Ten Years of International Students at VU Faculty of Medicine. Why Do Internationals Choose to Study Here?

In 2022, as many as 4,228 students started the academic year at the Faculty of Medicine (867 are studying bachelor's programmes, 337 are in master's programmes, 2,056 are in integral programmes, 821 are in residency programmes, 151 are in doctoral programmes). Within these numbers, the faculty hosts 674 students from abroad. This figure is particularly encouraging because the faculty, which is celebrating the 10th anniversary of the launch of its international studies programmes, has never had so many students from abroad.

2012 – studies taught in English began

"The interest in the possibility of studying medicine in English intensified in particular during the period 2010–2011. Under the leadership of the Dean of the faculty, academician Prof. Zita Aušrelė Kučinskienė, Vilnius University and its Faculty of Medicine were visited by the Honorary Consul of Lithuania in Israel, the President of IsraMed4u, Dr Uri Rislik, and the Vice President Mila Varmaz, along with a full delegation. During the visit, the first discussions about the possibilities of organising studies taught in the English language in the Faculty of Medicine were initiated," said Prof. Vaiva Hendrixson, Vice-Dean of Education and Strategic Partnerships at the faculty.

Professor Hendrixson said the idea was met with enthusiasm and seemed attractive and ambitious. However, when the time came to put the theory into practice, it sometimes seemed that studying in English at the Faculty of Medicine of Vilnius University was a difficult task: programme descriptions and other necessary documents had to be translated into English, specialists who could teach in English were required, the possibility of staff communicating with students in two languages had to be coordinated, and so on.

"We did not have much time to prepare, so as early as autumn 2012, it was decided to form one group of medical students (12 students) who would be taught in English. It has to be said that there was no publicity for the programme. But even without it, we received 15 applications from candidates, who met our requirements at the time and selected eight of them. We started the English-language medical programme with this small group of students. Since then, the number of applicants has grown every year," the professor noted.

With the increasing interest from international candidates to study medicine in the English language organised by the faculty, it has been obliged to continuously improve the admission process to these study programmes and achieve new goals. "It was a huge job! I sincerely believe that if it were not for the support and trust of the then Dean, academician Prof. Zita Aušrelė Kučinskienė, in entrusting me with the development of the study programme for internationals, and the persistence of my Israeli colleagues, the English language Medical Studies Programme would not have been included in the list of study programmes at the university in 2012. The idea of creating the first English-language, full-time study programme at Vilnius University was also actively supported by the then Vice-Rector of International Relations, Rimantas Vaitkus," explained Prof. Hendrixson.

The success of the English-language medical studies programme and the positive feedback from students and lecturers later encouraged the launch of the English-language Integrated Dentistry programme in 2014 and the English-language MSc in Systems Biology programme in 2018.

A random choice, but happy with the decision

What attracts international students to VU MF? Why do they choose Lithuania when they have the opportunity to study in other European countries? We asked Damian Mialkowskyj, Chairman of the Faculty's Student Representation, and Kimberley Mvetimbo Tambo, Vice-Chairwoman.

"I always dreamed of studying abroad, and I chose from universities still close enough to Germany. I was fascinated by the idea that you can study abroad and be close to home, to people who speak your mother tongue and share the same cultural background. I chose to study at Vilnius University because I was always interested in an international environment and knew that students of different nationalities would surround me. I was also interested in the university's reputation in science. The fact that the university is a public institution located in the capital was a big advantage. This meant that I would be able to say goodnight to more than just the sheep grazing in the fields nearby", said Damian Mialkowskyj, Chair of the Students' Representation.

Damian Mialkowskyj, currently a fourth-year medical student, said he received the offer to study at Vilnius University on the phone while travelling by car with his mother: "I don't usually answer the phone, I prefer to call back later. But then I accidentally picked up and discovered that I was invited to study. I thanked them for the call and continued browsing on my phone. Mum asked: 'Who called?' When I told her that I had been accepted to study medicine, she couldn't contain her surprise and almost caused a traffic accident!"

The first thing Damian did when he got home was to pick up an 11th-grade geography atlas and check where Vilnius was on the map. "I booked my plane tickets and went looking for a place to live during my studies. Later, I received news that I had been accepted to three other universities in other countries. So at that point, I had four options to choose from, and even though I didn't know anything about Lithuania or Lithuanians, I chose to study in Vilnius. You could say that I chose Vilnius University by chance, but I can confirm that it was the best chance possible," the medical student noted.

To the question, "Do you know where Vilnius is?" I would respond negatively

"I have a different story to Damian's in terms of how I got into the Faculty of Medicine at the university. Before coming to Vilnius, I had already obtained a bachelor's degree in biology in the United States. So, I lived on a different continent, under the American system. I tried to study medicine in America but without success. So I returned to my home country, France, and worked in a hospital for six months. Then I moved to London to live and work", said Kimberley Mvetimbo Tambo, Vice-Chair of Medicine at Vilnius University.

She went on to explain that she really wanted to study medicine, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, she decided she wanted to be close to her family. "I applied to many universities, but Vilnius University was the first to respond positively. It all seemed to happen so fast! After applying in February, I found out in March that I had been accepted," laughed the second-year medical student.

She explained that she was determined to accept the first offer she received and not question it, not be distracted by the pros and cons of different options: "Since Vilnius University was the first one, I realised that studying in Lithuania would be a real adventure! Many people asked me: "Do you know where Vilnius is? Have you ever been there?

These and similar questions were answered negatively. Before starting my first academic year, I bought plane tickets and came here with my mother."

The advantage is the distance from home, and the challenge is the Lithuanian language

"People often ask me why I chose to study so far from home. To be honest, it's only a 5-minute drive from where I live in Vilnius to the airport and a 2-hour flight to Munich. If I were studying in Austria, for example, in Vienna, which seems to be geographically closer to my home, it would take me at least 5 hours by car to get to Munich", explained Damian.

Kimberley, from France, echoed him. However, she noted that the biggest challenge was the Lithuanian language: "I had already learnt the most important phrases in Lithuanian before I came here. This helped, for example, when going shopping and so on. Later on, I started learning Lithuanian at university. Knowing the language is important to get to know the country better and to be more accepted by the locals. Knowing a language is always an advantage, but I also understand those who don't want to take the time to learn it. However, if you do not allow yourself to see beyond your studies, you are doing yourself a bit of a disservice. Vilnius University offers so much more than just studies."

Damian also testified to the importance of learning the Lithuanian language. He said that he is convinced that everyone who wants to get a degree at Vilnius University in the Faculty of Medicine should be able to communicate in Lithuanian. "Why? How else will I be able to prove my clinical skills, and my ability to treat patients, when they do not understand English? Besides, Lithuanian has social advantages; it becomes the key to easier communication and meeting new people."

A pinch of statistics: the academic year 2022–2023

International students account for 21% of the total number of VU MF students. Students from 47 different countries study English in the study programmes provided here.
The most significant number of students studying at the faculty this academic year are from Germany (417), Finland (53), Sweden (20), Israel (21), Ukraine (19) and India (16). There are also ten citizens of the United States of America and ten Norwegian nationals who have started or are continuing their studies. Other countries with fewer arrivals include Iran (9), Belarus (8), Great Britain (7), Ireland (6), Lebanon (6), Lithuania (5) and Pakistan (5).

The academic year 2022–2023 also started with four students each from Azerbaijan, Italy, France, Russia and Syria; three each from Canada, Cyprus, and Taiwan; two each from Brazil, Georgia, Yemen, Kazakhstan, Latvia, New Zealand, Nigeria, the Netherlands, Yemen, and Turkey. The faculty also hosts 1 student each from Algeria, Australia, Austria, Belgium, China, Ghana, Greece, Iraq, Jordan, Poland, Morocco, South Korea, Somalia, Sudan and Switzerland.