Programs Offered

UP College of Medicine Degree Programs

 

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The Intarmed Program

INTARMED (INTegrated Liberal Arts and MEDicine), is the seven-year program of the University of the Philippines College of Medicine (UPCM) which shortens the whole medical education by two years. It consists of two years of pre-medical courses (Learning Unit I – II), four years of regular medical studies (Learning Unit III – VI), and one year of clinical internship (Learning Unit VII). Students who enter Level I are considered direct entrants while students who enter Level III are considered lateral entrants.

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The MD-PhD (Molecular Medicine) Program

The dual MD- PhD (Molecular Medicine) program of the UPCM aims to train aspiring physician- scientists for careers dedicated to the pursuit of basic and applied biomedical research towards the advancement of health from individual to global levels. The prescribed program of study comprises eight years: one year of graduate level coursework and research, five years of medical education (LU III – VII of the INTARMED program) and two years for completion and defense of a PhD dissertation. Applicants are expected to clearly demonstrate their aptitude and motivation for advanced study in molecular medicine and related areas.

Synopsis/Summary

The MD-PhD (Molecular Medicine) Program aims to train aspiring physician-scientists for careers dedicated to the advancement of health through biomedical research. The prescribed period of study is eight years, during which time the MD-PhD student is expected to satisfy all the course requirements of the UPCM Organ System Integrated (OSI) curriculum (i.e., the MD component of the Program) and also earn at least 44 credit units of graduate courses, including 16 credit units of core courses, 12 units of major courses, 4 units of cognates/electives and 12 credit units towards the PhD dissertation. A student is qualified to take the comprehensive examination upon completion of 32 units of graduate courses, inclusive of 16 units of core courses, subject to the required minimum general weighted average (GWA) as determined by the National Graduate Office for the Health Sciences (NGOHS). A student must satisfactorily pass the comprehensive examination before proceeding with the proposal, approval and conduct of dissertation research. He/she must satisfactorily defend his dissertation to an expert panel before submitting the final dissertation manuscript in accordance with NGOHS regulations. The graduate courses are typically completed during the first year of enrollment in the Program. Dissertation work may formally commence after completing the required basic science courses of the MD Program, such that the clinical courses may be completed after the dissertation requirements are fulfilled.

Rationale

The conduct of biomedical research increasingly demands PhD-level training. Yet, pursuing a PhD separately from an MD entails many more years of training via two distinct programs completed in succession, and achieving coherent synergy between the two programs is challenging given their traditional differences in perspective. The MD-PhD (Molecular Medicine) Program thus aims to train aspiring physician-scientists for careers dedicated to the pursuit of basic and applied biomedical research with a strong translational character, towards the advancement of health from individual to global levels. Emphasis is placed on preparation to assume key leadership roles within the academic community as principal investigators and mentors to physician-scientists in training, so as to promote a self-sustaining process whereby new knowledge is continuously generated, applied and transmitted to meet emerging and anticipated health needs.

Administration

The MD-PhD Program is administered by the office of the UPCM Associate Dean for Academic Development (ADAD) in collaboration with the MD-PhD Program Committee, which comprises core faculty members based in the UPCM, the UP College of Public Health (CPH) and the UP Manila National Institutes of Health (NIH), particularly in the UPCM Departments of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and of Pharmacology and Toxicology, the CPH Departments of Medical Microbiology and of Parasitology, and the NIH Institute of Human Genetics.

Admission

The most basic admission requirement is an outstanding scholastic record with a baccalaureate or higher (e.g., master’s, doctoral or other graduate) degree in a field relevant to health and biomedicine, preferably molecular biology and biotechnology or biochemistry. Applicants initially apply for admission into the Doctor of Medicine (MD) Program, with the option of explicitly indicating on their application forms their intent to apply for admission into the MD-PhD Program. From among the MD-PhD Program applicants who successfully qualify for admission into the MD Program, the MD- PhD Program Committee selects prospective candidates for admission to be interviewed for further screening on the basis of their submitted application documents, after which the final list of accepted MD-PhD Program applicants is determined in view of their aptitude and motivation for advanced study in molecular medicine and related areas in the health sciences.

Prospective applicants are encouraged to explore the possibility of admission into the MD-PhD Program as early as their interest warrants, even prior to filing an application for the MD Program, by contacting the faculty coordinator of the MD-PhD Program Committee through the office fo the UPCM ADAD. However, such preliminary communication should be understood as serving the purpose of clarification for the applicants rather than providing any guarantee of admission into the Program.

The core courses & their respective credit units are as follows:

Course Title		Units
Biostat 201:	Fundamentals of Biostatistics	3
Epi 201:	Principles of Epidemiology	3
Biochem 205:	Special Laboratory Techniques	3
Biochem 221:	Nucleotides and Nucleic Acids	3
Biochem 222:	Proteins, Lipids and Carbohydrates	3
Biochem 297:	Seminar in Biochemistry	1

 

Biochemistry 205 (Special Laboratory Techniques) is typically taken over a period of two consecutive semesters, for one credit unit in the first semester and two more credit units in the second semester, whereas all the other core courses each run for one semester. The list of approved additional graduate courses, which is expected to diversify as relevant new graduate courses are developed and offered, includes the following:

Course Title		Units
Biochem 224:	Physical Biochemistry	3
Biochem 240:	Advances in Biochemistry	3
Biochem 310:	Biochemical Genetics	3
Biochem 310:	Public Health Immunology	3
Biochem 311:	Public Health Bacteriology	3
Biochem 397.1:	Seminar in Public / Health Microbiology I	1
Para 307:	Immunologic, Biochemical and Molecular Parasitology	3
Para 397.1:	Seminar in Parasitology I	1

 

Biochemistry 240 (Advances in Biochemistry) is typically taken over a period of two consecutive semesters, for one credit unit in the first semester and two more credit units in the second semester, whereas all the other additional graduate courses each run for one semester.

Successful completion of 32 units of graduate courses including all core courses is a prerequisite to take the comprehensive examination, which in turn must be passed as a prerequisite for the formal proposal of the dissertation research.

PhD Dissertation

All MD-PhD students are strongly encouraged to actively engage in biomedical research at the earliest possible time in order to explore various possibilities for prospective PhD dissertation projects, either to accomplish work that could be further developed as dissertation research or to at least inform subsequent decisions on the selection of dissertation topics. However, proposed dissertation research must be formally presented and approved, by way of preparing a written dissertation proposal that is successfully defended in an oral presentation. Such approval is necessary for authorization to conduct dissertation research and to qualify for funding in support thereof. Dissertation research activities may be conducted at host institutions abroad in cases where the requisite infrastructure and expertise have yet to be established in the local setting, provided that the necessary arrangements (e.g., for inter-institutional agreements and funding support) are finalized in a timely manner.

Scheduling of Courses and Dissertation Activities

All the graduate courses are typically completed during the first year of enrollment in the MD-PhD Program, with the OSI-curriculum course IDC 211 (Research Methods 1) completed during the first semester of the said year. IDC 211, which is a course under Learning Unit III (LU III) of the OSI curriculum, entails the preparation and defense of a research project proposal, which is to be implemented and successfully completed in fulfillment of course requirements for IDC 211.1 (Research Methods 1 Project Implementation, also part of LU III). Apart from IDC 211, all other LU III courses (including IDC 211.1) are thus completed during the second year of enrollment in the MD- PhD Program, thereby providing an extended period for the conduct of research activities between IDC 211 and IDC 211.1. (IDC 211 is counted among the OSI courses rather than the graduate courses and hence is excluded from the computation of graduate-course credit units, although it entails two lecture -class hours per week and is therefore comparable to a course worth two credit units as regards time requirements.)

Accordingly, the following graduate course credit units (with those for core courses marked by asterisks) are expected to be earned during the first semester of the first year:

Course Title		Units
Biostat 201*:	Fundamentals of Biostatistics	3
Epi 201*:	Principles of Epidemiology	3
Biochem 205*:	Special Laboratory Techniques	1
Biochem 221*:	Nucleotides and Nucleic Acids	3
Biochem 222*:	Proteins, Lipids and Carbohydrates	3
Biochem 224:	Physical Biochemistry	3
Biochem 240:	Advances in Biochemistry	1

 

In addition, the following graduate-course credit units (with those for core courses marked by asterisks) are expected to be earned during the second semester of the first year:

Course Title		Units
Biochem 205*:	Special Laboratory Techniques	2
Biochem 297*:	Seminar in Biochemistry	1
Biochem 310:	Biochemical Genetics	3
Microbio 310:	Public Health Immunology	3
Microbio 311:	Public Health Bacteriology	3
Microbio 397.1:	Seminar in Public / Health Microbiology I	1
Para 307:	Immunologic, Biochemical and Molecular Parasitology	3
Para 397.1:	Seminar in Parasitology I	1