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MD/PhDs Master of Science Degrees Doctors Medical School Comparisons

What is the difference between an MD, DM and MS?

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12 ANSWERS

Dhanvi Mishra, Scholar for lifetime

Answered Nov 6, 2016

Medical field has 2 sub-fields - Medicine related and surgical related.

MD is the Post Graduate degree(3 years course) for medical Graduates(MBBS) that deal with the
branches which do not require Surgical skills. MD is awarded in Non-clinical as well as Clinical
branches.
Non-Clinical Branches for MD are- Physiology, Biochemistry, Pharmacology, Forensic Medicine,
Community Medicine, Microbiology, Pathology (the last two are usually considered para-clinical)
Clinical Branches for MD are- General Medicine, Paediatrics, Anaestheiology, Radiology, Dermatology,
Pulmonology(TB and Chest), Psychiatry.

MS is the Post graduate degree(3 years course) which requires surgical skills mendatorily.
The only Non-Clinical Branch which gets a MS degree awarded is Anatomy.
Clinical Branches for MS are- General Surgery, ENT, Ophthalmology, Orthopaedics, Obstetrics and
gynecology.

DM is a Super specialty Degree which is awarded even after doing MD. For this you even have to choose
a particular system from the branch in which you did MD. I”ll give you example: if you are MD General
Medicine you can do DM in Nephrology, Cardiology, Endocrinology etc. There are many branches.

MCh is equivalent in terms of Super Specialty degree which is done after MS only and has similar
criterias as DM.

37.3k Views · View Upvoters · Answer requested by Utkarsh Ahuja

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OTHER ANSWERS

Asher Nitin, Medical doctor. Visual artist. Hybrid athlete. Lay theologian.
Answered Jul 30, 2016 · Author has 200 answers and 2.8m answer views

The MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery) is the basic degree of most doctors. In India
at least. It basically qualifies you to teach and practice applied human biology. The MBBS allows you to
get sequential exposure to many specialties at the same time.

After the MBBS, you get to specialize. Now you can be either a physician or surgeon. Both prescribe
drugs, both wield instruments, but the former does more of the first, and the latter does more of the
second. The MD is a physician’s specialty degree. The MS is a surgeon’s specialty degree.

Now, some MD degrees are capable of even more specialization. Like the MD in Internal Medicine,
pediatrics, psychiatry, OBG. So you have the super-specialty degrees that can be done after these
degrees. For example, the MD in Internal Medicine can be followed by a DM in cardiology,
rheumatology, nephrology, neurology, etc. Pediatricians can super-specialize as neonatologists.

The same holds for MS degrees. A general surgeon can super-specialize with an MCh in cardio-thoracic-
surgery, or neurosurgery.

So, MBBS, then MD, then DM. Or MBBS, then MS, then MCh.

Or an MBBS then an MBA.

Or just an MBBS.

The addition of later degrees does not excuse you from proficiency in your previous degrees, mind you.
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 Abhishek Ghosh, studied Medicine and Healthcare
Answered May 16, 2016 · Author has 2.8k answers and 3.5m answer views

Originally Answered: Many doctors have degrees such as DM (doctor of medicine). Is it the same as an MD? What is more
information about MD and MS degrees?

PhD is terminal degree. They can be awarded or earned. That is the end of traditional education on the
whole earth.

There is a thing named Bologna Process of Higher Education.

Whole EU and other non-EU countries follow it. India does not follow it. Other professional courses in
India like Law, CA and other systems like Engineering use their own global community to make the
standardization of the degrees with the whole earth.

India is lagging behind minimum 3 revisions in the Educational system. Worst condition is of health
education. In India, after MD, there is a set of exams, sometimes combined with MD/MS entrance
exams, for usually a 5 years course for the subspecialty which India claims with a phrase “super
specialization”. They are MCh and DM.

1. First Bachelor’s degree i.e. MBBS

2. Second is Mater’s degree i.e. MD, MS and the other subtypes like second mater’s degree
including MCh, may be DM.

3. Third is Terminal degree - PhD.

By origin, DM is a professional degree, it is different. MCh is actually second Master’s degree. They
usually are not possible to convert to credit system in the other countries.

15.4k Views · View Upvoters · Answer requested by Rajat Chandak

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