Is Karachi safe?

Is it safe to go to med school in karachi these days with everything going on?
Can anyone tell me about their experience?
URGENT REPLY NEEDED!! PLEASE!!

Yes, it is safe. I have been living here for 3 years almost and I came to Karachi from Canada. All those things you see portrayed by media is a bit exaggerated. I think I have said this before in my previous posts but I will repeat it again nonetheless, even if there is a blast somewhere, our classes are scheduled and commence on time as planned, and the attendance is also amazingly full. The thing is that one has to avoid "hot areas" where tensions are meant to be built and everyone is aware of such spots before hand. It is just a matter of choice for us to get involve or not .... and any sane person would like to stay away from such events. If you want to know more , please let me know. But as for your very query regarding Karachi being safe, in my humble experience, I would most definitely say YES

hey thanks for replying so quickly and what you said just made my day!
Im totally okay about going to karachi but my dad has been freaking out lately cuz he thinks that i could get kidnapped and stuff like that. Does that really happen to foreigners? oh yeah one more thing are u in pakistan for med school...if you are then what med school are u going to?

thanks again

Lol... kidnapped? No. One has to keep a low-profile nevertheless. I mean this holds true for every country you are visiting, regardless of your background. You have to blend in, not stand out. Anyways, a few things I would like to clear up:

1. Karachi is safe. You won't be blown up, kidnapped or all those God-forbidden things that might be coming in your mind right now . If you are afraid of such things, then that holds true for every city in Pakistan. Just recently there was a blast in the city of Lahore. Islamabad is no different. Unfortunately, things have been going this way for a long time here. But such planned events are carried out mostly towards authorities, not civilians.
However, you should be aware that Mobile/Cell phone snatching is quite common in Karachi as compared to other cities, especially if you are a Male and don't tend to hang around in groups. In that case, you simply let your cell phone go, no question asked. Think of it as a tax or insurance policy of your life. Alhumdullilah, I have never experienced such an event in my stay here for 3 years. Therefore, it really depends on you as a person and how you express yourself in public. There are safer places. Almost all big stores and malls have guards with guns. In fact, people tend to stay outside till midnight. I have came home even at wee hours of the day so again, I am trying to balance the outlook and perscpetive of how you may be viewing Karachi as a city. Also, if you leave your car outside without a driver or in a neighbourhood that seems a little too uncanny, then expect your side mirrors and even your stereo system to be vanished. It's normal. Move on .

2. What is your reason for coming to Karachi for your studies? Is it because you have any relatives living here. If the answer to that question is yes, then I would recommend you to come here for your med studies. If no, then widen your horizon and apply for other med schools too in the country.

3. If you are a forienger and you would like to work and study in an environment which is welcoming and not too different from what you are used too back at home, then I recommend private colleges over government ones. There are plenty of private colleges in Karachi. Aga Khan being the best in the entire South Asia region, not only Pakistan; however, the admission process is quite challenging.

I myself study at Ziauddin University. It is located conviently in Clifton, near Seaview. Considered to be one of the best colleges around. It is a private college with a very nice environment for foriengers and locals alike.

Dow Internatial College is also foriengner friendly as far as I have heard. So I beleive you should keep your options open nonetheless.

Glad I can be of any help. More questions, ask away!

I just graduated from a high school here in the states and i applied to dimc. I have a pretty good chance of being admitted there and inshallah i plan on going there. the only problem is that my dad hears all these stories from all these other pakistanis about foreigners being kidnapped and getting shot over cellphones and cars and other stuff like that. and then the news makes it worse so he hasnt made up his mind if i should go or not. but anyway i want to be go to a med school in karachi mostly because i lived there until i was 9 and i have a couple of mamos and cousins there also.
and oh yeah there have been like a lot of rumors going around about karachi spilliting up into its own state...is that true? or is it just media trying to scare people??

I don't know how many people read the FAQs around here, but somewhere along the list I think we mentioned that what you hear from your neighbor's cousin's friend's dog-walker's aunt is usually the biggest amount of BS ever told.

I've never heard of any foreign medical student who suddenly got murdered or kidnapped and ransomed, and chances are, neither did whoever told you that story in the first place.

Karachi's political state is pretty irrelevant.

arright thanks thats good news.

Exactly , couldn't have put it together any better and wow, you guyz have them in FAQs... wonderful!

As for Karachi being a separate state, all the four provinces are quite tensed but InshAllah we will remain as a one whole Pakistan. It is just a political drama and a very good one.