PVCC Puma Press: December 2002

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	Photo By Heather Riley
	Dr. Mancini, PVCC Chemistry Faculty gives students better chance at medical school.
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So, you want to be a doctor.

Then you see what’s down the road: a big investment, and lots of dedication required. Not to mention, you spend the first four years of undergraduate work wondering if you’ll even get into medical school. Perhaps you start to reconsider.

But what if you were guaranteed a shot at medical school?

PVCC, in partnership with the University Autonoma de Guadalajara College of Medicine, in Guadalajara, Mexico, grants community college students the promise of medical school without a bachelor’s degree.

The program, initiated this year by Dr. Hank Mancini, PVCC Chemistry Faculty, gives students automatic acceptance into the university once they complete a three-year curriculum at PVCC. The 95-credit curriculum includes university-approved courses, including Spanish.

“This is unheard of for a community college,” says Mancini,.

With the 95 completed credits at PVCC, a 3.0 GPA or greater and a passing Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT), you are in. Guaranteed, says Mancini.

“There’s an absolute reward at the end of the process,” he says.

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A person looks at the grand scheme and thinks, ‘I’m never going to get into medical school’; here, yes they can
—Dr. Mancini, PVCC Chemistry Faculty
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No four years working for your bachelor’s degree. No sweating it out, waiting to be one of the few accepted into medical school.

It’s an assurance not easily met by mainstream colleges. In 2001, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges, 34,859 students applied to medical school. Only 17,456 were accepted.

“The reality is that for U.S. medical schools, if your GPA isn’t 3.7 or better, your chances of getting in are extremely slim,” says Mancini.

He doesn’t think a student’s GPA is the determining factor in producing a quality doctor.

“The difference to me is how much that person really wants to learn and how much that person has a passion for that career.” Apparently, the University Autonoma de Guadalajara College of Medicine agrees.

According to Mancini, the 70-year-old university began the medical program at the request of the U.S. government, when there weren’t enough medical schools in the U.S.

Located in metropolitan Guadalajara, the university contracts with PVCC to accept up to 12 students annually, during the spring or fall semesters. Students accepted into the program follow the same process:

For American students, the first two years of courses are taught in English.
By their third year, students must be bilingual in Spanish, and they must pass part one of the United States Medical Licensing Examination required by all medical schools.
A two-year clinical rotation begins their third year at two Guadalajara area hospitals. “Students interact with people in the general population who come in and get treated,” says Mancini. “They must be able to converse.”
After four years in Mexico, students must pass part two of the USMLE.
For their fifth year of medical school, a U.S. student travels to the Medical College of New York in New York City for a year’s internship.
Once complete, students travel back to Mexico, pass the third and final part of the USMLE and receive their medical degree.
Graduates can return to the U.S. for their residency and licensing. Then they are ready to practice medicine.

Mancini admits there can be some stigma associated with a degree from a foreign medical school. However, he says, there are practicing doctors in Phoenix with medical degrees from the University Autonoma de Guadalajara College of Medicine.

Mancini also sees foreign education as a benefit for both the college and students. Community colleges like to promote international education. It helps solidify U.S. relations with Mexico, he says.

Mancini thinks cost and language opportunities benefit students. “Tuition is $18,000 per year. The cheapest in the U.S. is $25,000 per year,” says Mancini.

The U.S. healthcare industry is looking for bilingual doctors. After studying in Mexico, graduates become more attractive because they are now fluent in Spanish.

For Mancini, the benefits give students a true chance to become doctors. This opportunity to help fulfill a student’s dream is the reason Mancini offers the program.

“A person looks at the grand scheme of life and thinks, ‘I’m never going to get into to medical school,’” he says. “Here, yes they can.”

Mancini says it’s his job to “think outside the box” to help students achieve their goals, and he’s not stopping in Mexico. He’s looking for other international opportunities.

“I’m now in conversations with a medical school in Russia,” he says.