ATHENS – The Medical School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA) is expected to receive its third class of Medical students in September 2024 to its English language Medical Degree (MD), a six-year Undergraduate Program especially addressed to international citizens of EU and non-EU countries.

Prospective foreign applicants should have attended the last two years of High School outside Greece and hold a High School diploma (or equivalent degree) obtained by July 2024, entitling them to admission to Higher Educational Institutions of their country of graduation. Additionally, applicants should satisfy at least one of the program’s internationally accepted admissions requirements, such as: hold MCAT, BMAT, UCAT admission tests, have high IB, A-level school grades, four or more Advanced Placement (AP) in science subjects, scores at grade 5 plus a high score in the SAT. Graduates of undergraduate College programs in the United States are also eligible to apply.

The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and its School of Medicine, are the oldest academic institutions in Greece, founded in 1837. Based in Athens, the vibrant Greek capital, the University has made global outreach a cornerstone of its 10-year Strategic Plan and already boasts 7,600 international students.

The Medical Degree English program has been certified with distinction by the Hellenic Authority for Higher Education and its curriculum is mirror to the prestigious six-year MD Program in Greek language. Courses are delivered in English by NKUA highly-cited professors and researchers. The MD degree requires a full six-year (12 semester) attendance and successful examination in 60 courses (360 ECTS). The first five semesters focus on on-campus basic science courses and laboratory work, while the next four include clinical courses and in-hospital training; the last three semesters focus on clinical clerkships, i.e. full day clinical training in the main clinical specialties in 16 University Hospitals that provide daily, high-quality health services in the Athens metropolitan area.

Medical Degree English program leads to award of an MD degree and renders its graduates eligible for ECFMG accreditation and Graduate Medical Education in the United States. The Medical School has a very successful track record of placing its graduates in the most prestigious residency and fellowship programs in the United States. In fact, NKUA’s Medical School graduates head some of the most prestigious clinical divisions in University hospitals throughout the United States.

The Rector of NKUA, Professor G. Siasos, who is U.S.-trained in Cardiology and previously served as Dean of the School of Medicine is very supportive of the program: “We started this wonderful English-speaking Medical Curriculum two years ago, and we are putting in all our University’s rich academic assets. Most of our internationally renowned faculty members teach the courses and the students truly benefit from a “think global, act local” notion of medicine,” Prof. Siasos said recently.

The Dean of the Medical School, Professor N. Arkadopoulos, also U.S.-trained in Surgery, emphasized the humanistic approach embedded in the Medical Degree English program curriculum: “We are very interested in teaching the fundamental pillars of evidence based, modern medicine. We want to produce knowledgeable, capable physicians, who will serve in their communities anywhere in the world. But our focus is the human being in any patient, and how we can teach complete health and well-being, not just absence of disease.”

Yearly tuition for the University of Athens Medical Degree English program is 13,000 euros, a fraction of the average medical school tuition in the United States. Cost of living in Athens is considerably lower compared to major U.S. cities, while there are several direct flights around the year connecting Athens to major U.S. airports. There are unique cultural and athletic opportunities in Athens, within the University and beyond and the quality of life is higher than most major cities in the U.S. Importantly, Athens is considered a safe city.

More information is available online: https://medicen.uoa.gr/index.php/admissions/admission-requirements.