Since founded by Dr. Chong-Ming Du in 1954, Kaohsiung Medical University (KMU) has been engaged in researches on tropical medicine and control of parasitic infections. Former Dean, Dr. Hsien-Chen Hsieh, had been recruited as the WHO consultant for the prevention of parasitic diseases in 1961, which leads KMU becoming the research and teaching center of tropical medicine in Asia. With the epidemic outbreaks of tropical infections, such as dengue fever, Ebola virus, and Zika virus in many Countries, professional staffs of tropical medicine are urgently needed in recent years. Due to the lack of domestic talented people participated in academic researches and practical works on tropical diseases, Prof. Chien-Ming Shih from Graduate Institute of Medicine of KMU applied to the Ministry of Education for establishing the M. Sc. Program in Tropical Medicine in 2015. From 105 academic year (2016), M. Sc. Program in Tropical Medicine was founded under College of Medicine, attracting the attention from foreign medical-related professionals. Currently, M. Sc. Program in Tropical Medicine recruits 3-5 foreign and 2-3 domestic students engaged in the master’s study every year.

M. Sc. Program in Tropical Medicine is the first master's degree program of tropical medicine in Taiwan, which aims to cultivate professionals in clinical diagnosis, treatment, and prevention related to tropical diseases. M. Sc. Program in Tropical Medicine owns multidisciplinary professional professors organizing various professional & practical courses. Students can acquire professional knowledge and practical skills. After graduation, they can participate in domestic or international affairs regarding the health education, infection control, and quarantine service of infectious diseases. M. Sc. Program in Tropical Medicine recruits graduates with a Bachelor’s degree from medical, biomedical science, public health, nursing, medical technology, life sciences, and other related departments. Students of M. Sc. Program in Tropical Medicine will be awarded a Master of Science (M. Sc.) degree after graduation.

Educational Purposes and Research Fields

This program is specified for the knowledge and ability regarding research on Tropical Medicine, broadening students’ international perspective as well as enhancing their personal competitiveness, and is emphasized on:

• Tropical medicine & Medical parasitology
• Vector-borne infections & Medical entomology
• Clinical microbial infections & Travel medicine
• Tropical disease associated cancer & virology