Thread: Life in the US

Hi there.

I'm currently at school and in 2012, I'm looking to go to University to study Medicine. It isn't my intention to study in America, however I was hoping to move to the states after getting my degree. Is a UK medicine degree valid in the USA? Also what are places like Florida, LA and Arizona like to live in?

Thanks!

Originally Posted by jwr

Hi there.

I'm currently at school and in 2012, I'm looking to go to University to study Medicine. It isn't my intention to study in America, however I was hoping to move to the states after getting my degree. Is a UK medicine degree valid in the USA? Also what are places like Florida, LA and Arizona like to live in?

Thanks!

Medicine is a problem. If you primarily want to get to the US through your studies, choose nursing or a bioscience instead.

Florida's full of grumpy old people who are also bad drivers. It's hot and humid.

Arizona's full of nothing but shopping malls and golf courses, and everyone worth meeting lives in metropolitan Phoenix. It's hot and dry.

I don't think LA's part of the US, is it? A trick question, surely?

Do you mean Louisiana, or Los Angeles, California?

Get your medical qualifications, do your residency, then visit the US embassy and find out what working in the US on an extended visa entails - with the possibility of permanent status. Or apply to join the US military.

Originally Posted by Septicbrit

Florida's full of grumpy old people who are also bad drivers.

Yeah.... I'd go along with that. You missed out "and even more of them in the winter".

Originally Posted by Septicbrit

It's hot and humid

Definately, and that too.

Originally Posted by Horton

Do you mean Louisiana, or Los Angeles, California?

Get your medical qualifications, do your residency, then visit the US embassy and find out what working in the US on an extended visa entails - with the possibility of permanent status. Or apply to join the US military.

Criteria for joining the US Military have changed. I have a young relative in Ireland who wants to join the US Army, so I went to talk to a recruiting officer here in Orlando. He said he would have to live here legally for one year before he could enlist. That probably means getting a student visa first.
When my husband was in the US Navy in London, the recruiting officer would sign British / Irish recruits up on the spot.

Originally Posted by purple

Yeah.... I'd go along with that. You missed out "and even more of them in the winter".

Definately, and that too.

Oh, it's not that bad!
There is nowhere I'd rather be from November to April. This time of year we have all the windows open and a nice breeze blowing through.
The Summer months are very hot & humid, but you can always cool off.
We live in the tourist area of Orlando......Grumpy old bad drivers are not as bad as Brits turning onto the wrong side of the road.
Happens every day.
One of them killed an off-duty cop and made himself really popular.:no:

Wherever you live has pros and cons....at least we have no State income tax, property is cheap, the Theme Parks bring in tourist dollars and keep the locals employed.....and you're never far from a beach.

As for medical, it would probably be better to do a different degree and then apply to medical school in the US, or just do electives or health/science in the US, because they don't have a "medicine" degree at the undergraduate (Bachelors degree) level. I live in Florida too and I've been here for five years. The first town I lived in was Punta Gorda which was boring and small and there were a lot of old people and snow birds(old northerners that come for the winter months) and retirees. I now live in Gainesville which is a great student city because people come from all over to go to school here. From visits, Miami was good, and I've heard good things about West Palm Beach, Orlando, and Fort Lauderdale.

Avoid smaller towns because there is nothing to do, and there are no busses and trains and barely any pavement or bike lanes to help you out if you don't drive. There is also a problem with suburban areas that feel like nothings there besides a mall. They are not set up like UK cities with a town center, they are just a vast blob of houses and schools and malls and its hard to find community.

Florida is mostly hot and humid, but north Florida is cold in the winter. Well it feels cold when you've lived here for a year. Once you become a "Floridian" even south Florida can feel cold in the winter. There are also hot, sticky storms in the autumn and summer. You can be sort of far from a beach, I'm 2 hours from one but that suits me. There are pools everywhere. Other good towns are Tallahasse, St Augustine, and Tampa.

I haven't been to Arizona but L.A. was nice as a tourist, but kind of scary how urbanized it is. There aren't many green spaces in the central part and there was lots of graphitti and noise and smog. Some parts of it were really pretty. I don't know how it would be to live there. I've heard its a very high cost of living. A lot of my conservative Christian friends in Florida thought California was full of crazy people, but I've met nice people in both states. There might be other cities in California you might like. California was freezing compared to Florida when I went in April, but its still warmer than the UK.