Postgraduate Studies

Improvement of the professional qualification of residents, doctoral studies and healthcare are the main areas of postgraduate studies of the Faculty of Medicine of Vilnius University.

Residency studies

Persons who have completed the relevant residency studies may work according to their profession both in the public and private sectors, or seek higher professional qualifications. The Faculty of Medicine of Vilnius University has 59 residency training programmes with 774 residents at more than 40 approved residency bases. The duration of residency training, depending on the programme, is 3 to 6 years. Residents have the possibility to benefit from the resident mobility funds and participate in the ERASMUS programme.
The Faculty of Medicine also offers doctoral studies in medical and public health sciences.

Doctoral studies

Every year, about 20 doctoral students enrol the medical doctoral studies. The overall number of doctoral students of the medical field has increased from 33 (2002) to 90 (2011). Each year, about two doctoral candidates join the public health doctoral studies. The total number of public health postgraduate students every year is about 11 (2011).
Doctoral students at the Faculty of Medicine are very successful in preparing and defending dissertations in various biomedical fields: in 2002–2010, the result of doctoral studies in the medical field was 93.4% and in public health 87.5%.

Professional qualification development of health care specialists

The Faculty of Medicine offers qualification refresher courses for health care professionals, about 325 different refresher and training courses every year.
It also has traineeships, among them the individual training of professional qualification, aimed at updating (for instance, with terminated license validity) and deepening practical skills in and knowledge of the acquired qualifications. The traineeship lasts at least five workdays and is managed by the supervisor.
The University offers an introductory course necessary for engagement in narrow areas of medical practice. Their graduates are issued a certificate of the introductory course of a narrow area.
Departments and clinics of the Faculty of Medicine of Vilnius University organise a variety of seminars, scientific and practical conferences. They are also constituents of the ongoing training of health care professionals.