International medical graduates

[MD04]

1. International medical graduates

We use the term "international medical graduates" to describe:

Doctors who have an acceptable overseas qualification and who are nationals of countries outside the UK, the EEA and Switzerland

and

Doctors who have an acceptable overseas qualification and are UK nationals.

2. Acceptable primary medical qualifications

All international medical graduates must possess an acceptable primary medical qualification in order to apply for registration. In addition, international medical graduates will be required to demonstrate their medical knowledge and skills, knowledge of English, and fitness to practise before they are registered.

The GMC defines an acceptable primary medical qualification as meeting the following five criteria. The primary medical qualification must have:

• Been awarded by an institution listed on the Avicenna Database (formerly the WHO Directory of medical schools) or otherwise accepted by the GMC and be currently acceptable to the GMC. (Please note: the GMC does not accept all primary medical qualifications that are listed on the Avicenna Directory. See below for more information).
• For those on the Avicenna Directory, been awarded by an institution that has a physical address included in the Avicenna Directory.
• Been awarded after a course of study comprising at least 5,500 hours (or four years full time equivalent study).
• Not involved a course of study undertaken wholly or substantially outside the country that awarded the primary medical qualification.
• Have not involved a course of study undertaken wholly or substantially by correspondence.

The GMC currently regards most, but not all, of the primary medical qualifications listed in the Avicenna directory of medical schools as acceptable for the purposes of registration with the GMC.
Please check in this guidance for details of the Avicenna Directory primary medical qualifications that are not accepted by the GMC, and those that are accepted on a case-by-case basis. The GMC may exclude the primary medical qualifications from any school listed in the Avicenna directory at any time.
Primary medical qualifications not accepted by the GMC

The following medical schools are currently listed in the Avicenna directory of medical schools. The GMC, however, is not satisfied that the qualifications issued by these schools meet all five criteria for an acceptable overseas qualification. At the present time, the GMC is not registering graduates who hold primary medical qualifications obtained from the medical schools listed below. Graduates from these schools are not permitted to make a booking or to take the Professional and Linguistic Assessments Board (PLAB) test.

Belize
St Matthew’s University School of Medicine
Grace University School of Medicine
Cook Islands
St Mary’s Medical School
Liberia
Saint Luke School of Medicine
Senegal
St Christopher Ibrahima Mar Diop College of Medicine
Seychelles
University of Seychelles American Institute of Medicine (USAIM)
St Lucia
Spartan Health Sciences University
St Mary’s Medical School

Primary medical qualifications which may be accepted by the GMC

Primary medical qualifications obtained from the following medical schools may be acceptable for the purposes of GMC registration. Doctors graduating from the following schools seeking registration are advised to contact the GMC as applications will be dealt with on a case by case basis. Any doctor who applies for registration with a primary medical qualification from one of these schools may be required to submit additional information, such as transcripts and details of clinical rotation arrangements, before a decision is made on whether they have an acceptable primary medical qualification.
Please note: If you are thinking of booking the PLAB test and are the holder of one of these primary medical qualifications we strongly recommend that you contact the GMC before booking the test to ensure that your qualification is acceptable.

Antigua
American University of Antigua
Commonwealth of Dominica
All Saints University School of Medicine

Grand Cayman
St Matthews University School of Medicine
Guyana
American International School of Medicine
Netherlands Antilles
University of Sint Eustatius School of Medicine

American University of the Caribbean (this only applies to graduates who transferred to the American University of the Caribbean following a period of study at another medical school)
Philippines
University of the East Ramon Magasaysay Memorial Medical Centre
Russia
St Petersburg State Medical Academy
St Petersburg State I.P Pavlov Medical University
St Petersburg State Pediatric Medical Academy
Samoa
Oceania University of Medicine
St Kitts and Nevis
Windsor University School of Medicine
International University of Health Sciences
St Theresa’s Medical University
University of Medicine and Health Sciences
St Lucia
Destiny University School of Medicine and Health Sciences (formerly known as the College of Medicine and Health Sciences)
Tanzania
Hubert Kairuki Memorial University
Uganda
Kigezi International School of Medicine (this school is now believed to have closed down)
Ukraine
Lugansk State Medical University (this only applies to graduates who transferred to Lugansk following a period of study at another medical school)

Acceptable primary medical qualifications which are not on the Avicenna directory of medical schools

There are a number of additional primary medical qualifications which are not currently listed on the Avicenna Directory of medical schools (formerly known as the WHO Directory of Medical Schools) but are regarded as acceptable for the purposes of registration with the GMC. Acceptance of these qualifications is approved by the GMC’s Registration Committee and is not an alternative to a school being listed in the Avicenna Directory. This acceptance is approved only in exceptional circumstances.
If your medical school is not listed in the Avicenna Directory and does not currently appear on the list of additional primary medical qualifications accepted by the GMC you will need to contact your medical school in the first instance and ask them to contact the relevant Ministry of Health with a view to requesting Avicenna Directory listing for the school.
3. Private, UK-based, medical colleges

There are a number of private, UK-based medical colleges that claim that the course of study undertaken substantially or wholly in the UK leads to a primary medical qualification awarded by an overseas University.
Whilst the overseas university may be listed in the Avicenna directory of medical schools based on its recognition by the country's government, the GMC is not satisfied about the status of the schools' programmes in the UK, specifically the schools' recognition by the government nor is it assured that the schools' are subject to adequate quality assurance arrangements. The overseas universities and their UK base are NOT subject to any quality assurance arrangemen

[halostranger]

Does this mean that St Petersburg State Medical Academy graduates of medicine can practice in the UK without passing the PLAB?

[devildoc8404]

Read the paragraph above the list, eh? It states that the medical degree MAY be acceptable for GMC registration, and these applicants are reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Then it says that if you want to take the PLAB, you want to check with them first to make sure that your qualification is acceptable.

Does this mean that St Petersburg State Medical Academy graduates of medicine can practice in the UK without passing the PLAB?

[TriageModerator]

Kindly post only if relevant to thread please.

[gx255]

I'm not sure what this thread is about. Is this suppose to be a list of approved schools from GMC?
I see my school on that list, does that mean we need PLAB as well? What is PLAB? and is that the equivalent of USMLE?