Universidad Complutense de Madrid for International Students
Fees, language rules, admission routes and deadlines at Spain's second-ranked university in QS, checked against official UCM sources.
Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM) is a public university in Madrid with 64,407 students and 26 faculties. Its official founding date is 1499, when a papal bull allowed Cardinal Cisneros to found a college in Alcalá de Henares; its roots go back to 1293. In the QS World University Rankings it is 199th in the world and second in Spain.
UCM suits applicants who speak Spanish at B2 level or are ready to reach it, and graduates looking for an official Spanish master's degree. It is a poor fit if you want to study entirely in English, and it is not a shortcut into medicine for international applicants.
| Key fact | UCM |
|---|---|
Type | Public university, part of the Madrid Distrito Único with UAM, UC3M, UPM, URJC and UAH |
Founded | 1499 (Alcalá de Henares) |
Students | 64,407, including 7,546 in master's programs |
International students | 8,054, or 12.4% of all students |
Structure | 26 faculties, 27 institutes, 15 clinics and university hospitals |
Programs | 74 bachelor's, 22 double bachelor's, 168 official master's, 56 doctoral |
Rankings | QS: 199 (2nd in Spain); THE: 501–600 |
Main language | Spanish; fully in English: 1–2 bachelor's and 4 master's |
Universidad Complutense de Madrid tuition fees for non-EU students
Under Madrid's Decree 43/2022, non-EU students over 18 without Spanish residence pay the bachelor's rate for a fourth enrollment and the master's rate for a third enrollment. A student stay permit does not count as residence. In practice, a non-EU bachelor's student pays more than six times the EU rate per credit. Prices for the next academic year are not published yet.
| Program (current prices) | Non-EU, € per ECTS | Non-EU, 60 ECTS per year | EU and residents, € per ECTS |
|---|---|---|---|
Bachelor's: sciences and health | 136.44 | ≈ 8,186 € | 20.68 |
Bachelor's: engineering | 128.57 | ≈ 7,714 € | 19.43 |
Bachelor's: humanities and social sciences | 113.71 | ≈ 6,823 € | 16.92 |
Official master's (most programs) | 84.07 |
Examples: Law Practice (about 126 €/ECTS) and General Health Psychology (169.21 €/ECTS). On top of tuition, UCM charges a 6.11 € administration fee and 27.54 € to open your file at first enrollment. You can pay in installments, from abroad via Flywire.
What a year at UCM costs non-EU students
€ per year (60 ECTS) at the non-EU rate
- Bachelor's: sciences and health≈ 8,186 €
- Bachelor's: engineering≈ 7,714 €
- Bachelor's: humanities and social sciences≈ 6,823 €
- Official master's (most programs)≈ 5,044 €
Programs and the degree you receive
UCM awards official bachelor's (Grado), master's (Máster Universitario) and doctoral degrees. Its 107 "Máster de Formación Permanente" programs are the university's own titles, not official state degrees, so check which type you are applying for.
Taught fully in English, according to UCM's own lists:
- Bachelor's: English Studies, plus Business Administration (ADE), which "can be taken 100% in English" at the Somosaguas campus.
- Master's: English Linguistics (New Applications and International Communication), Erasmus Mundus in Molecular Nano- and Biophotonics, Erasmus Mundus 4 Cities (Urban Studies), and North American Studies.
Everything else is taught in Spanish.
After an official degree you can switch from student status to a work permit without leaving Spain, or apply for a job-search residence permit of up to 24 months. For regulated professions at home, check your national regulator's rules before you enroll.
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Admission requirements for international students
UCM has two bachelor's routes for non-EU applicants and a separate process for master's.
- IB Diploma or EU school systems: no homologation needed.
- India, Pakistan, Nigeria, Egypt and most other systems: you need homologation of your school certificate to the Spanish Bachiller by the Ministry of Education.
- Spanish: non-Spanish-speaking applicants from non-Spanish school systems must prove Spanish at B2.
General bachelor's route (Distrito Único Madrid)
1
Homologation of your school certificate — official certificate plus grades for at least the last 3 years, with apostille or legalization and an official translation. The legal decision period is 3 months from a complete file; in practice it can take longer, so start early. A "volante" (proof of a pending application) usually allows conditional enrollment, which is cancelled if homologation is refused.
2
UNEDasiss accreditation — online applications open 4 February and close 1 December each year. Your score is 60% school grades and 40% specific exams (PCE). Without PCE, the calculated score is capped at 6 out of 10.
3
PCE exams — in the last intake, registration ran 16 March–28 April and exams took place 25–29 May in Spain. The next calendar is not published yet; by that model, expect registration in March–April and exams in late May.
4
Pre-registration in the Distrito Único — one application covers six public Madrid universities, with up to 12 programs ranked by priority. In the last intake, the window for foreign school systems was 5 June–6 July, with lists on 10 July. New dates will be published closer to intake.
5
One rule catches many families: applicants with homologation but without a passed PCE cannot apply in the ordinary phase. They can only use the extraordinary phase for leftover places.
Early Admission is the second route. It is for international applicants whose family and residence are outside Spain, and it does not require PCE. In the last intake, applications ran 22 January–1 April, for up to 3 programs, with 462 places across 43 programs. Selection is based mainly on your final school grade, with a possible test and interview. Priority goes to native speakers of Spanish, English or Portuguese, then to graduates of UCM's International Foundation Program. Dates for the next intake have not been published yet.
Master's: with a non-Bologna bachelor's degree you do not need homologation. After admission, UCM runs a "Comprobación del Nivel de Formación". You need a legalized or apostilled diploma and transcript, a letter confirming the degree gives master's access in your country, and translations. In the last intake, round 1 ran 28 January–20 February and round 2 ran 27 April–22 May. Round 1 leaves the most time for a visa. Some programs ask for a seat deposit of around 200 €, so check your program's page. Details on the master's in Spain and admission requirements pages.
What to know before you apply
- Language is the main barrier. Outside the few English-taught programs, you need Spanish B2, and some master's programs require C1. DELE exams run on several dates a year, including in April and May (all levels in the May session). Starting from zero? UCM's language center, CCEE, charges 5,650 € for a 20-hour-per-week annual course on its current price list. A language course requires a student visa from the consulate and gives status for about 2 years at most.
- Early Admission does not include medicine. Medicine, pharmacy, dentistry, nursing and most engineering are not on the list. For these, the only way in is the general route with PCE, and places are competitive.
- No UCM scholarships for full degrees for our markets. UCM's scholarship page lists exchange programs and schemes for Latin America. Egyptian and Nigerian graduates can look at MAEC-AECID África-Med Máster (30 places in the latest call). Holders of development-aid scholarships cannot switch to a Spanish work permit after graduation.
Rankings and accreditation
UCM is 199th in the QS World University Rankings and second in Spain, after the University of Barcelona. In the Times Higher Education World University Rankings it is in the 501–600 band. As a public university of the Comunidad de Madrid, it issues official Spanish state degrees for its Grado, Máster Universitario and doctoral programs.
Housing and student life
UCM runs 5 colegios mayores (residence halls): Antonio de Nebrija, Diego de Covarrubias, Santa María de Europa, Teresa de Jesús and Ximénez de Cisneros. The current price is 1,081.70 € per month for UCM students, VAT included, plus a 450 € deposit counted toward your fees. In the last intake, applications ran 22 May–17 June.
Most students rent a room in a shared flat. A room in Madrid costs about 550 € per month on average. Day-to-day costs without rent are around 818 € per month, and a transport pass is 33 €. Budget roughly 1,100–1,450 € per month with a shared room.
University students can work up to 30 hours per week without a separate permit, within the Comunidad de Madrid. Read more on studying and working in Spain.
Student visa
For a degree at UCM you apply for a student visa at the Spanish consulate at least 2 months before classes start. The permit decision takes 7 days, then the consulate issues the visa within 1 month. You need proof of 600 € per month of stay (7,200 € for a year), not counting tuition. You also need private health insurance with no co-payments, waiting periods or coverage caps, a criminal record certificate, a medical certificate and a passport valid for at least 1 more year.
Documents from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Bahrain need an apostille. Documents from Nigeria, Egypt, the UAE, Qatar and Kuwait need consular legalization. Full steps are on our Spain student visa page.
Other options
If you do not have Spanish yet, compare private universities with English-taught programs, such as Universidad Europea, UCAM and CEU San Pablo University. If cost matters most, the University of Barcelona charges non-EU bachelor's students 17.69 € per credit, but much of its teaching is in Catalan. See the full picture in our guide to studying in Spain.
14 questions to ask before you pay the deposit
Deposits are almost never refundable. Ask these by email before paying — and keep the university's answer on record.
- What to ask about the programme, accreditation and the degree
- What tuition does not include and when a deposit is refunded
- Who files the visa application — you or the university
- Five red flags that mean you should not pay
Not sure which route fits your school certificate or degree? We check your documents against Universidad Complutense de Madrid's requirements, map your timeline and compare 2–3 alternatives in Spain. The first consultation is free. Send us a message via the website form, WhatsApp or Telegram, or visit our contacts page.
