Lured by cheaper cost, many Indians opt for Chinese medical colleges

"When I enquired about course fees at private medical colleges in India, it was not affordable. But China was affordable for my parents," says Anusree, who has just completed the first year of MBBS at Wuhan University School of Medicine, situated in China's Hubei province."In my batch, there are about 70 south Indians and one north Indian, though my senior batches have many from the north," says Anusree. She is part of a batch of international students numbering 90. Like Anusree, Devu, Ameena Kamaruaheen and Balu Vallatheril are in various colleges in China, chasing their destiny to be doctors. The first trickle started about a decade ago, but the pace has picked up over the past couple of years. Now, medical colleges in China are attracting an increasing number of Indians who dream of becoming doctors, but fail to qualify in competitive examinations for state-run subsidised medical colleges, nor can afford the steep fee structure of local private colleges. "The primary lure of government-run Chinese medical colleges is their cheaper cost structure. There is no capitation or donation, as is usually charged by private colleges in India," says Neyas Mohammad, head of consultancy firm Asian Educational Consultancy. In 2011, Asian Educational Consultancy placed 100 aspiring doctors from India in medical colleges in China, compared with about 60 in 2009 and 80 in 2010. China encouraging foreigners So far this year, Asian Educational Consultancy has got applications from more than 150 aspiring medical students. "It started in 2008. Since then, many Indians have been coming to China to study medicine. The Chinese government is encouraging foreign students. Internationalisation of students and faculty is key for colleges (in China) to secure government funding," says an official from the Chinese Embassy in New Delhi, who did not want to be named. An MBBS course from a government medical college in China will cost about Rs 15-20 lakh, including tuition fee, food and accommodation. In India, just the tuition fee and donation in private colleges will amount to Rs 45-75 lakh, according to education consultants. Medical colleges in China have separate batches for Chinese and international students, where the medium of teaching is English and majority of the class are Indians, mostly from the southern states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and some from north India. In addition to affordability, Chinese medical colleges have robust infrastructure, advanced technology and good living conditions, claim students and doctors. "Studying MBBS in China is not only less expensive than India, but colleges there also provide better facilities and teaching atmosphere," says Somasekharan, who got his MBBS degree from Wuhan University, and currently works with the Government Medical College in Kerala. Currently, there are about 50 universities in China offering medical courses in English, though students have to learn Chinese as a compulsory subject to interact with patients. After the US, UK and Australia, China is the fourth most popular destination among Indians for a medical degree. "All other destinations are far more expensive than China. A five-year medical degree course will cost more than Rs 1 crore in the US," says Neyas, himself a radiologist. About a couple of decades ago, a similar interest was seen among Indian students to study medicine in Russia, which gradually waned after the collapse of the Soviet Union and also due to racial issues. "An MBBS in China is a kind of a backdoor entry to becoming a doctor. However, it can be a good stepping stone for people who want to become doctors, but do not have the means to do it in India or in other popular destinations such as the US or UK," says Shamin Karbhari, an eye surgeon in suburban Mumbai. Apart from China, other cheaper options for Indians to study medicine include Georgia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and the Philippines. But China far surpasses others in terms of number of Indian students. However, to be eligible to practice in India, doctors graduating from these universities have to clear a screening examination conducted by the National  Board of Examinations under the directive of Medical Council of India. "The quality of education is poor even in many private colleges in India and most of them have zero hands-on experience. One can make up for the practical part during year-long internships," says Karbhari. Most students use this opportunity to get the basic MBBS degree and later move to the US or UK to pursue post graduation. Some even opt for higher studies back home - like Saleel PA from CTGU University, who is pursuing post graduation at the Nellore Medical College, and Jaison James, also from CTGU, who is doing masters in family medicine from Kerala. While state governments like Uttar Pradesh have recently started appointing Indian doctors graduated from China to work in remote areas due to a severe shortage, their acceptability may be an issue. Do the doctors made in China face an acceptance issue? Says Karbhari: "When a patient goes to a doctor, it depends on his expertise.