She makes more money than you

[Mir]

Leslie

Perhaps I can ask you to know about the process you are commenting on.
Let me tell you one thing.
I am qualified as a doctor and work for NHS as a consultant and Senior Lecturer.
I am also involved in the training programme for local and oversees doctors.
So certainly my knowledge about this is far more relevant then yours, although I will confess that it is regards of UK rather then US, still I doubt you know much about US medical system considering you live in Manchester and are not a medical professional (BTW I trained at Hope Hospital in Salford)
Now about your comment:

The cost of this process has not been highlighted.  It is very high.  Before citizenship is attained the FULL (foreign student) tuition fees must be paid.  Think $50k a year minimum – though grants may be available in certain cases.  I reckon the five year support cost could run to $400k.  Of course there will be a substantial return on this investment.  Question is will you still be around to benefit from it ? This question becomes more pertinent if she is much younger than you…

The cost of the process can be high

Agreed

But what tution fee? A doctor who completes her training in Russia will not have to go to med school in UK or US and will not pay tution fees.
Yes there will be fees for qualifying exams, the UK PLAB is around £500 and the US USMLE I am not sure but maybe $1000-2000.
After they pass the exam they can find a job as a doctor. So they can get a salary while they do their residencies
Yes it is a hard process and at times quite frustrating, but most find the light at the end of the tunnel

Still: THEY DON'T PAY TUTION FEE OF $50,000 PER YEAR.(unless one marries an 18 year old and then puts her through 5 years of med school)
And they get a salary while being trained(Here in UK they were called SHOs and SPRs and now will be called ST trainees, so they support themselves.

And after all being a doctor does not make any less of a woman, so if they can't get their exams they can still be a housewife.

Now I hope this makes you any wiser.

[ecr844]

Actually after you have passed the USMLE, and are started in a residency program in the US you can expect that she will be paid between 33-35k a year for her 10+ hour days (Deoending on rotation and specialty). The salary increses slightly over the next 3-4 years and in 'fellowship is on avg 50k or so. It is only after the 'completeion' of training that things get better salary wise for them and where the bigger numbers start to show. An example a  1st year PCP MD ( or aka GP in the UK) might start at 80-110k/year depending on specialty and practice environment.

HTH,
ECR844

[Mir]

ECR

Yes you are right.
Here in UK salaries are a bit better for the trainees c/w US and Europe.
However most specialists in US and Europe make more money then UK (in absolute and relative terms).
Still life is slightly kinder here for doctors as we have a less litigious culture but it is getting worse everyday.

[Globetrotter]

Mir,

You are right.  All of Eastern and Western Europe as well as India, Pakistan, and even Iran teach in med schools the same system as taught here.  Japan and China are different and those people require the most retraining.  My docs school was/is AMA accredited and she would only need to pass the medical board exam....cost about $1200 to take it....after she passes TOEFL.  She would easily find a hospital to take her as a resident as she has 15 years experience and was a chief surgeon.  Residents now earn about $60K/year.  3 years residency to become a GP, and 3 more for a speciality.  Much of residency is not so much about the basics of the doctor business, but how not to get sued, to CYA, to learn the AMA system of cut, prescribe drugs for everything, etc.    

But........TOEFL is a brutal exam, and I think this would be a very difficult test for her.  Just take a sample 10 question test on the Internet, as I did.  I missed 3 out of 10!  Use of "from" or "than" in a sentence...I use both.  WRONG.  You also must know what it means if someone says, "I got out of bed on the wrong side."...or, "Today, I'm under the weather."  And, after the written test, an oral test follows.  Thus, an FSU girl taking the test better be fluent and then some.

When my doc friend was here for a conference, we discussed all the above with other docs, and then had private tours of the best hospitals in Chicago.

You asked before: She's an oncologist, went to Kazan University Med School which is on the Europe top 50 list of med schools.

So, the above is from personal experience.

From my first post at the beginning of this thread, it sounded as if some thought a doc or lawyer could just come here, get a job and hit the ground running, and as you can see, that ain't the case!

[Globetrotter]

Sorry, I got my terminology wrong.  What I was calling medical board exam I should have said USMLE...which is the first med test to get you in the door.

[Mir]

Glob

Yes and that is why I mentioned USMLE that all foreign medical graduates take before they become eligible to work in US. If they need to do residency in US then they take boards of relevant speciality. As regards to your doctor friend if she had an outstanding carear she might have been able to get a position bypassing the need of residency/boards if her past experience was fully recognized. It is difficult but possible.
The USMLE can have a lot of basic medicine and some experienced doctors can have problems with it since they have forgotten the basics, personally I think USMLE is a tougher nut to crack then TOEFEL.
We have a funny situation in UK, doctors from India/Pakistan who can speak decent English need to pass an English competency test and those from Poland who sometimes speak no English need to pass no exams. It is funny to interview them as they sometimes are unable to even say: 'My name is Dr. Kowalewski'

[Globetrotter]

Mir, I think things for docs (nurses too) are much, much easier in Europe and I believe they go right to work, as opposed to the AMA system of retraining here.  I think the now infamous Iraqi doctor/bombers make that case.

My squeeze finished top of her class, but I wouldn't hold out any hope that she be spared the rigors of the AMA.  Also, she must want to come here, and that may not happen.

[Mir]

Glob

Not really.
Europe always had oversupply of doctors and no market for oversees doctors to break into. UK and Ireland have been the main destination of overseas doctors. Still they need to take qualification exams to be able to practice. Recently things have become much worse, the UK junior doctors face unemployment and therefore overseas doctors will find much less opportunities. This together with the recent changes to training programme (making it much more like US) will make it virtually impossible for overseas doctors to train here. However being married to a UK citizen makes it slightly easier because then there are no restrictions on stay (while one looks for a job)
The situation is different for experienced doctors since they can directly move into senior posts and can avoid the need to compete or highly sought after training posts. But they have to be real good to do this, I am not sure but I think such a system exists in US as well where highly skilled doctors can move into senior posts without retraining.
If your lady is well settled in Russia have you ever thought of moving there?

[Globetrotter]

Mir,

My above post had to do with information from a Polish (living here 30 yrs) nurse who worked there as a nurse and also has a masters.
She was probably talking about experienced doctors as you have said.  She works here as a nurses aide, having refused to go through nursing school here to do exactly what she did there.

Well, moving to Russia, heh...well, I already said to her that I could live there 6 months per year after I retire in 2 or so years.  But not now.  My business requires that I work from here as here is where most of my suppliers are.  Having been there several times I sometimes cringe at some of the difficulties I would have doing business out of Russia.  Plus, I would need more input from her to get to that discussion, which she has been so far unwilling to give. So, outlook not good!

[Misha]

Here is one fine example where a qualified professional is making a lot more money than her husband. She was a dentist in Russia, married a Canadian then moved to a small town in northern Canada. She had children and worked on becoming a dentist in Canada. Her husband sponsored her parents and they came to help her by looking after the children, when she studied. It took her 8 years to finally pass the exams and enter into a 2 year program at a Canadian university. Yes, this was expensive, but in Canada if you study to be a doctor or dentist they are very generous with student loans (as they know you will be able to pay it back). Now, close to a decade after she arrived, she is working as a dentist and will make a lot more money than her husband or I will ever make. Are they still married? Yes. Will it require adjustments. Of course.

[DKMM]

I'm surprised Turbo hasn't jumped in this thread.  I seem to recall his betrothed will come here and make more than him some day.   

I have yet to date or even meet on a potential relationship basis any girl that doesn't want to stay home and have a family (ages 18-35).  But that's probably because I attract that type.

Our issue is her making less here than she makes now in the FSU.

[Zhena]

As I know from a reality,many girls (before not career-minded)after coming in US begin to look for a job. Why? Possible because the level of their present life doesnt satisfy them and they get more ambitious. Possible some just cant stay at home all the time and realize that. But most of the girls ARE working here. What is their salary-this is another question. But many of them claim that to pay the bills now is much easier. So if you can manage to work without sacrifice for your family-thats only plus.