Study Veterinary Medicine in Zagreb

The Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Zagreb was founded in 1919 and is the only institution in Croatia that trains veterinarians. It has held a positive EAEVE evaluation since 2002. The English-taught programme has been running since the 2016/17 academic year and follows the same curriculum as the Croatian programme. Classes are small, with around 25 students per year in the English stream.

The faculty runs its own clinics for surgery, orthopaedics and ophthalmology, internal medicine, and reproduction and obstetrics, as well as a mobile clinic that takes students in small groups of four to six to farms in the surrounding area. Croatia is an EU member state, so the degree is automatically recognised across the EU. The programme is taught entirely in English, and admission is not based on a grade cut-off.

• Veterinary Medicine: A six-year integrated programme (360 ECTS) leading to the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree. Foundation and pre-clinical subjects in the first years; from the third year, clinical training at the faculty clinics; and in the sixth year, practical rotations and external placements. Students choose a specialisation: farm animals, small animals, or food hygiene and veterinary public health.

The programme runs over twelve semesters and at least 360 ECTS, of which 333 are in compulsory subjects and 27 in electives. The first and second years are devoted to the foundations: anatomy, histology, physiology, biochemistry, biology, animal behaviour and animal welfare. Alongside these, students take English for veterinary purposes or, alternatively, German for veterinary purposes.

Clinical training at the faculty clinics begins in the third year. Students work in small groups of four to six per lecturer – night shifts included – and rotate through internal medicine, surgery, reproduction, parasitology and infectious diseases. The mobile clinic, with its four vehicles, takes the groups to farms in the surrounding region for case-based learning with farm animals.

In the later semesters, students choose one of three specialisations: farm animals, small animals, or food hygiene and veterinary public health. The sixth year is almost entirely practical, with clinical rotations at the faculty and compulsory placements at external practices and institutions. Graduates receive the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree, which allows them to start working anywhere in the EU straight away.

Whether we can secure you a place at this faculty is something we assess individually in a free consultation – and plan together through our partner network.

Tuition fees at the University of Zagreb are approx. €9,000–11,000 per year (guide figure: approx. €10,000). Over 6 years, that comes to around €60,000 in tuition fees. Monthly living costs are approx. €500, adding a further €36,000 or so over 6 years. Total cost of the programme: approx. €96,000.

Croatia is a member of the European Union. A degree from the University of Zagreb is automatically recognised across the EU under Directive 2005/36/EC – no additional examination, no detours on your way into practice. Licensing to practise depends on your target country; outside the EU, please confirm the requirements with the relevant national authority.

With around 800,000 inhabitants, Zagreb is the capital of Croatia and a city with a distinctly Central European character. The Upper Town with its cathedral, St Mark’s Square and the funicular, the daily Dolac market and the bar-lined Tkalčićeva street are all just a few minutes apart. With around 70,000 students, the University of Zagreb is the largest in the country – and you notice it in the cafés and parks, and at weekends by Lake Jarun.

Living costs are well below those of major Western European cities. A room in a shared flat can be found from around €250 to €350, and you can live comfortably on about €500 a month. The faculty is located in the Maksimir district, next to the large city park, and is ten minutes from the centre by tram.

The climate is continental, with warm summers of around 27 degrees and mild winters. The Adriatic coast, with the beaches of Rijeka and Kvarner Bay, is an hour and a half away by car, and Split and Zadar three and a half hours. Zagreb Airport (ZAG) lies 15 kilometres south-east of the city and offers direct flights to many European cities, including Frankfurt, Munich, Vienna and Zurich. By car, Vienna is four hours away and Munich five.