Undergraduate Focus: Vast experience backs up local branch of UK university

The NUMed branch campus is an integral component of Newcastle University, which is a founder member of the UK ‘Russell Group’. Newcastle is a long established world-class research intensive university, delivering teaching and research externally confirmed as of the highest international quality.

Newcastle University is proud of its heritage; the parent campus in the North East of England was founded in 1871 but the university’s history goes back to 1834 when a School of Medicine and Surgery was established in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne.

NUMed’s Mission: The branch campus aims to deliver cost-effective medical programmes of the highest quality in order to meet the needs of both its students and the regional health economy, and to translate the benefits of its research, development and lifelong education for the societal benefit of Malaysia and the greater Asian region.

Quality remains the essential reason for Newcastle University’s prime market position as an international medical education provider. All quality-related activities are inextricably linked to contribute to the overall high-end product and service: well-designed innovative programmes are delivered to students by excellent, highly motivated and well-qualified faculty complemented by carefully considered student support strategies and underpinned by a firm ethic of scholarship.

Malaysian students have been benefiting from Newcastle University’s quality programmes for many years. The first time a Malaysian student graduated from Newcastle was in 1965 and there are currently hundreds of Malaysian students studying at Newcastle University, UK across both undergraduate and postgraduate programmes.

The establishment of NUMed here in Malaysia means that future students will now have the advantage of a ‘value package’ comprising the respected Newcastle ‘brand’ delivering quality UK-preferred medical education in Malaysia at an affordable price.

Programmes of Study: The academic concept underpinning NUMed Malaysia is for the trans-national delivery in Malaysia of a range of undergraduate biomedical and medical degree programmes, equivalent and of identical standard to those of Newcastle University’s UK-based provision but contextualised to Malaysian circumstance and taking into account the cultural differences.

Many of the university’s programmes offer opportunities for periods of study in the UK.

The first and core undergraduate programme, upon which NUMed Malaysia is founded, is Newcastle’s five-year Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) programme.

Teaching and learning: The MBBS programme is designed to develop the skills students’ need to become independent self-learners and to prepare them for postgraduate study and a lifetime of medical learning.

While teaching in lectures and in a variety of clinical settings remains pivotal, a variety of other innovative methods are used, with the choice of method being carefully chosen to match our particular educational objectives.

Upon successful completion of the entire programme students will be awarded Bachelor of Medicine/Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS), which will be conferred by Newcastle University.

Facilities and Resources: NUMed Malaysia is secure, green, and pedestrian-friendly. It has state-of-the-art facilities including:

• Learning resource centre representing the student-centric ethos of NUMed.

• Central teaching facilities - including two 200-seat presentation lecture theatres, a 100-seat ‘Harvard style’ demonstration theatre, 20 classrooms / breakout rooms, and two 50-seat ICT classrooms.

• Laboratory complex - comprises three well-equipped teaching laboratories and the postgraduate continuing professional development suite.

• Student residences and other amenities – on a site adjacent to the academic complex, together with communal social and recreational amenities, high-quality, secure residential accommodation is provided for students.

Computers, Information Technology and Telecommunication: The NUMed campus incorporates the innovations in teaching and learning offered by modern ICT. All learning spaces have been developed to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the use of advanced learning technologies.

In addition to the normal networking and digital projection facilities, all teaching rooms are equipped with video capture systems. These systems are used to capture key teaching episodes, allow students to watch other teaching in Malaysia and the UK, and also to support assessment in the laboratory and clinical skills arena.

Student Support: Newcastle University’s pre-eminence in the provision of student support and guidance is evidenced by it being ranked consistently highly in the National Satisfaction Survey.

Its strategy for student support and guidance is based on the provision of clear and timely information, academic guidance and individual tutorial support, backed up through the Student Wellbeing Service with specialist academic and welfare services.

A member of staff is allocated to students as their personal tutor to offer general academic guidance and pastoral support. In addition, its students operate their own ‘peer-parenting’ system where every new student is attached to several more senior students who are available to offer advice and guidance.

NuMed takes full advantage of communication and information technology to provide additional support throughout the learning process.

For more information, visit www.ncl.ac.uk/numed/