Best Caribbean Medical Schools

Caribbean medical schools are also known as offshore medical schools. It is primarily located in the Caribbean basin. It is a large and highly fragmented region of the Americas. 

The Caribbean basin consists of different independent states, dependencies of European countries, and some islands that are part of the European Kingdom. 

And it includes countries and states such as Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, British Virgin Islands, Costa Rica, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles, Panama, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, and the Grenadines, Trinidad, and Tobago.

This article will list the best Caribbean medical schools for you to check out if you plan to take up a medical degree. Also, this article includes their top requirements, tuition fee, location, and more.

What are the Benefits of Studying Medicine in the Caribbean?

The medical schools in the Caribbean are highly diverse and offer international curriculums. It also specializes in the M.D. degree compared to medical schools in the U.S. and Canada, which offer various medical degree programs. 

The following are the benefits of studying medicine in the Caribbean:

Also, these institutions offer two years of introductory science study, and medical students are extensively trained in teaching hospitals and clinics based in the U.S. or Canada. 

And it helps prepare students for the following medical exams, including the United States Medical Licensing Examinations (USMLE) and the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG). 

Does Attending a Caribbean Medical School Affect Your Eligibility to Practice in the U.S. or Canada?

Attending a Caribbean medical school does not hinder your eligibility to practice medicine in the U.S. or Canada. 

In fact, these medical schools are at par with other medical schools in the U.S. and Canada when it comes to the medical programs and curricula they offer. 

It is a misconception that if you graduate from one of the Caribbean medical schools, you have a low or zero chance of landing a job in the U.S. or Canada. 

On the contrary, these international medical institutions have been producing top-quality medical graduates.  Also, they have high passing rates in medical licensing examinations. 

Caribbean medical schools are also providing excellent quality medical programs. They are also affiliated with top-performing hospitals, medical centers, and other institutions around the world. It is an excellent opportunity for medical students to be trained in a highly diverse health community setup. 

What are the Best Caribbean Medical Schools?

Choosing to study in a Caribbean medical school is a good idea since it offers a lot of good opportunities for you as a student. And these institutions take a holistic approach when it comes to their admission. 

They are centered on the applicant’s adaptability, critical judgment, intellectual skills, social skills, and more. 

Also, most of these medical schools do not require MCAT, UCAT, or BMAT scores in their admission process, which makes it ideal for those who do not meet the required medical exam scores for other U.S. and Canada-based medical schools. 

There are excellent Caribbean medical schools to choose from. Check them out below. 

St. George’s University 

Location: St. George’s, Grenada, West Indies

St. George’s University has more than 22,000 medical graduates with over 990 U.S. residencies in 2022.

And the medical school is one of the country's top accredited Caribbean Medical Schools, licensed by the Florida Commission on Independent Education. 

It is highly recognized and approved by several external regulatory and accrediting bodies, including the Grenada Medical and Dental Council, the Ministry of Health of the Government of Grenada, the New York State Education Department, the New Jersey State Board of Medical Examiners, Medical Board of California. 

Also, it is accredited by the U.S. Department of Education’s National Committee on Foreign Medical Education. 

The medical school offers different terms for their M.D. Programs, including 4-year M.D. Program, 5-year M.D. Pathway, 6-year M.D. Pathway, and 7-year M.D Pathway. 

These M.D. program pathways are designed coursework to help and prepare students for medical school training, while the four-year M.D. program focuses on the traditional basic sciences and preclinical courses. The clinical studies include core rotations, sub-internships, primary care, and elective rotations. 

It is affiliated with over 70 leading hospitals and medical centers across the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom, wherein its students are given extensive clinical training.

Ross University

Location: Bridgetown, Barbados

The School of Medicine of Ross University is one of the top providers of medical doctors in the U.S. healthcare system, with alums of more than 15,000 licensed physicians. 

These medical professionals are practicing in 50 states in the United States and also in Puerto Rico. 

The medical school is centered on physician diversity allowing students from diverse cultural backgrounds to pursue an excellent medical education. 

And because of this, they have been lifelong partners with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) through Ross University’s Access and Inclusion in Medicine (AIM) Scholar Program. 

The medical curriculum of the school is designed to help and train medical students to acquire clinical skills and basic science concepts. 

It is an organ-based degree program with the primary objective of teaching medicine by focusing on the different organ systems of the body and giving the students an overall view of each organ system’s  physiological, anatomical, and biochemical processes.

The goal is to prepare the students to handle patients in a fast-paced and demanding medical setting. It also aims to prepare students to practice medicine in the United States and Canada.

American University of Antigua

Location: Osbourn, Antigua & Barbuda

The American University of Antigua College of Medicine (AUA) is one of the best Caribbean medical schools where you can choose to study medicine. It is dedicated to providing students with a learner-centric medical education. And it is made possible through the school's granting opportunities to underrepresented minorities. 

The M.D. program of the school consists of the Preclinical Sciences and Clinical Sciences. It fosters a diverse academic learning system and community. 

This institution's Preclinical Sciences M.D. program is an integrated organ system-based curriculum that provides an active learning setup for the students. It addresses the need for medical students to enhance their critical thinking skills, clinical skills, and more. 

As for Clinical Sciences, the curriculum is based on academic periods during the third and fourth years in medical school. 

The goal of this curriculum is to continue developing the clinical and communication skills of the medical students, giving them proper training in all areas of patient care with one-on-one sessions with a faculty. 

There are also clinical rotations that consist of 84 weeks of core and elective rotations in residency and fellowship programs at the different affiliated hospitals and clinical sites, including:

The medical school is affiliated with different international clinical hospitals in the following countries, India, the United Kingdom, and Canada. 

Also, the school helps its medical students prepare for the medical licensing examinations.

Saba University

Location: Saba, Caribbean Netherlands

Saba University School of Medicine is a well-established and highly recognized Caribbean medical school. It is considered one of the best international alternatives to U.S. and Canadian medical schools. 

The medical school is approved and fully recognized by the Medical Board of California, the Florida Department of Education’s Commission, the New York Education Department, and the Kansas State Board of Healing Arts (KSBHA). It is also accredited by the Accreditation Organization of the Netherlands and Flanders (NVAO). 

It takes pride in its achievement of a 100% first-time passing rate in the USMLE Step 1 examination. Each medical graduate also has earned residencies on par with U.S. medical school graduates. 

Also, it provides a comprehensive course outline in Basic Science and Clinical Medicine to help the students prepare for the USMLE examinations. And it comprises state-of-the-art laboratories, classrooms, lecture halls, and patient examination rooms. 

The medical students will be able to do extensive clinical training in the school’s anatomy laboratory with cadavers. And every student will have 72 weeks of clinical rotations in Surgery, Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, Psychiatry, Obstetrics, Gynecology, and more. 

Medical University of the Americas

Location: Charlestown, Nevis, Saint Kitts, and Nevis

The Medical University of the Americas is a highly acknowledged and accredited Caribbean medical school. It is also known for a high number of residency placements in different medical centers and hospitals in the U.S. and Canada. 

The school’s 98% passing rate in the USMLE Step 1 Examination last 2020. It also provides an excellent education system with the founding principles of diversity and commitment to patient care. 

The academic program is highly interactive, centered on team-based learning, and with individual and group presentations in handling simulations with standardized patients. It aims to develop its medical students' critical thinking skills, social skills, and professionalism. 

It is also equipped with laboratories, an extensive library, and an island hospital wherein students can do their clinical training. 

And students will also have their clinical rotations, which are more inclined to a personalized learning system and with one-on-one support from the school’s faculty. 

The school also offers a Gateway Medical Program (GMP) online or on-site. It is a program designed to help in the students' pre-medical coursework and assist them in a smooth transition into a Doctor of Medicine program. 

Summary Table: Best Caribbean Medical Schools