How to Become a Doctor with a Biochemistry Degree in Nigeria

In Nigeria, there are quite a several courses that can easily be referred to as competitive. Medicine and surgery is one of these courses. Beyond just being one of the courses that are competitive in the Nigerian educational system, it can be easily said that medicine and surgery is arguably the most competitive course in Nigeria.

When looking to get into the university, lots of young people are known to apply for medicine and surgery. In as much as only a few people gain admission to study medicine and surgery at their first attempt, those that are unable to gain admission at their first attempt do not stop trying for a long time.

Some only stop trying when it is obvious that they will be unable to gain admission to study medicine and surgery in a Nigerian university.

How to Become a Doctor with a Biochemistry Degree in Nigeria

After settling for another course all in an attempt to get a degree from the university, some people still consider getting a second degree in medicine and surgery.

Do you already have a degree in biochemistry and are looking to study medicine and surgery in Nigeria, you are on the right page. Read on to find out how to get this done.

To become a doctor with a biochemistry degree, you would need to either do a direct entry change of course or start afresh by taking JAMB UTME examination all over again.

At the moment, there are two major ways one can become a doctor in Nigeria after a degree in biochemistry. They are through the direct entry and through taking UTME again. Let’s find out more about these routes;

1. Direct Entry

Gaining admission to study medicine and surgery to direct entry sounds very simple on paper. However, it is not as easy as it might seem. In as much as it is very possible to gain admission into the university to study medicine and surgery through direct entry, there is a lot of competition associated with this route.

The reason for this is quite obvious; lots of people look forward to studying medicine and surgery in Nigeria. However, only a handful of them can do so when they study for their first degree. The remaining applicants sometimes give up entirely. However, some end up pushing for a degree in medicine and surgery after getting a degree in a related field.

Now, imagine the number of people that were unable to gain admission to study medicine and surgery across various years all applying for a space to study medicine and surgery through direct entry. You do not need to be an education expert to tell that the competition might almost be as high as what is experienced when people try to gain admission to study medicine through sitting for the UTME.

If you must become a doctor in Nigeria after a degree in biochemistry and looking at doing this through direct entry, you must graduate with a good result.

You should have nothing less than a second-class upper. In the absence of a second-class upper, you will be unable to get the opportunity to become a doctor in Nigeria after a degree in biochemistry. The reason for this is the level of competition that you will have to deal with.

Most universities in Nigeria that offer admission to people seeking to become doctors make more space for people seeking admission straight out of secondary school. This implies that not many people will be able to study medicine through direct entry. So, if you must make it through this route, you have to be one of the best.

Furthermore, anyone that is looking to study medicine and surgery after a degree in biochemistry in Nigeria should be sure of the universities that make room for direct entry candidates. That’s not all. There are times universities that take direct entry candidates do not open their doors to students that are not coming in through UTME.

The implication of this is before going ahead to buy a form, you have to confirm that the university you plan to get into has space for direct entry candidates in the year in question.

Although getting the chance to become a medical doctor in Nigeria after a degree in biochemistry is not very easy for people looking to go through the direct entry route, if you can scale through this phase, you do not need to start from your first year. You will begin from 200L which automatically reduces the period you will be in the university.

2. Go Through the UTME Route

All things being equal, after a degree in biochemistry in Nigeria, one is supposed to go for the compulsory one year of national service. However, if you plan to become a doctor in Nigeria, as soon as you get your degree in biochemistry, you might want to put a hold ongoing for service. Instead of simply going for service immediately, you might want to go back to scratch and buy a JAMB form. This means you will have to write the UTME again and start university afresh.

Although this route seems like a long one, it is a more assured way to become a doctor in Nigeria after you already have a degree in biochemistry. In as much as the level of competition will not reduce, the truth is since you already have a degree, you are most likely to perform a lot better than the average student coming in directly from secondary school.

When you write UTME again, you will need to score at least 200 out of the available 400 marks. Also, after the UTME, you will go on to write the post-UTME like every other student that is just starting life.

This might not look like something good enough for someone that already has a university degree. However, it is the easiest way to gain admission to study medicine and surgery after studying biochemistry.

Is it Possible to Gain Admission to Study Medicine and Surgery from 300 Level?

As someone that already has a degree in biochemistry, you can gain admission to study medicine and surgy from a Nigerian university. However, you will have to be content with starting over from your first year or at most your second year.

If you have come across rumours that you can start from your third year, these rumours are most likely misleading and could get you into trouble.