Chile's oldest university admits graduates of foreign schools through its own exams in Santiago. Who can apply, why school recognition is often the hardest step, what a year costs and how postgraduate entry differs.
The University of Chile (Universidad de Chile) in Santiago is the country's oldest and leading university, founded in 1842 with Andrés Bello as its first rector. It is a large public institution with 16 faculties, three interdisciplinary institutes and its own clinical hospital. International applicants have three doors: a special undergraduate admission for people who finished secondary school abroad, with entrance exams set by the university itself; direct applications to master's and doctoral programmes; and a one-semester or one-year exchange. All three share one condition: teaching is in Spanish. For many applicants the hardest step is not the exam but getting a foreign school certificate recognised by Chile's Ministry of Education.
Location
Santiago, Chile
Establishment year
1842
Students
46,120
International students
1,565
Female students
49%
Place in ratings
There's not enough data to display the dynamics of this rating.
By subject
Subject
Place in QS 2024
Social Sciences & Management
65
Anatomy & Physiology
51-100
Arts & Humanities
77
Accounting & Finance
95
Engineering & Technology
109
Natural Sciences
154
Life Sciences & Medicine
163
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Key facts about the University of Chile
Type
Public, national university founded in 1842; its first rector was Andrés Bello[1]; top-level accreditation in all areas until December 2032[2]
Structure
16 faculties, 3 interdisciplinary institutes and the University of Chile Clinical Hospital[1]
3588100-9468300 CLP (≈3,700-9,600 USD) a year, plus an annual enrolment fee of 217600 CLP (≈220 USD)[5]
Entry for foreign-school graduates
Special admission (SIEXT) with in-person exams in Santiago in October; application fee 40000 CLP or 50 USD[6]
Academic year
Two semesters, March-July and late July-December; new students start only in March[6]
QS World University Rankings 2027
185th in the world and 5th in Latin America, as reported by the university[1]
Dollar figures are rough conversions at about 980 CLP to 1 USD, the Central Bank of Chile rate in October 2026[7].
Strengths and limitations
Advantages of the University of Chile
A separate competition for foreign-school graduates
Applicants who studied abroad do not compete through Chile's national admission system. They sit the university's own exams, and every undergraduate programme keeps at least 3 places for this route[6].
Moderate tuition with no separate rate for foreigners
The published tuition list has one price per programme, with no international surcharge[5]. Even Medicine, the most expensive degree, costs about 9,600 USD a year.
Accredited programmes across the board
All doctoral programmes and 86% of master's programmes are accredited[3], and the institution holds the highest accreditation level until 2032[2].
Drawbacks and caveats
Spanish only, with no allowances
Applicants accept that all programmes are taught in Spanish and cannot cite language difficulties in any academic or administrative request[6].
School certificates from most countries are hard to recognise
Chile's Ministry of Education recognises foreign school studies mainly under treaties with Latin American countries, Spain, Germany, France and Israel[8]. Details below.
No housing and no university tuition scholarships for this route
The university offers no student accommodation[9] and has no tuition scholarships of its own for students admitted through SIEXT[10].
Students who completed at least the last two years of secondary school abroad
Online registration, exams in Santiago, then up to 4 programmes ranked by preference[6]
Master's or doctorate
Graduates applying to a specific programme
Online application, usually through postulacionpostgrado.uchile.cl[11]
Exchange semester or year
Students enrolled at a university elsewhere
Courses at any faculty, chosen by previous studies and level of Spanish[4]
How SIEXT admission works
For the 2027 intake, registration ran from 1 August to 2 October 2026, the exams are held in Santiago on 20-22 October, results come out on 13 November and selected students enrol on 19-21 January 2027[6]. If you are reading this later, use these dates as the pattern for the next cycle. You cannot apply in the same year through Chile's centralised admission system, and anyone still in the final year of school abroad in the second half of 2026 has to wait for the following cycle[6].
Everyone sits two compulsory tests, mathematics and reading comprehension, and needs at least 40 out of 100 on each. Some programmes add a test in biology, physics, chemistry or history. Your score for each programme combines school grades and test results and must reach at least 50[6]. The weighting varies by faculty: for the common engineering and science programme, school grades count for 10% and mathematics and physics for 45% each, with 5 places on this route; Medicine has 3 places[12]. For programmes weighted like these, exam preparation matters more than the school record.
An International Baccalaureate or distance-learning diploma earned while living in Chile does not count as study abroad[10].
SIEXT applicants upload a school transcript and leaving certificate with an apostille (or consular legalisation) and an official Spanish translation. Before the exams they must present a Chilean secondary-school document, otherwise the application may be cancelled[6]. Chile's Ministry of Education grants that recognition under the Andrés Bello Agreement (Bolivia, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Spain, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, the Dominican Republic and Venezuela), bilateral treaties with several other Latin American countries, and agreements with Germany, France and Israel[8]. India, Nigeria, the Philippines, the United States and the UAE are not on that list, so a CBSE, WAEC, K-12 or US high school diploma does not qualify through a treaty.
Adults from countries without an agreement can instead take the ministry's school validation exams, but registration requires a Chilean foreigner's ID card, which is issued only after a visa other than a tourist visa[13]. In practice this is easier for someone already living in Chile. Before paying the application fee, email the special admissions office (admisionespecial@uchile.cl) and ask how your certificate will be handled.
Master's and doctoral study
Postgraduate entry avoids the school-recognition problem. Applications go online, mostly through postulacionpostgrado.uchile.cl, while the faculties of Physical and Mathematical Sciences and of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences use their own portals; required documents differ by programme[11]. There are usually two application windows, August-September and a second one until January[14]. The enrolment fee was 196400 CLP (≈200 USD) in 2025 for every programme, while tuition varies.
For funding, the university's doctoral scholarship gives first- and second-year doctoral students a monthly stipend for a year plus a tuition waiver, renewable. Scholarships from the Chilean development cooperation agency AGCID, where your nationality is eligible, cover tuition, health insurance and living allowances for up to two years, and SYLFF fellowships in the humanities and social sciences are open to foreign students already admitted[15].
On top of tuition, every student pays the annual enrolment fee of 217600 CLP[5]. Electronic payment is accepted only by credit card or from Chilean bank accounts[10]. Chile's free-tuition programme (gratuidad) requires Chilean nationality, permanent residence, or temporary residence combined with secondary school completed in Chile[16].
Housing is your own responsibility. The university's guide for international postgraduate students suggests rooms from 300 USD a month and warns that landlords usually take the first month's rent plus a one-month deposit[9].
Student visa and work
Students need a temporary residence permit for studies, applied for from outside Chile on the National Migration Service portal. You will need a valid passport with at least a year left, a criminal record certificate no older than 60 days, an enrolment certificate and proof of funds; documents not in Spanish or English need a certified translation. Holders may work up to 30 hours a week without extra authorisation[17]. Do not plan to enter as a tourist and switch: status cannot be changed inside Chile. Through an agreement between Chilean universities and the migration service, first student permits are answered within 40 working days, and the university's international relations office helps with the process[9].
The undergraduate route is Spanish only[6], and the university names Spanish as the language of instruction for visiting students too[4]. If your Spanish is a work in progress, our guide on how to learn Spanish is a starting point.
Do I need a Spanish language certificate?
A certificate is not on the SIEXT document list[6]; the reading comprehension test does the filtering. The DELE exam scale is a useful way to measure your level beforehand.
I have already studied at university for a year. Can I transfer?
SIEXT admits only first-year students. If you are currently enrolled elsewhere and have completed more than a year, ask the academic office of the relevant faculty about external transfer[6].
Is the University of Chile right for you?
It suits applicants who already study comfortably in Spanish, can travel to Santiago for October exams and can fund about 3,700-9,600 USD a year plus private housing. If your school certificate comes from a country outside Chile's agreements, a master's or doctorate, or an exchange semester from your home university, is the more direct way to study here.
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