University of Padua
The University of Padua (Università degli Studi di Padova) was founded in 1222 and is one of the oldest universities in the world still in continuous operation. It's a large, comprehensive public university — medicine, law, science, engineering, and the humanities all run alongside each other — with a scientific tradition that runs unusually deep: Galileo Galilei taught mathematics here from 1592 to 1610, and the university's 1594 anatomical theatre is the oldest surviving purpose-built one in the world.
- City
- Padua
- Type
- Public university
- Official site
- Visit website
- Admissions
- How to apply
About the university
Padua sits in the Veneto, about 30 minutes by train from Venice, and has built its whole identity around the university — a genuinely large student population relative to the city's size, a historic centre that doubles as campus, and a long-standing international exchange network drawing students from across Europe and beyond.
Our on-the-ground support in Padua is genuinely less deep than in Turin or Milan today — see the Padua city guide for an honest read on what that means in practice, alongside the full guided application process, which works the same everywhere.
Admission for international students generally runs through the standard route: Universitaly pre-enrolment, a Declaration of Value or CIMEA comparability statement for your prior qualification, and — depending on faculty — an entrance test or a language requirement if you're studying in Italian. Padua's academic calendar follows the typical Italian pattern of two semesters, with continuous assessment alongside end-of-course exams.
See the Padua city guide for what living and studying in Padua looks like beyond the university itself.
Living in Padua
Rent, transport, and settling in
How applying here works
- 1
Universitaly pre-enrolment
Your application to Italy, filed on the government portal.
- 2
Declaration of Value or CIMEA
Your prior qualification, made readable to an Italian university.
- 3
Entrance test or language check
Where the faculty asks for one — this is what preparation is for.
We walk you through each step inside the portal. How the application service works, or see the full 20-step journey.