Studying at the University of Cagliari

The story

The University of Cagliari was founded in 1620 as the Studium Generalis Kalaritanum, modelled on the old Spanish universities of Salamanca, Valladolid and Lérida. The university dates the founding privilege to 31 October 1620, signed by Philip III of Spain.

The first attempt to set up a university in Cagliari goes back to the mid-1500s, when the Kingdom of Sardinia was part of the Habsburg monarchy of Spain. The city is much older than the university. The university describes it as fought over by Carthaginians, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Pisans, Aragonese and the House of Savoy, with Roman ruins still visible from the ancient city of Karalis.

The university's main address is Via Università 40 in Cagliari. The student office of the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery is in the Cittadella Universitaria di Monserrato, in the province of Cagliari.

Who studies here

The university has more than 24,750 enrolled students. It is organised in 6 faculties and 15 departments, and offers 47 three-year and single-cycle degrees, 38 master's degrees and 16 doctoral programs.

The university reserves places for non-EU students in its degrees. It publishes a list of the courses it teaches in English for 2026/27.

Medicine and Surgery is offered in English as a single-cycle degree (class LM-41).

Programs taught in English

We list 3 Master's and 1 single-cycle degree at Cagliari taught entirely in English.

A selection of them:

• Advanced Biotechnology
• Computer Engineering, Cybersecurity and Artificial Intelligence
• International Management

The city

Cagliari is the capital of Sardinia and the island's main cultural centre, with about 160,000 residents in the city and around half a million in the metropolitan area. Sardinia is the second largest island in the Mediterranean, about 187 km from the Italian peninsula. The city lies at the centre of the Gulf of Angels, on the southern side of the island.

The city is built on seven hills, and the Poetto beach, seven kilometres of white sand, is inside the city limits. The climate is Mediterranean, with mild winters and hot, dry summers.

Cagliari is linked to major European cities by Elmas international airport. Every train arriving at the central station in Piazza Matteotti also stops at the airport station. The port receives scheduled ferries from Rome-Civitavecchia, Naples and Palermo. Inside the city, public transport is made up of a metro line, urban buses and regional buses.

How admission works for international students

Non-EU applicants living abroad file a pre-enrolment request on Universitaly for the entry visa, naming Cagliari as the chosen university, within the deadline Cagliari sets. The Manifesto degli Studi, the university's study plan document, lists the programs and the places reserved for foreign students. From 2026/27, enrolment at the university runs through the UNICA DREAM APPLY portal.

The university's three-year and single-cycle degrees use the CISIA TOLC system for admission or initial preparation tests, except programs that have specific tests. The degree in Architectural Sciences uses the ARCHED test, taken online through the CISIA platform. Nationally scheduled programs in primary education sciences and health professions hold their tests in person.

Our architecture test guide and health professions test guide cover two tests used here, and the admission tests overview shows how the rest fit together.

Medicine, Dentistry and Veterinary Medicine in English are covered on our Medicine in Italy page.

Fees

For 2026/27 the yearly contribution follows the family's ISEE band. In Medicine and Surgery it runs from nothing apart from the 16 euro stamp duty (first-year students with a low ISEE) to 3,498.80 euros a year (an ISEE above the top band, or none given). Foreign students who are not independent under the ISEE rules collect the income and asset documents of their family of origin and request an ISEE parificato Università from a tax assistance centre (CAF).

Students from countries the ministry lists as particularly poor have their ISEE counted as zero, so for them the cost is the stamp duty of 16 euros, plus the regional tax of 140 euros when it is due. The same rule applies to students from countries at war.

How we help

Cagliari sets its fee from the family ISEE, so the income documents matter more here than at a flat-fee university. We check which call and test apply to you, keep the Universitaly pre-enrolment and the visa in one plan, and prepare the documents Cagliari asks for, including what the CAF needs for the ISEE parificato. If Cagliari is one of several options, we compare them with you.

Questions students ask about Cagliari

Rules, dates and fees change every year. Confirm them in the official call for your own year before you act on them.