Abstract
BackgroundAs the number of Asian and African students studying medicine in China increases, it is imperative to evaluate the educational experiences of these international medical students (IMSs). This study was intended to investigate opinions of China-educated IMSs towards the medical curriculum and the impact of Chinese language capability on their clinical studies.MethodsA self-administered questionnaire was circulated to the final-year IMSs during the graduation time from May 2019 to July 2019 in 4 universities in China. The questionnaire asked IMSs to assess the quality of medical education and provide a self-evaluation of their Chinese language capability. One-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was used to determine whether IMSs’ Chinese language capability was associated with their clinical experiences and clinical competence.ResultsOverall, we received 209 valid responses, of which 76.1% were satisfied with the quality of medical education. Genetics, physics, and mathematics were perceived as the least relevant basic courses for medical practice, and 21.5% of student reported that community-oriented medicine was a neglected subject. Notably, 58.9% of students had positive views about discussions on ethical topics during their clerkships, and 71.3% believed they had acquired sufficient clinical skills to begin a residency program. Chinese speaking skills and communication initiatives were found to be critical factors in influencing students’ clinical experiences and competence.ConclusionThis study presents the perceptions of China-educated IMSs towards medical curriculum from various aspects. Results show that language influences the education experiences of IMSs. Collectively, these results indicate that the curriculum for IMSs in China should be more problem-based and community-engaged to improve IMSs’ learning experiences and preparation for community deployment. Furthermore, training curriculum for the oral Chinese should be improved to equip IMSs with sufficient language competence to enable them to efficiently carry out clinical clerkship and rotations. Our findings provide evidence for benchmarking medical curricular codifications tailored for Asian and African students.
Highlights
As the number of Asian and African students studying medicine in China increases, it is imperative to evaluate the educational experiences of these international medical students (IMSs)
This study presents the perceptions of China-educated IMSs towards medical curriculum from various aspects
Results show that language influences the education experiences of IMSs
Summary
As the number of Asian and African students studying medicine in China increases, it is imperative to evaluate the educational experiences of these international medical students (IMSs). In the last two decades, China has experienced a dramatic rise in the enrolment of international students to its institutions of higher education, and clinical medicine is the mostchosen program for academic studies [1]. A significant number of Chinese medical schools offer a 6-year English-taught undergraduate program for international medical students (IMSs), who are conferred with a bachelor of medicine degree on successful completion of their studies. The curriculum of this program for IMSs is similar in almost all universities and colleges. IMSs are required to accomplish the compulsory courses and a certain number of optional courses in order to achieve the minimum credits based on the training plan of each university
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
