StudyChina GraduateGraduate degrees in medicine in China: academic disciplines and professional categories in the catalogue
Sources checked
Medicine in mainland China's graduate system is organised in two ways: as first-level academic disciplines and as professional degree categories. The Graduate Education Discipline and Programme Catalogue (2022) lists both under category 10 (医学, medicine). The catalogue does not use the English phrase "master of medicine". What it says is that several medicine disciplines may be awarded a 医学 (medicine) or 理学 (science) degree, and that the university's degree evaluation committee decides which of these applies. This page sets out the categories, the rules that attach to them, and the points the official texts leave to each university.
English names on this page are this site's translation. The catalogue gives Chinese names and codes only.
How the catalogue is organised
The catalogue was issued by notice 学位〔2022〕15号 of the State Council Academic Degrees Committee and the Ministry of Education, and it applies from 2023. Under its explanatory notes:
- Discipline category codes have two digits. First-level discipline and professional degree category codes have four digits (Catalogue, explanatory note 3).
- A professional degree category has a third digit of 5 or higher (Catalogue, explanatory note 3).
- Except for the interdisciplinary category, each first-level discipline is awarded under its own discipline category (Catalogue, explanatory note 4).
- A professional degree category is awarded under its name. A name followed by "*" can be awarded only as a professional master's degree. The others can be awarded as professional master's or doctoral degrees (Catalogue, explanatory note 5).
- Where a first-level discipline can be awarded under more than one discipline category, the university's degree evaluation committee decides which category applies (Catalogue, explanatory note 6).
First-level disciplines in category 10
The table lists the medicine first-level disciplines as the catalogue gives them.
| Code | Chinese name | English (site translation) | Award note in the catalogue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1001 | 基础医学 | Basic Medicine | Medicine or science |
| 1002 | 临床医学 | Clinical Medicine | Also has a professional degree category, code 1051 |
| 1003 | 口腔医学 | Stomatology | Also has a professional degree category, code 1052 |
| 1004 | 公共卫生与预防医学 | Public Health and Preventive Medicine | Medicine or science |
| 1005 | 中医学 | Traditional Chinese Medicine | No award note |
| 1006 | 中西医结合 | Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine | No award note |
| 1007 | 药学 | Pharmacy | Medicine or science. Also has a professional degree category, code 1055 |
| 1008 | 中药学 | Chinese Pharmaceutical Science | Medicine or science |
| 1009 | 特种医学 | Special Medicine | No award note |
| 1011 | 护理学 | Nursing | Medicine or science |
| 1012 | 法医学 | Forensic Medicine | No award note |
The catalogue notes that clinical medicine (1002), stomatology (1003) and pharmacy (1007) each have a professional degree category. The codes are 1051, 1052 and 1055. The excerpt used for this page does not give the names or star status of 1051, 1052 or 1055, so they are not described further here.
Professional degree categories in category 10
The catalogue lists the following professional categories under category 10. The asterisk status is taken from the catalogue's own names.
| Code | Chinese name | English (site translation) | Level under explanatory note 5 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1053 | 公共卫生 | Public Health | Professional master's or doctoral degree |
| 1054 | 护理* | Nursing | Professional master's degree only |
| 1056 | 中药* | Chinese Medicinal Materials | Professional master's degree only |
| 1057 | 中医 | Traditional Chinese Medicine | Professional master's or doctoral degree |
| 1058 | 医学技术 | Medical Technology | Professional master's or doctoral degree |
| 1059 | 针灸* | Acupuncture and Moxibustion | Professional master's degree only |
What the official texts add for international students
The Quality Standards for the Higher Education of International Students in China (Trial), issued by Ministry of Education notice 教外〔2018〕50号, set out two points for these majors.
First, a university that enrols international students must do so in a major that belongs to a discipline or professional degree category it is authorised to award, and that the State allows to be opened to international students (Quality Standards, section 4).
Second, for medicine and other majors that bear directly on personal health and safety, the university must meet the State's rules, technical standards or norms for international student education in that major (Quality Standards, section 4). Those specific rules are not among the texts used on this page.
Order No. 42 gives each university the authority to set its own international student enrolment plan and majors, unless other national rules apply (Order No. 42, Article 10). Each university must make and publish its own international student admissions brochure under national admissions rules, and admit students under the conditions and procedures in that brochure (Order No. 42, Article 11).
What this page does not settle
The catalogue and the texts quoted above do not say which universities offer any of these categories. They do not say whether any category is open to international students in a given year. Those points appear only in each university's admissions brochure (Order No. 42, Articles 10 and 11). This page names no university and does not rank them.
If you are planning a degree, a practical suggestion is to start with the code of the category you are looking at, then check the admissions brochure of each university you consider for that exact category. This is a planning suggestion, not a rule.
Questions people ask
Can I study for a master of medicine in China?
The catalogue allows some medicine disciplines to be awarded a 医学 (medicine) degree, including 1001, 1004, 1007, 1008 and 1011. Whether a given university awards that degree, and whether it accepts international students for it, is decided by the university and published in its admissions brochure (Order No. 42, Articles 10 and 11).
Does the catalogue say which medical degrees are open to international students?
No. The catalogue does not say anything about international students. For medicine and related majors, the Quality Standards refer to State rules for those majors, which are not among the texts used on this page (Quality Standards, section 4).
Sources
- Graduate Education Discipline and Programme Catalogue (2022), Ministry of Education of the PRC
- Graduate Education Discipline and Programme Catalogue (2022), attachment 1 (PDF), Ministry of Education of the PRC
- Quality Standards for the Higher Education of International Students in China (Trial), Ministry of Education of the PRC
- Quality Standards for the Higher Education of International Students in China (Trial), attachment (DOC), Ministry of Education of the PRC
- Measures for the Administration of Schools Recruiting and Educating International Students (Order No. 42), Ministry of Education of the PRC
Checked 11 October 2026
This page is an unofficial summary. It is not published by or affiliated with the Ministry of Education, the China Scholarship Council, CHSI or any university, and it is not legal advice. If the official text differs from this summary, the official text and the current notice of the university or authority handling your case prevail.