Preparing Doctors to be Future Healthcare Leaders
The SMU-Duke-NUS Medicine Pathway develops future clinicians who will bring with them a solid understanding and appreciation of the operations of a hospital or healthcare eco-system. This enables them to operate as doctors who can navigate the system effectively, provide the best analyses and decision-making behind complex operations, and implement patient-centric processes for more efficient and ideal patient outcomes. The pathway will also prepare future clinicians who aspire towards key leadership or management roles within a hospital or healthcare system.
Programme Highlights
At SMU, students in the pathway will take the SMU Core Curriculum, which has been designed to develop the social intelligence, ethical compass, disciplinary knowledge and technical skills of all SMU students.
They will expand their intellectual knowledge by taking a guaranteed 2nd major from any of SMU’s six schools. This 2nd major could be SMU’s new Health Economics and Management major, where students learn about health systems and policies as well as healthcare management, critical for their preparation as a future clinician or healthcare leader.
While at SMU, students also have the chance to experience global exposure at least once, to broaden their worldview and encounter different perspectives. Students will be assigned a careers advisor, complete a required 10-week internship, and participate in community service. These experiences are part of SMU’s commitment to nurturing graduates who can think deeply and broadly, create value, and have an independent mind yet are dependable in deeds.
Students can expect to stay engaged with Duke-NUS through periodic meetings with Duke-NUS faculty on campus and invitations to activities designed to provide insights into the medical school experience and a career in medicine. A general overview of the coursework requirements and mentorship and enrichment activities is below.
Coursework Requirements:
- Students are encouraged to take the second major in Health Economics and Management (HEM). Alternatively, they are strongly encouraged to take the following two courses within the HEM major:
- Health Systems and Policy (co-taught by SingHealth faculty)
- Healthcare Management (co-taught by SingHealth faculty)
Mentorship and Enrichment Activities:
- Advising Sessions with Duke-NUS Medical School Faculty
- Duke-NUS Medical Specialties Workshops
- Duke-NUS Alumni Clinical Observership
- Community Projects
Application is opened to Singapore Citizens or Singapore Permanent Residents only. All applicants must fulfil the following requirements to be considered for an invitation to apply to the pathway:
- Attained highly competitive scores for any of the following certifications/examinations
- Singapore Cambridge General Certificate of Education Advanced Level (GCE A-Level)
- International Baccalaureate (IB)
- NUS High Diploma
- Diploma for any Polytechnic in Singapore (Final GPA score)
- Holds records of leadership experience and community services
- Indicated an interest in the "SMU-Duke-NUS Medicine Pathway" in their Undergraduate Application Form during the SMU Application Exercise
- Accepted admissions into a degree programme at SMU
Step 1: Indicate Interest
Applicants should indicate their interest in the "SMU-Duke-NUS Medicine Pathway" in their Undergraduate Application Form during the SMU Application Exercise
Step 2: Apply Online (by invitation only)
*Eligible applicants will receive an email invitation sent by the Duke-NUS Admissions Office to apply for the pathway through the Duke-NUS Online Application System (please indicate “Conditional Admissions” as the programme of interest). A completed application will include letters of recommendation and a personal statement. This should be completed within the stipulate timeline.
Step 3: Interviews (by invitation only)
Completed applications will be reviewed and applicants selected for interviews will be contacted by Duke NUS Admissions Office
Step 4: Application Outcome
Application outcome will be revealed through the Duke-NUS Online Application System. An email will be sent to applicants to check on the outcome of their application.
*Eligibility is determined by the outcomes of the preliminary screening conducted by Duke-NUS
Note: The admissions process for each school is independent of each other. Admissions into the undergraduate programme with an indicated interest in the pathway does not automatically qualify an applicant of an opportunity to apply to the track.
Students on the Conditional Admissions Track are not guaranteed direct admissions into the MD programme. Students are expected to maintain a stipulated academic performance and fulfil the final acceptance criteria stated below for successful admissions into the Doctor of Medicine (MD).
Final Acceptance Criteria:
- Achieve a comparable Cumulative Average Point (CAP) or Grade Point Average (GPA) relative to incoming MD class of that year of entry
- Achieve a comparable MCAT score relative to the incoming MD class of that year of entry and to submit the scores by September of the year prior to entry
- Complete meaningful clinical/medical and service experience throughout their undergraduate years
- Expected to conduct themselves professionally. If concerns should arise at any time regarding a student’s academic performance or professional/personal development, the student may be reviewed by the Admissions Committee resulting in action up to and including withdrawal from the offer
- Submit the Duke-NUS MD application form and supporting documents to Duke-NUS Admissions Department by specific deadlines:
- Submissions of complete undergraduate transcript;
- Production of original degree scroll during the student’s first term at Duke-NUS;
- Attend Applicant Day for MD and undergo interviews for final evaluation.
- Complete all other assessments that may be required by Duke-NUS or NUS