Graduate entry pharmacy abroad: how to join a pharmacy school in year 2, 3 or 4

Who can join a higher year of pharmacy

We distinguish three groups of people.

• A pharmacy student from another university. You transfer and the new university credits the subjects you have already completed. This is the best-documented route, although we found fewer published rules for pharmacy than for medicine (see the table below).
• A pharmacy technician. The university assesses vocational education and checks which subjects correspond to its programme: from pharmacy technician to pharmacist.
• A graduate or student of another medical degree, for example medicine or dentistry. Semmelweis University allows an upper-year application from candidates with a bachelor’s degree in medicine, dentistry or pharmacy or a higher degree in these or related fields.

If you think about medicine after pharmacy, we describe it separately: from pharmacist to doctor.

What decides the year of entry

The universities write about it in different ways, but the same factors come back in their rules.

• Match of subjects. The university compares the subjects you have completed with its own programme. Semmelweis asks for an official transcript and syllabi of the courses to be recognised, takes the admission decision first and conducts the recognition of courses after an offer of admission.
• Earlier degree or field. Semmelweis names a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy among the degrees with which one can submit an upper-year application.
• Language. The university in Iași requires people who enter the second year of pharmacy in the English or French programme to hold a certificate of the Romanian language already on the day of enrolment; without it the student status ends.
• Deadlines. Collegium Medicum UMK in Bydgoszcz accepted transfer applications for 2026/27 from 1 to 31 August 2026, and the university in Iași does not accept transfers during the academic year.
• Fees. LSMU in Kaunas states on its tuition page that transfer students pay the tuition of the current year plus, if there are any, a fee for additional courses or exams.

What the universities in our offer publish

The table collects the rules from the universities’ official pages, read in November 2026. The Near East University requirements file is general and names no programmes, while pharmacy is named explicitly in the other rows. The rules change with every intake, so we confirm them with the university before you apply.

University	What it publishes about the higher years
Semmelweis University in Budapest	The admission rules for the academic year 2027/28 allow an upper-year application from candidates who have completed a B.Sc. in medicine, dentistry or pharmacy (or a higher degree in these or related fields) and from people who studied abroad in an undivided one-tier programme in one of these fields. An official transcript, syllabi of the courses to be recognised and the diploma are required. The admission decision is made first, the recognition of courses is conducted after an offer of admission, and the year of entry is determined by the competent university body on the basis of the recognised courses and credits. Eligibility to apply does not guarantee a higher year, an offer of admission does not guarantee recognition of any particular course or credit, and if the recognised studies do not allow placement in a higher year, the applicant may begin in the first year.
Collegium Medicum of Nicolaus Copernicus University in Bydgoszcz	A separate intake of transfers from universities in Poland and abroad to studies in English: medicine, pharmacy and physiotherapy (nursing is not among the regulations). For 2026/27 it ran from 1 to 31 August 2026. The rules are in the regulations in PDF files on the page, and the page itself does not state the years of entry.
Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Iași	Regulations of undergraduate studies: anyone who enters the third year of medicine or dentistry or the second year of pharmacy in the English or French programme must hold a certificate of the Romanian language on the day of enrolment, otherwise the student status ends. Transfers are not accepted during the academic year, and recognition for enrolment in a year other than the first follows a separate procedure of the university.
Lithuanian University of Health Sciences (LSMU) in Kaunas	The tuition page for 2026/27 has one sentence about transfers: transfer students pay the tuition of the current year plus, if there are any, a fee for additional courses or exams. The page does not describe the procedure, the semester or the year of entry.
Tbilisi State Medical University, pharmacy in English	The “Pharmacy Bachelor’s Program” is a bachelor’s degree (Bachelor of Pharmacy): four years (eight semesters), 240 ECTS credits, taught in English. Enrolment in the programme is carried out by the Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia. The document does not describe transfers, the recognition of prior learning or admission to a later semester or year. A graduate can work in practical pharmacy or continue to a master’s degree.
Near East University (Cyprus)	A transcript with subject descriptions is needed for a transfer application. The requirements file does not state the years of entry, the deadlines or the fees.

We do not describe the universities missing from the table: either they do not state transfer rules on the pages we read, or we have not yet checked this topic. In that case we ask the university about your case.

Ukraine, Georgia and Poland: our experience

Besides the universities in the table we work with universities that admit people with a different background to the higher years. Below is what we know from practice. These are not guarantees: the university decides on admission and on the year.

• Ukraine and Georgia. In our experience pharmacy technicians start pharmacy only there; the university decides from which year after comparing the documents. In Ukraine pharmacy is a single-cycle master’s programme of 300 ECTS credits and five years (we describe it in a separate article). The University of Medicine and Social Sciences (UMSS) gladly admits students from other universities and transfers grades from other fields of study.
• Poland. Graduates of any higher studies can apply for a higher year at selected universities; we check every case separately.

Documents you will need

The list depends on the university. From the universities in the table:

• Semmelweis asks for an official transcript, syllabi of the courses to be recognised and the diploma;
• Near East University asks for a transcript with subject descriptions for a transfer;
• Collegium Medicum UMK gives the rules in the regulations on its transfer page, and the university in Iași handles recognition for enrolment in a year other than the first under a separate procedure of the university.

If you have a vocational diploma or a bachelor’s degree, send us the diploma and a list of subjects and we will check which universities can consider it; the details are in the articles about the individual professions.

Step by step

1. Send your documents Send us your transcript and syllabi and we will check whether a transfer is possible. The consultation and the assessment of documents are free.
2. Choosing a university We point out the universities that admit people in your situation to the higher years of pharmacy and tell you which year and which costs are realistic.
3. Application We prepare the request for the recognition of subjects, the translations and the deadlines, and where needed also the entrance exam.
4. The university’s decision The university recognises subjects and names the year of entry. It may also set additional subjects to catch up on.
5. Departure We help with tuition, the visa where one is needed, accommodation and travel.
6. Studies from a higher year Your adviser stays with you until graduation. This care is free for students because it is sponsored by the universities we have agreements with.

Pros and cons of a shortened route

Pros

• You have fewer years to complete: after joining the third year of a five-year pharmacy programme you have three years left, not five, so you also pay tuition for fewer years.
• Subjects that the university recognises count as completed, so you do not repeat that material.

Cons

• You have no guarantee of the year or of admission: the university may recognise fewer subjects than you expect.
• Not every university describes its transfer rules for pharmacy, so we ask some of them directly.
• Deadlines are fixed, for example 1 to 31 August 2026 at Collegium Medicum UMK, and in Iași transfers are not accepted during the academic year.
• Studies from a higher year still last several years, so you need to plan living costs and tuition for that time.

After graduation: the right to practise

Where you can work as a pharmacist depends on the country where you graduate and the country where you want to work. We check the rules for recognising your diploma with you before you choose a university.

Frequently asked questions

Can I join pharmacy straight away in a higher year?

Yes, if the university recognises your earlier credits or your degree. The university sets the year, and in our experience the highest year of pharmacy that people join is the fourth. There is no guarantee, so we start by checking your documents.

Can a pharmacy technician start pharmacy in a higher year?

In our experience pharmacy technicians start pharmacy in Ukraine and in Georgia. The university decides from which year after comparing the documents, so we start by checking your diploma and the list of subjects.

Do I need Romanian to join a higher year of pharmacy in Iași?

The university’s regulations of undergraduate studies require people who enter the second year of pharmacy in the English or French programme to hold a certificate of the Romanian language on the day of enrolment. Without it the student status ends.

How many years of study will I have left?

As many as remain until the end of the programme. Pharmacy as a master’s programme lasts from five to five and a half years, so after joining the third year you have about three years ahead of you; at Tbilisi State Medical University, where it is a bachelor’s degree, two years remain. The university may also add subjects to catch up on.

How much does your help with entering a higher year cost?

The consultation and the assessment of documents are free. We set the price of a transfer and of admission to a higher year individually because it depends on the case. Care during the studies is free for our students because it is sponsored by the universities we have agreements with.

Read also: pharmacy studies in Ukraine. You can find all the universities in the list of universities.

Official sources

• Semmelweis University: admission rules 2027/28 (upper-year section)
• Collegium Medicum UMK: transfers
• Iași University of Medicine and Pharmacy: regulations of undergraduate studies
• LSMU: tuition fees
• Tbilisi State Medical University: pharmacy programme in English (PDF)
• Near East University: admission requirements (PDF)