Kaohsiung Medical University (originally known as Kaohsiung Medical College) was formally established in 1954. Apart from being the first private medical university in Taiwan, the university has also become an important cradle for highly-skilled physicians and medical-related specialists. Kaohsiung Medical University was a center of both medical care and the study of local tropical medicine in the early days. The college set aside its tropical disease research mission after the World Health Organization announced that was no longer a tropical disease endemic area, and turned its full attention to the steadily evolving areas of basic medical science and clinical medical research. The university has also continued to strengthen its medical services. Kaohsiung Medical University therefore has laid a solid foundation as southern Taiwan’s leading medical institution.Kaohsiung Medical University has all the strengths of a well-established university. There is a wide range of medical related courses, and the facilities both for basic and clinical research are sufficient and of a good quality. The university is located in the city center of Kaohsiung, the second biggest city in Taiwan, which has all the attractions and excitement of city life.Kaohsiung Medical College received permission from the Ministry of Education to change its name to “Kaohsiung Medical University “in August 1999. The university consists of six colleges:the College of Medicinethe College of Dentistrythe College of Pharmacythe College of Nursingthe College of Health Sciencethe College of Life Sciences