A committee appointed by the Cabinet of Ministers has submitted a set of recommendations outlining a new framework for admitting students to the Faculty of Medicine at General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University (KDU).
Co-chaired by the Secretary to the Ministry of Defence, Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuyacontha (Retd), along with Secretary to the Ministry of Education Nalaka Kaluwewa and Secretary to the Ministry of Health Dr. Anil Jasinghe, the committee has proposed ten key recommendations.
Highlights of the proposed framework include:
- Only one batch of students will be admitted annually.
- Annual student intake will be capped at 150.
- A maximum of 100 local civilian students will be admitted on a fee-paying basis.
Admission priority will be given in the following order:
- Tri-forces (military) students,
- Foreign students,
- Local civilian students.
All applicants must meet a minimum Z-score of 1.4000 or above, as determined by KDU’s management board. Additionally, 10% of the civilian intake will be offered full scholarships, with selection handled by the Ministries of Education, Higher Education, and Vocational Education.
Other key points include:
- Students admitted to KDU’s medical faculty will not be eligible to register as internal full-time students in other state universities (excluding the Open University).
- Those already registered as full-time students in other state universities (excluding the Open University) will not be permitted to enroll at KDU.
- Civilian students will not be required to wear a uniform and will attend lectures as in other medical faculties.
- The Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Mass Media will designate specific hospitals for clinical training.
- KDU will not guarantee employment in government hospitals post-graduation; appointments will depend on available vacancies at the time.
Finally, academic staff currently serving in UGC-affiliated medical faculties will only be eligible for appointments at KDU after a five-year cooling-off period following their resignation. This restriction will not apply during sabbatical leave or after retirement.
