Studying Medicine in Malta: Barts MBBS, Costs, Recognition

Malta at a Glance

Malta is the smallest member state of the European Union and at the same time one of the most densely populated places in Europe. For medical students this is an unusual starting point: short distances, a single large central hospital, English as an official language. The overview below summarises the key facts about this location.

Two things stand out immediately from this table. First, the duration: five years is one year less than at most continental European universities, because the British system is structured differently. Second, the fee, which is clearly above anything else you find in Europe. Both points come down to the same thing: you are studying British medicine, just at the Mediterranean.

University and Teaching Hospital

Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry grew out of two of London's oldest medical schools and is today the medical faculty of Queen Mary University of London. The Malta Campus is not a separate institution with its own degree, but a second location of the same faculty. The diploma you hold at the end bears the name of Queen Mary University of London.

The pre-clinical part takes place in Victoria, the main town on the island of Gozo. Gozo has around 30,000 inhabitants; the university is a visible part of public life there. From the third year onwards you move to the main island. The centre of clinical training is Mater Dei Hospital in Msida, the largest hospital in the country. It opened on 29 June 2007, covers around 250,000 square metres, and has 825 beds; the adjoining Sir Anthony Mamo Oncology Centre adds a further 113 beds. The hospital is an acute-care teaching hospital and also houses the medical faculties of Malta's state university.

This arrangement has a practical consequence that you can assess in different ways. Because Malta has only one large central hospital, you see the full spectrum there — from the emergency department to oncology, without commuting between sites. At the same time, the number of beds is modest. Anyone who imagines training at a hospital with several thousand beds will get a different, smaller picture here.

What Programmes Are Available and in Which Language?

The Malta Campus is deliberately narrow in its offering. There is exactly one programme, and that is the five-year MBBS in Medicine. Other healthcare professions are not trained here, even though the London parent faculty offers dentistry, among other things.

The language of instruction is English throughout, from the first lecture to the final examination. In addition, the university provides basic Maltese for patient contact, because many patients at Mater Dei Hospital prefer to speak Maltese in conversation. These classes run alongside the regular curriculum and are not an optional extra you can skip. They are not comfortable, but on the ward they make you noticeably more confident.

How Does Admission Work?

There is no numerus clausus in the German sense at the Malta Campus. A school-leaving qualification is required — in Germany, the Abitur. The decision is made through the university's own selection process, and this process rests on three pillars: your school-leaving qualification, your score in the University Clinical Aptitude Test, and proof of English. The university accepts an IELTS score of 7.0 for this, no more than two years old.

The UCAT is the part many applicants underestimate. It does not test subject knowledge but verbal reasoning, decision-making, quantitative reasoning, and situational judgement — all under considerable time pressure. The university states clear thresholds in its admissions conditions: applications with an overall score below the third decile are not considered further after the initial shortlisting, and Band 4 in the Situational Judgement section also leads to exclusion. Good science grades help you; they do not replace the UCAT.

We organise registration and the entire application process for you. The process is typically possible entirely online; you do not need to travel to Malta to apply. We take care of the documents. What you bring yourself is the preparation: we coach you specifically for the UCAT, as well as on the scientific fundamentals in biology and chemistry and on the motivational interview that comes up during the process.

What I notice in conversations is that applicants tend to put the UCAT off until the last few weeks because it "isn't a knowledge test". That is exactly where it backfires. The test measures speed and routine, and speed only comes through repetition. Those who start six months ahead go into it noticeably calmer. What makes sense in your case we assess individually in the free consultation.

What Does the Programme Cost?

Here you need to look carefully, because this is the most expensive location in our series. The official fees page of Queen Mary University of London states 37,500 EUR per year of study for the MBBS programme in Malta, uniform for students from the United Kingdom, the EU, and the rest of the world. Payment is either in full before enrolment or half before enrolment with the remainder paid through a payment plan during the academic year. The university also notes that fees may be adjusted annually for inflation.

The following calculation is our own estimate for the full five-year duration. It assumes living costs of 1,000 EUR per month, i.e. the midpoint of the realistic range of 800 to 1,200 EUR.

One item appears in no fees table and yet makes itself felt: the change of residence within the programme. For the first two years you live on Gozo; from the third year onwards on the main island. Two flat searches, two deposits, two rounds of furnishing. Factor that in.

To put the fees in context, we have compared them against the locations we discuss most frequently in the Mediterranean region. The figures come from our location overview, as of August 2026.

The gap is significant, and it is not a coincidence: you are paying for a British programme with a British degree. Whether that premium is worth it depends entirely on where you want to work afterwards. How the Mediterranean locations differ overall we have broken down in our comparison Studying Medicine in Malta, Cyprus, and Spain. Malta also has a second route: the MediCampus Europeo in Valletta, which awards the degree of the Bulgarian Trakia University and thus sits legally within the EU. Two locations on the same island, two completely different recognition routes.

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How Is the Programme Structured?

The British MBBS curriculum differs from the German structure. There is no sharp division between pre-clinical and clinical phases with one large examination in between; instead there is a continuous increase in the clinical component over five years, assessed in annual examinations.

The change of location after the second year is more than a change of address. On Gozo you live in a very quiet, manageable environment with a small year group. On the main island you land in the metropolitan area around Valletta, with everything that entails. Both phases have their own appeal, but they feel different, and you should prepare for that.

Where Are You Allowed to Work as a Doctor with This Degree?

This is the central question for this location, and it deserves a precise answer. Automatic recognition of medical degrees within the EU is based on Directive 2005/36/EC. The relevant document is Annex V in the version of Delegated Decision (EU) 2023/2383 of 23 May 2023, applicable since 9 October 2023; for the medical profession, Number 5.1.1 applies. British degrees have not been listed there since the United Kingdom's withdrawal. The Malta MBBS is therefore legally a third-country degree, even though you studied in the EU member state of Malta.

One classification relevant to accreditation is worth knowing. The national accreditation agency responsible for British medical programmes is the General Medical Council; it conducts quality assurance of programmes and the registration of doctors. In the list of recognised accreditation agencies published by the WFME with Recognition Status, no agency is listed for the United Kingdom as of August 2026. For Europe this changes nothing; for a later path to the USA it is the point to clarify in writing beforehand.

Dentist, Pharmacist, Psychologist, Vet: The Legal Position for Each Profession

Dentist. No dentistry is offered at the Malta Campus; the programme is limited to the MBBS. In principle, Annex V Number 5.3.2 of Directive 2005/36/EC governs automatic recognition of dental training certificates within the EU. Anyone wishing to study dentistry abroad is legally better placed with a location in an EU member state whose degree is listed there. Which university suits you we assess individually.

Pharmacist. Pharmacy is also not part of the Malta Campus programme. For pharmacists, Annex V Number 5.6.2 applies within the EU, setting out the minimum requirements and the listed training certificates. The route to German Approbation as a pharmacist runs through the state authorities and follows its own system, which is not identical to the medical procedure.

Psychologist. Psychology and psychotherapy are not harmonised at EU level. There is no Annex V entry and therefore no automatic recognition. Each member state regulates access and professional title independently; in Germany this is done through the Psychotherapeutengesetz and the Approbationsordnung. Anyone pursuing this profession should choose the study location with particular care, because later recognition depends heavily on national law.

Vet. For veterinary surgeons, Annex V Number 5.4.2 of Directive 2005/36/EC applies. Veterinary medicine is not offered at the Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry Malta Campus. Here too: an EU degree listed in Annex V makes later access to the profession considerably more straightforward than a third-country degree.

Career Paths After Graduation

The most obvious path after the MBBS leads to the United Kingdom. With registration at the General Medical Council you can apply for a place on the Foundation Programme, the two-year entry into medical practice, followed by specialty training. That is exactly what this programme is designed for, and it is the advantage of this location.

The second path stays on the island. Malta trains graduates specifically for its own health service as well, and Mater Dei Hospital, as the country's only large acute-care hospital, is a realistic first employer. Anyone who makes a name for themselves during the clinical years there has short distances to travel.

The third path leads back to Germany, Austria, or Switzerland. It is open, but it begins with the recognition procedure: first the equivalence assessment, if necessary the knowledge test, then Approbation. After that the same specialty training is open to you as to all other doctors. What options a medical degree opens up internationally and what to bear in mind when planning we have set out in detail in our overview Career Paths with an EU Medical Degree Worldwide.

What I always advise students: decide early in which country you want to spend your first professional years, and plan backwards from there. With a British degree this decision is more important than with an EU degree, because it determines the effort required after graduation.

Lateral Entry, Transfer, and Return Transfer to Germany

There is no automatic route for transferring to a German faculty, whether from Malta or from any other location abroad. You need a free place in a higher semester, and the decision on recognition of your previous credits rests with the receiving faculty.

With the British MBBS there is an additional particularity. The curriculum is designed for five years and does not work primarily with ECTS credits but with its own credits and annual examinations. A detailed Transcript of Records with all modules and grades is available from Queen Mary University of London, but it must be individually assessed and converted for German procedures. This takes time and less often leads to a clean match than a six-year continental European programme.

My recommendation for this location is therefore clear: plan the Malta Campus as a route to graduation, not as a stepping stone. If a transfer within Europe is your actual goal, there are more suitable locations, and how such a transfer works is described in our guide on Study Transfer Within Europe. Keep all your study documents carefully from the start, whatever you decide.

Living in Malta: Island, Getting Around, Costs

Msida is a harbour town on the north-east coast and borders directly on the capital region around Valletta. This is where Mater Dei Hospital stands; this is where you spend the clinical years. It is not quiet: the metropolitan area is densely built, traffic is noticeable. Victoria on Gozo is the exact opposite — a small town, short distances, Mediterranean pace. The ferry runs regularly between the two islands.

On costs, the numbers are helpful. Numbeo reports for Malta as of 4 August 2026 a one-room flat in the city centre at an average monthly rent of 1,052.65 EUR, and 861.69 EUR outside the centre. Utilities for a flat come to around 94.03 EUR per month, a simple restaurant meal 15.00 EUR. In Valletta itself rents are higher: Numbeo states an average of 1,262.50 EUR for a one-room flat in the centre as of 21 June 2026. Anyone sharing and not looking in the most expensive locations stays within the range of 800 to 1,200 EUR per month that we use for planning.

Two advantages that barely any statistics highlight: English is an official language alongside Maltese, which makes dealings with authorities, doctor visits, and part-time jobs considerably more straightforward for international students than in many other countries where people study. And the island is small enough that you can manage without a car; the bus network covers both islands. Flights to Germany, Austria, and Switzerland are available regularly throughout the year.

One observation from advising: the housing market on the main island gets tight during the tourist season because you are competing with holiday visitors. Anyone searching in August pays more and has less choice. Sort out accommodation for the third year of study in spring.

Who This Location Suits

This location suits you if you want to work in the United Kingdom, or are at least seriously considering it. The MBBS from Queen Mary University of London is the direct route there, without any recognition detour. It also suits you if you are convinced by a British-style curriculum with early patient contact and a strong clinical year, and if you command English at a high level or are prepared to get there.

It suits you less if your plan is firmly set on Germany and you want to avoid the additional procedural step after graduation. In that case, a programme whose degree is listed in Annex V of Directive 2005/36/EC is the more straightforward route — on Malta itself the MediCampus Europeo offers such an alternative, and we have a suitable partner university for almost every case in our programme.

And it requires solid financing. 187,500 EUR in tuition fees alone is a sum you cannot manage on the side. Auslands-BAföG is in principle available for Malta as an EU member state, but the contribution towards tuition fees is capped. Many families therefore combine their own funds with an education fund or a student loan.

My assessment: the Malta Campus is one of the clearest locations in our series because it has a distinct target group. Those who want to go to the United Kingdom get exactly the right programme here, plus five years in the Mediterranean. Those who want to go to Germany get a good degree and an extra procedural step. Both are achievable, but they are different life plans. Which one suits you we can best sort out together — book a free consultation for that.