Study and find schools in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Studying in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia and Herzegovina is a country in south-eastern Europe with a small but long-established university sector. It has three official languages, Bosnian, Croatian and Serbian, and most degree programmes are taught in these languages. The 2013 census counted 3,531,159 inhabitants, according to the Agency for Statistics of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The country is made up of two entities, the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Republika Srpska, plus Brčko District. Education is organised accordingly: there are twelve education authorities, including the ministry of Republika Srpska, ten cantonal ministries in the Federation and the education department of Brčko District. For a student this means that admission rules, fees and recognition procedures can differ from one university to the next, so always check the university's own pages.

The education system

Higher education institutions are either universities or higher schools. A university teaches and does research and offers degrees in all three cycles; it must run at least five study programmes from at least three scientific fields. A higher school (visoka škola) offers first-cycle degrees only.

Degrees follow the Bologna three-cycle model with ECTS credits:

• First cycle (bachelor's degree): three or four years, 180 or 240 ECTS
• Second cycle (master's degree): one or two years, 60 or 120 ECTS, so that the first and second cycles together carry 300 ECTS
• Integrated studies (for example in medicine): five or six years, 300 or 360 ECTS
• Third cycle (doctorate): three years, 180 ECTS

According to Eurydice, the 2026-27 academic year starts at the beginning of October. Teaching runs from the beginning of October to mid-January and from the beginning of March to mid-June, and the exam periods are January-February, June-July and September.

Quality assurance is coordinated at state level by the Agency for Development of Higher Education and Quality Assurance (HEA), which keeps the list of accredited higher education institutions. Foreign qualifications are dealt with by the Centre for Information and Recognition of Qualifications in Higher Education (CIP) and by the universities themselves.

Admission and recognition

Admission to the first year of a bachelor's degree takes place once a year. According to Eurydice, applications, a written entrance exam and enrolment take place in late June and the first days of July, and a second application round is announced in September for any places left. Candidates are ranked on their secondary-school results and the entrance exam. Some places are funded from the public budget; others are for self-financing students.

The details are set by each university:

• At the University of Sarajevo, the call for first-year enrolment is published in mid-June. Foreign citizens must have their secondary-school certificate recognised (nostrification), a procedure carried out by the Federal Ministry of Education and Science. Candidates may sit the competition before nostrification is complete, but they can only enrol once it is done, at the latest by the start of the academic year.
• At the University of Banja Luka, candidates take an entrance exam or an aptitude test. Secondary-school grades and the exam together give up to 100 points, and candidates who score fewer than 15 points in the exam cannot enrol.

Because teaching is mostly in the local languages, check the language requirement of the programme before applying. A few programmes are taught in English: the University of Sarajevo's facts page lists nine.

To have a foreign university degree recognised in Bosnia and Herzegovina, at the University of Sarajevo you apply to the faculty that teaches the corresponding programme (academic recognition, for further study) or to the university itself (professional recognition, for employment).

Student visa and residence

Entry and residence of foreign nationals are handled by the Service for Foreigners' Affairs (Služba za poslove sa strancima), which publishes the rules on entry and on temporary residence, including residence for study. Whether you need a visa depends on your nationality, so check with the embassy or consulate of Bosnia and Herzegovina in your country before you travel, and ask the international office of your university which documents you need for the residence permit. The documents required are set by the Service for Foreigners' Affairs and can change, so confirm them before applying.

Costs

Public universities charge tuition fees that depend on the student's status. At the University of Banja Luka there are three groups of full-time students: those financed from the budget, self-financing students and foreign students. The fee for self-financing and foreign students is set by the institution's management board.

For an idea of the level, Eurydice reports that the minimum annual fee for self-financing students in the first cycle is BAM 440 and the maximum BAM 1,500, plus administrative fees; the most common annual fee is BAM 660. In the second cycle, annual fees range from BAM 440 to BAM 4,000. Public grants from the education ministries are for full-time students with Bosnian and Herzegovinian citizenship.

Living costs are modest. In Sarajevo, the university lists the price of a place in the Nedžarići and Bjelave student dormitories at 154 to 169 KM depending on the room, and private rooms from 150 KM a month. In Banja Luka, the student centre's cafeteria charges 0.60 KM for breakfast, 1.40 KM for lunch and 1.00 KM for dinner, according to the university.

Where to study

Most students study in the three largest university cities:

• Sarajevo, the capital, is home to the University of Sarajevo. Founded in 1949, it describes itself as the oldest university in the country and has more than 22,000 students, according to its international office; the university says about 1,000 foreign students study there.
• Banja Luka, the largest city of Republika Srpska, has the University of Banja Luka, founded on 7 November 1975. It has 16 faculties and the Academy of Arts, with 66 first-cycle, 67 second-cycle and 14 third-cycle programmes; most faculties are on two campuses near the city centre.
• Tuzla, in the north-east, has the Univerzitet u Tuzli (University of Tuzla). Higher education in the city began in 1958 with a mining and technical college, and the university celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2026.

Culture and practical life

Student life is centred on the university cities. Sarajevo combines Ottoman, Austro-Hungarian, Yugoslav and modern European influences, and hosts the Sarajevo Film Festival every August as well as theatre, jazz and winter festivals.

Health care for students differs by city. In Sarajevo, the university's Institute for Student Health Care provides health care to students of the University of Sarajevo aged 19 to 26. International students should arrange health insurance that is valid in Bosnia and Herzegovina before arrival and ask the university which cover the residence permit requires.

Frequently asked questions

In which language are degrees taught in Bosnia and Herzegovina?

Mostly in Bosnian, Croatian or Serbian, the three official languages. A few programmes are taught in English; the University of Sarajevo lists nine.

How do I apply to a university in Bosnia and Herzegovina?

You apply directly to the university during its enrolment call, usually in June and July, with a second round in September. Most programmes have an entrance exam, and foreign school-leaving certificates must be recognised (nostrified) before enrolment.

How much does it cost to study in Bosnia and Herzegovina?

Each public university sets its own fees for self-financing and foreign students. According to Eurydice, annual first-cycle fees for self-financing students range from BAM 440 to BAM 1,500, plus administrative fees.

Are degrees from Bosnia and Herzegovina recognised in Europe?

Degrees follow the Bologna three-cycle structure with ECTS credits, which makes them easier to compare with European degrees. Recognition is always decided by the country or institution where you want to use the degree.

When does the academic year start?

At the beginning of October. Teaching runs until mid-January and again from March to mid-June, with exams in January-February, June-July and September.