Enrol in a post-graduate course

In the year prior to his/her arrival in Italy, the student coming from a Non-EU country must contact the Italian Diplomatic Authority located in the country where he/she obtained his/her Secondary school-leaving diploma. Each Embassy or Consulate shall provide information regarding the important deadlines that foreign students wishing to study in Italy have to meet, especially the pre-enrolment process deadline. The student should also consult the calendar released by the Italian Ministry of Education, therefore he/she is required to select an Italian degree course to sign up for and fill out form A as stated in the Italian Ministry of Education (MIUR) Regulations.

The Non-EU student is subject to a limited number of available places on Italian degree courses.) The list of available courses and related student quotas stipulated by the University of Ferrara can be consulted on the website for foreign students.

Following the completion of the pre-registration process, the Diplomatic Authority shall provide the student with the relevant information regarding the student VISA and shall send the University of Ferrara the list of pre-registered students.

There are some particular cases which regulate the possibility to pre-register at the Embassy of a different country compared to a student's country of origin.

Pre-university school years

The student willing to enrol on an Italian Degree course must have completed at least 12 years of pre-university school attendance in his/her home country (including primary, middle and secondary school). The specification of the overall compulsory school attendance must necessarily be stated in the "Dichiarazione di Valore in Loco” (Declaration of Value) issued by the Italian Diplomatic Authority located in the country where the student once studied.

Students who attended fewer years of school prior to attending university have to:

1 certify how they completed the remaining one/two years of education at a foreign University in order to meet the 12-year compulsory school attendance requirement. This period shall not be taken into consideration in order to reduce the duration of the students’ degree course in Italy, whereas it shall simply entitle the student to fulfil the 12-year compulsory school attendance requirement, as stated by the Italian Government. Once proof the student actually attended 12 years of compulsory education, he/she is deemed fit to enrol in the 1st year of this University (Bachelor’s degree courses only);

2.        achieve an Italian secondary school-leaving diploma.

Those students who achieved both a secondary school-leaving diploma after 10 years’ compulsory education as well as a Bachelor’s degree in their home country shall be taken into consideration as follows:

  1. The University of Ferrara takes into account 2 of the years of University attendance in order to fulfil the 12-year compulsory school attendance requirement;
  2. Moreover, the University of Ferrara may decide to either partially or totally acknowledge the remaining University year in order to reduce the students’ study plan.

Registration to take admission tests

Students applying for a limited access degree course have to go through an additional online procedure:

  • For the faculties of Medicine and Architecture: registration via the UNIVERSITALY platform;
  • For all the other limited access courses: registration via the UNIFE website (Non-EU citizens shall be registered directly by the International Mobility Office).

Enrolment on a Bachelor’s degree/single-cycle Master’s degree course

When the foreign student arrives in Italy, he/she must have the right documents for enrolment. Upon arrival, the documents must be handed in immediately at the International Mobility Office to be checked. The documents required for enrolment include:

    1. The original hard copy of the secondary school diploma achieved abroad (after at least 12 years of school attendance) translated into Italian and duly legalised (see Legalizzazione dei documenti and Perfezionamento documenti)

  • A Dichiarazione di Valore in Loco (Certificate of Equivalence of Qualification) issued by the Italian Diplomatic Authority. The student should first check the opportunities for students with an attendance of fewer than 12 years of education; 

  1. N.B.: Only for countries in which students are required to pass a national selection after leaving secondary school is it necessary to provide a certificate proving the student passed the national exam of academic suitability, (i.e. the Gaokao in the Peoples’ Republic of China, the Vestibular in Brazil, the Veveossi Prosvassis in Greece, the Prueba de Selectividad in Spain, the Prova de Aferiçao in Portugal etc.)

Non-EU students also need to submit:

  1. A pre-registration A form;
  2. A passport-sized photo certified by the competent Italian Embassy.

If the Non-EU student would like to get a partial recognition of his/her previous academic degree, he/she must also provide the relevant Academic transcript (credits, grades) and syllabus, or the Diploma awarded by an Italian institution.

Any certificate issued in a foreign language must be accompanied by an official translation in the Italian language. The official translation can be performed either in the student’s home country or in Italy. The Italian institutions allowed to carry out such translations are either the local Courts or legally recognised translators. As well as being duly translated, all certificates must be legally recognised by the Italian Diplomatic Authority located in the country where the students achieved his/her Diploma. Exceptions to this requirement shall be made in case of other specific agreements

Enrolment on a Master’s degree course

When the foreign student arrives in Italy, he/she must have the right documents for enrolment. Upon arrival, the documents must be handed in immediately at the International Mobility Office to be checked. The documents required for enrolment include:

  1. A foreign academic degree diploma, translated into Italian and legalised (see Legalizzazione documenti e Perfezionamento documenti). Enrolment on the above-mentioned degree course must have been after 12 years of previous school attendance; furthermore, the degree must enable the access to the Master’s degree in the home country;
  2. A Dichiarazione di Valore in Loco (Certificate of Equivalence of Qualification) relating to the academic qualification;
  3. An academic Transcript issued by the foreign University, duly translated into Italian and legalised. It should state the amount of university credits, the hours of lecture/individual study and the grades achieved;
  4. The syllabus of any subject/exam taken, studied and passed throughout the academic study plan. The syllabus is issued by the university in the home country and is to be confirmed by the Italian Diplomatic Authority prior to submitting it to the University of Ferrara. English, French and Spanish versions of the syllabus are also accepted;
  5. A Diploma Supplement (only for countries where this is issued). This includes a general section and a specific/analytical section that can replace the syllabus.

Non-EU students also need to submit:

  1. A pre-registration A form;
  2. A passport-sized photo certified by the competent Italian Embassy.

The documents mentioned above do not allow automatic access to the Master’s degree course; first of all, the University of Ferrara assesses whether the foreign qualification meets the requirements of the Italian Master’s degree course.

According to specific criteria (requirements, university credits, scientific study fields, personal preparation), the Committee carrying out such assessment determines whether admission to the selected Master’s degree course is feasible and to transfer them to the Department where the assessment shall be carried out. Students shall receive a response regarding their admission status within 60 days.

After due assessment, in the event that the student’s curriculum does not fulfil the degree course requirements, the Departmental Committee may reject the application. If this happens, the student may enrol on the corresponding Bachelor's degree course (unless it is a course with limited access) and he/she shall also be asked to submit further documents in addition to the documents that have already been submitted so as to meet requirements for admission to the Bachelor’s degree course. See: Recognition of foreign qualifications.

 

 

Enrolment on a post-graduate course

If the student has already completed both the Bachelor’s and the Master’s degree courses in his/her home country and wishes to sign up for a postgraduate PhD  course at the University of Ferrara, the references are as follows:

The International Mobility Office does not deal with any questions and applications relating to post-graduate PhD courses.

Taking an admission test before documents are ready

The candidates who signed up for an admission test (including the Italian language test for non-EU students) that is held prior to taking the secondary school -leaving diploma or completing the pre-registration process, shall need to come to Italy either on a short term VISA (see: list of countries subject to VISA) or without a VISA (see: list of countries not subject to VISA). Prior to studying in Italy on a permanent basis, students must obtain the Type-D student VISA.