KARACHI, Nov 7: About 2,850 candidates, who have applied for admissions to the first year MBBS programme at the two constituent colleges of the Dow University of Health Sciences (DUHS), are likely to appear in an entry test scheduled to be held on Nov 13.

Talking to Dawn on Monday, the vice-chancellor of DUHS, Prof Masood Hameed Khan, said that the entry test was being held about two weeks behind the schedule given earlier as the test conducting agency, which was based in Abbotabad, had requested for some more time for preparation, particularly in the wake of Oct 8 earthquake.

As per the new schedule given by the varsity, entry test will now be held at the main campus of the NED University of Engineering and Technology, University Road, at 10am, while the candidates are required to report at the test centre by 8am. Test will be held for the first year MBBS admission session 2005-06 at the Dow and Sindh medical colleges, reciprocal seats for LUMHS and for BDS LUMHS for Karachi seats.

The varsity has allocated 219 seats each for admissions at DMC and SMC under general merit, while another 30 for reciprocal admissions. Last year, 222 seats were offered at the DMC and 151 seats for SMC, said a source.

The vice-chancellor said that besides merit and reserved seats, admissions would be given to the candidates applying on self-finance basis. Last year, 28 seats each at the DMC and the SMC were offered to the local students under the self-finance scheme, which had now been increased to 40 seats each at the two colleges in question.

Prof Hameed said that the name of the self-financing scheme was being changed from this year as “University Education Development Programme”, under which in line with the terms and conditions approved by the controlling authority of the university, income would go mainly for research activities and to the endowment funds.

Another eight seats have been reserved for the overseas Pakistani students, who will be required to pay US$6,000 each, the vice-chancellor added.

In the meantime, the principal of the DMC, Dr Salahuddin Asfar, said that the test for adding 20 marks to 57 applicants, who also claimed to be Hafiz-i-Quran, would be held on Nov 15 and 16 at the DMC.

He said that the provisional merit list of admissions to the DMC and SMC would be released on Nov 21, while a final merit list would be put on display on Dec 3. Classes of the MBBS first year will commence on Dec 12, he added.