Why foreign med graduates have to brace for a bitter pill back home
Only 7,100 Among 57,200 Applicants Cleared Mandatory Test In The Past 5 Years
Mayilvaganan.V@timesgroup.com 24.10.2018
J Janarthan, son of a trucker from Namakkal, was full of pride when he left for Russia in 2010 to study medicine. His father wanted him to pursue MBA and join the family business. But, Janarthan ad his way and returned in 2015, armed with a medical degree. Three years later, as he struggles to clear the foreign medical graduate’s exam (FMGE), a frustrated Janarthan regrets not having listened to his father.
For 37-year-old Martin Asir Rajin from neighbouring Erode, medical practice is a forgotten dream. The father of three with an undergraduate medicine degree from Russia now dabbles in medical transcription and runs an agency for healthcare products. “I stopped appearing for the screening test five years ago after six failed attempts,” says Raj.
An estimated 5,000 to 7,000 Indians go abroad every year to study MBBS. Between 2012 and 2017, as many as 57,200 candidates have appeared for the screening test across the country. Of this, only 7,100 were able to clear the exam. Doctors in the All India Foreign Medical Graduates Association say roughly 2,000 students from Tamil Nadu appear for the exam every year. “In TN the idea of pursuing medicine or engineering is inculcated from a young age. So the number of students aspiring for foreign institutes is high from TN, followed by Andhra Pradesh,’’ says Dr Arun Kumar from Coimbatore, who was part of the first batch that appeared for FMGE in 2003 after returning from Russia.
As there is no limit to the number of times a graduate can take the test, people go for it multiple times but doctors say it becomes difficult after the third attempt. “If 10,000 candidates appear for the test, only 50% are fresh applicants while the rest would be from previous batches making a second, third or even fourth attempt,” says a doctor who guides foreign medical graduates to crack FMGE.
Experts say the reasons for a majority of students flunking the exam range from tough questions to difference of subject matter as well as low calibre of the students.
Since disease patterns differ with climatic conditions, students who have earned a degree from a country like Russia are often stumped by questions on tropical vector diseases such as dengue and malaria, primarily because there is no clinical exposure to such cases in Russian institutes. Many FMGE candidates feel questions are of the postgraduate level, but that’s because of the knowledge gap, to bridge which they require more years of study.
The problem of language in countries like Russia, China and Ukraine is another disadvantage. “If you are not good in the local language, you will miss vital points during lectures as well as during clinical exposure,” says Herald Miller, who completed his MD in Philippines. Herald, who did not find the screening test tough and cleared it in the first attempt in 2012, advises choosing foreign institutes where the mode of instruction is English and where clinical exposure is similar to India. Dr Kumar disagrees, “There is no questioning of standard in Russia. The curriculum is meticulous as in any other country,” he says.
Despite the issues that foreign-return graduates face, Russia, China and Ukraine remain the top destinations for medical aspirants. “Students seek out foreign institutes for affordability, accessibility and availability,” says Dr Ameer Jahan, chief patron of All India Foreign Medical Graduates Association. Those who could not make it to the medical schools see foreign institutes as the best option because they offer a medical degree at a much lower fee than private medical colleges here do.
Jahan blames the tough questions in the exam conducted by the Medical Council of India and vouches for the quality of medical education in Russian institutes. “When the screening test was introduced in 2002, almost 50% of the graduates managed to clear it in the first attempt and others did it subsequently. But the pass percentage has dropped as questions have become tougher,” said Jahan, who has been championing the cause of foreign medical graduates. Since MCI does not permit those failing the screening test to practise, some hospitals employ such graduates clandestinely with abysmal pay.
He argues the exam not only shatters dreams but also leaves India with fewer doctors. “There are discussions to scrap the test. Else, the government should make it mandatory for students from Indian medical institutions too,” he says.
Only 7,100 Among 57,200 Applicants Cleared Mandatory Test In The Past 5 Years
Mayilvaganan.V@timesgroup.com 24.10.2018
J Janarthan, son of a trucker from Namakkal, was full of pride when he left for Russia in 2010 to study medicine. His father wanted him to pursue MBA and join the family business. But, Janarthan ad his way and returned in 2015, armed with a medical degree. Three years later, as he struggles to clear the foreign medical graduate’s exam (FMGE), a frustrated Janarthan regrets not having listened to his father.
For 37-year-old Martin Asir Rajin from neighbouring Erode, medical practice is a forgotten dream. The father of three with an undergraduate medicine degree from Russia now dabbles in medical transcription and runs an agency for healthcare products. “I stopped appearing for the screening test five years ago after six failed attempts,” says Raj.
An estimated 5,000 to 7,000 Indians go abroad every year to study MBBS. Between 2012 and 2017, as many as 57,200 candidates have appeared for the screening test across the country. Of this, only 7,100 were able to clear the exam. Doctors in the All India Foreign Medical Graduates Association say roughly 2,000 students from Tamil Nadu appear for the exam every year. “In TN the idea of pursuing medicine or engineering is inculcated from a young age. So the number of students aspiring for foreign institutes is high from TN, followed by Andhra Pradesh,’’ says Dr Arun Kumar from Coimbatore, who was part of the first batch that appeared for FMGE in 2003 after returning from Russia.
As there is no limit to the number of times a graduate can take the test, people go for it multiple times but doctors say it becomes difficult after the third attempt. “If 10,000 candidates appear for the test, only 50% are fresh applicants while the rest would be from previous batches making a second, third or even fourth attempt,” says a doctor who guides foreign medical graduates to crack FMGE.
Experts say the reasons for a majority of students flunking the exam range from tough questions to difference of subject matter as well as low calibre of the students.
Since disease patterns differ with climatic conditions, students who have earned a degree from a country like Russia are often stumped by questions on tropical vector diseases such as dengue and malaria, primarily because there is no clinical exposure to such cases in Russian institutes. Many FMGE candidates feel questions are of the postgraduate level, but that’s because of the knowledge gap, to bridge which they require more years of study.
The problem of language in countries like Russia, China and Ukraine is another disadvantage. “If you are not good in the local language, you will miss vital points during lectures as well as during clinical exposure,” says Herald Miller, who completed his MD in Philippines. Herald, who did not find the screening test tough and cleared it in the first attempt in 2012, advises choosing foreign institutes where the mode of instruction is English and where clinical exposure is similar to India. Dr Kumar disagrees, “There is no questioning of standard in Russia. The curriculum is meticulous as in any other country,” he says.
Despite the issues that foreign-return graduates face, Russia, China and Ukraine remain the top destinations for medical aspirants. “Students seek out foreign institutes for affordability, accessibility and availability,” says Dr Ameer Jahan, chief patron of All India Foreign Medical Graduates Association. Those who could not make it to the medical schools see foreign institutes as the best option because they offer a medical degree at a much lower fee than private medical colleges here do.
Jahan blames the tough questions in the exam conducted by the Medical Council of India and vouches for the quality of medical education in Russian institutes. “When the screening test was introduced in 2002, almost 50% of the graduates managed to clear it in the first attempt and others did it subsequently. But the pass percentage has dropped as questions have become tougher,” said Jahan, who has been championing the cause of foreign medical graduates. Since MCI does not permit those failing the screening test to practise, some hospitals employ such graduates clandestinely with abysmal pay.
He argues the exam not only shatters dreams but also leaves India with fewer doctors. “There are discussions to scrap the test. Else, the government should make it mandatory for students from Indian medical institutions too,” he says.
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