Student electives

Ceremony when all the CMC graduates received their degrees. The graduands all received a candle and it started with Rev Stanley lighting the first candle and the light was then passed on to all the graduands. Rev Stanley challenged them to keep their "light" shining throughout their career.
Ceremony when all the CMC graduates received their degrees. The graduands all received a candle and it started with Rev Stanley lighting the first candle and the light was then passed on to all the graduands. Rev Stanley challenged them to keep their “light” shining throughout their career.

The medical, dental and nursing colleges offer elective placements to students currently undergoing training in their home country.

For medical and dental students, the elective period should be undertaken during the fourth or fifth year of training and should last a minimum of one month, but preferably two to three months.

For nursing students, the elective period should be undertaken in the third or final year of training and should last a minimum of one month.

The student is responsible for all the costs of their elective period including accommodation in one of the student hostels at CMC.

Important

Please find below information you can download:

Please note that medical students should pay particular attention to the conditions imposed by the National Medical Commission (NMC), as shown below, when they submit their application.

How to apply?

If you are interested, please complete one of the application forms below and email it to our UK office.

General information

Ceremony when all the CMC graduates received their degrees.
Ceremony when all the CMC graduates received their degrees.

Christian Medical College (CMC) Ludhiana is a large teaching hospital and a tertiary referral centre of repute, situated in the Punjab, North West India. It has given over a century of distinguished service to the community. It has a Christian foundation, and its primary mandate is to train Christian men and women as health care professionals for the service of the churches in India. That foundation and mandate do not mean that it employs or trains only members of the Christian community. It does however give a distinct character to its work, and if you are contemplating elective studies there you must ask yourself if you feel you will be comfortable with this.

CMC Ludhiana offers great learning opportunities to any medical, dental, nursing or therapy student who wants to get exposed to a cross section of population belonging to various professions and different socio-economic status in a short span. This premier institution of India is renowned for undergraduate medical training and for its services particularly in the fields of obstetrics & gynaecology, ophthalmology, general surgery, management of burns, plastic surgery and community medicine. There is ample clinical material and enough opportunity for clinical interaction with the patients, participation in clinical management, chances of assisting the physician in clinical procedures or a surgeon during the surgery in minor procedures.

The medical college admits only 75 students each year against 100-300 students admitted in some of the other medical colleges in India. The learning environment is thus better than most other places in India. Besides the “hands on experience”, there is tremendous scope for research through short projects in the above-mentioned specialities. The wide range of presentation of trauma (road traffic, industrial and agricultural) is another clinical area which offers good lessons in a different approach to ER management. Students looking for an opportunity of working in a small rural set up may also explore the possibility of working in one of the referring mission hospitals in the remote areas.

Students interested in the community medicine will gain good clinical experience while working with a sizeable number of cases of tropical diseases (malaria, filarial, leprosy, dengue, tuberculosis, etc.), anaemia, problems in pregnancy, environmental pollution, alcohol and other drug abuse. They will be exposed to a method of providing primary health care to rural population and an approach to evaluation and prioritisation of health problems of the community.

A very helpful faculty, friendly medical, dental and nursing students and great learning opportunities would tempt any student coming for their elective to this institution in India to stay on for a longer period. The only deterrent, for an occasional student, may be the extreme heat in the peak summer months.

The climatic conditions are extremely difficult in Ludhiana from around mid-April to mid-July (very hot: over 100oF to 135oF) and from then until early October (hot and damp: 100oF and 90% humidity). Those unused to such conditions should avoid these periods. The pollution in many of India’s big cities is such that anyone with respiratory problems may have difficulties, and Ludhiana has the doubtful privilege of being the worst because of petrol fumes and factory dust and particles.

It is very important that students from the UK should be sensitive to the required dress code and behaviour when out and about in Ludhiana. Nowadays westerners are not often seen in Ludhiana (it is not a tourist resort) so you might be aware of being stared at, especially the young women. It is very important for them to wear baggy clothes and show no bare midriffs. The Punjabi salwar kameez and dupatta (trousers, top and stole) are available in the bazaar at a very reasonable price and you might like to buy a couple of outfits for visiting the bazaars and villages. If you live near an Asian community in the UK you might be able to buy before you leave – and this outfit is very comfortable for travelling. If you wear western clothes, skirts should be below calf length and tops should have sleeves and be loose-fitting. Trousers should not be tight-fitting and shorts are not acceptable for either men or women. It is not appropriate for members of the opposite sex to hold hands or have physical contact in public. Although parts of Ludhiana are quite wealthy there are many poor people who come to the city looking for work, and as you travel you will often come across beggars. You are strongly advised not to give them any money, much as that may seem hard. Also do not wear valuable jewellery. All students accepted for their elective placement at CMC are required to maintain the discipline of the respective Colleges including the seeking of permission from the Principal for periods of absence.

If you are accepted by the college for your elective, you need to liaise with Friends of Ludhiana regarding your travel plans. You are asked not to arrive in Ludhiana on a Saturday or Sunday; that would make it difficult to be sure you are met and have an initial short orientation session with the Principal or his deputy. Friends of Ludhiana will advise CMC of the time of your arrival.

You will be expected to pay a courtesy visit to the Director of the Institution whilst you are in Ludhiana, but that need not be seen as an onerous duty – you will enjoy meeting him.