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International incoming students

Banner Incoming Students Handbook

UVigo has exchange agreements with universities from around the world. Different mobility exchange programmes allow international students to choose their stay at UVigo according to their preferences:

If you want to obtain a Bachelor degree, a Master’s degree or a Doctoral degree in UVigo, as a full-degree student, please find more information here.

 

Students taking part in Erasmus+ programme or other international mobility programme.

Erasmus+30​​​​

 

How to apply as an exchange student?

SPECIFIC INFORMATION FOR:

Requirements

  • In order to come to UVigo as an exchange student, you should first verify whether there is a cooperation agreement between UVigo and your home university for your field of study.
  • Afterwards, your home university must send us your nomination, confirming that you have been granted the status as a student of Erasmus or other international mobility programme.

 

Application procedure

After receiving your nomination, the International Relations Office will check if it is acceptable in accordance with the bilateral agreement. After a few days we will send you a confirmation e-mail with the link to an online application form. You will have to submit it online and attatch the following documents in pdf or jpeg format.

Bachelor degree students

  • Identity card or passport
  • A certificate issued by your home university providing proof of your exchange student status
  • European Health Card or private health insurance covering the whole length of the exchange period

Master's or PhD students

  • Identity card or passport
  • A certificate issued by your home university confirming your status as exchange student
  • European Health Card or private health insurance covering the whole length of your exchange period
  • Updated transcript of records from both bachelor and master studies

Please watch out for the deadline for applications, as late applications will not be accepted.

 

Deadlines for online application:
June 15 1st / fall semester or full academic year students
November 20 2nd / spring semester students

 

​​​​​​Once we have received and checked your online application form and the attached documents, you will receive a welcome email with our digitally signed acceptance letter.

If you wish to send us your students nominations, please be aware that you must fill in the following online nomination form with the data for each nominated student.

  • Please, note that nominations sent by email or post will not be accepted
  • We will only accept nominations sent by a nominating International Relations Office or a nominating university staff member

Should you have any doubt with the online nomination form, do not hesitate to contact us at incoming.ori@uvigo.es.

Deadlines for nomination:
From February 3 until June 1 1st / fall semester or full academic year students
From August 3 until October 16 2nd / spring semester students

After receiving the nominations, the International Relations Office will check if they are acceptable in accordance with the bilateral agreement and will send an e-mail to the nominated students with the instructions on how to fill in the online application form.

Academic coordinators

At the UVigo each faculty has its own academic coordinator, who is responsible for subject-specific matters. Please, refer to the coordinator of your faculty (the one where you are going to study the majority of courses) for the signature of the Learning Agreement and ALL academic questions.

Learning Agreement and other academic questions

The Learning Agreement (LA) is the academic document that contains the equivalence of courses or credits that you completed abroad, that are to be recognized by your home institution.

  • Make sure that your Learning Agreement is signed by your home university and yourself before sending it by email to the academic coordinator of your faculty at UVigo.
  • Please do not send the original version of the Learning Agreement (from your home university) by post or email to the International Relations Office.

Attention: Only the academic coordinators (from host and home institutions) are authorized to sign LA.

Academic Offer

Please take a look at our academic offer and complete your Learning Agreement with the chosen courses. You might also be interested in our academic offer in English, so you can access to the catalogue of subjects taught in this language filtering by academic year, semester, faculty or school.

 

Go to the catalogue

 


The University also offers a program of subjects English Friendly. These are taught in the official degrees of the University of Vigo in Spanish and/or Galician, but teachers are committed to:

  • Indicate the English Friendly nature in the teaching guide
  • Translate the teaching guide into English
  • Provide materials and references in English if asked by the international student
  • Speak in English in tutorships if asked by the international student
  • Design and write tests in English if asked by the international student

English Friendly Subjects


You can also check the following list:

You must choose the majority of subjects in the faculty or school stated as "reference center" in your acceptance letter. It is possible to choose subjects from other faculties / schools, as long as the schedules are compatible and the faculties belong to the same campus. When choosing the subjects, it is important that you check that they are taught in the period corresponding to your stay:

  • 1 C = 1st semester (from September to January)
  • 2 C = 2nd semester (from January to May)

Once you have duly filled out and sent the online application form, you will receive an email confirming the receipt of your application.

What is it?

An Erasmus+ traineeship abroad allows you to carry out a work experience placement, as part of your degree.

If you wish to take an internship in one of Uvigo´s departments or laboratories, you should in advance agree with your tutor (traineeship coordinator) on the exact dates of your traineeship.

At the UVigo each faculty has its own academic coordinator. Please, refer to the coordinator in the faculty more related with your field of interest in order to ask him/her whether is possible to find a tutor for you.

It is possible to do your internship at the International Relations Office. If you are interested, you can contact us to see if it is possible to admit you on the proposed dates.

How to apply?

Once this agreement between you and your traineeship coordinator has been reached, you will need to provide the following documents, along with the online application form:

  • Copy of ID / Passport
  • Learning agreement for traineeships duly covered and signed by the student, the academic tutor in the institution of origin and the person responsible for the department or service of the University of Vigo in which the internships are to take place. The exact dates of your stay period should be indicated.
  • Proof of having contracted a valid insurance in Spain with health, accidents and repatriation coverage.

You can submit your form at any time. It is not necessary to adjust to the deadlines that apply to studies.

Admission

Once the application is received and the documentation provided is checked, the International Relations Office (ORI) of the Universidade de Vigo will send the applicant a welcome email with his/her attached Acceptance Letter.

 

If your home university does not have an exchange agreement with University of Vigo and you would still like to study at UVigo for a term or a whole academic year, then you may do so by applying as a visiting international student.

This programme allows you to enrol in different courses without obtaining a title, but at the end of your stay, you will be issued a Transcript of Records. Back at the home university, you can ask for validation of the courses you have taken.

Tuition and admission fees

As a visiting international student, you are responsible for paying:

  • UVigo's tuition fees according to the number of credits you have enroled for. These rates are established for every academic year by the autonomic government (Xunta de Galicia).
    Check the Academic fees 2019-2020 here.
  • Administration fees
  • An extra administration fee of 400 € for one semester or 800 € for the full academic year.

Note: The tuition and the administration fees should be payed in just the one payment at the beginning of the academic year.

Application process

Students should submit the following documents:

  • Application form
  • Motivation letter in Spanish or Galician
  • Copy of your valid ID card or passport
  • Certificate stating your Spanish or Galician language skills
  • Updated transcript of records from bachelor studies
  • Proof of having a health insurance policy valid in Spain

Deadlines

Visiting international students who wish to take courses during a whole academic year (from September to June) or only the first term (from September to January) should hand in their application forms with a deadline of 31st of May of the current year. For students taking courses during the second term (from February to July), the application deadline is the 15th of October of the previous year.

International Relations Office will notify the student if he/she is admitted, as soon as the student is accepted at the centre where he/she wishes to enrol and will receive a Letter of Acceptance issued by the International Relations Office in order to obtain a visa.

Enrolment

Visiting students will be able to register for a maximum period of one academic year. They can enrol for a minimum of 10 and a maximum of 60 ECTS credits.

Students can enrol for any of the courses offered at the University of Vigo. However, access to some courses may be restricted or even excluded due to their specific characteristics or because they are taught in small groups.

Student must have an adequate threshold study level equivalent to that required for registration at the courses he/she wants to study.

 

 

General Information

Academic Calendar

Accommodation

There is no language formal requirement for incoming students at the Universidade de Vigo. Nevertheless the achievement of a pre-intermediate level of knowledge of Spanish (B1 level), before arrival, is highly recommended.

Students who will only take courses in English should have B2 English knowledge.  

For international students in Spain it´s required by law to have a health insurance.

Citizens of the European Union who are covered under the social security system of their home country must acquire a European Health Insurance Card from the public health authorities of their country before departing for Spain.

Citizens of non-EU countries have to take out a private health insurance that is valid in Spain.

We highly recommend that students take out an international medical insurance with any insurance company that includes accident coverage, international medical transfer, travel assistance, repatriation in case of accident or serious illness, death, etc.

The UVigo has negotiated a quite affordable health care insurance coverage with OnCampus for international students with only one-time fee per period. If you are interested, you can contract it directly through company´s website (remember to select the UVigo among the available options): Oncampus-estudia.

Once in Spain, students from the European Union should visit a public health centre (Seguridad Social), bringing their European Health Insurance card, where they will be assigned a general practitioner.

Students from outside the European Union are already required to purchase a private health insurance to obtain the Spanish students visa.

Students should ask the insurance company in their home country for a list of hospitals and health centres in Spain which have an agreement with them. Usually, students bear the sanitary expenses themselves, and afterwards claim the reimbursement in their insurance Company.

The Spanish public health system does not cover the medical expenses of the citizens of countries outside the European Union. In case they address themselves to the public medical system, they should have to pay for the care, and the price will be higher than the one of a private medical centre, because the public system is saturated.

 

Main health centres and hospitals

In Pontevedra

Complexo Hospitalario Universitario de Pontevedra
Rúa Mourente s/n, 36071 Pontevedra
+34 986 800 000

Health centres

 

In Vigo

Complexo Hospitalario Universitario de Vigo
Carretera Clara Campoamor 341, 36310 Vigo

+34 986 816 000
http://chuvi.sergas.es

Health centres

 

In Ourense

Complexo Hospitalario Universitario de Ourense
Rúa Ramón Puga Noguerol, 52, 32005 Ourense
+34 988 385 500

Health centres

At the beginning of each semester, the Language Centre (Centro de Linguas) organizes Spanish language courses as a foreign language for international exchange students. The aim of these courses is to provide the basic knowledge of Spanish language to facilitate the academic and social integration of non-Spanish-speaking international students. There are courses at all language levels.

Note: Language level tests will be held at the beginning of each semester at the Welcome Meetings for international students.

Duration

The course, with a duration of 60 hours, starts in September / October (for students coming for one semester or the full academic year) and in February (for students of the second semester).

​Credits

You will obtain 4 credits for this course. All students who participate in at least 90% of classes will receive a certificate of attendance. In order to obtain the certificate it will be necessary to attend at least 85% of the classes. If you also take and pass the final Spanish language exam, you will receive a diploma stating the final mark achieved.

Please notice that the credits for this course will not appear in your Transcript of Records because it is not included in the educational plan of your degree, master's or doctorate program.

If you take a Spanish course in UVigo, you will be able to collect your certificate in the Language Centre (Centro de Linguas) before leaving the University.

Course fees

The course fee is € 75 for exchange students, € 234 for the university community members and € 285 for the public.

For more information, contact:

Centro de Linguas
centrodelinguas@uvigo.es
+34 986 812 250

Galician and Spanish are two official languages used within the University administration in Galicia.

The Área de Normalización Lingüística organizes a Galician language- and culture course for international exchange students who are currently studying in the UVigo. It is a free, 75-hour course (50 hours of theory + 25 hours of guided tours). This course gives you 2.5 ECTS credits. You will also receive a certificate issued on the condition that you attend at least 85% of classes and take the final exam.

Note: The credits for this course will not appear in your Transcript of Records because it is not included in the educational plan of your Degree-, Master's or Doctorate programme.

For more information, contact:

Área de Normalización Lingüística
anl@uvigo.es
+34 986 813 574

 

1. International students registration at the Foreign Office: Erasmus students (citizens from the EU and countries belonging to the EEA Agreement)

Incoming students from an EU country, a country belonging to the EEA Agreement (Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein) or the Swiss Confederation who will be studying in Spain for more than three months are required to register at the National Police of the province where they will be residing. This office will issue a registration certificate that allows students to live in Spain during their learning period.

The necessary documents for the registration at the Central Register are the following:

  • Application form (EX18 form) for registering in the Central Register of Foreign Citizens duly filled and signed.
  • A valid passport or ID card. In case this document is expired, a copy of the renewal application will also be mandatory.
  • Letter of acceptance from the University of Vigo.
  • Affidavit stating that the student has enough economic means for his/her stay in Spain.
  • A copy of the European Health Insurance Card (or an alternative insurance).

Students are required to hand in the above-mentioned documents at the National Police Station of the province where the student will reside (addresses are indicated at the bottom of this page).

Once handed in all the documents, students receive a temporary NIE number, as well as a form to pay the tax (€10.82). The deposit can be made in any bank office.

After having done the payment, it is necessary to go back to the Police Station in order to receive the NIE. That means that the registration process has successfully been finished.

For more information:
Ministry of Labour, Migrations and Social Security
Informative leaflet

2. International students registration at the Foreign Office: Erasmus students of non-EU nationality

Due to the new Regulation of Foreign Residents in Spain, universities are responsible for communicating Erasmus students’ data to the corresponding Foreign Office, provided that they are non-EU nationals. This procedure exempt students from applying for a visa.

Students who have a valid authorisation issued by another Member State in accordance with Directive (EU) 2016/801 and who participate in a European or multilateral Union programme, which includes mobility measures or that are covered by an agreement between two or more institutions of higher education, will have the right to enter and remain in Spain, for a period of up to 360 days in order to carry out part of their studies in a Spanish higher education institution, prior notification to the Government Delegation or Sub-Delegation in the province in which the activity will begin.

The communication will be made by the Spanish higher education institution before entering the Spanish territory or, at most, within one month from it. The  dates of mobility and the expected duration shall be stated.
In order to do so, students need to send scanned in PDF the following documents by email upon their arrival (incoming.ori@uvigo.es). There is a deadline of 1 month after arriving in Spain:

  • A copy of the passport, including the residence permit.
  • Copy of the authorisation issued by the first Member State, covering the total period of mobility 
  • The phone number and the address in Spain (Vigo, Ourense or Pontevedra).

3. International students registration at the Foreign Office: non-EU students from non-EU universities

In order to come into Spain and stay as a student, it is necessary to apply for a study visa from the Spanish Embassy or the Consulate in the country of origin. The minimum documents required to apply for the study visa are the following:

  • Signed visa application form. It can be downloaded here.
  • A valid passport during the stay in Spain.
  • Letter of acceptance from the University of Vigo.
  • Study plan.
  • Health insurance.
  • Criminal record certificate issued by the relevant authorities of the home country or country of residence.
  • Proof of sufficient economic means to cover the studies and the stay in Spain.

For more information, check the website of the Ministry of Labour, Migration and Social Security. The address and phone numbers of the embassies and consulates in Spain are available here.

If staying more than 6 months, it is necessary to apply for the Foreign Resident Identity Card after arriving at the corresponding police office. There is a deadline of 1 month after arriving in Spain, and the required documents are the following:

  • The application form is available here.
  • A copy of the passport.
  • Proof of payment of the card fee.
  • A recent picture (ID size).

4. Extending the study period in Spain

If the study period exceeds a year, students ought to apply for and obtain an extension of their residence permit. If studying at the campuses of Vigo or Pontevedra, it is possible to do so at the corresponding police station. On the other hand, if studying in Ourense, this formality is to be done at the Foreign Residents Office (see addresses below).

The application is to be sent at least 60 days before the permit expires, since the application will be rejected if the permit runs out. Consequently, applying for a new visa would be mandatory.

Along with the application for the extension (EX-00 form), the following documents need to be included:

  • Copy of the previous identity card.
  • Proof of sufficient economic means to cover the studies and the stay in Spain.
  • Passport.
  • Health insurance.
  • Document certificating the right to continue studying (academic certificate).

More information here.

Once the authorization has been issued, there is a deadline of one month to apply for the new Foreigner Identity Card.
To set an appointment, click here.  

5. Foreign Residents Offices

6. National Police Stations

Note: The University of Vigo cannot be held responsible for any modifications that may be introduced in Spanish legislation to this effect after this information has been published. Therefore, it is recommended that students check their obligations concerning residence in Spain at the Foreign Office after arrival, or on the Ministry website or with the Spanish Consulate before arrival.

 

 

Further information:

​​​International Relations Office
+34 986 811 947
incoming.ori@uvigo.es