These applicants must complete the number of years designated for the preparatory course. However, students who do not hold an undergraduate program in those fields but still wish to pursue the program are required to take a preparatory medical course by the Board of Medical Education before they can proceed to the M.D. Students who wish to pursue the Doctor of Medicine program should have a pre-medicine undergraduate degree. After each clinical duty, students undergo periodic evaluations to assess their performance. Students are rotated in various hospital departments, spending up to two months in each department in the fields of internal medicine, surgery, obstetrics and gynecology and pediatrics, and several weeks in other specialties under the supervision of a faculty. In the third and fourth years, students begin to meet patients in an actual hospital setting. The first two years of the Doctor of Medicine program are spent in class lectures delivered through computers using LCD projectors complemented by slide/ film showings, laboratory work, and group discussions. The final year of the Doctor of Medicine program is spent on hospital duty. The pathophysiology, clinical features, diagnostic approaches and the management of these diseases are also given emphasis. During the third year of studying Medicine, students are taught subjects that deal with common diseases encountered in clinical practice, as well as interesting or rare conditions. The second year is spent studying fundamental concepts in Pathology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Pharmacology, Medicine and Surgery, Psychiatry II and Medical Economics. In the first year, the subjects integrated in the curriculum are mainly composed of basic sciences such as Human Anatomy and Physiology, Biochemistry, Preventive Medicine, Community Health, Psychiatry and Medical Practice I. The program consists of three years of academic instruction, one year of clinical clerkship and one year of post-graduate internship. The Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) degree is a five-year graduate program intended to teach students the essentials of being a Medical Doctor.