Siberian State Medical University 2026: FMGE and NMC Rules

Siberian State Medical University (SibMed) is a state medical university in Tomsk, Russia, founded in 1878. It teaches General Medicine to international students fully in English over 5 years 10 months. In the December 2025 FMGE, the screening exam foreign medical graduates sit to work in India, 42.31% of its graduates passed.

Updated on 30 September 2026.

Key Takeaways

• Old and state run. Siberian State Medical University was founded on 16 May 1878 and is a federal state university under the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation (SibMed history page).

• English medium. The General Medicine programme for international students is taught fully in English, with extra Russian classes for patient contact (SibMed General Medicine programme page).

• Course length. The official study plan for the 2024 intake runs 5 years 10 months of full-time study (SibMed General Medicine study plan 2024).

• FMGE results vary a lot. Siberian State Medical University graduates passed FMGE at 15.38% in June 2025 and 42.31% in December 2025. Both groups were small, 26 and 52 candidates (NBEMS FMGE Performance Report 2025).

• Not a futureMBBS partner. futureMBBS works with 23 partner universities in 9 European countries, and Russia is not one of them (futureMBBS partner universities).

What is Siberian State Medical University?

Siberian State Medical University, known as SibMed, is a medical university in Tomsk, a city in Western Siberia. Its official name is long. It is the Federal State Funded Educational Institution of Higher Education "Siberian State Medical University" of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation (SibMed about page). In plain words, it is a government university, run by Russia's health ministry.

The university says it has more than 7,500 students from 39 countries and 61 Russian regions. Its own clinics record more than 100,000 patient visits a year (SibMed English home page). For the wider picture of studying medicine in Russia, see our MBBS in Russia country guide.

Siberian State Medical University at a glance

History of Siberian State Medical University

Siberian State Medical University began as the Imperial University in Tomsk. The decree was signed on 16 May 1878, and the building work took almost eight years. The university opened on 22 July 1888 with a single faculty, the Department of Medicine. It was the first higher medical school east of the Urals (SibMed history page).

The founding year and the renaming year are often mixed up. The school has taught medicine since 1888. The name Siberian State Medical University dates only from 1992.

The General Medicine programme at Siberian State Medical University

The General Medicine programme is the course Indian students join. The university describes it as training for foreign students in General Medicine "fully in English". Students also get Russian language classes, because patients in Tomsk speak Russian (SibMed General Medicine programme page).

The official study plan for the 2024 intake sets the course at 5 years 10 months, full time. The graduate's qualification is "врач-лечебник", which means physician or general doctor (SibMed General Medicine study plan 2024). Russia does not award a degree called MBBS. The Russian specialist degree in General Medicine is the course graduates present to NMC.

Core subjects in the Siberian State Medical University course

The programme page lists these key subjects, taught across six years:

• Pre-clinical sciences: medical biology, normal physiology, biochemistry and human anatomy, taught in the early years.

• Bridge subjects: pathological anatomy, pharmacology and medical genetics, which link the science to disease.

• Internal medicine: propaedeutics (the basics of examining a patient), faculty therapy, hospital therapy and polyclinic therapy.

• Surgery and specialties: general surgery, obstetrics and gynaecology, paediatrics, neurology and ophthalmology.

Practical training takes place in the university's own clinics, which the programme page says treat about 100,000 patients a year.

Is a Siberian State Medical University degree valid in India?

A degree from any foreign university is judged against the NMC Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate (FMGL) Regulations, 2021. NMC is the National Medical Commission, India's medical regulator. These rules apply to every student who started a foreign course after November 2021 (NMC FMGL Regulations 2021). The full list of NMC rules sits on the NMC rules and regulations page.

The whole course must also be finished within ten years of joining. Our guide on how to check NMC and WDOMS recognition explains how to check a university's listing yourself. Our eligibility guide for MBBS abroad covers the NEET UG rules before you apply.

Siberian State Medical University FMGE pass rate, 2023 to 2025

FMGE, the Foreign Medical Graduate Examination, is the test NBEMS (National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences) runs for doctors trained abroad. NBEMS publishes results by university every year (NBEMS FMGE page). The table below shows Siberian State Medical University's official results.

Across both 2025 sessions, 26 of 78 Siberian State Medical University candidates passed. That is 33.33%, or one in three. The group sizes are small, so one year's figure swings a lot. Four passes in June 2025 and 22 in December 2025 came from the same university.

How Siberian State Medical University compares with Russia and India overall

In December 2025, Siberian State Medical University graduates passed at nearly double the national rate. In June 2025 they were slightly below both the Russian and national figures. All figures come from the NBEMS FMGE Performance Report 2025. For a view across countries, see our FMGE pass rate by country web story and our explainer on what the FMGE exam is.

Scholarships at Siberian State Medical University

Siberian State Medical University lists two funding routes for international students (SibMed funding and scholarships page):

• Russian Government Scholarship: covers full tuition and a monthly allowance. Travel, living costs and compulsory health insurance are not covered. Places are competitive, applications open in January, and deadlines fall between March and June depending on the country.

• State-funded places for ex-compatriots: open to applicants who can show that they, a parent, grandparent or great-grandparent held USSR citizenship or lived in Russia.

For tuition and living costs across Russian universities, see our MBBS in Russia fees 2026 guide.

What to weigh before choosing Siberian State Medical University

Four points matter most for an Indian family looking at Siberian State Medical University.

1. FMGE results: SibMed's pass rate has ranged from 15.38% to 42.31% over the last two sessions. Plan for FMGE preparation from the clinical years onward.

2. Russian for patients: the course is taught in English, but patients in Tomsk speak Russian. The Russian classes in the programme matter for clinical work.

3. NMC rules: the 12-month internship must be done at Siberian State Medical University, and the graduate needs a Russian licence to practise. Both are part of the FMGL 2021 rules.

4. Wider risks in Russia: our report on mass expulsions of medical students at a Russian university and our guide to the disadvantages of studying MBBS in Russia cover what families have faced.

Does futureMBBS offer admission to Siberian State Medical University?

No. futureMBBS works with 23 partner universities in 9 countries: Czech Republic (5), Hungary (4), Poland (3), Slovakia (3), Croatia (2), Latvia (2), Romania (2), Cyprus (1) and Lithuania (1). Russia is not among them. The full list is on our partner universities page. This guide sets out the official facts on Siberian State Medical University so a family can judge it clearly.

Conclusion

Siberian State Medical University is a state medical school in Tomsk with teaching roots going back to 1888. Its English-medium General Medicine course runs 5 years 10 months. Its FMGE record is mixed: 42.31% in December 2025, well above the national 23.94%, but 15.38% in June 2025. The NMC rules on the same-university internship and a Russian licence apply to every graduate.

Sources

• Siberian State Medical University: SibMed history

• Siberian State Medical University: about SibMed

• Siberian State Medical University: English home page (facts and figures)

• Siberian State Medical University: General Medicine programme page

• Siberian State Medical University: General Medicine study plan, 2024 intake (PDF)

• Siberian State Medical University: funding and scholarships

• NMC Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate Regulations, 2021 (PDF)

• NMC rules and regulations page

• NBEMS FMGE examination page

• NBEMS FMGE Performance Report 2025 (PDF)

• NBEMS FMGE 2024 country and institute wise results (PDF)

• NBEMS FMGE 2023 country and institute wise results (PDF)