"What I want to do after this degree is to get a master oversea and work hard and does research on cancer.. oversea

I agree this is not a sought after course locally, but i believe someday a change is gonna happen. If we work hard enough."


I have the same interests as you! i'm a biomedical science student of ukm, soon to graduate in august. actually my original goal for taking up biomed is to continue with grad-entry medicine. i was told in my 1st year as a biomed student that i could do this by extending for another 2++ years. however,all the universities i've checked so far (overseas,we dont have grad-entry medicine yet anywhere in m'sia right?plz correct me if i'm wrong) has a minimum of 4yrs' course for grad-entry medicine. n now,i'm not sure if i should continue with this. i mean,to enter grad-entry med overseas,u need to sit for an exam. i'm pretty sure it'll be really hard, considering i wont know what to study for the exam. n some of the exams require a good knowledge in physics (from what i've gathered so far) and its been 6yrs since i studied physics in secondary school (i took biology in metrics). another problem is,i need scholarship from jpa/mara (i was a jpa scholar as biomed student) to be able to study overseas, but i'm not sure if a cgpa of 3.41 can make it.ndo u know anything about these scholarship requirements? plz help me if u do..

so i dont think i can go through with this 1st dream of mine (at least for now). n lately i was thinking, what about continuing my studies overseas to get a master's degree? because studying abroad is also one of my greatest wish. both my elder sisters got to study medicine in the uk&australia under scholarships, based on their spm&matriculation results. they were spm-takers batch '98 & 2000 respectively,it was a great deal easier to get through during those days. i was absolutely depressed when i didnt make it for the interview in 2005, when a good friend of mine with a slightly lower spm result than mine did. i guess it just wasn't meant to be.

so anyway, during my final year as a biomed student,i did a final year project research on cancer, and it really interests me. so now i'm thinking if i cant make it into medicine,why not fulfill that 2nd dream of mine?i would love to study in the europe (uk&germany are my preferences, but actually, anywhere will do), and getting a master's degree overseas and then proceeding with research on cancer would be great.

do you know how do i go through with this? how&where do i apply? what are the requirements? will my ukm biomed-graduate cgpa suffice to obtain a scholarship? i wont be able to do it without financial aid..n since you seem to have the same interests as me,i figured that you might just be the one to help me..

thanks! but do we have students from m'sia who have already graduated from this med school? would it be recognised here? and do u know what are the entry requirements? i cant seem to find this information on the website..also, it would be of great help if u could introduce to me some of the students currently doing medicine there. and if you have anymore suggestions, maybe other renowned universities that you know of..would really appreciate it.

hey,thanx. now you've rly got me interested in the 4-yr grad-entry medicine in the Medical Uni of Warsaw,esp after reading your fellow msu students' testimonials. apparently it has a 3 to 1 chance of getting accepted, and that's good. it also does not require any specific entrance exams. however do you know the best way for me to contact the university, the person who handles applications? coz their website hasnt been updated since 2009, and the information posted there are barely enough to feed my curiosity..

i'm happy to learn that quite a number of malaysian students are currenty studying there. if MARA is willing to send that many students, than it must be recognised by our gov. I was hoping to apply for the 2010/2011 session, but seemingly the deadline of application was on the 30th of june..I missed it. but anyway i do not have the offical transcript and degree yet, it will only be awarded in august. do u know if there'll be any additional intakes for this session? otherwise i would have to wait until the next session in 2011..

another thing is that, physics&maths seem to be prerequisites to be accepted into this program, whereas i do not have both. these subjects were not included in my undergrad biomed curriculum..would that be a problem? if only i could contact some of those m'sian students studying there and ask..

thanx again and hope you're doing well in India!

just curious, when u said that i could directly inquire to MSU.. do u mean that i can actually apply for the grad-entry programme through MSU? and then (in the case that i was offered a place) fly abroad with the other MSU students who were accepted, even though my 1st degree was not from MSU..is this possible?

thanks for the info! i will try contacting MSU-IMS come monday, as the office is bound to be non-operational during weekends. wonder who I should ask to speak to, though. hopefully i haven't missed the application deadline..

actually I was referring to the grad-entry program in Poland, that seems to be the best option for me right now..I'm a little skeptical if they'll accept me though. will just see how it turns out. any chance you might know when the intake for that program is?

I tried calling MSU-IMS office but they have moved someplace else..so i called the main office and got the extension number. I was asked to speak to a certain Encik Zaidi, however he's on leave today. Will try calling again tomorrow, hopefully he's in.

Btw, the ad for the ACMS-UKM MD program was actually in the NST last May, but I couldnt make the interview as my results were not out yet at the time..thanks anyway!

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Added on July 20, 2010, 7:37 pm
This morning my call was finally put through to Miss Anis, the person in charge for MSU-IMS programs. She explained quite a lot to me, and said that she wasn't sure if I could apply for grad-entry in Poland..she fears that MUW may not be comfortable with the fact that Biomedical Science courses in UKM is not totally english-based, unlike MSU. Also according to her, most of the students accepted into grad-entry has a primary degree in Medical Sciences, which is a better foundation for medicine compared to Biomedical Science. She asked me whether I'm interested in the program in India instead, as MSU has more control on that. I couldn't give a prompt reply as my heart has actually been set upon that program in Poland..however I said I'd think about it and get back to her tomorrow.

And since there's no better person to ask about this than you..how is it like doing grad-entry med in India? What is the learning environment like, is it too stressful? Are the staffs friendly? At present, how many M'sian students are there in yr/yr junior's batch? Do fill me in, and feel free to add anything that u think is relevant.

p/s can I please know yr name? she asked me who I got my information from, and it was a little bit awkward not to be able to provide her with a name..

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Added on July 22, 2010, 2:51 pm@ CyberSetan

Miss Anis told me today that chances are low for me to get into the Poland program..due to the syllabus being thought in the Biomedical Science program is different in UKM compared to MSU. She told me that I may stand a chance for the program in India, I'll have to attend the interview which will probably be on the 26th of july. I'll have to call her back to confirm this. There will also be an entrance exam.

I dont know what to think, I really thought I had a chance to apply for that program in Poland..what do you think? I did try to contact the Polish Embassy directly but apparently, their number is no longer in use..and so far I have not found any other alternatives to that number.

If I should decide to go for India MBBS..how will the interview be? What are the questions that they usually ask, what is the nature of their questions? And the entrance exam, how do I prepare for it?

I really hope you could help me out with this..

This post has been edited by jared88: Jul 22 2010, 02:51 PM

Thanx a lot for that long, helpful reply! It did answer most of my questions, however it also landed me with some others:

- When you said that medical colleges in India uses the traditional method in teaching instead of PBL..how exactly is it done? Could you please clarify on this?

- When you said that all MBBS in India have a total of 5.5 yrs' duration of study, does this include Grad-entry program? I thought it was supposed to be 4 years, inclusive of that compulsory 1-year housemanship. And after completing this, do we still need to do 2 yrs' housemanship when back in Msia? So that it'll be a total of 3yrs, is this correct?

- About the exams, do you often see students failing a particular exam and having to repeat it? What do you mean by max repeat phase being twice for the entire program? In what circumstances would one be required to repeat a whole year? And by stressful, I hope you dont mean insanely so..

- With India's teaching methods being somewhat different from that in the UK and even Msia, what would you say is the best study method to employ? How do you personally study for exams..do you have study groups or do you guys study by yourselves?

- Seeing as how bad the traffic condition is in Bangalore, what is your preferred daily mode of transport? The bus is only available in the mornings right, so what if class starts in the afternoon/evening? Guys probably have motorcycles to solve this problem, but what about the girls?

- As much as yr various photographs of skulls and bones almost spooked me, I am more worried of the foreigner-stalking and corruptions going on in Bangalore..is it really that bad? For instance, if I were to walk alone through town on an errand at some point in time..would you say I'd be safe (being a female and all)? To what extent can you rely on the security there?

Its nice to know that the prices for medical equipments there are quite affordable. This is a pleasant change compared to how the economy now stands in Msia. Since you must undeniably have saved a lot of money because of this..have you @ any of yr friends ever had the opportunity to do some travelling? Not just throughout India, but maybe, overseas? (remember my 2nd dream? )
But then again, maybe you do not have the time to do so, even if money is not a problem.

Think that's all for now..shouldn't be asking too much since my place hasn't even been confirmed yet! BTW, the interview will be on the 7th. I'm quite nervous as I've never been to an interview before. Wish me luck!

It's ok, that's quite understandable

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Added on August 13, 2010, 10:49 pm@Cybersetan

Hey hope things have been going well for you! Sorry for the really long absence. I've been having quite a hectic week, whats with my graduation ceremony and all, and that interview..all happening in the same week.

Sad to say, I am now in a dilemma..about scholarship. Before the interview, when I was corresponding with Ms Anis about the MBBS program..I was under the impression that MARA scholarship will be automatically given to all students who pass the interview (I was a little bit surprised when you told me the interview shall be carried out by the MSU Dean/his Deputy/professors, and no MARA officials) However last saturday just before the interview, after consulting with Encik Marsal and Pn Norizah (she's the director of Counselling and Communications,MSU) I learned that this is not the case. Students hoping to enter this program who are not so fortunate as to be able to pay the required amount of fees for themselves shall have to seek the aid of sponsorship bodies on their own. Tell me, then, if this is the case.. did the hundreds of MSU students currently doing MBBS under MARA in Bangalore all have to seek sponsorship individually, before they enrol with the course?

During the interview itself, I inquired about this..and was told that I can actually get some help from MSU to obtain sponsorship..if i know the right persons to approach. Problem is, I do not know to whom I should turn to. PTPTN loan is also available, but that will only cover half the expenses..this will not work for me.

Maybe you can help?

In case you're wondering, the interview went very well, although quite brief. I was interviewed by Dr Jamaludin, MSU Deputy-Dean. He was very friendly and helpful..I believe he's one of the nicest person I've ever met.


And I'm not even gonna ask how on earth you come to identify me as such~

This post has been edited by jared88: Aug 13 2010, 10:54 PM

You mean those latter category got their MARA sponsorship automatically when they were accepted by the university? Something must've changed, coz this is no longer the case. Or maybe MSU students get this benefit but not an outsider like me, i don't really know.

Anyway i got accepted into the program! Was told to retrieve the offer letter on August 28th. But it's not clear yet whether it's the India or local program for me. We were interviewed as one, the students applying for the offshore campus in India and local. There were quite a number of us, around 30 or so I should think. But I cant tell you specifically how many applied for MBBS India. Didn't have time to ask on that day as I had to rush back to Bangi for my convocation.

Do you know much about the local MBBS program? I believe this program is new. Do the curriculum and course contents differ much from that in India? And there won't be the additional 1-year compulsory housemanship training, so the overall duration should be somewhat shorter I should think.

I did contact MARA as soon as I got back from Shah Alam and was told I had missed the last date of scholarship application. I was quite baffled as I thought one should get the offer letter first and present it to them before being eligible to apply..but apparently, this is not the case. They have advised me to make an appeal.

I have just confirmed, and it's the local program i'm getting into. Apparently the India program is exclusively for MSU students, however they can help obtain a place for outsiders willing to enroll at their own expense/have already personally applied for scholarships. Whereas for the local program, MSU will be applying for MARA scholarship on our behalf in January (this is what Mr Marsal told me yesterday)

The duration for the local MBBS program is also 4.5 years, as we will be joining the current 2nd-year students on admission. There are around 30 of us Grad-Entry students (I have a feeling all of us who went for the interview were accepted). Only 2 are outsiders (me and a UPM graduate), the others are all Biomedicine graduates of MSU, so they probably know each other already (nervous!! )

To be honest, I personally am more keen towards the India program and its structure. Seems that this won't work out for me though. Tell me, how many of your fellow grad-entry colleagues are non-MSU graduates?

Thank you so much for all those useful inside information you've given me so far on Bangalore, but I guess I won't be needing it anymore

You are most welcome to add anything that you deem relevant. Any testimonials from the local MBBS MSU students,perhaps..

Now I've just got to get my hands on the local MBBS program structure~