Doctor of Medicine is a full-time five-year, ten-semester competency-based programme, leading to the award of MD degree of this University followed by a year’s internship at an approved hospital.

All courses in the Programme have core status, implying that every student must register and pass all the courses; there is no room for electives. The first four semesters are largely devoted to basic sciences and introduction to clinical medicine, but also fieldwork and community training. The next six semesters are mainly practical and comprise junior and senior clerkships as well as community health training.

The University’s MD Programme is current with respect to national, regional and international socioeconomic dynamics and adheres to national, regional and international quality standards and relevance. Moreover, the Programme complies with TCU and/or IUCEA provisions and benchmarks, which require well formulated learning outcomes that are benchmarked against level descriptors indicated in the University Qualifications Framework (UQF) or regional qualifications frameworks for EAC and SADC.

Programme Objectives
a) To train a general duty medical doctor who has broad knowledge of common human diseases, particularly diseases endemic to the tropics.
b) To produce medical doctors with skills and competencies, which will enable them to manage and deliver efficient preventive and curative health services.
c) Through critical thinking, problem solving and gender responsiveness, develop entrepreneurial competencies and skills among medical doctors for self-employment, and managing both public and private health facilities, upon graduation.
d) To develop training and research capacity of the medical doctor.
e) To promote good ethical conduct in the practice of medicine.
f) To develop ICT skills, which will enable medical doctors to train health practitioners of lower cadre in remote areas, both through face-to-face and virtual technologies.

Programme Learning Outcomes
a) To demonstrate an understanding of normal and abnormal structure, function, development and growth of the human body and personality.
b) To evaluate patients clinically and by laboratory investigations for reaching appropriate diagnosis.
c) To administer correct medical and surgical interventions to the patients and refer them where appropriate.
d) To manage healthcare services at different levels of the national health-delivery system.
e) To identify and provide relevant preventive and curative community healthcare services according to national and community priorities.
f) To conduct relevant training and supervision of other healthcare personnel.
g) To conduct research and apply the findings to improve the quality of healthcare services.
h) To keep abreast Of advances in medical and healthcare fields through continuing
ducation.
i) To demonstrate good ethical conduct.
j) To apply entrepreneurial skills in healthcare management practices.

Programme Delivery
The MD Programme will be delivered through various approaches using both face-to-face and virtual technology (online-delivery mode) for lectures, seminars, tutorials, practical/clinical sessions, and group and individual assignments.

Regulations for the Semester/Course-Credit
System
The University runs a semester/course-credit system for the MD Programme. As in other institutions of higher learning, one (I) credit at this University is defined as 10-15 hours of theoretical learning (lecture/seminar/tutorial), or 30-45 hours of practical learning sessions/clinical rotations/fieldwork. Since the Academic Year for the MD Programme has 46 weeks of which 36 involve active teaching, a student is expected to earn 48 credits, or 24 credits per semester. Thus, a minimum of 21 credits per semester for the MD Programme is considered satisfactory.