With a dream of becoming a doctor, Suryansh Singh Bisht, a student from Dehradun headed to Ukraine in 2019 to pursue a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery. Presently, enrolled as a second-year student in a government medical college in Lviv city, close to the border with Poland, in the war-torn country Ukraine, Suryansh is concerned for his safety but more than that worried about studies.
“Students have formed WhatsApp groups. We are collecting details and sending them to the college. Don’t know how we will be able to complete the rest of the course – online or offline?,” he told News18 while speaking over WhatsApp call. Suryansh is living in a bunker with other Indian students even as sirens honk and Russian fighter planes hover over the city.
Read | War in Ukraine: Indian Embassy to Start Evacuating Students from Hungary, Romania Borders
Suryansh is one among the thousands of Indian students trapped in the various cities of Ukraine and the majority of them pursuing an MBBS or Bachelor degree program in Veterinary course.
Even as students are struggling to leave Ukraine, the former MP and senior BJP leader Tarun Vijay wondered what made students consider Ukraine for education?
“Surprising. What made our twenty thousand youths to leave India and consider Ukraine as a better place for education? Yes, Ukraine (sic)?” @Tarunvijay tweeted.
Though the BJP leader is seeking an answer, the parents who had to send their children to Ukraine are clear about their choice. Back in Dehradun, Suryansh’s mother Rashmi Bisht who teaches in a central school says it is difficult to afford medical education in India owing to several factors.
“In India huge cost, cutthroat completion, and reservation in medical education are primary reasons that force parents to look for options. In our case, one Indian private medical college sought capitation fee to the tune of one crore besides 12 lakh annual fee for giving admission” she tells. Rashmi further adds family decided to opt for Ukraine for MBBS since it has better infrastructure and teachers, an English mode of teaching, good exposure for the students and top of it affordable education.
Read | For Indian Students in Ukraine, It’s a War Between Expensive Airfare and Learning Losses
Agrees, Dr. DP Joshi, a government doctor whose son pursuing medical education in Kharkiv city in northeast Ukraine. Experts say in the last decade Ukraine surpassed Russia as far as the preferred choice for overseas education for Indian students is concerned. Mode of teaching and climate, they say is one big reason.
Interestingly, unlike India where one has to clear an entrance test, the colleges in Ukraine give direct admissions. But after completing the course such students need to clear a screening test in India organized by the National Medical Commission (NMC).
Shobit Jayaswal a New Delhi-based overseas education consultant reveals getting admission to Indian medical colleges is a dream for many.
“A close to 18-20,000 Indian students are enrolled in different colleges of Ukraine. Philippians and Ukraine are preferred owing to the low cost of education and easy admission procedure” he shared. As per Shobit, the fee for completing a 6-year MBBS course in Ukraine costs around
19-22 lakhs and an additional 12-15 lakh as living cost and visa fee.
“When engineering and management education is accessible to the majority of students in India then what stops authorities to open doors for medical education. It is high time government authorities review policies and framework,” the consultant suggests.
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