MBBS vs MD: What’s the Difference?

Medicine is known for being full of confusing acronyms: if you’re thinking about applying, you’ll be realising that this starts well before you set foot in a hospital. Medical degrees themselves are often referred to with tricky combinations of letters, from MBBS to MBChB, BMBS and MD. It’s enough to make your head spin!

If you’re getting confused about what all these different qualifications are, you’ve come to the right place. This guide will break down the difference between MBBS and MD medical degrees so you can be confident you’re applying to the right course. We’ll go through the international variations and slight differences between each degree to help you make an informed decision as a key part of your journey into medicine.

Ultimately, though, you should always do your own research. The most important thing will always be to check that any medical degree you’re looking at is accredited by the appropriate regulatory body so you will be able to practice medicine in that country after you graduate. In the United Kingdom, that’s the General Medical Council (GMC); in the United States, it will vary by state. Always check this, as some degrees may have confusing names like “biomedical studies”, but they don’t actually lead to qualification as a doctor.

What is MBBS? 

The simplest definition of a MBBS is that it is an undergraduate medical degree. ‘MBBS’ stands for ‘Medicinae Baccalaureus, Baccalaureus Chirurgiae’, which means ‘Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery’ in Latin. You might have noticed that the order of letters and the letters each word starts with isn’t quite the same in English and Latin: that’s where variations like ‘BMBS’, ‘MBChB’, ‘MBBCh’ and ‘MBBChir’ come from. Although it sounds like two degrees, you only get one.

The term ‘bachelor’ originally comes from trainee knights in the 12th century, who were called ‘knights bachelor’. It became associated with junior university students and then with the most ‘junior’ degrees. This is all really part of ancient English university tradition and isn’t that relevant in the modern day.

However, because this terminology all comes from the UK, it tends to be used by countries that were colonised by the UK. Australia, India, Bangladesh and Pakistan, as well as many universities in the Caribbean, all award MBBS or equivalent medical degrees. The US and Canada are noticeable exceptions, as you will see.

In general, MBBS degrees are awarded by educational systems where undergraduates train to become doctors. What this means is that high school or equivalent students can start a medical degree at 18, without needing a previous degree to start the course. The MBBS qualification then takes 5-6 years to complete, with exact timings and requirements varying between countries. The final 2-3 years of the course are typically entirely clinical placement based, with students learning on the job in hospitals and community care settings. The first 2-3 years are more aligned with a typical undergraduate university experience, with lectures and seminar classes.

Although you don’t need a previous degree, that doesn’t mean MBBS degrees are a walk in the park. Most UK MBBS courses have a roughly 10% acceptance rate and require top grades from school leavers, alongside high scores in entrance exams like the University Clinical Apititude Test and exceptional performance at interview. It’s best to look closely at the individual courses you are interested in to make sure you meet their entry requirements. Australian and New Zealand MBBS courses have similar requirements, while Indian MBBS programs ask applicants to sit the notoriously demanding National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate).

MBBS degrees fundamentally allow you to practice medicine – that is, to work as a doctor. After that, the whole medical world is your oyster. Each medical system in each country will operate differently, but in general, doctors then pursue further training and exams which allow them to specialise in different fields of medicine. MBBS graduates can become anything from surgeons to family care doctors or neurologists.

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What is MD? 

The MD qualification is a bit more complicated than the MBBS as it can mean two different things in different contexts. MD stands for ‘Doctor of Medicine’, but again, comes from the Latin for that, ‘Medicinae Doctor’, so the letters seem the wrong way around.  Let’s unpack it!

In countries that award MBBS as their primary medical qualification, like the UK, India or Australia, MD degrees are awarded after MBBS-holding doctors complete further postgraduate study. MD degrees take 4 years and can be understood as a PhD for doctors. They are postgraduate research degrees: students undertake a thesis project and defend it in a final viva (oral) examination, just like a PhD thesis. A relative minority of doctors will decide to complete the MD; if someone isn’t interested in a research-focused career in medicine, it’s not really worth it. Like a PhD, applications will be highly individual and often require prospective candidates to already have a strong research background and an original clinical research project in mind. Most doctors will complete an MD once they have chosen a specialty, several years after graduating, and as a specific stepping stone towards a research-centric career.

However, in the US and Canada, where medicine is a postgraduate degree, MD is their primary medical qualification. It’s the same as MBBS in the UK. Students in the US, for example, will complete a first degree, and then their medical school, getting a MD degree at the end. They won’t have completed a postgraduate research degree, they’ll just be a doctor starting their career.

As a postgraduate degree, primary medical MD degrees in the US and Canada only require four years of study. But applicants will need to already have completed a Bachelor’s degree, often with very high grades, and score well on the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT). Afterwards, they have all the options as a doctor that MBBS graduates have. US graduates ‘match’ into a specialty once they finish medical school and spend 3-7 years in ‘residency’, training in that specialty, before they practice fully independently.

MBBS vs MD: Key Differences 

All a bit wordy? We’ve made a table breaking down the key differences for you to see at a glance. For ease, we’ve separated MD research degrees and MD primary medical qualifications.

MBBSMD – research degreeMD – primary medical qualification
Countries where the degree is offeredThe UK and countries previously colonised by the UK and sharing their higher edication system, such as India, Pakistan and AustraliaSame as MBBS + IrelandUSA and Canada, among others such as Estonia and Cuba
Career pathways post degreeWorking as an entry level doctor – required to be able to legally practice medicineHigher research career as a senior doctorWorking as an entry level doctor – required to be able to legally practice medicine
Eligibility for the degreeSchool leavers who meet entry criteria (grades, entrance exam, interview)Qualified doctors several years post graduation with strong research expertiseGraduates holding an appropriate Bachelor’s degree who meet entry criteria (grades, entrance exam, interview)
Duration of the degree5-6 yearsVariable, typically 3 years, can be completed part-time4 years
Indicators you might be suited to this degreeYou’re a few years away from finishing school and want to study medicine straight away or in the UKYou’re a senior doctor interested in a research careerYou’ve got a degree already and want to be a doctor, or you want time to explore your options before committing to medicine, or you want to study and practice in the US or Canada

Be aware that this is just a brief overview: there are so many regional variations in medical training and it’s important to do your own research too. Medical training worldwide is constantly evolving. 

How Can Dukes Plus Help? 

After reading all that, you might be feeling overwhelmed about all the steps and knowledge involved in applying for a medical degree, whether it’s a MBBS or MD. Dukes Plus is here to help you with your application! We offer:

Book a free consultation to learn more and set yourself on the path to medical success. 

FAQS

When both MBBS and MD are primary medical qualifications, the degrees which make you a doctor, they are equivalent. The difference will just be the country you graduated from medical school in – the US and Canada use MD, whereas the UK and the Commonwealth tend to use MBBS. 

However, MD can also refer to a postgraduate research degree in medicine, like a PhD for doctors. In that case, doctors tend to have both MBBS and MD qualifications, like how PhD graduates will have a BSc or BA and their PhD.

If your primary medical qualification is an MBBS, there’s no need to get another one as a MD – you’re already a doctor! The opposite is also true. The degrees are equivalent as they both let you practice medicine.

As mentioned above, doctors who hold a postgraduate research MD usually will have both MBBS and MD degrees.

As primary medical qualifications, MBBS and MD are completely equivalent as they both let you practice medicine and work as a doctor. The difference is really only which country you graduated in.

No, they are both primary medical qualifications – if anything, you probably wouldn’t be admitted onto a medical course if you already had a medical degree.

For a MD by research, you need to already be a doctor to undertake the degree, so you would need an MBBS or equivalent degree.

In the USA, MD is a primary medical qualification – it lets you work as a doctor. In India, the primary medical qualification is a MBBS. A MD in India is a postgraduate research degree for senior doctors who want to work in research.

This varies across the world! In the UK, a medical degree takes 5-6 years; in the US, 4 years after a 4 year Bachelor’s degree. After graduating and becoming a doctor, you’ll also spend up to 15 years in postgraduate training!

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