After BHMS: Courses, Career Paths & Starting a Practice

In short: After the BHMS you can take the three-year MD (Homoeopathy), apply for medical officer posts through the UPSC, a state public service commission or a college hospital, start in research as a Junior Research Fellow at the Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy (CCRH), or open your own clinic. Teaching comes after the MD and the National Teachers' Eligibility Test, which the National Commission for Homoeopathy (NCH) conducts. Every route starts with registration.

This guide is for BHMS interns and graduates. Every rule, pay figure and qualification in it comes from an official source named and dated in the text: an NCH regulation, a CCRH, UPSC or state public service commission notice, or a ministry publication (all checked on 11 October 2026). Notices change from year to year, so read the current advertisement before you apply.

Opening your own clinic after BHMS? Start your case records with your first patients. Similia Free gives you eight classical repertories with AI semantic repertory search, 21 classic materia medica books to read and basic case management capped at 3 new cases and 3 analyses a month. It runs in the browser in English, Hindi or Bengali, with no download and no credit card. Open Similia Free →

What can you do after BHMS? Five routes at a glance

The Ministry of Ayush's Ayush in India 2024 lists 21,965 undergraduate seats in 273 homeopathy colleges against 2,036 postgraduate seats in 79 PG colleges as on 1 April 2024: roughly one postgraduate seat for every eleven undergraduate seats, so plan a second route alongside the entrance test. If you go into private practice, you join 3,44,443 registered homeopathy practitioners (as on 1 January 2024; ayush.gov.in, 11 October 2026).

First step after BHMS: registration (and the Exit Test question)

Registration comes before every route: with your State Medical Council or Board for Homoeopathy or, where it applies, the NCH's Board of Ethics and Registration for Homoeopathy. The MD regulations admit only a candidate who has "registered himself with the State Board or Council", and the examination regulations require "valid registration as medical practitioner" at the time of postgraduate admission. The code of ethics asks each applicant for a declaration and oath at the time of registration.

What the regulations say about the National Exit Test

The NCH (National Examinations in Homoeopathy) Regulations, 2023, notified on 22 November 2023, provide that "The National Exit Test shall be held for granting license to practice as medical practitioner of Homoeopathy and for enrollment in the State Register or National Register" (reg 13(2)). Interns who have completed at least 270 days of internship, and graduates who have completed it, are eligible to sit it. There is no limit on attempts, and 50% qualifies. Two groups are exempt: anyone already registered, and anyone who completed the internship before the regulations were notified. In the regulation's words, "Practitioners who have already been registered or have completed internship before the notification of this regulation need not to appear for the National Exit Test" (reg 13(7)).

No Exit Test sitting was listed when this guide was checked: on 11 October 2026 the NCH's examinations page (nch.org.in/exam) showed NEET (UG), the National Teachers' Eligibility Test and the All India AYUSH Post-Graduate Entrance Test (AIAPGET) only. Ask your State Board what it currently requires before you apply for registration.

Planning to practise outside India? Training and registration in the US, UK, Canada and Australia follow their own routes, set out in how to become a homeopath.

Courses after BHMS: the MD (Homoeopathy)

This guide covers the MD (Homoeopathy), the postgraduate degree set by the NCH's MD regulations, dated 18 March 2024 and amended on 14 February 2025 (nch.org.in, 11 October 2026). If you are weighing a course outside homeopathy, such as public health or hospital management, check that course's own eligibility rules for BHMS graduates before you apply.

The nine MD subjects

Regulation 6(1) lists nine subjects of specialisation:

• Homoeopathic Materia Medica
• Organon of Medicine and Homoeopathic Philosophy
• Homoeopathic Repertory and Case Taking
• Homoeopathic Pharmacy
• Practice of Medicine
• Pediatrics
• Psychiatry
• Community Medicine
• Dermatology

The 2025 amendment changed staffing and supervision rules, not this list. Choose with the end in view. In Materia Medica, Organon of Medicine, Pharmacy, Repertory and Practice of Medicine, an Assistant Professor needs a postgraduate degree in homoeopathy "in the subject concerned" (NCH MES Regulations), so your MD subject decides which of those departments you can teach in. The title matters in practice too: the code of ethics counts as misconduct a practitioner who "claims to be a specialist without possessing a special qualification listed by the Commission in the branch concerned" (reg 36(q)).

How the course runs

The course is full time and lasts three years, in two parts of eighteen months, and must be finished within six years of admission. During the one-year house job you are resident on campus. You work as a junior resident in Part I and a senior resident in Part II, take part in teaching undergraduates and interns, and write a dissertation of 50 to 200 pages whose synopsis is registered with the Clinical Trials Registry of India.

How admission works

Admission is through one national entrance examination, the All India AYUSH Post-Graduate Entrance Test. You need the BHMS with its internship, registration with a State Board or Council, and a score at or above the 50th percentile. The threshold is the 40th percentile for SC, ST and OBC candidates, and for candidates with a disability the 45th (General category) or 40th (SC, ST and OBC). Seats are then allotted through counselling: the authority designated by the Central Government counsels for the all-India quota and for central institutions, and each state or union territory for its own quota.

Becoming a homeopathy medical officer

Who recruits

The Union Public Service Commission recruits Medical Officer/Research Officer (Homoeopathy) posts in the Ministry of Ayush by "Direct Recruitment by selection". Its indicative advertisement No. 06/2026, published on 13 June 2026 and circulated on nih.ayush.gov.in on 19 June 2026, gave the pay as Level 10 of the 7th Pay Commission matrix plus non-practising allowance (NPA), and the upper age limit as 35 for UR, 38 for OBC and 40 for SC/ST candidates.

State public service commissions recruit for state departments. UPPSC's site lists notices for Homoeopathic Medical Officer posts in Uttar Pradesh's Directorate of Homoeopathy and for Chikitsa Adhikari (Homoeopathic) in the state's Labour Department, under Advt. No. D-6/E-1/2025 (uppsc.up.nic.in, 11 October 2026). Kerala PSC recruits Medical Officer (Homoeo) for its Homoeopathy Department (Category No. 513/2022).

College hospitals must meet the NCH's Minimum Essential Standards (MES) Regulations, dated 11 March 2024, which set the qualification for each post. A hospital Medical Officer needs a recognised degree in homoeopathy and at least one year as a house physician in a recognised homoeopathic hospital. A Residential Medical Officer needs the degree plus at least two years as a house physician after regular registration with a State Board.

Eligibility: BHMS or MD?

It depends on the post. Kerala PSC asked for a degree in homoeopathy, "Successful completion of House Surgency/Internship" and 'A' class registration with the state council. College hospitals want a year as a house physician first. The UPSC indicative advertisement prints no qualifications at all, so read the qualifications in the detailed advertisement on upsc.gov.in before you apply.

How selection works

For UPSC posts you apply online. Before you do, read the detailed advertisement and the Commission's instructions to candidates for recruitment by selection, both on upsc.gov.in: the indicative advertisement says the detailed version prevails wherever the two differ. Kerala PSC's notification provides for a written, OMR or online test where one is held as part of the selection, and the ranked list it publishes stays in force for at least one year and at most three (Category No. 513/2022).

Research after BHMS: CCRH fellowships and research officer posts

The CCRH is an autonomous body under the Ministry of Ayush (Advt 179/2025-26) and works through a network of 33 institutes and units across India. Its research areas include clinical research, drug standardisation, drug proving and clinical verification (ccrhindia.ayush.gov.in, 11 October 2026). The Junior Research Fellow post is the clearest research route open straight after the BHMS.

• Junior Research Fellow (Homoeo), on contract. The notice asked for a "Degree in Homoeopathy from a recognized University/Institute", plus enrolment on the Central Register or a State Board; NET, GATE or RET qualified candidates are preferred; age not over 35. Pay was ₹37,000 a month consolidated plus HRA, initially for six months and likely to be extended, with selection by test or walk-in interview (CCRH Advt 139/2024-25, 24 March 2025).
• Senior Research Fellow (Homoeopathy), on contract. A postgraduate degree in homoeopathy plus registration, or the degree plus registration plus three years' research experience. Pay was ₹42,000 a month consolidated plus HRA; age not over 35 (UR and OBC) or 40 (SC and ST); selection by walk-in interview (Clinical Research Unit for Homoeopathy, Ranchi, CCRH, notice of 24 September 2026).
• Research Officer (Homoeopathy). Group A, Level 10 plus NPA, MD essential. The CCRH's advertisement of 4 November 2025 (Advt 179/2025-26) set out its method: "Selection for all Group "A" posts will be through online Computer Based Test (CBT) followed by an Interview." Questions were in Hindi and English, each wrong answer cost 0.25 marks, and candidates were shortlisted for interview at 1:5 for one vacancy, 1:4 for two and 1:3 for three or more. The test covered all subjects of the BHMS and MD, plus research methodology, biostatistics and bioethics. CCRH later cancelled the examination process of that advertisement "due to administrative reasons", by notice dated 24 June 2026, so it is cited here for its terms, not as an open vacancy.

CCRH's vacancies page lists recurring contractual SRF and JRF (Homoeo) engagements in many locations, so watch it rather than wait for a fixed season (ccrhindia.ayush.gov.in, 11 October 2026).

Teaching in a homeopathy college

An Assistant Professor in Homoeopathic Materia Medica, Organon of Medicine, Homoeopathic Pharmacy, Repertory or Practice of Medicine needs a "Recognised post-graduate degree in Homoeopathy in the subject concerned" plus a pass in the National Teachers' Eligibility Test conducted by the Commission. Preference goes to candidates with experience as a resident medical officer or house physician in a homoeopathic hospital (NCH MES Regulations, 11 March 2024).

The same regulations set minimum pay for teachers in every type of institution, government or self-financing: Assistant Professor at Level 10 (₹56,100–1,77,500), Associate Professor at Level 12 (₹78,800–2,09,200), Professor at Level 13 (₹1,23,100–2,15,900) and Principal at Level 13A (₹1,31,100–2,16,600).

Can you run a clinic beside a college job? Not if you are paid NPA: the MES regulations bar teachers and non-teaching medical officers who are paid non-practising allowance from clinical practice outside college hours. Check your appointment letter before you open a clinic.

BHMS salary: pay in official notices

This section lists only pay printed in official notices, so it does not estimate private-practice income.

Contract posts pay a consolidated monthly amount. The pay-scale rows show the basic-pay range of the scale, with allowances added as each notice sets out; the Level 10 range is the one printed in the MES regulations and CCRH Advt 179/2025-26.

Starting your own practice after BHMS

Registering the clinic itself

The clinic may need a registration of its own. The Ministry of Health's FAQ on the Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Act, 2010 says the Act covers clinics in every recognised system of medicine, homeopathy included, down to a single doctor; where the Act applies, the owner registers the clinic with the District Registering Authority. The same FAQ lists the states and union territories where the Act is in force or has been adopted (clinicalestablishments.mohfw.gov.in, 11 October 2026), so check your state's position before you open.

What the NCH code of ethics asks of a new clinic

The NCH's code of ethics regulations, notified on 13 December 2022, set the ground rules:

• Registration number. Display your registration number in the clinic and on every prescription (reg 7(2)). Failing to display it in the clinic is misconduct (reg 36(b)).
• Prescriptions and certificates. Give the prescription within 72 hours when a patient asks for it, and keep a copy of every medical certificate for at least three years (reg 7(1)). A practitioner with a recognised qualification may use "Dr." as a prefix (reg 7(3)).
• Records. A practitioner "shall maintain patients record as per Good Clinical Practice guidelines for Homoeopathic practitioners published by the Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy" (reg 38(d)), and one who "fails to maintain the records of prescription and certificates issued by him or her" commits misconduct (reg 36(c)).
• Advertising. Soliciting patients through newspapers, placards, circular cards or handbills is unethical (reg 8(1)). Formal announcements are allowed for "the starting of practice", a change of address, temporary absence, resumption of practice, succeeding to another's practice and registration on an Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission-enabled platform (reg 8(2)); being listed on such a platform is not solicitation (reg 8(5)). Misconduct includes a signboard in a chemist's shop or where you do not reside or work, touts, advertising facilities not offered, the doctor's name or photograph in an advertisement, and a fee scale exhibited in public rather than in the consulting or waiting room (reg 36(k), (o), (p), (r), (s)).
• Telemedicine and dispensing. Telemedicine consultations are allowed under the Telemedicine Practice Guidelines issued by the central or state government (reg 28). And "A practitioner of Homoeopathy has a right to prepare and dispense his own prescription" (reg 35).

Case records from the first patient

From the first patient, keep the totality you took, the rubrics you chose, the prescription with your registration number on it, a copy of every certificate for three years, and the response at each follow-up. The code requires the records, and the follow-up decision depends on them. The case-taking guide shows what a full case record contains, and what a homeopathic patient record has to hold explains why the record is organised around the totality. Similia keeps a record built around the consultation: case, repertorisation, prescription and follow-up, with each follow-up read against the original totality.

Choosing a repertory

Start with the repertory you were taught on, and add others as cases demand: Kent for its 37 chapters ordered from Mind to Generals, Boger's Boenninghausen (BBCR) when a case turns on modalities and concomitants, and Boericke to check remedies for a named clinical condition. All three are among the eight classical repertories in Similia Free, which together hold 316,394 rubrics and come with AI semantic repertory search; Kent's Repertory is free with no time limit. Free also gives you 21 classic materia medica books to read and basic case management capped at 3 new cases and 3 analyses a month, with the interface in Hindi and Bengali as well as English. The free resources hub lists everything else that costs nothing.

Three new cases and three analyses a month is a starting allowance, enough for your first weeks or a part-time start, not for a busy clinic. When you take on more new patients than that, you need Pro. In India, Pro Base is ₹499 a month or ₹5,489 a year on an Indian-issued card, and eligible first-time subscribers get a 14-day Pro trial. Pro adds unlimited cases and analyses, materia medica search and the AI toolkit (Notes-to-Rubric, case analysis, live audio transcription and photo analysis), whose operations use credits. The Free vs Pro comparison sets out each edition, and homeopathy software prices in India puts the rupee prices beside the alternatives. Interns can start from the student page.

Which route fits you

• You want to teach or practise as a specialist: the MD (Homoeopathy) in the subject you want, then the National Teachers' Eligibility Test for teaching.
• You want salaried clinical work straight after internship: state medical officer posts whose advertisement asks only for the degree, internship and registration, as Kerala PSC's did.
• You want research: start as a CCRH Junior Research Fellow, and move to Senior Research Fellow after three years' research experience or an MD.
• You are preparing for the MD entrance: a JRF contract or a small clinic of your own can run alongside; if you take a salaried post, check whether it pays NPA before you also practise.
• You are opening a clinic: register yourself and the clinic, set up records to the NCH code from the first patient, and start with a free repertory and case record.

Every route starts with registration, and every route that sees patients keeps a case record. When you are ready, start your case records free.