Study Medicine in Štip (Goce Delčev University): Rules, Costs and Transfer (2026)

Can you study medicine in Štip, and which programmes does the Faculty of Medical Sciences at Goce Delčev University offer?

Goce Delčev University is a public university based in Štip, a city in eastern North Macedonia. Both local and international students attend the Faculty of Medical Sciences, and the faculty runs separate versions of its main programmes: one with Macedonian as the language of instruction and one with English as the declared language of instruction.

The long, integrated programmes are General Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmacy. Alongside them run shorter first-cycle programmes such as nursing, midwifery, physiotherapy, optometry, medical laboratory technology and dental technology. This guide concentrates on the three professions that interest most of our readers.

There is no veterinary medicine in Štip. Veterinary faculties exist in other cities of the country and are covered in a separate article. If you want an overview of all health faculties in North Macedonia, read our comparison article on the country's universities.

How long do Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmacy take in Štip?

The published English-language curriculum of General Medicine sets a six-year duration, twelve semesters and 360 ECTS credits, which is 30 credits per semester. The first year includes Anatomy, Biophysics, Medical Chemistry, Biology, Histology and Embryology, Basic Biochemistry, Human Genetics and First Aid. In the second and third year follow Physiology, Microbiology, Immunology, Pharmacology, Pathophysiology and Pathological Anatomy.

Years four and five cover the clinical subjects: Internal Medicine, Infectious Diseases, Radiology, Dermatology, Neurology, Psychiatry, Paediatrics, Surgery, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Orthopaedics, Oncology and Anaesthesiology. The sixth year includes ENT, Ophthalmology, Forensic Medicine, Emergency Medicine and final clinical practice.

For Pharmacy in English, the admission announcement mentions ten semesters. For Dentistry we did not find a published number of semesters. The national higher-education law sets a minimum of ten semesters for dentistry, and the real length of each university follows from its own curriculum. Ask the student office for written confirmation for your intake year.

How much do Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmacy cost at Goce Delčev University?

The prices refer to the 2026/27 list. The fee is paid in two equal instalments at the start of each semester. In earlier publications of the university, Medicine appeared at €4,000 per year, which shows that fees change and that it is worth checking the current year every time.

Add accommodation, living costs, laboratory materials and the cost of repeated courses to the tuition. The study regulations provide that each repetition of a course carries a financial charge set by the Senate. For a realistic estimate, always compare the total cost until graduation with alternatives in other European countries.

What is the maximum study duration in Štip, and does the Greek n+ rule apply?

Students from Greece know the n+ rule, which sets a maximum study period and leads to deletion when the limit is exceeded. That rule belongs to Greek legislation and does not apply at an institution in another country. Readers from other countries can ignore this point.

At Goce Delčev University, the provisions on progression, examinations and duration are in the regulations for first-cycle studies. They provide that students may complete their studies within twice the normal duration of the programme. For a six-year programme that corresponds to 12 years.

The difference has practical meaning. A student who has learned to calculate "n+2" must not carry those numbers over to Štip. At the same time, a long limit does not mean that progress is free of pressure, because moving from one year to the next depends on the credits you have collected.

How are exams graded and how many times can you retake a course in Štip?

The regulations state that the final grade is built from 100 points. The activities before the final exam are worth up to 70 points and the final exam 30 points for full-time students. The conversion is: 91 to 100 points give a 10, 81 to 90 a 9, 71 to 80 an 8, 61 to 70 a 7, 51 to 60 a 6, and 50 points or fewer mean a fail.

A student who reaches 42 points before the exam may take it up to three times before the lecturer. If the student asks for it, the fourth attempt takes place in front of a three-member committee of lecturers from the same or a related field, without the lecturer who examined the student before. A student who does not reach 42 points has to repeat the course the following year, and the old points do not count.

There are three main exam periods, February, June and September, with possible additional periods in April, October and December. A student who has passed a course can ask within four months to repeat the final assessment for a higher grade, but the lower new grade is final. Attendance of at least 60% of the scheduled lectures and tutorials is required to earn the corresponding points.

What do you need to move up to the next year in Štip?

These numbers come from the study regulations and matter a great deal in practice. A Medicine student who does not collect the ECTS credits for the second year does not progress and enrols again in the same year. A semester is validated only when all lecturers have signed the electronic student record.

The maximum load is 30 ECTS per semester and 60 ECTS per year. A student who has accumulated backlog therefore cannot make it up within a single year. Backlog works like a snowball, which is why the first warning sign, a semester without validation, deserves immediate attention.

What is a pause in studies and when are studies considered interrupted?

The regulations recognise that some circumstances justify a pause. They include pregnancy, a child up to one year old, illness longer than six months, family reasons, certain exchanges, professional practice of at least six months, membership of a national team and the inability to meet financial obligations. The dean approves the pause.

During a pause the student may take outstanding exams that allow enrolment in the next year. The pause has to be activated within 30 days of the end of the deadline for the reasons that justify it. If that does not happen, the period counts as an interruption of studies.

To regain student status after an interruption, the student applies to the vice-rector or the head of the unit, who decides which exams are recognised and which have to be repeated. This decision is critical for any future planning and cannot be predicted in advance.

How is clinical training organised in Štip Medicine?

Clinical training is where Medicine is decided in practice. In the Štip curriculum the clinical subjects begin with Propaedeutic Internal Medicine in the third year and continue in years four and five with the large specialties. The final semester is devoted to practical training in six areas.

• General Medicine: 8 ECTS
• Internal Medicine: 5 ECTS
• Surgery: 5 ECTS
• Obstetrics and Gynaecology: 4 ECTS
• Paediatrics: 4 ECTS
• Elective clinical course: 4 ECTS

One of the published versions of the programme also provides a thesis of 10 ECTS in the twelfth semester. The exact obligations differ depending on the version of the curriculum for your intake year, so it is useful to ask for the current curriculum in writing.

Questions worth putting to the student office: in which hospitals and with which groups does the training take place, how many students share each clinical group, and in which language are you taught at the bedside? The answers will show you what experience you will actually gain.

In which language are the English-language programmes in Štip actually taught?

The language of instruction is the first subject that students who think about leaving discuss with us. A programme with the label "in English" does not by itself mean that all lectures, practicals and exams take place in English. We mention this without judging individuals or institutions, as an observation from the cases we have seen.

The first-year curriculum already contains a course in the Macedonian language. That is not a problem in itself, because knowing the local language helps in clinical contact with patients. It becomes an issue when students expect full English-language teaching and discover that part of the material, the notes or the oral exams assume Macedonian.

Clinical practice in Medicine is particularly sensitive. The patient speaks the language of the country, and the student has to take a history, listen and explain. Before you decide, ask in writing what percentage of the courses of your year is taught in English and in which language the exams are held.

Why do some medicine students struggle or want to continue elsewhere than Štip?

In our experience, the quality of teaching at universities in North Macedonia is lower than at comparable European universities. We say this as a professional assessment from our daily work with students, not as a ranking, and it does not concern any individual lecturer. The students who write to us describe four recurring themes.

• Language of instruction: students expect a fully English-taught course and find that part of the material is taught in Macedonian or in a mix of languages.
• Staff: lecturers who are comfortable teaching in English are in short supply, so the material is passed on with less depth than students hoped for.
• Practical training: places in laboratories and clinics are limited compared with the number of students, and groups are large.
• Progression: courses pile up, exams are repeated and there is little academic guidance along the way.

Personal reasons often come on top: distance from family, the cost of living, or the wish to build a career in another European country. For anyone who plans to work abroad, the university that awards the degree matters in practice, because it decides which recognition procedures the graduate has to follow later.

None of this means that every student is unhappy or that every course is weak. It means that if you recognise several of these points in your own situation, it is sensible to look at your options calmly and early rather than at the last exam attempt.

Why do so many students transfer out of North Macedonia every year?

Every year we accompany students from North Macedonian universities to other universities in Europe. This is not a statistic or a ranking. It is simply our daily work: the enquiries we receive and the files we prepare.

The motives vary. Some want to learn Medicine in an environment where teaching is consistently in English. Others look for more clinical exposure, better equipped laboratories or wider options for specialist training abroad. Others have fallen behind in their courses and need a fresh start.

A transfer does not mean that everything you have done is lost. The courses you have passed are reviewed by the receiving university, and in many cases part of them can be credited. There is no promise of recognition or admission, because the decision belongs to the university and depends on the case.

How do you decide between staying, pausing and transferring?

There is no single right answer for everyone. A first-year student with one failed course has different options from a fourth-year student who is already facing clinical duties. Three questions help most.

• How far away is the degree? The more years you have completed, the more it is worth checking how a new university would credit your courses.
• Is the problem temporary or structural? A hard period may be solved by a pause in studies. The language of instruction or limited clinical training, by contrast, does not change from one semester to the next.
• What is your professional plan? If you want to work in another country, the university that awards your degree has practical consequences.

In every case the first move is to get the written facts in your hands: the regulations, your enrolment status and your transcript. Then compare the options calmly. Medschool Experts helps at exactly this stage, so that your decision rests on documents and not on rumours or time pressure.

How does a transfer from Štip to a European university work?

A study transfer is a complex process, because it combines credit recognition, the right year of entry, documents from two countries and deadlines. The experts at Medschool Experts have almost ten years of experience with study transfers worldwide and take over the whole process.

• Review: we examine your transcript, ECTS credits, curriculum and study history.
• Selection: we suggest universities from our 25+ partners in Europe that fit your profile and your budget.
• File: we prepare the documents, the translations and the communication with the receiving university.
• Decision: the receiving university decides on credit recognition and the year of entry, depending on the case.

Do not wait until you have used up every semester or every exam attempt before asking for information. The earlier the review, the more options you have and the more calmly you can decide without time pressure.

How do you read your transcript and ECTS credits when you think about a transfer?

A transcript lists every course you have taken, the grade, the ECTS credits and the semester. In a transfer, the receiving university does not only look at the total number of credits. It examines the content of each course, the number of hours and the level.

For this reason it is useful to ask the student office not only for the transcript but also for the description of the courses you have passed. Basic subjects such as anatomy, physiology and biochemistry are usually credited more smoothly when the content and the workload are documented.

Failed attempts, pauses and repeated courses also appear in your history. They are not a reason for concern, but information that has to be presented correctly and clearly. Our experts help with the precise wording of the file.

What do professional recognition and Directive 2005/36/EC mean for you?

Directive 2005/36/EC governs the recognition of professional qualifications between the member states of the European Union and the European Economic Area. For professions such as doctor, dentist and pharmacist it sets minimum training requirements, which allow a degree to be recognised under common rules.

North Macedonia is not a member state of the EU. For degrees awarded there, each destination country applies its own procedure with its own conditions, which may include an additional check of documents or examinations and differ considerably from country to country. We do not judge any programme here. We describe the framework.

If you know early on that you want to work in a particular country, it makes sense to check whether the university that will award your degree falls under the common European framework. That is one of the reasons why students consider a transfer to a university in an EU member state.

What can you do if you have lost your student status?

If your studies in Štip have been interrupted or you have lost your student status, the first step is to find out exactly what happened. Ask the university in writing for the decision, its legal basis and your transcript, and ask whether there is a procedure for appeal, review or reactivation and which deadline applies.

In parallel, we look at alternative routes with you. First, we check which courses you have passed and which years you have completed. Second, we look for universities in Europe where your case can be examined. Third, we prepare the file and take over the communication with the institutions.

We cannot promise re-admission, admission to another university or the recognition of all your courses. In some cases the new route starts in a lower year than you would like, and it is important to know that from the beginning. In our experience, students who ask for help early have more options.

Which documents do you need and which mistakes should you avoid before you decide?

• Transcript with courses, grades and ECTS credits
• The current curriculum for your intake year
• Identity card or passport and your school-leaving certificate
• Certificates of validated semesters and any certificate of a pause
• The university's decision, if your student status has been interrupted

Ask the student office to issue the documents in English and with a stamp. You do not have to have everything ready before you contact us, because we guide you step by step.

The usual mistakes: waiting until all attempts are used up, giving up your student status before an alternative exists, deciding on the basis of rumours or verbal assurances, and paying a deposit to a new university before the year of entry and the total cost have been checked. A calm, early review of your options saves time and money.