Webinar: Pursuing MBBS in India Sat, December 5, 2026 | 8:30 PM IST FREE
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Sat, December 5, 2026 | 8:30 PM
Free Webinar: MBBS in India
Sat, December 5, 2026 | 8:30 PM
Singapore's newest medical school, founded in 2010, teaching through team-based learning at a university ranked 12th in the world.
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Singapore
Country
Novena
Clinical campus, Singapore
#12
QS World University Rankings 2027, Nanyang Technological University
English
Medium of instruction
For Indian Students
Short answer: Yes, Indian students can study MBBS in Singapore. No, not as the rules stand: the NMC asks for the 12-month internship at the university that awards the degree, and Singapore's PGY1 year is arranged nationally.
NUS and NTU both accept international applicants, but places are few, about 280 a year at NUS and 190 at NTU, and Singaporeans get priority. Entry is on excellent Class 12 science results, a UCAT score and an interview, and Indian students also need a qualified NEET UG result for India.
No, not as the rules stand. The NMC Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate Regulations 2021 ask for a course of at least 54 months, a twelve-month internship in the same foreign institution, English-medium teaching and a licence to practise in the country of study. Singapore's five-year, English-medium MBBS meets the course length and language rules, but its twelve-month internship is the PGY1 year, a paid hospital job arranged by MOH Holdings rather than by NUS or NTU. So, as the rules stand, the degree does not meet them and does not lead to an Indian licence.
The FMGE (NExT deferred and not in force) is the screening test for doctors with a foreign degree, but as the rules stand a Singapore MBBS does not lead to an Indian licence, and international students also serve a six-year bond in Singapore's public hospitals after PGY1. If India is your long-term plan, plan this with our counsellors before you apply.
Introduction
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Recognition & Prestige
Nanyang Technological University, the school's parent university, ranks 12th in the world on the QS World University Rankings 2027, holding that place for a second year, and 31st on the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2026. The Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine itself was founded in 2010 and graduated its first class in 2018.
#12
QS World University Rankings 2027, Nanyang Technological University
#31
Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2026, Nanyang Technological University (5th in Asia)
Clinical training runs through NHG Health, the school's primary clinical partner, with Tan Tock Seng Hospital as its principal teaching hospital, and the school also works with SingHealth and NUHS, so students train across all three of Singapore's public healthcare clusters. The MBBS is on the First Schedule of the Medical Registration Act, which gives graduates the local-graduate route to registration with the Singapore Medical Council (SMC), and the school is listed in WDOMS, so graduates can apply for ECFMG Certification and the USMLE. For India, the five-year English-medium MBBS meets the NMC's course-length and language rules, but the NMC asks for the 12-month internship at the university that awards the degree, while Singapore's PGY1 year is arranged nationally by MOH Holdings, so the degree does not meet the NMC rules as they stand.
WDOMS
The NTU Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine is listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools
Complete Information About NTU Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine
Get complete information about the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, including tuition, the service bond, living costs and recognition for Indian students.
Success stories
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Academic Excellence
LKCMedicine offers a distinctive teaching method, a large principal teaching hospital and a university ranked 12th in the world, in a city that is safe, English-speaking and a direct flight from India. It also comes with a six-year service bond, very high fees and a degree that does not meet the NMC rules for practising in India. Both sides are set out below.
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How to Apply
Admission to LKCMedicine runs through the UCAT, an online application with a personal statement and two referee reports and, for shortlisted candidates, eight Multiple Mini Interview stations at the Novena campus, for about 190 places a year with priority for Singaporeans. NEET does not decide admission, but a qualified NEET-UG result is a separate Indian requirement a student must hold before going abroad. Read the service bond in the timeline below before you apply.
Indian nationals must qualify NEET-UG before taking admission abroad; under NMC rules the NEET result serves as the eligibility certificate. This is an Indian requirement, entirely separate from the university's own selection.
Every student accepted into medicine in Singapore signs the Ministry of Health (MOH) Medical Undergraduate Agreement, whatever their nationality. International students then serve six years in Singapore's public healthcare sector, against five for Singapore citizens, counted from after the PGY1 year. Understand this before you start an application, not after an offer arrives.
The UCAT is required, and only a result from the 12 months before applying counts; the UCAT ANZ is not accepted. NTU accepts Indian Standard 12 (CBSE, ISC and state boards) on final results, not predicted grades.
Applications open in October of the year before intake and close in mid-March. The application carries a personal statement of up to 300 words and two referee reports. An Aptitude-Based Admissions scheme runs alongside standard admissions for candidates with exceptional talent.
Shortlisted candidates attend eight one-to-one interview stations over about two hours at the Novena campus, run by faculty and healthcare professionals. This is a very different test from a written paper, so prepare for it well in advance.
Admitted students complete health screening and vaccinations to Ministry of Health requirements and a criminal record declaration, then apply for a digital Student's Pass through ICA's SOLAR system, with a S$45 processing fee (about ₹3,300), a S$60 issuance fee (about ₹4,400) and a further S$30 (about ₹2,200) if a multiple-journey visa is needed.
An applicant with Indian Standard 12 (CBSE, ISC or a state board) needs excellent final results in Physics, Chemistry and Biology, plus a UCAT score; NTU does not accept predicted grades. Under Indian NMC rules an Indian applicant additionally needs Physics, Chemistry, Biology and English at Class 12, with a minimum of 50% aggregate in Physics, Chemistry and Biology for the general category, 40% for SC, ST and OBC candidates and 45% for general-category candidates with benchmark disabilities, together with a qualifying NEET-UG score.
Subjects:
Under Indian NMC rules the candidate must be 17 years old by 31 December of the admission year, with no upper age limit. NTU sets no upper age limit of its own, but generally does not consider applicants who have already started a degree.
Two things govern an LKCMedicine application, and neither of them is marks.
About 190 Places, Planned for Singapore
LKCMedicine admits about 190 medicine students a year in total. Singaporeans get priority, and NTU does not publish a separate number of places for international students. Treat a seat here as one possible outcome, not as your only plan.
The UCAT and Eight Interview Stations
The UCAT must have been taken within the 12 months before applying, and shortlisted candidates then face eight Multiple Mini Interview stations over about two hours at Novena. Together these carry far more weight than school marks, and both need preparing for well in advance.
Admission rests on an aptitude test and a structured interview rather than on category-wise minimum marks.
| Component | Requirement |
|---|---|
| UCAT | Required; only a result from the 12 months before applying counts, and the UCAT ANZ is not accepted |
| Personal statement and referees | A personal statement of up to 300 words together with two referee reports |
| Multiple Mini Interviews | Eight one-to-one stations over about two hours at the Novena campus, in April, for shortlisted candidates |
| Application window | Opens in October of the year before intake and closes in mid-March |
| NEET-UG (for India) | A qualified score, needed by every Indian student who plans to practise in India |
To apply, students need to submit essential academic and identification documents:
Admission Guidance & Document Checklist
Get the complete document checklist or admission guidance from our experts.
Programme Structure
The LKCMedicine MBBS runs for five years, taught in English across two campuses. The preclinical years use team-based learning in place of lectures, and Year 5 ends with an overseas Elective, a home Selective and the Student Assistantship Programme, all part of the degree course. Singapore's 12-month internship year, PGY1, comes after graduation and is arranged nationally by MOH Holdings rather than by NTU, which is why the degree does not meet the NMC rule that the internship be done at the university that awards the degree.
Total Duration:
5 Years, then a 12-month PGY1 year after graduation
Degree:
MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery), joint NTU and Imperial up to the 2028 graduating class, NTU alone from 2029
Years 1 to 2
The preclinical years run on team-based learning at the Experimental Medicine Building on the Yunnan Garden campus. Students prepare material independently before class, then apply it to clinical scenarios in facilitated group sessions:
Year 3
The first sustained clinical year, with ward-based teaching at Tan Tock Seng Hospital and partner sites, supported by designated Core Tutors:
Year 4
Clinical postings across the life course and the settings in which medicine is practised, together with a six-week research project:
Year 5
The final year combines an overseas placement, a home placement and a capstone assistantship that prepares students for the work of a junior doctor:
Clinical training runs through Singapore's public healthcare clusters, led by NHG Health:
| Clinical base | Role in training |
|---|---|
| Tan Tock Seng Hospital | The school's principal teaching hospital, beside the Novena campus in the HealthCity Novena precinct |
| NHG Health | The school's primary clinical partner, providing sites for clinical postings, Selectives, Electives, Scholarly Projects and the Student Assistantship Programme |
| SingHealth and NUHS | Singapore's other two public healthcare clusters, which the school also works with, so students train more widely than in one cluster |
| MOH Holdings | The national body that employs PGY1 doctors after graduation and posts them across the public hospital clusters; it is not part of NTU |
Get the full curriculum
Download a free brochure to see detailed subjects, the course structure and everything you need to plan your studies.
The Singapore Framework
Two frameworks govern this school. One is the partnership with Imperial College London it was founded on, which is ending. The other is Singapore's national system for training doctors, which applies to international students in full.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| The Imperial College London partnership | The school was set up in 2010 with Imperial College London. Students graduating up to 2028 receive a joint NTU and Imperial MBBS |
| From 2029 | NTU awards the MBBS on its own, so a student starting the five-year course now receives the NTU MBBS |
| Total intake | About 190 places a year in total, with priority for Singaporeans |
| MOH Medical Undergraduate Agreement | Signed by every medicine student; the service obligation is six years for international students and five years for Singapore citizens |
| When the bond begins | After the 12-month PGY1 year, not on graduation day |
| Liquidated damages | Payable under the agreement if the bond is broken |
| Singapore Medical Council | The LKCMedicine MBBS is on the First Schedule of the Medical Registration Act, giving graduates the local-graduate route to provisional and then full registration with the SMC |
| WDOMS | The NTU Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine is listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools, so graduates can apply for ECFMG Certification and the USMLE |
Understand the Recognition Framework
The table above sets out which degree a student receives and what the Singapore system asks of them.
Legacy
This is Singapore's newest medical school and its first class graduated in 2018, so this section introduces the people who lead it rather than a long alumni record.
Dean of the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine since 2021 and NTU's Senior Vice-President for Health and Life Sciences. A gastroenterologist by training, he was Vice-Chancellor and President of the Chinese University of Hong Kong from 2010 to 2017.
Dean before Professor Sung, he led the school through its early years, from its first cohort in 2013 to its first graduation in 2018.
President of Nanyang Technological University since 2023, the university's fifth. He joined from the National University of Singapore, where he had been Senior Deputy President and Provost.
The school teaches about 190 students a year across two campuses: the Clinical Sciences Building at Novena, a twenty-storey building opened in March 2017 in the HealthCity Novena precinct next to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, and the Experimental Medicine Building on NTU's Yunnan Garden campus in Jurong West, opened in August 2015. Nanyang Technological University as a whole ranks 12th in the world on QS 2027 and 31st on Times Higher Education for 2026.
NTU 12th in the world on QS 2027 and 31st on THE 2026
Team-based learning in place of lectures in the preclinical years
Clinical training across all three of Singapore's healthcare clusters
Tan Tock Seng Hospital as principal teaching hospital
About 190 students a year, taught in small groups
Taught entirely in English, with no local language requirement
Two purpose-built campuses, Novena and Yunnan Garden
Eight-station Multiple Mini Interviews instead of a written entrance paper
About University
Get all information about LKCMedicine in our free brochure
Read on to find out how you can fulfil your dream of studying medicine.
Role in medicine
Get all information about LKCMedicine in our free brochure
Read on to find out how you can fulfil your dream of studying medicine.
Cost of living
Singapore is one of the most expensive cities in the world to live in. A student typically spends about S$1,200 to S$3,400 a month, and a hall place against a private room is the largest single variable in the budget. Rupee figures use about ₹74 to the Singapore dollar (October 2026).
| Cost Component | Approximate Amount |
|---|---|
| Accommodation (hall of residence to private room) | ₹37,000 to ₹1,33,000 (S$500 to S$1,800) |
| Food (three meals a day) | ₹22,000 to ₹59,000 (S$300 to S$800) |
| Public transport | ₹7,400 to ₹22,000 (S$100 to S$300) |
| Utilities | Usually included in hall rent |
| Phone, toiletries, clothing | ₹22,000 to ₹37,000 (S$300 to S$500) |
Average monthly living cost
₹90,000 to ₹2,52,000 (S$1,200 to S$3,400)
Housing
NTU's halls of residence are on the Yunnan Garden campus in the far west of Singapore, which suits the preclinical years. From Year 3 teaching moves to Novena in the centre, so plan where you will live for the clinical years before you arrive.
Need accommodation details?
Get a full overview of housing options with our university guide, or reach out to an expert.
Food & Dining
Singapore has one of the largest and longest-established Indian communities outside India, and Indian food here is part of ordinary daily life rather than something to search for.
The Little India district has restaurants, groceries, temples, mosques and shops serving a wide range of Indian regional cuisines, and is reachable by MRT from anywhere in the city, including the Novena campus.
People of Indian origin make up about 9 per cent of Singapore's resident population, and Tamil is one of the country's four official languages. An Indian student here is joining a long-established part of Singaporean life.
Singapore's hawker centres serve South Indian, North Indian and Indian Muslim food, among many other cuisines, at prices well below restaurant rates. Numbeo puts an inexpensive restaurant meal at about S$15 (about ₹1,100), and hawker food costs less, which is the main way students keep the food budget down.
NTU's main campus in Jurong West has its own canteens and food courts serving the whole student body, which is where preclinical students eat day to day.
Indian groceries, spices and provisions are available across Singapore, not only in Little India, so cooking Indian food at home needs no special planning.
Location
The school runs from two campuses. The Clinical Sciences Building at 11 Mandalay Road in Novena, central Singapore, sits in the HealthCity Novena precinct beside Tan Tock Seng Hospital and hosts the clinical years and the admissions interviews. The Experimental Medicine Building at 59 Nanyang Drive, on NTU's Yunnan Garden campus in Jurong West in the far west of the island, hosts the preclinical years.
Nearest Airport
Changi Airport (SIN), with direct flights to Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata and other Indian cities
Flight Time From India
About four to six hours direct from the main Indian cities
Between the Two Campuses
Novena and Yunnan Garden are roughly 20 to 25 kilometres apart, linked by MRT and bus
Your Roadmap to Success
Graduates receive the MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery), the equivalent of an Indian MBBS rather than an Indian postgraduate MD. Students graduating up to 2028 receive a joint NTU and Imperial College London MBBS; from 2029 NTU awards the degree on its own.
Graduates receive provisional registration from the Singapore Medical Council so they can be employed as PGY1 doctors by MOH Holdings, which posts them across the public hospital clusters. PGY1 runs for 12 months, with at least four months in General Medicine and four in General Surgery or Orthopaedics, and must start within two years of graduating; full SMC registration follows.
Under the MOH Medical Undergraduate Agreement, international students serve six years in Singapore's public healthcare sector, starting after PGY1; Singapore citizens serve five. It is a contract with liquidated damages for leaving early, and it shapes a graduate's first working years.
After PGY1, graduates can apply for residency through MOH Holdings with the NUHS, SingHealth or NHG Health clusters, and specialist training can continue within the public health system during and after the bond.
The NTU Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine is listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools (WDOMS), so its graduates can apply for ECFMG Certification and sit the USMLE, the US licensing exam. ECFMG's accreditation policy is for information only and does not affect an individual graduate's eligibility for ECFMG Certification.
The five-year English-medium NTU MBBS meets the NMC's course-length and language rules, but the NMC Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate Regulations 2021 also ask for a 12-month internship at the same foreign institution that awards the degree. In Singapore that year is PGY1, a paid hospital job arranged nationally by MOH Holdings rather than by NTU, so, as the rules stand, an NTU degree does not meet the NMC rules and does not lead to an Indian licence through the FMGE (NExT deferred and not in force). The six-year bond also comes first. Plan this with our counsellors before you apply.
Understand the Medical Licensing Pathway
A clear overview of the exams and requirements after graduation.
Practising in India
To practise medicine in India after graduating abroad, an Indian student qualifies NEET-UG before admission, completes the course abroad, clears the NMC screening examination (the FMGE; NExT is deferred and not in force), completes an internship in India, and registers with the NMC or a State Medical Council. For an NTU graduate this route is not open as the rules stand, because the internship year does not meet the NMC rules, and the six-year service bond comes first in any case.
Step 1
International graduates serve six years in Singapore's public healthcare sector under the MOH Medical Undergraduate Agreement, starting after the PGY1 year. Leaving earlier means paying liquidated damages under the agreement. Counting five years of study, the PGY1 year and the bond, a family should plan for about 12 years in Singapore from the first day of the course.
Step 2
The NMC Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate Regulations 2021 ask for a course of at least 54 months, a 12-month internship in the same foreign institution, and a licence to practise in the country of study. The five-year NTU MBBS clears the course length. Its 12-month internship, though, is the PGY1 year after graduation, a paid hospital job arranged nationally by MOH Holdings rather than by NTU, and the final-year Student Assistantship Programme is part of the degree course itself. That is why, as the rules stand, the Singapore degree does not meet the NMC rules and does not lead to an Indian licence.
Step 3
The regulations require the course to be taught in English. NTU delivers the MBBS in English throughout, so this condition is met.
Step 4
The National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences conducts the FMGE twice a year with a pass mark of 150 out of 300. In the December 2025 session 42,872 candidates appeared and 10,262 qualified, a pass rate of 23.95%. In June 2025, 36,034 appeared and 6,707 qualified, 18.61%. The National Exit Test (NExT), intended to replace the FMGE, is deferred and not in force.
Step 5
After clearing the FMGE, graduates complete a Compulsory Rotating Medical Internship (CRMI) in India, normally twelve months, and then register with the NMC or a State Medical Council.
Student Life Style
Singapore is a city-state of around six million people: equatorial, English-speaking, very safe and very expensive. Student life at LKCMedicine happens in two places: a large campus in the far west for two years, then the centre of the city for three.
The Helix Bridge lit in purple at night with Marina Bay Sands and the ArtScience Museum behind
Bridge over the Singapore River with a road sign and the central business district towers behind
Mosque in Singapore's Little India district, with minarets and palm trees against a blue sky
Scholarship & Financial
Funding for international medicine students at NTU is limited, so plan the full fee from the start. Read all three cards together.
Tuition for AY2026/27 is S$91,250 a year (about ₹67.5 lakh) for a non-ASEAN international student and S$80,850 (about ₹60 lakh) for an ASEAN international student. Across five years the non-ASEAN figure is about S$456,250, about ₹3.38 crore.
The published fee is the subsidised Tuition Grant rate, and it comes with the MOH Medical Undergraduate Agreement. International students then serve six years in Singapore's public healthcare sector after PGY1, against five for Singapore citizens, and leaving early means paying liquidated damages. The grant is a contract, not a discount.
NTU's Nanyang Scholarship does not cover Medicine, and the Sim Yung Chong Medical Scholarship, the Medicine-specific award, is open only to Singapore citizens and permanent residents. Plan how you will fund the full fee with our counsellors before you apply.
Compare
Compare the NTU Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine with India's top-ranked government medical college.
Quick Comparison:
NTU Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine vs AIIMS New Delhi
| University | NTU Lee Kong Chian School of MedicineSingapore | AIIMS New DelhiNew Delhi, India |
|---|---|---|
| University Type | Public, founded 2010 | Institute of National Importance (government) |
| Medium | English | English |
| Course Duration | 5 years, then a 12-month PGY1 year in Singapore | 5.5 years, being 4.5 years plus a 12-month internship |
| Tuition (per year) | S$91,250, about ₹67.5 lakh, for a non-ASEAN international student (AY2026/27) | About ₹1,628 in academic fees for the whole course, including ₹1,350 tuition |
| Admission | UCAT and Multiple Mini Interviews, plus a qualified NEET UG result | NEET UG |
| Recognition | Listed in WDOMS; SMC registration; does not meet the NMC internship rule (PGY1 is arranged nationally) | Listed in WDOMS |
| Global Ranking | Nanyang Technological University: QS 12 (2027), THE 31 (2026) | NIRF Medical 1 (2025) |
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