Medical Studies in English (Integrated Undergraduate and Graduate University Study of Medicine), Doctor of Medicine (M.D.)

About the course

A six-year integrated medical degree (360 ECTS) run by the University of Rijeka Faculty of Medicine, leading to the Doctor of Medicine (M.D.). It is taught in English as a separate programme, with a maximum of 50 students admitted each year.

Entry requirements for Irish students

• The university assesses the Irish Leaving Certificate individually and does not publish a fixed Irish requirement. Contact admissions to confirm. In general, applicants need to have completed at least four years of secondary school and to have taken Biology, Chemistry and Physics (or related subjects) for at least two years. The Faculty says foreign school certificates must be recognised in Croatia before enrolment, although the 2026 call only asks applicants who finished school outside the EU (and do not hold the IB) to submit a recognition request, so ask admissions what an Irish applicant needs.
• Entrance exam: 120 multiple-choice questions on high-school Biology, Chemistry and Physics (40 questions each). You need at least 60 correct answers to pass. It is held three times a year (May, July, September) and can be taken in Rijeka or remotely. Some applicants can be exempted, for example with an MCAT score of at least 125 in each section, a MediTest-EU score above 70%, a completed premedical college or a relevant natural-science bachelor’s degree.
• English: non-native speakers must show proof, for example IELTS 6, TOEFL (60 internet-based, 500 paper-based), a Cambridge or Oxford certificate, a B2 certificate from a language school, or a secondary school certificate of English proficiency. Irish students educated through English should ask admissions what proof they will accept.

Working in Ireland afterwards

Because your medical degree comes from an EU/EEA country, the Medical Council of Ireland can recognise it automatically under EU Directive 2005/36/EC, as long as it is listed in Annex V (point 5.1.1). If that listing says the degree must come with an internship or state-exam certificate from your home country, you need to have that too, and you must also show your current professional standing and meet the English-language requirements. Graduates of EU/EEA medical schools may apply to the HSE for Irish intern posts, but only if their home-country degree does not already count as complete training. In older HSE intern guides (e.g., the 2022 guide), only graduates from medical schools in Ireland, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Iceland and Slovenia could apply. Graduates from other EEA countries (and Italians holding the ‘abilitante’ degree) were told they are not eligible, because they qualify directly for General registration. Applicants who need no work permit were matched before those who do. Please check the current eligibility list in the HSE intern guide for the year you apply. We could not confirm it for the July 2027 intake because the current HSE guide pages are password-protected.

How to apply

1. Check eligibility and prepare documentsMake sure you will have taken Biology, Chemistry and Physics (or related subjects) for at least two years. Collect certified copies of your school certificates (with English translations if needed), a medical certificate, passport or ID, birth certificate, a financial statement and proof of English.
2. Apply and pay the feeUpload your documents in PDF through the Faculty’s web application and pay the EUR 200 application fee by bank transfer. Register on the national ‘Postani student’ portal and choose Medicine (Medicinski fakultet u Rijeci) under ‘Moj odabir’. Post the original documents to the Faculty in Rijeka. In 2026 the application deadlines were 27 April, 29 June and 29/31 August.
3. Sit the entrance examTake the Biology, Chemistry and Physics multiple-choice exam (120 questions, 60 correct answers needed to pass), in Rijeka or remotely. In 2026 the exam dates were 8 May, 3 July and 4 September. A sample exam and study topics are on the admissions site.
4. Enrol onlineIf you get a place, enrol online and pay the tuition. In 2026 first-year enrolment was on 16-17 July (spring and summer rounds) and 17 September (autumn round), an intensive Croatian language course ran from 21 to 25 September, and classes began on 1 October.

Costs

• EUR 12,000 per academic year (EUR 200 per ECTS credit) for 2026/27, as published in the call for applications. The call does not set a different fee for EU students, so Irish students should expect to pay this fee. There is also a non-refundable application fee of EUR 200. The 2027/28 fee has not been published yet.

At a glance