To become a doctor in India is a dream of many students in India. But a few of the students can able to make their dream successful because the career path to become a doctor in India is very hard. One should have the knowledge along with monetary and mental power to become a doctor in India. Before going into this field you need to have proper information about this career so that you can decide whether to go for this career or not. In this article, you will find all the necessary information. So by reading this it is going to be a little easy for you to become a doctor in India.
Why Doctor?
Doctors' profession is not easy at all. This profession comes with great responsibility. They are also called human God because they give lives to the people. This job also has a high amount of salary. It is one of the high paying salary jobs in India. But don't go for this career by seeing the salary. If you really have that patient to work for a long time and the nature of helping others then this field for you.
The doctor profession is always a demanded and respectful profession in our society. There is a shortage of qualified doctors in our country. So the demand for doctors is always high in India. If you worked hard and clear all that hurdle that comes in your way to become a doctor then you definitely can become a doctor in India.
So let's find out the ways to become a doctor in India.
Become A Doctor in India
To become a doctor in India you must have appeared in the entrance exam called NEET. This is the only way to become a doctor in India. According to performance in the NEET entrance exam, you can take admission in medical colleges. There are a few government medical colleges in our country and every student wanted to get admission to that government college. So there is a huge competition among the students to confirm a seat in the government medical colleges.
There are some important steps you must follow to become a doctor in India. These steps are given below in details
- Step 1 - Gather information about the NEET Exam
- Step 2 - Eligibility criteria of NEET Exam
- Step 3 - Apply for the exam
- Step 4 - Be prepared for the exam
- Step 5 - What after NEET qualify
Step-1(Know the detailed information about the NEET Exam)
NEET Exam To Become a Doctor
NEET stands for National Eligibility cum Entrance Test. It is known as the door to enter into the doctor profession. It is one of the tough entrance exams in our country. The students who want to pursue MBBS Course or BDS Course have to qualify in the NEET entrance exam. This exam is conducted by the National Testing Agency(NTA).
Exam Pattern of NEET Exam
You must know and analyze the exam pattern of NEET to make some effective strategies to crack the exam. Below are given the exam pattern with some important information.
- Total no of Questions- 180
- Total no of marks- 720
- Each questions carrying- 4 marks
- No of questions from each subject- Physic=45 Chemistry=45 Biology=90(45 zoology, 45 Botany)
- Type of questions- Objective
- Negative marking- Yes
- Negative marking number- 1 mark for each wrong answer
- Mode of exam- Offline
- Duration- 3hr
- The language you can choose- English, Hindi, Urdu, Oriya, Telugu, Bengali, Kannada, Gujarati, Tamil, Marathi, and Assamese
Is it hard to crack the NEET Exam?
Answering your questions I would say if you prepare properly then it will be easy for you otherwise it will be very tough for you. Definitely, it is one of the toughest exams in our country. Every year more than 13 lac students appear in this exam out of which only 7 lakhs got qualified in the exams. But if you are able to just qualify in the exam it is not going to be easy for you to become a doctor in India because for that you have to take admission in private colleges which is extremely expensive. To get admission in government colleges you need a good NEET score.
Step-2 (Find if you are eligible for the NEET Exam)
Eligibility Criteria for NEET Exam
For every exam, there are certain eligibility criteria. One should have those eligibility criteria to apply for the exam. Thus NEET also has some eligibility criteria. You must check out those eligibility criteria before applying for it to become a doctor in India.
The eligibility criteria for NEET Exam are given below.
(1) Educational Qualification
- The candidate must have passed 10+2 or equivalent having subjects Physics, Chemistry, Biology/Biotechnology, and English from a government recognized institute.
- The students who are pursued 10+2 through open schooling are also eligible for this exam.
(2) Age Limit
- The minimum age limit to appear the NEET exam to become a doctor is 17 years.
- The maximum age limit to appear NEET exam to become a doctor is not set yet. The decision for maximum age limit is on the supreme court.
(3) Qualifying Marks
The 12th marks are considered as the qualifying marks and only the aggregate of PCB marks will be considered. There are different qualifying marks for different category students which are given below.
- UR- 50% mark
- EWS- 50% mark
- SC/ST/OBC- 40% mark
- PWD- 45%
(4) Nationality
The following nationality candidates are eligible for the NEET Exam.
- Indian Nationals
- NRIs
- OCIs
- PIOs
- Foreign Nationals
(5) No of Attempts
- There is no restriction on the Number of Attempts till now.
Step-3 (Apply for the Exam)
After knowing the eligibility criteria for the NEET examination, see if you are eligible for not for the exam. If you are eligible for the exam then you can apply for the NEET exam to become a doctor in India. Every year in the month of December the notification for the NEET exam releases and it lasts up to 1 month.
You can apply online by providing the necessary documents that are required for the NEET application form.
Step- 4 (Prepare for the Exam)
Preparation is the key to crack any exam. If you preparing for one exam full of your dedication and hard work then it is not going to be in vain. You will definitely achieve success in the end. Thus we know NEET is one of the toughest exams in India and there is heavy competition in this exam so you have to prepare accordingly.
Before you start preparing then make sure to choose the course that you are going to choose after the NEET exam. There are two main courses that are MBBS and BDS you can choose to become a doctor in India.
You can join a coaching center to prepare for the NEET exam to become a doctor in India. There are also some online courses that are provided by some institutes. You can enroll in those online courses and start preparing for the NEET exam at your home. You can also practice the previous year's questions and the test series that are available on the internet to enhance your performance and time management.
Every aspirant wants to qualify for the exam. But if you qualify does it really a happy moment for you. The answer is 'NO' not really. Because we know there are only a few seats in the government colleges that are available for the students. Not to make to find a govt college seat is really disappointing. Because if you did not get a seat in the govt medical college then there is the only option for you to become a doctor in India by taking admission in private medical colleges. We all know the cost of the private medical course fees is extremely expensive and most of the students can't afford it.
I want to share some of the data with you.
Every year 13 lakh students appear in the exam.
Out of 13 lakh students, 7 lakh students can able to qualify.
The total no of government medical colleges seats is roughly 63 to 65 thousand.
You have to prepare to make a place among those 65 thousand students to get a seat in government medical college.
Step-5 (After qualifying in the NEET Exam)
If you are able to crack the NEET exam then it is an achievement for you. If you are able to hold a seat for you in the government medical colleges then congratulation. But if you don't get a seat in the government medical colleges then the only way to become a doctor by taking admission in some private medical colleges if you can afford it.
After taking admission in medical colleges there are two major courses that you can do which you decide previously. And the two courses are MBBS and BDS. The detailed information about the courses is given below.
MBBS Course
Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery course is popularly known as MBBS course. It is the most popular undergraduate degree course among the aspirants who want to become an allopathic Doctor. This course includes all the diseases of the human body and the cure for them. More information about the MBBS course is given below.
- Course type - Degree
- Course Duration - 5 and 1/2 years (4 and 1/2 year program and 1-year internship)
- Minimum qualification - 10+2
- Selection Procedure - Through NEET Exam
Course Fee of MBBS Course
The course fee is the main talking point of the MBBS course. There are two types of course fees one is for the government college and the other is for the private college. The course fee of government collage is very less compared to private colleges. The course Fee in Government medical colleges is nearly 25 thousand per annum. The course fee for private medical colleges is not fixed. It varies from collages to collages. But roughly the private medical college course fee is between 15 to 25 lakhs per annum. Which is very expensive and everyone can't afford it.
BDS Course
BDS stands for Bachelor of Dental Surgery. It is an undergraduate course that provides a dental course to the students. This course teaches students dental science and surgeries. After MBBS this is the most popular course among the students who want to become a doctor in India. This degree is regulated by the Dental Council of India(DCI). More information about the BDS course is given below.
- Course type - Degree
- Course Duration - 5 years (4-year program and 1-year internship)
- Minimum qualification - 10+2
- Selection Procedure - Through NEET Exam
Course Fee of MBBS Course
Again there is also two types of the course fee. One is for the Government medical colleges and another one is for the private medical colleges. As we know the government collages course fee is cheaper than the private colleges. The course fee of the BDS course in the government medical colleges is 50 thousand per annum and the course fee of the BDS Course in the private colleges is between 10 to 15 lakhs per annum. Again it is not fixed for the private collages the cost may differ from collages to collages.
BDS or MBBS Course Complete?
Here is the end of your search on how to become a doctor in India. If you successfully complete the MBBS or BDS Course then you become a doctor now. If you want to practice then you can and if you want to specialize in some field then you can and if you want to do jobs then you also can. It is totally up to choice.
Conclusion
This is the complete process to become a doctor in India. Follow the steps that are described above to become an MBBS or BDS doctor in India. Becoming a doctor is very hard because it takes almost 6 years to become a doctor in India. You have to be very patient with your study if you want to achieve success. Be Focused on your study you definitely get success. I hope you get your answer to your question about "How to become a doctor in India".