The rush among Indian students for foreign medical courses: What data says

A 1.5x increase in medical colleges and 1.6x rise in medical seats since 2014 hasn't satiated the demand for medical education in the country, suggests data

Since 2014-15, students appearing for the foreign medical graduate examination has increased more than three times and Indian medical students from Ukraine have performed better than the national average in FMGE tests. 

In 2014-15, India had 404 medical colleges offering 54,358 MBBS seats each year. The government in December informed the Parliament that the number of medical colleges had increased 1.5 times at 596 since 2014-15, while the number of medical seats had witnessed a 1.6 times increase at 88,120.

However, that has not satiated the demand for medical education in the country. A Business Standard analysis shows that students giving Foreign Medical Graduate Examination (FMGE) — a test for students studying outside India to practice in the country — has jumped over 3.3 times.

In 2021-22, over 41,000 students appeared for the exam (this may include students reappearing as well), conducted twice a year in June and December, compared to just over 12,000 in 2014-15. 

More than 24 per cent students cleared the FMGE exam this year, earning the right to practice in the country -- an improvement over the past few years.

A country-wise classification for students appearing for FMGE has been unavailable since 2018-19, as the National Board of Examination has not published its Annual Report for the last three years. But analysis shows that in 2018-19, four countries accounted for 73.7 per cent of students appearing for the examination. China’s share in total students was 36.7 per cent, whereas Russia had a 16.5 per cent share, followed by Ukraine at 12.9 per cent and Nepal at 7.6 per cent.

The share of Indian students studying in Chinese colleges and appearing for FMGE had increased from 29.2 per cent to 36.7 per cent between 2015-16 and 2018-19; the share of Ukraine had remained constant through the years. In contrast, the share of medical students from Russia and Nepal had declined during these years.

While pass percentages -- those clearing the exam against those appearing -- have improved across all countries over the years, Ukraine and Nepal performed better than the national average. In contrast, students from Chinese and Russian medical colleges were below the four-year national average.

Although Bangladesh, Georgia, and the Philippines accounted for only seven per cent of the students appearing between 2015-16 and 2018-19, their performance was much better, with 27.1, 20.7, and 25.8 per cent of students from these countries, respectively, clearing the exam.