Built up in 1951, Basic Medical Sciences (BMS) was qualified as one of the first disciplines nationwide providing academic master programs in 1981 and doctoral programs in 1983, the center for post-doctoral studies in 1998, and one of the earliest doctoral degree authorized disciplines in 2000. Its major academic fields are featured as follows: 1) clinic anatomy and biological repair and regeneration of human tissues and organs, 2) pathology and pathophysiological mechanism of serious diseases, 3) translational research in pathogeny biology and etiological basics of infectious diseases, 4) medico-genetics and heredopathia diagnosis and individual identification, and 5) translational research in medical neurobiology and mental diseases. Its academic harvests are highlighted by such national institutions as Cultivation Base for Outstanding Students in Basic Medicine, two key subjects, seven scientific research platforms, and three teaching demonstration centers.

As a national key discipline from 2007 on, ISTCM-WM has been qualified as the key discipline under National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, national key characteristic discipline, provincial pioneering key discipline, “Project 211” key discipline, and provincial key discipline for constructing high-level universities. It covers six key subjects under National Administration of Chinese Medicine, four key priority specialities, and one Clinical Center for Sub-health Treatment and Anti-deterioration of Diseases. And its five major research fields involve researches in TCM-WM basic and symptomatology, rheumatic osteopathia, nephropathy, cardio-cerebral diseases, and modernization and concinnation of TCM pharmacology and prescription, complete with a state key laboratory and a state center for clinical medicine researches.

The researchers in this discipline have developed some celebrated medications, including San Jiu Wei Tai (for treatment of chronic stomach disease), Zheng Tian Wan (for treatment of chronic headache), Niao Du Qing (for treatment of chronic nephrosis), and Wu Ji Xian syrup series. All of these have served as the principal products of dozens of listed enterprises, such as 999 Group, Consun Pharmaceutical Group, and Lee Kum Kee Healthy Products Group (LKKHPG), whose accumulative output value is more than 100 billion RMB. The development of ISTCM-WM has been rooted in its TCM-WM Integrated Hospital.

Started in 1941, Clinical Medicine was among the first authorized disciplines nationwide providing master programs in 1981 and began to supply doctoral programs in 1986. It became a doctoral degree authorized discipline in 2005. Currently it is listed among the 1‰ of Essential Science Indicators (ESI). It has one state research center for clinical medical science, one state key laboratory, two state key subjects, twenty-one national key specialties, two state medical centers (regional branch), one national demonstration base for higher education of clinical medicine and resident training, and one outstanding-investigators absorption base for disciplinary innovations of higher institutions. It is featured by one innovation group with projects funded by National Natural Science Foundation, one key-fields-aimed innovation team of investigators supported by Ministry of Science and Technology, and three full-time and five part-time fellows at Chinese Academy of Engineering or Chinese Academy of Sciences.

It earns a high reputation in the Chinese mainland, for its prominent and cutting-edge specialties, especially nephrology, orthopaedics, infectious diseases, gastroenterology, hematopathy, and health management. Meanwhile, its academic resources have been ensuring a systematic and creative cultivation and training of clinical professionals academic researchers equipped with both the integration of scientific spirit and humanist concerns, and the balance of theoretical exploration and clinical proficiency.

With its advent to Southern Medical University in 1986, Biomedical Engineering began to provide master programs in 1994 and Tier One doctoral program in 2004, and has developed its research base for post-doctoral studies. Presently it has Engineering Research Center for Digital Diagnosis Equipment under the Ministry of Education, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Medical Imaging, and Guangdong Research Center for Engineering and Technology of Big-Data-Based Medical Imaging. With the industrial advantages of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), this discipline has been practicing the idea of “strengthening the researches of engineering and technology, catering to medical needs, and involving in manufacture and production of medical facilities”, and developed a subject layout for development, striking a balance between the principal subject “Medical Imaging and Analyzing” and the synergetic subjects including “Artificial Intelligence in Medicine”, “Tumor Radiophysics”, and “Biological Materials”.

Pharmacy at SMU has offered the first batch of national master’s degree programs since 1981 and had the doctoral programs in 1998. By July 2021, Pharmacology and Toxicology at SMU has been listed in the top 0.19% of Essential Science Indicators (ESI), and Chemistry ranks in the top 0.8% of ESI. In 2019, Pharmacy was authorized as one of the first batch of the national first-class construction disciplines and qualified by the Ministry of Education according to the new approval standards. In 2020, Clinical Pharmacy was accredited as the national first-class construction discipline. The discipline has five research fields as follows: 1) pharmacology of anti-inflammatory-immunity and nervous system, 2) natural/synthetic pharmaceutical chemistry, 3) traditional/modern pharmaceutics, 4) pharmaceutical analysis and chemical biology, and 5) clinical pharmacy. The discipline is supported by the National Demonstration Base of Pharmacy Graduate Education and the Key Laboratory for Research and Evaluation of Drug Metabolism of the National Medical Products Administration.

Founded in 1951, the discipline Public Health and Preventative Medicine began to provide master programs in 1981. It became a doctoral degree authorized discipline in 2005, and was qualified to provide post-doctoral studies platform in 2006. Equipped with six national demonstration bases for higher medical education and standardized resident training, PHPM has been committed to 5 academic fields as follows: 1) epidemiology and the appliance of healthcare big data, 2) methods and appliance of biostatistics, 3) interactions between environment, career and health, 4) health and food safety and nutrition, and 5) prevention and control of emerging and reemerging infectious diseases.