California's Medical Board maintains a website www.mbc.ca.gov with a host of information, including a list of all approved medical schools, in the U.S. and Canada as well as throughout the world. It is easy to check whether a particular medical school has received Board recognition: simply go to http://www.mbc.ca.gov/applicant/schools_recognized.html and the list will appear.
It is amazing to me then, that significant numbers of international medical school graduates end up frustrated, angry and desperate after completing the expensive, time-consuming and often grueling coursework leading to a foreign medical degree, only to find they cannot train postgraduate or become licensed in California because they attended a disapproved school. The actual list of officially disapproved schools is rather small:
| 1. CETEC University, Santo Domingo (closed) | 05-19-83 |
| 2. CIFAS University, Santo Domingo (closed) | 11-16-84 |
| 3. UTESA University, Santo Domingo | 07-13-85 disapproval reaffirmed 02-07-97 |
| 4. World University, Santo Domingo (closed) | 12-01-89 |
| 5. Spartan Health Sciences University, St. Lucia | 06-13-85 |
| 6. University of Health Sciences Antigua, St. John's | 07-28-95 |
| 7. Universidad Eugenio Maria de Hostos (UNIREMHOS), Dom. Rep. | 11-01-96 |
| 8. Universidad Federico Henriquez y Carvajal, Dom. Rep. | 07-31-98 |
| 9. St. Matthew's University, Grand Cayman | 02-18-05 |
| 10. Kigezi International School of Medicine, Cambridge, England and Uganda | 11-02-07 |
On the other hand, the number of unrecognized yet not disapproved foreign medical schools may be significantly larger. These medical schools may be approved at some time in the future but are not recognized at the time the graduate applies for a California license. One such school I recently learned about from a Californian studying in Australia is Bond Medical School. Because no Bond graduate had previously applied for a California license and the school has not yet undergone the approval process, Bond remains unrecognized, despite the fact that its faculty and curriculum more or less mirrors eleven Australian medical schools which are recognized. Bond, once it applies, will probably be approved. Until then, however, my hapless potential client remains out of luck.
To determine whether a foreign medical school is unrecognized (assuming it is not on the disapproved "short list") the Medical Board suggests you simply check the country and schools listed on its website roster of approved schools. If your school does not appear, it is either disapproved or yet unrecognized.
A few years ago the California Medical Board was informed that the Medical School of the Americas, an institution set up by Fidel Castro in Cuba as an "in your face" to the American medical school establishment was about to graduate its first Californian who would no doubt be seeking a California license. This set in motion discussion among the Board's Licensing Division staff and counsel about the recognition process, policy, and a debate about how and whether an on-site visit to Cuba is required.
At any rate, if you are pursuing a medical education and there is a chance you may end up in a foreign medical school, it would behoove you to visit the California Medical Board's website and check its list of recognized medical schools if you wish to avoid heartache and aggravation later on when seeking a postgraduate training authorization letter (PTAL) or California Medical License. Make sure the school you attend is recognized before investing the time, effort and money in a foreign medical education.
If you have questions or need legal advice on foreign medical degrees and getting licensed or authorized to train in California, contact the author at: www.slotelaw.com
