Frequently asked questions on admission procedure
to the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics of Charles University

1. Application
2. Payment
3. Starting your Studies in Prague

I. Application

1. How and where should I submit my application? What are the admission requirements?

   For a detailed description of how to apply and admission requirements, please see our website.

2. When can I submit my application and what is the deadline?

   The deadline is usually April 30^th. For current dates see the admission information of individual study programmes.

3. Can I apply for several programmes of study at the same time?

   Yes, you can apply for more than one study programme. But for each programme that you apply for, you must send a complete application including all the required documents and pay the fee for each application. If you are offered a place on more than one programme, you must choose which offer to accept by the time of officially registering on the study programme in September. Note: For a bachelor’s degree, there is only one programme in English, namely the Computer Science programme.

4. What should I do when I have already completed an online application, but then I find a mistake in it?

   Contact the student advisors at the Department of Student Affairs by email and explain your problem. For the Bachelor’s study programme, contact Mrs. Petra Okrouhlíková; for Master’s study programmes, contact Mrs. Eliška Zábrodská.

5. Do I have to pass an entrance exam?

   No, but each application is reviewed and assessed with the goal of choosing applicants who have shown the capability expected of Charles University students. Applicants for the Bachelor’s programme must: have completed secondary education (or be due to have completed it by the time of registering on the programme), fulfil our reasoning requirements, and have proof of  proficiency in English. Applicants for Master’s degree programmes must hold (or be due to hold by the time of registering on the programme) a Bachelor’s or Master’s diploma, have sufficient academic background in the relevant fields, and have a proficient command of the English language.  For detailed information please check the official admission requirements.

6. Where can I find the take-home assignment (to prove sufficient academic background) for Master’s degree programmes and is it obligatory for all Master’s degree applicants?

   The take-home assignment is obligatory only for applicants for computer science programmes (except applicants for the study programme Computer Science – Language Technologies and Computational Linguistics) and the link to it is in the application form in the Student Information System (SIS) itself. If you can’t find it, please contact your Student Advisor at the Student Affairs Department.

7. What documents should I provide as evidence of having completed my secondary education?

   You need to submit your secondary school leaving certificate and transcript of records. All documents must be verified and officially translated into English or Czech if issued in a different language.

8. What documents should I provide for evidence of my university education?

   You need to provide a Bachelor‘s or Master‘s diploma and transcript of records. All documents must be verified and officially translated into English or Czech if issued in a different language.

9. If I have not yet completed my secondary education or have not yet graduated, can I provide my secondary school leaving certificate or diploma after the application deadline, and what is the procedure for doing so?

   Yes, you can provide it later; however, you should do so as soon as possible after you have graduated. Before the application deadline, you are supposed to upload to your application in the Student Information System (SIS) the transcript of records of the courses and grades you have obtained so far (officially translated into English or Czech if issued in another language).

   Please let us know the expected date of your graduation and what type of diploma/certificate you will receive by uploading a simple statement containing this information as an attachment to your application in the SIS.
   
   IMPORTANT NOTE for students who need to apply for VISA:

   Please be aware that without your secondary school leaving certificate or diploma, we cannot issue the admission documents needed for your VISA application. In order to get your visa before the start of the first semester, you have to apply for it in time (i.e., in most cases, in mid-July at the latest - see the question “When should I apply for a visa?” bellow, point III.2.). If you know you will not receive your school leaving certificate or diploma soon enough for the visa process to be completed in time, please consider postponing your application to our programme to the next Academic year.

10. When can I get the admission documents (such as confirmation of acceptance) needed to obtain a visa?

    We can only send you the admission documents for visa application purposes if you fulfil all the admission requirements including providing a verified* copy of your diploma and transcripts of records. Both documents must be officially translated into Czech or English if issued in another language. Moreover, for your diploma you must receive faculty recognition or nostrification (see the next point).  

    *The level of verification depends on the country where the original documents have been issued. You will be informed about the correct form of validation of your documents by your Student Advisor.

11. What is recognition / nostrification of previous education and when do I need it?

    Without recognition of your previous education, you cannot be admitted to a university in the Czech Republic. The way to have your previous education recognized varies according to the approving authority in the type of education approved, scope of validity of the approval, and fees.

    1. Recognition provided by our faculty. This way is suitable for applicants for our Bachelor’s programme (recognition of secondary education) as well as for applicants for our Master’s programmes (recognition of a university degree). It is free of charge. If you are interested in this type of recognition, let your Student Advisor know. Please note that this kind of recognition is valid only for our faculty and the current admission procedure. For more details see this website (secondary education) or the website here (university education).
    2. Recognition of previous university education provided by Charles University. This way is suitable for students who already hold a university degree and is valid also for admission to other universities in the Czech Republic. The fee is around 3000 CZK. For more details, check this website.
    3. Recognition of secondary education provided by the regional authority (Prague City Hall for applications to universities in Prague). This recognition (also called nostrification) of your high school education is valid for entrance to all Czech universities. The cost is around 1000 CZK. More details here.

12. Which English language examinations do you accept as proof of English Language Proficiency and when are they needed?

    For information on English Language Requirements please check our admission requirements for Bachelor’s and Master’s programmes.

13. What is an application ID?

    Your application ID is the identification number of your application, and can be seen in SIS when making your application. When you submit more application than one, please bear in mind that each has its own ID number. You will need to use the ID number associated with your application when you pay your application fee and tuition fees.

14. Currently I am studying at another university - can I start for example from the second year? (i.e. can I "transfer university”)

    Our admission requirements apply in the same way to all applicants, no matter what they have studied earlier (i.e., we do not have a separate procedure for the admission of transfer students). However, once you are admitted on our programme, you can apply for recognition of some of the courses you have completed at another university as equivalent to courses from our programme. In this way, you can complete our programme in less time than is standard -  there is no lower bound on how long it takes to successfully complete our programme.

15. Is it possible to start my studies from the summer/spring semester?

    No, you can only commence studies in the winter semester (that is from the beginning of the academic year). The academic year consists of two semesters – winter and summer semester.

16. Does your faculty offer preparatory courses?

    No, our faculty doesn’t offer preparatory courses. If you are interested in preparatory courses, take a look at www.ujop.cuni.cz

    However, we do organize short review courses before the beginning of the first semester.

17. Can I study the programme in Czech?

    The admission requirements for programmes taught in Czech are different and you should follow these as described (only in Czech) on our faculty website here. One of the admission requirements is to have a certificated level of B2 or higher in Czech, and you should prove this by taking an examination at UJOP or taking the state language exam. For more details contact Ms. Andrea Kadlecova. Please note that all communication about studying in Czech is itself only in Czech. 

18. How can I apply for a scholarship?

    For information about the application procedure, deadlines and recommendation letters, please follow the instructions on this website here – scholarship possibilities.  

    Note that the scholarships differ in the extent to which they cover expenses - some cover both tuition fees and living costs (the CLS scholarship), some only cover tuition fees and some only accommodation expenses.

II. Payment

1. How much is the application fee and how can I pay it?

   The application fee is updated each academic year; see the web site here.The application fee is to be paid by credit card, following the instructions given in the online application. IMPORTANT: Please note that your application will be considered to have been submitted only after the application fee has been received in full by us. Applications without payment of this fee will not be considered. 

2. How much do I have to pay if I send a payment from abroad so that the full application fee is received on your side?

   The exact amount you need to send depends on the current exchange rate and bank transfer fees. Consult your bank and make sure the transfer fees are paid by the sender (otherwise the university receives less and will ask you to pay the difference).

3. Do I need a proof of payment of the application fee?

   If you pay by credit card through the payment gateway when filling out the application, you do not need further proof of payment. If you are not able to pay the application fee by credit card, we will send you the bank details by e-mail. If you pay by bank transfer, you do need to send us a proof of payment issued by your bank.

4. How much is the tuition fee and when do I have to pay?

   The tuition fee for our Bachelor’s and Master’s programmes is updated each academic year; see the web site.

   The tuition fee is best paid before Registration Day (late September), and the due date is the end of October. It must be paid only by a bank transfer. All the bank information will be sent to you from our Department  of Student Affairs.

   Note: Please keep in mind that you need to pay the bank transfer fees - that is, you have to mark the fees to be paid by the sender when setting up the transaction (otherwise the university receives less and will ask you to pay the difference).

    In case we receive more than the actual fee on our account, we will return this overpayment to you in cash (CZK) after your arrival in Prague to begin your studies.

III. Starting your Studies in Prague

1. When should I arrive? When exactly does the academic year start? What other important dates should I be aware of?

   For exact dates and further information, please see the official Academic Calendar and/or await information from the Department of Student Affairs that you will receive upon being accepted on one of our programmes. The usual timeline in brief is as follows:

   Arrival of students: mid-September

   Registration on study programmes: late September.

   Beginning of the academic year (winter semester): end of September/beginning of October

   Winter/Christmas vacation:  from around December 23 to around January 3.

   Winter semester examination period: mid-January - February

   Summer semester examination period: June (plus at least a week in September)

2. When should I apply for a visa?

   As soon as you receive the admission documents, ideally no later than mid-July. From the date you apply for a Czech visa it takes up to 60 days, and in certain countries even more, for the decision to be issued. However, you need to take into account the time you will need for making an appointment at the Czech Embassy or Consulate to submit the visa application (you have to do it in person). The waiting time for such an appointment may be several weeks. The waiting time may vary significantly from country to country. Contact your local Czech Embassy for an estimate of the length of the visa process in your
   country. In certain countries it may be advisable to start the visa process as early as the end of May or June.

   Also take into consideration that after you fulfil all the admission requirements, it also takes some time for us to prepare your acceptance documents and to deliver them to you (you need originals of these documents in order to apply for a visa). 

   For more information on how to apply for visa or residence permit please see the part Visa and Long Term Residence Permit on our website.

3. What if I am delayed because of waiting for a visa? Can I arrive later?

   Yes, you can arrive later, but you must inform the Department of Student Affairs and communicate to them information required for registering on your programme, your enrolment on courses, and other details. However, you are expected to arrive by October 31^st at the latest.  Any further delay at the beginning of the study programme might seriously affect your performance and thus be an obstacle to the successful completion of your first semester at the university.

4. What is Registration Day and when is it held?

   On Registration Day you officially become a student at Charles University. It is held in late September (you will be told the exact date by your Student Advisor). On Registration Day we welcome you to our faculty and provide you with useful and important information to help make sure you have a smooth start. You will learn about enrolment on courses, exams, important dates and deadlines, and more. You will also hear about various support services and student groups you can join. 

5. When is it possible to enrol on courses/subjects and how is it done?

   You can start enrolling on courses after Registration Day, and you have to finish enrolling by the third week of semester (see the Academic Calendar for the exact day). Enrolment is via SIS (when registering on your study programme you obtain a login name and password for SIS). More technical details about enrolment are provided on the webpage here – course enrolment.

6. Where can I find my degree plans and all the courses?

   The degree plans are on the faculty website – Academic matters. See under Curriculum and there the programme you are interested in. You can find all the courses in the Student Information System (SIS).

7. When do courses start and where can I find the schedule?

   You can check your schedule in SIS.