Hi!

I have been considering applying to either St James or Xavier med school---any ideas about which one is the best as far as campus and facilities?

I guess I'm trying to get an idea about what the reputation of each school is, and about the quality of the doctors they are producing, among the residents of Bonaire.

I have heard so many good things about Bonaire that I am really hoping to attend one of them, but I doubt I'll be able to take a trip down first to check them out!

Thanks!

Leah,
I have a little bit of experience with both of the med schools here. They are both fairly new. Xavier has only had students for a few semesters. SJSM has graduated a few students who came there as transfers. I can't compare the facilities to other Caribbean medical schools, but I can tell you that Xavier certainly has a more attractive 'campus', although there have been signs of renovations at SJSM, so I think they are working on their's. To my knowledge neither has a real lab yet. SJSM is supposed to have cadavers this semester but sometimes things take longer than one would like . Both have computers and internet access for students although your own laptop would be a good idea as there are usually not enough to go around. SJSM has a library with some relevant medical books and a lot of books that are not so relevant. Xavier has not started a real library yet, although they may have some books available. SJSM has had significant staff turnover in the past year, some of the teachers going to Xavier (along with some students). I know a few of the teachers at both schools. I am not a doctor or a med student, but some teachers seem quite competent to me, others do not. Few of the teachers are from North America, and several students have complained about difficulty in understanding the accents of their teachers. My overall impression over the past several months is that Xavier is putting some money into developing their school while SJSM has been very short of funds. However, given the fact that there are (I'm told) about 80 new students this semester, and as I mentioned renovations are taking place, perhaps this is changing at SJSM. I think there are currently about 30-40 (total) students at Xavier. I know it's expensive, but you are making a very important decision and I would STRONGLY recommend that you visit before making a commitment. See the facilities and the island. Spend time talking to students and teachers. You won't (I can guarantee!) get a clear picture from talking to a recruiter or looking at the schools' websites. You should check out the forum on SJSM's website (www.sjsm.org) and the St. James forum at www.valuemd.com. It will make for some entertaining reading if nothing else! I'm not aware of a forum for Xavier, but do a search and maybe you can get in touch with some students from there. Let me know if you have any specific questions. If I don't know the answer, I'll be happy to try to get it. Best of luck. Alex

Thanks for getting back to me!

The description of the lack of funding for the schools as well as the issue of english speaking students having a very hard time understanding their teachers were things I had heard before on forums and what not. I am really suprised that St James has no lab though! And it feels as though the web site is slightly misleading about that and about the newness of the school!

I still haven't ruled them out though. Xavier, being even newer and having what sounds like some of the same issues with a bit more funding, is probably not one I'd be able to attend since the clinicals would be in the south east and I don't know anyone who lives there (or do I really have a desire to up an move there for 2 years .

I would love to go down first and check the school out but my mother is dealing with some health issues now and will probably be needing my care for the next 9 months.

One more question,I have a 3 year old daughter and would need to arrange either child care or preschool for her during my schooling, any ideas about whats available on Bonaire in those areas?

Thanks so much for your info!

Also-- what if any affiliation, if any, is there between the med schools and the local hospital?

My pleasure. I'm very sorry to hear about your mother, I hope her health improves.

As I said, the funding issue at SJSM may be improving but it's too soon to tell and I wouldn't hold my breath for any monumental changes at either school in the next year. As you have probably gathered I am more familiar with SJSM (I did some consulting for them) than Xavier (I know some of the faculty and staff there). The SJSM website is, in my opinion, misleading...This is not to say you shouldn't go there, but it is why I suggested visiting .

The head surgeon at the hospital is affiliated with SJSM, and I believe some classes are held at the hospital. I don't know if Xavier has an 'in' with the hospital or not. I was told SJSM had some lab equipment but had (as of July anyway) not set up any sort of 'wet' lab. That may be in the works, but in my experience there was talk about a lot of improvements that did not materialize on schedule. Hopefully this will change. Pretty sure Xavier doesn't have any sort of lab yet, but I could be wrong.

As far as childcare goes, I don't have kids myself, though, so you may want to post that question under 'local items'. I can tell you that there are daycares and preschools. My guess is that English would not be spoken (or certainly not the primary language) in any of them, if that matters to you. However, most Antilleans and Dutch speak at least some English (and most speak it very well--and a whole lot better than my Papiamentu or Dutch!!) so I'm sure you could arrange private care of some sort, or connect with some other English-speaking parents, etc.

Feel free to ask any other questions you think of, I'll do my best. Good luck wherever you end up!
Alex

P.S. I may be doing some consulting for St. Martinus (another relatively new school on Curacao) and would be happy to let you know what I learn about them if you're interested.

At 3 years old, your daughter would be creche age. All the local creches are mainly in Papiamentu but my daughter moved here at age 2 and never had a problem. The caregivers speak English and in no time your child will be speaking Papiamentu. Kindergarten starts at age 4 and 5 (again mainly in Papiamentu) but school is not required until 1st grade at age 6.

Thanks Alex and Linda!

I would like to hear about St Martinus if you do end up doing consulting for them. I hadn't really considered them very seriously because of some things I had read on the internet from students very worried that the school was going to go under before they were even able to graduate. I know that they are very new too, so maybe things aren't as bad as I've read. I've also kinda had my heart set on Bonaire, the pictures I've seen look just about perfect for me and I've heard nothing but good things from everyone I know who's been there.

Good to know that there is some connection with the local hospital and SJSM, I was getting a little worried!

I would be applying to start next september so by then my daughter would be kindergarten age, I might also need to arrange some kind of private childcare as well because I assume I'll be needing quite a bit of time to study. I've been a stay at home mom with her since she was born so this will be a bit of an adjustment for both of us! Any ideas on how to get hooked up with private childcare on Bonaire? Any recommendations?

Hi Leah, I should be going over to St. Martinus in the next few weeks. I'll let you know what it's like, although I certainly understand your preference for Bonaire--you couldn't pay me to live on Curacao!! I'll let those who know better respond to your childcare question. Take care, Alex

Kindergarten (like the elementary schools) starts at 7:30am to 12:30pm. Generally everyone has lunchtime off from work so you take your kids home from school for lunch and then back out again for whatever is planned for the afternoon. I don't know if your classes would be adapted to the island time frame.

You can get daycare that goes the entire day (until 6pm) and will give them a cooked meal for lunch as well as snacks usually mid-morning and mid-afternoon. You could also just use the daycare for lunch and afternoons only. At one point, I would pickup my oldest from kindergarten and drop her off at the creche to join her brother for lunch and the rest of the day.

The medical school should be able to provide you with a list of the schools and creches/daycares.

I just got accepted to Xavier, however I'm still deciding on whether or not to go ahead and commit. I was wondering what you guys have heard about Xavier, other than it being a new school. If the education provided is good etc. All information provided will be quite helpful. thanks

Hi Pam,
I have more experience with St. James but here's a few things I can tell you about Xavier:

As you say, Xavier is very new. It is small. It is growing but not very quickly (which may be a good thing). The administration does seem willing to put some money into the place, which is a very good thing. The classroom facilities are nice but the school has no hospital affiliation (for whatever that's worth) and, last I heard, no lab or cadavers. The library and computer facilities are limited. Bring a laptop if you can. I can't really speak to the quality of the education. I am not a student and the school is too new to have a proven track record. I STRONGLY urge you to visit the school (or any caribbean med school you are considering). That way you can meet teachers and students and judge for yourself. Websites can be deceiving . If you have any specific questions, please let me know and I'll do my best to find out the answer for you ( I do know a few people who work or worked there). Good luck! Alex