The 4 private medicine tests compared

In short. This guide covers 4 private universities that teach medicine in English. They are Humanitas University and San Raffaele in Milan, and Cattolica and Campus Bio-Medico in Rome. Each one sets its own test, with its own dates, fee and rules. This guide puts the 4 tests side by side, from the 2026/27 calls (bando: the official admission rules). It also shows when each school wanted money, and what you could get back.

Is this the IMAT?

No. The 4 schools in this guide are private universities. Each one runs its own test, and your place depends on that test. At Humanitas University the test is called the HUMAT.

This guide covers only these 4 English-taught tests. Cattolica also has a medicine course in Bolzano, with its own exam. Other private medical schools in Italy are not covered here.

The 4 tests at a glance

These are the 2026 facts, from each school's call.

What the 4 tests share:

• All 4 are multiple choice and fully in English.
• You cannot use a calculator at any of them. San Raffaele and Campus Bio-Medico allow one only as an approved disability or SLD aid.
• A wrong answer costs points. A blank costs nothing.
• If you have 2 tries, your best score counts.

Which test suits you?

Each test rewards different strengths. If you still have a choice, the 2026 tests may help.

Strong in logic? San Raffaele. 36 of its 60 questions were logic, problem solving and reading. The other 24 were science. San Raffaele does not publish a topic list. Read the San Raffaele guide.

Strong in science? Campus Bio-Medico. There was no logic section at all. You got 20 biology, 20 chemistry and 20 physics questions. A wrong answer cost only 0.2 of a point. Read the Campus Bio-Medico guide.

Strong reader in English? Humanitas, for Medicine. Part 1 is reasoning and reading. For Medicine, each Part 1 question earned 22 points. A maths or physics question earned 10. So Part 1 was worth 440 of the 960 points. MEDTEC (a medicine course Humanitas runs with Politecnico di Milano) turns this round: maths and physics count most. Read the Humanitas guide.

Cattolica: one try a year. The paper has 65 questions in 65 minutes, so about one a minute. It also has 5 ethics questions, which no other school asks.

In 2026, 709 EU candidates competed for 40 EU places at Cattolica. The 40th place in the first ranking scored 58 out of 65. Later, offers can move down the list as people say no. On the non-EU route, 713 candidates competed for 70 places. There, the 70th place scored 54.25 out of 65. Read the Cattolica guide, or the 2026 cut-offs at all 4 schools.

Already studying science for another test?

That work counts. Biology, chemistry and physics come up at all 4 schools, and maths at 3. Here is what each school added in 2026:

• Campus Bio-Medico: nothing. The whole test was biology, chemistry and physics, 20 questions each. It had no maths section.
• San Raffaele: 36 logic, problem solving and reading questions. That is more than half the test.
• Cattolica: 20 logic questions, 5 ethics questions and 2 general knowledge questions.
• Humanitas: Part 1, with reasoning tasks and long science texts to read. Its topic list also puts formal logic inside maths, and optics in physics.

So plan extra time for the parts your school adds.

The calendar

In 2026, the 4 tests ran from 11 February to 25 March. Cattolica could add a session on 26 March if needed. Based on last year, 2027/28 registration should start opening in mid-October 2026. Every date, and the status of each 2027/28 call, is in the 2027 test dates.

What it costs

School	Test fee in 2026	First-year fees, 2026/27
Humanitas	€200, for both rounds	€10,206 to €23,206, by family income. Non-EU: €23,206.
Cattolica	€210	€18,150. No scholarships.
San Raffaele	€200, for both tries	€20,690 (EU call)
Campus Bio-Medico	€170 per course	€19,000, plus €140 regional tax

A few things to know:

• Humanitas sets fees by family income. It uses ISEP, an income index for families. It also offers some scholarships. See the 2026/27 bands.
• Campus Bio-Medico has 2 English courses: Medicine and MedTech. To compete for both, you register twice and pay €170 twice. It offers 2 merit scholarships, one per course.
• San Raffaele's €20,690 includes a €190 regional tax.
• Humanitas and San Raffaele: when you register online, you have 15 minutes to pay the €200 fee. Humanitas takes cards. San Raffaele takes PayPal. If time runs out, you start again.
• These are first-year fees only. Cattolica says its fee may change in later years.

Paying one school before the others decide

Families often ask about this. Each school wants money to hold your place. In 2026, some deadlines came before other schools' results. Here is the order.

• 2 to 10 March: Campus Bio-Medico, €8,000. It is the first tuition payment. It comes back only if you fail your diploma, the ministry cuts places, or a scholarship passes to you. The last case: a winner turns down a scholarship, and it passes to you. You need an ISEE under €28,000 attached. On 10 March, Cattolica's test (25 March) had not happened yet.
• By 8 April: Humanitas, €5,206. It comes back in one case only. Humanitas can let you enrol on condition, before your place is sure. If higher-ranked students then fill all the places, you get it back. Cattolica's rankings (21 and 28 April) were not out yet.
• By 9 April: San Raffaele, non-EU route, €1,500. It is not refundable. It counts toward your first payment.
• By 6 May: Cattolica, €4,000. This one payment is the deposit and the first instalment together. It comes back if the ministry cuts places. Otherwise, you can ask for it back within 14 days of paying. A university panel looks at requests in October. A refund is not guaranteed.
• 1 to 20 July: San Raffaele, EU route, €7,190 at enrolment. Check the call for its refund rules before you pay.

So decide early which school you would choose if two say yes. Plan this before the first payment is due.

Deadlines that can cost a place

A good score is not the end. Miss one of these steps and you can lose your place. These were the 2026 rules.

School	What can cost your place
Campus Bio-Medico	Before the test: attach your B2 certificate before you pay the €170 fee. Paying locks the application. After: pay €8,000, 2 to 10 March. No certificate yet? Upload one by 19 June, 13:00, or leave the final ranking.
San Raffaele	Before the test: pay the €200 fee within 15 minutes of booking. After, EU route: declare online that you will enrol, 9 to 22 June, 15:00. Non-EU route: pay €1,500 by 9 April. English: C1 at enrolment, 1 to 20 July, or lose the place. The EU call waives it if your last 2 years of high school were entirely in English. 2 consecutive years of college entirely in English also count.
Humanitas	Before the test: pay the €200 fee within 15 minutes of registering. After: pay €5,206 by 8 April, 12:00, or lose the place. English: passing the HUMAT counts as your B2 proof.
Cattolica	Before the test: pay the €210 fee by 18 February, or you cannot sit the test. After: pay €4,000 by 6 May. It is the deposit and the first instalment in one payment. English: IELTS 6.0, TOEFL iBT 80 or Cambridge First grade B.

At Cattolica, you also bring a baptism certificate, or a certificate of an interview with a Pastoral Assistant. It is due within 3 months of lessons starting. It does not change your score.

Your next step

Pick your schools. Then mark the first test date and the deadlines after it. Each school guide has the full list. Our plans are below: see when practice access opens.

Where these facts come from

Each school's official 2026/27 call, admissions page and published 2026 rankings:

• Humanitas University: apply to medicine
• Cattolica Rome: international admissions
• San Raffaele: International MD Program
• Campus Bio-Medico: Medicine and Surgery admissions