Welcome Package

The welcome package will be emailed to each student prior to the beginning of his or her first semester at St. Martinus University.

Book List

For the complete book list, please visit the SMUFOM online book store. Please be advised that students are NOT REQUIRED to use the Amazon store.

Acceptance Letter

Each student will receive a copy of his or her acceptance letter along with the Welcome Package.

Attire

At St. Martinus University Faculty of Medicine, we take pride in grooming our students into professionals. Therefore, each student is required to wear business casual attire to school. A list of acceptable and unacceptable attire can be found under the Dress Code section.

Since our program is an integrated medical program, it provides students the opportunity to learn in a real hospital setting. Therefore, students are required to wear a lab coat and professional attire to hospital visits. The students are required to wear dress shoes; business casual attire is acceptable.

The white lab coat may not have any logos or names on it.

Driving

Traffic keeps right in Curaçao. The roads are well maintained in most areas. Roads are marked with road signs.

Rental Cars are available at the airport. Rates vary according to season.

Essentials

The following required materials may be difficult to find on the island, and will not be provided by St. Martinus University Faculty of Medicine:

• 2 Lab Coats
• Scrubs
• Dissection kit
• Laptop (we request that students carry their own computers in order to have personalized access at school and home)
• Reflex hammer and tuning fork
• Books listed in the admissions packet
• Stationary
• Stethoscope
• Otoscope

Personal items:

• Sheets (no bigger than Queen Size)
• Clothes (casual business, casual, and beachwear)
• Toiletries
• Prescription Medicines
• Over-the-counter medicines (e.g. Tylenol, Maalox, etc.)
• Almost all other items are available on the island. There are big discount stores in addition to the regular stores.

Food

Restaurants, as well as grocery stores,are readily available. Grocery stores are within walking distance from the school and most apartment complexes where the students will be residing. Vegetarian food, Kosher food, and Halal meat are all available on the island.

Pizza Hut, Subway, KFC, Burger King and McDonald’s are some local eateries about 1 minute from the school.

Pets

If a student brings a pet from the USA or Canada, the student must have the following:

1. A letter of good health from the pet’s veterinarian.
2. Proof of all vaccinations.

Religion

St. Martinus does not have any affiliations with any particular religion.Many religious denominations are represented on the island. There are a number of Churches, a Hindu Temple, a Mosque and a Synagogue (the oldest synagogue in the Western Hemisphere is in Curaçao).

Insurance (Important)

By Curaçao LAW you are REQUIRED to have a local health insurance plan during your stay. You are also required to show proof of insurance before claiming your Residency Permit. All your immigration process will be taken care of by SMUFOM’s Immigration Department once all required documents have been received. Immigration and health insurance fees must be paid once per year.

Shipping

For all letters and other important packages, students are advised to use alternative shipping companies such as DHL, FedEx, or UPS. US-Postal services mail delivery is generally delayed on the island.

If you are planning to ship your belongings to Curacao, please call the local shipping companies to get your belongings shipped to Curaçao. Amerijet can be contacted for shipping also. Students can coordinate with one another and ship all of their belongings together in one container. When shipping, please make sure that each package is clearly labeled with its owners’ names. Please tape a detailed list of items contained, whether the items are new or used, and the dollar value of each package.

Packages can be shipped to the following address:

STUDENT NAME

St. Martinus University,
Faculty of Medicine
122-124 Sta. Rosaweg
Willemstad, Curaçao

Please inform the school by sending an email to “travel@martinus.edu” to inform when you are sending your
package so that the school can receive the delivery and store it until you arrive to the island.

Telephones

Once students arrive on the island, the SMUFOM welcoming committee will provide them with the list of available providers and options available. There are numerous providers on the island (Digicel, UTS-Chippie). The island uses GSM system, so students can use their SIM-card enabled unlocked US/Canadian phones.

Campus Visit

We are always open to receiving prospective students and parents at our campus. You can contact our SMUFOM office by phone or email to set up a campus visit. On arrival, you will meet a SMUFOM representative at the airport, and will be taken to see the campus. During the campus tour, students are welcome to have all their questions addressed. Campus visits, as well as accommodations, may be coordinated through the Administration Office at the Curaçao Campus.

Click here, to see what the island has to offer you during your short visit, or even better, your long stay with us at SMUFOM!

On Campus Housing

St. Martinus seeks to provide the safest and most hospitable housing environment so as to enrich the learning environment for all of its students. We take great pride in our achievements and strive every day to improve on what is an already excellent housing atmosphere.

St. Martinus has restored an island landmark and a source of pride to the community while simultaneously ensuring a first class boarding environment for its students. The housing is adjacent to where classes are held, adding a significant layer of convenience for its students. A $600 security deposit is required to reserve housing and full semester’s rent before semester starts.

Housing Packages and Prices

• Single Package: Single occupancy bedroom $600/month
• Double Package: Shared bedroom: $450/month per person

Amenities

• Fully furnished with single bed (6.5 x 3 ft.), study table, chair, closet, and small refrigerator
• Shared bathrooms
• Water, internet, electricity, garbage collection
• Air conditioning
• Laundry services available (on campus pick-up and drop-off / price not included)
• Meal plans available (not included)

Please note the following:

• Married students and students with children are advised to seek off-campus housing.
• No pets are allowed on campus

For more information on Housing Policies, please refer to our Student Handbook.

For more information on our Housing Packages and Prices, please refer to Tuition & Fees.

Full Meal Plan

SMUFOM offers an additional Meal Plan Package for On Campus students. This Meal Plan offers students 2 meals a day (lunch and dinner) and comes at a cost of $2,500 per semester.All meals come with a Vegetarian option. In addition, only Hallal meat products are used for non-vegetarian options.

Off-Campus Housing

Though St. Martinus offers a vast array of on-campus housing options, students are not required to live on campus past their first year. SMUFOM’s Department of Housing can help students find the best alternative housing for them. Please note that SMUFOM does not serve as a rental agent for students and is not responsible for the contract terms between landowner and tenant. SMUFOM simply offers the resources it can to best place its students in the housing situation they find most suitable.

SMUFOM students live in a variety of areas near the campus aside from the on-campus location. These areas include:

• Santa Rosa
• Jan Thiel
• Dominguito
• Serulora
• Sorsaka
• Punda
• Otrobanda

University authorities will, in no way, be responsible for any dispute on account of accommodations rented by the students on their own.

Contact information

HOUSING DEPARTMENT
OFFICE HOURS: Monday—Friday, 8:00 a.m.—5:00 p.m.
TEL: +1.877.681.4SMU (4768) EXT: 406
EMAIL: housing@martinus.edu

Technology

SMUFOM campuses offer students free access to WIFI networks. All devices must be registered with our IT Department (it@martinus.edu). In order to do so, all students must send the MAC Addresses of all their devices to the IT Department.

As a SMUFOM student, you are required to bring a laptop with you. SMUFOM offers all its’ students access to SAKAI and our Campus Management System (CMS). SAKAI is an online educational platform which allows students to access their grades, course materials, and communicate with fellow classmates and professors. SMUFOM’s CMS system allows students to update their contact information and access their Student Account Information.

In addition to this, SMUFOM students take all exams on a computer based system. This is intended to prepare students for the USMLE Examinations by getting them accustomed to taking computerized examinations. The University’s Block Examinations are done through our internal network. For these Examinations, SMUFOM will provide laptops for all students. Nevertheless, for examinations like NBME Prometric Evaluations, students will be required to use their own laptops.

SMUFOM does not have specific computer requirements. Both PCs (Windows) and MACs (Apple laptops) are used by the students and faculty.

Technology Requirements

Windows PC minimum requirements:

• Windows 7 (NOTE: Vista version of the PC’s tend to have issues connecting to the exam server)
• MS Office Student version

Apple (Macintosh) minimum requirements:

• OSX 10.6 or later
• MS Office Student version (NOTE: Keynote and Pages are accepted as well. However, in some instances, Keynote does not import the instructor’s PowerPoint layout correctly).

Apple or other Tablets:

• Although some students do take advantage of these units such as the iPads and tablets, these units are not sufficient to replace your notebook in Medical school.
• We do welcome using these units in with your personal notebook. Our SMUFOM-Portal and Online-Exam system both support iPad (1 & 2).