Xi'an Jiaotong University

Xi'an Jiaotong University (XJTU) was established in 1896, and its own materials describe a history of more than 128 years. It is a large, comprehensive university covering science, engineering, medicine, economics and management, and it hosts a sizeable international community, with its published figures citing students from well over a hundred countries and regions. Its medical school, the Health Science Center, sits in the southern part of Xi'an, close to well-known landmarks such as the Big Wild Goose Pagoda and the Shaanxi History Museum, in the city's academic and cultural district.

What matters most for MBBS applicants is the university's record with international medical students. According to XJTU's own admission material, it began teaching MBBS fully in English in 1995 and describes itself as the first university in China to develop an English-medium MBBS programme for international students. It added an English-medium master's programme in medicine in 2000, and in 2005 it took the lead in drafting interim provisions on quality-control standards for English-taught undergraduate medical education for international students in China. Its published figures at the time spoke of more than 2,000 international medical students from 63 countries, which is an older number but gives a sense of the programme's longevity.

The MBBS is a six-year, English-taught programme leading to the degree of Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery. XJTU publishes tuition for the programme at 40,000 RMB, which matches the figure on our 2026 fee sheet, and the final year is a clinical internship. For families who want a programme with a long track record rather than a recent launch, that history is the main attraction.

A note on how to use this page. Every fee below comes from our fee sheet for China, 2026 September intake. Statements about the university come from XJTU's published material, and we flag where figures are dated. This page cannot guarantee admission or promise a particular exam result. It lays out the structure, the real costs and the process so that your decision is made with open eyes.

Requirements published by the university

XJTU's published admission information for its English-taught MBBS has asked applicants to be aged between 18 and 25 and in good health, and to provide an English proficiency certificate. Applicants who are native English speakers, or who studied at an English-taught high school, may be exempt from the English test, and applicants under 18 have been asked for a guardian authorisation. Documents not in Chinese or English need a notarised translation. These details can change between intakes, so please treat them as a guide and let your counsellor confirm the current rules.

The selection stage

XJTU's general undergraduate admission page says places go to the best applicants on materials, scores, language skills, the International Student Entrance Exam and a comprehensive interview. Third-party websites disagree about whether MBBS applicants sit a separate entrance exam, so we do not rely on them. We confirm directly what applies to the MBBS for your intake and prepare you for it, whether that is an online assessment, an interview, or both.

NEET is still required for Indian students

Separate from what any Chinese university asks, Indian students who plan to practise in India after a foreign MBBS must hold a qualifying NEET UG score. This is a rule of India's National Medical Commission, and it applies no matter which country you choose. If you are still deciding between India and abroad, our NEET UG guide explains how the same score keeps both doors open.

The CSCA test — now mandatory

Our 2026 fee sheet carries a prominent reminder that the CSCA test is mandatory. The China Scholastic Competency Assessment is a standardised test organised by the China Scholarship Council for international students planning undergraduate study in China, and official notices make it a requirement for undergraduate applicants from the 2026/27 academic year. Its subjects are Professional Chinese, Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry. Applicants to medicine-related majors are generally expected to take Mathematics plus Chemistry or Physics, with the exact combination set by each university, and English-taught programmes are generally exempt from the Professional Chinese paper. From 2026 the test is offered five times a year, and registration is through the official website, www.csca.cn. Check XJTU's brochure for its required subjects before you register.

Our 2026 fee sheet lists 44 universities in China, with tuition ranging from 21,000 RMB at the lowest to 60,000 RMB at the highest and a median of 35,000 RMB. XJTU's 40,000 RMB puts it in the upper part of the range: 31 universities list lower tuition, four (including XJTU) are level at this figure, and only nine list higher. Its hostel charge of 8,700 RMB is also on the high side. Among universities with a single listed hostel figure, only four list more, at between 10,000 and 11,000 RMB.

The honest reading is that XJTU is one of the more expensive options on the sheet, and families should weigh that against what they are buying: a university that has taught international MBBS students in English since 1995 and has an established place in the field. For some families that history justifies the premium; for others, the same money is better spent on a mid-range university in a different city. Neither answer is wrong, but the decision should be made on the numbers rather than on reputation alone.

Every university on the sheet carries the same 15,000 RMB management or service charge, so the real differences come down to tuition and hostel. A practical habit that saves families a great deal of confusion is to ask every university or agent for the same four things in writing: the tuition figure and its billing period, the hostel figure and its billing period, exactly what the service charge covers, and the list of extras. When those four answers are on paper, comparing options becomes simple.

For planning, think of the cost in three layers: what you pay the university (tuition and hostel), what covers admission and visa services (the management or service charge), and the small recurring and one-off extras (insurance, residence permit, medical examination, books). Keeping those layers separate makes it much easier to compare XJTU with any other university, in China or elsewhere, on equal terms.

Recognition is the first question every family should ask about any university abroad. We check a university's current standing against the National Medical Commission's records before recommending it, and we encourage every family to reconfirm this independently before paying any fee, because eligibility lists and rules are reviewed periodically. The NMC also sets conditions on how a foreign medical course must be structured, including its duration, medium of instruction and internship, and we review these against the university's published programme.

After the six-year programme, returning graduates prepare for India's licensing examination — currently the Foreign Medical Graduate Examination (FMGE), which is being phased into the National Exit Test (NExT). Passing it is what allows registration with the medical council and the right to practise in India. We guide returning students towards preparation resources, so the transition home is as organised as the departure abroad.

Graduates who wish to specialise can do so within China, in a third country, or by returning to India and competing through NEET PG once they hold valid registration. It helps to keep three ideas separate: recognition (whether the degree is acceptable to regulators), licensing (the exam that permits you to practise) and career planning (the kind of doctor you want to become). Most confusion about whether a foreign degree is valid comes from blending these together.