Shantou University Medical College

Shantou University Medical College (SUMC) is an important component of Shantou University, a public university that has received continuous support from Mr. Li Ka-shing and his Foundation since 1981. SUMC is dedicated to cultivating healthcare professionals with sound knowledge, innovation, and compassion; striving to become a high-level teaching and research-oriented college, while also making significant contributions to medical education and healthcare. Among the 236 full-time faculty members, 70 % of them hold doctorate degrees and 4 5 % have overseas training. Currently there are 5, 467 students, including 3, 519 undergraduates, 1,7 20 master students, 182 doctorate candidates and 44 international students . Being committed to student-centered education and the training of medical professionals that can meet international standards, SUMC has pioneered educational reforms. In 2002 SUMC adopted a new system-based integrated medical curriculum, focused on nurturing professional humanity, implemented English as the teaching medium for selected small classes, a s well as supported students to undergo overseas clinical electives. In China’s Medical License E xamination, the pass rates of SUMC medical graduates have been among the top 10% among 160 counterparts for 16 consecutive years. To assess our teaching quality, SUMC has also embarked on preparing the English-stream students to write the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) before their internship. Over the past 12 years, the average pass rate in USMLE Step 1 exam is 87.4%. The two-decade educational reforms at SUMC has earned her many accolades, including 6 national awards for education achievement from the Ministry of Education. SUMC has made significant strides in scientific research. There are over 10 provincial-level research laboratories, with a recently approved BSL3 laboratory. Research focuses have mainly been in the fields of infectious disease, cancer, cardiovascular medicine and ophtha