Dear sir,
I want to know about how to get medical education from abroad (USA, Canada and Australia), eligibility requirements, where to apply and the fee structure.

Ganesh Mishra

Dear Ganesh Mishra,
At the outset at what level you are wanting to pursue your medical education is not clear to me. If you are looking at medical education from the entry level then after your 10 + 2 you need to seek entry into a science degree with Biology as a must subject. In UK and Australia you can get entry if you have a good academic record and you need to have cleared IELTS or TOEFL. For USA you have to write the SAT1 and SAT 2 along with TOEFL. While you are studying for the degree you need to clear the Medical Admission Aptitude Test of that respective country and only then will you be eligible to enter the actual medical school. Medical education in any of these countries is highly competitive and very few aspirants get a seat. More over cost of medical education abroad is also another factor one needs to look into. Generally, the average cost in any of these countries is about 20 to 25 lakh per year from the time you join the medical school. In addition you have to bear the degree course for three years together with the fees for aptitude test etc. Keeping all these factors in mind I suggest you check whether you have the aptitude for medical education and as a career choice.

If you are looking at medical education after you have done your MBBS the approach is totally different. It is unfortunately becoming very difficult for Medical Doctors to go for higher education abroad particularly to countries such as USA and UK. Any higher education in the field of Medicine involves ongoing clinical work for which one has to get a license from the concerned country, which involves preliminary exams. To study in UK one has to take PLAB examination (Proficiency in Linguistic Assessment Board), first part of which can be taken in India, part 2 and 3 one has to take in UK. For USA one has to pass USMLE (United States Medical Licensing examination) in medical and clinical subjects. Part one of this examination can be taken in India after which the remaining part has to be taken in USA. This is the point at which visa availability is crucial as they refuse to give any for medical doctors. Moreover now-a-days these countries are giving first preference to the local medical graduates. Australia is also similar in all aspects except that the chance of getting a visa is far higher but all other conditions are similar.

Dear Sir,
My son, is a 3rd year student in Pediatrics in Government  Medical College, Bangalore. He wants to go for higher studies abroad with a stipend. Which are the countries that will be suitable for him to do MRCP course without appearing for exams like PLAB or USMLE? Is there any entrance exam to study an MRCP course in Singapore or Malaysia?

Sriniwas Rao,
Chikmagalur

Dear Sriniwas Rao,
If your son is studying in 3rd year medicine that too in Government Medical College he must have academically performed well. I appreciate your interest in his studies and his efforts to pursue higher studies abroad. Having that much of intelligence and interest, let him continue his studies equally diligently. Regarding higher medical education abroad right now the chances of getting a seat is very low —  either in UK or USA. The situation has changed and the priority is for the students who have already been studying medicine there. Getting stipend or scholarship is highly difficult or even impossible. More over higher education in medical field involves working in clinical field, which means they get a job and get paid for it. This income is sufficient for their living expenditure but the course fee has to be borne by the student. It is the same even in Singapore. More over no way can he avoid qualifying in the PLAB and USMLE. The alternates you may look at are Russia and China are opening up in a big way for higher medical education. You may browse through the following websites for more detailed information. For China: www.chinambbs.com. For Russia: One year’s time is required for intensive preparatory-cum-preliminary study in Russian language. www.educationrussia.org, educationrussia@list.ru,  info@educatiorussia.org and www.rcsc.org.in. Apart from all these if his academic record is good and if he performs well there are all chances that he can specialise in an area of his choice here in India as Medical Education in India is at par with any country in the world.

Dear Sir,
My brother is a software engineer. He has 3 years experience. He wants to study MBA. And also he wants to go abroad for further studies and work. But his company is sending him to Australia.

Prakash M, Bangalore

Dear Prakash,
I understand that your brother has a degree in engineering and work experience of 3 years. This makes him most eligible to pursue his studies anywhere in the world. I did not understand whether his company is sending him to Australia to pursue his education or on work.

Australian management schools are also gaining reputation. If the company is sponsoring him for further studies that is a good opportunity and he will have a bright future and he will have the option of either continuing in the same company, after the locking in period stipulated by the company for having sponsored his education, or shift over to a still higher challenging job. If his company is not sponsoring his education then he has to choose the country for his management education.

The options could be UK, USA, Australia, etc. Almost all good B schools look for GMAT score in addition to the work experience. Further, the most important point is financial assistance of any sort is not available for management education. One has to be prepared to pay for it. No doubt one has the option of 20 hours of work per week and will be doing an internship during studies, which will fetch some money. The earning may not be sufficient to pay the fees.


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