Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery

Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery, or in Latin Medicinæ Baccalaureus et Baccalaureus Chirurgiæ (abbreviated MB BChir, MB ChB, BM BS, MB BS, etc.), are the two degrees awarded after a course in medicine and surgery at a university in the United Kingdom and other places following the British tradition, such as Australian, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, New Zealand, Jamaican, South African, Pakistan and Indian medical schools. In theory they are two separate degrees, but in practice the two are usually treated as one. The degrees are the Commonwealth equivalent of what is known elsewhere as an M.D.

Naming

The Latin names for these degrees are variously Medicinae Baccalaureus, Chirugiae Baccalaureus or Baccalaureus in Medicina et in Chirurgia, abbreviated as MB ChB, MB BCh or in other ways depending on the individual institution; the English versions are Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery, usually abbreviated as BM BS. The different Latin and English abbreviations may occasionally be combined by certain institutions such that BM BCh and MB BS are also seen. The specific names and abbreviations of the degrees vary with each awarding body and from region to region.

In countries that award bachelors' degrees in medicine, the degree of Doctor of Medicine (MD) refers to a Higher Doctorate, and is reserved for medical practitioners who do research in the field of medicine.

The degrees are not offered in the United States or Canada; the equivalent degree in the United States and Canada is the MD or DO.

Australia

MB BS is conferred by most Australian medical schools, undergraduate (UNSW) or graduate-entry (ANU, University of Queensland and Sydney University).

The graduate entry Flinders medical school confers BMBS, which is the same qualification as MB BS.

The University of Newcastle offers the 5 year undergraduate Bachelor of Medicine (BMed) degree, which is the same qualification level as the MB BS.

Bangladesh

All medical schools in Bangladesh award MB BS.

England

Several variants of these degrees are awarded in England:

MB ChB are used at the universities of Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, Keele, Manchester, Sheffield, and Warwick.
MB BS are used at the University of East Anglia, Hull York Medical School, the University of London, and University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.
BM BCh are used at Oxford.
BM BS are used at University of Nottingham, Peninsula Medical School and Brighton Sussex Medical School
BM are awarded at the University of Southampton. Although no degree in surgery is formally awarded by Southampton, this degree is equivalent to the MB ChB, and students may go on to a career in surgery the same as any other graduates in medicine and surgery.
MB BChir are awarded by the University of Cambridge.

The English Triple Conjoint Diploma of LRCP, MRCS, LMSSA are old non-university qualifying examinations in medicine and surgery awarded jointly by the Royal College of Physicians of London, Royal College of Surgeons of England and Society of Apothecaries. These qualifications were registerable with the GMC until 1999.

Hong Kong

The awarding of qualifications in Hong Kong has continued to follow the British tradition despite the handover of the territory's sovereignty from the hands of the United Kingdom to the People's Republic of China on 30 June 1997. The dual degree is awarded as:

MB BS at University of Hong Kong; and
MB ChB at Chinese University of Hong Kong.

India

All medical schools in India award MB BS.

Ireland

The three degrees of MB BCh BAO are awarded by all medical schools in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland - namely Queen's University Belfast, University of Dublin (Trinity College) and some constituent institutions of the National University of Ireland (Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, University College Dublin, University College Cork and National University of Ireland, Galway). BAO is Baccalaureus in Arte Obstetricia (Bachelor of Obstetrics).

LRCPI LRCSI denotes a holder of the historical non-university qualifying licenciates awarded jointly by the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland and the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. Unlike the corresponding licentiates awarded by the Royal Colleges in Scotland and England, these qualifications are still registerable with the Irish Medical Council. Students at RCSI still receive these licenciates but now also receive the degrees MB BCh BAO, due to RCSI's status as a recognised college of the National University of Ireland.

LAH formerly denoted a licentiate of the now-defunct Apothecaries' Hall, Dublin, and is no longer awarded.

New Zealand

The two New Zealand Medical Schools, Auckland and Otago, style their degrees as MB ChB. The New Zealand MB ChB degrees take 5-6 years depending upon graduate or undergraduate entry.

Pakistan

All medical schools in Pakistan award MB BS.

Scotland

All medical schools in Scotland award MB ChB. The University of St Andrews awarded MB ChB until the early 1970s, but now only awards a pre-clinical BSc or BSc(Hons), and students subsequently obtain the degrees of MB ChB from the University of Manchester.

The Scottish Triple Conjoint Diploma of LRCPE, LRCSE, LRCPSG are old non-university qualifying examinations in medicine and surgery awarded jointly by the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh and Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow. These qualifications were registerable with the GMC until 1999.

Wales

All medical schools in Wales award MB BCh.

Classification of degree

The MB BS is a rather difficult degree to classify. It can be taken both as an undergraduate, which lasts 5 or 6 years in addition to one year of practice as a Pre-registration house officer (PRHO), or as a graduate, on the 'Graduate Entry Programme' after having obtained another undergraduate degree of a good class, which lasts 4 years in addition to one year of practice as a Pre-registration house officer (PRHO) (which now incorporates the first year of Foundation Training following the initiative "Modernising Medical Careers"). The degrees differ from other undergraduate degrees in that they are a professional qualification which entitles bearers to a guaranteed position upon receipt. This is not the case with other undergraduate degrees, so whilst the MB ChB are undergraduate/graduate degrees, they are perhaps more accurately conceptualised as a so-called 'First Professional'. It is a general/ordinary degree (not an honours degree), and as such, one is not awarded 1st class, 2:1, etc as one does for honours degrees. It is possible for the degrees of M.B, Ch.B to be awarded with Honours, i.e. M.B, Ch.B (Hons) if the board of examiners in the case of exceptional performance throughout the degree course. One example of this is The University of Manchester

Graduates of these degrees are entitled to use the title Doctor and are eligible for membership of professional institutions such as the Royal College of Physicians, after sitting further postgraduate examinations, and are eligible to submit research for the award of the MD.

Use of the title "Dr"

The use of the title "Dr" by medical practitioners is described in the Doctor (title) entry.

Progression to the Ch.M

It is possible for a Masters in Surgery (Ch.M) to be studied for at some English universities and the possession of an M.B, Ch.B is normally a pre-requisite for this.

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