LOST: Arriving in Grenada

Alright, so it's my first day on the island. I packed up the last bit and headed to JFK last night for a 12:25am direct flight to Grenada. JFK was a complete zoo. Everyone seemed to have flights on Saturday night/early Sunday morning. When I arrived at the gate, it was pretty obvious that pretty much everyone is a student, or accompanying a student. I met a couple of people, and also met my roommate and her family, which was nice. Our flight got delayed until about 1:30am- something about being unable to find the passenger who owned a particular bag that was already loaded so they had to unload everything and find said bag. Womp.

ANYWAY, the temperature on the plane was SUPER high for whatever the reason, and so I barely got any sleep. Customs took about an hour and a half, starting with an unorganized baggage situation. The airport is quite small, so you walk off the plane, then into the airport. Bags are strewn everywhere in the baggage claim area, and everyone is left to fend for themselves. A couple of people were unlucky and couldn't find their bags. I personally didn't have an issue getting through customs. Everyone had their electronic customs form, regular customs form, school letter, acceptance letter, and passport. I didn't have my electronic customs form and it was fine anyway, but I heard some people having a difficult time with that. I was told not to claim anything, so I guess it worked. There were people from St. George's that met us on the other end of customs who were organizing taxis to take us to our respective dormitories.

I tried to take a couple of pictures while in the taxi to the Grand Anse campus- the driver was really nice. I did notice that the driving isn't nearly as regulated as it is in the US, but somehow it works.
We got to our dormitories, and retrieved the key from the RA. Opened the door, and was less than pleased. I mean, the photos make the place look much nicer than it is. There's a moldy and damp smell, super rusty bathrooms, a dingy cheap-motel style carpet and twin beds. The only upside is the size. It is quite large for a dorm, but I'd rather a smaller and more reasonable place to reside.

There are also these creepy stains on the side of the bookshelf. They kind of look like little heads with hair and no faces. Right??

On Packing

4 ish days until school!! Guess it's time to get packing.

Being the obsessive organizer that I am, I've compiled somewhat of a packing list. This isn't comprehensive or anything, but it's what I've come up with in preparation. Some of it's taken from the SGU website's suggested list, and others I've added on my own, or suggested from other blogs/advice pieces that I've read.

For those who's significant others are joining, here's a significant other packing list.


SCHOOL SUPPLIES
Backpack/Tote bag
Flashdrive
External hard drive
Planner
Calculator (with the sq root function)
Latex gloves
Desk lamp (with replacement bulbs)
Stapler (and staples)
Sticky notes
Index cards
Binders
Paper
Pens/Pencils/Highlighters
Sharpies/dry erase markers
Small whiteboard
Scrubs

ELECTRONICS
Camera
Laptop
Phone
Ipad/Tablet
Extra chargers for phone/laptop

**SGU covers the duties for 3 electronics (but they must be laptop, phone, tablet), and the student is responsible for any others. Here's the Travel Folder section of the SGU site. Students are required to bring receipts for the electronic items that aren't covered by school (otherwise it will be at the discretion of the customs people)

HEALTHCARE
Pepto Bismol, GasX, Immodium, etc
Antibiotics
Tylenol, Advil, Aleve
Any prescription medications
Band-aids
Aquaphor/Vaseline
Sunblock
Toothbrush/toothpaste
Makeup
Tweezers
Face products
Contact lenses/glasses/solution
Body wash
Shampoo
Bug spray

CLOTHING/SHOES
Pajamas
Light jacket
Hoodie
Sweats
Dress
Slacks
Pumps
Sandals
Flipflops
Sneakers

COMFORT/OTHER
Pillow
Bedset
Yoga/exercise mat
Converter
Flashlight
Batteries
Travel clock
Hangers
Laundry bag
Headphones
Sunglasses (2)
Umbrella
Laundry detergent
Raincoat/Poncho

KITCHEN
Drinking glasses
Brita & filters
Cups, bowls, mugs, utensils
Coffeemaker
Electric kettle
Saucepan
Spatula
Can opener
Dish detergent/sponges
Tupperware
Ziploc bags

I'm also trying to pack a few bins and things to store all my stuff. I don't quite like the dump-it-all-in-the-drawer look. Let's hope all of this fits in two suitcases and a carry-on.

Cruising to the Eastern Caribbean

I wanted to share a couple of pictures from our cruise over my birthday this past October. We went on a Carnival Cruise starting in NYC to Puerto Rico, stopping at US Virgin Islands (St. Thomas), Antigua, St. Kitts, and St. Maarten. It was such a relaxing vacation after months and months of MCAT studying, medical school applications, essays, and interviews. Click here for more information of the cruise option that we chose.

The 3 days of "Fun Day At Sea" got a bit old after a while though. It was nice to just disconnect for a couple of days. I never noticed how much time I spent on social media and browsing the web until I stopped!

Holidays & Stuff

Two more days left in 2014! I hope everyone's had a great holiday. Over the last few days, I've:

• Purchased my ticket (one-way! ahh)
• Filled out health forms
• Shopped a bit for warm weather clothes 
• Made a packing list (this will be a separate post)
• Probably annoyed the heck out of the student who answered the phone for the "speak to a current student" line. He was extremely helpful though!
• Listed a bunch of things on my eBay store as I've been cleaning and purging 

...even though I don't think it has all settled in yet, you know, the fact that I'm moving to start medical school in 12 days. I've definitely been enjoying myself though.

Last Minute Acceptance

Happy Friday! I got into St. George's yesterday! Which is quite exciting considering how late it is in the month. It's too late for the Global Scholars Program that I initially applied for, so I was accepted for the Grenada campus, with orientation beginning on Janury 14, 2015. I've submitted my deposit, and so it's official. I'll keep updated with packing lists, and all of that.

Side note!
The Global Scholar's Program is where first year students spend their first year of basic sciences in Newcastle, UK at Northumbria University. The second year would be spent in Grenada. The program is properly accredited in the United States, so clinicals, residencies and beyond wouldn't be an issue. One big thing is that students are not eligible for ANY financial aid during the 4 years if they participate in the program. Their application is a separate essay along with the regular application.

Where is Grenada?

The Thing About Medical School

So this medical school application thing has seemingly gone on forever and I couldn't be more thrilled that I sent in my last essay yesterday morning. I hope to provide useful information for other students making the transition to a Caribbean school (or out of the country, for that matter), as I know how first-hand accounts have been an immense help to me.

For family reasons, I've missed the deadlines for most US allopathic schools and my MCAT didn't exactly go as I had hoped (My college GPA was fine though, 3.6). Knowing that the exam is about to change for 2015, and my already being out of school for a year or so, I didn't want to wait and re-take and reapply. I know that the Caribbean application process is faster, and would allow for more flexibility given the time constraints.

So far...

St. George's - Waiting for a response...Interviewed 10/5/14 (last week), for the January semester. Ahh so soon. I applied for their KBT program, where you spend the first year in Newcastle in the UK. I've always wanted to study abroad, and never got the chance in college.

Ross - Interviewed 10/4/14, accepted into MERP. Welp. Initially I was accepted to the class that begins on TUESDAY. Yes, as in today. Obviously, that didn't happen.

AUA (Antigua) - Accepted. Interviewed in November. Apparently they also have an MBA program, which I'm interested in doing. Two degrees in 4 years? Sounds good.

SABA - Wanted me to retake the MCAT...What's with this MCAT obsession? I think that 4 years of studies, habits, and performance shows way more than 4 hours out of one day. But it is what it is.

MUA (Nevis) - Accepted. Interviewed in November.


As of now, I've deposited for my seat at AUA, and am waiting on St. George's.
Let's see how this all goes.

December Update

OHMYGOODNESS it's December. I just got back to the city from visiting my parents for Thanksgiving. I'm surprised I haven't forgotten how to drive! They live in a super small town, so it was a good break from the city.

I've been so super super busy the past couple of months, and I'm glad things are finally winding down (sort of). I ended up taking the MCAT on September 5 and it was, put simply, the worst. It takes over your life and leaves you being a shell of science facts. Following the exam was a ton of application business, essay writing, professor stalking, and interviews. 

I did manage to take a break though, the boyfriend and I took a cruise and went to Las Vegas (I'll definitely show pictures in a following blog post). I've started another blog regarding premed, MCAT, applications, and so forth as well. I know I've found those blogs to be SUPER helpful.

Anyway, I hope you're all having a wonderful fall/beginning of winter. I'm off to go Christmas shopping! Until next time.