Medicine Schools and Programs in Brazil

Medicine Studies in Brazil

In Brazil, medicine is a six-year bachelor's degree (bacharelado) that students enter straight from secondary school. It is a full-time course taught in Portuguese, and it ends with two years of supervised clinical rotations known as the internato. Faculties use their own teaching hospitals and units of the public health system, the Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS), for practical training.

SpainExchange lists nine universities in Brazil for medicine. They include federal universities such as the Universidade Federal de Goiás (UFG) in Goiânia, the Universidade Federal de Uberlândia (UFU), the Universidade Federal do Pará (UFPA) in Belém and the Universidade Federal do Ceará (UFC) in Fortaleza; state universities such as the Universidade de São Paulo (USP), the Universidade Estadual de Maringá and the Universidade Estadual de Londrina; and private institutions such as the Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Campinas (PUC-Campinas) and the Universidade Veiga de Almeida (UVA) in Rio de Janeiro.

How the medical degree is organised

The length is the same everywhere, but the total workload differs by school:

• UFG: a minimum of 12 semesters (6 years) and a minimum workload of 8,852 hours, taught full-time on campus
• PUC-Campinas: 12 semesters and 7,566 hours, with access to the university's own hospital from the start of the degree
• UVA: 6 years, full-time, at its Botafogo campus
• USP: 175 places a year at the Faculdade de Medicina on the Pinheiros campus, which trains students at the Hospital das Clínicas and its eight institutes

The UFG curriculum shows the usual sequence. The first years cover clinical method, anatomy, physiology, biochemistry and family and community health. The second year adds microbiology, immunology, pathology and pharmacology. In the fifth and sixth years students do the internato, with rotations in primary care, medical specialities, urgent and emergency care, mental health and public health.

The Ministry of Education is also introducing a national exam for medical students, the Enamed. According to Inep, it will be held every six months from 2027 and will be compulsory for fourth-year students as well as for those finishing the degree.

Admission and language

Public universities select most students through Sisu, the Ministry of Education's system that ranks candidates by their results in the national secondary school exam (Enem). The Enem has four objective tests with 180 questions in total and an essay in Portuguese, and foreigners may also use it to enter a degree. Some universities run their own routes: USP admits students through the FUVEST entrance exam (vestibular) and through a process called ENEM-USP. Private universities use their own vestibular or the Enem; UVA also accepts the International Baccalaureate Diploma and the German Abitur.

Students from countries that take part in the Programa de Estudantes-Convênio de Graduação (PEC-G) can apply at a Brazilian embassy or consulate for a free place on a full degree, without an entrance exam. The programme states that it has places in all areas of knowledge; the list of places published each year shows which courses are available. All candidates must prove proficiency in Portuguese, for example with Celpe-Bras, the official Brazilian exam of Portuguese as a foreign language, which Inep holds twice a year in Brazil and abroad. PEC-G students also commit to returning to their country after graduating.

Foreigners who come to Brazil for a regular course must, as a general rule, apply for a Temporary Visa IV (VITEM IV) at a Brazilian consulate, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (page updated on 6 July 2026). Each consulate decides on the application.

Costs

Public higher education institutions in Brazil, whether federal, state or municipal, do not charge students tuition fees. Private institutions do, and medicine is an expensive course: UVA lists R$ 15,347 per month before discounts for its medical degree (website, October 2026). The academic year runs from February or March to November or December.

After the degree: residency and recognition

Graduates who want to specialise apply for a medical residency (residência médica). This is postgraduate, in-service training in a health institution, in programmes accredited by the Comissão Nacional de Residência Médica (CNRM), and it leads to a specialist certificate. A residency lasts two to five years, depending on the speciality. Medical practice is supervised and regulated by the Conselho Federal de Medicina (CFM), founded in 1951.

Brazil has no agreement for the automatic revalidation of foreign degrees. Doctors who trained abroad, Brazilian or foreign, have their degree revalidated with the help of the Revalida exam, run by Inep. It has two eliminatory stages, written tests and a clinical skills test, and foreign candidates must be legally resident in Brazil. Students who plan to return home with a Brazilian degree should check the recognition rules of their own country before enrolling.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to study medicine in Brazil?

The degree takes six years (12 semesters), including the internato in the final two years. A medical residency to become a specialist adds two to five years.

Is medicine in Brazil taught in English?

The degrees described here are taught in Portuguese. The Enem includes an essay in Portuguese, and PEC-G candidates must prove proficiency in the language, for example with the Celpe-Bras certificate.

Is it free to study medicine in Brazil?

Public universities do not charge tuition fees, but places are awarded through competitive selection such as Sisu or a vestibular. Private universities charge monthly fees.

Can a doctor with a foreign degree work in Brazil?

Only after the degree has been revalidated. The Revalida exam, with written tests and a clinical skills test, supports the revalidation of medical degrees obtained abroad.