Doctorate (PhD)
This degree will help you take your first step on the road to becoming a doctor. Through a combination of Team-based learning, small group practical and clinical skills sessions, plus extensive clinical placements and considerable online resources, you will develop the skills, knowledge and attributes necessary to succeed as an intern. As a graduate, you will be caring and competent and have a fundamental understanding of the science of medicine.
You will develop communication skills and learn about the art and science of medicine in its wider social and ethical context. You will take part in extensive clinical placements in healthcare facilities ranging from rural settings through to the Gold Coast University Hospital and the Sunshine Coast Hospital and Health Service. You will also develop an understanding of the importance of lifelong learning and learn how to be resourceful in seeking information and adapting to new technologies.
The Doctor of Medicine is an AQF Level 9 Masters Extended degree.
MD/PhD pathwayThis pathway will allow a small number of MD students (5 to 10 students) to complete the first two years of the program before commencing two years of full time PhD work in clinical research related to a range of fields such as neuropsychiatry, pathology, neurology, primary health care, health economics, cardiology, indigenous health, medical education and medical ethics. The program will incorporate clinical/bedside teaching plus reintegration to the MD component while they are doing the PhD research project. Candidates would then recommence the normal MD program to complete Medicine 3 and Medicine 4 of the MD whilst completing the PhD part-time. Students will be eligible for PhD scholarships.
The Doctor of Medicine (MD) program at Griffith University is a GRADUATE ENTRY program. As such, ALL applicants are to have completed or be in the final year of completing an undergraduate degree before they are eligible to apply for entry.
Applicants to the MD are encouraged from all degree backgrounds.
The medical selection criteria comprise three essential components:
The GPA will be added to the GAMSAT score (50:50) by converting GPA and GAMSAT to a percentage score in order to rank applicants for selection for GUMSAA.
Key degree
Applicants must have achieved a minimum GPA of 5.0 in their most recent Bachelor or other key degree. A key degree is a Bachelor degree, Honours degree, Masters (coursework or research) or a PhD.
Applicants are ranked for interview based on selections rank derived from a 50/50 combination of an unweighted GPA (converted to a percentage) and the overall GAMSAT score (also from 100). This combination rank means that a lower GAMSAT score may be offset by a higher GPA and vice versa (within the minimum requirement limits).
Griffith recognises two year accelerated Bachelor degrees or one year conversion degrees for the purposes of admission to Medicine. However, these degrees MUST be complete at the time of application.
For completed Bachelor degrees, the GPA will be calculated using the GEMSAS grading schema and will be calculated over the final three years of full-time study. Applicants who are in the final year of a Bachelor degree at the time of application will have a GPA calculated over all grades available to date.
The GPA for completed Honours degrees will have a final year GPA applied according to the classification awarded (as per the conversion table in this guide). The balance of the GPA calculation will be based on the final two years of the undergraduate degree.
Completed Masters by Research only (where the degree is non-graded) will receive a GPA of 7.0 for the duration of equivalent full-time study up to a maximum of two years. The balance of the GPA calculation will be based on the final one or two years of the undergraduate degree.
Completed Masters by Coursework (or a combination of coursework and research) will have a GPA calculated from the graded components of the program for the duration of equivalent full-time years of study in the program with the balance of the GPA calculation being based on the final one or two years of the undergraduate degree.
Completed PhDs will receive an overall GPA of 7.0.
The key degree must have been completed within 10 years of the projected commencement date. Applicants whose key degree was completed outside the 10 year period are considered for admission if they have completed (with a passing GPA) the equivalent of one year of full time tertiary study within the past 10 years.
Offer types
There are 198 Commonwealth Supported Places available in the graduate entry Doctor of Medicine (MD) program at Griffith University. One of the place types has bonding arrangements.
Approximately 80 places each year are reserved for students entering the graduate entry medical program from the Bachelor of Medical Science facilitated entry into Medicine pathway. Applicants for the MD program are required to nominate their preferred offer types in order of preference when filling out their GEMSAS applications. Applicants must nominate at least one preference out of the two possible options. Offers are subsequently made according to the student's entry rank and offer preference.
To qualify for the bonded offer type that the School has available, applicants must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident of Australia at the time of application (citizens of New Zealand do not meet this requirement).
Griffith University Rural Priority Access Scheme
A proportion of the Griffith University medical intake will be required to be from a rural background (MM 2-7). Therefore, applicants who meet these criteria will be given priority access to Griffith University selection interviews (GUMSAA). More information is available here.
Griffith University First Peoples' Health Pathway
Griffith upholds a commitment to support people of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent to pursue a medical career. More information is available here.
Graduate Medical School Admission Test (GAMSAT)
All applicants may apply using a valid GAMSAT score. The minimum GAMSAT score for applications to be considered further is 50/50/50.
GAMSAT scores are required to be no more than two years old at the time of application.
MD/PhD pathway
Applications for admission are to be submitted to the Dean of Medicine (Head, School of Medicine) during Year 2/Trimester 2 of study in the Doctor of Medicine program. Applicants to the MD/PhDs pathway should have:
You will be prepared for multiple careers, including in specialist clinical practice, primary care medicine, rural medical practice, medical administration, medical research and medical education.
Graduates of this program will normally be eligible for limited registration and will receive full registration by Australian Health Practitioners Regulation Agency (AHPRA) upon successful completion of a subsequent one-year internship in the Australian hospital system.
After completing at least one further year of residency in the Australian hospital system, graduates will usually be eligible to start postgraduate specialty training in the clinical environment.
MD/PhD pathwayCompletion of MD/PhD pathway will prepare graduates for a research career in clinical medicine, as well as postgraduate training and University teaching positions.
Normally credit will not be granted in this program. However, credit transfer in lieu of prior studies will only be awarded in instances where the relevant Dean or nominee determines that the study is equivalent in level and content to courses in the program. Such studies normally would have been completed in an equivalent medical program.
There are four steps in the Domestic application process. Applicants are required to:
* Applicants must have a valid GAMSAT ID number.
You can find further information and register online for GAMSAT at the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) website. If required, please refer to the School of Medicine and Dentistry website for further advice.
Applicants should also note that no direct entry applications for new students will be accepted by the Griffith School of Medicine and Dentistry.
MD/PhD pathway
The following application closing dates apply for this pathway:
Applications for this pathway are to be submitted to the Dean of Medicine (Head of school, School of Medicine and Dentistry ) during Year 2/Trimester 2 of study in the Doctor of Medicine program.