For all the Universities you need to complete your vaccinations and provide proof of all the required immunizations i.e titers after being vaccinated.
- After getting these titers done, get a chest X- Ray done and your Mantoux Test done. Dont forget to save the reports/records of all these (vaccinations, titers report, X-Ray report, Mantoux test report) with you. It is strongly advised to get a certification of all this in the form of an immunization certificate.
- For sample immunization certificate, download the file below.
@ andy
i know how tough it is to find out about immunization coz i hav undergone d same pain...
1.if u had an episode of chicken pox(varicella ) u willl hav lifelong antibodies for sure..
2.about tdap- tetanus u can take d dose nytime u knw it.. diptheria im not sure...(wil let u knw when i find out) n acellular pertusis vaccine is given in anand labs near bowring hospital bangalore.(try to cal up good labs in mumbai the wil surely hav it)
3.about mmr vaccine- in india the r a failure so u takin it in childhood is not useful.so u can do is take an mmr vaccine (2 doses ,1 month apart)(m not sure bout d doses get it confirmed) n then get ur titres checked..
with due respect to umar sir... thank u very uch for everythin u hav done for us.
thanks a lot for your kind
thanks a lot for your kind words andy! I believe Vaibhav has answered your queries in a very nice manner, much better than I could ever have! tc and best of luck!
@ vaibhav...thank you so very much for your reply! I hope there are many more like me and you who wants to help others becz this way we are making sure that there are ppl to help/ guide us when we need someone! tc and best of luck!
@ umar sir
thnk u sir for ur kind works.. i will always b ther to help any1 who needs help... i m a firm believer that competition should b in our abilities not on lack of information.. so any 1 who needs help in electives matters i am always here to help to my best knowledge..
all the best to every1..
sir n 1 question what r u currentl doin..coz i hav mentioned about u n ur website to about more than hundred frnds..the always ask wht is umar doin now... so answer me whenever u have time...tak care...
god bless
-vaibhav
lol....thats the most
lol....thats the most interesting question I have been asked.... lol...
well I could have never expected people to be interested in what I am doing... lol...
I am currently in US and just finished my electives... giving my step 2 CS exams on Sep 16, then going back to Pakistan by the end of this month... for my internship!
thanks a lot for your kind words! God bless you!
@ vaibhav and umar bhai
thnx sooooo much for d valuable info guys!...
vaibhav sir, can u giv me an estimate of the TDap and MMR vaccine costs in india???
@ andy
hey dude first dont call me sir... i would rather prefer to b a friend rather than a senior.. we r all in d same book...
and i m really sorry i dont hav any idea of the cost of vaccination..
but titres cost u anywher between 3k to 5k ... thats for d whole package... n thats in b'lore...dont hav an idea of mumbai... i will post d rates n futher info asap... cheers..all d best
@ umar sir
sir ur a role model for us.... and many r interested in wht u r doin... i am very happy u hav finished ur electives... as soon as i find out everythin about immunization i will send the info to u sir..
and i hav one question for u..i would b gratefull if u would answer this one...
i m left with some requirements like malpractice ins,health ins,c.v n my office clerk has said i will recieve transcripts by next monday.. so for me till i gather all the documents it will b september end.
can u tell me whether i can apply for jan feb mar or should i apply for feb mar april... please tell me wht dates shd i apply to get acceptance.. and secondly which colleges shd i apply.. plz if u cld spare ur precious time n lemme know i would b gratefull... i am ery confused at this moment ...
thankin u...
-vaibhav
is that ok to apply in may or june?
HI this is dr babloo from india! i just enterd in internship here in feb 2013. i have few doubts.
1- if i want to get elective in october 2013 or feb 2014 will it be ok to apply in may/june 2013??
2- can any one explain application procedure to harvard? i saw other uni's ,they need all documents and apllication form sent through envelope in mail but harvard got something confusing regarding application form!
3-How i can get all insuranace required when i am in india itself?? means tell me cost and method of getting it.. btw i got relatives in boston and california can they arrange that for me?? or can i exempt and tell universities that i will take it once u except me?/ i m concerned with UCSD,harvard,UCLA,and NIH ..
pls reply ,,
@vaibhav (no sir!) thnx dude
@vaibhav (no sir!)
thnx dude for callin me ur frnd... what are u doin currently? hope to getmany more valuable suggestns frm u n umar sirn others in the near future.... thnx again!
btw, i did find our that d MMR vaccine givn to children costs Rs.75 (INR)... though i dunno if d sane dose can be administerd to us or not.. hail umar sir!
@ andy
andy 1 thing when u r jumping into this electives thing never think about money...
accination wont cost u much..ther r costlier things like malpractice insurance which costs mre than 15k.. health insurance titres n transcripts etc which r costly.. so vaccination is nothin compared to this..
one suggestion - go to some good hospital and ask ther..they will b knowin mmr vaccination.. im not sure but i feel a paediatric dose wil not suffice as that time out immunity is low so we r given a lower dose but now our immune system will b fully active.....so i guess we need a slightly higher dose..
note -this is just a suggestion.plz dont follow it blindly as im not sure.. plz enquire n confirm n then tak doses.
im presently plannin for electives for feb mar april.. when r u plannin for electives?
if u need ny help buzz me ..i will b ready to help nytime
all d best...
plz help me i'm a beginnner
hi harshraj here
,i'm also plannin to take electives in feb march....
this is d first time i've seen this site...
i haven't got anything besides my college transcript..!!!
n don't hav much idea about all certificates... i read about them here only...
can u plz help me in cv or resume n can u give me d list of vaccines n tests to undergo for d certificate...
thank u...!!!
all this information is
all this information is already present on this website... plz search for these terms.... the list of vaccines is available from immunization certficate...tc n best of luck!
harshraj, even i was a
harshraj, even i was a beginner a month back when i 1st came 2 kno of dis site.. but bliv me dude, dis site is the place-2-b to kno the who-when-what-how abt electives... go thru it thoroly for the 1st 2-3 days n den u'll feel a lot confident abt what is needed n what not.. n btw, if u plannin 2 take electives next feb-march then start hurryin with the documents..
AL D BEST!!
thnx vaibhav for d info! i
thnx vaibhav for d info! i was thinkin abt money cuz m from a simple middle calss family.. n since i practically had nobody to guide, i wantd sum lookout so dat i dont waste my money in sumthin thats not gonna materialize..
m planning to do my electives in between sept2010- feb2011.. u must'v already strtd applyin rite? wher r u tryin ur luck? n did u get an acceptance?
@ andy
hi andy, i am extremely sorry for replying so late.was really busy in many things.
1st thing remember u will need to spend about minimum of 5 lakh or more if u going in for usmle. its the minimum i am telling.. and more over in electives u hav to spend ur own money.u wont b getting scholarship. and plus visa requires u to have quite a sum of money in ur saving deposit to grant it easily.
plz dont get me wrong im not discouraging u but makin u aware of the situation n facts. so before jumping into mle pool plz read about it fully and bout expenditure.
2ndly i have not applied yet i changed my plans.and want to clear my step 1 b4 electives.
and lastly a person becomes rich by his deeds n his heart not by money..
god bless .all the best. u need any guidance dont hesitate to post.. umar bhai is always ther to help people like us :)
@ vaivhav thnx mate for the
@ vaivhav
thnx mate for the info abt d money thng.. really appreciate it
I knew dat the USMLE exam itself would cost me arnd 5-8 lakhs (INR)... dat too widout kaplan coaching.. n dis elective thing anywhere between 2-3lakhs (supposing i do electives for 2 months)...
What i wanna kno is 1 crucial aspect.. d visa thng surely requires us to have sum significant balance n our kitty.. by any chance can u giv me a range of how much amount approximately is required to clear d visa hassle on money aspect?.. n do our assets (eg. owning a plot of land) and relatives' money who giv an affidavit to support us count as ours??
Would be very thankful if 'm enlightened on this aspect..
@ andy
dude i already 2 'v's in my name u hav added one more :) ... just kidding..
ok about the visa thing.. the thing is the more assets land u hav in india the easily u get visa coz they get sure that u will return back to india for this for sure. n thats wht they want .they dont want any1 to get settled ther. so land property will fetch u longer visa..
2ndly about bank deposit it is not rigid..it depends on the person taking interview.but i think the more u have the better. in my view a minimum of 5 to 6 lakh should b ther. more is always better.
and one advice plan ur electives in such a way that u can finish ur step 2 cs ther and come back.that will save u one trip to u.s n also the extra expenditure.. thts how i ha planned. hope it works..
all these r my opinions.. so always better u confirm it from others too.. tak cre and all the best.god bless u.
- vaibhav
@ vaibhav and umar bhai
Thanx mate for d info!...n m sory abt d spellin error in ur name !..
regarding d assets, wantd 2 kno 1 thng... suppose the asset is in the name of my father/mother... is dat counted as my asset in by the visa officer? or do i hav 2 show all these things with me as the owner? i hope u get wat i mean
n wat about relatives willin to show financial support!!
@ andy
hey dude..i was kiddin bout my name.. :)
nyway as far as i know.. parents assets r considered ur assets.. but relatives i dont think so... but if u show ur relatives assets they may ask why is ur relative sponsoring u and all that complicated stuff.. though im not sure about this...dude i guess wit sme bank balance and proper interview training u will easily get a visa.god bless u......
umar bhai kindly throw sme light on this...
as far as I know even
as far as I know even parents' property is not considered YOURS... though it is beneficial to show their property if they are sponsoring you but the more property and money you have in your name, the better it is... tc n best of luck!
urgent query regarding immunizations..
1) I have h/o infection with measles , so i guess ill get titres for that..but should i take rubella and mumps shots again ? or will the titres come up in the blood from the childhood vaccinations?
2)Since i dint have an official record of HepB vaccinations done in childhood , i took the 0 dose last month, and have the rest 2 shots scheduled 1 month and 5 months apart, my query is , should can i get the HepB titre done after 4wks from 1st shot or do i have to wait for 5 months till im done with all 3 shots?
And since i need to apply now, how do i go about it?
3)Jefferson requires a candidate to take influenza vaccines annually.. or else i need to sign a declination.. ? im confused what to do about that also?
kindly advise..
1. & 2. m not sure... consult
1. & 2. m not sure... consult any specialist.
3. u can do either... depends upon u...
hi umar bhai, can u say
i dont think so... confirm it
MMR Vaccine
MMR Vaccine can be started at any age. It consists of two doses given at an interval of 1 month. this is what my Peds consultant told me
Ig G or Ig M
sholud i ask the lab to take Ig G OR Ig M ....
ARE THESE THE required things :
HbsAg , anti Hbs Ig G ,
VARICELLA Ig G
DT Ig G ETC .. OR is Ig M ALSO REQUIRED?
Always IgG!
Lets Revise our Immunology basics!
IgM is the primary short term antibody that is formed and which then diminshes as the IgG appears and lives life-long. IgM = priMary; IgG = lonG
So ALWAYS IgG is the type needed for titre. IgM just shows acute process, and is not needed for vaccination proof.
Varicella(ChickenPox), Hepatitis B, Measles, Mumps, Rubella, Diptheria, Tetanus are the common requirements and vary from college to college. Like NIH requires Seasonal Influenza vaccine too.
Some places are specific for titres while some are happy with the dates of vaccination from your/any hospital or family physician.
In INDIA, Ranbaxy Labs(Religare) run a combo package for all the IgG for sth like 5000Rs. Ask them.
Best Wishes.
TITRE VALUE
WHATS THE TITRE FOR THE 5 DISEASES WHICH MEANS THAT I DONT NEED TO TAKE VACCINATION AGAIN
The report usually says
Regarding Titers
Hi Umar Bhai,I contacted a local hospital where i am staying and i got this repy from them, could you plz tell me should i go ahead by doing my titers here, or should i get a place where i can get IgG levels for the other diseases too....Plz reply soon.
Thanks in Advance ,
Sijo
Thank you... What do you mean
Thank you...
What do you mean with the lot number in TB screening test?
Some places require you to
hello sir
Sir I have a few queries regarding vaccines and immunization certifiacates.
1. I have had the following vaccines in childhood- BCG, DPT, oral polio, MMR. Took Hepatitis B 3rd dose 6 months back. I had an attack of chicken pox already in childhood. I will be taking Hep A vaccine this weekend.
I do not have any documentary proof of the vaccines i received in child hood.
But my paediatrician told me that he can issue me an immunization certificate of the vaccines i received in childhood as i received all of them from him.
I have taken hep B elsewhere but he told me he will add the same dates in the same immunization certificate. Plus I am taking Hep A from him. So, all together I will have an immunization certificate which will contain dates of BCG, OPV, DPT, MMR, Hep B and 1st dose of Hep A.
My query is, is that certificate from him enough?
Plus I am getting my titres checked.
2. I had an attack of Chicken pox so is it necessary to take varicella vaccine?
Or is it just enough if he mentions i had an attack of chicken pox (i will have titres to support that).
3. MMR- should i take that vaccine too or again my paediatricians immunization certificate enough which will be same as the sample you have provided sir?
4. On the whole, I will have Immunization certificate issued by paediatrician, Titres from Lab, Mantoux test repot, Chest X ray report. Is there anything else i need?
Sir kindly reply to my queries.
Umar sir, Vaibhav sir and andy sir- thank you so much for providing so much info on this website. It is of great help to me when I m rushing through elective applications as I have very less time for completing my internship. Thank you so much sir.
Regards
1. Yes it should be enough
2. Titers are enough.
3. If you have taken it before, then its ok.
4. Not to the best of my knowledge!
Different universities have
which titres..
I wanted to know while getting checked for titres, what exactly should i ask them for.. in particular.. hepB, hepA and? pls rep soon.. so that i can go ahead with my application..
mantoux
i am getting a mantoux positive but i have no history of infection or medication. my professors say that it is positive for most indians due to the bcg vaccine.
i just needed to know if this will be an cause my application for the electives to get rejected.
plz reply soon, i'm kinda nervous.
thanks,
sam
it's not a problem at all.
regarding immunization
sir i hv a query if u could help me with it i'll b really thankful to u
last year i was admitted in hospital for renal calculi and i was diagnosed with Hep-B...i did the viral load count and envelope antibody test for active infection thankfully both came NEGATIVE...to cross check i did the test again from some other laboratory and the result came HbsAg-POSITIVE.....i consulted a Dr in my college and they told me im a CARRIER
sir i took the vaccination for HepB during my school days but i dnt have any documentary evidence.....
1)sir i want to know if this thing is goin to affect me in anyway for getting electives and wat should i do for HepB titre?
2)also i hd chicken pox in schooldays so should i need varicella vaccination for the titre?
hello umar sir,
hello umar sir,
i have suffered from hepatitis A & Chicken pox in childhood. is there still a need to take these vaccines or titres would be enough??
thank you
your website is a blessing to all usmle aspirants :)
thanks for ur kind words...
somebody plzzzzzzz rply ASAP
hello mr.umar....highly appreciate ur effort in field of usmle:
sir i hv a query if u could help me with it i'll b really thankful to u
last year i was admitted in hospital for renal calculi and i was diagnosed with Hep-B...i did the viral load count and envelope antibody test for active infection thankfully both came NEGATIVE...to cross check i did the test again from some other laboratory and the result came HbsAg-POSITIVE.....i consulted a Dr in my college and they told me im a CARRIER
sir i took the vaccination for HepB during my school days but i dnt have any documentary evidence.....
1)sir i want to know if this thing is goin to affect me in anyway for getting electives and wat should i do for HepB titre?
2)also i hd chicken pox in schooldays so should i need varicella vaccination for the titre
U dont need to mention ur
U dont need to mention ur health history anywhere. Check with ur physician if there is really any need to get vaccinated for hep b, if he says yes , get it done along the 0-1-1 schedule .
For chicken pox usually the seropositivity is guaranteed lifelong after disease. In case U dont want to take a chance, go ahead and get vaccinated.
hello umar bhai.....my score
Get good scores in ck n then
urgent help
hello sir ,
this is a great site containg all infos for imgs ... great work!
i have the following query to ask u
1. i havnt yet taken varicella vaccine nor ever had a infection of it .... i think there r two doses whaich require a month gap.... i hav been trying to get into an elective this sept so is it enough that i that enough that i take the first shot now and send application or should i wait 1 month... but i think i am already late..
2.i am in my final year ...going to take exams ... i have one more year of internship(house surgency) am i eligible to do an elective now?
pls help
Thanks for ur kind
1. I think so but I am not sure....
2. yes... if u r not a graduate yet!
Titre dilemma
hello, this is a very informative site. i got a lot of my queries solved by just scrolling through the various posts. About the titres i have a question...... IgG or IgM? Losta people told me IgG is enough but some told me i might get rejected if i dont send the IgM titres....i'm confused as to what to do because getting the IgM alongwith IgG is gonna cost me exactly the double it would if i do just IgG. Plus i guess the rates have reached 8-9K. Its no longer done in 5k. I dont want to get rejected just because i dint send them the required proofs. Please guide me.....
Better consult some senior
How early to begin ?
I have a question regarding getting your immunizations done for the electives. How early should this process begin if you've get all the vaccines done ( Hep B, DPaT, MMR which are required for all places)...I don't have my vaccination record to i'd have to get them done over again to get the record/certificates..
If there'r any other alternatives, please do let me know...
Secondly I want to know whether you immunizations must be 'COMPLETE' when you apply? Like Hep B is a 6 month course, so can you actually send your forms with the 2 doses completed and then show them the 3rd dose record when you start your electives?
I hope you get my question :)
Immunization
who can give an immunization certificate??
does it have to be an authorized doctor or from your own medical college or it can be done by any M.D ??
Umar bhai... u r an angel to
Umar bhai... u r an angel to ppl like us who aspire 2 study in the US buthave no doctor background to guide!!... hats off 2 u!
I had a doubt regarding the immunization thing:-
1) I have had an episode of varicella and considering that has given me life-longimmuvity, do i still need 2 take d vaccine?
2) I had taken TDwP vaccine in childhood (But no record).
Condisering its 18-20years since the last dose, i dont think i wud have +ve titers. so now if i wish to take TDaP:
CDC says its safe to take but doesnt giv the schedule (some like Univ of Chicago say 0-1-6 regimen mandatory)... WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO TAKE?
3) I had also taken MMR in childhood but no records..
Can i Safely take it again? n wat is the schedule?
I CHECKD A LOT OF SITES BUT CANNOT FIND A COMPREHENSIVE SOURCE.. PLZ HELP!!!!!