Hungary emerged as the most popular country for Korean students seeking to graduate from a foreign medical school and qualify for the Korean medical licensing exam, providing an alternative amidst intense competition among the brightest students vying for admission into prestigious local medical schools. 

According to data by Rep. Shin Hyun-young of the Democratic Party, who is a member of the National Assembly’s Health and Welfare Committee, a total of 409 graduates from foreign medical schools took the Korea Medical Licensing Examination (KMLE) between 2001 and 2023. 

Out of the 409 students, 247 successfully passed, resulting in an overall pass rate of 60.4 percent.

By country, Hungary had the highest number of medical school graduates who passed the Korean medical licensing exam with 119, followed by the Philippines with 106, Uzbekistan with 38, the U.K. with 23, Germany with 22, Australia with 18, the U.S. with 15, Paraguay with 12, Russia with 11, Japan with six, and Ukraine with five.

From 2001 to 2005, the Philipines had the highest number of successful candidates with 105. However, from 2016 to 2023, Hungary took the No. 1 position with 118.

Korean students switched the target country from the Philippines to Hungary because graduates from Hungarian medical schools showed high KMLE pass rates. 

From 2001 to 2023, the KMLE pass rate among medical school graduates from the Philippines was only 17.92 percent, compared to 82.35 percent among those from Hungarian medical schools.

Under the law, only graduates from foreign medical colleges recognized by the Minister of Health and Welfare are eligible to take the KMLE. 

‘It’s difficult to graduate from Hungarian medical schools’

Korean students can take English classes at four Hungarian medical schools, according to a 2022 report by The Korean Doctors’ Weekly, a sister paper of Korea Biomedical Review. 

There are four national universities in Hungary -- Semmelweis University, University of Debrecen Medical School, University of Szeged Faculty of Medicine, and University of Szeged Faculty of Medicine.

According to the report, the University of Debrecen Medical School had been allocated 260 Hungarian students and 280 international students by the government in 2022. 

International students are required to take Hungarian language classes even after entering Debrecen. Only students who have completed a total of 18 credits by the second semester of their third year are eligible for clinical training, which begins in the fourth year (second year of study). 

Hungarian medical schools are also six years long, but unlike Korea, there is no distinction between the pre-clinical course and the clinical course. Also, unlike Korean medical schools, anatomy is taught from the first year (premedical year 1), and subject-specific assessments are conducted through written and oral exams.

Korean students at Debrecen said that Hungarian medical schools were never an easy alternative.

"It's a lot of work," said Park Soo-jin, then-president of the Korean Student Association at Debrecen Medical School, in the 2022 report.  

“From the first year, we have to study anatomy and pathology and take an oral exam. You also have to explain in front of a cadaver," she said. 

The cutoff for admission to medical school may be lower in Hungary than in Korea but graduation is more difficult in Hungary than in Korea, she noted.

"Some people see Hungarian medical school as a 'shortcut' to get a Korean medical license, but it's not.”