Singapore recognizes medical graduates from nine other foreign universities

SINGAPORE – Students seeking a medical career will be able to enroll in nine more universities abroad, bringing the number of recognized foreign medical schools in Singapore to 112.

The move will help Singapore better meet the growing need for doctors as its population ages, the Ministry of Health and the Singapore Medical Council said in a joint statement on November 11.

It also complemented the decision to admit more students to Singapore’s medical schools – from about 400 in 2013 to over 500 in 2023, it said.

Other foreign universities joining the list of recognized schools from 2025 include the University of Newcastle’s School of Medicine and Public Health in Australia – the only one in the country to make the list this time.

The inclusion will mean a total of nine Australian universities will have their medical degrees recognized in Singapore.

Five British universities, including Leeds University School of Medicine, will be added to the list of recognized institutions. This means that medical degrees from a total of 24 British universities are recognized in Singapore.

The other three universities to be recognized come from Ireland.

The inclusion of the nine medical schools will come into effect on January 1, 2025 and is part of the Singapore Medical Council’s (SMC) regular review, the statement added.

The SMC exam ensures that foreign-trained doctors applying for jobs in Singapore have received comparable training abroad.

The review took into account criteria such as the international ranking of the schools, the language of instruction and the performance of the doctors at these universities before deciding on recognition in Singapore.

Medical professionals graduating from recognized institutions may apply to practice in Singapore upon graduation and may also be required to meet the requirements set by the SMC.

SMC said it will continue to assess foreign-trained doctors in their early years to ensure high standards of medical practice.

From 1 January 2025, the updated list of approved medical schools can be found in the Second Schedule of the Medical Registration Act 1997.

The nine universities whose medical degrees will be recognized in Singapore from 2025 are:

Australia

• University of Newcastle, Faculty of Medicine and Public Health

Ireland

• University College Cork – National University of Ireland, School of Medicine
• University College Dublin – National University of Ireland, School of Medicine
• Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland – National University of Ireland, School of Medicine

Great Britain

• The Queen’s University of Belfast, Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences
• University of Aberdeen, Faculty of Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition
• University of Leeds, Faculty of Medicine
• University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Faculty of Medical Sciences
• University of Warwick, Warwick Medical School