Prospective students for an undergraduate course leading towards a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) degree must have completed a HSC (10+2, or high school) with the Science stream, including the subjects Biology, Chemistry and Physics with at least 50% marks.
[edit] Graduate courses
An MBBS degree with registration in the Medical Council of India is the basic requirement for all graduate courses in the field of medicine and surgery. In India, these courses are often referred to as Post-graduate courses as MBBS is considered to be a "graduate degree" (although equivalent to the western "undergraduate degree"). In India, students skip the four year degree, as in the US, (aka the Bachelors degree) with two intensive years of high school coursework (grades 11-12) and immediately start at medical school. High school graduates in India are usually better prepared in their skills in science than their counterparts in the US (however, in the US, after high school nearly all American students receive 4 additional years of science and non-science education at a University to receive a Bachelor's degree), and their education in India is generally very focused or technical in nature rather than the broad liberal model seen in the US.
[edit] Admission process
Admission criteria differ from one part of the country to another and even from Institution to Institution. In general, admission is based on one of the following:1. Rank obtained in an entrance examination conducted by the state/central government or the Institution.2. Marks obtained in the final examinations of Std. XII.
For post graduate courses, rank obtained in an entrance examination forms the basis for admission. Specific institutions may also require a personal interview of the candidate.
The Government of India has allocated a number of seats for students from developing countries where facilities for medical education are either inadequate. The exact number and country-based allocation of these reserved seats may vary annually.
Students seeking admission against the reserved seats are required to apply through the Indian missions abroad or through the diplomatic missions of the respective countries in India. The Indian Embassy or High Commission in a country will be able to provide more information on request. The last date of submission of application is usually the 28th February of the corresponding year. An international student must have completed 12 years of schooling. International students studying in schools in India can apply pending the declaration of their Higher Secondary (10+2) or equivalent examination results. The marks sheet of the examination should be sent within 10 days from the declaration of the result to: Students Cell, Room No. 1009, Ministry of External Affairs, Akbar Bhavan, New Delhi. International students can seek university admission to undergraduate courses in Engineering, Medicine (MBBS) and Dentistry (BDS) in private colleges.
[edit] Courses offered
A Medical College offers the basic undergraduate course MBBS. In fact only institutions offering MBBS course in its curriculum are referred to as a Medical Colleges. In Addition, the college may teach Post Graduate as well as Paramedical courses
The MBBS course starts with the basic non clinical subjects such as biochemistry, physiology, anatomy, microbiology, pathology and pharmacology. The students simultaneously obtain hands-on training in the wards and out-patient departments, where they interact with real patients. The curriculum aims to inculcate good habits of history taking and examination. The student is taught to arrive at a differential diagnosis and to determine what investigations will be useful in a particular case.
[edit] Postgraduate courses
All the major colleges also have Postgraduate Degree or Diploma courses in their programmes. The awards conferred are Doctor of Medicine (MD), Master of Surgery (MS) or Diplomate of National Board (DNB)). The MD/ MS degrees are offered by the Universities affliated to the Medical Council of India and the DNB degree is awarded by the National Board of Examinations, an independent autonomous body under the Ministry of Health, INDIA. They are available in different streams of medical science such as General medicine, General surgery, Orthopaedics, Radio-diagnosis, Radiotherapy, ENT, Ophthalmology, Anesthesia, Pediatrics, Community medicine, Pathology, Microbiology, Forensic medicine, Pharmacology, Anatomy, etc. Degree courses are of 3 years duration while diploma courses are of 2 years duration. Following post-graduation, students can opt for further sub-specialization in their area of interest by opting for courses called DM or DNB (Doctor of Medicine), or MCh or DNB (Master of Chirurgiae/ Surgery) again of 3 years duration.
An MD or a DNB (general medicine or paediatrics) is the basic requirement for specialization in Cardiology, Nephrology, Neonatology, Gastro-enterology, Neurology, etc while an MS or a DNB (general surgery, ENT or Orthopaedic surgery) is the basic requirement for Neurosurgery, Urology, Cardio-thoracic & Vascular Surgery, Gastrointestinal Surgery, Paediatric Surgery, Plastic Surgery, etc.
Although Family welfare is an area of priority, surprisingly no institute offers a Post Graduate Degree in Family Medicine and only a few Institutes offer a Diploma in Family Medicine. Post-doctoral fellowship courses in Neuro-radiology, Neuro or Cardiac anesthesiology, etc are offered by select institutions.
[edit] Paramedical courses
The paramedical courses include
B.Sc Nursing
B.Sc Medical Lab Technology
B.Pharm
B.P.T (Physiotherapy)
and many more.
