International Office

Incoming Exchange and Visiting students

Incoming Exchange and Visiting students

If you are a student registered at a foreign university, you can study at the University of Malta as a visiting student for one semester or a full academic year. Visiting students are classified as follows:

Exchange students
Exchange students are registered students at a University with which the University of Malta has an exchange agreement. Exchange students need to be nominated by their home university before sending the application documents.

Visiting students
When there is no bilateral exchange agreement between the University of Malta and student’s home university, students can register for study-units at the University of Malta on a tuition fee basis, for a period of one semester or one full academic year.  This applicant has to be a registered student of another University.

The academic calendar of the UM runs on 3 semesters. 

The Application deadlines are as follows:

  • 1 May for semester 1 and full academic year mobility periods
  • 1 October for semester 2 mobility periods

Taught courses are generally delivered during semesters 1 and 2, while semester 3 is mainly used for postgraduate research courses and placements.   

The examination session takes place at the end of the semesters 1 and 2. As a visiting student, you are required to remain in Malta until the end of your semester examinations,  hand in all your assignments, and sit for your exams before your departure. Special arrangements for early departures cannot be considered.

Get to know the start dates for academic years:

2024-2025

The language of tuition at the UM is English and therefore you are expected to have an adequate level of English Proficiency to be able to follow lectures and draw up assignments in English.

If English is not your first language you need to submit an English Language Proficiency Certificate or an official letter of recommendation from your home university stating that your level of English is adequate for you to be able to follow lectures at the University of Malta with profit.

If you are studying a specific language you need to have the necessary competence in the concerned language. The level of proficiency is to be assessed by the head of department of the respective language department.

ELP1061 - English Proficiency for International Students

The study-unit aims to improve the level of proficiency in English of foreign students whose general command of the language would place them at ‘Upper Intermediate Level’. This study-unit is offered both in Semester 1 and 2 by the Centre for English Language Proficiency. Before being registered, students intending to take this study-unit are to sit for a screening test to determine eligibility. Once the results of the test are sent via email, students eligible for the unit will be asked to confirm their registration and they will be automatically registered by the Centre. For further information please contact celp@um.edu.mt.

Study-units in Academic English provided by the Institute of Linguistics and Language Technology

LIN1063-A (Visiting) Academic Reading and Writing in English and LIN1065-A (Visiting) Academic Speaking in English

The Institute of Linguistics and Language Technology provides two study-units for visiting students who wish to take courses in academic English: LIN1063-A (Visiting) Academic Reading and Writing in English and LIN1065-A (Visiting) Academic Speaking in English. Kindly refer to the study-unit descriptions available on eSIMS for further details. You will need to register through the International Office in the same way that you do for all your other study-units.

Visiting students for whom English is not a first language should be aware that the above courses assume a proficiency in English that enables them to handle academic texts and their discussion in English. This would roughly be in the range of 6 IELTS (TOEFL equivalent). Students who feel their proficiency might not yet have reached a sufficiently high level are advised not to take the course since they may not be able to follow it with profit.

Queries regarding the content of the courses should be addressed to the co-ordinator of the Academic English Programme, Dr Natalie Schembri. Queries regarding time-tabling or administration should be addressed to Ms Victoria Sciberras Herrera.

The Academic English time-table (including the scheduling details for the above study-units) is available on the Academic English Programme website.

Malta University Language School is a residential school owned and validated by the University of Malta. Together with its team of professional teachers, the Language School offers a number of courses in English suited for visiting students.

Student application deadlines

Submit the application documents to UM by email :

  • 1 May for semester 1 and full academic year mobility periods
  • 1 October for semester 2 mobility periods

Application documents

  1. Application form
  2. Copy of your passport (pages with personal and passport details- showing date and place of Issue).
  3. Official University Transcript. If your transcript/certificate is not in English, a certified English translation should be provided.
  4. English Language Proficiency certificate or official letter of recommendation from your home University stating that your level of English is adequate to be able to follow lectures at the University of Malta with profit.
  5. Health Form
  6. Non-refundable application fee as applicable (exchange students do not pay an application fee).
    The application fee for visiting students is €95.
    You need to submit a copy of the transfer of the application fee as proof of payment.
    Payments can be made by bank transfer through:
    HSBC (Malta) plc, 52 Msida Seafront, Msida, Malta.
    Account Number: 085 03145 8002
    (SWIFT address: MMEB MT MT; Sort Code – 44853
    IBAN -MT84MMEB44853000000085031458002).
    Or through:
    Bank of Valletta, University Branch, Msida, Malta.
    Account Number: 168 002 69019
    (SWIFT address: VALL MT MT; Sort Code – 22688 IBAN - MT24 VALL 2201 3000 0000
    1680 0269 019).
    N.B. When affecting payment indicate that you are a visiting student. Any bank charges are to be incurred by the student.
  7. Exchange students: official letter from the student’s home University (with official stamp) which recommends him/her to study at the University of Malta for a period of one/two semesters as applicable.

Insurance

Applicable only for EU students: Copy of European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) and health insurance

EU Students must be in possession of a valid European Health Insurance Card, which will provide basic coverage for the first 90 days. Health insurance is not organised by UM, therefore arrangements must be made by the students to ensure full health insurance coverage during their mobility.

Applicable for all Students: Copy of the travel insurance

Students must have a travel insurance policy which is valid for their stay in Malta, covering the entire duration of the mobility. Travel insurance must cover 'specific medical intervention and repatriation'.

The following are the tuition fees from Academic Year 2020/1:

The University of Malta has revised its Tuition fee schedule for short-term (1 semester or 1 full academic year) for undergraduate visiting students as from 2012/3. Through these changes, a distinction will be made as to the Nationality of visiting students and the amount the study-units they take up during their stay at the University of Malta.

Prior to arrival, when you receive the letter of acceptance from UM, you are required to settle a non refundable* deposit as follows:

  • EU/ EEA Nationals: €240
  • EU/ EEA Nationals registering for B.Sc IT study-units: €640
  • Non EU/ EEA Nationals: €1,080

The letter of acceptance will indicate the date by when this payment will be effected.

*N.B. The Non-Refundable deposit is part of the total tuition fees. You will pay the remaining tuition fee when you are in Malta after registering for your study-units.

Tuition fees are calculated pro-rata based on the number of ECTS.

Arts-Based/Business related (EU/EEA Students)
8 ECTS: €240
12 ECTS : €360
16 ECTS: €480
20 ECTS: €600
24 ECTS: €720
30 ECTS: €900

Science Based (EU/EEA Students)
8 ECTS: €320
12 ECTS : €480
16 ECTS: €640
20 ECTS: €800
24 ECTS: €960
30 ECTS: €1200

Arts-Based/Business related (non-EU/EEA Students)
8 ECTS: €1120
12 ECTS : €1680
16 ECTS: €2240
20 ECTS: €2800
24 ECTS: €3360
30 ECTS: €4200

Science Based (non-EU/EEA Students)
8 ECTS: €1440
12 ECTS : €2160
16 ECTS: €2880
20 ECTS: €3600
24 ECTS: €4320
30 ECTS: €5400

A Definition of arts based, science based and business related   of 'Arts Based', 'Business Related', and 'Science Based' areas.

Adding and dropping study-units during the Late Add/Drop Period
When late requests (after the official Add/drop period) to add study-units are granted, you student will pay the additional tuition fees.  In cases of late requests to drop study-units, no reduction or refund will be given.

As a visiting student you may register for a minimum of 8 ECTS and maximum of 30 ECTS per semester. 30 ECTS is a full load at the University of Malta. You need to consult with your home University well in advance of your arrival in Malta about the number of ECTS and classes you would need to register for.

You can check your assessment results online on eSIMS. When all the results are published the coordinator at the International Office will send an official transcript to your home university if you are an exchange student or directly to you if you are an individual fee-paying student.

Choose your study-units 

List of coordinators

Accommodation at Campus Hub can be booked instantly via the booking engine on the following link.

In Malta, public transport is safe and affordable to use. Buses operate between 05:30 and 23:00 on most routes and night service is also available on Friday, Saturday nights as well as public holidays and feast days.

During your stay in Malta, you can benefit from advantageous public transport fees when applying for a student tallinja card, with student tariffs starting from EUR 0.75. Please refer to Public Transport website for more information.

For more information visit this link.

At the start of every academic semester, the International Office organises an orientation session for visiting students

Orientation sessions 2023-2024
Semester 2 Orientation Session will be held on Wednesday 7 February 2024

During the orientation session information will be given on:
Administrative and academic procedures for visiting students services provided by UM ways and possibilities to spend your free time at the UM and in Malta.

Attendance to the orientation session is compulsory and will provide you with the opportunity to ask questions that you might have.

Download the orientation session documents:

Visiting Student Guidelines Semester 2 AY 2023/2024

Guidelines for students in distress

Medical report form

For more information, please contact Ms Monique Mallia.


https://www.um.edu.mt/international/incomingvisiting/