Medicine, the (expensive) parachute of private faculties still open

These are feverish hours for the 40,000 (46,000 in the case of physics) aspiring white coats who have taken the second and, for now, final Medicine call. On 23 December they will know their test scores, and on 12 January 2026 they will know whether they have entered the national ranking that entitles them to access the second semester. But for many of them, a decision on the short-term future that awaits them will have to be made sooner.

All the more so if they do not want to fall back on the plan B they already identified when enrolling for the first open semester - i.e. enrolling in a related course in the biomedical, veterinary pharmaceutical etc. area - and instead want to try their luck at one of the private universities that still has free slots and a new (old-fashioned) entrance test session available for Medicine.

There are eight private universities throughout Italy included in the decree of the Ministry of Universities regarding medical courses in Italian. Two of these are scheduled to hold tests in December. They are Link Campus and Unicamillus.

Between Fano, Frosinone, Novedrate, Rome, Savona and Ascoli, Link Campus has 755 places available. It has allocated about two thirds of them. Those remaining will be distributed between Rome (123), Ascoli (55, plus another 5 for non-EU nationals), Fano (53) and Novedrate (33) with a test on 18 December 2025.

The cost for the exam will be 200 euros. It must be booked by 10 a.m. on 15 December. The price set for the first year, on the other hand, is around 20 euros.