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Foundation Year Program

Tuition fee €5,000 one-time
Application fee €35 per programme

This fee is not refundable.

More information

foundationyear.unipv.it/# 

Overview

The Foundation Year is a preparatory course, taught in Italian designed for:

- students who do not meet the minimum 12 years of schooling required for enrollment in an Italian University Degree course;

- students who want to access undergraduate degrees at the University of Pavia;

- students interested in learning Italian or improving their Italian language skills.

The course includes both Italian language classes and preparatory courses from one of the following study areas: (1) Humanities; (2) Science and Medicine; (3) Social Sciences.

For the academic year 2025-2026, students will attend all courses, both Italian and Area Studies courses in person in Pavia from October 2025 until June 2026.

Students who pass the Foundation year final exams will:

- meet the minimum entry requirements for undergraduate study and have the chance to possibly be exempted from the first year of University fee at the University of Pavia. ( Fee waiver)
- be exempted from the Italian Proficiency University admission test

Please note that students applying to degrees with limited enrollment must still take the admission test.

Programme structure

- 400 hours of Italian language and Culture course (several levels available from beginner to advanced)

-300 hours of Area Study courses taught in Italian

Students can choose one of the following AREA STUDIES:

1. HUMANITIES
- History of Art and Archaeology
- Italian Literature
- Ancient and Medieval History
- Philosophy

2. SCIENCES AND MEDICINE
- Biology
- Chemistry
- Physics
- Mathematics

3. SOCIAL SCIENCES
- Political science
- Contemporary History
- Economics
- Law

Academic Calendar

Foundation Year program for the academic year 2025/2026 will start on 13 of October 2025 and will end on 30 June 2026.
Italian courses will run from 13 October 2025 to 30 June 2026.
Area study courses will run from 16 February 2026 until 28 June 2026.

Apply now! Academic year 2025/26
Application start
13 Nov 2024
Application deadline
21 Nov 2024, 23:59:59
Central European Time

1st call

Studies commence
13 Oct 2025
Apply now! Academic year 2025/26
Application start
9 Jan 2025
Application deadline
16 Jan 2025, 23:59:59
Central European Time

2nd call

Studies commence
13 Oct 2025
Apply now! Academic year 2025/26
Application start
10 Mar 2025
Application deadline
18 Mar 2025, 23:59:59
Central European Time

3rd call

Studies commence
13 Oct 2025
Apply now! Academic year 2025/26
Application start
12 May 2025
Application deadline
19 May 2025, 23:59:59
Central European Time

Upon reaching 200 enrolled students during previous calls, this call will not be opened.

Studies commence
13 Oct 2025
Apply now! Academic year 2025/26
Application start
24 Jun 2025
Application deadline
26 Jun 2025, 23:59:59
Central European Time

Only 30 available places for this call
These places will be assigned on a ‘first came first served’ basis.
In case the 30 places are not confirmed, a ranking list will be created on the same basis.

Studies commence
13 Oct 2025
Apply now! Academic year 2025/26
Application start
13 Nov 2024
Application deadline
21 Nov 2024, 23:59:59
Central European Time

1st call

Studies commence
13 Oct 2025
Apply now! Academic year 2025/26
Application start
9 Jan 2025
Application deadline
16 Jan 2025, 23:59:59
Central European Time

2nd call

Studies commence
13 Oct 2025
Apply now! Academic year 2025/26
Application start
10 Mar 2025
Application deadline
18 Mar 2025, 23:59:59
Central European Time

3rd call

Studies commence
13 Oct 2025
Apply now! Academic year 2025/26
Application start
12 May 2025
Application deadline
19 May 2025, 23:59:59
Central European Time

Upon reaching 200 enrolled students during previous calls, this call will not be opened.

Studies commence
13 Oct 2025
Apply now! Academic year 2025/26
Application start
24 Jun 2025
Application deadline
26 Jun 2025, 23:59:59
Central European Time

Only 30 available places for this call
These places will be assigned on a ‘first came first served’ basis.
In case the 30 places are not confirmed, a ranking list will be created on the same basis.

Studies commence
13 Oct 2025