Private medical colleges: A preferred choice
The demand for Indian healthcare professionals is expected to double nationally by 2030. In the next five years, India’s healthcare sector will require a substantial increase in doctors. It is estimated that, by 2030, India will need at least 2.5 million more qualified doctors. And, over 30,000 Indian students go abroad each year to pursue their MBBS degree, while, in India, about 56,000 MBBS seats have been made available in government-owned colleges across the country.
The total number of MBBS seats in private and deemed medical colleges in India is estimated to be about 44,000. Securing admission in any government medical college in India is considered to be competitive and complex for an Indian student.
In May 2025, about 2.2 million students appeared for the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) – a mandatory, nationwide entrance exam for admission to undergraduate medical courses conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA).
Government medical colleges in India offer medical education to qualifying students at highly subsidised fees, whereas private and deemed medical colleges operating across the country have no option but to charge higher fees. Unlike government-funded medical colleges, private and deemed medical institutions in India solely rely on tuition fees for funding, covering salaries, maintenance & upgradation of academic infrastructure, etc.
In his recent speeches, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been consistently addressing the demand for medical education by focusing on expanding the number of medical seats in India, urging the private sector to invest and promoting medical education in local languages.
“Considering the anticipated demand of medical professionals in our country, it is now imperative to develop future-ready, patient-centric and research-driven private medical training institutions in India that deliver world-class education, high-quality clinical care and innovative healthcare solutions, while meeting national and global standards in medical teaching,” says Bharat Boghara, a well-known academician & promoter, Matushri Prabhaben Khodabhai Boghara Medical College, a reputed private medical training institution, based in Gujarat.
Learning poverty
However, India’s medical education sector faces an acute shortage of good-quality teachers, adds Boghara. Medical colleges in India face many challenges, especially the non-availability of adequate numbers of highly-skilled tutors, particularly in rural and underprivileged areas, he affirms. Additionally, many teachers are unnecessarily overburdened with non-teaching duties like administrative tasks, extra work, etc, in a few medical colleges. “While efforts are underway to address this pressing issue, the challenges remain deep and structural,” Boghara informs. After the Covid years, ‘learning poverty’ has increased substantially amongst many Indian students, he feels. Many of them have entered their ‘upper grades’ without mastering the ‘basics’, making further learning difficult in the colleges. “This outcome-gap undermines the very purpose of medical education in our country.”
Inadequate funding and under-investment in the Indian medical education sector remain a major concern for the academicians. Generally, public spending on medical education in India has remained relatively low when compared to the global benchmarks. For higher education and research, especially in many medical colleges under government administration in India, funding gaps have translated into overcrowded classes, limited laboratory & research equipment, a lack of innovation, low-quality building infrastructure and poor global competitiveness.
Private medical education in India, hence, continues to offer advantages, such as state-of-the-art infrastructure, advanced technology, flexible admission processes, etc, Boghara contends. Key benefits include modern laboratories, strong industry partnerships, experienced faculties and diverse, often more organised, clinical exposure. “Strong alumni networks, international collaborations and placements with top healthcare providers are common, particularly in prestigious private medical institutions,” he remarks.
With limited seats in government medical colleges and intense competition, private institutions thus provide an excellent alternative for students passionate about pursuing a medical career in India. “For example, our private medical college is affiliated to the well-established 200-bed Matushri K.D.P. Multi-Speciality Hospital,” says Boghara.