Studying MBBS Outside India: Know The Details

Medicine is a field a large number of students aspire to join. However, it is a well-known fact that it takes immense dedication, hard work, patience, and optimum utilisation of one’s potential to become a doctor. Sadly, it is not uncommon to see many students willing to invest all the required time and energy in the study of medicine, but still not being able to crack the medical entrance.

As per data from the National Testing Agency (NTA), 18.72 lakh students have applied for NEET 2022 exam, while the number of seats available for MBBS admissions is 90,000. This indicates that about 17.82 lakh students may not be able to fulfill their aspirations of pursuing medicine. Another important point to note here is that of these 90,000 seats, only about 42,000 seats are in government colleges. The remaining 48,000 seats are in private colleges, where the fee structures are most often high, and vary from anywhere between Rs 50 lakh to Rs 1.2 crore. Thus, finances also often become a constraint for students wanting to study medicine.

This is why pursuing medical education abroad often seems like a ray of hope to students and their parents. The study of medicine outside India typically costs between Rs 16 lakh to Rs 45 lakh. Some of the countries outside India that medical aspirants prefer to go to are Russia, Ukraine, China, Kyrgyzstan, Mauritius, Kazakhstan, Philippines, Georgia, Nepal, and Bangladesh. Out of these countries, Nepal and Georgia are the most expensive, while Russia and China are the most sought-after. All these countries are home to some good medical colleges, which also meet the norms set by the National Medical Commission of India. Some of these norms/guidelines are:-

• 100% of MBBS education should be in the English language.
• MBBS course should be at least 54- month long, plus, have an internship.
• Students of MBBS in overseas colleges should get a license from that country to practice in that country.
• Internship should be completed in the country of study.
• Students will have to do an additional 12-month internship in India too.
• College transfer shall not be allowed in the middle of the course.
• All MBBS overseas graduates should pass the FMGE exam to be eligible to practice in India and attain a score of at least 150 out of 300. This exam is held twice a year. FMGE will be replaced by the NEXT exam from 2023 onwards. Almost 15000 to 20000 students appear for this paper every year.

Although, Indian students can do MBBS in the USA, UK, and Australia also, but the entrance test and other criteria for getting admission to MBBS in these countries are difficult and only a handful of students are able to get through. Moreover, the fee for pursuing medicine in these countries runs in crores.

Let us now take a bird’s eye view of the medical education landscape in each of these countries, one by one.

Also Read | 5 Questions To Ask Yourself Before Joining Medical School

Russia

Russia has over 40 universities where Indian students can take admission to MBBS and which are approved by NMC. Some of them are:-

• Lobachevsky University
• Far Eastern Federal University
• Kursk State Medical University
• Kazan Federal University

To take admission to a Russian university, one should qualify NEET exam and secure a minimum of 50% marks in Physics, Chemistry, and Biology. Biology gets about 5000 students from India every year, which is the biggest chunk of the students applying abroad for MBBS. The fee in Russian universities varies from 20 lakhs to Rs 45 lakhs for the complete course. This includes lodging and other expenses too, like visa processing and medical insurance.

Low-Budget Universities In Russia

Students who have a limited budget for their MBBS studies, which is between Rs 16 lakh to Rs 18 lakh, may consider the Lobachevsky University or the Kyrgyz Russian Slavic University. Here, within this amount, they should be able to manage the tuition fee, hostel, and medical insurance. The food in these countries is not as costly and one can manage in about Rs 8000 to Rs 12000 per month. Indian food is available in many hostels. If not, then the raw material for making Indian food is easily available near these medical colleges.

Also Read | Private Medical Colleges With Low Fees: A State-Wise List

China

China also has over 40 universities for MBBS and where Indians can take admission. However, due to the pandemic, the number of students going to China to pursue higher education saw a drop. Hopefully, China will soon open doors for all the students in this academic year. Some of the universities in China are:-

• Zhejiang University
• Huazhong Univ of Science and Technology (HUST)
• Xi’an Jiaotong University
• Nanjing Medical University

One should have qualified NEET and gotten at least 60% marks in Physics, Chemistry, and Biology to get admission to MBBS at a university in China. A few universities may accept 50% too. Chinese universities are the most sought-after because of the high quality of education. The annual fee of Chinese universities, including hostel, is between Rs 4.5 lakh to Rs 5.5 lakh, which is way lesser than the medical colleges in India. The course duration is 6 years.

Georgia

Georgia is another sought-after country because of its good quality education and security of the students. This European country is fairly decent in all aspects except that it demands a very high fee, which is around Rs 35 lakh to Rs 45 lakh for a year. Over 3000 students from India go to Georgia every year. Many students from Georgian universities can clear the USMLE (licensing exam to practice and study in the USA) exam too because of the quality education they receive. Some of the good universities for MBBS in Georgia are:-

• David Tavildiani Medical University
• Petro Shotabze Tbilisi State Medical Academy
• European University
• East European University

Kyrgyzstan And Kazakhstan

Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan are two other destinations that provide low-cost medical education to international students. Over 3000 students from India go to each of these two countries also. Most of these MBBS courses vary from 5 years and 8 months to 6 years of duration, including the internship. Some of the universities students may target in these two countries are:-

• Kazakh National Medical University in Kazakhstan
• South Kazakh Medical Academy in Kazakhstan
• Kyrgyz Russian Slavic University (has collaboration with Russia, students get a dual degree)

Ukraine

Another very important and big option is Ukraine. Due to the ongoing political situation, students and their parents may not be very keen on the possibility of Ukraine being a study abroad destination. However, it is expected that some of the colleges in Western Ukraine will start physical classes very soon. Currently, all the Ukraine colleges are holding online classes. The fee for MBBS courses in Ukraine varies from Rs 23 lakh to Rs 35 lakh. Some universities in Ukraine are:-

• Bukovinian State Medical University
• Kharkiv International Medical University
• Kharkiv National Medical University

FMGE Coaching To Indians

Some Ukrainian universities also give FMGE coaching to Indian students. This training is given by the visiting professors from India. Hence, it becomes easier for Indian students to clear FMGE after coming back to India.

Temporary Residence Permit

Also, it is easy to get a temporary residence permit after completing MBBS in Ukraine, Russia, and other countries. A little bit of local language is also taught to the students so that they can interact with the patients during the internship.

Bangladesh And Nepal

For students who do not want to go too far away from India, Bangladesh and Nepal may be good prospective study destination options. Not just that these are close to India, but their curriculum is quite similar to what is taught in India for MBBS. The fee for MBBS in Bangladesh is about Rs 35 lakh and that in Nepal is between Rs 45 lakh to Rs 55 lakh. The only problem with Bangladesh is that it doesn’t accept a study gap of more than one year.

Clearing NEET Is Prerequisite

Clearing the NEET exam is a prerequisite for admission to any overseas university for pursuing MBBS. Without having cleared the NEET, the overseas degree will not be valid in India. If a student takes an overseas degree without clearing the NEET, then the only option for them to be able to practice in India is to clear the PLAB (the UK licensing exam) or USMLE (USA licensing exam).

How Low-Budget MBBS Becomes Possible

One question that may lurk in the minds of many is how these foreign countries provide MBBS courses at drastically lower costs than India. The simple answer to this is the low population of these countries and the higher number of seats available. Therefore, almost everyone who has qualified NEET can take admission to any one of these universities based on their budget. Another good thing about these universities is that the student-teacher ratio is only 15- 25 students to a teacher, as compared to the 80-100 students to a teacher in India.

Many Foreign Countries Offer MBBS At Much Lower Costs Than India

Possible Pitfalls

Let us now also take a look at what might be the drawbacks of pursuing MBBS outside India.

• After completing MBBS and an internship from an NMC-approved college outside India, one has to take the FMGE (will be NEXT from 2023) exam. Not many students can clear this exam in the first go. This increases the tenure of the process.
• The temperature in Russia, Ukraine, and some of other countries we spoke about may drop to as low as -17 degrees.
• Some of these countries witness summer only for three months.
• Very few people in these countries speak English, which creates a language barrier for Indian students.
• Clinical exposure during the pursuit of MBBS in these countries is very less, compared to that in India, most likely because of the low population and resulting low influx of patients.

Also Read | NEET Rank Below 100000? These Colleges Will Still Give You MBBS Seat

Choosing The Right Country For MBBS

While choosing a foreign country and university for MBBS, students should check multiple factors, including the following:-

• Choose government universities as they are well-established and have hospitals associated with them. Don’t rely on private universities without checking the details.
• 100% of the studies should be in the English language. Some of the Russian universities are bilingual. Students should not take admission to bilingual universities.
• All departments should have relevant medical equipment. Try to gather information about this from various sources.
• Discuss fees and other details in advance with the agents. Check the country’s relationship with India, and the availability of Indian embassy in that country.
• Check for separate boys’ and girls’ hostels, and for the availability of Indian food.
• Make sure that your agent is genuine.
• As per the new NMC guidelines, MBBS degrees from Philippines are under the scanner as they are not of 54 months. Therefore, be very careful when any agent talks to you about MBBS in the Philippines.

Studying MBBS from outside India has its own pros and cons. Hence, you must be very careful and evaluate all relevant factors before you make a decision.

Munish Ohri is Founder, Epsilon Education Consultants. He holds close to three decades of experience in the fields of education, human resources, and consulting. He is passionate about education counselling keeps himself abreast of the latest developments, and holds extensive experience in guiding and counselling students with college selection based on their previous studies, affordability, and location preference. Munish has a thorough understanding of counselling procedures and specific admission requirements for numerous colleges across countries. He helps students identify potential colleges for application filling, fee payment guidance, etc., while also guiding them to get the best IELTS, TOEFL, SAT, GRE, and GMAT scores.