National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA): Tuition-Free Bachelor's, English-Taught Programmes and Admission

The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA) admits school leavers from outside the EU through three routes. Tuition-free study is available on Greek-taught programmes through the Ministry of Education quota: in 2026 NKUA offered 106 places to non-EU foreign nationals across 41 programmes, allocated by school-leaving grade without exams. English-taught and fee-paying are medicine at $19,300 (€17,000) a year, pharmacy at $10,220 (€9,000) and a bachelor's in ancient Greek studies at $6,810 (€6,000). Graduates can choose from about 30 master's programmes taught in foreign languages, some of them free for everyone.

Founded on 14 April 1837, NKUA is the oldest university in Greece, the Balkans and the wider Eastern Mediterranean. In the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2026 it sits in the 401–500 band, ahead of every other Greek and Cypriot university in that table.

Which NKUA Route Fits a Non-EU School Leaver

The first decision is language. If you are willing to spend a year on Greek, the tuition-free quota programme is the best value. If you need to start in English straight away, the choice narrows to three paid bachelor's degrees.

Tuition-Free Greek-Taught Bachelor's: Places and 2026 Cut-Offs

Non-EU nationals do not apply to NKUA's Greek-taught programmes through the university but through a central Ministry of Education procedure. The application opens in early July (2–9 July in 2026), departments are listed in order of preference, and places are allocated by the school-leaving average on the Greek 0–20 scale. Documents and steps are covered in our guide to applying to Greek universities.

The ministry's 2026 table shows how differently NKUA programmes filled:

What these figures show: in 2026 medicine, dentistry and chemistry took only candidates at the maximum, and ties meant six students entered medicine on two places. Humanities spread widely: the last candidate admitted to political science had 12.5, while philology and philosophy left places empty. NKUA's Psachna campus on Evia shows a similar spread: digital arts and cinema needed 17.35, while digital industry technologies and port management admitted candidates at 10–12.6.

To compare these figures with your own certificate, you need its conversion to the 20-point scale, issued by the Greek Ministry of Education or a regional Directorate of Secondary Education. An approximate table for five-point grading systems is in our guide to free education in Greece.

Greek: courses and the B2 exam at the NKUA Language Centre

Registration at a department is impossible without a Greek language certificate. NKUA's Modern Greek Language Teaching Center both teaches and examines, so many quota students spend their first year there.

Fees are paid in full upfront and are not refunded if you stop. A non-EU student needs a valid visa to register, and the course for admitted students also requires the ministry's admission letter. It is designed for beginners, targets level B2.1 and awards 37 ECTS credits to students who pass with at least 80% attendance.

English-Taught Bachelor's: Medicine, Pharmacy and Ancient Greece

Medicine and pharmacy are open to foreign nationals only. For all three programmes you apply directly through the programme's own platform, not through the ministry, and entry requirements differ considerably.

The key point for applicants with a post-Soviet school certificate: the ancient Greece BA accepts a good certificate plus English. For medicine the certificate alone is not enough; for the 2026/27 intake the university accepted UCAT results from 2024–2025 and MCAT results from 2024–2026, so the test has to be taken early. Pharmacy lists international science qualifications; if you only hold a national certificate, confirm with the programme's admissions office that your application will be considered before paying for certificates and translations.

For medicine and pharmacy, final-year school students can apply before graduating by uploading the previous year's grades, a current enrolment statement and the latest transcript, then sending the apostilled certificate later. Medicine and pharmacy students can also learn Greek at the university's Language Centre alongside their degree. All five English-taught medical programmes in Greece are compared in our guide to medicine in Greece.

Master's: About 30 Programmes in Foreign Languages

NKUA's own list of foreign-language master's programmes for 2025/26 includes about 30 programmes taught in English, German, French, Italian and Spanish; the Study in Greece catalogue for 2026–2027 shows 27 NKUA programmes, because the two lists are compiled separately. Each department sets its own fee, so the range is wide:

A translation master's that includes Russian is rare in Greece; for a Russian speaker with good English and Greek it is one of the few fee-free second-cycle options. Law 4957/2022 gives non-EU citizens no income-based fee waiver, so only programmes that charge nobody are free. General application logic is in our guide to master's degrees in Greece.

What a Year at NKUA Costs

For students from Russia, moving tuition and deposits lawfully is a separate issue; see how to pay for studies abroad from Russia. Budgets for every Greek university are compared on our cost of studying in Greece page.

Housing, Meals and Healthcare

Residence halls. NKUA houses students in FEPA, a four-building residence complex on campus. Vacant rooms are drawn by lot from applications filed each September, which is why most first-year plans rely on a private rental. The International Students Support Unit explains what renting requires: a passport, a Greek tax number (AFM) and access to the Taxisnet portal, where the lease is registered.

Meals. Meals are free when the family earns no more than $51,100 (€45,000) a year; the limit rises by $5,680 (€5,000) for each child after the first and by $3,410 (€3,000) for every sibling who is also an undergraduate. The paperwork is built around the Greek tax system, so international students should agree with the welfare office in advance which home-country documents it will accept.

Healthcare. A student with no other policy can be treated in the public system by showing the student card or an AMKA number. The university also runs its own health service with a general practitioner, dentist, ophthalmologist, psychiatrist and psychologist. The residence permit still requires private insurance.

Support. The International Students Support Unit (ISSU) publishes guidance and advises on residence permits, AMKA, insurance and renting. The student (or a lawyer with power of attorney) files the permit application online through the Ministry of Migration and Asylum's system, the Aliens and Migration Directorate of the Decentralized Administration decides it, and ISSU explains which university certificates to attach.

NKUA's Branch in Cyprus

In 2026/27 NKUA opened a branch in Nicosia. The first students started in September 2026 in medicine, primary education, psychology, economics and political sciences, and nursing. Branch programmes are taught in Greek and/or English, each with its own requirements. Annual fees on the branch admissions page: medicine $22,710 (€20,000), primary education $7,380 (€6,500), economics, business administration and the ancient Greece BA $6,810 (€6,000), psychology and nursing $5,680 (€5,000). A non-EU student needs a Cypriot entry permit or student visa to study there, not a Greek visa. See our page on studying in Cyprus.

Visa, Residence Permit and Work

A non-EU student needs a national D visa in the studies category to come to Athens, followed by a student residence permit before the visa expires. The department or programme secretariat issues the documents for the visa. Work is allowed part-time only, outside study hours, capped at 20 hours a week. After graduating you can stay another year to look for work on an "H.11" permit, for a $170 (€150) fee. Timing and documents are covered in our Greece student visa guide.

Who NKUA Suits, and Who Should Look Elsewhere

A good fit for:

• strong school leavers with an average around 4.5 out of 5 or higher who will spend a year on Greek for a tuition-free programme in the capital;
• medical applicants with a high UCAT or MCAT score and a budget of about $19,300 (€17,000) a year before living costs;
• students heading into classics, philology, translation or law who want to study where these subjects have deep roots;
• graduates for whom one of the fee-free foreign-language master's programmes fits.

Better to consider alternatives if:

• you need an English-taught bachelor's in engineering, business or IT: NKUA teaches only three bachelor's programmes in English; economics and technology in English are offered, for example, by the Athens University of Economics and Business, and engineering programmes by Aristotle University of Thessaloniki;
• your average is below 4.0 and you want Greek-taught medicine or psychology: in 2026 these places went to candidates scoring 19.5–20;
• Athens rents do not fit your budget: housing is cheaper in Thessaloniki and regional cities.

Our overview of universities in Greece compares NKUA with other institutions, and the country page on studying in Greece sums up visas and living costs.

Common NKUA Application Mistakes

• Listing only medicine and dentistry on the quota form. In 2026 only candidates with 20 out of 20 got in; without backup departments you can easily end up with no place.
• Missing the UCAT or MCAT window. A school certificate alone does not qualify for English-taught medicine, and only results from specific years count.
• Underestimating the deposit. Medicine, with a $5,680 (€5,000) deposit, and pharmacy, with $3,410 (€3,000), refund the deposit only if predicted grades are not met or visa problems prevent enrolment; a change of mind costs the full amount.
• Leaving Greek course registration late. In 2026 registration for the eight-month course closed on 16 September, and the centre will not enrol a non-EU student without a visa.
• Counting on a residence hall from day one. Rooms go by lottery, so arrange a rental for the first weeks.
• Confusing the Cyprus branch with the Athens campus. Nicosia has its own entry rules, housing and programme list.

Ranking

In the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2026, NKUA is in the 401–500 band. According to the university, this is the best result among all Greek and Cypriot universities in the table and a rise of 100 places on the previous year. Use rankings as a general orientation; a programme's language, requirements and cost matter more when you choose.

FAQ

Is there a tuition-free route into the University of Athens?

Yes, on Greek-taught programmes through the ministry quota for non-EU foreign nationals. In 2026 there were 106 such places across 41 NKUA programmes. Selection is by school-leaving grade, and registration requires a Greek B2 certificate.

What grade do I need for NKUA through the quota?

It depends on the programme. In 2026 medicine, dentistry and chemistry admitted only candidates scoring 20 out of 20, the last admitted law student had 16.2, political science went down to 12.5, and philology left some places empty.

How much does English-taught medicine at NKUA cost?

$19,300 (€17,000) a year for six years. After admission you pay a $5,680 (€5,000) deposit, refunded only if predicted grades are not met or visa problems prevent enrolment. Besides a school certificate you need one qualification from the programme's list, such as UCAT or MCAT, plus IELTS 7.5.

Does NKUA accept a Russian or Kazakh school certificate for English-taught programmes?

For the BA in Archaeology, History and Literature of Ancient Greece, yes, with high grades and IELTS 6.5 or TOEFL 88. Medicine additionally requires an international test or another listed qualification. For pharmacy, confirm with the admissions office in advance whether a national certificate is enough.

Does NKUA offer free English-taught master's degrees?

Yes. Fee-free programmes on the 2025/26 list included English Language, Linguistics and Translation, English Studies: Literature and Culture, and a translation master's in Greek, English and Russian. Fee-charging programmes on the list cost $570–4,540 (€500–4,000) per semester.

Where can I learn Greek before starting at NKUA?

At the university's own Language Centre. For 2026/27, the course for ministry-admitted students costs $1,120 (€985) and the intensive course open to all $1,400 (€1,230). The B2 certificate exam runs in May and September.

Does NKUA provide student housing for international students?

The FEPA residence complex on campus allocates vacant rooms by lottery among applications submitted every September. A room is not assured, so plan a rental at first: a one-bedroom flat costs about $400–570 (€350–500) a month.

Sources

• NKUA: about the university and schools and departments
• NKUA: THE World University Rankings 2026 result
• Greek Ministry of Education: 2026 quota results and 2026 cut-off grades for non-EU nationals (XLS)
• Study in Greece: quota procedure 2026/27
• NKUA Medical Degree: overview, requirements, application and deposit, dates
• NKUA Integrated Master in Pharmacy: overview and requirements, 2026/27 fees, FAQs
• NKUA BA in Archaeology, History and Literature of Ancient Greece: admission and fees
• List of NKUA master's programmes taught in foreign languages, 2025/26 (PDF)
• NKUA Language Centre: course for admitted students 2026/27 (PDF), intensive course (PDF, Greek), B2 exam
• ISSU guidance for international students: budget, accommodation, insurance and healthcare, study permit, working, after graduation
• NKUA: free meal criteria
• NKUA: Cyprus branch first intake 2026/27 and how to apply to the branch
• Joint Ministerial Decision 225679/2024: minimum funds (PDF)
• Law 5275/2026 (Gazette A' 17/06.02.2026): Articles 30–32 on student permits, student work and the H.11 permit (PDF)
• All sources checked on 29 September 2026. ECB rate of 29.09.2026: €1 = $1.1355. Rounding step: $1 below $100, otherwise $10.

Route selection between the quota and English-taught study, the department list for the quota form, a check of your school certificate, and preparing and submitting documents are provided under an agreement with StudyU. Quota admission is a decision of the Greek Ministry of Education, NKUA programme committees decide English-taught and master's admission, the Greek consulate decides the visa, the migration authority the residence permit, and the university lottery allocates residence rooms.

During the free initial consultation, we clarify your goal, profile, timing, and budget and identify the next realistic step.