Study Medicine in Romania

Romania has been an EU member since 2007, and the four medical universities that international applicants target here are all state institutions with long traditions and their own university hospitals. There is no numerus clausus in Romania. Teaching in the international programs is conducted in English, in both medicine and dentistry. Both programs last six years.

The four universities in Romania

The Iuliu Hațieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Cluj-Napoca is located in Transylvania's largest student city and has the country's largest international cohort. The Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Iași is situated in eastern Romania near the border with the Republic of Moldova and is the most affordable of the four locations. The George Emil Palade University of Medicine, Pharmacy, Science and Technology in Târgu Mureș is the smallest of the four and is known for its close mentoring in small groups. The Victor Babeș University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Timișoara is located in the west of the country near the border with Hungary and Serbia and is the most easily accessible from Central Europe. All four offer medicine and dentistry.

Who Romania suits

Romania suits applicants who value state universities with their own university hospitals and still want to stay under 10,000 EUR in tuition fees per year. The cost of living is low, and the distances between accommodation, faculty, and clinic are short in Iași and Târgu Mureș. In Timișoara and Cluj-Napoca, many German-speaking students live; in Transylvania and the Banat there is also an established German-speaking minority with its own schools and newspapers.

Where it gets tricky

Romanian is a compulsory subject at the medical universities in Romania for several semesters, because patient history-taking and ward rounds with Romanian-speaking patients take place from the clinical phase onward. This cannot be avoided. There is also the housing market in Cluj-Napoca, where rents have risen considerably more in recent years than in the rest of Romania, and a room in a shared flat can quickly cost as much as in a mid-sized Western European city.

Tuition fees in Romania range from 4,500 to 5,000 EUR per semester. The Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Iași and the Victor Babeș University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Timișoara charge 4,500 EUR per semester, for both medicine and dentistry. The Iuliu Hațieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Cluj-Napoca and the George Emil Palade University of Medicine, Pharmacy, Science and Technology in Târgu Mureș charge 5,000 EUR per semester, also for both programs. Per academic year, that amounts to 9,000 to 10,000 EUR.

Notably, Romania does not differentiate tuition fees between medicine and dentistry. Those who wish to study dentistry pay the same amount at the same location as for medicine, even though dentistry is more material-intensive. Instruments and consumables are additional costs and should be factored in.

For living costs, 400 to 650 EUR per month is a realistic estimate in Romania. Cluj-Napoca falls at the upper end of this range, Iași and Târgu Mureș at the lower end, and Timișoara in between. This includes a room in a shared flat, local transport, food, and insurance.

As an estimate for a full academic year in Romania: 9,000 to 10,000 EUR in tuition fees plus approximately 6,000 EUR in living costs at 500 EUR per month, so around 15,000 to 16,000 EUR in total. In the first year, books, a white coat, and setting up the apartment should be added. These figures are a guide and do not replace official information from the university.

The application window for medical studies in Romania falls in spring and summer, with a uniform start in autumn. A spring intake is not available at any of the four universities. Those who miss the deadline must wait a year.

The selection process differs between locations in Romania. At some universities, an entrance examination in biology and chemistry is decisive; at others, the application portfolio is assessed, with grades in the science subjects from secondary school playing the central role. In both cases: a specific grade point average is not a formal barrier — Romania has no numerus clausus. Proof of sufficient English proficiency is also required for the English-language programs. The number of places in the international cohorts is limited, so early applicants have a wider choice of locations. Between application and acceptance, Romanian universities usually take a few weeks, after which enrollment and local registration follow.

Which of the two processes applies at which university in Romania, what deadlines apply, and which location matches your academic record — Medschool Experts goes through all of this step by step in a personal consultation, including the timeline through to the start of studies and whether preparation for a possible entrance examination makes sense. The consultation is free of charge.

Studies in Romania are structured over six years, for both medicine and dentistry. The first two years cover the preclinical phase with anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, and histology; from there, teaching shifts to the university hospitals. In dentistry, hands-on work on a phantom head begins early, with treatment of real patients following in the middle years of study.

The examination culture is strictly paced. Compulsory attendance at seminars and practicals, assessments during the semester, and written and oral examinations at the end. Anatomy is considered the most difficult block of the first years at all four universities. Those who fail can generally resit within the same examination period. Mandatory internships between academic years can often be completed on request in other countries as well.

For accommodation, the private market is the norm in Romania — dormitory places are scarce, particularly for international students. In Cluj-Napoca the search is the most demanding and expensive; in Iași and Târgu Mureș it is the most relaxed. Timișoara falls in between and scores points for its proximity to Hungary and Serbia and its good connections to Vienna and Munich. German-speaking groups exist at all four locations. In Transylvania and the Banat, a German-speaking minority is also present, which noticeably eases the start in Cluj-Napoca, Târgu Mureș, and Timișoara.