Ultimate Medical Immersion: Summer Travel Abroad to Ghana

Travel to Ghana on the Ultimate Med Immersion

Join us in Ghana for a unique medical and cultural experience. Shadow doctors, observe live surgeries, and participate in community health services with like-minded students seeking a career as a physician.

Travel to Ghana on the Ultimate Med Immersion

Join us in Ghana for a unique medical and cultural experience. Shadow doctors, observe live surgeries, and participate in community health services with like-minded students seeking a career as a physician.

TRIP COMPLETE! Stay Tuned for More Trips in the Future

Check out our last Ultimate Med Immersion trip from the Philippines.

The Ghana Ultimate Med Immersions is accepting bookings for high school student groups for those aged 16+. There is no minimum age requirement for bookings on our college student groups.

Experience culture with a curriculum

* Only $500 due at time of reservation.

What you will experience

Clinical explorations across Ghana

Ever considered a med student travel program? You should! In this thrilling once-in-a-lifetime experience, you will explore and learn alongside some of the best doctors in Ghana. Enjoy the countryside, cuisine, culture, and learn from top physicians in this premed travel program. You will also be joined by MedSchoolCoach physicians for nine days of concentrated medical curriculum within clinics and hospitals alongside real patients as you give yourself a leg-up on many of the medical school application requirements needed for acceptance.

What's Included:

Ghana patient
Saltpond Hospital

Participate in Patient Care

Beyond just observation, depending on the specialty and attending physician, you may participate in patient care, including surgeries, procedures, physical examinations, and history taking.

Observe & Scrub into Live Surgeries

Watch surgery being performed while standing in operating rooms or observation rooms. You could see surgeons and their team do their work first-hand.

Learn Clinical Medicine

Part of the Ultimate Med Immersion experience is having a physician alongside you so you can learn the medicine being delivered. 

Explore Health Systems

Ghana has one of Africa’s most comprehensive health systems. Learn how the system differs from the U.S. and how patient care is delivered.

Trip Details

Sahil Mehta MD, MedschoolCoach Founder

DR. Sahil Mehta

Founder & Trip Education Leader

"If a student is looking to get clinical experience that will help them learn medicine in a way that separates them on their application, our Ultimate Med Immersion is the way to go."
Alyson Jett, Penn State

"I would say, absolutely, go on this trip. Whether you’re the doctor, you’re the nurse, you get to see things you will never ever see."

Alyson Jett

Penn State

Takara Richard, Old Dominion University

"Going on this Ultimate Med Immersion is one of the best opportunities you can go on if you want to go into a medical career."

Takara Richard

Old Dominian University

Why Travel with Ultimate Medical Immersion?

Medicine, culture, friends.

Participating in an international medical program can help you gain medical experience and put your application on a whole new level.

Ultimate Med Immersion – Patients in Scrubs at the Hospital

Medical Experience

Are you looking to gain clinical experience?
With the daily medical curriculum based on real patients, high school students and premeds alike will walk away with an in-depth medical experience and strong extracurricular activity.

Unique App

Need something to differentiate yourself?
An international experience is one of the best extracurricular activities for medical students and will help set you apart from other applicants.

Clinical Hours

Will I be able to shadow physicians?
Gain more than 40+ observation hours with multiple specialties in less than a few weeks of one of the most exciting pre med study abroad programs.

Personal Growth

Would you like to grow as a person?
Experience Ghanaian culture, have a once in a lifetime experience, and make friends for life.

Reserve your spot!

Included with your tuition:

  • • Hotel to airport shuttles on arrivals and departures.
  • • All accommodations and meals while in Ghana.
  • • All ground transportation to and from activities within the scheduled curriculum.
  • • Curriculum costs including clinical lectures and in-hospital participation.
  • • Scheduled excursion costs such as cultural trips
  • • Premium set of scrubs for your hospital experience

What else can we tell you?

Have more questions? Give us a call or chat with us. 

COVID Questions

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected every aspect of our lives. We anticipate that by January 2022, it will be safe to travel. In the event that we cancel the trip due to COVID-related travel advisories, participants will be eligible for a full refund. Please review the terms and conditions for further details.

Ghana has been a leader in COVID-19 prevention and care. Currently, masks are mandated in all facilities and public spaces and certainly in and around any health care facilities. Standard COVID-19 sanitary procedures are practiced in all dining areas, hotels, etc. As the trip dates near, we will provide real-time updates based on the situation of the pandemic at that time.

Registration Questions

We require that for our high school groups, students be at least 16 years old. There is no minimum age requirement for our college student groups. In both cases, they must maintain a minimum 3.0 grade point average. Your GPA will be verified with your undergraduate institution as part of the enrollment process. If you are an international student, you are welcome to participate, but you are responsible for researching and acquiring any travel documents you may need to travel to your program destination.

No. An initial non-refundable deposit of $500 is required to hold your spot (note, if the trip is canceled by MedSchoolCoach due to any reason, including COVID-related concerns, this deposit will be refunded). Full payment for the remainder of the tuition balance will be charged to your credit card on file 120 days prior to departure.

Clinical Experience Questions

There will be an average of 5 hours per day of observations on the 9 curriculum days for a total estimation of 45 shadowing hours.

Areas of observation will vary and include cardiovascular, pediatrics, radiology, OB/GYN, family medicine, various surgical procedures, pulmonology, and infectious disease. As the trip dates near, we will provide a detailed itinerary with specialties and departments to will be viewed.

Letters of recommendation can be written by any of our U.S. based physician staff members or by the Ghana based physicians. Letters of recommendation are not guaranteed, however, and their solicitation will be at the student’s discretion.

This will depend on the area of observation and the attending physician’s and/or health care professional’s decision. As participants are not trained or certified health care professionals, any actions that are allowed may range from taking vitals to assessment skills, or basic assists with bandaging, etc. Actual hands-on skill techniques are dependent upon the approval of the host institution and the professionals in charge.

Accommodation Questions

All rooms are rated for double occupancy. If you prefer a single room accommodation, an additional charge of $100 per night will apply.

Single occupancy rooms have limited availability and can be reserved at the time of registration on a first-come, first-served basis. If you have questions regarding single room accommodations you can contact us at enroll@medschoolcoach.com or call us at (888) 381-9509.

All double occupancy pairings will be introduced to their roommates about a month prior to departure so that they may get to know each other.

Travel Requirement Questions

You need a valid passport to travel to Ghana. For a new adult passport book, there is a $110 application fee and a $35 execution fee.

 

If you already have a passport, it needs to be valid for at least another 6 months from the date of arrival in Ghana. If it is not, renew it ASAP so that it returns to you prior to the trip. While there is typically an 8-week turnaround, due to COVID-19, passport processing is taking longer than normal. You could expect delays from anywhere between 4 and 6 months.

Yes. Your program director will direct you through the steps of the visa process upon enrollment.

 

A standard visa to Ghana will take about 15 business days to process and will cost about $129. Timing and pricing may vary, so give yourself extra time.

Yes, all trip participants are required to purchase travel insurance. Travel insurance can be obtained at a cost of about $200-250 (prices may vary). Consider Allianz Travel Insurance.

 

Additionally, it is recommended you purchase tuition insurance for this portion of your education experience. Consider GradGuard.

 

Once you have paid in-full, any refunds will need to be processed through your travel and/or tuition insurance provider, and not through MedSchoolCoach.

Make sure you are up-to-date on all routine vaccines before every trip. The required vaccines include:

 

  • – COVID-19
  • – Diphtheria-Tetanus-Pertussis (DTP)
  • – Measles-Mumps-Rubella (MMR)
  • – Polio
  • – Yellow Fever

 

The CDC recommends that you also receive the following vaccines:

 

  • – Typhoid
  • – Hepatitis A
  • – Hepatitis B

Airfare is not included in the tuition. Your roundtrip domestic airfare from your home city to JFK in New York, NY should be purchased by you. Your international roundtrip flight to Accra, Ghana must be purchased through our partners at McNair/Direct Travel.

You can contact McNair/Direct Travel at dt.com or by calling them at (703) 836-1100.

Student Time & Care Questions

While in Ghana you will have the opportunity to see and experience many sites and areas of leisure and historical interest. We also realize the desire to explore on your own, and as you are undergrads, we understand that you are not minors needing escorting. You will have time each day or evening that you can explore Accra, the Aburi Botanical Gardens, Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park, Makola Market, or just relax by the pool at the hotel. We encourage you to take the time to explore, yet not miss out on any scheduled program or curriculum activities.

Throughout your time in the program you will be with our hosts, as well as MedSchoolCoach staffing. They will provide any sick participants with access to the health care needed through existing partnerships. A benefit of attending the UMI is that you will be around all levels of health care in Ghana at all times. Your program managers will ensure that you always have access to staff during your times of feeling ill.

U.S. credit/debit cards are widely accepted in Ghana, but U.S. Dollars are not. Upon arrival in Ghana, there will be opportunity to exchange U.S. Dollars for Ghanaian Cedi for daily tips and purchases.

Although there will not be chaperones, per se, students will be led by program managers and directors through the entire experience. There will be one program manager for every ~15 students to make sure that everyone on the trip gets specialized attention. Our management team is comprised of experienced educators, nonprofit leaders, and current graduate or medical school level students.

The best method to communicate with friends and family back home is by downloading WhatsApp.

 

WiFi is readily available in your hotel and in WiFi Zones throughout parts of Accra and Cape Coast with a purchased WiFi access card.

Reserve your spot!

Spots are currently limited to a first come first serve basis for qualified students.

  • – Initial deposit of $500 required at the time of registration
  • – Balance payoff for the trip due 120 days prior to departure

Enroll Now

Enroll now to reserve your spot on one of our trips to Ghana.
Enroll

Pay Remaining Balance

Pay off your remaining balance now to secure your participation. At 120 days before departure, your credit card on file will be charged any remaining balance automatically.
Pay Balance

Packing List

Be prepared for your trip! Download the packing list to make sure you have everything you need.
Get the List

Health Form

Submit important health information so we can ensure we have all the information we need to ensure the safety of our travelers!
Submit Now

Disclosure Form

Review and sign this important document that includes the Liability Release, GPA Verification, Media Waiver, and Code of Conduct.
Review and Sign

Travel Guide

Download the Ghana Travel Guide for detailed info on trip planning, clinical experiences, daily agenda, medical facilities, accommodations, and more.
Download Now

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