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St Christopher Iba Mar Diop College of Medicine (SCIMD-COM) is a medical college located in Luton, England. SCIMD is a satellite campus of the Universite El Hadj Ibrahima Niasse (UEIN) in Dakar, Senegal. Two medical colleges exist under the umbrella of parent university UEIN: Ecole de Médecine St Christopher Iba Mar Diop (EM-SCIMD) in Dakar and SCIMD-COM in Luton.

History

Instruction began at SCIMD in 2000. The college operated under the name St. Christopher's College of Medicine from 2000-2006. Degrees are now issued from the parent university under the name of SCIMD-COM.

Programs and curriculum

SCIMD-COM offers two English-language curricula at the Luton school: a four-year curriculum for students who have previously completed the necessary premedical coursework and a six-year curriculum for those that have not.

The college's programs award the Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree through the authority of UEIN.

Accreditation, Licensing and Visas

The Accreditation Service for International Colleges (ASIC), a UK-based accrediting agency, has included SCIMD-COM on their list of organisations about which ASIC suggest students undertake detailed research before embarking on a programme of study. The college is currently (October 2007) listed in The Foundation for Advancement of International Medical Education and Research (FAIMER) International Medical Education Directory (IMED) database of medical schools with an address in Dakar, Senegal, and contact addresses in Luton, UK and McDonough, Georgia, USA. It is listed as such based on its recognition by the Senegalese Ministry of Education through its issuing of a charter in February 2000, and again reaffirmed in April 2006 (after a reorganization of the school). Neither SCIMD-COM nor UEIN is listed in the UNESCO/International Association of Universities List of Universities of the World.

Licensing

United Kingdom

Currently (October 2007) the General Medical Council (GMC) of the UK does not register graduates with degrees from "private, UK-based medical colleges that claim that the course of study undertaken substantially or wholly in the UK leads to a Primary Medical Qualification awarded by an overseas University," nor does it recognise such qualifications for the purposes of the Professional and Linguistic Assessment Board test or for registration with the GMC.

United States

Alabama states that SCIMD-COM is "not approved by the Board for applicants for certificates of qualification." California does not list SCIMD on their recognized or disapproved list. "If a school is not on either the recognized or disapproved list, it may be a school that has not requested recognition by the Medical Board of California." "If a medical school is not listed on the recognized school list, the medical school is either unrecognized or disapproved. The education and training received at an unrecognized or disapproved medical school does not meet California licensure requirements." Indiana has a list of approved, disapproved, and questionable foreign medical schools. SCIMD is on the list of "questionable" schools and applications for licensure would be considered on a "case by case" basis. Kansas has a list of approved and disapproved schools. SCIMD is not on either list. "If the school has not been approved by the Board, an applicant may still be eligible for a license if the school has not been disapproved and has been in operation (date instruction started) for not less than 15 years." SCIMD has been in operation for 8 years, which is less than the 15 years required for a Kansas license. Maine has added St. Christopher's College of Medicine (the former name of SCIMD-COM) to their state's list of unaccredited schools. Both New York and New Jersey require that students spend at least the first two years of their medical education studying in the location where the school is chartered. The Executive Director of the Board of Medical Examiners in New Jersey stated other states also have denied hospital residency programs or medical licenses to graduates of the school. Another official with the New Jersey's board of Medical Examiners stated graduates of the school would likely not be accepted at any three-year medical residency program at a New Jersey hospital. According to the Office of Degree Authorization in Oregon, "Great Britain ceased accepting its degrees, March, 2006. No Senegalese school issuing degrees under this name exists as of March, 2006. Price, Waterhouse has taken over the entity's records (UK/Senegal) and students who want to get information must contact PWC." In July of 2000, the Oregon Department of Justice issued a restraining order as well as a lawsuit against St Johns University School of Medicine of Montserrat, which claimed that transcripts issued by the school would be accredited through St. Christopher's College of Medicine. According to the Oregon DOJ, "St. Christopher’s College of Medicine does not appear to be licensed or accredited by anyone. Texas has similarly placed SCCM on their list of "Institutions Whose Degrees are Illegal to Use in Texas" and notes that attempting to use the degree to obtain a medical license is a Class B Misdemeanor.

Visas

SCIMD-COM's Luton campus is not listed in the Register of Education and Training Providers published by the British Department for Children, Schools and Families and the Home Office will not grant anyone permission to enter or remain in the UK as a student, unless he or she plans to study at a college on the Register." "The Register does not quality assure the services offered by providers," but instead, "the purpose of the Register is to help the Home Office tackle immigration abuse in the education sector."

Media coverage

In 2003, the BBC local news programme Look East visited the campus, noting that no private university has ever been given full accreditation in the UK, and that St. Christopher hoped to be the first. It also noted that fees were between 2/3 and 1/2 of the fees charged by US colleges, and that this attracted a significant US student body.

External links

• Official website

References

1. ^ "History of St Christopher Iba Mar Diop College of Medicine". Retrieved 2006-08-14.
2. 2006 UK CompaniesHouse registration
3. 2006 UK CompaniesHouse registration
4. ^ Foundation for the Advancement of International Education and Research. "International Medical Education Directory: St. Christopher Iba Mar Diop College of Medicine". Retrieved 2006-07-27.
5. List of organisations about which ASIC suggest students undertake detailed research before embarking on a programme of study
6. Senegalese Charter of SCIMD from scimd.com
7. Senegalese recognition letter by Minister of Education
8. UNESCO/IAU list of Universities
9. General Medical Council. [http://www.gmc- uk.org/doctors/join_the_register/registration/acceptable_primary_medical_qualifi cation.asp#3 "Acceptable primary medical qualification"]. Retrieved 2006-07-27. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help); line feed character in |last= at position 17 (help); line feed character in |url= at position 16 (help)
10. Alabama Board of Medical Examiners. "Medical Education Requirements". Retrieved 2006-08-27.
11. Medical Board of California: International Medical Schools Disapproved by the State of California
12. Medical Board of California. "Medical Schools Recognized by the Medical Board of California". Retrieved 2006-07-27.
13. "Medical Licensing Board of Indiana" (PDF).
14. http://www.ksbha.org/medicalschoolsapprovedunapproved.html
15. Kansas Board of Healing Arts. "Statues: Chapter 65.--PUBLIC HEALTH Article 28.--HEALING ARTS". Retrieved 2006-08-18.
16. Maine Higher Education. "Unaccredited Schools" (PDF). UnaccreditedSchools-042706.pdf. p. 48. {{cite conference}}: Unknown parameter |booktitle= ignored (|book-title= suggested) (help)
17. NYS Office of the Professions. "Medicine License Requirements". Retrieved 2007-07-22.
18. Thorbourne, Ken (2004-03-30). "SPC partnership with med school hastily called off". The Jersey Journal. p. 1. Retrieved 2006-08-12.
19. Oregon Office of Degree Accreditation. "Unaccredited colleges". Retrieved 2007-05-05.
20. Department of Justice, State of Oregon. "Media Release: Attorney General Closes Down Unlicensed Medical School". Retrieved 2006-08-18.
21. Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. "Institutions Whose Degrees are Illegal to Use in Texas". Retrieved 2007-05-05.
22. DFES Provider Register of Education and Training
23. UKVisas requirements for student visas
24. http://www.dfes.gov.uk/providersregister/faq-general.cfm#a1
25. RealAudio file, BBC Look East, February 2003

• Unaccredited institutions of higher learning