Caribbean Medical School 2024-2025 Rankings
The National Association of Qualified Financiers (NAQF) was recently asked to rank the medical schools in the Caribbean. While this is not intended to be an official rankings list, we gained a tremendous amount of knowledge and understanding through our research which we are excited to share. Before we provide this list, it is important to understand the context in which Caribbean schools operate when compared to U.S. institutions.
This information is provided as a public service without warranty of any kind. Being on this list does not constitute an endorsement by us of any educational institution or program, and you should conduct your own due diligence if you choose to pursue medical education or lend to medical students in the Caribbean.
U.S. and Caribbean Medical School Context
Caribbean medical schools tend to be more flexible in their admission standards relative to their U.S. counterparts, although the curriculum is comparatively comprehensive. Most Caribbean schools have lower MCAT and GPA requirements for admission, and some schools do not require students to take the MCAT at all.
To practice medicine in the U.S., Caribbean medical students (much like U.S. students) need to pass a series of USMLEs (US Medical Licensing Examinations), complete their clinical rotations in a U.S. hospital, and obtain a residency match.
Caribbean schools will prepare dedicated, hard-working students for their exams, clinical rotations, and the residency match process; however, the flexibility in admission requirements can result in students who do not possess the ability and/or knowledge to move on to the next stage in their medical program.
Many Caribbean schools promote their students’ USMLE1 and USMLE2 passing percentages, along with first-time and overall residency match percentages. Contextually, it’s important to note that failure to pass their basic sciences courses or other prerequisites (such as a practice exam) will prevent the student from sitting for the USMLE1. That means the percentage’s denominator is not the number of enrolled students at the start of the program, it only considers those who progressed onward to take the exam. As a result, it makes sense that promoted USMLE1 pass rates are consistently above 85%.
Once a Caribbean student passes the USMLE1, their medical journey is virtually the same as a U.S. student: complete their clinical rotations in the U.S., pass the remaining USMLEs, and match with a residency program in the U.S.
U.S. schools leverage their admission requirements to create a student population with a high likelihood of success in medical school, meaning that their students are already well prepared for the USMLEs and their rotations. Caribbean schools are more flexible in those requirements, allowing the student’s applied ability, knowledge, and understanding to determine whether they progress to the next stage in their medical program.
For this reason, considering the difference between U.S. and Caribbean graduation rates isn’t really an apples-to-apples comparison. Caribbean medical school graduation rates tend to be lower simply because their enrollment requirements are more flexible and more Caribbean students withdraw or are unable academically to move forward within the course of their program.
Caribbean schools present a lower cost, more inclusive alternative to U.S. schools, especially in cases where a student may not have performed well on the MCAT, have GPAs below traditional requirements, or are entering medical school several years after their last undergraduate or graduate program. Students can realize their dreams of practicing medicine through a Caribbean school and being self-driven, motivated, and dedicated will dramatically increase the likelihood of success. The Caribbean presents a beautiful climate in which to study, though you’ll need to be that person who always has a medical journal in hand, even if it’s out in the beautiful sunshine.
It’s crucial to note not all Caribbean schools are equivalent to one another. To that end, we have considered each active Caribbean school and placed them into tiers based on our ranking criteria described below. We did not include any schools that appeared to be closed or are not accredited within the U.S.
If you are interested in a school that does not appear in the rankings list below, feel free to email us at contact@naqf.org and we will follow up accordingly.
Ranking Criteria
We considered the following elements in our assessment; they do not all carry the same weight in our analysis.
University Tenure/Founding Date
Schools that have operated for over 25 years in the Caribbean generally have robust policies, practices, and procedures, along with significant student and alumni associations. There are a significant number of Caribbean schools open for less than 10 years and have not yet established themselves in the Caribbean or the medical community.
Accreditation
Accreditation, specifically accreditation recognized by certain countries such as the United States and Canada, is an important factor because it speaks to the quality of the education, administration and medical school overall. Accreditation demonstrates that the medical school has met the standards set by the accrediting agency.
Because of the variance in standards across accrediting agencies, we also factored in the recognition, tenure, establishment, and jurisdiction/accrediting area of the accreditor.
It’s important to note that being listed on the World Directory of Medical Schools (WDOMS) or having a FAIMER ID is not the same as accreditation. While WDOMS and FAIMER work with the World Federation for Medical Education (WFME) to create a comprehensive compilation of medical schools (past and present), this directory simply represents information that has been aggregated from registrations, accrediting agencies, research initiatives, regulators, and other public information.
WDOMS hasn’t evaluated the quality of specific medical programs; however, their database often provides useful information about a school’s founding year, contact information, graduation rates, accreditation status, student’s ability to practice in the U.S. and Canada, and whether any judicial or regulatory action has taken place.
As a data aggregator, the completeness of the information is contingent on the institutions providing that data. The WDOMS database was a recent initiative, and some schools may not yet be in the WDOMS directory and/or may not have a FAIMER ID.
US Administrative Office Presence
Having a U.S. state presence helps students, especially during their U.S. residency period. It also generates some regulatory oversight at the U.S. state and federal level (such as the Federal Trade Commission or FTC).
Funding Options, Including Title IV Schools and Scholarships
Having a Title IV designation enables a school’s students to pursue U.S. Federal loan options. Students attending schools without that designation are limited to private loan options if they need to finance their program.
We also considered whether the school offered scholarships to their students. Even though some Caribbean schools do not require a student to submit an MCAT score, a number of these scholarships are contingent on MCAT performance, and it may be beneficial to consider taking the MCAT for this reason (and also to assess areas where students may want to refresh their knowledge before starting medical school).
Graduation Rate
Noting that graduation rates on average in the Caribbean are less when compared to U.S. schools, there is also a wide range when comparing Caribbean schools to each other. Evaluating a Caribbean school’s graduation rate helps consider the school’s admission policy and its balance between inclusivity and a reasonable likelihood of success in medical school.
Data Participation
We considered whether a school provided data for analysis to support the data on their website, the categories above, and the other key statistics in this section.
If a Caribbean school is interested in providing data to support the next iteration of this rankings list, please email us at contact@naqf.org for additional details.
In addition to the areas above, we attempt to collect data on:
MCAT/GPA admission averages
Acceptance rates
Diversity ratios
Student class sizes
Student/faculty ratios
USMLE1, USMLE2 pass rates
Residency matches (number and location)
2024-2025 Caribbean School Rankings
Based on the criteria above, here are the reviewed Caribbean schools in alphabetical order by ranking tier. If you have any questions or comments regarding our analysis, please email us at contact@naqf.org.
