MBBS Abroad: NMC introduces dual internships and NExT to replace FMGE for Indian medical returnees

FMGE is a mandatory examination required to be undertaken by all Indian citizens or Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cardholders who have pursued their medical education abroad and plan to practice in India. However, NMC has now introduced dual internships and NExt is set to replace FMGE exam for Indian medical returnees.

Study MBBS abroad: Anyone remotely aware of the medical activities in the country would be aware of the National Medical Commission (NMC) replacing the erstwhile MCI (Medical Council of India) in September 2020. The (National Medical Commission) NMC has been established by an Act of Parliament known as the National Medical Commission Act, 2019 which came into force in September 2020 with the objective of improving access to quality and affordable medical education, ensuring adequate and high-quality medical professionals in all parts of India and to provide equitable and universal health care.

With this new change in administration, there were a lot of new changes that were significantly brought in the medical world that would have a direct impact on the Indian medical students. In this article, we are going to be focusing on the two significant changes that have been recently introduced by the National Medical Commission that would directly affect Indian medical students who plan on returning to practice in India having completed their MBBS study abroad.

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NMC introduces Mandatory Double Internships for MBBS students abroad

As per the guidelines established by the National Medical Commission, students who are going abroad to pursue medical studies must enrol in a course that span over a minimum of 54 months of instructions and be in the English medium. The new regulations brought in by NMC, require all candidates who wish to pursue foreign medical degrees abroad, to study a course of theory, practical and clinical training equivalent to Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) of India; and should have completed an internship of twelve months in addition to such a course in the same foreign institution where the primary medical qualification has been obtained. Medical students are also required to have hands-on training in clinical subjects.

Furthermore, Foreign Medicine Graduates can only come back to their country to practise after having completed their course, an internship of 12 months and passed the Foreign Medical Graduate Examination (FMGE exam) to work in India on a provisional registration with State Medical Councils. They need to intern for another 12 months of ‘supervised internship’ in India before they can get their permanent registration. This is in addition to the 12-month internship that they are required to pursue as part of their studies in a foreign country.

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NExT to replace FMGE starting 2023 Mock Exam in 2022

The Medical Council of India (MCI) Foreign Medical Graduate Examination or more commonly referred to as MCI FMGE exam is a medical licensing examination. Conducted by the National Board of Examination (NBE), FMGE is a mandatory examination required to be undertaken by all Indian citizens or Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cardholders who have pursued their medical education abroad and plan to practice in India. Candidates who successfully qualify for the MCI FMGE would be permitted to register themselves with the Medical Council of India (MCI)/State Medical Council (SMC) and practice in India. However, as per the latest update from National Medical Commission (NMC), the National Exit Test - NExT is to replace FMGE exam starting 2023 and there will be mock exams held in 2022.

As apprised by officials of NMC, efforts are underway to ensure that the National Exit Test ( NExT) will be conducted in the first half of 2023 as per the roadmap. To test the procedure and remove anxiety among medical students, a Mock Run is also being planned and will be conducted in 2022. It was also discussed that the results of NExT (Step 1 and 2) will then be used for

• Qualifying Final M.B.B.S. Exam.
• To get a License to practice Modern Medicine in India.
• For merit-based allocation of PG seats in Broad specialities.

The importance of the NExT Exam lies in the fact that it will be the same for everyone whether trained in India or any part of the world and hence it will solve the problem of foreign medical graduates (FMGs) / Mutual recognition. With the introduction of NExT, the Government of India is committed to creating quality medical education and transparent examination infrastructure and health services and is relentlessly working with all stakeholders to achieve this objective. Follow this space as we update medical enthusiasts about the National Exit Test ( NExT) syllabus, exam pattern and every other important detail around it. 

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