Unibo for Refugees is the University of Bologna framework of study support for displaced students. This route lets a person holding an Italian residence permit for asylum request or for temporary protection enrol in single learning activities, the individual course units drawn from the university degree programmes.
The University waives the tuition contribution in full, a charge that otherwise runs at €45 per credit. Only a €1.04 insurance premium and a €16 stamp duty remain.
The International Desk holds an orientation interview and checks school and academic qualifications under simplified documentation rules; the student administration office of the hosting degree programme then completes the enrolment. Exams passed are certified in credits that can count towards a Bologna degree later.
Benefits & funding
- Full exemption from the tuition contribution, normally €45 per credit.
- Two charges remain: a €1.04 insurance premium and a €16 stamp duty.
- Up to 30 credits (CFU) per academic year, or a lower cap set by the degree programme hosting the activity.
- Qualification documentation is simplified, with the International Desk assessing school and academic certificates.
- Exams may be sat until the end of the academic year following enrolment — 31 March 2028 for 2026/27 enrolees — and passed credits are certified and can be recognised on later degree enrolment.
Eligibility
- Open to holders of an Italian residence permit for asylum request or for temporary protection; no nationality is excluded.
- A qualification giving access to university is required: a secondary school diploma for first-cycle and single-cycle activities, a degree for second-cycle activities.
- Certification of having attended Italian courses at level A2 or above is required, including for activities taught in English.
- Students already enrolled in a University of Bologna degree programme cannot enrol in single learning activities at the same time.
- The University makes the MOOC Modern Languages ITA101 available on its Unibook open-knowledge platform for meeting the A2 requirement.
Can you apply?
Here's who can apply
Decoded from the official rules. A free account checks them against your passport, degree and age in seconds.
Residence required
Italy
Education required
High School · Bachelor
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Application process
- 1Email internationaldesk@unibo.it to book the orientation interview and the qualification check.
- 2Prepare the residence permit, the qualification documents and the A2 Italian certification.
- 3Choose the course units within the 30-credit yearly ceiling and any lower cap set by the hosting degree programme.
- 4Hand the completed enrolment form to the student administration office of that degree programme; this route does not run through Studenti Online.
- 5Enrol inside the a.y. 2026/27 window, 22 July 2026 to 30 April 2027.
Program timeline
22 July 2026
Enrolment opens for a.y. 2026/27.
30 April 2027
Enrolment deadline for a.y. 2026/27.
Extended window for people enrolling to meet teaching-qualification requirements.
1 May 2027 to 30 June 2027
31 March 2028
Last date for 2026/27 enrolees to sit the exams.