In the field of medicine, five of these universities have stood out from the rest, according to the 2022 Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings by Subject.1
In this prestigious ranking, which Latin American universities are leading the way in the health profession? What opportunities are available for international students in these universities’ faculties of medicine?
Ranked #2 among Latin American universities overall and #121 among world universities overall. Ranked #77 among world universities in the field of medicine, with a total score of 75.9, the highest among Latin American universities.
The Universidade de São Paulo (USP), the oldest university in Brazil, has eight campuses spread across the most developed region of the country. As a public institution, USP serves over 90,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students completely tuition-free. It has 5,900 faculty members and it is estimated that around 20% of all Brazilian academic output is produced by this institution.
USP’s Faculty of Medicine (FM), founded in 1912, is divided into five broad areas of study: medicine, physiotherapy, phono audiology (speech-language pathology), occupational therapy and medical physics. It has 27 postgraduate programs and 62 medical residency specializations that prepare 1,400 graduate students, 2,000 post-graduate students and 1,600 medical residents. The USP FM is known for its prolific research, with more than 1,000 researchers and professors and 66 medical research laboratories. It also hosts one of the largest hospitals in Latin America, the Hospital das Clínicas, which has more than one million consultations per year and eight specialized institutes, ranging from psychiatry to cancer treatments.
USP FM has more than 34 international exchange agreements and MOUs with foreign universities, and a series of programs for international students, researchers and faculty, including a 2-week Winter School that delves into various areas of medicine and introduces foreign students to the Brazilian health system. For more information on USP FM’s international programs, see https://www.fm.usp.br/en/international/international-office
Ranked #1 among Latin American universities overall and #135 among world universities overall. Ranked #121 among world universities in the field of medicine, with a total score of 72.4.
The Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (UC) was founded by the Archbishop of Santiago in 1888, with the aim of providing students with the highest level of academic rigor in the sciences, arts and humanities, as well as with a solid moral development based on Christian doctrine. It currently has more than 33,000 students enrolled in 18 faculties, 4 interdisciplinary institutes, 2 campuses and a smaller liberal arts school, College UC.
The UC Faculty of Medicine was founded in 1929 with the motto “Scientia, Conscientia et Auxilium” (science, conscience and assistance – focusing on a humane and moral approach to patient care, as well as a technical one). It has reached important milestones since then, including a series of agreements with national hospitals, creating a school of nursing in the 1950s, opening a Cancer Center in 1994, inaugurating a school of dentistry in 2009, a PhD program in neuroscience in 2011 and one in epidemiology in 2019. Today, the faculty offers a wide variety of undergraduate and graduate programs, and hosts more than a dozen specialized research centers on issues including geriatrics, Down Syndrome, neuroscience and bioethics.
The School of Medicine has been accredited by various institutions, including the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, and it has 124 collaborative partnerships with universities worldwide. To know more about UC’s international exchanges overall, see https://internacionalizacion.uc.cl For specific information on the UC School of Medicine’s international outreach and programs, see https://medicina.uc.cl/international/
Ranked #6 among Latin American universities overall and #105 among world universities overall. Ranked between #150-200 among world universities in the field of medicine, with a score of 70.5 for academic reputation and 81.3 for employer reputation.
The Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) is unique in many ways: founded in 1551 as the Real y Pontificia Universidad de México, it is one of the oldest higher education institutions in the Americas; today, it has over 269,000 students (including students from affiliated high schools) and is thus one of the largest universities in Latin America and in the world. It also has its own three foreign campuses (in the U.S. and Canada) and coordinates centers for Mexican studies at eleven universities around the world – an unusual feature among Latin American universities. UNAM has produced four Nobel Laureates and countless Mexican public figures.
UNAM’s first medical course was inaugurated in 1579, making it the oldest in the Americas. The second course was opened in 1599, followed by two more specialized courses in anatomy and surgery, in 1621. After Mexico’s independence in 1821, UNAM’s National School of Medicine was established in 1833. Currently, the Faculty of Medicine has 12 departments covering every area of medical studies; it offers 78 postgraduate medical specializations, taught at 106 academic sites across the county (in conjunction with the best public hospitals and health institutions in Mexico), serving nearly 12,000 students. The faculty’s research division has 14 centers and institutes on topics ranging from infectious diseases to experimental and tropical medicine, and produces a large proportion of the country’s medical research and public guidance on current issues such as the covid19 pandemic.
To learn more about UNAM’s international outreach and the Faculty of Medicine’s exchanges, see: http://crai.unam.mx/EN/index.html and https://mavi.facmed.unam.mx
Ranked #8 among Latin American universities overall and #69 among world universities overall. Ranked between #150-200 among world universities in the field of medicine, with a score of 66.5 for academic reputation and 83.3 for employer reputation.
The Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA) was founded in 1821 as a public institution and is one of the largest and most renowned universities in Latin America; it has been the alma mater of five Nobel Prize winners, several presidents, and the iconic leftist revolutionary Che Guevara. Currently, it has 13 faculties that offer more than 100 undergraduate degree courses and 500 graduate degree courses to more than 300,000 students. Admitted students do not pay any tuition fees. UBA is also home to 60 research institutes, and includes 6 affiliated high schools and technical colleges.
UBA’s Faculty of Medicine, founded in 1822, produced three of Argentina’s Nobel Laureates and has evolved into a pillar of the nation’s medical research and practice. Today, it works in association with more than 70 hospitals and more than 135 other related institutions across the country. It offers 100 specializations and 14 Masters programs to over 41,000 students. The faculty has 25 research centers and 9 research institutes on conditions and issues ranging from multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer to cutting-edge themes like telemedicine and nano-pharmacology. UBA has also launched an innovative Virtual Faculty of Medicine, which provides some undergraduate and graduate courses, as well as access to an extensive library of medical resources.
To learn more about what UBA offers to international students, see https://www.uba.ar/internacionales/contenido.php?id=455 and https://www.uba.ar/internacionales/contenido.php?id=589&lang=en For information in English on the Faculty of Medicine’s graduate courses, see https://www.uba.ar/internacionales/contenido.php?id=468
Ranked #3 among Latin American universities overall and #183 among world universities overall. Ranked between #150-200 among world universities in the field of medicine, with a score of 65.8 for academic reputation and 77.1 for employer reputation.
The Universidad de Chile, founded in 1842, is the country’s oldest and largest public university and has been a pillar of the nation’s development in many areas. Today, it has 19 schools and institutes, 3,867 faculty members and 320 academic programs, serving more than 40,000 undergraduate and graduate students. The university has produced 2 Nobel Laureates and 21 of Chile’s 33 presidents. It also has a notable international presence, with 108 cooperation agreements with foreign universities, and with more than 1,000 international students in its graduate programs.
The university’s Faculty of Medicine (which predates the university itself, having been founded in 1833) has eight main branches of study and offers 65 specialized degrees (half of the country’s total medical degrees). It has nearly 2,000 faculty members, and serves more than 4,000 undergraduate students and 2,000 graduate students. The faculty has its own hospital – the Hospital Clínico – and is affiliated to many national medical centers and clinics. It also houses 5 research centers and 3 institutes. With regard to internationalization, the Faculty has 40 cooperation agreements with foreign universities, including three in the US.
To find out more about the Universidad de Chile’s international programs, see https://uchile.cl/english-version/international-visiting-students/student-mobility-program and for the Faculty of Medicine’s programs for foreigners, see http://www.medicina.uchile.cl/facultad/hechos-y-cifras/movilidad
QS, a leading global provider of comparative higher education analytics and research, has developed rankings for each specific field based on five components: 1) large-scale surveys of academic reputation (being recognized for research excellence among peers worldwide); 2) employer reputation (the extent to which employers value graduates from the given institution); 3) number of research citations in the given discipline; 4) an “H-index” measuring both productivity and impact of the combined published work of a department or institution; and 5) the strength of international research networks.
QS World University Rankings 2022: https://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-university-rankings/2022
QS Latin American University Rankings 2022 - https://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/latin-american-university-rankings/2022
QS World University Rankings by Subject 2022: Medicine: https://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/university-subject-rankings/2022/medicine
QS World University Rankings by Subject 2022 – methodology: https://www.topuniversities.com/subject-rankings/methodology
Universidade de São Paulo: https://www.topuniversities.com/universities/universidade-de-sao-paulo and https://www6.usp.br/english/institutional/, https://www.fm.usp.br/fmusp/institucional/a-fmusp
Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile: https://www.topuniversities.com/universities/pontificia-universidad-católica-de-chile-uc and https://www.uc.cl , https://facultadmedicina.uc.cl
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Mexico: https://www.topuniversities.com/universities/universidad-nacional-autonoma-de-mexico-unam and http://www.facmed.unam.mx/index.php?_id_=_fm_his#
Universidad de Buenos Aires: https://www.topuniversities.com/universities/universidad-de-buenos-aires-uba and
Universidad de Chile: https://www.topuniversities.com/universities/universidad-de-chile
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