September is approaching and for many people it is time to start thinking about their future at university. Today we are going to talk to you about the access to the Spanish University and why it is worth doing your university studies in Spain.
Access to the Spanish University. The decision
Some of you may ask yourselves, what is the advantage of choosing a Spanish university if you have a great education in your country? Why complicate your life even more if you already have enough headaches with the fact that you have to choose your degree? Especially because nowadays you have to be more and more competitive and ambitious. These days, settling for little means never being able to stand out from the crowd and falling behind.
And there is nothing more motivating than the challenge of gaining access to a university abroad. And if you already have some knowledge of Spanish, even if it is only basic, you have that possibility.
You will have the opportunity to open up your horizons and your path to maturity and independence. Spanish universities are renowned in Europe and worldwide and getting a degree in Spain can be one of those things that will make you stand out from the crowd.
Not to mention the fact that you can live at least 4 years in another country, starting that adventure at a very young age.
Access to the Spanish University. Practical information
Of course, before choosing a particular university, you need to know what to expect.
That all sounds very good, but it is true that we need to have some resources. First of all we need to know some Spanish, especially to be able to follow the classes well. It is possible that there are some universities that require you to have a certain level of Spanish in order to be able to access the courses. On the other hand, some courses are also taught in English. It is therefore very important first of all to check the websites of the universities that may be of interest to you and the specific requirements of each one.
If you need to prove your language level, you can take a look at our DELE preparation courses to prepare for the exam. In addition, if you want to improve your language skills before arriving in Spain, you can take an intensive Spanish course in the city of your choice in Spain. We have a wide variety of courses all over Spain.
On the other hand, the issue of our financial resources is quite important. Although education in Spain is public, you have to pay an annual fee to study a degree. Each university and each degree course can have different prices.
Normally the price is per credit, that is to say, per ECTS point that different subjects have in the University. In my case, I studied in Granada and the cost of a degree with 60 credits per year is around 900€ per year. There are universities where the year is cheaper or more expensive, so it is important that you choose the university also according to your economy.
On the other hand, there are more expensive and cheaper cities to live in. If you are thinking of doing your degree in Madrid or Barcelona, you should be aware that these are the most expensive cities in Spain in terms of the cost of living and you should be prepared for this.
There are prestigious universities such as Salamanca or Granada where life is much cheaper and they are also university cities par excellence.
And if that wasn’t enough, there are universities that offer scholarships for foreigners. These scholarships can be a great help to cover tuition fees and living expenses. If you need more information about scholarships, you can contact us by filling in the form at the end of this article.
Access to the Spanish University. The process.
Although some years have passed since then, I still remember being in the same situation and the feelings that accompanied me back then. A lot of uncertainty, but also many positive and exciting emotions. After all, university entrance is our entry into adulthood and the beginning of the road to full independence.
The first step to access a Spanish university is of course to choose the university we like the most.
Once we have chosen the university we must go through the pre-enrolment process. It opens on specific dates (some universities open in February/March, others in April, etc.) and usually lasts several weeks. It is therefore important that we keep an eye on the website of the university we are most interested in so that we can complete the process as soon as possible. This allows us to choose the degree programmes we want to apply for (normally you can choose several, in order of preference). In this step they do not usually ask for any specific documentation, it is rather to have proof that we want to enter their circle.
Once pre-registered we will move on to what really matters, which is getting a qualification that will allow us to get into our dream degree and university.
We European Union students are quite lucky, as the process is quite simple for us. Only the matura would be enough for us.
In Poland the marks are given on a different scale than in Spain, so you have to go to a competent institution to change that mark, which in this case is the UNED, which is located in Madrid. On their website you can find all the information about the documentation you need to provide in order to request a change of grade, which basically consists of your university entrance exam certificate, the application form and proof that you have paid the equivalent fees.
This accreditation is valid for access to most Spanish universities, but there may be some universities that do not accept it. Therefore, before applying for accreditation, you should check the information on admission to the university you are interested in to verify the process.
It is very important to know that in this process the mark is calculated on a scale of 1 to 10. There are many degree programmes in Spain that only require this score, but if you want to apply for degree programmes focused on a specific area, the cut-off mark may be higher (this is the case of medicine, biotechnology, some engineering programmes, etc.). In order to be able to access these degrees, we may need the mark on a different scale. That is, from 1 to 14.
For this we would have to prepare for the specific university entrance exam. Thus, the sum of our selectividad mark in the Spanish system plus the result of the specific exam (which is done on a scale of 1 to 4) would give us our final mark.
These specific exams normally have to be taken in Spain, on the dates established for this purpose. That is why it is very important before choosing a degree course to get information about the cut-off mark and the requirements for accessing it.
As you can see, the process is really not difficult and the requirements to be met are quite simple. From my own experience I can tell you that the effort will be worth it. After finishing your degree, when you look back, you will realise how enriching the experience has been and what you have achieved. They will look at you as real heroes who at only 18 or 19 years of age have had the courage to live abroad.
You have to keep in mind that once you get into a Spanish university you will have to plan your life here in Spain. Find a flat, organise your day-to-day life, etc. But we will talk about that soon, in a separate article.
If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact us.