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SUTD partners Duke-NUS Medical School to offer special medical programme

SINGAPORE — A special programme to groom doctors who are adept at practicing medicine, and using technology to improve healthcare services, will be introduced to high-achieving students under a partnership between the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) and Duke-NUS Medical School.

The New York Times file photo

The New York Times file photo

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SINGAPORE — A special programme to groom doctors who are adept at practicing medicine, and using technology to improve healthcare services, will be introduced to high-achieving students under a partnership between the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) and Duke-NUS Medical School.

Called the SUTD-Duke-NUS Special Track, the programme will be available to incoming students who will begin their studies from 2018 onwards. Students on this special track will graduate with a Bachelor of Engineering or Bachelor of Science degree after three and a half years at SUTD.

They will then have to meet the final acceptance criteria, which includes a Combined Grade Point Average of at least 4.4, before going on to complete their Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree at Duke-NUS Medical School.

SUTD president Thomas Magnanti, said on Friday (Dec 1) that the university hopes to enrol about 10 high-achieving students under this special programme.

The SUTD said that graduates from this programme will be versatile in both technology and design, and have the know-how to address challenges in healthcare with innovative solutions, such as in healthcare product design, biomaterials, drug delivery, hospital bed allocation systems, patient monitoring, and hospital design.


Selected applicants will develop their engineering, architecture and clinical knowledge at three campuses — SUTD, Duke-NUS Medical School and Singapore General Hospital’s Outram Campus.

SUTD chairman Lee Tzu Yang also announced on Friday that the university is undertaking a five-year growth programme which will see more modules and courses offered to students in four key areas: Healthcare, aviation, artificial intelligence, and cities.

Professor Thomas Magnanti and SUTD provost Chong Tow Chong said the university surveyed key industries that are set to undergo change through the Industry Transformation Maps, and the strengths of the university being in “design and technology” before deciding to focus on these four areas.

The university had also taken into consideration the “geographical proximity” of SUTD to its industry partners.

For the healthcare sector, SUTD will be expanding its partnership with the Changi General Hospital (CGH) to develop more specialised programmes in health-care related disciplines, and provide more incubation and test-bedding opportunities to facilitate research and innovation.

Over in aviation, the university will work to expand mentorship programmes for students with organisations like the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore and Changi Airport Group.

Mr Lee said: “We will greatly widen our current level of collaborations beyond the current 700 companies for projects and student internships.”

“We believe that these programmes will not only enhance the employability of our students...(but also) get more students excited about coming to SUTD.”

TODAY understands that university fees will remain unchanged despite the introduction of these additional specialised programmes, which will be offered to all SUTD students regardless of the degrees they are pursuing.

SUTD currently has a total student population of about 1,600 students, with a cohort of about 450 first-year students. It plans to expand the incoming intake to 500 in the next two to three years.

The SUTD also announced on Friday its hunt for its next president, as Professor Magnanti will be stepping down on Dec 31 after completing his eight-year term as founding president.

He will be appointed president emeritus, acting as an advisor on university matters and representing the school where appropriate.

SUTD’s founding provost, Prof Chong, will take over as acting president of SUTD from January next year while the search for a new president is on-going.

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