About the university
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 —. 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 45% have overseas training. Currently there are — students, including — undergraduates, — 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 — SUMC adopted a new "system-based integrated" medical curriculum, focused on nurturing professional humanity, implemented English as the teaching medium for selected small classes, as well as supported students to undergo overseas clinical electives. In China’s Medical License Examination, 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 ophthalmology. Over the past years, the quality of scientific publications in SUMC and affiliated hospitals has improved with papers published in top journals including Nature, Science, New England Journal of Medicine, PNAS etc.
SUMC has 6 affiliated hospitals and over 20 off-site teaching hospitals. These hospitals do not only ensure a solid foundation for SUMC’s student education and professional development, but also provide ample opportunities for innovative translational research.