Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore

Cattolica International

Entry requirements

  
Who can apply for a Bachelor’s degree at Università Cattolica?
 

The following requirements are set by the Italian Ministry for University and Research (MUR) and are available on UniversItaly Portal.

To apply for an undergraduate degree, you must: 

  • Get your high school diploma by August 30, 2026. For Medicine and Surgery: obtain your high school diploma by the enrolment deadline established in the programme “Admission Guidelines”. 

  • Have at least 12 years of total education. If you studied in a non-EU education system, your final 2 years of secondary school must be completed within the same national system. 

 

What if I only have 11 years of education? 

You may still apply if you meet one of these conditions: 

  • You completed at least one year of university studies and passed all the required exams. You can’t transfer any credits from these studies. 
  • You completed a Foundation Course at a recognised Italian university. Foundation courses from non-Italian universities are evaluated case by case. 

 

Your high school diploma must qualify you for university 

Your diploma must grant you access to university-level studies  in the country awarding your qualification. If a special exam is necessary, you must show you passed it with the required scores.

Examples:

  • Spain: Selectividad / EBAU 
  • Greece: Veveossi Prosvassis 
  • Brazil: ENEM or Vestibular 
  • China: Gao Kao 
  • Turkey: YKS (TYT + AYT/YDT) 
  • Portugal: ENES 
  • Republic of Korea: CSAT 
  • Colombia: Saber 11 (ICFES) 

 

Special conditions for some diplomas
 
International Baccalaureate (IB) 

You must meet the specific requirements in our IB Admission Policy. 

 

US high school diploma 

You need: 

  • A US high school diploma earned after 2 full years in a US high school, AND
     
  • One of the following: 
    • Three Advanced Placement (AP) Exams with the College Board passed in different subjects with a minimum score of 3 within the graduation year. Please note: 
      • If available, upload your official College Board AP score report. 
      • If you haven’t taken AP exams yet, submit the AP Exam Declaration Form 
      • If you have Italian citizenship you cannot count AP Italian Language and Culture as an AP exam
    • One year of university studies completed with all credits passed (no credit transfer) 
    • Foundation Course at a recognised Italian university, provided that it compensates for the missing AP exams (courses from non-Italian universities will be reviewed case by case)  

 

British A-Levels 

You need: 

  • To pass at least 3 A-Level exams in different subjects. 
  • If you haven’t received your A-levels yet, submit the A-Levels Declaration Form 
  • If you have Italian Citizenship, you cannot use A-Level Italian 

 

Other National Diplomas 

Some diplomas may have extra requirements. 
Check your diploma in the ARDI database
If your diploma is not listed, contact us for help.  

 

  
Do I need to prove my English language skills?

Yes. You must meet the English requirement at the time of application. 

  • See our list of accepted English tests and exemption based on prior study

 

Important: If your certificate is missing or does not meet our standards, your application will be rejected. 

The interdisciplinary curriculum of the  BSc degree in International Relations and Global Affairs requires you to be familiar with world history, institutions and cultures, and to master basic logical, quantitative and analytical tools.


Selection will be based on your high school grades, motivation letter, English proficiency, and general background.

Priority consideration for admission will be given to candidates whose transcripts show:

  • A minimum GPA of 75% or above at the time of applying; this equals, for esxample, to CCC for A-levels, 31 points for the IB Diploma (see the IB undergraduate admission policy), 13 points for the French curriculum, a GPA of 3.0 for the US curriculum.
  • Satisfactory grades in Mathematics.

To strengthen your application, you may submit standardized test scores (SAT or ACT), especially if you do not have:

  • Sufficient grades in Math; or
  • Quantitative subjects listed in your transcripts