Depends on several stuff.
Starting with the point you raised first, family. Well what are the odds that you will be in the same city as your family is, even if you are enrolled in an Indian PG Course. And your family can’t most certainly tag around India after you wherever you go. By family I obviously mean your parents as I assume you are not one of those people who get married at 23 and post their honeymoon pictures on Facebook. Yes, getting to your family in case of an emergency is easier if you are in India, but it would just take a few hours(and yes, several hundred dollars) more if you are abroad.
The quality of education and training in India is no match at all for the one you will get in the US. I have rotated in US hospitals and patient care and treatment is in a different league altogether. You have to be here to believe in it, starting from individualised gene targeted therapeutics to the latest cutting edge state-of-the-art technology, they have it all here. And more than that, you learn to be a human. You learn benevolence, you learn to be non-judgemental and not give flak to a patient for having what he has and being what he is, which we do all the time in India. And trust me, the age old myth that Indian doctors know much more than their US counterparts is totally untrue. These people know their shit pretty well.
You can easily pursue a subspecialty in the US. In India, getting into a DM course after a MD degree is like going through a grind in hell. Here the ratio of fellowship to residency seats is a lovely number very close to 1, and hence you have the luxury of starting your fellowship the day you end residency. Something we can only but dream of in India.
Money. Very big factor for some(the ones who say this isn’t a factor are just lying through their teeth). You earn way way more than what you would do in India. And when you go back to India to visit you friends you can act all high and pricey then.
Research. We all know clinical research in India sucks. Here, research is so integrated into the system that it’s become a way of life. And I am not talking about the shitty MD theses that people publish in India. They think and talk and publish articles about stuff you would never think about even back in India.
Work ethic. People in the US are usually nice, not bitchy, and have a terrific work ethic. 9 am means that everyone is there by 8.30am and by 9 am everything that needs to be done before the clinic opens has been done and they are totally ready for the first patient. Nurses won’t give you shit here like they do in India, they know it is their job and they will do it or else their head will be on the chopping block.
Now all this is not to make India or the PG training in India look in bad light, but I think is you should always give it a try so that you don’t regret it later on. However there are things you need to consider too. Like the initial financing, which can run into several lakhs and that it is a long process and you need to work hard for it, plus the fact that you have to be in a foreign country away from the people you know. But everything in life has its pros and cons. The onus is on you to turn the cons to the best of your advantage.
USMLE is not easy. From Indian perspective it becomes even more harder because there are 10 more life skills to be learnt like ‘writing a perfect email’, ‘talking to the point and talking well’, ‘browsing through 1000s of websites to get bunch of email addresses’, and ‘writing a fantastic/strong Personal statement’.
Further even if you clear all the exams in first attempt you are looking at at least 1.5-2 years before you start applying.
Money: You should be ready to spend close to 10,000 US $ overall. (No exaggerations)
The choice for PG branches is going to be always restrictive. On one hand there are less difficult branches like Family medicine, anesthesia and on the other hand there are some branches which are so hard for IMG to get into that you can conveniently just forget the USMLE dream you
r branch happens to be one of them. Like, Dermatology, orthopedic surgery, General surgery.
At the end of all this, it’s still a gamble. Mind you, I haven’t touched other issues like ‘prospects of settling in an alien Country, with alien language and alien food choices.’
Finally, tone of this reply might be pessimistic but final decision is yours. I recommend you sit for USMLE part I and take first experience for yourself. You will be able to decide better
Well, if you are planning to pursue your career in the United States, then the answer is YES. However, as I’m aware, medical professionals in India are not bat at all, so I guess you can try both areas. I would take a deep breath and just think about what I want to do in the future. If you are planning to give a shot to USMLE, then go for it. You probably won’t be provided with the resources for this exam, so I highly recommend you to get online premium subscription. There are many platforms that you can use and prices vary. I personally chose Lecturio for USMLE, but have a look at others too. For you though, Lecturio will be useful because you will be able to switch between NEET and USMLE. But here are all resources for USMLE that I know are good:
Lecturio
Kaplan
USMLE Rx
Osmosis
Sketchy Medical (only microbiology, pharmacology, pathology)
Pathoma
Boards And Beyond
Physeo
Hope this helps and best of luck!