Initial Results of a Doctorate in Medical Sciences Program at a Regional University

The number of doctoral programs in the biomedical field has risen in recent decades, but with a concentration in Santiago and little expansion into the provinces. The aim of this article is to describe the initial results obtained by the Doctorate in Medical Sciences program of the Universidad de La Frontera, Chile. Observational study, conducted in the Department of Surgery at the Universidad de La Frontera, Chile. All cohorts in the program from 2008 to 2015 were included. The outcome variables were: Graduation rate and scientific productivity of the graduates (WoS and SciELO publications). Other variables of interest were: academic faculty productivity (WoS and SciELO publications), and characteristics of students who entered the program (age, sex, origin, profession, previous graduate training and number of years of formal university education). Descriptive statistics were applied. During the evaluation period, of a total of 17 qualified, 8 doctorates have been granted (1.6 per year), a graduation rate of 47.1 %. The research productivity for 2010-2015 was 14.1 publications per graduate (8.4 WoS and 5.7 SciELO) and 43.8 publications per academic (41.2 WoS and 2.6 SciELO). In the period, 55 professionals applied and 27 were accepted (49.1 % rate acceptance). Initial results of the Doctorate in Medical Sciences program of the Universidad de La Frontera, Chile are presented.