Spain: Entry requirements and admission process

Entry Requirements

In Spain, each university establishes its own entrance requirements and evaluates applicants on an individual basis. It is crucial for prospective students to thoroughly research and understand these requirements before applying.

Some typical entry requirements include:

• IB Diploma / High school transcript: Spanish universities generally accept international diplomas. However, specific subjects may have stricter requirements or subject-related prerequisites. Public universities typically accept the IB diploma but not high school diplomas.

• Language Proficiency Tests:Applicants are required to demonstrate proficiency in either English or Spanish, depending on the language of instruction at the university. If English was the medium of instruction in your high school, you may be eligible for a waiver from the language proficiency test. It's essential to verify this with the colleges/universities you are applying to, both for admission and student visa purposes.

By understanding and meeting these requirements, applicants can enhance their chances of successful admission to Spanish universities.

Admission Process

Overview

You will need plenty of time to research universities and courses to find the best fit for you. You’ll also want to start the process early because applying early increases your chances of being admitted.  

Application Deadlines

Deadlines vary depending for each university, especially in the private sector but even in the public sector, deadlines can vary. It is highly advisable to check directly with the university. 

Application timeline for Spanish universities

Admission procedures to public universities

Admission procedures established by universities for students seeking homologation/certification of their studies to the Spanish baccalaureate vary significantly from one institution to another. Therefore, it's crucial for students to familiarize themselves with the specific admission requirements of each university to which they intend to apply. By doing so, they can adjust their academic plans accordingly and prepare their UNEDasiss accreditation applications in advance to meet these requirements.

UNEDasis offers a web tool called University Information, which provides information about the admission requirements of different universities. However, it's advisable to verify the information obtained from this search engine directly with the universities themselves, as there may be updates or changes that UNED is not aware of, leading to potentially outdated information.

The admission procedures to Spanish universities are complex and require careful preparation well in advance. This section of our intranet aims to clarify the process and guide students through each step.

The university admission process can be likened to a ladder, where each step must be completed to secure a place. Without navigating each stage successfully, reaching the ultimate goal becomes unattainable.

1) Requirements of homologation or IB Diploma certification: 

All students applying for an official EU Accredited degree in Spain are required to obtain the accreditation issued by either Distrito Unico Andaluz (for Public Universities in Andalucía region) or UNED (for the rest of universities in Spain). Transcripts should not be sent direct to Public/State Universities. Transcripts should be sent directly to universities in for private universities.

Students with the IB Diploma access Spanish universities through the accreditation issued by UNED on the UNED Asiss portal, just like other foreign students with recognized educational systems. To do this, you will need to authorize UNED to access the results of your International Baccalaureate Diploma. With this information, along with the results of the PCE or recognition of subjects, UNED will issue your accreditation, which will be used by Spanish public universities. Keep in mind that afterward, you will need to apply for pre-registration at the university itself and formalize enrollment following the procedure established by that university.

Some universities do not utilize all the accreditation services of UNED Asiss, so you should check the admission criteria to see which procedures to carry out directly with them.

2) Average secondary grade calculation: 

The IB Diploma is homologated to the Spanish baccalaureate, obtaining a maximum grade of 10 according to a predetermined formula. Essentially, it is the result of calculating the average grade of the IB subjects and adding 3 points. This is because the IB grade is out of 7, while the Spanish baccalaureate grade is out of 10. This average grade is what UNED refers to as the "University Access Qualification" and would be equivalent to the secondary's average grade.

Additionally, UNED informs universities of the grades obtained in the PCE (or recognition of equivalent subjects), with which the student could obtain a maximum of 4 additional points based on the weighting assigned to each subject in each degree program. This final grade will be used to compete with other applicants for a spot.

Example of access grade calculation 

Let's consider a student who obtains a total of 30 points in the International Baccalaureate with the following breakdown of subjects: 

• Mathematics SL (5); 

• Chemistry HL (4); 

• Physics HL (5); 

• Spanish Language and Literature SL (6); 

• English Language and Literature HL (5); 

• Economics SL (5). 

Their university access grade would be an 8, resulting from adding 3 points to their average grade (30/6=5) +3.

Assuming the student wants to apply for a place in the Electrical Engineering Degree, they could earn additional points simply by requesting the recognition of Mathematics SL, Physics HL, and Chemistry HL subjects, without needing to take the PCE exams. The student would have chosen to request recognition of the three IB subjects from UNED, as when formalizing the accreditation application, they still do not know in which subjects they will obtain the best grades. 

UNED, upon receiving the student's IB grades, will select the two subjects that benefit them the most, in this case Mathematics SL and Physics HL, each with an equivalent grade of 8 (5 from the IB grade +3 from the conversion to the Spanish scale). 

Therefore, the faculty will add 3.2 additional points to their 8 access grade, in recognition of subjects in the PCE. These 3.2 points result from applying the formula "weighting coefficient x (IB grade +3 points conversion to Spanish scale)" to each of the two recognized subjects. In our example, as both subjects have the same grade and weighting: 0.2 x (5+3) x 2. Thus, the student will achieve a final UNED Asiss Accreditation grade of 8+3.2 = 11.2 points to compete for a place in the Electrical Engineering Degree. 

Note that the final grade varies according to the subject weighting scheme for each type of study.

The results of the IB are usually known before the deadline for university pre-registration. Therefore, the grade of the accreditation, plus the one obtained in the PCE (or the recognition of subjects), will be your final grade with which you can pre-register at the public university (that accepts this accreditation). This is an advantage compared to other systems such as the British, which publishes results in August.

3) Registering and sitting for the PCE: 

The admission procedure to public universities in Spain is based on the results of the Specific Competence Tests (PCE) exams, which are popularly known as "selectividad", so the student must select these tests in their accreditation application.

The maximum number of PCE that the student can take in each call (there are two annual calls: May/June and September) is 6 subjects. (but only the best 4 will be considered) 

Students should select the subjects that will give them the most opportunities to obtain the desired university place. For that, they must consult each specific university admission requirements (through the University Information tool) and the weighting tables published by the universities. With this information, the student must correctly select the PCE, prepare in advance and take the exams.

To obtain the 4 additional points from the PCE, currently the student has three options:

• Take the PCE exams with subjects from the Spanish baccalaureate;

• Request recognition of IB subjects without the need to take the PCE exams (according to the equivalence table); or

• Take the PCE exams and also request recognition of IB subjects. In this last case, only the option in which the student's grade is most beneficial will be considered. In other words, if a student takes the "Mathematics II" exam and also requests recognition for "High-level mathematics," the student will be awarded the higher grade of the two. 

In the example explained earlier, if the student had chosen the 3rd option and decides to take exams for 2 subjects in the PCE, Mathematics II and Physics, obtaining grades of 10 and 7.8 respectively, UNED would consider the 10 obtained in the Mathematics II PCE and the 8 obtained with the recognition of the IB subject Physics HL for their accreditation. Thus, instead of adding 3.2 points, they would add 3.6 points (0.2×10 for Mathematics II and 0.2×8 for Physics HL), resulting in a final access grade of 11.6 points.

To have a result from a PCE multiplied by the provided coefficient, the student's score should fall between 5 and 10 points. If the score is below 5, the result will not generate any additional points.

Remember to check the admission criteria of the university you are applying to, to see if it accepts the "recognition of subjects" from UNED Asiss.

What should you consider before choosing IB subjects?

Check if the university you want to apply to accepts the recognition of subjects. If your university does not accept subject recognition, you will have to take the specific competency tests (PCE), examining according to the content of these subjects in the Spanish baccalaureate and preparing them alongside your IB subjects. The program and examination format may differ from that of the IB, and you will need to prepare specifically for it.

Make sure that AT LEAST TWO of your IB subjects are recognized subjects. Not all subjects are recognized, with some being very common.

E.g., the IB Economics subject does not equate to any in the Spanish baccalaureate.

Check that your recognized subjects equate to subjects in the Spanish baccalaureate with the maximum weighting (0.2) for the studies you want to pursue. If the equivalent subject in the Spanish baccalaureate has a weighting of less than 0.2, you may need to consider choosing another subject option in the IB that does have an equivalence weighting of 0.2.

For example, if you want to study engineering, you should choose "high-level mathematics" instead of "standard-level mathematics," as it equates to "mathematics II" in the Spanish baccalaureate. If you study it at the standard level, it will be equated with "mathematics applied to social sciences II," and in that case, you will not achieve the weighting for engineering. However, physics or chemistry would be recognized whether studied at the high level or the standard level.

With the subjects recognized in UNED Asiss and the weightings assigned by the universities, you will know which subjects will help you obtain the maximum score.

Where can I view the recognized subjects?

To view the equivalence of IB subjects, please refer to the section "recognition of subjects" here.

In the section "Country-by-country information," under "Select country from education system," choose "Any" in the first dropdown menu and "IB Diploma programme" in the second dropdown menu. Under "Type of studies," select "Secondary studies from Annex I of the Regulation." The offered services will then appear below.

Access the section "Recognition of subjects studied or assessed in your educational system." You will see a list of IB subjects alongside Spanish baccalaureate subjects, with a column to the right indicating whether the subject is recognized. Each subject is displayed with either a green checkmark or a red cross. When the box is marked with a green checkmark, it indicates that the IB subject is equivalent to the Spanish baccalaureate subject listed next to it. If the box is marked with a red cross, the IB subject is not equivalent to that Spanish baccalaureate subject. This allows you to check which Spanish baccalaureate subject each IB subject equates to.

4) Qualification for admission:

With the publication of the PCE results, the UNEDasiss accreditation is issued, which will allow students to apply for a place at universities. This accreditation will be provisional until the student provides UNEDasiss with the Baccalaureate homologation credential.

5) University admission requirements: 

When a student applies for admission to a university, the admission services of various universities verify whether the applicants meet the established requirements.

Only applications that fulfill the admission requirements set by the university will be considered. Therefore, it is essential for students to be aware of these requirements in advance and to have completed the necessary exams.

6) Phase of university admission:

When universities receive applications for admission and verify compliance with the established requirements, they proceed to grant students up to 4 additional points based on the results obtained in the PCE and the weighting tables they have published.

With this final score assignment, each student will receive a score for each requested grade with three decimal places, ranging from a minimum of 5 points to a maximum of 14 points. Using this final admission grade, universities organize the applications received and assign places in order of score, from highest to lowest.

The allocation of university places in public universities occurs in various distribution phases. The most sought-after university degrees fill their places during the first phase of distribution, prompting the majority of students to apply during this phase. The initial allocation of places is based on the scores obtained by students, with a maximum score of 14 points.

Sources:

https://unedasiss.uned.es/home (accessed on the 17th March, 2024)