- The Post Graduate Medical Education Regulations 2023, notified by the National Medical Commission on 29 December 2023, set MD and MS at three years, PG diplomas at two years, Post-Doctoral Certificate Courses at one year and Post-Doctoral Fellowships at two years
- NMC public notice N-P016(20)/1/2026-PGMEB-NMC dated 22 June 2026 confirms that 2026-27 is the last academic year for admission to any PG diploma course
- NEET-PG, conducted by NBEMS, remains the single entrance for MD, MS, PG diploma, post-MBBS DNB and NBEMS diploma seats.
An MBBS degree is a licence to practise, not the end of medical training. Most Indian graduates go on to a post-graduate course, and the options range from a three-year MD or MS to one-year post-doctoral certificate courses and NBEMS fellowships. Postgraduate medical education in India is regulated by the National Medical Commission, which replaced the Medical Council of India in September 2020.
The rules changed materially in the last two years. The Post Graduate Medical Education Regulations 2023 rewrote course durations and training standards, and the NMC has now fixed an end date for PG diploma admissions. This guide sets out what you can actually study after MBBS in the 2026 session, how long each course runs and which entrance exam you need.
What Courses Can You Do After MBBS in India?
After MBBS you can take an MD or MS broad speciality degree, a DM or MCh super speciality course, a two-year PG diploma, a one-year Post-Doctoral Certificate Course, a two-year Post-Doctoral Fellowship, or a post-MBBS DNB awarded by NBEMS. The National Medical Commission fixes the duration of each course through the Post Graduate Medical Education Regulations 2023.
The gazette notification of 29 December 2023 lists every recognised qualification and its duration in Chapter II. The durations below include the examination period, so they are the full commitment rather than the teaching term alone.
| Course After MBBS (NMC PGMER 2023, 2026 Session) | Duration Including Examination |
|---|---|
| MD or MS, post-graduate broad speciality | 3 years, or 2 years if you already hold a recognised 2-year PG diploma in the same subject |
| DM or MCh, post-graduate super speciality | 3 years |
| PG Diploma, 28 recognised subjects | 2 years |
| Post-Doctoral Certificate Course (PDCC) | 1 year |
| Post-Doctoral Fellowship (PDF) | 2 years |
| DM Neurology or MCh Neurosurgery, direct six-year course | 6 years |
The most sought-after MD and MS subjects remain radiodiagnosis, general medicine, general surgery, dermatology and obstetrics and gynaecology. Radiodiagnosis covers the interpretation of X-rays, magnetic resonance imaging, computed tomography scans and ultrasound. General surgery covers diagnosis, operative management and post-operative care. Dermatology, venereology and leprosy and obstetrics and gynaecology are also offered as two-year PG diplomas until the 2026-27 session.
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Admission to MD, MS, PG diploma, post-MBBS DNB and NBEMS diploma seats runs through NEET-PG, conducted by the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences. You need an MBBS degree and a completed internship, or one you will finish by the cut-off date for that admission session. AIIMS New Delhi, PGIMER and JIPMER admit separately.
NBEMS describes NEET-PG as the single entrance for the all India 50 per cent quota, state quota seats, private medical colleges and armed forces medical institutions. There is no separate state or institutional entrance test for these seats.
Super speciality courses come later. Once you hold an MD, MS or DNB, NEET-SS is the single entrance examination for every DM, MCh and DrNB super speciality course in India, including those at private institutions and armed forces medical services institutions. Since 2017 no state or institutional alternative is valid for super speciality admission.
| Entrance Exam 2026 | Conducting Body | Courses It Leads To |
|---|---|---|
| NEET-PG | NBEMS | MD, MS, PG diploma, post-MBBS DNB and NBEMS diploma |
| NEET-SS | NBEMS | DM, MCh and DrNB super speciality courses |
| Fellowship Entrance Test (FET) | NBEMS | FNB and FNB-PD fellowships |
| INI-CET | AIIMS New Delhi | PG seats at institutes of national importance, including MD Hospital Administration |
Are PG Diploma Courses After MBBS Still Available?
Only for one more intake. NMC public notice N-P016(20)/1/2026-PGMEB-NMC, dated 22 June 2026, states that 2026-27 is the last academic year for admission to post graduate diploma courses. From 2027-28 colleges must convert diploma seats into corresponding MD or MS degree seats through the Medical Assessment and Rating Board.
The direction follows the Post-Graduate Medical Education Board public notice of 19 June 2026 and Regulation 2.1 of the PGMER 2023, which already said that medical colleges may apply to the Medical Assessment and Rating Board to convert diploma seats to degree seats and that no new applications will be entertained to start or increase diploma seats.
If you do hold a recognised two-year PG diploma, it is not wasted. Under the same regulations the MD or MS course is shortened from three years to two years for a candidate who already holds a recognised two-year post-graduate diploma in the same subject.
The 28 diploma qualifications recognised in Annexure-3 of the PGMER 2023 include the following:
- Anaesthesiology (D.A.)
- Clinical Pathology (D.C.P.)
- Community Medicine (D.C.M.) or Public Health (D.P.H.)
- Dermatology, Venereology and Leprosy (D.D.V.L.)
- Obstetrics and Gynaecology (D.G.O.)
- Ophthalmology (D.O.)
- Orthopaedics (D.Ortho.)
- Otorhinolaryngology (D.L.O.)
- Paediatrics (D.C.H.)
- Psychiatry (D.P.M.)
- Radiodiagnosis (D.M.R.D.)
- Tuberculosis and Chest Diseases (D.T.C.D.)
Physiotherapy and dialysis technology are sometimes listed online as diplomas after MBBS. They are not. Neither appears in the NMC list of recognised post-graduate diploma qualifications, and both are allied health programmes taken at undergraduate level.
Separately, NBEMS continues to run its own post-MBBS NBEMS diploma courses, and NEET-PG remains the entrance for those seats.
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The shortest recognised course after MBBS is the one-year Post-Doctoral Certificate Course. The two-year options are the PG diploma, which closes after the 2026-27 intake, and the Post-Doctoral Fellowship. Both post-doctoral routes sit above a degree, so you finish an MD, MS, DM, MCh or DNB first.
Annexure-4 of the PGMER 2023 lists the recognised one-year Post-Doctoral Certificate Courses. They are narrow, hospital-based sub-specialities rather than general skills courses.
- PDCC in Organ Transplant Anaesthesia
- PDCC in Paediatric Endocrinology
- PDCC in Laboratory Immunology
- PDCC in Nuclear Nephrology
- PDCC in Renal Pathology
- PDCC in Gastro-Radiology
- PDCC in Aphaeresis Technology and Blood Component Therapy
- PDCC in Pain Management
- PDCC in Haemato-Oncology
- PDCC in Paediatric ENT
- PDCC in Spine Surgery
If you are looking for something you can start straight after MBBS and finish quickly, the honest answer in 2026 is that the recognised short options are shrinking rather than growing. The two-year PG diploma was the classic short route and it is being withdrawn. What remains genuinely short is the one-year PDCC, and that requires a post-graduate degree first.
Which Fellowship Courses Can You Take After MBBS?
NBEMS awards the Fellow of National Board and Fellow of National Board Post Doctoral qualifications through the Fellowship Entrance Test. Eligibility requires an MD, MS, DM, MCh, DNB or DrNB degree, so a fellowship is not a direct step from MBBS. Both Indian and international candidates may apply.
NBEMS describes the Fellowship Entrance Test as a qualifying-cum-ranking examination for admission to FNB and FNB-PD courses. Training runs at accredited centres, candidates maintain a performance record, and the course ends in an exit examination. The qualification is conferred at the annual NBEMS convocation.
The NMC route to the same idea is the two-year Post-Doctoral Fellowship listed in Annexure-5 of the PGMER 2023. In the United States and Canada a fellowship works the same way, sitting after a completed residency, and the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education accredits both residency and fellowship programmes.
Can You Do an MBA or Hospital Administration After MBBS?
Yes. In India the established route is MD in Hospital Administration, a three-year post-graduate residency at AIIMS New Delhi entered through INI-CET. Abroad, several universities run joint medical and management degrees, including the MD and MBA offered by Harvard Business School with Harvard Medical School.
The AIIMS New Delhi Department of Hospital Administration states that it offers a three-year post-graduate residency programme leading to the award of MD in Hospital Administration, and that admission is through the Institute of National Importance Combined Entrance Test. The department also runs doctoral programmes in hospital administration, healthcare management and health systems research.
Harvard Business School lists MD and MBA with Harvard Medical School among seven joint degree programmes built with other Harvard graduate schools. Programmes of this kind suit doctors moving into hospital leadership, health policy or health-technology roles rather than clinical practice, so treat them as a change of direction rather than an add-on.
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The main route is supervised training abroad rather than a taught course. For the United States you need ECFMG certification before you can enter an ACGME-accredited residency or fellowship. That means passing USMLE Step 1 and Step 2 CK, meeting the clinical and communication skills requirement, and having your medical school credentials verified.
ECFMG states that the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education requires international medical graduates entering accredited residency or fellowship programmes to be certified by ECFMG. Certification requires passes in USMLE Step 1 and Step 2 Clinical Knowledge, plus an ECFMG Pathway with a passing Occupational English Test Medicine score for the clinical and communication skills requirement.
USMLE itself runs in three steps. Step 1 assesses the basic sciences, Step 2 Clinical Knowledge assesses clinical knowledge applied to patient care, and Step 3 assesses readiness for unsupervised practice. Your medical school must also appear in the World Directory of Medical Schools with an ECFMG sponsor note.
| United States Route 2026 | What It Requires |
|---|---|
| ECFMG certification | Required by ACGME for international medical graduates entering an accredited residency or fellowship |
| USMLE Step 1 and Step 2 CK | Both needed for ECFMG certification |
| Clinical and communication skills | An ECFMG Pathway with a passing OET Medicine score |
| Credential verification | Final medical diploma verified and school listed in the World Directory with an ECFMG sponsor note |
| USMLE Step 3 | Applied knowledge for unsupervised practice |
How Much Do Doctors Earn After Courses Following MBBS?
In the United States the Bureau of Labor Statistics puts the median annual wage for physicians and surgeons at 275,930 dollars in May 2025, with employment projected to grow four per cent between 2025 and 2035. In India, PGMER 2023 requires stipends for post-graduate students to be paid at par across institutions.
Indian earnings after a post-graduate course vary widely by speciality, city and whether you work in the public or private sector, and no single official figure covers them. What the regulations do fix is the training stipend: the PGMER 2023 requires that students in degree, diploma and super speciality courses be paid a stipend at par with the stipend prescribed for the institution.
Treat any single average salary figure quoted for doctors in India with caution. The reliable planning inputs are the course duration, the entrance exam you must clear and the stipend rules, all of which are published by the National Medical Commission and NBEMS.