The First Faculty of Medicine of Charles University ( cz, 1. lékařská fakulta Univerzity Karlovy) is one of five medical faculties of Charles University,

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

, Czech Republic. Founded in 1348 at the same time as the university itself, it is the oldest medical faculty in Central Europe and the 11th oldest medical institution in the world. Situated in the centre of Prague, the faculty provides education in all fields of general medicine. It is regularly ranked in the top 1% of medical faculties globally (See ranking below). It is one of the five medical faculties of Charles University, alongside the Second and Third Faculties, both in Prague, and faculties in Plzen and

Hradec Kralove Hradec may refer to places: Czech Republic *Hradec (Havlíčkův Brod District), a municipality and village in the Vysočina Region *Hradec (Plzeň-South District), a municipality and village in the Plzeň Region *Hradec, a village and part of Mnic ...

. It has two student associations. One for the Czech parallel (SMC) and one for the English parallel (LF1 MEDSOC). The student associations have their offices in Faust House and are responsible for helping new students get used to the university life as well as organise all the parties and activities, including Freshers Week every September. The faculty has recently established a surgical society, which envisions the nurture of aspiring surgeons from all years by providing research opportunities, away clerkships and workshops.

History

Charles University was established in 1348 and a medieval faculty of medicine was one of the four founding faculties (with the

Faculty of Arts A faculty is a division within a university or college comprising one subject area or a group of related subject areas, possibly also delimited by level (e.g. undergraduate). In American usage such divisions are generally referred to as colleges ...

, Faculty of Law, and Faculty of Theology). In 1882, as part of the division of the university during the Austro-Hungarian Empire, a separate German faculty was founded. The two parallel faculties, one German and one Czech, remained until the foundation of the independent state of Czechoslovakia in 1918, when the German faculty was disbanded. In 1953 the former Faculty of Medicine in Prague was divided into three medical faculties: the Faculty of General Medicine, the Faculty of Pediatric Medicine, and the Faculty of Hygiene. Following the

Velvet Revolution The Velvet Revolution ( cs, Sametová revoluce) or Gentle Revolution ( sk, Nežná revolúcia) was a non-violent transition of power in what was then Czechoslovakia, occurring from 17 November to 28 November 1989. Popular demonstrations agains ...

, these three faculties evolved into the First, Second and Third Faculty of Medicine, respectively.

Admissions

Admission to the faculty is based on performance in high school (Biology, Chemistry and Physics), English proficiency and performance in entrance exams. Entrance examinations are conducted at the university and by some representative offices abroad, and are considered to be among the hardest university entrance exams in Europe. After the entrance exams, interviews are conducted with successful candidates. Most of the international students studying medicine at the institute originate from the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Norway, Sweden, Germany, Israel, Malaysia, India and the Middle East, and more.

Academics

Around 3400 students are enrolled in the First Faculty of Medicine. Most teaching facilities are located in the centre of Prague, near

Charles Square Charles Square ( cs, Karlovo náměstí) is a city square in the New Town of Prague, Czech Republic. At roughly 80,550 m² it is one of the largest squares in the world and was the largest town square of the medieval Europe. Founded in 1348 ...

, I. P. Pavlova and Albertov. The majority of clinical instruction takes place at the General University Hospital in Prague, and other teaching hospitals include the Military University Hospital in Prague, Thomayer Teaching Hospital, Bulovka Hospital and Motol University Hospital. The faculty runs bachelor's and

master's A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

degree programmes, and several

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

study programmes. The two main study programmes at the faculty are General Medicine and Dentistry, taught either in English or Czech. The Medicine program lasts for 6 years, and Dentistry for 5 years. The teaching staff consists of around 110 professors, 150 associate professors and around 700 assistant professors. Alongside preclinical and clinical teaching, the faculty is also an active research institution.

Ranking and reputation

The faculty is consistently ranked in the top 1% out of 17000 institutions in the world. It is currently ranked #1 in the Czech Republic and #133 in

clinical medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practice ...

in the world.https://www.usnews.com/education/best-global-universities/charles-university-in-prague-502397

Gallery

Děkanát 1.LF UK, socha Hygieiy.jpg, Statue of Hygieia in the hall of the main building Nemocnice U Apolinare.jpg, Clinic of Gynecology and Obstetrics Síň coriových.jpg, Hall of Carl Ferdinand Cori and

Gerty Cori Gerty Theresa Cori (; August 15, 1896 – October 26, 1957) was an Austro-Hungarian and American biochemist who in 1947 was the third woman to win a Nobel Prize in science, and the first woman to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Me ...

, Nobel Prize–winning scientists and Charles University alumni Síň Coriových deska.jpg, Commemorative plaque on Cori Hall, a memorial to

Carl Carl may refer to: *Carl, Georgia, city in USA *Carl, West Virginia, an unincorporated community * Carl (name), includes info about the name, variations of the name, and a list of people with the name *Carl², a TV series * "Carl", an episode of te ...

and

and to the Velvet Revolution Deska Franz Hofmeister.jpg, Commemorative plaque on the building where

Franz Hofmeister Franz Hofmeister (30 August 1850, in Prague – 26 July 1922, in Würzburg) was an early protein scientist, and is famous for his studies of salts that influence the solubility and conformational stability of proteins. In 1902, Hofmeister became t ...

conducted his scientific research Anatomický ústav 1.LF UK.jpg, Department of Anatomy Anatomický ústav 1.LF UK 2.jpg, Department of Anatomy Praha, Nové Město, fakultní nemocnice.jpg, General University Hospital in Prague

References