Eight years after its establishment, Duke-National University of Singapore Graduate Medical School has developed as a hybrid style of medical education.
In April 2005, Duke and the National University of Singapore signed an official partnership agreement to establish a new medical school in Singapore, the curriculum of which is patterned after that of Duke University School of Medicine. Duke-NUS, part of the National University of Singapore system, is overseen by a Governing Board, including a Duke representative who has veto power over any academic decision made by the Board.
Similar to the School of Medicine, Duke-NUS engages in considerable amounts of research, but focuses on different topics.
The research in Durham tends to be broad in scope, while the work at Duke-NUS focus on themes with special relevance to Singapore, said Soman Abraham, professor of emerging infectious diseases at Duke-NUS as well as a professor in the departments of Pathology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics & Microbiology at the School of Medicine.
“For example, at Duke we have the Center for Microbial Pathogens under the Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, which covers a broad range of infectious Diseases. The program at Duke-Singapore focuses exclusively on emerging infectious diseases,” Abraham said.
Linfa Wang, program director and professor of the Emerging Infectious Diseases Program at Duke-NUS, said that research at the two universities are complementary.
“In the emerging infectious disease area, dealing with zoonotic pathogens, which come from animals to human, we are stronger here in Singapore, whereas Duke is very strong with HIV and other sorts of human pathogens,” Wang said.
Collaborative interactions between Duke and Duke-NUS provide new opportunities for researchers and students from both schools.
“The opportunities for research for both sides are tremendous,” Abraham said. “For researchers at Duke interested in tropical diseases for example, they can now do so through collaborations with colleagues at Duke-NUS. Duke researchers can also access clinical material in the Duke-NUS system.”
Joint projects encouraged by seed funding from both Duke and Duke-NUS are underway, bringing Duke and Duke-NUS faculty together. There are also programs aimed at bringing faculty and students together from the two institutions.
“Among the 50 students we take each year, about two to three choose to go to Duke for research,” said Wang. “Although this option are available to all students, students have to financially support themselves in the trip."
Duke-NUS admitted its first class in 2007, and receives approximately 1,000 applicants each year from around the world, said Robert Kamei, vice dean of education at Duke-NUS.
He noted that Duke-NUS aims to train academic physicians for Singapore which limits the number of interested American students. Approximately 66 percent of current Duke-NUS students are from Singapore, while approximately 5 percent are from the United States, he added.
“Singapore is a small country, therefore each medical school position is highly valued and meant only for those willing to stay and work in Singapore for a significant period of time after graduation,” Kamei said. “Unless there are other reasons for American students to train in Singapore, we are likely not to be a good choice for them.”
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