Singapore’s newest medical school to enrol its first students in 2013 - News release

Joint Imperial College London and Nanyang Technological University release

For Immediate Release
Tuesday 13 March 2012

Imperial College London and Nanyang Technological University (NTU) have announced the admissions requirements for the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine. The new school in Singapore will enrol its first 50 students in August 2013.

Students vying for a place at Singapore’s newest medical school, a partnership between two world-class universities, will need to demonstrate they have the skills to be an outstanding doctor, as well as hold first class qualifications.

 “Every year there is no shortage of students with straight A’s enrolling in medical schools, but at the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine we are looking beyond that. We are also looking for students who are caring and compassionate, and are committed to pursue medicine as a long-term career in the context of Singapore’s ageing population,” said Professor Stephen Smith, the founding dean of the school.

The School will identify the students best suited for the new medical course through robust admission requirements which include the BioMedical Admissions Test (BMAT) as well as a series of Multiple Mini Interviews. Prospective students will also need the highest grades in their pre-university qualifications, which may include ‘A’ Levels, the International Baccalaureate Diploma, the NUS High School Diploma, the Polytechnic Diploma or other equivalent international qualifications.

The BMAT is an aptitude test taken by students all over the world who apply to top medical universities in the UK including Imperial, Cambridge University, Oxford University and University College London. The two-hour pen and paper test assesses skills in problem solving, communications and applying scientific knowledge and is proven to be a good predictor of a student’s performance in medical school.

Students wishing to apply for a place at the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine in 2013 will need to sit the BMAT on Wednesday 7 November 2012.

Prospective students must achieve exceptional results in their pre-university examinations as well as in the BMAT to reach the next stage of the admissions process. Shortlisted students will take part in a series of eight mini interviews in a single day. Conducted by professionals from various healthcare disciplines, these interviews are designed to assess whether students have the skills required to successfully complete the joint Imperial-NTU MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery) programme. 

“The BMAT and Multiple Mini Interviews are meant to identify the most capable students who have the best chance of becoming the patient-centred doctors that you and I would want to have caring for us,” said Senior Vice Dean, Professor Martyn Partridge.

“Medicine is a demanding programme with copious amounts of information to digest. Students with excellent academic, BMAT and Multiple Mini Interview results will be best equipped for the rigorous demands of the course. Ultimately we are doing all we can to select the best students to enter the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine so that Singaporeans will have the best doctors caring for them in the future.”

The School aims to attract talented students who hold a commitment to serve the community. They will graduate with a joint Imperial and NTU MBBS degree, equipped to be the custodians of the health and well-being of Singaporeans in the 21st century.

The Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, established in October 2010, will help to meet the demand for doctors in Singapore. Apart from a rapidly ageing population, Singapore, like other developed nations, is seeing a rise in chronic diseases, changing disease profiles and the emergence of new medical complexities. The new medical school, run jointly by Imperial and NTU, is set to augment Singapore’s healthcare manpower needs, while providing more opportunities for Singaporeans to pursue a high-quality medical degree locally.

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 Notes to editors

 For further information please contact:

Caroline Davis
Head of Communications, Imperial College London
Tel: +44 (0)20 7594 6699
Email: c.davis@imperial.ac.uk
Out of hours duty press officer: +44 (0)7803 886248

 1. About the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine

The Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, a partnership between NTU and Imperial College London, will train a generation of doctors who will put patients at the centre of their exemplary medical care. Graduates of the five-year undergraduate medical degree programme beginning in 2013 will have a strong understanding of the scientific basis of medicine, along with interdisciplinary subjects including business management and technology.

The school’s primary clinical partner is the National Healthcare Group, a leader in public healthcare recognised for the quality of its medical expertise, facilities and teaching. The school, named after local philanthropist Dato Sri Lee Kong Chian, aims to be a future model for innovative medical education. Its first doctors will graduate in 2018 with a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS), awarded jointly by NTU and Imperial College London.

Further details of the admissions requirements are available at: http://www.lkcmedicine.ntu.edu.sg/Admissions

 2. About Imperial College London

Consistently rated amongst the world's best universities, Imperial College London is a science-based institution with a reputation for excellence in teaching and research that attracts 14,000 students and 6,000 staff of the highest international quality. 

Innovative research at the College explores the interface between science, medicine, engineering and business, delivering practical solutions that improve quality of life and the environment - underpinned by a dynamic enterprise culture.

Since its foundation in 1907, Imperial's contributions to society have included the discovery of penicillin, the development of holography and the foundations of fibre optics. This commitment to the application of research for the benefit of all continues today, with current focuses including interdisciplinary collaborations to improve global health, tackle climate change, develop sustainable sources of energy and address security challenges.

In 2007, Imperial College London and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust formed the UK's first Academic Health Science Centre. This unique partnership aims to improve the quality of life of patients and populations by taking new discoveries and translating them into new therapies as quickly as possible.

Imperial College London’s medical school is currently ranked third in the world out of 2420 medical schools worldwide in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2011-12. To find out more, visit: www.imperial.ac.uk

 3. About Nanyang Technological University

A research-intensive public university, Nanyang Technological University (NTU) has 33,500 undergraduate and postgraduate students in the colleges of Engineering, Business, Science, and Humanities, Arts, & Social Sciences.  In 2013, NTU will enrol the first batch of students at its new medical school, the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, which is set up jointly with Imperial College London.

 NTU is also home to four world-class autonomous institutes – the National Institute of Education, S Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Earth Observatory of Singapore, and Singapore Centre on Environmental Life Sciences Engineering – and various leading research centres such as the Nanyang Environment & Water Research Institute (NEWRI) and Energy Research Institute @ NTU (ERI@N).

A fast-growing university with an international outlook, NTU is putting its global stamp on Five Peaks of Excellence: Sustainable Earth, Future Healthcare, New Media, New Silk Road, and Innovation Asia.

Besides the main Yunnan Garden campus, NTU also has a satellite campus in Singapore’s science and tech hub, one-north, and is setting up a third campus in Novena, Singapore’s medical district.

For more information, visit www.ntu.edu.sg