59 future doctors graduated from the Perdana University-RCSI (PU-RCSI) School of Medicine at a conferring ceremony in Kuala Lumpur on 25 September, marking a unique milestone as the first graduating cohort from PU-RCSI. This is significant as it is the first year the College has awarded the same medical degree to graduates at our campuses in three different countries.

These 59 graduates join the 345 who received medical degrees from RCSI's campuses in Dublin and Bahrain, earlier this year, making a total of 404 future doctors who have graduated from RCSI in 2016.

Congratulating the graduates, Professor Cathal Kelly, Chief Executive/Registrar, RCSI, said, "All of today's 59 graduates of Perdana University should be very proud of their endeavours over the past five years. They are members of a trailblazing group - the first class of graduating doctors from PU-RCSI and they will now continue on their various career paths, equipped with all the necessary knowledge, skills and patient-centred attitudes required for a fulfilling and successful career in this noble profession."

The event took place in the Grand Putrajaya Ballroom at the Putrajaya Marriot Hotel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and this momentous occasion underlines RCSI's long-standing educational involvement with Malaysia, where more than 800 RCSI Alumni are based. The College's links to Malaysia also includes Penang Medical College (PMC) that has been jointly run by RCSI since its establishment in 1996 and which brings PMC students to study in Dublin for the first two and a half years of the programme. The 59 graduates were conferred with Honours Degree of Bachelor of Medicine, NUI, Bachelor of Surgery, Bachelor of Obstetrics MB, BCh, BAO (NUI, RCSI), LRCP and SI.

Commenting on the success of the PU-RCSI medical programme Professor Kelly continued, "PU-RCSI is a major global Irish success story in higher education and this is down to the dedication and hard work of our excellent staff on the ground in Malaysia and in Ireland. There is highly coordinated effort by staff across three time-zones to deliver the same curriculum and simultaneously-timed examinations to ensure the highest standards and consistency in three geographical locations. This common medical degree truly demonstrates RCSI's contribution to delivering excellence in education worldwide."

The first intake of medical students to PU-RCSI commenced their studies in September 2011, which saw RCSI licence its curriculum and provide a range of supporting professional services, to assist the undergraduate programme in achieving the necessary accreditation to provide medical degrees.

2016 marks the first year that RCSI has granted the same medical degree to graduates at our campuses in three countries, demonstrating our commitment to excellence in healthcare education worldwide, connecting our colleges in Ireland, Bahrain and Malaysia and our network of Alumni across the globe.