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Introduction

Shantou University Medical College (SUMC) is an important part of Shantou University, a public university that receives long-term support from the Li Ka Shing Foundation, located in Shantou, Guangdong, China. SUMC exists to lead by being student-centered in medical education; patient-centered in health service delivery; application-centered in biomedical and clinical research; public interest-centered in community services; faculty and staff-centered for sustainable development of SUMC. Guided by the core values of innovation, dedication and exemplary professionalism, SUMC continually strengthens education, research and healthcare services that meet international standards.

SUMC offers a 5 + 3 Joint Bachelor-Master program in Clinical Medicine, a five-year program in Clinical Medicine, a five-year program in Dentistry and Stomatology, a four-year program in Nursing and a series of master’s, doctoral and post-doctoral programs in medicine. At present, there are 2,885 students enrolled in educational programs at SUMC, including 1,515 undergraduate students, 1,249 master students and 113 doctorate students. Among 229 full-time faculty members, 62.9% hold a doctorate degree and 47.2% have international experience either by studying or working abroad. SUMC boasts an extensive network of five affiliated hospitals with over 5,500 patient beds and six associated partner hospitals to service eastern and northern Guangdong, the Pearl River Delta as well as Hainan and provide clinical training to medical students.

By taking the lead in adopting a new "systems-integrated" medical curriculum, implementing English Immersion Program and assessing student performance in the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE), SUMC has made impressive progress in the past two decades. The scores of the new students enrolled have surpassed the entry score set for national key universities for 21 consecutive years, and the first-time employment rates of the graduates have led in Guangdong universities for 12 consecutive years, which reached 94.20% in 2018. Over the past decade, the pass rates of the graduates in the National Medical Licensure Examination have topped among the Chinese medical colleges. The pass rates of our students from the "elite classes" in USMLE Step 1 have retained 92% in the past seven years. Following the successful introduction of the “English Immersion Program”, an English-based medical program was established in 2007, and an English-based nursing program in 2013. Since 2011, selected students from the English-based medical program have participated in a joint educational program to study in CUHK for one year, and starting from 2010, SUMC has actively pursued joint PhD programs with University of Alberta, Canada and University of Groningen, Netherlands. In 2010, approved by the Ministry of Education, SUMC became the first to recruit international students from US and Canada. In 2012, the program in Clinical Medicine was ranked in the top 1% of universities and research institutions worldwide based on ESI (Essential Science Indicators) Analysis. SUMC is also the provider of four nationally distinguished courses, two national demonstration courses in bilingual teaching, one nationally recognized teaching team, and one nationally recognized distinctive specialty. SUMC is also the site of National Experimental Center for Innovative Talent Training Project and National Experimental Teaching Center. Apart from medical teaching and scientific research, SUMC is also active in serving the community. The National Hospice Program, Medical Aid for the Poor Program, Rainbow Project are charity programs initiated and supported by the Li Ka Shing Foundation, all aiming at helping the sick and needy and cultivating the spirit of "contribution" among the community.

Currently, SUMC offers doctoral and master programs in various disciplines. Several research focus areas and laboratories have been recognized at the provincial or national levels. In 1999, the Ministry of Education endorsed "Cheung Kong Scholar" in Department of Pathology and Pathophysiology. SUMC has witnessed tremendous progress in scientific research. In the past three decades, SUMC received a total of 3,499 research grants with funding of around 312 million yuan, generated 2,387 SCI papers, and won 301 science and technology awards at the national, provincial and municipal levels. The international research team led by Professor Yi Guan, Director of the SUMC-HKU Joint Influenza Research Centre, have successively published five high-impact papers in Nature and Science, and received the Top Prize of 2017 National Science and Technology Progress Award for their outstanding research in emerging infectious diseases. In addition, the Big Data on Health Information Project being implemented will serve over 20 million residents in Chaoshan area, provide references for the local government and health departments to formulate policies, and help to increase efficiency of research and management of diseases.

SUMC has been active in national and international academic exchanges and scientific research collaborations, and has established intercollegiate relationships with many renowned domestic and overseas medical institutions, including those in the USA, UK, Canada, Japan, France, Australia, The Netherlands, Hong Kong, etc. Since 1999, SUMC has partnered with CETV and various overseas universities and institutes to hold 22 National Telemedicine Educational Symposia, with live broadcast on the Internet. SUMC is one of the founding members of the East-West Alliance (EWA) which is an international network of medical schools and research institutions, and has hosted four annual conferences in 2011-2018.

With the support of the Chinese government and Li Ka Shing Foundation, a new SUMC teaching facility located on the main campus has been completed and put into use. The new SUMC, life sciences-centered and fully multidisciplinary, is well positioned to lead in medical education reforms in China, join the ranks of top research universities and colleges, and produce competent medical professionals to serve the region, the nation and even the world.

 

Contact details and map

 

SUMC central campus

Shantou University Medical College

No. 22 Xinling Road

Shantou, 515041

Guangdong Province

People's Republic of China

 

SUMC on Shantou University campus

Shantou University Medical College

No. 243 Daxue Road

Shantou, 515063

Guangdong Province

People's Republic of China

 

E-mail:sumcinternational@stu.edu.cn

 

Map & Chinese address

Click here for a printable map and address details in Chinese.

 

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