Several Polish public medical universities teach a full six-year MD in English, with official tuition for 2026/27 entrants ranging from about EUR 16,000 to EUR 18,800 a year, or PLN 64,200 to PLN 71,000 at the schools that charge in zloty. Admission is usually based on your secondary-school science grades or an entrance test rather than an interview-heavy process. Since September 2025, Poland's medical accreditor has held recognition from the World Federation for Medical Education (WFME), which matters if you plan to work in the United States.

Which Polish schools teach medicine in English

Poland has a long record of English-language medical teaching. The Medical University of Warsaw, for example, set up its English Division in 1993. The four schools we track all run a six-year, long-cycle MD that you enter straight from secondary school. None of them currently admits students to a four-year MD for graduates: Jagiellonian closed its four-year track to new students after 2018/19, and Warsaw, Poznań and Gdańsk list only the six-year program.

Comparison of tuition and intakes

School City Official annual tuition Fee year Intake
Jagiellonian University Medical College Kraków EUR 16,000 2026/27 October
Medical University of Warsaw Warsaw EUR 18,800 2026/27 October
Poznan University of Medical Sciences Poznań PLN 71,000 (years 1 to 2); PLN 85,750 (years 3 to 6) 2026/27 September
Medical University of Gdańsk Gdańsk PLN 64,200 (PLN 32,100 per semester) 2026/27 Fall

Fees are taken from each school's official fee page or rector's order for students starting in 2026/27. A few details change the real cost:

  • Warsaw sets the full course at EUR 112,800. Paying in two or four instalments costs more than paying the year upfront, and a EUR 1,000 confirmation fee is credited toward tuition.
  • Poznań charges more in the clinical years. Its total for the 2026/27 entering class is PLN 485,000, including a PLN 4,800 enrollment deposit.
  • Gdańsk adds a PLN 100 registration fee and an Orientation Week fee. Its fee for 2025/26 entrants was PLN 62,000, so expect annual increases for new cohorts.
  • Jagiellonian raised its fee from EUR 15,500 for 2025/26 entrants to EUR 16,000 for 2026/27 entrants.

Fees in zloty move with exchange rates, so the cost in dollars or euros can shift during your degree. You can compare all of these schools on the Poland country page.

How admission works

Polish English-taught programs do not use a single national exam for international applicants. Each university sets its own rules, but most rely on one or more of the following:

  1. Secondary-school results in biology and chemistry, often with physics or mathematics as a third subject. Warsaw, for example, asks IB applicants for higher-level biology and chemistry, and A-level applicants for biology plus one of chemistry, physics or mathematics.
  2. A university entrance or competency test in biology, chemistry and physics for applicants whose school results cannot be converted. Warsaw runs its own competency test and also accepts scores from recognized admissions tests, including the MCAT.
  3. Proof of English proficiency, which Gdańsk lists as part of its assessment.

Gdańsk states that it considers secondary-school results, English proficiency and, for some applicants, an entrance exam. Because the details differ by school and by the qualification you hold, read the current admissions rules for each university before you choose your final-year subjects.

If you already have a degree

Since the four-year graduate tracks have closed, applicants who already hold a bachelor's degree now enter the same six-year program as school leavers. That adds two years compared with a US MD, which is worth weighing against the lower tuition. Our guide to how hard it is to get into medical school as an international student covers the US side of that comparison.

What the program looks like

The six years follow the European long-cycle model, worth 360 ECTS credits at Poznań. Early years cover the basic sciences, and clinical teaching grows from the third or fourth year:

  • Jagiellonian gives clinical exposure in every year, mainly at the University Hospital and the Children's University Hospital in Kraków.
  • Warsaw adds compulsory summer clerkships after each year, totalling 20 weeks.
  • Poznań focuses on basic sciences in years 1 to 3, then rotates small groups through its clinical hospitals from year 4.
  • Gdańsk links clinical teaching to the University Clinical Centre in Gdańsk.

Teaching is in English, but patients speak Polish. Expect Polish language classes in the early years so you can take histories on the wards.

Living costs

Living costs in Polish cities are generally lower than in Western Europe or major US cities, and larger cities such as Warsaw tend to cost more than smaller ones. Budget for rent, food, local transport, health insurance and visa fees on top of tuition. University housing, where offered, is usually the cheapest option. Check each school's own cost estimate before you plan your budget.

Recognition and licensing

In the European Union and the UK

A Polish medical degree is an EU qualification. EU nationals generally benefit from automatic recognition of medical diplomas across the EU. In the UK, the General Medical Council (GMC) accepts a "relevant European qualification" from an EEA country for registration, and states that nationality is no longer relevant for this type of application. Doctors who qualify this way do not take the PLAB test that most international graduates need, though language and other requirements still apply.

If you want to practise in Poland itself, you will need to meet Polish licensing and language requirements, which are separate from the English-taught degree.

In the United States

To take the USMLE and enter US residency, you need ECFMG Certification, and your school must be listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools as meeting ECFMG eligibility requirements. Poland's accrediting body, the Polish Accreditation Committee (PKA), was granted full WFME recognition on 12 September 2025, valid until 30 September 2035, according to PKA. That means Polish schools accredited by PKA meet the terms of ECFMG's Recognized Accreditation Policy. Two more points for US students:

  • Federal loans vary by school. Poznań and Gdańsk both state that a US comparability determination (NCFMEA) covering Polish medical schools is valid until 2029. Jagiellonian, however, says that as of June 2024 its six-year MD is no longer eligible for US Federal Direct Loans. Confirm the status at each school before relying on US loans.
  • USMLE support differs. Poznań publishes USMLE performance statistics and gives students access to NBME practice exams, and Jagiellonian offers NBME self-assessments to students preparing for the exam.

For the full sequence of exams, see our guide to the USMLE for international medical graduates.

Is Poland a good fit?

Poland suits applicants who want a European MD at moderate tuition, from schools with decades of English-language teaching and their own university hospitals. The main trade-offs are the six-year length for graduates, the need to learn enough Polish for clinical work, and the extra steps required to practise in North America.

Key takeaways

  • Four major Polish medical universities teach a six-year MD in English; none currently admits to a four-year graduate track.
  • Official 2026/27 tuition is EUR 16,000 at Jagiellonian, EUR 18,800 at Warsaw, PLN 71,000 rising to PLN 85,750 at Poznań, and PLN 64,200 at Gdańsk.
  • Admission relies mainly on secondary-school biology and chemistry results, or a school entrance test, plus English proficiency.
  • Poland's accreditor PKA holds WFME recognition from September 2025 to September 2035, which supports US licensing pathways.
  • US federal loan eligibility differs between Polish schools, so check each one directly.
  • A Polish degree is an EU qualification, which the UK's GMC accepts through its European qualification route.