University of Ljubljana (Univerza v Ljubljani)

The University of Ljubljana (Univerza v Ljubljani) is Slovenia's oldest and largest public university, founded in 1919, with around 40,000 students in 23 faculties and three art academies. Nearly all bachelor's teaching is in Slovene; the one English-taught bachelor's is Business and Economics at the School of Economics and Business (SEB), which costs non-EU students $3,800 (€3,400) a year. Applications go through Slovenia's eVŠ portal in February and March — 18 February to 18 March in 2026 — and applicants who need a visa for the EU must pass an interview before their file is assessed.

Its strengths are scale and academic depth. The limit for international students is language: in English you get one bachelor's and a set of master's programmes, while most other degrees require B2 Slovene.

It fits you if you:

• want an English-taught business and economics bachelor's at an EU public university for a moderate fee;
• are looking at English-taught master's programmes at SEB or the Faculty of Computer and Information Science;
• are willing to learn Slovene, which opens the rest of the catalogue and the local job market;
• start early: the interview, recognition of your certificate and the permit take months.

Taken from the faculties' 2026/27 price lists, where "SLO & ENG" marks programmes delivered in English as well as Slovene. Fees apply to students who pay tuition, which includes most non-EU citizens.

The English stream of the SEB bachelor's has 120 places shared with Slovenian students. Year one is common to all: business mathematics, micro- and macroeconomics, company and business law, management, introduction to business, informatics, organisational behaviour, statistics and accounting. From year two, English-stream students choose International Business, Marketing or Tourism. SEB's IMB master's was ranked 29th in the Financial Times Masters in Management 2026.

Fees vary widely by faculty: the Slovene-taught computer science bachelor's, for example, costs international students $12,290 (€11,000) a year.

Slovenia's Ministry of Higher Education publishes one national call for all universities; you apply on the eVŠ portal in Slovene or English, listing up to three programmes in order of preference. The 2026/27 timeline for non-EU citizens is shown below; SEB expects the 2027/28 window to open in mid-February 2027.

Your eVŠ application doubles as the request to recognise your foreign school certificate, which the university must decide within two months of a complete file. The second period is mainly for applicants who already received a recognition decision in the first. When the SEB English stream is oversubscribed, candidates are ranked 60% on final exam results and 40% on grades from the last two school years.

The master's call for 2027/28 will be published in April 2027.

Citizens of countries whose nationals need a visa for the EU — including India, China, Türkiye, Russia, Kazakhstan, Nigeria and Pakistan — are classed as higher migration risk. Under the 2026/27 national call for enrolment, the faculty must interview them before processing the application further.

• The faculty checks that your knowledge matches your documents; if it does not, it rejects the application and there is no appeal.
• You bear any costs of an interview held abroad or remotely.
• Details arrive from the faculty after the application deadline.

Documents uploaded to eVŠ:

• your final school certificate without legalisation — the university may ask your school to confirm it, and if that fails, you send the original legalised under your country's rules;
• transcripts for all school years, with certified Slovene or English translations of the last two;
• a short chronological description of your whole education;
• for the SEB English stream, proof of B2 English: a certificate such as TOEFL iBT 72–93, or a school-leaving document showing English as a completed final-year subject.

Full-time study is free for Slovenian and EU citizens, for citizens of Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland, and — under bilateral protocols — for citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo and Serbia. Other non-EU citizens pay tuition, usually in full at enrolment for the year; health insurance is not included.

Slovenia's state scholarships for foreigners currently target Western Balkan citizens and selected African and Asian countries; the government's bilateral scheme for 2026/27 funds partial study (3–10 months) for nominated citizens of countries such as India, China, Japan, Mexico and Türkiye.

The university advises at least $780 (€700) a month for living costs on top of tuition. Dormitory beds are very limited and described as exchange-student places; international students pay the economic rate, on average $220 (€197.44) a month plus about $34 (€30) in extras. A private room costs $225–560 (€200–500) a month, and early searching pays off. The student Urbana city-bus pass is $22 (€20) a month.

A minimum first year on the SEB bachelor's: tuition $3,800 (€3,400), twelve months of living $9,390 (€8,400) and about $78 (€70) in permit charges — roughly $13,270 (€11,870) before flights and insurance.

The temporary residence permit for study is issued by the administrative unit (upravna enota). Nationals who need a visa apply at a Slovenian embassy; visa-exempt nationals can apply in Slovenia before their legal stay ends. The university warns that, because enrolment happens in September, students going through an embassy will probably not be able to start in October — apply as soon as you are enrolled, ideally 3–6 months before travelling.

• File: application form, passport valid at least three months beyond your planned stay, photo, proof of enrolment, Slovenian health insurance, and a criminal record certificate under three months old, apostilled where applicable and officially translated into Slovene.
• Funds: $565 (€507.43) a month in 2026. A written statement from one parent, in English or Slovene, that they will support you for the academic year is enough; no notarisation is needed.
• Charges: $56 (€50) permit fee, $5 (€4.50) application fee and $17 (€15.47) for the card.
• Validity: usually until 30 September of the following year; renew before it expires or you start again as a first-time applicant.
• Work: study-permit holders can work through the student employment service or take a job alongside their studies.
• After graduation: once, within two years of completing your degree, you can get a permit to look for work or start a business for up to nine months, with no extension.

Several programmes require B2 Slovene at application, including medicine, pharmacy, law, journalism, psychology, the Academy of Theatre, Radio, Film and Television programmes and SEB's professional Business Administration degree.

Students admitted to programmes without that requirement can take Year Plus: two free 3-ECTS Slovene courses in the first year. Earning at least 30 ECTS in year one, six of them in Slovene, extends your student status by one year. Year Plus does not replace B2 for programmes that require it at entry.

Consider other options if you:

• want an English-taught bachelor's outside business and economics;
• expect free tuition but are not an EU or Western Balkan citizen;
• are not prepared for an interview whose negative outcome cannot be appealed;
• prefer a small private school focused on entrepreneurship — compare GEA College.

Common mistakes:

• missing the February–March window: the September period is mostly for applicants already recognised in the first round;
• uploading a certificate you already hold after the first period closes (18 March in 2026);
• forgetting translations of the last two years' transcripts;
• applying for the permit only after enrolling in late September and losing the first semester;
• bringing a criminal record certificate older than three months or without a Slovene translation.

For the wider picture, see our guide to studying in Slovenia.