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Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery

(R2/721/6/0046)(02/26)(MQA/FA12045)

Course overview

Medicine is concerned with the training of knowledgeable, caring, competent and skilful professionals, who understand health and disease. Our curriculum is designed to provide a general medical education and a foundation for your later career specialisation. At the medical school in Malaysia, the course is five years, full time, and the next intake is September 2024.

 

A practical approach

The Newcastle MBBS course is an integrated programme that is hands-on. We develop your clinical skills from the outset, and you meet real patients early in the course.


We introduce you to clinical research methods and allow you to study topics of your own choice during the course. You will develop communication skills, information handling, reflective practice, decision-making and attitudes required for medical practice.

Programme structure

Years 1 and 2

The first two years of the MBBS programme are delivered through case-based learning and early clinical experience. Teaching is integrated, with relevant topics covered in relation to each case. For example, for a case on heart disease, the relevant anatomy, physiology, pharmacology and social science related to heart disease will be taught together in an integrated fashion. In these cases you will learn the underlying biology of diseases and apply this knowledge to a clinical context.

The teaching consists of a combination of lectures, seminars, clinical skills, simulation sessions, anatomy and clinical reasoning session, which will prepare you for the subsequent years.

Years 3 to 5

In Years 3 to 5, you'll gain valuable clinical experience through placements in government hospitals and community clinics across the state of Johor.

Year 3

In the first semester of Year 3, you'll engage in a 12-week clinical rotation focused on the fundamentals of clinical practice. This is followed by placements in medicine, surgery, and acute care, where you'll work as an integral part of a clinical team.

The second semester includes further clinical placements in mental health, child and young person's health, reproductive health, and primary care. Year 3 culminates with a four-week module on Clinical Decision Making 1.

Year 4

Throughout both semesters of Year 4, you'll participate in supervised, longitudinal, integrated clinical placements in medical and surgical specialties, as well as primary care, referred to as Advanced Clinical Experience. Here, you'll follow a panel of patients throughout their medical care journey. Semester 2 includes an 8-week block in Acute & Critical Care.

You'll also undergo a 4-week block focused on clinical decision making, covering all clinical sciences with a special emphasis on investigative medicine.

Year 4 concludes with an 8-week Student Selected Component, allowing you to undertake a supervised clinical placement in a topic of your choice.

Year 5

In the first semester of Year 5, you'll continue to enhance your skills and knowledge through clinical rotations in mental health, child and young people's health, women’s health, primary care, and Good Medical Practice. This prepares you for practice as a House Officer (or Foundation Year doctor in the UK), focusing on medical regulations, advanced communication skills, prescribing, and managing under pressure.

Following assessments in Semester 2, the 8-week Elective provides an opportunity to experience medicine almost anywhere in the world, including the UK. For many, this is a highlight of their medical studies.

Year 5 concludes with further assistantships in medicine, surgery, and orthopaedics, where you'll be attached to a clinical team in the hospital. Here, you'll play the role of a ‘junior’ houseman, gaining practical experience for your future career.

Students-selected Component

The student-selected component (SSC) which runs in Year 5 develops your skills in information retrieval, analysis and critical appraisal. This gives you the opportunity to study topics of your own choosing. It may be possible for a number of SSC topics to be undertaken in the UK or your home country, other than Malaysia. 

Intercalated study

Highly motivated and able students enrolled on the five-year MBBS programme have the opportunity to step aside from their medical degree for one year to study for an additional degree.

This opportunity may be particularly attractive if you wish to explore an area in greater depth and gain experience in research. The options include (but are not limited to):

  • Joining the third year of any of our BSc degrees in Biomedical and Biomolecular Sciences (normally after successful completion of Year 2 of MBBS); or
  • Undertaking a Master of Research or MPhil qualification (normally after the successful completion of either Year 3 or Year 4 of MBBS).

Following the successful completion of the intercalated year of study, you will be awarded either a BSc Honours degree or a Master’s degree, as appropriate, and return to the Malaysia campus to conclude the remainder of your MBBS programme.

Other opportunities

During Year 2 there is an opportunity to spend a semester at our main campus in the UK. During Year 5, you undertake an eight-week elective placement. This gives you the opportunity to study medicine, either at home or abroad, and gain hands-on experience of a different healthcare system.

Teaching and assessment

Teaching and assessment of the MBBS honours programme delivered at NUMed Malaysia is equivalent to the UK programme.

Teaching methods

A variety of methods are used to enhance your learning, including seminars, lectures, simulations and clinical skills, and you will also receive feedback throughout the course.

Integrated

At Newcastle, we use an integrated approach. This means that you develop core knowledge, taught in systems, with early clinical exposure. You will start to gain clinical skills from the beginning of Year 1.

Case-led

You receive case-led teaching in your first two years, which means using clinical cases to help you make the links between your new knowledge and clinical practice.

You will undertake early clinical experience through contact with patients and visits to general practice and hospitals. This gives you a clinical context in which to develop your core knowledge.

Assessment

We assess your progress in a variety of ways through clinical exams, written exams, a portfolio of competencies, written assignments and professional behaviour.

The exams that you take in Malaysia are identical to those taken by Newcastle University medical students in the UK. You will receive continuous feedback on your performance throughout the course.

Quality and ranking

Medicine at Newcastle is consistently one of the most highly regarded medical degrees in the UK. The excellence of our programmes has been confirmed by the General Medical Council (GMC). We are ranked:

  • 17th in the UK – The Guardian University Guide 2023 (Medicine category)
  • Global Top 130 University - QS World University Rankings 2025
  • Top 100 for Medicine - QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024
  • 65% increase in research power since 2014 – Research Excellence Framework 2021
  • 42% of our research is classified as 4* world-leading research – Research Excellence Framework 2021
  • 4th in the UK and joint 24th in the world for sustainable development – Times Higher Education Impact Rankings 2023
  • Top 100 for Clinical, Pre-Clinical and Health – Times Higher Education World University Rankings by Subject 2024 (Published 2023)
  • Global Top 140 University - Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2023

Professional Accreditation

The Newcastle Medicine programme is recognised by:

All professional accreditations are reviewed regularly by their professional body.

Your future

Upon successful completion of the entire programme you will be awarded Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MB BS) Honours, which will be conferred by Newcastle University UK.

The Newcastle University MBBS medical degrees awarded to NUMed graduates lead to professional recognition and are subject to the requirements of both the UK General Medical Council (GMC) and the Malaysian Medical Council (MMC).

After you graduate, you will be eligible for provisional registration with both the GMC and MMC. You will have to complete a compulsory internship or housemanship. After successfully completing the compulsory period of housemanship training you will be eligible for full registration.

Find out more about provisional registration with the GMC.

Malaysian graduates

You will be eligible for full registration with either the MMC or GMC, or both, depending on the housemanship pathway that you choose.

Malaysian Medical Council

In order to gain full registration with the MMC, you must undertake an internship pre-registration for two years in a house officer post provided by the Malaysian government in a government hospital. After completing the housemanship period, you will be eligible for full registration with the MMC. Malaysian citizens will be required by the Ministry of Health to undertake a further two years of compulsory service.

Both Malaysian Medical Council and General Medical Council 

If you would like to gain full registration with the GMC whilst working in Malaysia as a house officer, you are required to complete one year of housemanship at one of the 8 GMC-approved hospitals in Malaysia. At the end of the first year, a panel will decide based on the evidence that you produce whether you can be awarded a certificate of experience that would allow you to apply for full registration with the GMC.

General Medical Council

NUMed graduates are eligible to apply for the UK Foundation Programme (UKFP) provided by NHS Postgraduate Deaneries. You will complete 2 years of training and after one year of training and successful ARCP panel, you will be eligible for full registration with the GMC. However,  this option may change before you graduate and cannot be guaranteed.

International graduates

Housemanship

International graduates are not eligible to obtain a pre-registration internship in Malaysia, and you should therefore ensure that your own country will offer you a house officer post after qualifying at NUMed.

In addition, International graduates are eligible to apply for internship/housemanship in the UK or known as UK Foundation Programme (UKFP) provided by NHS Postgraduate Deaneries. You will complete 2 years of training and after one year of training and successful ARCP panel, you will be eligible for full registration with the GMC. However,  this option may change before you graduate and cannot be guaranteed.

Any offer of a place in the program is made in the understanding that NUMed Malaysia does not guarantee any period of internship in the UK, Malaysia or other parts of the world.

Recognition of the MBBS degree outside Malaysia

Both NUMed and Newcastle University, UK, are listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools. NUMed’s FAIMER School ID is: F0003188 and Newcastle University’s UK campus School ID is: F000346.

There is currently specific recognition of NUMed by the Medical Council of Thailand, Pakistan Medical Commission, Maldives Medical and Dental Council and Mauritius Higher Education Commission. 

While the Newcastle MBBS is recognised by most other countries, applicants from outside Malaysia are advised to check with their own individual national authorities if they wish to practise in their own country.

Career path

Once you have successfully completed your pre-registration training, a period of supervised basic specialty training follows. Whichever career path you choose, all doctors must continue learning throughout their career, and our degree programme has been designed with this long-term aim in mind.

In Malaysia, once you have completed your housemanship and compulsory government service, you would be able to practise as a Medical Officer or progress to postgraduate study and qualification.

As an alumnus of NUMed Malaysia and a Newcastle graduate, you are entitled to become a member of our Graduate Society and Newcastle’s Alumni Association.

Keeping you up to date

NUMed Malaysia will keep you updated throughout the course on:

 

  • how to plan for your future career in medicine
  • important deadlines in the house officer application process
  • any changes that may occur in the registration or immigration regulations that may affect you

Additional information

Medical Licensing Assessment

The GMC has decided to introduce a Medical Licensing Assessment (MLA).

It is proposed that the MLA will set a common threshold for safe practice. Doctors who wish to work in the UK will need to show that they meet that threshold before the GMC grants a licence to practise. All students in UK medical schools will need to pass the MLA.

This will be a requirement for all those graduating in the academic year 2024- 2025 in the UK, and international medical graduates. Students will need to have passed a programme that includes the MLA.

The MLA will be a two-part assessment in the form of:

  • An Applied Knowledge Test (AKT). This test will be the same for all UK students and international medical graduates. A GMC-appointed exam board will set each paper and the pass standard. For UK medical students, schools will set test dates. We will provide the test paper, to be delivered at the school. We will also deliver the test for international medical graduates. We'll do this at a number of locations worldwide, possibly using delivery partners. The intention is that this will be a computer-based test.
  • A Clinical and Professional Skills Assessment (CPSA). For UK medical students, universities already run assessments of clinical and professional skills. We will set requirements that these assessments need to meet. If the medical school's clinical assessment meets those requirements, students who pass it will have passed the CPSA element of the MLA.


Find out more about the MLA.

Malaysian Medical Council Requirement

This requirement is applicable for both Malaysian and International applicants. 

All applicants entering the medical programme via matriculation, foundation or pre-medical programme, except those with a degree qualification, STPM or A-level shall have passed and attained a minimum of 5Bs in Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics/Additional Mathematics and one other subject at SPM/IGCSE level or equivalent. 

Entry requirements

Students who have completed the SPM, O-Level or equivalent programmes must first complete a recognised pre-university qualification as a basic requirement for entry to an undergraduate degree at NUMed Malaysia.

Whatever pre-university qualifications you offer, they should include the science subjects Biology, Chemistry, and Physics/Mathematics at a level equivalent to A-Level or STPM.

A UCAT result is currently not required for entry to NUMed Malaysia. The entrance requirements below apply to 2024 entry.

Newcastle's Foundation in Biological and Biomedical Sciences

Newcastle's Foundation in Biological and Biomedical Sciences with a minimum CGPA of 3.5.

A-Levels

AAB at A2-Level. Further consideration may be given for additional academic achievements. We do not accept General Studies or Critical Thinking as A2-Level entry qualifications.

International Baccalaureate Diploma

A minimum of 35 points with Biology, Chemistry and Mathematics at Higher Level (HL) and attained a minimum score of 5 and above in each subject. IB overall points include the additional points available for the Theory of Knowledge/Extended Essay.

 

Sijil Tinggi Pelajaran Malaysia (STPM)

Normally AAB based on the best three subjects including the required science subjects.

Unified Examination Certificate (UEC)

A score of 2 based on the average of the following subjects: Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Advanced Mathematics I and Advanced Mathematics II, with none of these subjects achieving less than A2.

(A1 = 1; A2 = 2; B3 = 3; B4 = 4; B5 = 5; B6 = 6; C7 = 7; C8 = 8)

Malaysian Matriculation / Foundation in Science

CGPA of 3.75, including the required science subjects.

Australian Certificate Year 12 / Monash University Foundation Year

Australian Matriculation or Monash University Foundation Year (MUFY) with average of 85% including the required science subjects.

Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) score of 90 including the required science subjects.

CPU, CIMP, Ontario Grade 12

86%, based on the average of six best Grade 12 subjects, including the required science subjects.

Sri Lanka A-Level

Normally AAB at Sri Lanka A-Level in the required Science subjects, Biology, Chemistry and Physics. Further consideration maybe given for additional academic achievements.

All India Senior School Certificate/Indian School Certificate

85%, based on the average of the five best academic subjects, including the required science subjects with minimum 80% in Biology and Chemistry.

In addition, applicants must obtain Eligibility Certificate from National Medical Commission India and pass the NEET* exam before enrolment to our MBBS programme.

*NEET - National Eligibility cum Entrance Test 

**NEET is required for Indian Citizen who wish to work in India. 

***Those who do not intend to work as a medical practitioner in India must provide a signed letter of undertaking witnessed by a Lawyer or Commissioner of Oath. This letter of undertaking must clearly state that they will not seek registration with the National Medical Commission of India.  

American Advanced Placement (AP)

American AP with 3 subjects, i.e. Biology, Chemistry and Physics/Mathematics, scoring 5,5,4 or Grade A,A,B. These subjects must be taken at Grade 12 level and above.

Degree

Graduate applications from candidates with a scientific background will be considered. Applicants must have achieved, or expect to achieve, at least an upper second class honours degree (or equivalent).

Others

Applicants offering qualifications other than those listed should email us (admissions@ncl.edu.my) to check if their qualifications are acceptable or not.

English Requirements

Please refer to the table below on the English Requirements for MBBS programme:

TestExamination BoardMalaysian StudentsInternational Students

O-Level English 1119

Cambridge International Examinations

B

N/A

CEFR

Cambridge International Examinations

C2, C1

N/A

IGCSE English - First Language

Cambridge International Examinations

C

N/A

IGCSE English - Second Language

Cambridge International Examinations

B

N/A

MUET

Majlis Peperiksaan Malaysia

4

N/A

IELTS

Cambridge English Language Assessment / British Council

7

7

Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL)

Educational Testing Service

100

100

Pearson Test of English Academic

Pearson

69

69

Certificate in Advanced English (CAE),

Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE),

Cambridge Linguaskill

Cambridge English Language Assessment

185

185

*IELTS 6.5 in each of the four elements of the test is required.

Other Requirements

Age requirements

You should be at least 18 years old at the time of enrolment or during the first year of MBBS programme. 

Health requirements

You are required to comply with both the minimum health requirements determined by the Malaysian Medical Council and those of the NUMed Malaysia Immunisation and Infection Risk Policy.

All medical students are recommended to undertake a course of immunisation, covering Heaf/BCG, Meningitis (Quadrivalent), Hepatitis B, Polio, Measles, MMR/Rubella, Varicella (Chicken Pox), Diphtheria, Tetanus, and others (if any) before commencing the course. If the students are not immune to any of these, it is recommended that they should begin a course of immunisation as soon as possible. The ownership falls on the student to ensure that they are immunised prior to starting with NUMed.

If we are required to send any students for immunisation, the cost will be charged to them.

Interview

Once we have considered your application and you are pre-selected, you will receive a letter of invitation to attend an interview.

Interviews will take place from January onwards each year for the following September entry.

The interview, conducted by two trained selectors, will last approximately 30 minutes.

The interview format is designed to confirm whether you have the aptitude, motivation and personal qualities to succeed as a medical student in NUMed Malaysia, and as a potential doctor of the future.

At interview you will be assessed and graded under the following main categories:

 

  • motivation
  • reflection on care and role of the doctor
  • empathetic and ethical reasoning
  • critical thinking
  • communication skills


Selectors will expect you to show some insight into your personal attributes, the learning that has resulted from your previous experiences, and an understanding of the relevance of these factors to a career in medicine.

Within one week of your interview, you will receive a letter of outcome. This will inform you if you have been successful in obtaining a place to study medicine at NUMed Malaysia.

Fees and funding

The overall cost of obtaining Newcastle University medical degrees in Malaysia is lower than the cost of obtaining the same degrees in the UK.

A single inclusive fee is charged to cover the costs of tuition, library, laboratory, placements, examination, administration fees, and all other academic-related charges. There are no hidden extra costs.

Tuition fees for 2024 entry 

Malaysian students: RM 100,600 per year, for each of the five years of the programme.

International students: RM 121,000 per year, for each of the five years of the programme.

Tuition fees for 2025 entry

Malaysian students: RM 100,600 per year, for each of the five years of the programme.

International students: RM 126,500 per year, for each of the five years of the programme.

Get in touch

By phone

Telephone (MY): +607 5553800
Telephone (WhatsApp): +6011 12315411; +6012 7849456

By email

Email us at: admissions@newcastle.edu.my