When foreign men search through the Internet
and see many of the Young Russian ladies they
are often surprised at how many of these young
ladies have a higher education. Of great interest
to these men are the number of young women,
23 to 25 years of age who put there education
and profession of that of a doctor. Many of
the men have a hard time believing this and
keep asking the same questions regarding this
being a doctor, over and over again.
Perhaps, even you have asked the same question:
Is it possible for these young women to be
a doctor?
Yes, guys, it is possible and I want to explain
a little bit about the educational system
in Russia. Believe me, I know what I am talking
about because I finished the medical university
myself, in Russia. Don’t expect a detailed
report in this short article, as it is not
my goal today but rather a short and general
picture.
In Russia, students usually finished middle
school, which is equivalent to American high
schools, when they are 17 years old.
Those, who wish to become doctors, enter
into the medical University immediately. They
finish middle school in June and by August
have pass the entrance exam to the university.
In September they begin their first year as
students of the medical university. Each medical
University has a strict program. And students
can not choose their own schedule or classes.
They have to go to the University EVERY day
for 6 years. Classes begin a 8.00 A..M and
continue on till 5.00 P.M. every day except
Sundays. Of course after school they have
a great deal of homework.
They have very short vacation after New Years
from 10-14 days and about one month in the
summer. June is a completely busy month because
they final exams at the end of each year and
in July they have internships in the hospitals.
This practice continues until the middle of
August and a new school year begins again
in September. As in the previous year, there
are no choices of classes. The curriculum
is defined by the school.
There is literally no missing of classes
whether for illness or any other reason. If
a student is ill, they must make up for the
missed classes and prove to the teacher that
they know the material.
If young woman gets married and then pregnant,
she has opportunity to miss one year of her
studies and then return to the same level
which she missed. It is call "academic
vacation".
Very often a pregnant woman will choose another
alternative, that of continuing on in classes,
uninterrupted until the birth of the baby.
Women who chose not to miss a year by taking
the "academic vacation".do so without
any special considerations given to them.
They don’t want to miss a year and continue
going to school as other students They will
be treat as all other students are, and will
attend University every day. When it comes
time to deliver the baby, these women miss
about three to five days of school and then
returns to classes.
The academic pace is very difficult, the
courses are very stringent and the hours that
need to be devoted to study are very lengthy.
The first three years of study has a great
deal of attrition. More than a third of the
students who enter the first year, drop out
by the third year. Virtual all who remain
will go on to finish their studies.
Beginning in the third year students study
clinical disciplines such as surgery, therapies,
opthamology, gynecology and others. Their
lessons are conducted no only in school but
at special hospitals. These hospitals have
special auditoriums where the students can
study the theoretical part of their curriculum
and after classes get to see patients and
obtain practice skills. This has nothing to
do with the summer internships, which they
still must attend from June through the middle
of August. After six years of university level
classes these student are required to take
and pass a government exam. Upon successful
completion of the government exam, they are
ready to take up residency to continue on
to being a medical doctor. So, lets do the
math. A young woman enter the university system
at 17 and spend six years to graduate That
makes her 23 when she gets her medical degree
to be called doctor. That does not mean she
has finished her education because she still
has to take up residency in a hospital and
is still under supervision.
It is not that much different in the American
system. A young woman graduates high school
at 18 and enters a four year university. After
that she has three more years of medical school.
If all is well, she graduates with her medical
degree.
Let’s see, enters college at 18 plus
4 years of university and 3 years of medical
school. This young women will be 25 when she
becomes a resident at a hospital.
It reality there is only one year’s
difference between a young Russian girl and
a American girl.
Russian doctors seem to have a heart from
gold. Doctors in Russia work very hard and
earn very little money and often times work
for months before they are paid by the government.
But their devotion to their profession is
one of being commendable. Their concerns for
their patients far out ways their concern
for money. Because of this low pay, these
women doctors who have placed their name on
the Internet are very surprised when a foreign
man pays a great deal of attention to the
fact that they are doctors.
But in the western world the opposite holds
true and if you married a Russian woman who
happens to be a doctor, she will be surprised
and shocked when she sees how much respect
and attention is paid to western medicine.
She will even be more astounded to learn the
type of life style a western doctor has compared
to those of the former Soviet Union.
So, what type of family situation can you
expect when you marry a Russian doctor? I
want to discuss a few common situations that
can occur. I personal know about them, because
I know a lot of the Russian doctors thru my
own website for immigrants.
1. Woman who have decided to pass the exams
and practice medicine in USA.
She has a very supportive husband who respects
her wishes and encourages her to study for
the one to two years it may take before she
can take her board exams He is the type of
man who fully supports the family, paying
for all the expenses his wife will incur to
complete her studies. He is also willing to
relocate if his wife needs to set up hospital
residency in another state knowing that he
will see his wife very little as she spends
12 to 16 hours a day in the hospital.
The number of men willing to go to this length
for his wife: a very small percentage.
2. Women want to study and pass the exams
but is prevented from doing so because of
family situations:
Unfortunately, the family unit cannot survive
without a two income household. Because she
has not had her education recognized by the
authorities where she lives, the only jobs
available to her are low paying, entry type
jobs. This does not allow her the time or
the means to get the continuing education
she would need to apply for a medical license.
The percentage of women in this position
is very large,
3. The husband doesn’t want his wife
to work at all.
He doesn’t care that she is a doctor.
He just want a women with "old family
values" who will stay at home to cook
clean and be a "wife".The chances
of finding and keeping this kind of woman
is very slim but he may just be lucky enough
to find such a woman who is willing to give
up her life long profession and trade it in
for a apron and title of housewife.
The percentage of women in this category;
very small!
4. Women who are content with the situation:
There are many woman in a similar position
as number 2 above but are still able to get
some education. These woman usually try to
find work in the medical field although the
income is low. They have given up on being
a doctor but still want to work in the medical
field and take the low paying jobs that are
offered.
Percentage of women in this category is also
large.
5. Alternatives to Medicine
Even though the understand the prestige of
being a doctor in the western world as compared
to Russia, they desire to pursue other avenues
and leave their medical degree behind.
Marina Smiley is the author of some of the
most popular eBooks about Russian-Western
marriages. These eBooks are available through
www.search4russianbride.com
Read more articles and books about
Russian women
by Marina Smiley.
