Categories of seats in Pakistani colleges.

First thing first, let’s classify the categories of seats:

Local seat - you’ve been in Pakistan since day one and have studied here forever. You are also eligible for this seat if (and only if) you’ve been studying in Pakistan for the previous 4 years upon application

Overseas Pakistani's must have this card.

Overseas Pakistani - if you’re a person like me who lived outside of Pakistan for his whole life but still managed to keep his Pakistani citizenship somehow. You are only included if you have an overseas Pakistan card (from NADRA). If you’re not sure about possessing one, ask your dad because he’s probably the one who went through hours of ''khuwari'' to get you that card you so easily neglected until now.

International seat - you have nothing to do with Pakistan and have come here from a different country.

Seats and fees:

Locals - only pay local fees (30,000-50,000Rs per year)

International - ($15,000-$20,000USD per year)

Overseas Pakistani - DEPENDING ON THE COLLEGE YOUR APPLYING FOR MAY CHARGE YOU LOCAL OR INTERNATIONAL FEES.

This is the small but enormous problem we overseers Pakistani’s face. Colleges have the choice to either include us in local or international seat categories. And because most colleges are in it for the money they pretty much always include overseas Pakistanis in the international seat category.

Medical College's List

So now I’m going to talk about some of the medical colleges in which I applied for. I live in Karachi and so only really focused on Karachi Medical colleges but I will write about some Punjab med schools. These are small reviews and what I think you should know about these med schools. I’ll be arranging them from the date from when admission starts, to make it easier. So here goes…

Aga Khan University (Admission started 4^th May 2015, Test on 14^th June 2015)

Main university Campus, good luck getting in here!

The Aga Khan University (AKU) is by far the best med school on offer in Pakistan. Seriously it’s something completely different, the staff are extremely qualified and the facilities will blow you away! Seriously it may seem that you’re in a hospital in America or Canada. Surprisingly the even general staff there are trained to be nice and compassionate people, which is a total surprise when you’re in Pakistan! Seriously seeing them smiling at me when they handed me a form was such a different feeling. And like wise this top class university is one tough ask to get into. About 4500 students take the test, all across Pakistan with test centres in Karachi, Islamabad, Lahore and Quetta, but only 300 get called upped for interview. The funny thing is that you only need about a 70% score in the entrance test to get called upped for an interview, which sounds easy, but the AKU test is extremely challenging. Trust me on this guys; the questions require in-depth knowledge of subjects which are in the Aga Khan Board. The challenging aspect is that the information given to you is crazy, about half a page of numbers are text for a simple physics questions. The test plays tricks with your mind, because you'll think that such a long question cannot be completed in two simple steps.  After you’ve been lucky to clear the entrance test, you have to go through an 1-2 hour interview in which they completely de-bone every thought and aspect of your life They ask you weird questions such as,“What can you cook”’ Does AKU need you, or do you need AKU?” Don’t forget you’ll have to answer to AKU’s HOD of psychiatry! Even after all of that if you’ve made it congrats, cus AKU is only allowed 100 students per year in MBBS. Which is pretty unfair because AKU was made for the capacity for 250 students but PMDC and the Pak government see AKU as an insult, that a foreign Ismaili could make a university the Pak government couldn’t match, so in 1996 PMDC accredit AKU to only allow 100 students per year.  Just to top that off, AKU is expensive at about 15 lakh for local and $22,000 USD for foreign. 

Ziauddin Medical College  (Test on 23^rd August 2015)

You want to be treated by this guy? 

Ziauddin medical college is located in Clifton near bilawal chowrangi, the area is very posh which shows what type of students Ziauddin is looking for. Ziauddin is a joke. It really is the school for drop-outs. The university itself is tiny, and I mean tiny, all classes of medicine and dentistry are held in one building about 5 storeys high. From the outside the building looks horrible and mouldy but from the inside the building where classes are held is like a hotel. You’ll have polished floors and central AC to keep cool, along with really clean and tidy lecture halls and projectors. It’s all very good and all, but, that’s the kick. Ziauddin is allowed to admit 150 MBBS students in such a small area. This shows that Ziauddin has some powerful contacts in PMDC and Pak government (Asim Hussain anyone?) Honestly this must make the AKU guys mad as hell, as there university is HUGE compared to Ziauddin’s one pathetic building. The other thing about Ziauddin is that selection is based purely on your personality, social economic status and father’s income.

Main foyer of Ziauddin, (here you'll find many students sitting for the A.C)

No kidding the selection process for MBBS students is a complete joke, and this is the HUGE negative about Ziauddin. According to HEC’s ranking Ziauddin comes in a close second after AKU, which is great, but these rankings are only based upon the facilities available to students (computers, released journals, new lab equipment, projectors etc) What I mean to say is that Ziauddin’s student environment is really really really bad. It’s so ridiculous that I recommend you think heavily about this for when you apply for Ziauddin. When I went to get my application form I saw a group of 8 girls (all future doctors wearing lab coats!) smoking together in the main canteen and swearing in God knows what language. I saw many a time, girls and boys (in bloody lab coats again!) holding hands and hugging each other in the main hallway. It was a complete shock to see that Ziauddin selects students of this caliber. This is the harsh reality, 98% of all Ziauddin students are A-Level students, pretty much all of them have drivers and multiple cars in their homes. The entrance test was ridiculously easy, which was annoying because I spent hours memorising Sindh board stuff for chemistry and biology, but they asked us idiotic questions such as, “what is the formula for oxygen?” “What is the other name for K2 mountain?” Even though 2130 students gave the test, about 500 were chosen (again 98% were from A-Level) to be interviewed. The interview was stupid as well. It lasted less than 2 minutes in which they all they wanted to know about, was New Zealand. Really I was disappointed with Ziauddin. It may be a good med-school on paper but the students that go to this shit-hole with really knock you into your senses. I remember waiting outside Ziauddin and seeing this girl being dropped off in this large jeep. I swear to God she was so drunk or heavily overdosed on drugs. Her eyes were black and droopy, her voice was deep and slow and she couldn’t even walk straight! Bloody hell! I wonder what kind of doctors they are cooking up in there?!!! And to top it off, Ziauddin classified me as foreign student and charges $15,000 USD per year. Really do you want a doctor like that to pursue your treatment? Hell no!

Baqai Medical University (Entrance test held on 10^th September)

Old and runned down university, also very vary far

Baqai Medical college is a mixed bag. In fact I think it’s the complete opposite to Ziauddin. The extreme positive is that the students of Baqai are all chosen on their willingness to work with the poor society. You’ll be able to feel that all MBBS students are down to earth and modest. You won’t see any stupid things you saw in Ziauddin. It’s the complete opposite. The 100 students there are all hard working and deserving students. This is what I think med-school should be about, deserving students who really believe in what they are doing. Buuuut, unfortunately for the high amount of fees Baqai takes, it provides pathetic services. The university is old and in complete shambles. I mean the whole university is in worse condition than Dow. The building is old and grey, absolutely no AC in the whole college, so be prepared for a hot summer. These, though minor issues, can be facilitated later on. But the biggest downside about Baqai is that it is too bloody far! And I mean far! Baqai takes about 1 hour from main saddar and about 45 minutes from NIPA. The university itself is situated just before the toll plaza for Karachi, that means it’s on the boundaries of Karachi! In my interview Fatima Baqai (Baqai co-founder) explained to me that she chose a far location so that the high quality medical education could benefit the poor communities of outer Karachi. This, though a very noble cause, still doesn’t undermine the HUGE commuting distance. I mean are you ready to give 2 hours a day to commuting? You’ll have to ask yourself this. It’s a good university with good students and noble staff but it’s waaay to far. Baqai took me as a foreign student, and gave me a fees of $18,000 USD with direct interview and no test.

Karachi Medical and Dental College (Admission started 15^th September 2015)

Main entry for KMDC

Awww man…… where do we begin??!! Karachi Medical and Dental College (KMDC) is a semi private college, located in North Nazimabad, which is run under the wing of Jinnah Medical Sindh University (JSMU). This college is notorious for really pissing off every single person who has ever had to cross its path. My God…. The amount of “Kuwari” that I had to go through was absurd. I mean this is the first college in which to simply obtain an application form I had to wait 3 hours in the scorching heat. Let me tell you from the start though, the idiotic admission department of KMDC think it is a really good idea to only allow admission forms to be issued for 3 days. Yup that’s right, only 3 days were allocated for all applicants (from Pakistan!!) to line up, pay the money and grab an application form. Oh just to top it off, application forms were only available from a small bank teller located to the side of KMDC. Just to elaborate the amount of suffering we (as hopeful students) went through, the bank opened at 9:00am; I reached there at 7:30 am and still had to wait for 4 bloody hours!! 

My feelings towards KMDC right now!

I was lucky that somehow I had managed to wait in some shade, but unfortunately the ladies line was in full blown sunlight. I dunno if you heard about it, but in mid-2015 Karachi suffered a heat stroke that claimed 1700 lives. It was in that heat that many girls (along with the parents) had to stand just so that they could get an application form. I remember seeing those poor faces in the scorching heat; people went through all that torment just so that they could get admission into that college. To tell you something funny now, there was this man waiting in front of me who charged Rs500. That you pay him and he waits in line for you to get your application form. In total I remember about six fathers came to him and payed him……..…..WELL……..after that came the time for submission. Yet again the bullshit admission department allowed only 4 days for all forms to be submitted. With gates opening at 8:00am I arrived at KMDC at 6:30am, to luckily be one of those few people at the beginning of the line. At 8:30am my number was up and I had submitted my forms etc…… than to my horror that piece of shit guy tells me that for foreign students there was another form (which there clearly was not!!) and they rejected my application. Obviously there is more to this story but unfortunately the amount of vulgar language used by me towards KMDC is not suited for this blog so I’m gonna leave it out. 

Liaquat College of Medicine & Dentistry (Last date of Submission 22^nd September 2015, Test 1^st October 2015)

This is the main lecture hall, small, cramped and dirty!!

Don’t go here. Really it is a huge shame that I have to start with this but this is not a medical college.  They charge you Rs800,000 (local) and USD 14,000 (overseas or foreign) and you will definitely not be proud of this college. To start with the college is one small building (4 floors high), in which it shares half of its stuff with the dentistry school! Man this college is pathetic, small and cramped with really run down dirty facilities. Please don’t go here. The lecture rooms are extremely cramped and scarce in number, the hospital is small and dirty, this is one pathetic excuse to charge people with money. Please don’t go here. I can honestly find nothing special about this college; not one good thing to tell you about. The test was mediocre, wasn’t too hard but you should study for it. The only special thing is that this college ask you to do is write two essays within 10mins, don’t be too worried about this though…….really the only thing I could say is that if all else fails, and you still want to be a doctor apply here. But make sure you double check that all other possibilities have been truly ruled out! 

Jinnah Medical and Dental College (Last date of form submission 19th September, Entrance Test  3rd October)

Shops, fast food, Dolmen Mall is walking distance

Jinnah Medical and Dental College (JMDC) is one of those lesser known medical colleges of Karachi. Established in 1996 JMDC is into its 19^th MBBS batch. Located in central Bahudurabad people more likely would know its association with Medicare hospital. This is the college in which you’ll find me, so if you’re in Karachi and wanna have a look around JMDC, just gimme a call or email and I can show you around. Location wise this college is great, with a load of shops and food outlets which thankfully makes you less dependent on the canteen. The college is big enough; it’s not too big to make you feel minute. The campus lies on two 5 storey buildings interconnected with each other; the size is perfect for the ~600 students currently studying at it. The teaching hospital (in Korangi) is fair in size with a cricket ground etc. 

HOD of Anatomy with a 3rd year student in the Dissection Hall

Overall the college is not bad, with a much brighter and friendly environment than other colleges. This is one college in which all overseas applicants should apply, because this is the only college which specifically specifies (in there prospectus) that Overseas Pakistanis may apply on local seats etc. The college’s admission process is very clear and straightforward. Process was simple; the form can be printed out online and filed in, no funny business about affidavit etc… The test was moderate, you should study for it but don’t stress too much about it. Now study wise, the college has good facilities there not the best. The labs are a bit hot with no A.C but the lecture halls and other tutorial rooms are good enough. Medicare hospital is attached on the first two floors so a lot of people come in and out so as students we get to experience a hospital environment from the beginning. 

Principal Debra Lobo,  (teaches behavioral sciences)

One particular thing to notice about this college is that its environment is very modern, a lot of the students who attend converse in English with very few people speaking Urdu. It might sound a bit weird but this is a good thing as us overseas students find it easier to adjust to the much less extreme culture. The Biochem department is very strict; they individually mark all students on attendance and participations during tutorials etc. other departments are not as such. Tutorials in JMDC are taken very seriously, often with the lecturer coming into the tutorial and openly asking any student to explain anything, sort of a group viva. It can be very daunting (depending on who takes it) but it is a very good experience to cement a concept in our head. Now under the wing of JSMU the new modular teaching system really challenges the students. From the first semester students will be taught tough concepts such as Cancer, NSAIDs, Antibiotics etc… so be prepared to study!!!

Liaquat National Medical College (Last date for submission 17^th November 2015)

Medical College, (entry from Gate 3)

Probably one of the most well-known hospitals of Karachi Liaquat National Hospital also has its own medical college located within it. Location wise it is very good with short commuting distance from major suburbs in Karachi, but there is a complete lack of nearby shops etc. The best and only thing you should look at when applying at this college is the hospital. You potentially have a really large and good teaching hospital from which you will obtain your clinical education from. The medical college is pretty good as well, the facilities are new and modern, most rooms have A.C. and the is a smart and friendly environment. All is not good unfortunately….LNMC admissions policy has one stupid rule, no applicant who has had a gap year may apply. 

Modern and clean Convention center

Even for foreign seats all applicants who passed out two years before may not apply. For example, I passed college in 2013, and in 2015 when I tried to apply they rejected my application. When I had a talk with the principal regarding this issue she told me that it was to keep the age of students the same…….WTF???!!! Why the hell do you want all same age students, and what potential difference could a 20 year old make with a 19 year old….WTF!!! Yet another pathetic……senseless and retarded rule found in this country…. 

Bahria University Medical and Dental College (Entrance test 10^th October 2015)

Very large, modern, clean and spacious college!

Bahria University has recently constructed a Medical and Dental College located at PNS Shifa hospital. The building is very large (9 floors high!) and spacious, I really recommend you apply here. The College has a very clean and sophisticated feel to it which is what a Medical college should be. Location wise it is not too bad with about 30mins commuting to major suburbs in Karachi. Unfortunately there are no shops or food outlets nearby; so you’ll be completely dependent on the canteen. The closest food outlet is a McDonalds which you’ll need a car to get there, nothing in walking distance. Application process is simple; all overseas students can only apply for foreign seats so must pay USD 16,000 per year. There is no hassle, just grab the form and fill it out on the spot and you’re done. Locals have to go through the hassles of NTS but us overseas students can just chill. I was selected for interview but didn’t go as my admission in JMDC was finalised on a local seat. Definitely a good college is you can afford it. I would gladly recommend this rather than DIMC. 

Dow International Medical College

Very nice, modern hospital at Ojha Campus

This is a mixed bag, DIMC in reputable." But (and a huge BUT!) applying at DIMC should be your last option. If your all sussed about coming to Pakistan than make sure you apply at all colleges first (on a local seat if possible) than, if all else fails use DIMC as a backup. DIMC admissions are slow; they have never had their full 100 seats filled out. University wise it’s pretty impressive. The Campus is wide, open, polished and new. There is A.C in pretty much every room with very spacious lecture halls. Students from DIMC do clinical studies at the Dow Medical Hospital (in the same Ojha campus not in civil hospital), the hospital is something very rarely found in Pakistan. The only gripe you could have about DIMC is that it's bloody expensive! Other factors also come into-play, such as stude

nt’s intelligence, class, teacher attitude but otherwise DIMC is a pretty good deal. DIMC is very confusing because you have quite a few factors to consider depending on you priorities, to make things a bit simple I’m gonna group these into a list.

Pro's

• Admission is piss easy, a 550 SAT-II average guarantee’s admission, all you need to do is fill the form and submit the money and you’re done.
• Admission is on a first cum first serve basis, no last date of submission, no hassle, if the 100 seats have not been taken out (and they never have been) the seats get offered to local applicant for same price 
• No IBCC certificate required! Only SAT-II….......
• All students are outsiders, so adjusting in will be easy, many come from US and Canada so it might be easier to co-relate and converse in English.  

Con's

• A very very expensive college, USD 18,000 per year (for the next 6 years!)
• Unfortunately the student caliber is not as great; you’ll find very average students who normally find it difficult to grasp tough concepts.
• A relatively new college, so seniors won’t be able to guide as much as others colleges might.   

Fully air conditioned and clean lecture halls

There used to be an argument that the level of education at DIMC is higher than other colleges. This is not true. The same lectures and teachers from DUHS come to teach in DIMC. Both colleges share the same integrated system, syllabus and the semester exams with no extra special attention.

People have different priorities, mine was to gain admission on a local seat so it cost me less money. I’ve met other people who don’t care about the price so applied for DIMC and their happy. It’s like I said, a mixed bag.

For more information about DIMC please watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LxWh1aDuQJ8


.

The Big Decision

So let’s talk about making that big decision. Are you ready for Pakistan? This is one harsh country. You’re in a completely different planet when your here, everything here is done in the opposite manner. Are you really ready for this?  Pakistan is a big country with a lot of different factors to consider. You name we’ve got it, from child rapists to terrorists, to extreme high rate of petty street crime and political idolism which goes above any level never seen anywhere else in the world. Moving here is a huge decision. I guess the question that you need to ask yourself is, “What are you prepared to do to become a doctor?” I left my comfort of my home in New Zealand, where everything was perfect, to come to this shit country just so I could become a doctor. I left everything, my friends, my family, my routine, my cricket hobby, my room…I mean everything. I picked upped my laptop and my school bag and migrated half way across the earth to this country. You need to ask yourself this question, are you ready for this? I used to get dropped by my dad to college in New Zealand, now to go to the coaching centre I cram in overloaded busses with by face plunged into greasy people’s hair. Are you willing to go that far? As you may know this is a country where the basic necessities are only available to 8% of the population. So there is heavy amounts of load shedding. Absolutely no water to drink. Pollution on an industrial scale. Cruelty and insanity on a street level. You need to ask yourself these questions, you need to think about it. Actually I’m going to tell you how I dealt with everything. My mother listed out all of these things. I laughed and said, “I don’t care Ami.” You seriously don’t need to care. If it’s hot its hot so what. If there’s no electricity there’s no electricity, if someone's shot he's shot that's his problem what can you do? Seriously you need this sort of solid belief system to help you survive in this country.

Yup, this can and does happen often...but who cares..right? 

Also consider what city in Pakistan you want to go in. Normally your gonna flow with the one your family is in, but you should be prepared to choose a different city depending on your medical college. KARACHI is a shit hole, but still 18 million people live here and the city is still thriving. LAHORE is a piece of crap where all people do is it eat food and take selfies and waste money. Though it may be safer to be out in the streets, Lahore is more shielded from street petty crime because the governing party is from there. Islamabad is a gem of a city, super safe to be outside at any time with whatever you want. The only thing is some of the private medical colleges closed down in 2014 (this year) because of not following PMDC regulations. (wow. that some class).

But honestly this is a harsh country and in order to succeed with our goal in mind. All we have to do is ignore the shit out of this place.

Good news. Bad News.

So…..now I’ve got some news. It’s some very very good news and some really really really bad news. Again this news only applies to Pakistani students who live in another country (not in Pakistan) and are planning to apply in a Pakistani Medical college.

BAD NEWS first. Take this like a man.

Bad News.......let it sink in..........

You will be considered a foreigner. So you will have to pay foreign fees for tuition fees and admission fees. You’re looking at approx. $15,000 USD per year for five years. Unfortunately no matter with what you do and what you have, you won’t be able to apply for the domestic seat quota (in medical colleges). Even if you have a Karachi Domicile (like me) which states your permanent address is in  bloody Karachi, you’re still only eligible for foreign seats only. Trust me, I had to come to Pakistan, (all the way from bloody New Zealand!!!), to find out the bad news.  Now I’ll explain why you will be classified as a foreigner. Medical students in Pakistan are competing for seat quotas, there are two main types. Local and foreign seats, locals go for local seats and foreigners (white people or people from Somalia etc) apply for foreigner seats. Now there’s us, overseas Pakistanis, people who never ever go to Pakistan but still have Pakistani citizenship somehow. PMDC (Pakistan Medical and Dental Council) has 2 rules regarding classification of overseas Pakistanis. (Rule 1) As per PMDC requirements, overseas Pakistanis are eligible to apply for domestic seats, but in another rule (Rule 2) PMDC states that a student who has studied the previous 4 years outside of Pakistan is also eligible for seats based on foreign seats. Now these two rules are beneficial for us overseas Pakistanis because it gives us a choice. But this is Pakistan, nothing ever happens in a straight and simple manner. The stupid thing this piece of crap organisation did was to give medical colleges in Pakistan A CHOICE REGARDING WHICH RULE TO FOLLOW. Aaaand of course all medical colleges (Government and Private Sector) chose Rule 2, because they earn more money from foreign fees. I swear this bad news is heart stopping. It’ll make you sober up in shame. You’ll feel regretted for not scoring higher in that test. Your path to depression has begun. Trust me this is some ground breaking bad news. If you don’t grasp the greatness and seriousness of this, read this bloody paragraph again! I live in Karachi, I went to the PMDC office (in bloody Islamabad!!!) to sort this bloody issue out and I swear I nearly punched that government officer in the face when he explained me this rule. You’re a Pakistani no matter what, but and whatever you do your going to be considered as a foreigner.

GOOD NEWS

Give the money, and become a doctor.......

Even after that, if you’re still going to apply in Pakistan. Well here’s the good news. Admission is piss easy. You have virtually no competition and all you have to do is complete the form and deposit the money. You won’t have to work hard or do anything to gain admission; you don’t even have to take the entrance test! Just submit your SAT-II scores and you’re done!  All you need is 550 in Physics, Chem, and Biology and you eligible. Honestly 550 is a bit low, get a 650 average and your admission is purely guaranteed. I’ll give you some stats to back this up. The 2015 Ziauddin entrance test hosted 2130 students. Of which only 22 students were applying for the foreign based seats. You see how easy gaining admission is? But wait! It gets even easier; Dow International Medical College is a college which admits students who are just like us. No seriously! Locals are not allowed to apply there. Admission there is sooo easy it happens on a first cum basis. Like apply their first (before the rest) and your admission is guaranteed. Scores of 550 can guarantee your admission! Just deposit $18,000 per year into their accounts and in five years you’ll be a doctor. Piss easy.

Hopefully this news will brighten you up a little. 

Important steps you need to take.

Make sure you grab this thing when you come to Pak....

Okay so now the intro and the boring stuff is out of the way,  let’s get to the good stuff. So now I’m going to tell you some house rules about Pakistan. You MUST have a PAKISTANI PASSPORT, you also MUST have a NICOP (It’s best to have both). A Pakistani passport is best because it allows you to be recognized as a Pakistani only. When you come to this country, the biggest secret you want to hide from everyone is that you’re from a different country. So have a passport, take this along with you were ever you go. A NICOP is also a MUST. If you don’t know what this is ask your dad, cus he’s the one who probably went through all that hassle of NADRA and got you that card. This card shows that you’re an OVERSEAS PAKISTANI CITIZEN. This card also has your NIC (National Identity Number) a sort of social security number. You need this card to gain admission otherwise you’re a goner.

Another thing, make sure you have your ORIGINAL COLLEGE TRANSCRIPTS! I mean super originals only, no colour copies etc. Cus in this country you need originals to process everything! (even pizza delivering sometimes!) Make sure you have transcripts, not recommendations, not a list with paper codes. Make Sure it’s a piece of paper which states your results for each science subject. Make sure you can see that the transcript has a separate heading for Physics, Chemistry and Biology. Make sure there not just grouped under one heading. Trust me I had this problem and IBCC rejected my application like I was worth nothing. I had to go through 3 months of agony to get this process done.

Another thing is attestation, if you don’t know what that means, all goods, cus I just found out 6 months ago. ALL PHOTOCOPIED DOCUMENTS NEED TO BE SINGED AND STAPMED BY A GOVERNMENT OFFICER ABOVE GRADE 18. The best way to get this done is to make like 100 copies, (when ur not in Pakistan), of all Foreign passport, of all NICOPS, of all transcripts and take them to the Embassy of Pakistan (in your country) and get them signed there. It will be much easier than doing this in Pakistan, cus here to start with finding a printer is harder than finding gold. I swear everyone asks for a attested copy and if it’s not attested they won’t even look at your case.

Remember your going to Pakistan. There are no computers here, no productivity, and no bloody electricity! You’re in for one hell of a 

ride. 

- Habib

The Origin Story

Well basically I was born in a small little…………..nah that’s quite boring. My childhood stories are waaaay to boring to tell. All you need to know is that I spent 18 years of my life living in Singapore and New Zealand. Yep that’s the normal childhood we know about in Pakistan.

18 years of my life whizzed past and I had absolutely no clue what the hell happened. Throughout the years the dreaded question, “Oi!! What do you want to be when your older??!” was thrown at me, and every single time I dodged that bullet by replying in a childish manner, “dunno.”  It was the last year of college and the time had come to choose a direction. So I chose to become a pilot. I managed to convince my parents and that was the end of it. Phwww!! All done. Hardest decision of my life made!  All tensions dissolved. All worries finished. We can all sing with joy. Easiest decision of my life. And that’s the end of it. But nothing that’s simple, it is really?

It was all going good until that dreaded phone call from my granddad which shattered my hopes, tore away: my dreams, my future, my will to live, my passion and my soul (you getting my point? Or do I have to over act some more?).

 He inhospitably bellowed my acrimonious destiny; I was not going to be a pilot.

Throughout college I studied all the main subjects, (Physics, Chem, Bio and even bloody Calculus!!). My friends told me I was crazy for choosing the hardest subjects and jokingly I gave them a nothing reply – “meh.” Unfortunately, to add to my confusion, my grades in all subjects were reasonably good; I didn’t ace any subject but had good command of all of them (at least that’s what it felt like on the exam day). It all confused the hell out of me. I had no bloody idea what I was going to do! I liked all fields and my one true ‘love’ was stolen from me.  It was all hell breaking lose in my mind until 2 days before my finals my sweet grandmother said on the phone, “Doctor banja Habib. Hamri khandan mai kohi na doctory kare, tu banja Habib.”  So it was set. My future life was to be set by my old grandmother. As of that day I was destined to become a doctor.

I’m going to sum up a year of life in less than 80 words now. The next year I spent doing first year medicine in New Zealand, studying at Otago University, in the coldest city ever. Well, I didn’t meet the aggregate of 93.21% and wasn’t allowed to continue into 2^nd year Medicine. Although they offered me a seat in Neuroscience I refused and sat with my family to sort my life out.

It was decided then that I was going to try and get into a Medical school in Pakistan. And so the journey had begun. 

Thinking of studying medicine in Pakistan?

This blog is purely aimed at students who wish to study medicine in a Pakistani medical college. I’ve written this to share my personal experiences about the steps and colossal hurdles you and I will have to cross to get to that fancy podium, where we shake an old guy’s rusty arm and get handed a piece of paper that states were a doctor.  

In this blog I will share my personal experiences that I’ve taken to gain admission into a Pakistani Medical College. I’ll talk about the lengthy processes, the long waits, the hard decisions and pain staking points you must review before making the big move over to this harsh country.

I’m keeping the tone of this blog relatively informal, so we’ll get by with some slangs and I’ll toss in a few jokes to ease the nervous readers mind. So sit back and enjoy the ride along with me, whilst we become Dr Sahib’s and Madam’s…