Unani Medicine and Surgery in Sri Lanka: Careers, Curriculum & Future Outlook

📘 Overview

Unani Medicine and Surgery (B.U.M.S.) is a full professional medical degree in the Unani system — a traditional Greco-Arabic system of medicine with centuries of practice. Offered by the Institute of Indigenous Medicine under the University of Colombo, it trains qualified Unani physicians who diagnose and treat patients using natural medicines and time-honoured principles. It suits dedicated, caring students drawn to holistic and traditional healthcare.

It earns a future-proof score of 7.0 because it is a recognised professional medical qualification with defined careers in the government Unani service, hospitals and private practice, and the clinical, patient-centred care it provides is highly resistant to automation, though it serves a specialised traditional-medicine sector.

📚 What You'll Study

The programme covers the Unani medical sciences with clinical training.

• Principles and history of Unani medicine
• Anatomy and physiology
• Unani pharmacology and pharmacy
• Pathology and diagnosis (including pulse diagnosis)
• Unani clinical medicine
• Surgery, gynaecology and obstetrics
• Regimental therapy and special treatments
• Clinical training and a final-year internship

⏳ Duration

This is a six-year degree — five academic years plus a one-year final internship — leading to registration as a Unani medical practitioner.

✅ Entry Requirements

This is a Biological Science stream degree. To be eligible you must obtain at least three Simple (S) passes in Chemistry, Physics and Biology at the G.C.E. (Advanced Level) Examination.

• Chemistry — minimum grade S
• Physics — minimum grade S
• Biology — minimum grade S

Final selection also depends on your Z-score, which varies by university and district every year — check your eligibility with the free tool on findmydegree.lk.

🏛️ Where It's Offered

• Institute of Indigenous Medicine, University of Colombo — 89 seats

ℹ️ Entry requirements, seats and universities are sourced from official UGC data (2024/2025 A/L). Career and curriculum details are general guidance — confirm specifics with each university.