Doha
The admission process for the first batch of students at Qatar University’s College of Medicine (QU-CMED) has begun. The college is seeking to enrol 50 students in the first academic year.
Many have already applied following various outreach activities by the college to engage prospective students and their parents. This marks another phase in the college’s progress since its establishment in October last year.
The need for Qatar-trained physicians and medical professionals was highlighted by Minister of Public Health HE Abdullah bin Khalid al-Qahtani as one of the key challenges in advancing the healthcare sector in Qatar, in line with the human development pillar of the country’s National Vision.
He said: “As we prepare to welcome the first cohort of students by September 2015, I would like to assert the Ministry of Health’s commitment to supporting and encouraging Qatari students admitted to the college in any way possible, including providing full student sponsorship with monthly salaries from their first year at the college and throughout their education.”
QU President Prof Sheikha Abdulla al-Misnad had announced earlier last week that the university has accomplished a host of timelines that demonstrate its readiness to welcome the first batch of QU’s future doctors this fall.
Vice president for Medical Education and Dean of the College of Medicine Dr Egon Toft noted that since its inception, the college has organised several activities to attract high-school students through online campaigns, schools visits, and participation in career fairs on and off campus. The college also recently organised an orientation event hosting 200 prospective students and their parents to learn more about the college, its programme and curriculum, and to articulate their expectations and concerns. Dr Toft also referred to QU’s recent initiative of early conditional admission to attract applications to undergraduate programmes from high-achieving secondary school students.
“We are very optimistic of the results of this initiative, as it will contribute to attracting highly-competitive students eager to pursue the high-quality six-year MD programme that CMED offers.” he said.
A recent CMED Steering Committee meeting showcased the level of progress made - the physical building is on schedule, college leaders and faculty members have been recruited, student applicant numbers exceeded expectations (over 500 to date and growing), and the study plan and curriculum are being finalised. Outreach activities have been successful, engaging a wide spectrum of the society and engendering positive public and media interest.
Additionally, a number of partnerships are underway which include healthcare providers in Qatar such as Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC), Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC) and Sidra Medical and Research Center (Sidra), as well as international academic partners such as the medical schools at Johns Hopkins University, the Maastricht University and Groningen University.
In the meeting of the College’s International Advisory Board last Sunday, experts and leaders of established medical schools also highlighted the progress and contributed opinions on developments.
The College International Advisory Board includes current and former leaders of medical schools at Stanford University, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, University of Heidelberg, American University of Beirut, University of Sharjah and leading agencies such as the US Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), among others. At the steering committee level, the college engages national leaders in healthcare and education, including the PHCC and HMC managing directors and several key HMC members such as the Chief of Scientific, Faculty and Academic Affairs, Deputy Chief of Medical Education, Head of Trauma and Vascular Surgery, and others.
