Kunfuzed101 is here to answer you ?'s about medical school admission in Pakistan.

kunfuzed101 · January 2007

Well gang....recently I have seen a majority of you are interested in applying to medical school in Pakistan. As a foreign medical applicant/attendee I am now offering my services and expertise to answer some of your questions. Feel free to post your questions on this thread so others like you, and most probably those in competition with you for those limited M.B.B.S. (M.D. equivalent) or B.D.S. (D.D.S. equivalent) foreign seats can be assisted as well.

collegefreak89 · January 2007

So can u tell me what is the best Med school in Pakistan ( private or public)- that being that has the best teachers ( ones that know what they are teaching not like King Edward), facility, Campus, and very competitive with outside world and where Americans can fit in easily in the environment!!

PS Which has the best program for Neurology majors!!!

kunfuzed101 · January 2007

Dow Medical College is an excellent choice esp. for foreigners who study medicine abroad but want to practice in the U.S. Located in Karachi, you will not have any problems to and from the airport, as I reckon you live in the United States. In fact, I believe Dow even has an association of Pakistani trained doctors practicing here in the U.S. called "APPNA." You might want to check out their website as well. Ayub Medical College in Abbottabad also hosts a great environment for studying medicine. The weather is usually pleasent year round, but severely cold in the winter. (Note the higher elevation.) I know someone who went to Ayub and is a dentist in Houston.
Army Medical College, Rawalpindi is also a excellent option, however I believe foreign applicants have to take an exam in mid fall. Also the seats at AMC are more competitive than at the other govt. medical schools. Although Govt. medical schools are looked upon greatly, private medical schools carry the stigma of "rich academically incompetent kids who could not get into a govt. medical school." Although this is not the case most of the time, this stigma does exists and many applicants be it foreign or native opt for govt. medical seats. If rejected private is always the next more costly resort. Since the costs of a medical education in Pakistan through a private medical school is costly, their resources however be it through air conditioning, food, or medical equipment are readily available. Note: Govt. medical colleges do not carry the amenities you see here i.e. airconditioning. Usually in a dorm situation you are paired with another foreigner, and provided with "acceptable" living arrangements. As far as your question concerning Nuerology, I am quite sure in the Pakistan Medical System they do not go on the basis of completing a major. While in medical school, you will be exposed from all the departments of medicine from Pediatrics, Gyn, Neurology etc. < this will take place usually in your 3 or 4th year. I recommend that you check out http://www.pmdc.org.pk/ for a list of recognized medical school (private or public) and also their entire M.B.B.S. (M.D. equivalent) curriculum is available online as well. BTW: Opt for colleges in major cities i.e. Karachi, Lahore, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi...rather than small cities. You will find resources to be more readily available in these areas i.e. clean water (we can only wish), hospitals, airports etc.

collegefreak89 · January 2007

How good is Aga Khan because I am really contemplating that?

kunfuzed101 · January 2007

Aga Khan is currently the only PRIVATE medical college in Pakistan that has the same reputation as govt. medical schools which are based on competitive grades. Aga Khan is the top choice for many foreign applicants who can afford the tuition. Like I stated in a previous post, A.K. costs approx. 25k a year and much of their admission criteria focuses on not only you high school science, math and english courses, but a great emphasis is put on your SAT score as well, a criteria only A.G. looks at and no other med. school in P.K. does. Yes, A.K. is a great school. In fact it is if not the best in Pakistan berfore King Edward. Many U.S. applicants have even undergone the transfer process from a 4 yr. U.S. university to A.K. Their resources and equipment are up to date and the A.K. environment fits well with many foreign applicants making the transition. A high percent of A.K. students have cleared the USMLE exam to practice abroad, but I'm sure their stats can be verified through their website. Also I'm not really clear on the tuiton but I know it is the equivalent to studying in a private university such as one in the U.S. Also note that no financial assistance is available.

collegefreak89 · January 2007

Is SAT I scores enough for admissions or do I have to take SAT II in order to get in.

What if i have good SAT 1 scores, will that be enough or do I need good SAT 2 scores, because SAT 2 scores for me are not that great.

kunfuzed101 · January 2007

Yes, your SAT I will suffice, however to be elligible for admission at Aga Khan a score of 1250 must be attained to at least be considered.

collegefreak89 · January 2007

I heard they look at both SAT I and 2 and that the ones do not replace the 2's.
Also do u need a 700 on the 2's to be considered.

kunfuzed101 · January 2007

According to Aga Khan's website you will need at least a 1250 on the SAT 1 to apply or a score of 24 on the MCAT. I'm not really familiar with the new SAT considering I graduated from high school 3 years ago, so I would urge you to check out their admission criteria on their website (the info should appear in a PDF format.)

akhan · January 2007

sir, I'm a college student here and planning to transfer to a good medical college in pakistan. i want to know how to apply to the Army medical college in rawalpindi. I am going to recieve an Associate in scince degree in the end of may, can i apply to RMC with this acadamic status. right now my GPA is about 3.0. do i still have to take SAT or ACT. and what is the annual tuition there in AMC? plus I never took any physics course in either hogh school or here at college. is physics a madatory subject for applying to the medical colleges in pakistan? plz if anyone can post me an answer within a day or two it would be helpful, because im registering for my last semester during this week.

Thanks

akhan · January 2007

Mr. Kunfuzed? ... can u answer my posted question plz

kunfuzed101 · January 2007

Unfortunately an associates degree will not do much especially if you apply to Army Medical College. Much of the admission process will be based on your high school record not college record. Unless you have attained a bachelors degree or higher (especially in something like physics, bio, chemistry) then you can get in with relative ease. You stated that you never took Physics in high school and this does hinder your chances of getting accepted. In Pakistan Medical Schools their admission is based on how well you performed in your high school science courses and math courses. Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Math and English all need to be taken and passed. Unless your applying to AGA KHAN which has a totally different admission policy, then you will need to take the SAT. Besides that you don't really need to. If you took chemistry, math, biology in college, I urge you to complete Physics (yes it is mandatory) at the college level as well so you can be elligible for admission. I'm not sure how much AMC costs but I believe it is somewhere around $7,000 to 10,000 a year. Also you will have to appear for Army Medical College's entrance test held in the fall.

Yesha · January 2007

Hello Mr.Kunfused,

We really appreciate your willingness to help us

I read in AKU prospectus that for SAT I they need 1250 must cumulative of just reading and mathematical part :S...I scored 1630 overall (total of all three parts) but am not making 1250 just out of reading and mathematics..
However my high school grades are excellent. You think I still have chances to make it???
Plz do reply!

kunfuzed101 · January 2007

Hmm....You asked a really good question. Considering the AKU prospect indicated that you will need a 1250 on Math and Reading then I suppose they mean the score you recieved combining ONLY these 2 scores (not the third test/part). If you made an A in Physics, Chemistry, Math, English, and Biology your chances at Aga Khan fare well. However keep in mind that among other foreign applicants your decision now would be based on your SAT score. Obviously the higher then the better chance you will have at secureing a position.

Yesha · January 2007

I see no hope for Aga khan

How well the foreing students find Dow medical University of Health sciences, coz it might be my next choice.
Is it really hard to get any in (any university) after the "equivalency" in Pakistani grades?
thanks:)

kunfuzed101 · January 2007

Dow University is a really good medical school. Basically all the Govt. Medical Schools carry down the same curriculum be it in M.B.B.S. or B.D.S. which is also available online at. pmdc.org.pk. The difference is in not what a college teaches which is basically or should be as mandated by the Govt. "the same" but rather how a professor teaches. I emphasise this alot, because as a Pakistani you are living in the U.S. which might create a language barrier with the professors in Pakistan, althought the language of intruction is usually in english. If you have experienced learning in the college environment, you should have not much of a problem. Be prepared to study day and night. Be prepared to study material without any assistance from the professor. Be prepared for unethical and inequal treatment esp. in grading. Be prepared to take notes on your own. Be prepared to sit in a classroom without airconditioning. I don't mean to scare you or divert you decision, but realize that you will be paying thousands of dollars up front for tuition. Also Yesha, the reason why I emphasize A's in all your high school courses (if you intend on going to medical school after high school) is because once you submit your official transcript to the IBCC of Pakistan, depending on which country you attended high school in...in this case I'm guessing it is the U.S. then they will dedut 20% off of each one of your grades. So if you have an A its going to be a B, if you have a B its going to be a C.....so forth. And remember that you are not only competing with people from the U.S. but from applicants all around the world who may or may not even be of Pakistani descent.

akhan · January 2007

ok... thank u soooooo very much for your reply, it really helped a lot. but one thing i could not understand in your reply was that whether I have to take tha SAT for applying to AKU or for AMC, or is it for both. and yes i am going to take physics in college for my next and hopefully last semester here, but it will end in may and i want to apply for admission right now. so in this case can I tell the administrators there about this? and if i have a C or a C- in my bio courses here at college , will that let me in for AMC? or of i have got between 80-85% in bio math and chemistry in HIGH SCHOOL would that be OK for admission in AMC?..... and do you know the deadline for applying to AMC, because theres no official website yet that could provide me with this info.

thank u so much .....hope to get a reply soon

akhan · January 2007

does anybody know how to apply from pakistan in a medical college anywhere in pakistan. my cousins have done their BA in a government college, and they want to apply for medical college, so whats the criteria there? and by "B.A." i mean 14 years of schooling, are they eligilble for applying to a medical college, if they lets say have taken bio, physics, math, english and chemistry and have passed with good grades?.....

kunfuzed101 · January 2007

Well considering your post akhan, if your cousins want to apply to medical college and they themselves have studied and reside in Pakistan then they would be qualifying under their local national seats (meaning they will not apply on the basis of foreign seats.) Based on the criteria given they are eligible for admission into Pakistani Medical Schools. For Govt. Medical schools and Private Medical schools they will be required not only to submit their final marks/grades...but they will also have to show up for the medical examination at their local testing center in Pakistan which is usually held in the fall and it covers much of math, english, and science. It is evident to conclude as well that there are more seats available for nationals than foreigners and considering the factor of their marks/grades they have a greater chance of getting in simply because there are more seats available for them.

Akhan concerning your post 17: Are you a college student studying here in the U.S. If so you would have had to taken the SAT or ACT. Unfortunatley Aga Khan only accepts your SAT score. You must have at least a 1250 or above (or 24 on the MCAT) to qualify for admission. For AMC...they will take a brief look at your test scores either from the SAT or ACT but they will focus more on the grades you got in their courses. Also you cannot apply for admission now. For one it is to early and second they do not make the application forms available until the FALL of 2007. So you will have to check not only on the internet/school's website but sometimes I know that medical schools in Pakistan place an AD in U.S. Pakistani Newspapers notifying potential foreign applicants like yourself. Also call the PK consulate and embassy to make sure...they might know when the admission process will begin. I hate to break it to you but your college bio grade is considerably low. Although you passed with a C...keep in mind your competing with others who made a A. Also note that the IBCC will deduct 20% off each later grade for U.S. applicants...So your C will turn into a considerably low grade. But don't let that stop you...theres noting like giving something a chance. Plus you have to apply on the high school basis not get my math grade from college and use my grades from bio and chem in high school. Unless you have earned a B.A. or B.S. or higher then you can use your college grades. Since you completed high school you can only use your high school grades at this time.

Yesha · January 2007

thanks a lot Mr.Kunfuzed.....I really appreciate it

Yesha · January 2007

Also, does Baqai medical University has good profs and education environment?

Kunfuzed101 is here to answer you ?'s about medical school admission in Pakistan.

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