s score was especially impressive (although no year was given for Saba’s).

Note: I talked to some Caribbean medical students about the USMLE. Some schools might not let you sit for the USMLE until they think you are prepared (which might explain the high step 1 pass rates).

Tuition

Caribbean medical schools are expensive, although allopathic and osteopathic medical schools are pricey as well (especially for out-of-state students). Here are some ballpark estimates of how much you’ll end up paying over four years at each school. 

Note: These numbers were calculated in 2018.

SGU and Ross appear to be the most expensive, while Saba seems to be the cheapest. To put things in perspective, Harvard medical school tuition and fees for first-year students is $44,522. Therefore, students will end up paying around $178,000 over four years at Harvard.

Using Harvard as a reference point, you’ll probably end up paying more for medical school than you would in the US if you attend SGU or Ross.

Class Size

Smaller classes generally allow students to get more attention from professors, and therefore learn more and perform better. Here are the estimated class sizes at the schools in the Big Four:

Note: Again, I had a tough time finding class sizes for these schools. I reached out to three students at each school and asked them to make a class size estimation. These numbers do not represent actual class sizes at the Caribbean medical schools but are a rough approximation.

It seems like you might receive more individualized attention from professors if you go to AUC or Saba. Ross and SGU appear to have huge class sizes.

However, from the students I have talked to, there often seem to be resources outside of lectures (like discussion sections) which allow students to learn in a smaller class size setting.

Residency Match Rate

During their final year of medical school, medical students apply for residency programs. To become a doctor, you must do some sort of residency following medical school (at least in the US, as far as I know). The residency match rates for each Big Four school are listed below:

The only statistic on Ross’ match rate I could find was from a flyer posted on Reddit, which stated that their match rate was 99%. However, this rate included students over two years and only applied to students who had passed the USMLE exam on their first attempt. Because of this, it’s really hard to directly compare this match rate with the others. 

SGU appears to have one of the stronger residency match rates and is almost on par with that of allopathic medical schools. AUC isn’t too far behind, though, and Ross might be close as well (but we don’t know for sure).

Match List Strength

Some residency positions are harder to get than others. Specialties like dermatology and orthopedic surgery are notoriously difficult to match into and are generally reserved for students who graduate at the top of their class and have excellent USMLE scores. Generally, competitive specialties are competitive because of the higher pay, better work-life balance, or more desirable work.

Some Caribbean medical schools seem to give their students a better chance than others at matching into competitive and slightly competitive specialties.

The match lists of the various Caribbean medical schools for 2017 were analyzed, and the results are listed below.

Criteria:

Very Competitive Specialties: Plastic Surgery, Neurological Surgery, Dermatology, Orthopedic Surgery, Vascular Surgery, Otolaryngology, Radiation Oncology, Urology

Slightly Competitive Specialties: General Surgery, Diagnostic Radiology, Anesthesiology, Emergency Medicine, Obstetrics and Gynecology

Not Competitive: Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, Family Medicine, Pathology, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Psychiatry, Neurology

Note: The division between very competitive, slightly competitive, and not competitive was mainly made based off of online research from blog posts and personal opinion. 

Looking at the results, SGU and Ross seem to have the strongest match lists, with AUC trailing close behind them. Not many students at any school matched into very competitive specialties. 

Incoming Students Statistics

Some Caribbean medical schools are able to recruit students with higher MCATs and GPAs. You could make an argument that this implies something about the prestige of the school.

No school seems like it’s a clear winner, although SGU and AUC look like the best options for this category.  Saba strangely has the lowest GPA, but the highest MCAT.

Cost of Living (Housing)

Although probably the least important ranking factor, housing costs should still be considered. These additional costs add to the expense of going to the Caribbean for medical school.

I decided to compare the on-campus housing rates at each school to determine which was the most expensive.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to compare the same housing type for every school. But, I figured I could make a rough approximation using the data above.

After looking at the data, SGU appeared to be the most expensive. Students with their own bedroom and a shared bath can expect to pay around $1800 over the course of a year. Compared to a similar apartment at AUC, SGU is almost twice the cost.

Because Saba only offers single dormitories, it’s tough to directly compare it with the other schools. Nevertheless, Saba appears to be very inexpensive.

Here’s my final housing price ranking:

1. Saba (cheapest)
2. AUC
3. Ross
4. SGU (most expensive)

Location

All four Caribbean medical schools are located on different islands within the Caribbean, and therefore have different things to offer their students outside of medical school.

AUC:

AUC is located on an island, Saint Martin, in St Maarten (population: 33,609). St Maarten is a part of the Netherlands and is one of the most developed and touristy islands of the Big Four. It’s known for its shopping, casino resorts, bars, beaches, and ‘good island life’.

Saint George’s University:

SGU is located in Grenada (population: 107,317). It’s considered to be less touristy and more undeveloped than St Maarten, but more than Saba. Grenada is known for its beautiful beaches, food, and hiking.

Ross Medical School:

Ross is located in Barbados (population:  285,719). Ross recently relocated here from Dominica due to Hurricane Maria. Like Saint Martin, this island attracts tourists and is developed. 

Saba:

Saba University School of Medicine is located in Saba (population: 1,824), an island only five square miles in size. This is by far the smallest island in the Big Four. The island has no beaches and is instead known for its hiking, diving, and snorkeling. Saba is the most undeveloped island of the Big Four.

Conclusion:

Here is my final ranking of the best Caribbean medical schools:

1. SGU
2. AUC
3. Saba
4. Ross

In my opinion, SGU is the front-runner. The school appears to have one of the lower attrition rates, a strong match list, decent residency placement rate, and decent incoming student profiles. The only real negative of SGU is its tuition. However, the school seems to give its students the best chance of becoming a physician in the US out of the Big Four. 

AUC appears to be the next best option. Its attrition rate seems to be lower than Ross’ and Saba’s, and the school also appears to have relatively small class sizes and cheap tuition. AUC’s surroundings are nice as well, although some may view St Maarten’s beautiful beaches and good island life as a distraction during medical school.

I put Saba third. Due to the school’s low tuition, high USMLE pass rate, and small class sizes, I placed it above Ross. 

Though I put Ross last, the school did boast a strong match list in 2017. Although, the school is also relatively expensive and appears to have decently large class sizes.

I would encourage you to also take a look into allopathic (M.D.) or osteopathic medical schools (D.O.). Some believe that M.D. and D.O. schools provide their students with an easier path to becoming a physician. Regardless, please do your own research (on the schools’ attrition rates, class sizes, etc) for whatever Caribbean medical school you end up choosing if you do end up going this route.

Want to read more about Caribbean medical schools? Check out this SGU student interview and Ross student interview.