Academically, the program is solid.  When you get to First Term, you will have seen enough of the material before that you can bypass the panic of “what is that?!” and go straight to the panic of “You want me to memorize all of them?”  PreMed is great preparation, but it is no substitute.  The courses give you a taste of things to come, some general familiarity with the material, and just enough clinical applications to pique your interests.  However, they do not go into as much detail, nor are they as clinically focused as what awaits you.   Do not worry about being bored in First Term; you will be studying at the edge of your ability.

Academic benefits aside, there are extracurricular benefits with the program.  The nice thing about doing a semester of PreMed is the extra time to adjust to Caribbean life.  One of the hardest things that some med students here face is the adjustment to new surroundings while juggling four challenging First Term courses.  As a PreMed student, you will have gotten all of that out of the way and will be under less stress.  The PreMed courses are challenging, but you will not be studying at the edge of your ability.

The structure of the PreMed program is different from that of the medical school and you will not have the same schedule every day.  Tuesdays and Thursdays differ from Mondays and Wednesdays and your Fridays are usually free.  I urge you to take advantage of this free day.  Explore the island of Grenada and take advantage of all the University has to offer.  You will have the opportunity to join student organizations that are relevant to medicine (Surgery, Emergency, AMSA).  I highly recommend you take part in as many things as possible and learn your way around the island.  This will be a huge benefit as you transition into the First Term medical school class.

As far as books go, everything is available in the library.  As a rule, the course companions are comprehensive for the testable material and your textbook may end up as a “doorstop of knowledge” or “paperweight of knowing.”  Save your money and simply reference the library books whenever you need that little extra clarification. 

For the Anatomy course, the companion that you get at the beginning of the term is more than sufficient.  You will never need to use a textbook, however, if you like pictures, you can check Netter out of the library for a few hours.  You will sleep with Netter under your pillow in First term, so it may be helpful to become familiar with it early.   For Biochemistry, you may need a textbook for reference but the recommended PreMed text is not the same as the First Term text, so do not spend the money.  You can buy the first term text right away, or just reference it from the Library as need be.  There are plenty of copies, so that should not be a concern. 

The PreMed Genetics course may cause some frustrations while you are taking it, but you will be thankful for the experience when you take it again in medical school, as the material covered is the same.  The Professor will provide you with a list of learning objectives for the course.  If you follow these with a textbook open for clarification, it will eliminate your frustrations, and you will breath a sigh of relief when you see the exams. This course comes with a class project.  Make sure that you meet with the professor about your project at least once before you submit it so that she can tell you where she would have taken off points and where you still can improve it.  Or skip it and shoot yourself in the foot.

That was the sugar; now for the spice.  You know the guy at NASA that helps the astronauts put on the suit but does not get to go into space?  PreMed feels like that sometimes.  It is great that you get to take part in the lectures, student organizations, and health fairs with the med students but it reminds you that they are doing what you want to do.  I would sometimes find myself sitting in the library, bitter about the fact that I was studying the same human anatomy as the med students but mine did not count.  That is normal.  I did not let the frustrations of staying on the ground get in the way of the big picture and neither should you.  You are going to be a Doctor.  Your PreMed term(s) will quickly pass and not only will you get through the program; you will be a better med student for it.  Enjoy this program because it will enhance your Grenada experience. 

 DISCLAIMER:

             Two American students coming to Grenada wrote this guide.  One of us is a boy, the other a girl.  Neither of us is omniscient (we are both quite flawed), so you should not consider this guide to be your Bible.  In fact, we did not really write this guide for you.  We wrote this guide for ourselves should the opportunity to travel back in time present itself.  With the tone of this disclaimer as a sign, please do not take anything that we have written too seriously.  All of this is meant to inform, entertain, and relax you in preparation for what may be the best bet you ever made.  Not only will your experiences vary but we hope that they do.  Otherwise, what would be your contribution to this guide (should the opportunity for time travel arise, of course)?

Copyright 2006-2007 Christopher Kinsella

Permission granted to St. George’s University to copy, distribute, and display this work.  St. George’s University may not use this work for commercial purposes.  St. George’s University may not alter, transform, or build upon this work without express written permission.  For further information, please contact Christopher Kinsella at welcometogrenada@gmail.com

Hi everyone.

I was born and raised in Saint Louis, Missouri, went to college at John Carroll University in Cleveland, Ohio, and after two rounds of applying to medical schools in the US and a year as a Patient Care Tech, I arrived in Grenada.

Before coming to the island, I was in the dark about Grenada and what it was like to be a student here. I found the information about SGU to fall short of what I needed to feel comfortable and, in my mind, I was taking a risk. Fully expecting to ride a mule from the airport to my dorm, arriving on the island was a pleasant surprise. Wishing that someone had already done it for me, I decided to sit down and write a guide for the school.

I wrote the first “Welcome to Grenada” letter during the end of First Term and sent it to the SGU offices in Bay Shore. That year it was sent out to every accepted student and the response was incredibly positive. Later, I was encouraged to expand the guide to cover the first two years on the islands. I contacted Jessica Kramer (a good friend of mine and the President of the Student Government) to tell her about the project and to ask for her help in promoting it. As it turned out, she was already working on something similar. We decided to combine our writing into its current form, Jess found support for the project within the Dean of Students office, and we put the information into this online format. The rest is history.

SGU has been good to me. While here I became involved with research under the mentorship of Dr. Marios Loukas, met some enthusiastic teachers that piqued my interest in Physiology and Anatomy, and even managed to have a paper published.

After finishing my second year with SGU, I transferred to Drexel University in Philadelphia, passed Step 1, began working with Tao Le of the First Aid for the USMLE book series as an author/editor for the 2008 Edition, and created the First Aid Team website. These days, I am grateful to everyone that has made all of this possible for me and dream of becoming a Plastic Surgeon. Without SGU, none of this would have happened. I believe now what I believed then: no regrets.

Cheers, topher.

For the next few years you will be using Eastern Caribbean currency, or ECs. The conversion rate is easy and if you manage to keep the following table straight in your head, you will be able to gauge what is and is not a fair price. Everything is in US dollars because I am too lazy to provide conversion tables for all nations and, since I just finished talking about phones, I am worried you are asleep. For easy conversion into any other currency, there are many useful websites. Remember to cross-multiply and check your work.

$1 = 2.67 EC

$8 = 20 EC (roughly)

$40 = 100 EC (roughly)

There are banks on the island and no need to ever use them. You can pull EC from your US account at any ATM on the island (including the one on campus) with a VISA/MasterCard debit card (sorry American Express and Discover). Some credit card companies charge a higher rate for foreign conversions, so check yours. The ATM charge is $1.50 and the conversion rate is standard. If you have a refund check coming to you, I suggest having the school send it home and having family/friends deposit it. Do not forget to leave deposit slips back home. That being said, some people find it more convenient to open an account at a bank in Grenada. This allows you to eventually pay for things by check, and not have to worry about finding an ATM. However, you have to hold an account for six months before they give you a checkbook. There are several banks close to campus, including an RBTT bank in the Student’s Center.

How much EC will you spend a day? Depends. EC is pretty, looks like Monopoly money and you will spend it as such. Breakfast of eggs and toast is 13 EC, lunch is around 17 EC, and dinner can be up to 25 EC. That comes to 55 EC/$21 a day eating out every meal. It sounds expensive but few people can pull off three meals a day. Most have one full meal and fill the rest with coffee and snacks. You will find your own happy middle. Remember that if you cook and buy your own groceries, you will save quite a bit. You can find most snack foods, coffee, and even eggs in the store on campus for that late night impulse buy but you pay for the convenience in higher prices.

If you drink anything other than water, you are in for a shock. Name brands like Coke, Starbucks and Arizona drinks cost three to four times what they do in the states. That being said, some people still manage to spend a great deal of money on water. Bottled water is sold everywhere on the island and is more expensive than beer. Some students buy a bottle every day. Others (and I recommend doing this) buy one bottle and refill it at dinking fountains on campus. All of the water on campus is filtered; this is not the case elsewhere on the island. I for one have had the same bottle for a month now and may have saved as much as one hundred dollars. Cigarettes are no more expensive than you are used to, but you should quit anyway.

It is amazing how a few photographs taken by students can add some perspective to the place.  Go to Flickr.com and search for “SGU.”  It says something that the students love the school enough to put all of this together themselves.  My favorite albums are shot by Josh and Felix (both available online).  You can search for “SGU Blog” on Google (there are a few) for even more student perspective.  

You do not have to grow your own.  IGA “Real Value” supermarket is air-conditioned, white tiles, hanging signs over every row, the whole bit.  It also has the advantage of being on the bus route and since everything in med school boils down to convenience, most people shop at IGA.  Other options include Food Fair in Monte Tout and CK’s Super Value at the roundabout by the Texaco (yes, this is how directions are given in Grenada).

The tricks: Food Fair and CK’s are cheaper and you can buy in BULK.  IGA has a much larger selection but you pay for the convenience and the AC with higher prices.  IGA also has fresh produce, a deli, and the best shopping is Saturday mornings because the supply trucks unload on Friday night.  It is an island, so things can be scarce.  Milk and cheese will sometimes be unavailable.  Veggie burgers are plentiful.

There is, of course, crime.  This does not make Grenada any more special than NY or NJ, though students would do well to remember some safe habits.  Do not walk alone at night.  You would not do that at home, do not do it in Grenada.  Walk with a group of people or take a cab.  Try to avoid poorly lit places (when possible) and stick to familiar areas.  If something does happen, report it to the Dean of Students office and the school will use its power to help.  Also, do not be a moron.  If you leave your laptop unattended in the Library for hours on end, someone might steal it.  This goes for laundry left for hours, anything left for hours.

SGU has a healthy intramural sports program. Basketball and Football (soccer to some) are the major sports (bring cleats and guards, balls are provided). Hockey is also big (played on the basketball courts, sticks, and nets provided). Rounding out the selection, we have Ultimate Frisbee, Dance Classes, Yoga, and Dodgeball. I have yet to see a single person play tennis (I have not even seen courts) or cricket.

To the runners out there, do not worry: there is plenty of space to run. When classes end at 5pm, many students meet up to go for a jog. It is a great way to clear your head after class. The most popular run is to the Texaco and back. Try to run on the sidewalk as much as possible as the cars are not always in the mood to avoid you. The cars may honk. Do not be offended; they are not being rude. Unlike elsewhere in the world, horns are used in Grenada before driving into a blind corner, when passing another car, and to say, “Thank you, sir, for letting me into traffic. I appreciate that.” There is an art to their quick-horn double-tap and I am officially off topic. Just smile and wave to the cars.

We hope it helped,

Christopher Kinsella, Class of ‘09

Jessica Kramer, Class of ‘09