Dear Incoming Student,
Welcome to Saint James School of Medicine!
I hope this letter finds you well as you are getting ready to move to another country to start your first semester of medical school. When I first started, I was so nervous and the whole situation of moving so far from the life I previously knew felt daunting. Apart from the school’s admissions team, who was very helpful, I was going in blind. I wasn’t sure who would be the best point of contact for my day-to-day questions, such as: recommendations on where to live, what I should realistically bring with me, who I should contact on the island if I felt lost during my classes. That being said, I hope this letter helps shed some light on tips and tricks I learned during my time on the islands.
Moving to the Islands
I started out my basic sciences studies on the island of Anguilla, which was very different from what life had been like for me back home in Canada. Anguilla is pretty small and flat, with a tight-knit population. When I said I lived on the West End at Jean’s place, everyone knew exactly where I was.
In general, my advice for picking somewhere to live is to really know what makes you most comfortable. If you like living with roommates and close to school, great! Find a group of friends and go for it. Personally, I preferred to live alone a bit farther away from the school and drive back and forth. It was a little more costly in terms of my rent and my electric bill, but I found the solitude to be just what I needed to ensure I got my studying in.
After Anguilla closed briefly after Hurricane Irma, I moved to St. Vincent to finish my last semester of basic sciences studies. Moving there happened so quickly that I barely had time to prepare. I really had to think on my feet! The school once again provided a list of landlords that students had used in the past, and I went down the list until I found one that had space for me to rent. I initially rented a single bedroom but moved into the upper apartment space to share it with two girls. In terms of cost, rent and electricity was a little bit cheaper compared to Anguilla.
Getting around on either island can be difficult if you don’t have a plan.
- Bus
- The school does have a bus that helps students go to and from their living accommodations and the school. As with any bus service, it isn’t perfect. It doesn’t run 24/7 or on holidays, so you have to make alternate arrangements if you want to get in early, stay late, or study in the library when the bus isn’t running.
- Cars
- Renting a car is more expensive in the long run, but it is convenient.
- Buying a car is cheaper in comparison, but if anything goes wrong you’re on the hook to figure out how to get it fixed. Remember that everything gets flown or shipped into the islands with a significantly smaller population base, therefore pricing is higher and so are the taxes.
- ○ Vincent Dollar Van – There’s a van that goes around the island for $1 EC. I rode on these a few times with a group of friends. Make sure the first time you ride on it you go with a group to help you figure out how to get around and be safe!