Medicine in the US

[LENTERN]

DS is interested in medicine. Are US medical degrees recognised in the UK? How does the system work over there? Do British students study medicine in the US and practice in the NHS?

OP I don't know if you are aware that Medicine in the USA can only be studied post-grad. You need to do a four year pre-med degree in Biology, Chemistry or Neuroscience. You would then be required to do a clinical entrance exam for entrance to Med School. There is more info on The Medic Portal website.

The General Medical Council in the UK has some information on this here: www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/join-the-register/before-you-apply/acceptable-overseas-qualifications

As @opoponax says, it is important to remember that in order to attend medical school in the US, your son will need to complete an undergraduate degree first.

But it seems the fundamental answer is yes: You can practice medicine in the UK with an American medical degree, provided you register with the GMC and pass the appropriate exam(s) in the UK.

I wonder though: assuming you're based in the UK, why would your DS want to obtain a medical degree in the US? For one thing, it would be much more expensive, and while doctors in the US are expected to recoup the cost of their student loans pretty quickly, I don't know that this would be true working for the NHS. What's the motivation here?

@opoponax

OP I don't know if you are aware that Medicine in the USA can only be studied post-grad. You need to do a four year pre-med degree in Biology, Chemistry or Neuroscience. You would then be required to do a clinical entrance exam for entrance to Med School. There is more info on The Medic Portal website.

Thank you, do you know if Biosciences graduates from UK universities can apply and if they study in the US, can they practice medicine in the UK after?

But it seems the fundamental answer is yes: You can practice medicine in the UK with an American medical degree, provided you register with the GMC and pass the appropriate exam(s) in the UK

Thank you, that's good to know.

As others have said, medicine programmes in US universities are only open to graduates.
A graduate from a US medical school will be able to register with the GMC to practise in the UK as long as:
(a) the medicine degree meets GMC criteria and is awarded by a medical school on the world directory (there are lists of medical schools whose degrees are not recognised at www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/join-the-register/before-you-apply/acceptable-overseas-qualifications/);
(b) the graduate has passed the UK Medical Licensing Assessment (MLA; this comes into force in 2024-25 and will be similar to the US Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE), which US medical graduates should have been prepared for).
If the person has just graduated from a US medical school and has not yet completed an internship, they only be eligible for provisional registration in the UK. To gain full registration they will have to enrol on the UK foundation training programme and complete the first year successfully. I'm not sure whether this will also require them to pass the Prescribing Safety Assessment (PSA).

"Thank you, do you know if Biosciences graduates from UK universities can apply and if they study in the US, can they practice medicine in the UK after?"

It can be complicated and costly - non US / Canadian degrees don't really meet the pre requisite requirements for US med schools which would mean taking courses in the US in order to be able to apply.

do you know if Biosciences graduates from UK universities can apply and if they study in the US, can they practice medicine in the UK after?

As I understand it they usually insist that the prerequisite classes (which are not just sciences) are taken at a US uni.

It would also be horrendously expensive (think half a million in all). Even if you're very rich and that isn't a problem, I would spend the money on a house for your DS and tell him to apply here instead.

Some info here:

www.nymc.edu/school-of-medicine-som/admissions--financial-aid/how-to-apply/applying-as-an-international-applicant/

students-residents.aamc.org/applying-medical-school/applying-medical-school-international-applicant