Tag: Dominica

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31 Things Only Ross Students Will Understand

The little things we all encounter that remind you that you went to a Caribbean medical school.

1. Dominica- NOT the Dominican Republic

Dominica

Every time someone asks where you go to school you have to open up Google maps and explain that Dominica is not the same thing as the Dominican Republic. Every. Single. Time.

 

2. And getting there is an all around terrible experience

2. Liat

You cringe at the thought of flying with them. They’ve lost your bags multiple times, forgot to send a plane big enough to seat all of their passengers, and may have ran out of fuel mid flight and had to turn back around. LIAT- because your Luggage Is Always Tardy.

3. But we do have some beautiful sunsets

3. Sunset

Possibly one of the few things you’ll miss about the island. And you’re leaving just in time because I think your friends are starting to catch on that all of your Instagram sunsets look awfully similar…

 

4. And waterfalls

4. Waterfalls

Okay, I guess there are a few things we’ll all miss about this island.

5. Lots of them5. Lots of them

 

6. And double rainbows

6. Double rainbows

 

7. And lots of diverse wildlife

7. Lots of wildlife

 

8. Like cows just chilling on the side of the road

8. Cows

 

9. And these little guys

9. Little guys

 

10. And other little guys

10. Others

 

11. And massive bugs

11. Bugs

 

12. And boobs12. Boobs

Like you’ve never referred to Cabrits as that.

13. But definitely not gonna miss these guys

13. Bugs

These primeval creatures have existed for about four-hundred-million years…and some can be highly venomous. And you just saw one in your apartment? No worries. You probably didn’t feel like getting any sleep tonight anyway.

14. Okay, calm your nerves with a refreshing beer

14. Beer

Refreshing is a relative term. But you’re not a stranger to a different variety of beverages when you’re enjoying a night out in Portsmouth. Don’t feel like having a rum punch? How about a bucket of Kubuli and a pizza from Tulip’s? If not, I think I saw someone outside of Big Poppa’s selling ‘coconuts’..

15. De Champs

15. De Champs

Whether you’re enjoying fine dining, playing trivia during taco Tuesdays, having a mimosa-filled boozy brunch, completing the 12-hour challenge, buying the hottest faculty and students at the Ped’s Date Auction, chugging from the flabongo, or just dancing your drunken ass off, we’ve all had amazing times at this place. Probably too much fun. Shit, who did I try and make out with last night? God I hope I didn’t take too many embarrassing selfies..

 

16. Chop my money!

You never heard this song before you came here and you are likely never to hear it again. You know, once you delete it from your iPod.

Let’s also not forget the first time you heard this song. Chocolate codeine? Chuck my mommy? WHAT THE HELL ARE THEY SAYING?! Ohhhh…CHOP my MONEY. Gotcha.

 

17. Machetes & coconuts

17. coconuts

The perfect alternative to the swiss army knife, the machete is the best all around tool for just about anything and everything. Need to open a coconut? Machete. Need to cut the grass? Machete. Machete? Machete!

*Honorable mention goes to the weedwacker- the noisiest but seemingly most common gardening tool on this island

 

18. The New & Improved Tomato’s

18. Tomatoes

If you recognize this picture then you’ve been on the island long enough to remember when Scrappy was homeless. The servers at Tomato’s still yell out orders incomprehensibly and they seem to always forget that you ordered extra ranch with your buffalo chicken wrap. But at least we don’t have to huddle under the umbrellas anymore when it starts to rain!

19. And It Rains Here…A Lot

20. Did I Mention How Much It Rains Here?

21. Seriously?! It Didn’t Even Rain That Hard Today! Guess I’m Not Showering.

21. Not showering

This is the product of using gravity as a filtration system. And you’re about as surprised by dirty water coming out your faucet as you are when subway runs out of…well, everything.

 

22. Speaking of Subway..

22. Subway

You’ve eaten Subway more often since being on the island than you ever have your entire life. You’ve eaten there even after they ran out of lettuce. And meat. And bread. Just never expect extra toppings without an attitude- its like you’re stealing from their personal stash of banana peppers and ranch dressing!

23. But Seriously, Its Always Hot and/or Raining

https://youtu.be/wTay1NOGWaw

Did you you just come from the gym? Nope, but I did just walk here from my apartment!

 

24. There Are Dogs Everywhere

https://youtu.be/3OU1UY6So5w

25. That Silly Jingle The Electricity Meter Makes

The best part of getting more electricity? Air conditioning was a good guess but we all know you secretly love that catchy jingle the electricity meter makes when you top up.

26. Hot Commodities

26. Chairs

When it comes to studying in comfort, you aren’t a stranger to getting up at the crack of dawn just to secure one of these bad boys. Just don’t sit in my cube. Or in the cube next to my cube. Seriously, I don’t know you. Even if I did, I wouldn’t want you to be this close to me. And you smell a little. Go away.

27. The truth

27. Truth

Your friends and family stopped asking ‘what you’re up to lately’ because you always seem to be studying and yet they still seem surprised when you don’t come home tan. Or ‘freckly’ for the melanin challenged.

 

28. Boiling lake

28. Boiling lake

But you always manage to find some time to explore the island

29. Scotts Head

29. Scotts Head

Where the Caribbean meats the Atlantic

 

30. Morne Diablotin

30. Morne

Or climb the tallest mountain on the island

 

31. But mostly we just can’t wait to go home

31. Home

 

Not everyone’s experience in Dominica is the same. What do you miss about the island?

 

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This post was originally published on BuzzFeed

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Where in Dominica Should I Live?

A new semester is starting at Ross University and that means a whole lot of first semester students need to find somewhere to live. I’m certain that there are other students out there who will tell you differently but I will share with you my advice on where to live in Dominica.

First off you should know that a family friend of mine told me where I should live first semester and I ended up staying there for all four semesters on the island. I lived at Old Avies Ville because it was cheap and was in a good location. Rent is relatively cheap at around $500/month. Other places can run you close to a grand. I personally didn’t want to waste a lot of money on rent in Dominica because I knew I wanted to come back and waste a lot of money on rent in New York. I will admit though that a few of my friends paid around $800 to $1,000 in rent per month but they got what they paid for. One apartment complex right next to The Barn provides you a Caribbean view and really is a much nicer apartment than I lived in. Other places were much closer to campus and the only gym on the island. Again, I would choose to live somewhere cheaper the first semester and then figure it out once you are actually living on the island for the following semester.

As for location, Old Avies is situated down the road from my favorite grocery store Picard Grocery. There is another grocery store, IGA, that is down the road and is closer to what you might picture when you think of a grocery store but when you have to walk your groceries all the way back to your apartment it only takes one sweaty stroll with heavy grocery bags to appreciate the  convenience of Picard Grocery. As one of my favorite blogs, From Louisiana to Dominica, about life in Dominica explains ‘you will get to know the stores quickly and figure out which places sell which goods’. So in my humble opinion it was nice having Picard Grocery up the road from me.

Besides a grocery store, Old Avies is also down the hill from ‘The Barn’, my favorite study spot. It’s also down the hill from Tomato’s restaurant/bar, Tulip’s bar, and the main campus. All of those locations are within a ten minute walk from Banana Trail where Old Avies is situated. Old Avies Ville also provides cleaning services on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday so I would normally cook my weekly meals on Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday. Old Avies also has drop off laundry services on the premises, and a small pool that one or two residents would use to swim laps in the morning.

It’s newer cousin, New Avies Ville, is up the hill and is a little bit more expensive. When I visited friends who lived in the New apartment complex I found that it was a little bit prettier and maybe a little bit bigger but not worth the couple hundred dollar price tag increase. So live in Old Avies Ville your first semester and then go see your friends apartments and figure out what your priorities are. Lastly, I never had any trouble with payments or with safety while living there. Just lock your door when you leave your apartment and don’t walk down that sketchy, poorly lit part of town late at night.

Here are some links that might help:

My next post will go over what you should bring in your barrel to the island! Good luck on your upcoming semester and congrats on starting your first semester of medical school!! And as always, happy studying.

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Preface

After passing step one, I’ve decided to write a series of posts that will encompass everything involved in studying for step one of the United States Medical Licensing Exam for fellow Ross University students. During my fourth semester on the island I felt lost in a sea of resources, conflicting study ideologies, and differing mindsets on how to approach studying for the comprehensive shelf exam…let alone the step. Thus, my study timeline that I will describe will begin with passing your fourth semester, studying for the comp, and extend until your step test day. My discussion on how to study for step one will include my guiding philosophy on how to approach studying for the exam, different study strategies, resources, and a few tangential but entertaining topics. My hope is to illuminate shades of confusion that plagued my studies while on the island and give current Ross students a little hindsight to make more informed decisions about their study strategy with even greater confidence.

As always, if you have a specific question or concern that you’d like me to address please post a comment below or hit me up directly on twitter via @MarcKittyKatz. Enjoy!

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Pre-meds: Do what it takes to get into medical school

I sit at my home in New Jersey as I anxiously await my 6am flight two days from now that will take me to the Caribbean island of Dominica where I will begin to take my first steps in the journey of becoming a doctor at Ross University School of Medicine.

 

Many people attempted to discourage me from continuing on the path I started on. Doctors I shadowed would warn me of the daunting hours, how much medicine has changed over the years, and how you can make more money in other fields for the amount of time you put in. Even my undergraduate pre-med guidance counselor at Binghamton University told me, on several separate occasions, that I simply did not have the grades to get into medical school. And these people were right…sort of.

 

It is true that medicine is changing. And you can more than likely make more money in business or in banking. And at the time, I did not in fact have the grades to be accepted into medical school. I am here to tell you that can get into medical school, even a stateside school, if you want it badly enough. This isn’t to say that your past mistakes will vanish into thin air- that ‘C’ in organic chemistry isn’t going anywhere. What you can do is affect your future. Show that you remember your mistakes and learn from them.

 

Likewise, I try to forget the people who attempted to dissuade me from medicine, but remember the people who accepted my decisions and encouraged me along my path. The one doctor I spoke with at a high school graduation party of a mutual family friend who highlighted that, “It doesn’t matter how many rejections you get, because in the end you only need one acceptance”. Or my parents who pushed me to apply to that reach school after explaining, “I’m not doing myself any favors by rejecting myself before even applying”.

 

I am here to give you a pat on the back and a kick in the ass. I had to take the MCAT twice and had to apply to twenty-eight medical schools, but all it took was one acceptance to make it all worthwhile. If you have explored medicine and have decided that it is the path for you, don’t let anyone discourage you from it. Own it and do whatever it takes to succeed. It is what I intend to do starting September 3rd on my first day of class down in Dominica.

As seen on @KevinMD