First Moscow State Medical University named after I. M. Sechenov, Russia

I.M. Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University is the first and the oldest medical school in Russia tracing its history from the medical faculty of Moscow Imperial University founded in 1758.

Having passed the path of glory I.M. Sechenov First MSMU enriched national and world science with many distinguished scientists and significant discoveries, and brought up thousands of physicians devoted to their work.

Many of the University alumni have been recognized internationally for their outstanding contribution to global medicine and other spheres. Botkin S.P., Korsakoff S.S., Pirogov N.N., Sechenov I.M., Sklifosovsky N.V., and Chekhov A.P. are the most renowned.

Today the academy is a major center for training, certification and upgrading the medical personnel and pharmacists. Academic studies are closely integrated with fundamental and applied research, providing highly qualified medical care to the population and promoting the advances of medical science and pharmaceutics.

The academy is at the head of the academic – methodological association of Russian medical institutions.

It has 20 buildings for studies, classrooms and lecture halls, a clinical center with 17 diverse clinics for 3000 patients, the research center, the main library, publishing section, a video-photo department, the laboratories, the botanical garden and several students’ hostels.

There are the following faculties with 177 chairs at the Academy: medical, disease-prevention, pharmaceutical (day and evening courses), stomatological, higher nurses’ training (day and evening courses), foreign undergraduate education and foreign students faculty, continuous professional training, continuous disease-prevention education, pharmacist upgrading, health service management, academic education, and premedical education (as school-university and college-university complexes).

About 9000 students from Russia and foreign countries study annually at the Academy.

1st MSMU receives students paying for their tuition fees from Russia and other countries. A number of clinics of the University are also receiving patients mainly for a fee or from voluntary health insurance.

About 1500 graduates are involved in post-graduate training as part of internship (primary specialization), clinical internship (residency), covering all clinical specialities, or post-graduate courses. The Academy employs about 2 thousand members of the faculty, research associates and doctors including 300 Professors and more than 1,000 Ph.D. in medicine. The achievements of the scientists working at the I.M. Sechenov Moscow Medical Academy are widely known both in Russia and abroad.

First Moscow State Medical University (MSMU) develops extensive scientific cooperation with medical research and training centers abroad. It is a member of the World Association of Universities. International, All-Russia, intercollegiate scientific congresses, conferences, symposia and seminars are regularly organized by or with the Academy’s support. A number of well-known scientists from MMA participate as specialists and experts in the work of UN, WHO and UNESCO bodies.

In the national history of higher medical educational institutions, the Academy has been the first to found totally new faculties. After two years of study, the best students of the Academy and other medical institutes of Russia may continue their education at the faculty for research and teaching staff training. Working by individual curricula under supervision of the leading scientists of the university, these students acquire thorough knowledge of the chosen field and skills to do research.

To keep up with the international standards the university has also established a new trend in higher medical professional education in Russia – the training of nurses with a higher education The faculty of higher education for nurses trains specialists in nursing with a background in management and teaching.

There are 160 chairs at the university staffed by more than 2000 highly qualified specialists, 86,5% of the Heads of departments with various academic degrees. 34% of the scientists are Members and Corresponding Members of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences (RAMS), Honored Scientists of the Russian Federation, and the State Prize laureates. Many chairs function on the basis of research centres and institutes.

Annually about 30 doctoral and more than 100 candidate’s degrees are awarded. Most themes deal with problems of a nationwide importance, such as development of new methods of preventive treatment, diagnosis and treatment of most common conditions, hygienic norms and environmental protection measures, creating optimal conditions for work and leisure, a rational diet, evolving new drugs and dosage forms, and medical technology; studies morphofunctional and biochemical basis of the body’s vital activities working out methodological and methodical aspects of educational and teaching activities.

The academy maintains collaborative ties with various international organizations. Among them are the International Association of the University Programs for Health Management, the World Organization of National Colleges, Academies and General Practitioners, the American International Alliance on Health Problems, the European Association of Management in Health Care, the World Academy of Medical Education.

The international reputation of the I.M. Sechenov Moscow Medical Academy has been confirmed by the high rating obtained in the UNESCO-held university competition. In 2010, Moscow Medical Academy was upgraded and renamed into First Moscow State Medical University.