Study university in the English language in Slovakia
The most important information about educational institutions in Slovakia is, that they run under ECTS – European Credit Transfer System, which was introduced back in 2002 and equals study attainment reached in different countries within Europe. There are credits awarded for passing credit tests, exams, or colloquium. Students need to obtain 30 credits for one semester or 60 credits for study year (this information may be different for some faculties). ECTS grading scale is the following: the best mark is A (which is equivalent to 1), the worst is F or FX (which means failure – student must repeat examination). The lowest possible mark for passing the given exam is E (equivalent to 3 – satisfactory). Marks are quite important – the better your index looks like, the higher chance you have for scholarship.
There are three levels of higher education in Slovakia: the first level is Bachelor, the second level is Masters and the third level is a Doctoral study program (or Ph.D.). Bachelor ends with degree “Bakalár” (abbreviation Bc.), Masters programs end with “Magister” (abbr. Mgr.), “Inžinier” (abbr. Ing.), “Doktor medicíny” (abbr. MUDr.), “Doktor stomatológie” (abbr. MDDr.) and “Doktor veterinárnej medicíny” (abbr. MVDr.). Finally, doctoral-level ends with degrees of “Philosophiae doctor” (abbr. “PhD.”) or “artis doctor” (abbr. “ArtD.”) which is offered in the field of art. All study programs must be accredited by the Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Sport of Slovak Republic. There are various tuition fees related to study in the foreign language (alternatively students may apply to study in the Slovak language, but a good command of Slovak language is then required since entrance examination and also classes are held in Slovak). Fee’s pre-study programs in foreign languages vary from 750€ to 11.000€ per study year. They are considerably lower than in other countries, which is the main reason, why there are many students from all over the world studying in Slovakia.
The admission process at a given study program is different for every faculty or university. There are various types of admission processes: for example, some faculties require students to take multiple-choice tests, interview, or motivation speeches. Faculties usually limit study places, so it may be better to apply to more faculties and increase the chances of being admitted. Generally speaking, the best advice is to apply to University as soon as possible – getting paperwork done may take a lot of time.