Indian Student Interview
Rangeshwaran is a medical student studying in english at Sapienza University of Rome, currently in the 2nd year.
He is a graduate of biotechnology, he appeared for NEET but unfortunately didn’t qualify for it. Failing to qualify through NEET is not the end of your medical career, you have many other options to study medicine, such as in Italy by qualifying through the IMAT examination.
Comparisons between NEET and IMAT Examinations
NEET is definitely more difficult that the IMAT, as there’s a lot more to memorise for NEET and it is much more competitive with 1.7 million students appearing for it every year. The syllabus for the IMAT is quite similar to the NEET exam, and the eligibility criteria is the same for both. Questions asked in the IMAT appear to be much easier for students who have been preparing for the NEET exam, because you will be prepared with a good grasp of the basic sciences.
In the IMAT exam you are additionally tested in “logical reasoning and general knowledge”, which can be a little difficult for students who haven’t done it before. With practice it is achievable to get good marks in both these sections. There is no need to attend any kind of special coaching for the IMAT.
It is recommended to follow IMAT related books even though you have completed 12th standard.
Consultancy
There is essentially no need for enlisting help from consultancy services for the visa procedure before applying for the IMAT and choosing a university. You should definitely check the university websites where you can find all the information about the about your course, details on the application procedure. Remember that you can email the university’s international desk for any specific questions, although it might take around a week for the university to respond with answers.
Embassy and Pre-Enrolment
There are three Italian embassies in India:
- Delhi for the Northern states
- Applications from the residents of New Delhi, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Chandigarh are to be decided by the Embassy of Italy in New Delhi.
- Kolkata for the Eastern states
- Applications from the residents of the States of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Orissa, Tripura, Sikkim and West Bengal, the Union Territory of the Andaman & Nicobar Islands and Nepal are to be decided by the Consulate of Italy in Kolkata.
- Mumbai consulate the Southern states including Gujarat
- Applications from the residents of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Daman and Diu, Dadra, Nagar Haveli, Lakshadweep, Pondicherry are to be decided by the Consulate of Italy in Mumbai.
For visa applications, please check this website.
You will be required to go visit the visa office twice: first for the pre-enrolment, and the second time for the final interview. You must keep in mind you will need an appointment letter to enter the office. An appointment can be set up by sending an application online. Keep your required documents in order because you might have to travel very far to the consulate, (maybe even from a different state), and you can’t instantly go back to get something.
Post-COVID, the pre-enrolment procedure was moved to an online platform Universitaly, where you’re required to do the pre-enrolment procedures such as choosing a university, submitting all relevant required information and uploading your documents.
For current updates and deadlines, please check the official VFS site.
After the IMAT
After you clear the IMAT, you will be called for an interview where they will ask you basic questions like:
- What were you doing before applying for the IMAT
- How are you planning to support yourself in Italy
Students had to show their father’s salary proof for 3 years, as well as a specific amount of money in their account. This might have changed now, so you will have to enquire the embassy about the ‘D’ type study visa requirements when you apply. You have to keep in mind that your bank balances should be in order, and that the amount required for satisfying visa requirements is deposited at least 6 months earlier.
The bureaucratic procedure is very elaborate so please consider starting your preparation for it from January.
For preparing your documents the steps are as follows:
- Get all your documents / certificates legalised from the state secretariat of the state your certificates were issued in
- Get your legalised documents apostilled from the Ministry of External Affairs in the capital city of the state
- Translate the legalised and apostilled documents by an approved translator, usually listed on the Italian embassy website. Keep in mind that you will be asked for the reason for getting your documents legalised, and they might ask for proof from the university you applied to
- The last step would be getting your DOV (declaration of value) which is issued by the Italian embassy, again this is for the jurisdiction that your certificates or documents have been issued from
For example, say you completed your studies in Delhi but live in Chennai. You will have to complete all the above steps in Delhi, but apply for the visa in Mumbai. If you live in Chennai and completed all your studies in Chennai you will have to complete legalisation and apostilling in Tamil Nadu, and the DOV and Visa at the Italian embassy in Mumbai.
This is to say that where the school is located determines apostille and attestation location, and visa application is through VFS that then sends it to the relevant jurisdiction Embassy according to your current residence.
The place of issue of a passport or the permanent resident mentioned in the passport does not determine the jurisdiction but it is the current place where an applicant resides for the past 6 months that determines whether he/she belongs to a specific jurisdiction. Please note that visa applications cannot be processed from applicants (including Indian nationals) not permanently residing in India.
Completing University Application Procedure
It is recommended to complete the first three steps mentioned above before the IMAT, because you will be required to submit all these documents in order to apply for the visa immediately after the IMAT results. The results are usually around 45 days after the exam date.
Moving to Italy
Moving to Italy from a developing country is definitely an expensive ordeal and it is something every student must consider before coming to Italy, the currency exchange ratio is enormous (approx. Rs.90 = €1). In many students cases, their parents support them. One option is through a forex card transfer with a small currency conversion fee from INR to EUR. For example you can use a Thomas cook card. We dont’t have information from students who have recieved a scholarship as of yet, but you can apply for the LazioDisco regional scholarship which has it’s own requirements and criteria. You can read more about scholarships in Italy.
Finding accommodation
Italy is quite expensive and finding accommodation is not any child’s play. There are various options to choose from.
You can have a private room with a shared area (bathroom, kitchen) with other flatmates which can cost anywhere from €400-600 Euro, depending on your location, and if amenities are included or separate.
There can be another situation possible where you can share the whole flat with 5-7 people. This is usually a big space that costs around €700-900 Euro, but we wouldn’t recommend this, because as a medicine student personal privacy is very very crucial and sharing a place like this can become a big distraction to your studies.
If its in your financial capability go for a private rooms because you need to be realistic about what you can tolerate. There are scholarships available for accommodation but you need to have good grades in the first year to apply for it.
What to bring
Indians are quite conservative when it comes to spending money on things like devices and/or good accommodation, but believe us you’re only going to study medicine once, and all these expenses will be worth it. Some things you can consider spending your money on would include a tablet or an iPad which helps you in your studies in a ton of ways like note taking, carrying books and notes and so much more. Once again you should know your limits when it comes to electronic devices, but you should be ready to expend money for these little things.
Language Requirements
Neither of us knew any Italian coming to Italy, but we definitely believe it’s an added helpful resource because a lot of people don’t speak English. It is beneficial whenever you’re dealing with locals or the bureaucracy, but even if you don’t know any Italian, the people are usually helpful and you can always use google translate to convey your message to any Italian speaker.
Have you ever faced racism in Italy?
I personally have never faced any kind of racism although many people might have had different experiences. Generally people are friendly and helpful. If you do encounter any such occurrence, just remind yourself that you came to another country for a purpose and thats all that matters.
Final thoughts
If you are worried about having access to Indian food and spices, don’t be! There are many places which sell all kinds of products from all over the world.
If you are thinking you won’t meet any Indians, don’t worry, there are many Indians in the major cities of Italy, for example Rome has a very alive Indian community. It’s all about reaching out and active participation, but we would also recommend you to meet and make friends from diverse backgrounds. After all you came to Italy to study in a global environment, and you should make the most out of it.
1 thought on “Italian Medical Schools for Indian Students”
Very Good Information.. Thanks