St. James School of Medicine is NOT Disapproved in California

I go through these medical student forums and I see that people say that if you don’t go to the "big four" medical schools then you won’t get a residency; it's not true. I’m going to clear up some things with evidence so prospective medical students will know the real deal. First, for those of you who don’t know what the big four are in detail, they are St. George University (SGU), Ross University, American University of the Caribbean (AUC), and Saba University. Graduates from the big four can practice in all 50 states; the most important state is California. The state of California does her own on-site inspections in order to approve foreign medical schools.

Now coming down to St. James School of Medicine; the school is on its 11th year after its establishment so, it’s already 10 years old. The state of California only approves schools that are 10 years old or more, but other criteria are included for approval. I looked on the Medical Board of California website and found that St. James School of Medicine is not on the approval or on the disapproval list. Because SJSM is not on the approval list the school is not thought about. And on California's Medical Board’s website, it says:

If a medical school is not on this list of disapproved schools, it is either a recognized or an unrecognized medical school. Please check California's Recognized Medical School list to determine if your school is recognized by California. If a school is not on either the recognized or disapproved list, it may be a school that has not requested recognition by the Medical Board of California. Please be aware education obtained at a disapproved school is not acceptable for licensure in California.

Therefore, there is a chance SJSM graduates can practice in California in the near future because the school just turned 10 years old and it’s not on the disapproved list of foreign medical schools.

However, you may wonder why some other Caribbean medical schools are on the disapproved list. I read through the disapproved report of St. Matthews Medical School from the medical board’s site and found out that the location of the school is the problem. The report states that basically due to natural disasters which damaged St. Matthews School of Medicine’s campus presents as the main point of disapproval. The site inspection report does state that school does prepare their students for the USMLE tests.

Will St. James School of Medicine get approved for California licensure?

I‘m not planning to move to California but I’m guessing it could be approved because Bonaire’s population is 15,000 and growing. It also has the best site for diving in the world so it attracts many tourists year around. And SJSM is already 10 years old, plus the school has a second campus on another island, in Anguilla. So, basically it could get approved in the near future; we just have to wait and see.

Just for your reference, here is the list of recognized and approved medical schools by the Medical Board of California.

Why am I researching this?

Like I said, I'm not planning to settle in California, but I want to know what my options are.  I just want to know what's going on currently; therefore, just in case SJSM is approved in California then I can apply for residency there to broaden my options.  In applying for residencies a medical graduate should apply everywhere.