University of Jaén

The University of Jaén (UJA) is a comprehensive institution firmly committed to research, innovation and excellence in the teaching-learning process. It offers a wide and diverse range of academic programmes, including 50 bachelor's degrees, 55 master's degrees and 21 doctoral programmes, as well as 18 international double degrees in multiple fields of knowledge. These areas include engineering, health sciences, social and legal sciences, experimental sciences, humanities, education sciences and social work. The programmes are designed to provide a personalised educational experience, and most courses are taught in small groups to ensure close interaction with academic staff. Teachers use modern and innovative teaching resources, creating a dynamic and conducive learning environment.

The UJA's international profile is reinforced by its strong language and mobility programmes. The university offers over 300 courses in English for international students and provides extensive Spanish courses to help them improve their communication skills. Students can choose to study at the UJA through various exchange and international programmes, selecting courses from any department or benefiting from the Conversation Assistant Programme and other funding opportunities.

For detailed information about the University of Jaén, the technical data sheet provides a comprehensive overview of the institution. The main platform for internationalisation, UJA International, offers all relevant information in English, including details about academic programmes, courses taught in English, Spanish courses for international students, nomination and admission procedures, scholarships, guides, and resources for both students and teaching staff.

Furthermore, the section entitled “International Agreements and Others” provides information on international cooperation and exchange initiatives, highlighting the University of Jaén's ongoing commitment to global engagement and academic collaboration.

International impact

The teaching quality and the intense scientific and transfer activity articulated in part through the various existing research institutes and centres far advanced studies, contribute to the fact that the UJA has been recognised as one of the best young universities in Spain (under 50 years old), being in the 201-250 range of THE Young University Ranking 2024. Furthermore, its commitment to social responsibility and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) places it among the top 200 universities worldwide, according to the prestigious 'THE Impact Rankings 2025,' making it the top university in Spain, alongside two other Spanish universities, in this area. Besides, according to the THE 2025 ranking, we are the second best university in Spain in Computer Science (top 301 worldwide), best University in Andalusia in Sciences (top 501 worldwide) and Engineering (top 501 worldwide) and are among the top 401 worldwide in Arts & Humanities and top 501 in Psychology. UJA has been also recognised as top 801-900 (2025 Shanghai Ranking) and top 801-1000 (2026 THE WUR, second university in Andalusia). lf you are looking for a University of excellence, the UJA is your best option!

UJA is a highly internationalised Spanish university, welcoming around 2,500 international students each year (both mobility and degree-seeking students). These students have rated their experience at UJA very highly on international portals. UJA offers programmes partly or ful/y taught in English, as well as a wide range of other subjects in English language. lt also provides an unparalleled opportunity for linguistic immersion in Spanish, offering free courses to mobility students and those participating in our well-known Talent Attraction programme, pioneer in Spain. UJA is the coordinator of the European University Alliance NEOLAiA, financed by the European Commission and comprising nine European universities. For years, it has occupied a prestigious position in the top 5 Spanish universities with the highest funding in the Erasmus+ international Credit Mobility programme (KA171).

The UJA’s Values

• Focused on the social, economic, and cultural growth of the province of Jaén, acting as a creator of and driving force behind the prosperity and well-being of the inhabitants of this area, providing assistance and answers to problems that affect them.
• Institutional vision. We strive for the image of the university to appear strong in all initiatives undertaken with any person or institution with whom we engage. We complete all of our assigned functions and care about the results obtained. The interests of individuals and stakeholders are governed by those of the university in general.
• Internationalization. We are constantly looking to open new horizons around the globe without losing touch with our local roots.
• Dedication to service. We monitor the quality of the services and functions that we offer in order to constantly improve, applying innovative solutions that lead to a simplification of processes and provide increased value to all of those who make use of them.
• Flexibility and the ability to adapt. We foster the development of new initiatives that facilitate the institution’s adaptation to the unexpected needs of society and its stakeholders via sustainable and innovative solutions.
• Planning and focusing on results. We respond to changes in our environment, to the progression and development of the performance of our institution, and to the results of our performance, adjusting, anticipating, and planning our response to the current and future needs of our stakeholders.
• Fostering a culture of entrepreneurship. We understand entrepreneurship in an all-around way, as a way to approach life, of pushing forward new trends, spurring creativity, offering new ideas, responding to problems, and integrating all of this into the comprehensive education provided to students.
• Accountability and transparency. As a public institution, we care about and make an effort to provide information, across all organizational levels, on what we do, how we do it, what financing we use to do it, and the outcomes obtained.
• Regard for diversity. We are a multicultural, inclusive university that values diversity, meets special educational needs, and respects and fosters the comparison of differing points of view and the integration of all persons, regardless of their race, religion, age, gender, or sexual orientation.
• Commitment to raising social awareness about gender equality. Socially, we are a point of reference when it comes to achieving effective equality among men and women by involving all persons and levels at the university.
• Sustainable organization. In our processes and activities, we have the objective of achieving the best results, with the minimum resources, and the maximum satisfaction of personnel, with an eye on the sustainability of the institution and of all of its personnel.

Undergraduate Degrees

The University of Jaén offers a wide range of Undergraduate Degrees, belonging to the fields of Social and Legal Sciences, Arts and Humanities, Sciences, Health Sciences, and Engineering and Architecture. A wide range of training will allow you to achieve the comprehensive, singular, and unique education that characterizes our student body. International double degrees are particularly notable, with 5 international double degrees offered in Civil Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, and Business Administration and Management with different universities in Germany, France, Italy, and the United Kingdom.

Master's degrees

Master's degrees are intended for students to acquire advanced training, either specialized or multidisciplinary, aimed at academic or professional specialization, or at promoting initiation into research tasks. To apply for a place in an official university Master's studies, the requirements are:

• A Spanish degree of Graduado/a (Graduate), Arquitecto/a (Architect), Ingeniero/a (Engineer), Licenciado/a (Licentiate), Arquitecto/a Técnico/a (Technical Architect), Diplomado/a (Diplomate), Ingeniero/a Técnico/a (Technical Engineer), or Maestro/a (Teacher), or another title expressly declared equivalent or homologated to one of them.
• A foreign university degree that qualifies the holder in the country of origin to pursue master's studies.

In addition, where applicable, applicants must meet the specific requirements of each Master's program they wish to be admitted to.

PRE-REGISTRATION

Access to any Bachelor's/Master's Degree studies at the University of Jaén is through the Distrito Único Andaluz.

The prescription for Bachelor's/Master's Degrees can be done in any of the three available phases. The exact dates for pre-registration can be checked on the webpage of the Distrito Único Andaluz.

BACHELOR'S DEGREES:

Phase One - Foreign Access. In March (international students only), Access for foreign students, with studies from foreign educational systems that require homologation.

Requirements:

To be in possession of qualifications obtained in the education systems of non-EU Member States with which no international agreements have been signed, that are homologated or equivalent to the Spanish baccalaureate.

Documentation:

• Identity card or passport
• Approval or receipt of application.

Second phase - Ordinary. June - July (for nationals and foreigners)

Requirements (for foreign students):

• To be in possession of the Spanish Baccalaureate degree and to have passed the Baccalaureate Assessment test for access to the University.
• To be in possession of the European Baccalaureate /International Baccalaureate/ Baccalaureate qualifications of the EU Member States or of other States with which international agreements have been signed.
• Be in possession of qualifications obtained in the education systems of non-EU Member States with which international agreements have not been signed, which are approved or equivalent to the Spanish baccalaureate or higher vocational education and training qualifications, or have requested their approval. In addition, the student must have passed the Baccalaureate Assessment test for access to the University.

Documentation:

• Identity card or passport
• Approval or receipt of application.

Third phase - Extraordinary. July (for nationals and foreigners)

Requirements and documentation:

• Same as for the Ordinary phase.
• In the case of students coming from education systems of non-EU Member States with which no international agreements have been signed, in this phase, they will be able to access with only the validation of the baccalaureate, without having to take the assessment test.

As for the duration, the Bachelor's Degrees last 4 years. In this link, you can see all the academic offers of the University of Jaén for Bachelor's Degrees.

MASTERS:

• First phase - Foreigners (January) Access for foreign students only.
• Second phase - Ordinary (June - July) Access for nationals and foreigners
• Third phase - Extraordinary (September - October) Access for nationals and foreigners.

Requirements:

• Being in possession of a Spanish Bachelor's Degree, the title of Architect, Engineer, Licentiate, Technical Architect, Diploma, Technical Engineer, or Teacher, or another expressly declared equivalent or approved to any of them.
• Being in possession of a foreign university degree issued by a higher education institution of the European Higher Education Area that entitles the holder to access master's degree courses in the country that issued the degree.
• Being in possession of a foreign university degree, equivalent to the level of a degree in Spain, but which has not been officially approved by the Spanish Ministry of Education, and which entitles the student to follow officially approved studies in his/her country of origin.
• Therefore, graduates under foreign educational systems may access a Master's without the need for homologation of their degrees.
• They must also meet the specific requirements of the master's degree courses they wish to take.

Documentation:

• Identity card or Passport
• University bachelor's degree
• Certification of the official academic record.
  
  • Certificate issued by the university or official body of the country of origin, where the minimum grade to pass a course is stated, as well as the maximum classification that can be obtained.
  • Official document that certifies that the applicant has a degree that entitles him/her to pursue postgraduate studies in the country of origin.

Once the admission lists are published, different scenarios can be found:

• NO PLACE: in case you have not obtained a place in the university and the studies you wanted, you will have to wait for the publication of the next phase and check if you have obtained a place on that occasion.
• YOU GET A PLACE, BUT IT IS NOT THE STUDY/UNIVERSITY OF YOUR CHOICE: As you know, you can choose different Bachelor's/Master's Degrees. If you have obtained a place in one of the degrees, but it is not your first choice, you can choose to stay on the waiting list. If you wish to wait to obtain a place in another degree of greater preference than the one assigned, you must reserve the place assigned, which will be used to appear in the next awarding and obtain a place, if possible, in a degree of greater preference. IMPORTANT! If you do not make a reservation, you will be excluded from the system for all purposes.
• YOU GET A PLACE IN YOUR FIRST CHOICE: If you have obtained a place in the first degree you selected, you are obliged to accept the place and make the registration. Otherwise, you will be expelled from the process.
• PENDING DOCUMENTATION OR VALIDATION: This message only appears in the first awarding and means that you must provide the documentation that you failed to submit with the pre-registration application. Once you have submitted it within the pending period, it will be considered that you have accepted the place and must register. If you do not deliver the documentation within the specified period, you will be expelled from the process.

As for the duration, the Master's Degrees last 1 or 2 years. In this link, you can see all the academic offers of the University of Jaén for master's degrees.

• Shanghai ranking 2026 – #801-900
• THE World University Ranking 2025 - #801-1000
• THE University Impact Ranking 2025 - #101-200
• THE Young University Ranking 2024 - #201-250