Enrolment of EU Students and students with Foreign Degrees

You are considered an EU student if

• you are a resident of a European Union country
• You have dual citizenship, one of which is from the European Union
• You are a citizen of one of the following countries: Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, the Swiss Confederation, the Republic of San Marino, and the Holy See

You are considered an EU-equivalent student if

• you are a citizen of a non-EU country but hold one of the following residence permits issued by the Italian government (Art. 39, paragraph 5, of Legislative Decree No. 286 of July 25, 1998):

  - EU long-term resident permit

  - for employment or self-employment

  - for family reasons;

  - for asylum or subsidiary protection;

  - for religious reasons;

  - for special cases (Articles 18, 18-bis, and 22, paragraph 12-quater, of Legislative Decree No. 286 of July 25, 1998);

  - due to natural disasters (Article 20-bis of Legislative Decree No. 286 of July 25, 1998);

  - for acts of exceptional civic merit (Art. 42 bis of Legislative Decree No. 286 of July 25, 1998);

  - for special protection (Art. 32, paragraph 3, of Legislative Decree No. 25 of January 28, 2008);

  !! Please note: a visa or merely an application for the initial issuance of one of the residence permits listed above does not confer the status of a non-EU citizen with equivalent rights; the actual and subsequent issuance of the residence permit is required.

• you have a residence card for UK citizens (Art. 50 TEU; Art. 18.4 of the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement). Pending receipt of this document, UK citizens may submit a certificate issued by their municipality of residence proving that they had their inscription in the municipal registry before December 31, 2020;
• you have a temporary protection permit (Prime Ministerial Decree of March 28, 2022) 
• you are a citizen of a non-EU country but have been legally residing in Italy for at least one year and hold a secondary school diploma obtained in Italy;
• you are a citizen of a non-EU country, have earned a high school diploma in Italy, and hold a valid residence permit for study purposes;
• you are a citizen of a non-EU country, you do not necessarily reside in Italy, you have earned your high school diploma at an Italian school abroad or at one of the foreign or international schools operating in Italy or abroad that are subject to bilateral agreements or special regulations for the recognition of academic credentials, and you meet the general requirements for entry for study purposes
• you are a student already present in the Schengen Area and are a scholarship recipient under European Union education, training, and research programs (the the guidelines issued for the “Erasmus Mundus” action, extended to the “Erasmus+” program, as well as any additional instructions regarding entry visas provided by the Visa Unit of the DGIT of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.

• If you are a citizen of a non-EU country, are enrolled in a degree program at an Italian university, hold a valid residence permit for study purposes, and intend to apply for a transfer to our university or to change degree programs within the University of Parma.

  !! Please note: You must request a transfer or program change to maintain continuity of your studies; you must NOT withdraw from the program in which you are currently enrolled.

• If you are a citizen of a non-EU country and are enrolled in single course units at an Italian university, hold a valid residence permit for study purposes, and intend to enroll in a degree program.

  !!

  Please note: In order to enroll in a degree program, you must have passed the exam for the single course unit in which you were enrolled.

• If you are a citizen of a non-EU country and are enrolled in a “Foundation Year” at an Italian university, hold a valid residence permit for study purposes, and intend to enroll in a degree program at the University of Parma.

  !! Please note: In order to enroll in a degree program, you must obtain certification of completion of the Foundation Year.

• you are a member of the staff in the office at foreign diplomatic missions and international organizations based in Italy—accredited to the Italian government or the Holy See. This requirement extends to dependent family members, limited to spouses and children.

You can enroll in a Bachelor’s degree course or a single-cycle degree course if you hold a foreign high school diploma that is recognized as eligible under Italian law and the regulations established by the Italian Ministry of Universities and Research.

The qualification must:

• have been obtained upon completion of a schooling period of at least 12 years;
• allow admission to a program similar to the one you wish to enroll in in Italy, at universities in the country where it was earned (or in the country of reference for the educational system). If an academic aptitude test is required for university admission (for example, the Gao Kao in China), you must also pass this test;
• only for U.S. high school diplomas: it must have been earned after successfully completing at least the final two years of study in the foreign education system.

Alternatively, if you hold a qualification obtained upon completion of an educational program lasting less than 12 years, you may enroll if you meet one of the following conditions:

1. you have successfully completed a Foundation Year and provide appropriate certification; 
2. you have earned a post-secondary degree from a non-university institution in a field related to your chosen program and can provide appropriate certification;

Or:

3. in addition to your original high school diploma, you must also submit academic certification confirming that you have passed all exams required for the first year of higher education studies, if your local education system spans eleven years;

4. In addition to your original high school diploma, you must also submit an academic certificate confirming that you have passed all the exams required for the first two years of higher education studies, if your local school system consists of ten years of schooling.

   In Italy, these academic certifications—which supplement secondary school diplomas obtained after fewer than twelve years of schooling—allow enrolment only in the first academic year.

   !! Please note: You may request recognition with a shortened academic path only for the additional years of higher education.

To be admitted to a second-cycle degree course, you must have:

• a bachelor’s degree, or
• an equivalent foreign degree,

provided that the degree meets the specific curricular requirements of the program.

The qualification must have been earned at a higher education institution officially accredited under the national system of the country in which it was awarded.

In the case of degrees awarded jointly by two or more universities (for example, when the institution offering the program is different from the one awarding the degree and they are located in different countries), all institutions involved must be duly accredited in their respective countries.

Furthermore, the degree must grant access to the next level of study at universities in the country where the qualification was earned (or in the country to which the qualification’s regulatory framework applies).

a) Original copy of the final secondary school qualification obtained after at least 12 years of schooling.

The final diploma must be accompanied by a certificate issued by the Italian ENIC-NARIC center (CIMEA https://www.cimea.it/pagina-attestati-di-comparabilita-e-verifica-dei-titoli) or an ARDI Certificate of Equivalence, for degrees issued by countries that are signatories to the Lisbon Convention https://www.cimea.it/pagina-ardi-automatic-recognition-database-italia or from any Declaration of Value (DOCUMENTATION RELATING TO THE VALUE OF FOREIGN ACADEMIC DEGREES);

b) the original university transcript listing exams taken if your country’s educational system spans 10 or 11 years, or the Certificate of Successful Completion of the Foundation Year, or the Certificate of any final post-secondary academic qualifications;

c) a certificate attesting to the successful completion of any academic aptitude test required for admission to a university in your country of origin;

d) Italian translations of the documents listed in points a), b), and c) if they are not in English;

e) documentation verifying the authenticity of the documents (PROCEDURES FOR VERIFYING THE AUTHENTICITY OF FOREIGN ACADEMIC CREDENTIALS)

a) Original copy of the final degree from a foreign institution corresponding to the first cycle under the Bologna Process qualifications framework and to Level 6 of the European Qualifications Framework (European Qualifications Framework - EQF), obtained from a higher education institution that allows students to continue their studies on-site at academic institutions at the next level (second cycle of the Bologna Process/EQF Level 7), and which does not present any “substantial differences” according to the principles of the Lisbon Convention and the national methodology adopted by the Italian ENIC-NARIC center (CIMEA). 

The final degree must be accompanied by a certificate issued by the Italian ENIC-NARIC center (CIMEA https://www.cimea.it/pagina-attestati-di-comparabilita-e-verifica-dei-titoli) or an ARDI Certificate of Equivalence, for degrees issued by countries that are signatories to the Lisbon Convention https://www.cimea.it/pagina-ardi-automatic-recognition-database-italia or from any Declaration of Value (DOCUMENTATION REGARDING THE VALUE OF FOREIGN ACADEMIC DEGREES);

b) an original certificate issued by the relevant university attesting to the exams passed (transcript), any syllabi for the exams taken (if required), or, alternatively, Diploma Supplement, for academic degrees awarded by universities and institutions of higher education in countries participating in the European Higher Education Area (Bologna Process). 

c) Italian translations of the documents listed in points a) and b) if they are not in English;

d) documentation regarding the verification of authenticity (PROCEDURES FOR VERIFYING THE AUTHENTICITY OF FOREIGN ACADEMIC DEGREES)