Join Atlantis: Pre-Health Shadowing 60+ Hrs w/ Top Doctors

I had the wonderful opportunity to travel to Guadalajara, Spain this past winter vacation. Traveling abroad as a pre-med is always difficult, because most study abroad programs do not have classes that pertain to the typical pre-med's classes. However, the Atlantis Project was an opportunity for me to justify traveling abroad by getting the chance to shadow various doctors in multiple specialties. The Atlantis Project also offers programs all throughout the year (Winter, Spring Break, Summer). This is great for someone like me, who has limited availability to take an international trip.

While in Guadalajara, we spent our mornings shadowing physicians of all departments of the hospital. I had the opportunity to shadow in maxillofacial, obstetrics, and general surgery. I was shadowed during multiple surgeries, procedures, and got to see my first natural birth. The physicians at the hospital were so kind and welcoming, even despite the slight language barrier. Most physicians spoke in English with me, and when the physician knew minimal English, I had the chance to practice my Spanish. Our shadowing experience was very well coordinated and helped make our short time in Spain worth-while.

Aside from the numerous hours spent shadowing, I had the chance to experience the culture by exploring the town we were staying in. I met some locals, ate delicious food, and visited some of the most beautiful historical sites. On most nights, the Atlantis Project provided us with dinner at a local restaurant. Each dinner was very well-planned with multiple courses. The food was definitely one of my favorite parts of the trip.

During our program, we also traveled to Toledo, Spain to take a tour of the city. I got to see some of the most beautiful landmarks and try some of the best pastries in Spain. The only thing I would change about my Atlantis Project experience is the length. If I could do it over again, I would have opted for a longer program, because I truly enjoyed it and wanted to spend more time in the beautiful country of Spain. If you are a pre-med student with an interest in traveling while at the same time developing your knowledge about medicine and international healthcare, the Atlantis Project is the program for you!

I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with fellow AP members while in Lithuania. I would've never visited Lithuania, but was so glad I did! The project was more disorganized than I had hoped...

Pros:
I was able to meet SO MANY great people and now life long friends from all over the United States.
Spending time in direct patient contact was fantastic (surgery was my favorite!)
Being in an educational institution made for so many extra learning opportunities; being five feet from a surgical patient was incredible. I saw so many INCREDIBLE surgeries that I would've never seen in the United States (due to differing interventional choices)
The activities and meals that were planned were a great cultural experience. It was awesome to be able to travel through the country visiting historical sites and learning Lithuania's history.

Cons:
WAY TOO EXPENSIVE for three weeks. I'd rather pay to travel Europe than this. My group had 9 members, each paying at least $3000. I'm not sure where the money went, as the hotel was less than 65 euros per night, and we were double bunked. The activities (though incredibly fun, and definitely a PRO) couldn't have been that expensive either.
**Let me say** I would've rather have paid the physicians who agreed to have us work with them. They would have been much more motivated to teach, instead of having a bunch of American college students dogging them all day.
Super disorganized staff. The project leaders couldn't equally make up their mind when it came to deciding how to "govern" their students. Occasionally unprofessional when it came to relations with AP fellows. They also had not informed hospital staff, nor arranged physicians for us to work with. Most of the time, physicians were surprised we were even there.
Most spoke English (or broken English), but otherwise it was difficult to communicate. Walking around the city was easy enough.

All in all, I don't believe I would pay for this program in hindsight. The ease and convenience of having everything planned (including transportation, most meals, staying, and activities) was great if you've never traveled abroad before. I personally would rather travel with $3000 than pay for hospital time; if there was any way to pay the physicians from our program fee, I'd much rather attend a program that way.

The Atlantis Project fellowship was honestly one of the best experiences of my life. Right when you land you are immediately greeted with a smiling face by one of the site coordinators. From there you'e always on the go! In Greece we got to experience two different hospitals in the duration of 3 weeks. Everyday you get to rotate through different specialities and really get to be involved in what is going on in the hospitals. My favorite memory from the hospital aspect was getting to watch a neuro surgery during the second week! I boast about it to this day to people that I talk to! Not only do you get to have a crazy time seeing so many aspects of the medical field, but you also get to dive into the country's culture. Twice a week all the fellows and site coordinators get together to go on excursions that entail a lot of the history of that country. There's so many meals you get to experience with your other fellows, as well as, some "down time." We had a lot of fun exploring the Greek night life during the weekends and just getting to experience the country as a whole. I could talk hours about how great this program is! I honestly believe anyone who is interested in medicine should really experience this program!

The Atlantis Project isn't just a program that allows you to choose from an immense amount of specialties to shadow, but it also gives you the opportunity to immerse yourself in the culture of Spain. The Atlantis Project took us to places we would've never found on our own and most importantly, our safety was always a priority. The coordinators were also extremely professional and helpful! They showed us Spain like no other study abroad program would while still focusing on the medicine and our future careers as health professionals. I had the chance to network with two medical students, one going to Stanford and the other going to Harvard. They gave us a lot of helpful advice and we even got a chance to meet with them one-on-one. I've completed a substantial amount of programs, but this program is by far my favorite. I encourage everyone to apply!

I’ve always wanted to go to New Zealand so this program was automatically great, the opportunity to shadow in a hospital made it even better. The Atlantis Project is great for undergraduate students who want the experience of going abroad while also shadowing physicians. I had originally applied to the fellowship because my university is small and the study abroad trips are outside of my major so the Atlantis Project’s pre-health opportunity was a great fit. All of the physicians were incredibly helpful and went the extra mile in explaining concepts and examination procedures. There are many staff members through the program that can answer questions immediately and they do a great job of checking in with you as you prepare everything for your trip to ensure that you don’t forget anything important. New Zealand was also beautiful and our site coordinator worked hard to help us with anything we needed and he took us on great excursions. Life-changing trip!

The 24 days I spent in Spain as a part of the Atlantis Project were hands down the best days of my life. You are surrounded with people you become so close with, so fast because you share common interests, aspirations, and drives. There is a perfect balance of shadowing in the hospital and exploring Spain. You will find yourself building lasting relationships and falling in love with the medical field at the same time. Being in another country and getting to immerse yourself in the culture is something I believe everyone should do at some point in their lives, but to get to do all while shadowing Physicians and prepare myself for my future made it that much more of an impacting experience. The Atlantis Project gives you an in depth look into medicine and a variety of different specialties, that you just can't find here in the U.S. The Atlantis Project has truly been a life changing experience and I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Atlantis Project provides a completely unique experience that makes study abroad worth it for pre-health majors. Most of us don’t have time to go abroad because they don’t offer the kinds of classes we need as part of the programs. Atlantis Project allows us to go abroad and get the experience a study abroad program gives while still helping us with our application for professional school. The program gives you ample opportunity to learn at the hospital and to learn about the culture outside of the hostpital. I was able to shadow a variety of physicians, that I was allowed to help pick, and see an amazing assortment of procedures and techniques. At the same time I also learned about Spanish culture and saw amazing things while there. Atlantis Project was the best month of my life and I wouldn’t change a minute of it.

Over the course of five weeks in Athens Greece I developed a new sense of adventure and interest in the ways in which medicine is similar and different across the globe. I not only spent a great deal of time being prepared for what it is really like to work and interact with doctors in a hospital, I learned empathy and compassion for those undergoing surgeries, treatments, and for the families that were being affected by illness. Along the way I met thirteen extraordinary individuals who will be life long friends and contacts as I continue on my path to be a doctor. I would not trade this experience for anything.