Italy Open Semester 2026/27: Medicine Guide for Indian Students

The open semester (semestre aperto/filtro) is the 2026/27 access route to Italian-taught single-cycle Medicine and Surgery, Dentistry and Veterinary Medicine at state universities, governed by MUR Decree No. 941 of 10 July 2026 (academic year 2026/2027). Students enrol freely in a first semester of three subjects, sit national examinations, and are ordered in a national merit ranking that decides second-semester admission. Capped places remain: free enrolment is not guaranteed admission.

Yes. Enrolment in the filter semester is open to EU students, non-EU students in the applicable resident category, and non-EU students resident abroad — the category Indian applicants from India fall into. Non-EU-abroad students compete in their own dedicated national ranking with reserved places, following the same enrolment deadlines as everyone else.

No. The open semester applies only to Italian-taught programmes at state universities. English-taught Medicine, Dentistry and Veterinary Medicine follow the separate national admission-test regime (MUR Decree No. 1005 of 6 August 2026, test on 29 September 2026). See our Medicine in Italy guide for the English-taught route.

No. There is no IMAT or any pre-enrolment entrance test for the Italian-taught open semester. Selection happens after the semester, through the three national profit examinations (10 December 2026 and 11 January 2027) and the national ranking published on 22 January 2027.

Three subjects, 6 CFU each (18 CFU total): Biology, Physics, and Chemistry and propaedeutic biochemistry. Syllabi were published by MUR on 19 June 2026. Each subject has its own national examination and its own grade out of 30.

Two sittings per subject, same date and time nationwide: 10 December 2026 at 11:00 and 11 January 2027 at 11:00 (Directorial Decree No. 249 of 13 July 2026). Results were announced on 23 December 2026 and 20 January 2027 respectively. Students must sit at least one of the two sittings for each subject.

Each paper has 31 questions — 21 multiple-choice (five options) and 10 completion questions — in 50 minutes, with a 30-minute interval between papers. Correct answers score +1, omitted answers 0, wrong answers −0.10. The grade is expressed out of 30 and the pass threshold is 18/30 per subject.

Where a student sits both sittings for the same subject, the higher score counts automatically, provided it is at least 18/30. After the second results are published, students confirm acceptance or refusal of grades by 23:59 the following day; silence counts as acceptance.

The ranking has three ordered sections: students with three valid exams (≥18/30 each) are placed with 300 points plus the sum of their grades; two valid exams with 200 points plus the sum; one valid exam with 100 points plus the grade. A higher section always outranks a lower one. Ties are broken by disability status, then younger age, then higher exam average. Students admitted with one or two valid exams must recover the missing credits before second-semester enrolment.

No. Enrolment in the semester is free, but Italian-taught Medicine, Dentistry and Veterinary places remain capped. After the national exams, separate EU/residents and non-EU-abroad merit rankings admit students to the second semester strictly by ranking position and available places. Completing lessons and sitting the exams only makes you rankable — it reserves no place.

Both national rankings (EU/residents and non-EU abroad) were published on 22 January 2027 at 16:00 in each student's Universitaly personal area, with the assigned university. Enrolment ran 22–28 January 2027, with forfeiture for missing the window. Outcomes were published on 1 February 2027; unused non-EU-abroad places flowed into the EU ranking. EU re-assignments were published on 8 February 2027 and the final EU list on 12 February 2027.

At enrolment every student also chooses related courses (corsi affini) such as Biotechnology, Biological Sciences, Pharmacy and Zootechnical Sciences, plus designated health-profession classes. Affine assignments were published on 16 February 2027 with enrolment on 16–20 February 2027, and a final backstop allowed enrolment in another available course until 12 March 2027. An affine degree is an Italian academic fallback — it does not by itself qualify anyone to practise medicine in India.

For the Indian side, yes. Indian citizens intending to take MBBS or an equivalent qualification abroad on or after May 2018 must mandatorily qualify NEET-UG; the result serves as the eligibility certificate and is valid for three years. This is separate from Italian university admission — verify the current rule with the National Medical Commission.

Not automatically. Registration in India is governed by the NMC Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate Regulations 2021: minimum 54 months in a single institution plus a 12-month internship in the same foreign institution, English as medium of instruction, an MBBS-equivalent curriculum, registration or licence parity in the country of award, the screening or NEXT test, and a further 12-month internship in India. The NMC endorses no list of foreign universities, and Italian admission never guarantees Indian registration. Note the open-semester track is Italian-medium, so FMGL compliance needs careful verification.

Yes, as a separate track. Open-semester admission does not replace immigration steps: students who require a visa separately complete pre-enrolment on Universitaly for consulate processing, and admission never guarantees a visa. Language and document rules can also differ by university — for example, some universities require B2-level certification — so each university's notice must be checked.