The extended curriculum programme for Dip studies provides alternative university access to students who have the potential to succeed, but do not meet the minimum admission requirements for the mainstream programme. The purpose of the programme is to integrate additional academic support and skills development with mainstream courses in order to prepare the student for successful completion of the relevant Diploma.

The purpose of Nelson Mandela University’s MBChB programme is to train caring, competent and committed medical doctors who will work as members of inter- professional teams, to practice comprehensive primary health care in holistic and culturally sensitive ways. The programme focuses on training students to provide preventive, promotive, therapeutic and rehabilitative health services and will develop medical doctors who are able and willing to serve and improve the health of individuals, families and communities in urban, peri-urban and rural areas of the Eastern Cape in particular, and South Africa as a whole. To be allowed to register as a doctor (medical practitioner), a student must obtain the MBChB degree, followed by a two-year internship, and one year of community service. It is essential that students who enter the programme are prepared for, and suited to, the training which aims to produce graduates who are primary health care-oriented practitioners. Closing date for applications: A date will be stipulated by which applications will close in the year prior to registration. Only a limited number of students are selected annually for the first year of study of the MBChB and meeting the minimum admission requirements does not guarantee a place. Selection guidelines that consider academic and non-academic merit are approved annually by the Medical Programme Selection Committee.

This programme prepares students for the professional field of diagnostic radiography which entails the production of x-ray images of the human body in order to diagnose disease. The theoretical and practical components of the course are covered concurrently. The practical component is undertaken at an accredited training hospital. Graduates are required by law to undertake one year of community service. This is a prerequisite for registration with the HPCSA as a radiographer.