Pakistani Private Medical Colleges ‘Can’ Collect Rs 642,000 Annually

LAHORE - Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) informed the Supreme Court of Pakistan that it had fixed Rs 642,000 as the annual fee/charges for medical students of private medical colleges.

Following the SC orders, the PMDC submitted its comprehensive report on fee structure of private medical colleges.

Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Mian Saqib Nisar ordered the council to submit the report within a week during the hearing of a suo motu notice taken on deteriorating standard of medical profession, fee structure of private medical colleges and admission criteria at the SC Lahore registry.

Through its counsel Advocate Akram Sheikh, the PMDC submitted report consisting of major four parts, including admission merit criterion of Private Medical Colleges, structure of fee schedule and the maximum limit of fee that private medical colleges can charge, the role of PMDC in regulating the admission and fee of private medical colleges and its action taken so far by the regulatory body.

The Council said that being regulatory body of medical and dental education devises merit based criteria for admission in private and medical and dental institutes which were regularly updated and modified for catering the requirements of the circumstances in vogue. It said that MBBS and BDS (admissions, house job and internship) Regulations, 2016 were in field.

The PMDC said it ensured to follow uniform policy through university-based admission mechanism under the Regulations, 2016. Under this mechanism admission board, university-based boards as well as institutional admission committees had been formed to ensure merit, transparency and control malpractices in the admission procedures.   It further told the court that there was a different merit criteria for local students as compared to the foreign students as well as their fee structure was also different.

For local students, it said that 10 per cent for matric and equivalent international education, 40 per cent for Pakistan F.Sc./HSSC/Intermediate (Pre-medical) and equivalent and 50 per cent for Entry Test. The council said annual fee/charges per student excluding university Examination fee, taxes, hostel fee and transport fee etc for the local student was Rs Rs.642, 000, one time admission fee Rs. 50,000 and Rs 3000 as perspective fee.

It was submitted before the court that that it had clearly outlined and advertised for public notice admission procedure and fee structure for private colleges in the Regulations, 2016, which were introduced after consultation with stakeholders and thoroughly debated within the PMDC particularly keeping in view the larger interest of public.

The Regulations, 2016 have been widely circulated and were binding for medical and dental colleges in private as well public sector, it said. It  further said that  PMDC’s role was primarily focused to ensure that student admissions, curricular intensity, training practices, examination models, clinical or scientific research, tuition fees, and identical standards of medical degrees and graduates are guaranteed on the touchstones of merit and transparency following the guidelines of international laid down by international regulatory authorities.