Applying for a unibz study programme as a non-EU citizen is not difficult. You only need to follow the instructions on this page and you will be able to start or continue your studies at unibz. If you are a citizen of an EEA-country or Switzerland, please check the specific page.
Non-EU citizens living abroad can only apply during the Early Bird Application (usually from March to April). Non-EU citizens living in Italy should check the specific page.
In order to gain admission to any unibz study programme, languages are the first requirement you need to fulfil. Check the specific language requirements on the programmes’ pages and upload a recognised language certificate or enrol in a language exam at unibz.
You need to have a qualification that is equivalent to the Italian secondary school diploma and that has been or will be obtained at the end of at least 12 years of secondary education.
If the length of your secondary education cycle is less than 12 years, then the regulations set by the Italian Ministry of University and Research apply. If in your home country an aptitude test is required to gain access to higher education, you will need to include the results of that test when applying to our University. For some qualifications (e.g. US and Brazilian qualifications), the Italian Ministry of University and Research has set specific admission criteria.
Based on if the country that issued your qualification is a signatory of the Lisbon Convention or not, you will either have to provide a Statement of Correspondence which you can download free-of-charge from the ARDI (Automatic Recognition Database - Italy), or have to provide a Statement of Comparability and a Statement of Verification issued by the Italian Information Centre on Academic Mobility and Equivalence (CIMEA) to prove that your qualification gives you access to the Italian higher education system.
Get in touch with unibz’s Advisory Service if you have any question.
You can check which qualifications are required for admission in the page of the master programme in which you are interested. If your home university issues Diploma Supplements, you can apply with one.
If you don't have a Diploma Supplement, based on if the country that issued your qualification is a signatory of the Lisbon Convention or not, you will either have to provide a Statement of Correspondence which you can download free-of-charge from the ARDI (Automatic Recognition Database - Italy), or have to provide a Statement of Comparability and a Statement of Verification issued by the Italian Information Centre on Academic Mobility and Equivalence (CIMEA) to prove that your qualification gives you access to the Italian higher education system.
After you gain admission, you will receive information on how to apply for a study visa to Italy on Universitaly via email. Please note that the admission to unibz does not confer automatically any right to obtaining a visa, bearing in mind that this fulfilment is the exclusive responsibility of the individual diplomatic-consular Italian representation abroad. At the same time, obtaining a study visa issued by the competent diplomatic-consular representation does not automatically confer any right to enrolment at unibz.
Tuition fees for studying at unibz amount to ca. € 1360 per year (to be paid in two instalments). Non-EU citizens residing abroad cannot immediately apply for scholarships of the Autonomous Province of Bozen-Bolzano. You will be able to apply only after one year of regular registered residence in South Tyrol.
You can also search for more information about other scholarships funded by the Italian government specifically for foreign students.
Please make sure you arrange for your accommodation well in advance in the campus city where you are going to be based (Bozen-Bolzano, Brixen-Bressanone or Bruneck-Brunico).
Living costs in South Tyrol are comparable to those of many other cities in central Europe. Approximately, if you exclude tuition fees, you will need at least € 800 per month for living (accommodation, food, study materials, leisure, clothing) in the Bozen-Bolzano area. You should also account for health insurance and visa expenses. Overall, a bachelor programme will cost around € 36,000, while a master programme will cost € 24,000.
By law, you will have to apply for a residence permit within 8 working days since your arrival in Italy. As soon as you arrive, please go to the Student Support, where you will be provided with all the information you need. Please read all the information on how to organise your life in South Tyrol carefully.
With a residence permit for study purposes, you will be able to work part-time for no more than 20 hours a week and no more than 1,040 hours per year. Once you have completed your studies, if you have been offered a job, you can have your study purposes residence permit converted into a work permit. By proving that you meet the criteria set by the government for your type of job, you will earn a score, according to the law that regulates work immigration quotas.