INSTRUCTIONS TO STUDENTS in the Preparations for the US SUMMER CLERKSHIP

54

PROGRAMS

  1. Summer Medical Clerkship: St Mary Medical Center, Hobart IN and Methodist Hospital, Merrillville IN
  2. Summer Clerkship in Emergency Medicine at the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore MD
  3. Summer clerkship in Hematopathology at the University of Texas in Houston, at the Hermann Memorial Hospital, Houston TX
  4. Summer clerkship program at the Hawaii Pacific Health (Kapi`olani Medical Center for Women & Children, Pali Momi Medical Center, Straub Medical Center, Wilcox Medical Center and Kauai Medical Clinic, HI, USA
  5. Summer clerkship in Business Management at the McVey and Associates in Houston TX

APPLICATION PROCEDURES:
1. Students will need to make appointment at the US consulate to apply for the US visa
2. The TTU will give to students the following documents to support their interview at the US consulate:

a. The invitation from Dr Vijay Dave, director of medical education at St Mary Medical Center to attend the Summer Clerkship or the director medical education of medical institutions at Baltimore, Hawaii or Houston TX

b. The decision letter from the president of Tan Tao U allowing the students to go to the US for clerkship

c. The letter of Dr Ernest Talarico inviting the students to attend the Problem Based learning course at the Indiana University School of Medicine (for the students doing clerkship in Merrillville and Hobart IN)

d. The letter from the US Congressman Peter Visclosky, Indiana, sent to Consul General Mary Tarnowka, in support of the students’ application for visa

3. The students should print all the abstracts or research publications and put in the file for application with the US consulate.

EXPENSES during the US CLERKSHIP

1. Airfares and airport
The first St Mary Medical Center clerkship program starts on Monday 5/21 and finishes on July 14th2018. The best day to arrive is on Saturday May 19 around midday. Too early (7-9:00AM) or too late (3 to 7:00PM), there is problem with heavy traffic. Need to travel from the Ohare airport to Indiana (2 hours drive)
The best airport with international terminal is O’Hare (ORD). For the team in Baltimore, the best airport is the Baltimore Washington International airport (BWI). For the team to Houston, it is the George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH). For the Hawaii team, it is the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL)

2. Housing
There are 3 places to stay:

A. House #1 in Hobart IN: It is in the neighborhood in front of the hospital, 20 minutes walk to the hospital. Cost of living (last year was 300 USD per month) Students will buy and prepare their own foods.  Usually for team 1, the hospital gives voucher of 100 USD for lunch per month.

B. House #2 in Valparaiso (15 miles away from the hospital): Here 2 male students can stay in 2 single bedrooms. 500 USD (foods are included). Transportation to the hospital. Best place for students who do not speak English well because here, the students can be immersed in total English speaking environment. The American hosts will help the students to practice English every day.

C. House #3 in Laporte county: Need to pay for foods and gas for transportation to the hospital and back every day. Two TTU students can stay. Shared bedroom with 2 single beds in basement because all 4 upstairs bedrooms are occupied by students or doctors from California doing the summer clerkship.

E. Accommodation in Houston: The best place to stay next to the hospital is a hotel (1500 USD a month) with kitchen so the students can prepare meals.

F. Accommodation in Baltimore: in private house of the host.

3. Miscellaneous expenses
There is a need for personal expenses: extra foods, clothes, or transportation to Chicago by train to visit Chicago. It depends on the budget of students.
No need to pay the hospital for clerkship. Need to pay 700 USD for application fee at the U of Texas in Houston

4. Clothes
It is summer so need to have light summer clothes. Need walking shoes because of a lot of walking here (good exercise). Female students need to have all hair tied up neatly so there is no hair falling out.