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1) Would you rate the atmosphere of classes as competitive or congenial?
"The atmosphere of classes is highly congenial. MSIH attempts to limit competition by using a few techniques. First, you do not receive actual grades; you receive a “Pass”, “Fail”, “Barely Pass” or “Honors” for each of your exams. The only time you know how you actually scored is if you fail an exam (in which case you get to see the exam, how you scored, and the actual answers). "
"Second, you don’t get to view anyone else’s grades but your own, so no one really knows how anyone else is doing. You can also be given your general ranking in the class about once or twice a year, but this is optional. As a consequence, the atmosphere in the classroom is stress-free and I’ve never felt any competitiveness among my classmates."
Carolyn Judge
MSIH (Class of '10)
Student Council Chairperson
"I have never been in a program that is as collaborative as this one. My classmates set up study groups for almost every subject and always share the information they work on with the entire class, regardless of who put it together. It's amazing."
"I have helped and been helped by several classmates and am so grateful for the time and effort every one generously gives to one another."
Rachel Pope
MSIH (Class of '11)
"Classes are definitely congenial. I get encouragement both by my own classmates and by upperclassmen to keep on going through the challenging subjects. Students in the school with degrees in various subjects (Cell Biology, Molecular Biology, Chemistry) even offered to help out/tutor anybody who is having a difficult time in those subjects."
Sansanee Suwaratana
MSIH (Class of
'11)
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2) Did you find the language and cultural barriers a challenge?
"The cultural barrier is definitely something that takes time to get used to. And, even after being here for a year and a half I still have a few days where I am really irritated by the cultural differences. But, once you get used to the differences it isn't a problem anymore."
Olga Charnaya
MSIH (Class of '10)
"Yes and no. You do not need to know Hebrew fluently to live in Israel because there is enough English spoken here to get by. As a result, it’s easy to slack on learning it. I’ve been here 1.5 years and still don’t speak it well, and I’m starting to dread being in the wards next year and not knowing enough. I consider myself a very proficient language learner – I lived in Asian country for 2 years and know what it takes to learn another language – but it’s easy to prioritize classes above Hebrew when it feels like there just aren’t enough hours in the day to learn everything you need to learn for medical school."
Carolyn Judge
MSIH (Class of '10)
Student Council Chairperson
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3) What is the living experience like in Beer-Sheva and Israel?
"Surprisingly, I love it here. I know that not all of my classmates do, and of course, I like to get away to Tel Aviv every once in a while, but I really like certain aspects of Be'er-Sheva. I love walking to the Old City and hearing all of the various languages and accents that converge to speak Hebrew, and seeing all of the various people from all around the world who have made their home here."
"I like being around a lot of students and having the lively campus nearby. There are some things that I miss a lot (get your fill of modern art museums and funky non-chain cafes before you come here), and the way most of the city closes down on the weekend except for the local stripmall is really annoying, but after some time, I've been able to make Be'er Sheva work for me. It's the cultural richness that makes it the most interesting."
Rachel Pope
MSIH (Class of '11)
"Israel is great for people who like to explore and travel the countryside. There are so many little gems of neat places that you will not run out of sights to see for awhile. Beer-sheva, on the other hand, is the proving-ground of your character. It’s harder to find beauty in this city, but it’s there if you look hard enough. "
Sansanee Suwaratana
MSIH (Class of
'11)
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4) What types of student would be most happy at MSIH?
"You absolutely have to be flexible to go here. You have to be resourceful and you have to be willing to do a lot of things on your own that you wouldn’t have to do as a med student in the US. Going to MSIH means that you will graduate as an International Medical Graduate (IMG), which comes with its own set of challenges. We are not “typical” IMGs because our program is an American program, but we frequently end up having to explain ourselves to students and program directors who have never heard of us. Fortunately, the graduates are getting progressively better and better residencies, so I don’t foresee all this as a major obstacle… just a challenge you must be ready and willing to overcome."
"Additionally, you must be willing to live in a small community of students. This isn’t a place where you can easily blend into the background. You must be tolerant of constant change. Classes change, professors change, courses change, schedules change. Sometimes there doesn’t seem to be any logic behind it. You will be much happier if you can roll with the punches."
Carolyn Judge
MSIH (Class of '10)
"Students who are serious about dedicating their lives to International Health are the best for this program. It's one thing to want to volunteer for a couple of weeks a year in another country, and quite another to decide to move to another country to work on local health projects. Living here in Be'er-Sheva is an introduction to the challenges an individual might encounter when it comes to working and living abroad, including langauge barriers, cultural and belief differences, and even just being away from "home." You have to be willing to make Be'er-Sheva your home."
"It's also important to be self-motivated, because there are so many opportunities here in terms of learning and one has to really organize and coordinate what one wants to dedicate the time towards."
Rachel Pope
MSIH (Class of '11)
"People who can bend but not break. People who want to be intentional about their medical career and not just follow a prescribed formula. People who can see opportunity for growth in any environment they are in."
Sansanee Suwaratana
MSIH (Class of
'11)
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5) What was your deciding factor to attend MSIH?
"After interviewing at one med school after another throughout the United States, each school began to look more and more just like the others."
"I had a hard time seeing any real differences between programs in urban areas, and especially the programs in suburban locations.
I had attended major universities with large medical centers and simply wasn't excited by them. When any U.S. school I applied to was compared to MSIH, in contrast, nothing conjured the same feelings of excitement, adventure, and uniqueness."
"I was enthralled at the idea of participating in this program. But I did have my concerns. So I did a great deal of research about the school's curriculum to ensure the educational material was at least commensurate with that offered at U.S. schools."
"I found that it was indeed, and it offered additional education on the issues and approaches to global health and international medicine. I then studied the school's match list to see where the past graduates had ended up. I saw that many were doing residencies at top tier institutions in the US. I continued my research by contacting numerous current students. They all assured me that MSIH would prepare me for the "boards and wards."
"As for researching the living conditions and the social life and the challenges of living here - i did none. I personally enjoy the unpredictability of these kinds of things. But in the process of this research into the school, it began to seem more and more clear to me that MSIH was a good fit for me. By the time my research was finished, it was a no-brainer . . . i had to travel to Israel and have this amazing and unique experience for myself. It has proved to be the best decision I have ever made!"
Phillip Usera
MSIH (Class of '09)
"MSIH was at the top of my list. I had lived overseas for a couple years and was attracted to the international component at MSIH."
Carolyn Judge
MSIH (Class of '10)
"The two deciding factors for me were the integration of international health into a traditional MD program and the collaboration with Columbia University Medical Center in New York City. Most medical schools in the United States have only recently begun scaling up an international/global health component of their curriculum and even that tended to be segmented out as a series of electives abroad or additional course offerings. MSIH has integrated an international health component directly into its curriculum for over a decade now. So in addition to international health modules on malaria or disaster management, our pre-clinical also professors discuss management of illness in the resource-poor settings of developing countries."
Michael Daignault
MSIH (Class of '11)
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6) MSIH is a relatively new program, what makes it unique among other international programs?
"I am completely immersed in another culture and language 24/7. My patients will include Israeli Jews, Arab Bedouin, Ethiopian immigrants, Russian immigrants, and Southeast Asian migrant workers. Not only am I learning to care for a diverse population, but like many of them I am also experiencing the struggle of being an outsider dealing with a foreign medical system, both culturally and linguistically.
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I jumble my Hebrew, make mistakes, and am humbled more times a day than I would like to admit. But I’m better today at picking myself and dusting myself off than I was a year ago. I’m sure I would have gone through that process while going to medical school in the US, but not to this extreme. "
Carolyn Judge
MSIH (Class of '10)
"It's the only medical school for international health in the entire world! That's pretty unique in and of itself. Not only are you going to learn about international health in the classroom, you will be surrounded by world health issues. From Sudanese refugees to migrant Thai workers, from local Bedouins to newly immigrated Russians and Ethiopians, you will be confronted with several completely different health paradigms and have the chance to learn from all of them."
"Although there is still some tweaking needed no doubt, the people that this school attracts are the people who are also passionate about international health issues like human rights and health care. This makes for a truly exciting classroom and social experience. My classmates are some of the most amazing people I know."
Rachel Pope
MSIH (Class of '11)
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7) How would you describe the relationship with the MSIH faculty and staff?
"In terms of the faculty, the relations are very good. There is an occasional professor who doesn’t mesh with a class as a whole (which is no different than in the U.S.), although most Israeli professors rave about how wonderful it is to teach us because we are so quiet.
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I get the impression that the administrative staff is understaffed and occasionally overworked, but they are a delightful group of people who work hard to ensure that the students’ needs are met. Plus, in the last 1.5 years that I’ve been here, there have been many new hires that have done wonders for the program, making the relationship with students even stronger. I enjoy that there is an open-door policy between students and the directors, and I’ve even attended Shabbat dinners at the home of the Director of MSIH. There are occasional communication breakdowns, but overall I think that the relationship with students is positive.
Carolyn Judge
MSIH (Class of '10)
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8) Would you recommend I bring my bicycle or dog to Beer-Sheva?
"If you have an expensive road/mountain bike in the States, it’s not necessary to bring it as you can buy one here. (I bought a beautiful road bike in Tel Aviv a couple months after getting here and plan to sell it before I leave.) Therefore, I wouldn’t recommend bringing one, but it’s certainly possible if it’s worth it to you. If you want just any old bike to get around the city, there are tons of them for sale in Beer Sheva. I would hesitate bringing a pet unless you don’t plan on traveling too much, but again, it’s certainly possible. Many students acquire pets while living here and there are plenty of veterinarians, although it’s hard for some students to take care of them because we are at school most of the day and many people travel during the numerous Jewish holidays."
Carolyn Judge
MSIH (Class of '10)
"Buy an inexpensive one here so that you don't have to worry about it every time you leave the house with it."
Rachel Pope
MSIH (Class of '11)
"Bicycles tend to be on the pricier side here, so if it doesn’t cost too much to ship it, then bring one with you. Also, a pet is great to have but be forewarned that you’ll have to hunt a little harder to find a house with a yard. "
Sansanee Suwaratana
MSIH (Class of
'11)
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9) During the summers between classes, what do students generally do?
"During the one free summer, after first year people do a wide variety of activities ranging from summer research or international health experiences to just going home and resting for the summer. Opportunities for research or international experiences are available, but the first summer is a little shorter than others (6 weeks) which doesn't leave you an enormous amount of time. A lot of people in my class chose to go home and just recover and prepare for second year. "
Olga Charnaya
MSIH (Class of '10)
"The summer after 1st year is about 6 or 7 weeks long and follows a full 11 months of study. This is the only “real” summer vacation students have during the 4 years, so many students opt to relax, hang out with family and friends, or travel. Some of my classmates volunteered overseas during that time and many of them regretted it because they didn’t get an opportunity to decompress after a long year. The summer after second year is about 2 months long, although 6 – 7 weeks of that is spent studying for (and taking) the USMLE Step 1. The summer after 3rd year is when students complete the USMLE Step 2 and do their 4th year electives in the US, so there isn’t really a break. There is no summer after 4th year as you start your residency then.
Carolyn Judge
MSIH (Class of '10)
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