Overview

Every year, Sapienza University of Rome opens a small number of seats on two English-taught, single-cycle Master's degrees — the Italian equivalent of an integrated MD and DDS — to candidates who sit a national, MUR-set entrance test (the IMAT). On 7 August 2026, Sapienza's Rector signed D.R. n. 1792, the official bando (call for applications) governing admission for the 2026/2027 academic year to:

• Medicine and Surgery "F" — Medicina e chirurgia "F", class LM-41
• Dentistry and Dental Prosthodontics — Odontoiatria e protesi dentaria, class LM-46

This guide walks through the bando in plain English: who can apply, exactly what's due and when, how the test and rankings work, and what happens after you win a seat. It's a summary of a long, dense legal document — you can read the official bando PDF in full, or cross-check anything decision-critical against Sapienza's own pages before you act on it. For the wider programme — curriculum, facilities, fees, student life — see our full Sapienza programme guide; for how this bando fits the national picture, see the IMAT 2026/2027 rulebook.

Programmes & available seats

Both degrees run six years, taught entirely in English, under Italy's numero programmato (capped-place) system. Seats are split between an EU quota (Italian citizens, EU citizens, and non-EU citizens who already hold a qualifying Italian residence permit) and a non-EU quota (non-EU citizens resident abroad, applying on a study visa).

Faculties involved: Farmacia e Medicina, Medicina e Odontoiatria, and Medicina e Psicologia. Wondering how Sapienza stacks up elsewhere? See the full 2026/2027 seat breakdown for every public university, or vote on your shortlist in the IMAT university choice tracker.

Who's eligible

There are two broad paths, depending on citizenship and residency.

Italian / EU / non-EU with an Italian residence permit

You need a secondary-school diploma obtained, or due to be obtained, in 2026. A foreign secondary diploma is fine, but check Sapienza's document checklist for foreign qualifications before you register.

Non-EU citizens resident abroad, needing a study visa

Same diploma requirement, plus you must already have filed the "Immatricolazione università" online pre-registration on Universitaly by 30 June 2026 to be eligible for a study visa. This pre-registration is separate from, and earlier than, the test registration described below — and filing it doesn't by itself guarantee a seat. Walk through the whole process in our IMAT pre-enrolment guide.

Dual citizens, existing degree-holders & transfers

If one of your citizenships is Italian or from another EU country, that citizenship takes precedence — follow the EU-equivalent path. If you already hold a degree, or you're coming from another course, you still sit the same admission test; see Special situations further down for passaggio, trasferimento, the Marco Polo programme, and foreign-degree cases.

The full 2026/2027 deadline calendar

This is the single most important table on this page. Miss the 9 September registration cutoff or the four-day enrolment window in late October, and the bando is explicit that no excuse reopens it.

All "+N days" deadlines exclude Saturdays and public holidays, per the bando.

How to register for the test

Registration is a four-part process, almost entirely on Universitaly.

1. 1

   Create your Universitaly profile and enter your personal data — name, place/date of birth, citizenship, fiscal code, ID document, address, and language certificate if you hold one. These are self-certified declarations; false statements carry legal penalties under Italian law.

2. 2

   Rank your preferred test venues. Your first choice is where you actually sit the test. If you're a non-EU applicant sitting in Italy on a study visa, your first choice must match the university where you filed your 30 June pre-registration. Preferences lock permanently at 15:00 GMT+2 on 9 September — no deroghe (exceptions) are admitted.

3. 3

   Pay the participation fee on Universitaly, using the payment method published there when registration opens. Unpaid registrations are excluded from the test.

4. 4

   Register on Infostud (Sapienza's own student system) if you're sitting the test at Sapienza — open from 7 August to 9 September 2026. Italian citizens need SPID or CIE credentials; this step also assigns your matricola (student ID number).

Where you can sit the test

If you sit the test in Italy, you rank your preference across sixteen university cities. Rome (Sapienza) is one option among Bari, Milan (Statale and Bicocca), Rome (Sapienza and Tor Vergata), Naples (Vanvitelli and Federico II), Bologna, Turin, Pavia, Parma, Siena, Messina, Padova, Ancona and Cagliari, and Catania.

The test is also offered abroad, in:

Exact reporting times for foreign venues are confirmed separately in a MUR notice, published on the MUR site and on corsidilaurea.uniroma1.it.

Test format & scoring

60 questions, five options each (one correct answer), 100 minutes on the clock. Content is identical nationwide, set by Italy's Ministry of University and Research.

Scoring:

Strictly enforced on test day: black pen only, no personal stationery, no phones/smartwatches/wearables, no books or notes, and no communication with other candidates — any of these can void your paper.

Plug your practice numbers into our IMAT score calculator to see how they'd translate under this scoring system.

Minimum scores & the national ranking

To appear in the ranking at all, your final score has to clear a threshold:

• Italian / EU / non-EU with an Italian residence permit: ≥ 20 points
• Non-EU, resident abroad: > 0 points

The national ranking is calculated by CINECA for Italian/EU/permit-holding candidates; a separate ranking for non-EU candidates abroad is compiled directly by Sapienza and published on the course page. If two candidates tie on total score, the bando breaks the tie in this order: higher Biology score, then Chemistry, then Physics/Maths, then Logical Reasoning, then Reading Comprehension — followed by possession of a recognised language certificate by 9 September 2026, then disability status, then younger age.

Scores appear on 8 October, your own paper and registry data on 19 October, and the named national ranking on 26 October 2026. Curious where past cut-offs landed? See our guide to what counts as a good IMAT score.

"Assegnato" vs "Prenotato": securing your place

The ranking lists each candidate's score, position, and one of two live statuses:

If you're waiting rather than enrolling, you must actively confirm your interest in staying on the list — in the Universitaly reserved area, within 5 days of the window closing (and by 12:00 on day 5 after each later scorrimento). Skip this and you're out, with no right to appeal the substance of the exclusion, only a procedural one (TAR Lazio within 60 days, or the President of the Republic within 120 days).

Enrolling & fees

Enrolment (immatricolazione) happens by paying your first instalment — course fees for 2026/2027, plus a €16.00 stamp duty and the regional tax. You'll need the course code:

Get your ISEE (Italy's means-tested indicator) sorted before this stage if you have Italian fiscal residency — it's what determines your fee reduction, and it should be requested from a CAF (available from 15 January 2026) at least 30 days ahead of your enrolment deadline, or calculated online via SPID on inps.it. If you have foreign fiscal residency and/or declare income earned abroad, you can't produce an ISEE, so you instead pay a fixed contribution set by country of origin.

Not sure which ISEE type applies to you, or how to get one calculated? Our full ISEE guide covers Ordinary, Parificato and Corrente ISEE step by step. Rome/Lazio students can also apply for a regional grant through DiSCo Lazio, on top of the fee reduction.

OFA: additional learning obligations in Biology & Chemistry

If your total score is under 30 and your Biology and/or Chemistry score falls below these thresholds, you're assigned an OFA (obbligo formativo aggiuntivo) in that subject:

You clear an OFA by passing the relevant first-year curricular exam, or a dedicated recovery test (with recovery courses offered by the faculty) — and it has to happen within your first year. Miss that window and you repeat the first year, with no second-year exams allowed until you clear it, starting from A.Y. 2027/2028.

English certificates that matter for tie-breaks

Holding a recognised English certificate by 9 September 2026 won't boost your raw score, but it's the second tie-break criterion if two candidates finish level on the test itself. Recognised certificates:

Attended at least one full school year taught in English? Your language certification is automatically recognised — no separate proof needed.

Special situations & support

Non-EU study permits already in Italy

If you're a non-EU citizen already in Italy on a study permit for an Italian-language course, an exchange/mobility period, or a "corso singolo" (single course), you generally have to return to your home country and apply for the study visa afresh. The one exception: a corso-singolo permit counts as EU-equivalent only if you entered on a visa issued specifically for single courses, regularly attended and passed the exam, and that course is relevant to the degree you're now applying for — all three conditions have to hold at once.

Marco Polo programme

Chinese citizens who filed a Marco Polo pre-enrolment with Sapienza through Italian diplomatic-consular representations in China for A.Y. 2025/2026 can compete for the reserved Marco Polo seats.

Foreign secondary diploma

Winning a seat with a foreign secondary qualification means scanning the required documents from Sapienza's checklist and emailing them to studentistranieri@uniroma1.it with the subject line "Ready for enrolment" plus course code, course name, student ID and your name — then paying fees by the standard deadline. Sapienza can request more documents or refuse admission if requirements aren't met.

Foreign university degree, passaggio & trasferimento

Already have a university qualification (Italian or foreign)? Recognition of prior credits/exams is requested after enrolment — 15 days for a prior Italian degree, 30 days (with a €16 stamp) for a foreign one. Note: for course-shortening or career recognition, only coursework examined and verbalised in English counts — nothing taught or assessed in another language is considered. Transferring from another Sapienza course (passaggio) or another Italian university (trasferimento) both require paying the new course's fees by the standard deadline, after which you can no longer sit exams for your course of origin. If your prior degree needs formal comparability recognition, start with our CIMEA Statement of Comparability guide.

Mandatory vaccinations

Within 60 days of paying your first instalment, you need a tuberculin skin test (Mantoux technique) and a Hepatitis B vaccination — free for students in healthcare-related study or work — both done through your local ASL (health authority), with a doctor-signed and stamped certification form kept on file.

Disability & DSA support

Recognised disability (Law 104/1992) or a DSA diagnosis (Law 170/2010) entitles you to extra time and tailored aids. Request this on Infostud when paying the test fee, and send certification to testaccesso.inclusione@uniroma1.it by the 9 September registration deadline. Candidates residing abroad need a legalised certificate with a certified translation. For the national rules behind this — extra-time percentages and university procedures — see our IMAT disability & SLD accommodations guide.

Withdrawing after enrolling

Withdrawal goes through Sapienza's ticketing platform ("Rinuncia agli studi" service) once your institutional email is active. For non-EU students on a study permit, withdrawing revokes the permit — you'd need to return home and restart the Universitaly pre-registration process to come back for A.Y. 2027/2028.

Frequently asked questions

Who to contact at Sapienza

All offices below are at Piazzale Aldo Moro, 5 – 00185 Roma, and are closed 10–15 August 2026.