Only 4 out of 10 Foreign Medical Graduates Pass the Medical Licensing Exam

Among 424 Foreign Medical School Graduates, 235 Passed the Preliminary Exam
The Pass Rate for the National Exam and License Issuance Is Only 41.4%

The Ministry of Health and Welfare has announced plans to allow foreign medical license holders to practice medicine domestically, sparking strong opposition from the medical community. It has been revealed that only 41.4% of foreign medical school graduates who took the national medical licensing exam in Korea have ultimately obtained a domestic medical license.

[Photo by Kang Jin-hyung, Asia Economy]

On the 10th, Shin Hyun-young, a member of the Health and Welfare Committee of the National Assembly from the Democratic Party of Korea, analyzed data submitted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korea Health Personnel Licensing Examination Institute regarding the "Preliminary Exam Pass Status for Foreign Medical School Graduates" and "Application and Pass Status of Foreign Medical School Graduates for the Korean Medical Licensing Exam." The analysis showed that out of 424 foreign medical school graduates from 2005 to 2023, 235 passed the preliminary exam (55.42%).

For foreign medical school graduates to practice medicine in Korea, they must first pass the preliminary medical exam and then pass the national medical licensing exam. The preliminary exam consists of a first written test and a second practical test; only those who pass the first written test can take the second practical test. Looking closely at the failure rates of the preliminary exam by country, among 189 graduates from Hungarian medical schools who took the preliminary exam, 79 failed (41.7%). For graduates from Uzbekistan, 40 out of 71 failed (56.3%), in the United States, 16 out of 23 failed (69.5%), and in Australia, 7 out of 18 failed (38.8%).

Furthermore, the final pass rate for foreign medical school graduates who ultimately passed the national exam and obtained a domestic medical license was only 41.4%. Among countries with more than 10 examinees, the United Kingdom had the highest final pass rate at 69.0%, followed by Paraguay (53.3%), Hungary (47.9%), and Russia (45.0%).

Government to Allow Foreign Medical License Holders to Practice Medicine... Medical Community 'Opposes'

Photo by Kim Hyunmin, Asia Economy

Earlier, the government announced a legislative notice to allow foreign medical license holders to practice medicine domestically under the supervision of specialists with the approval of the Minister of Health and Welfare during severe disaster crisis stages. Prime Minister Han Duck-soo explained, "This is a measure to maximize the medical protection system for our citizens and to lay the foundation for an emergency medical system."

In response, the medical community, including the Korean Internal Medicine Society, issued a statement strongly criticizing, saying, "The behavior of the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the so-called healthcare crisis they mention is due to the increase in medical school quotas caused by the authorities since February." Facing strong opposition from the medical community, Prime Minister Han drew a line at a regular briefing at the Government Seoul Office on the 10th, stating, "Under no circumstances will unverified doctors be allowed to treat our citizens," and said safety measures will be put in place.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.