Ask Brian: The low-down on studying medicine on the Continent

PROBLEM: My son is in transition year and attends a fee-paying school in Dublin. He has always been curious about medicine. However, I don't think he will get the points to study the subject in Ireland. I have heard it is possible to study medicine in Poland and Hungary. How difficult is it?

ADVICE: A large number of Irish students study medicine in Europe, but this route to becoming a qualified doctor is not easy and requires total commitment over the entire five to six years of study.

Programmes in medical universities in Hungary and Poland, which are taught through English and aimed at the international market, cost €10,000-€12,000 per year, exclusive of accommodation and maintenance costs. I have met professors and undergraduate Irish medical students of Semmelweis University in Budapest on a number of occasions. These programmes are suitable for very motivated, intelligent students who are prepared to put their personal and social lives on hold for the first two years of their studies. After that, in the words of Irish students I met, the pressure eases somewhat.

Because of the nature of our Leaving Cert, with its minimum of seven subjects, many Irish students find they struggle with European universities' standards in maths and sciences. Dr Tim O'Leary in Schull co-ordinates applications and entrance examinations to Hungarian universities from Ireland (studyhungary.hu).

Many Irish students also attend both medical and paramedical programmes in countries including Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania and Bulgaria. Most of these operate on the same basis as Hungary, with entrance examinations based on competency in biology and chemistry. Some Polish universities, including the University of Warsaw, also look for physics, and in some other universities, maths is part of the entrance assessment tests. There will be a series of entrance examinations taking place in Dublin between April and July.

Guy Flouch of Eunicas offers a support structure to Irish students applying to third-level colleges throughout Europe (excluding Hungary). Details ateunicas.ie.

In recent years, a number of Italian universities have begun to offer medical degree programmes through English. These programmes charge fees in the range of €650-€3,800, depending on family income. Italian universities use the International Medical Admissions Test, a 100-minute, subject-specific admissions test for applicants to medicine and surgery courses. The verbal reasoning test through English should not stretch Irish students. The remainder of the test relates to science subjects.

Many of Italy's top universities – including Milan, Pavia, and Sapienza in Rome – offer degrees in medicine through English that are open to all EU students. Irish students can access the student loans available to Italian students.

This is not an easy route to becoming a doctor. Students with CAO points of under 500 might struggle even if they gain admission to these programmes. Graduates of the Italian medical programmes take their intern year back in Ireland, whereas central and eastern European graduates complete their intern year as part of their studies. Graduates are recognised by regulatory bodies in Ireland.

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