One is the daughter of immigrants who fled communist China for Minnesota. Another spent two years in the Navy. A third is the son of Mexican-American activists from Chicago. And still another left her 2-year-old son with relatives back in Florida.

With slightly more than a week's notice, the students left their jobs or colleges last month, said goodbye to friends and relatives, and began a six-year program at the Latin American School of Medical Sciences, a sprawling complex on the western outskirts of this capital city.

The Cuban government launched the school two years ago with a mandate to train foreign doctors from mostly poor Latin American or African countries. Last year, Castro decided to include US racial or ethnic minority students on the condition that they practice in underserved communities when they return.

''Everyone here has been warm and welcoming, but the attention has been a little overwhelming,'' said Karima Mosi, 22, who is a few credits short of receiving her undergraduate degree at the University of California-San Diego. ''The philosophy here is that doctors should work for the people, not for their own financial benefit, and I agree completely with that.''

Castro's plan is a gamble - both for Cuba and the students. Although Cuban-trained doctors are widely respected, no one is sure yet whether the American students will be adequately prepared to pass a rigorous series of licensing exams required of all doctors who want to practice in the United States.

''Our biggest concern is whether these students will be able to pass these difficult hurdles for residency or licenses,'' said Dr. Jordan Cohen, president of the American Association of Medical Colleges, which, among other things, takes part in accrediting medical schools.

The school, on a former naval base, has been converted into a miniature city along a beach 20 miles west of central Havana. It was established shortly after Hurricane Mitch devastated Central America and exposed the region's need for more doctors, especially in rural and poor areas. The school already has 4,000 students, all of them foreigners.

Not surprisingly, Castro's offer to train US medical students has become a political issue in the always tense relations between the two countries. Critics see the plan as nothing more than another Castro-led campaign to tout his country's policies and tweak Uncle Sam's nose. But supporters say the school will help fill a void in many countries, including the United States, for better health care in poor areas.

''This is not a political school,'' said Juan Carrizo Estevez, the rector. ''This is about medical training that's rooted in the deepest concept of humanity, because we hope that one day these students will become health missionaries in their countries.''

Despite chronic shortages of equipment, medicines, and money, Cuba's medical system has become a model of effectiveness in some areas. Its infant mortality rate is one of the lowest in the world, and its programs of child vaccination and prevention of meningitis and AIDS are internationally famous.

But the country also has a glut of doctors, forcing many to find jobs in other fields, such as the booming tourism industry, or take temporary assignments in other countries, such as Haiti. Those who find work as doctors make about $30 a month.

Castro offered to train as many as 500 American students last year during a speech at Riverside Church in New York, and later at a meeting with members of the Congressional Black Caucus. The scholarships are being coordinated through the Interreligious Foundation for Community Coordination and the New York-based Pastors for Peace.

''We have children dying in our districts because of inadequate health care, so why should it matter what country a doctor was trained in?'' said US Representative Bennie G. Thompson, a Mississipi Democrat. ''Rich folks go to offshore medical schools all the time, so why shouldn't poor students whom we know will come back and serve our communities?''

Mosi, the daughter of pro-Cuba activists in Southern California, decided to apply after reading a copy of Castro's speech online. She, like many of her American classmates in Cuba, says the United States should end its 40-year-old trade embargo against Cuba and has pledged to return to the United States to practice community-based medicine.

''I don't mind making an antiembargo statement with my presence here,'' said Sophia Ali, 21, of New York. ''If we can encourage others in the US to pay attention and learn about this wonderful country, then that's fine too.''

Their dormitories lack hot water, air conditioning, and toilet seats, the students said. They are required to wear the school uniform: blue pants and white doctor's smock. In addition to picking up their tab for tuition and housing, the government provides a stipend of about $5 a month.

They are kept at a distance from the residents and distractions of the bustling capital city, which they visit via school-provided shuttle bus on weekends. They mingle only with other foreign students. Cuban medical students attend schools elsewhere.

Those constraints aside, the students agree that the opportunity to study in Cuba influenced their decision far more than the free tuition.

''It's not just about the money, although that's very important,'' said Monica Fowler, a 21-year-old Houston native. ''For me, it's been mostly about the experience of living and studying in a country as fascinating as Cuba. But it's nice to know we'll be going back without school debt.''

US applicants must be 18 to 25 years old and have a high school diploma. They must also come from a racial or ethnic minority and have no criminal record. Most of the current students have not yet earned a college degree.

Although they're not prohibited by the trade embargo from studying in Cuba, the eight American students, like all doctors trained in a foreign country, will have to pass two sets of exams in order to get a US medical license and qualify for a residency program. They'll also have to meet state requirements.

Before giving its final endorsement to Castro's plan, the US congressional caucus is sending a delegation of observers to Cuba this weekend to visit the school and meet with the students. The group will include some US doctors and members of the National Medical Association, an organization of African-American physicians.

''We're giving them an education that combines the practical and theoretical and that's valid for today's medical reality,'' said Carrizo, the rector. ''But we have also thought about inviting US professors to give seminars to prepare the students for their exams, or to add a course on some financial or economic issues in medicine.''

Khalil Marshall, a 20-year-old resident of the Bronx who tried unsuccessfully to work as a hospital corpsman during his two years in the Navy, is not worried about passing the US exams.

''I know the education we'll get here is as good or superior to most foreign programs, and even better than many in the states,'' he said. ''It's also about the person and how hard they try. In my case, I've wanted to be a doctor ever since I was a child.''

© Copyright 2001 Globe Newspaper Company

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