India has issued a comprehensive advisory to citizens planning to study medicine in China.
The government has warned about the challenges they may face after studying in China, including low pass percentage, the need to learn the official spoken language there and the stringent rules for practising as a doctor in India.
The Indian Embassy in Beijing issued the advisory in the form of answers to queries received from students.
It said that only 16% of the students passed the required test between 2015 and 2021 to qualify to practice in India.
The advisory also cited feedback by older students on the limited English skills of teachers and a lack of ranking on the quality of education offered by the Chinese universities.
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“As per regulations of the Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China, the courses are offered in English language. However, learning the Chinese language is mandatory for clinical sessions. Hence, every student will also need to learn Chinese language up to HSK-4 level,” according to the advisory.
“Any student who does not clear this minimum Chinese language skill will not be awarded a degree. Prospective students are requested to check with the university concerned about this requirement beforehand as there are minor differences on the level of Chinese language skill requirement for different universities,” it added.
ET OnlineOver 23,000 Indian students are presently enrolled in various Chinese universities, most of whom are medical students.
China recently started issuing visas to a select number of students. Thousands of Indian medical students have been waiting to return to China.
In July, China said it had made progress on facilitating the return of Indian students and was working with many departments to see that the first batch of Indian students could come back to the country.
Students have, however, said that it was difficult to return as there are no direct flights and the two countries are still working out limited flight facilities, considering Beijing’s quarantine restrictions.
Listing out 45 medical colleges designated by the Chinese government to provide medical degrees in five-year duration plus a one-year internship, Indian students were advised not to seek admission other than these colleges, check the duration of the course, language of instruction, mode of education (online or offline), fee structure and visa requirements from the university directly before taking admission.
According to the advisory, Indian students studying medicine in China have to obtain a license to practice in the country where they obtained the degree, and after completion of the internship, students will have to clear the Chinese medical qualification examination and obtain a physician qualification certificate to practice in China.
Referring to the National Medical Commission regulations issued last year, it said that any prospective student who seeks medical education abroad should necessarily have a license to practice in the country of a graduate after completion of his/her clinical medicine programme before she can appear for FMG (Foreign Medical Graduate) examination in India.
They will also have to clear the NEET-UG (National Eligibility cum Entrance Test-Undergraduate) exam — the entrance examination for undergraduate medical education in India – as a prerequisite to pursue medical education abroad, the advisory said.
However, only 6,387 of 40,417 students who appeared in the FMG exam of the Medical Council of India (MCI) from 2015 to 2021 have cleared it, it pointed out.
The advisory asked students as well as their parents to go through a study conducted by the National Board of Examination of the pass percentage of students who had studied in various Chinese universities and also be mindful of the dynamic Covid-19 regulation and quarantine norms in the country.
ET Online
