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What do you think of the city of Pilsen, the faculty and the study?

Filipa Falcao: So Pilsen is a small city with a great transportation system, so it’s very easy to move around. I like that very much and it’s also an affordable place to live.

Marios Kaloutsis: I like it. I like the city because it feels like a university city. It’s small, but it’s also big enough for a student. You get the feeling that everyone around you is young and they also study and you can also make friends. And it’s really easy to get concentrated when you see many people doing the same thing that you do.

Martha Sardeli Krimpeni: I really like it here. There’s a lot of parks. There’s a lot of places where you can eat like restaurants, coffee places and so on and so forth. I like many activities. There is paintball, there is laser tag, there is cinema. You can do anything you want. So it’s a very friendly or student friendly city. And at the same time, it’s small and it has a lot of parks. It has a lot of green. You can do skiing. There are mountains around it. You can go and visit small villages around it. I really like nature. So it’s a perfect spot for me. Prague would be too big and I think too hectic.

Angelo Maccone: I have chosen Pilsen mostly because Pilsen is a small city. I came from a big city north of Italy, Milano. And I wanted to escape mostly from that suffocating big city. And I wanted more space and more freedom. And Pilsen got everything that you need because even if it’s small, you can arrive everywhere in Pilsen just by walking. You can have all the same things, that you got in a big city, in this small city. You’ve got a lot of bars, many pubs, student life. The life here in Pilsen is even cheaper than the life in a big city, even because the costs are one of the most important things for the family when they have to choose a university and I chose Pilsen even because it’s in the middle of Europe. And from here you can just go everywhere whenever you want. When you’ve got free time, just take your free time and go and look around and have trips and just clean your mind and do whatever you can, be happy.

Marios Kaloutsis: On the topic of the city being really small, we can also see that on the left side of the university, we can see all the other buildings, new and old. And on the other side, we can also see the university hospital, which is really close to the university.

Martha Sardeli Krimpeni: When you come here, you have different opportunities to choose where to stay. Right. This is important. So you can either stay in the dorm and it’s pretty affordable. There are two dorms that English speaking or foreign students use. One is Bolevecká, the other one Karlovarská. And you also have the possibility to choose a flat in the city centre, which is very nice because everything is close by and you can either pay by yourself and have your own flat or share it with more people.

Taya: The city itself is not really big, but at the same time it has everything that is needed. It’s easy to get to the different parts of the city and it has really full student life. People are coming here from all around the world. The faculty is considered one of the most international student friendly. So during all the events that are organised by the faculty and just our students who are getting together, sometimes at some places it’s easy to meet people, to get to know people from different nationalities. And it’s really interesting experience. And the faculty by itself, after some time that I’m studying here, I can certainly say that here I’m getting more practice and more general experience that I could get in my own country.

Angelo Maccone: At the first, from this university I expected a lot. And then when I came here, yes, I found that this university is worth it, because even from the first year of the General Medicine, you have lectures and practices.

Filipa Falcao: I like that the university focuses more on the theoretical side of things and then the practicals come to consolidate our knowledge. And I also like the organisation of the programme of our studies, and I think they are very well conducted.

ISMAP: International Student Medical Assosiation of Pilsen

Martha Sardeli Krimpeni: I happen to be the president of ISMAP. ISMAP is the foreign student association here in Pilsen, and it is a very old association actually. It has been going on for ages and ages. And the idea behind it is that we are trying to incorporate and integrate students into studying here in Pilsen. And what we do is that we have specific teams. So there is a sports team, there is an archives team, there s a social and cultural team and so on and so forth. And we are trying to organize some nice things for students. So, for example, we have basketball, volleyball, we have a yoga class or teacher who is actually one of the students teaching the rest of the students. We are organizing things like paintball, laser tag, debates.

Angelo Maccone: They are doing a lot of things for us, for our students. And I appreciate in the first year, that I had the opportunity to participate at some of these activities, for example, playing football, playing basketball or even volleyball. And we just meet. We just and participate and we just play all together.

Filipa Falcao: Our students organization ISMAP helps us all come together. They organize parties during the semester. They organize also some food festivals and some yoga classes. And it’s very nice to have those activities outside of the university.

Do you have any message for to those who consider study medicine in Czechia, Pilsen?

Angelo Maccone: When you just go to a university that is not in your home country, when it’s not in your own city, you have to do a big jump because it’s the moment when you start to think like adults and you have to take your life in your hands and then go ahead, because otherwise, if this will put you down, you will have a hard time.

Filipa Falcao: It has always been my dream to become a medical doctor. And as soon as my parents told me about the opportunity to study abroad here in Pilsen, I knew I had to take it. The transition was also quite easy for me since I knew some people that have studied here already.

Martha Sardeli Krimpeni: So to begin with, I knew already that I will come and study medicine in Europe because I was doing back in Greece, I was doing the International Baccalaureate IB and particularly why I chose the Charles University is for different reasons to begin with the rankings. But also I had a friend who has already been here, especially in the faculty in Pilsen, and I received very positive comments from him. So I decided to come here.

Marios Kaloutsis: I like the city. The university is really organized, so I’m happy with it. Basically, in my one year of experience, I feel it’s very good.

Filipa Falcao: I would totally recommend studying here in Pilsen. The quality of teaching and the international recognition are very important for me, which is one of the other reasons why I chose to study here in Pilsen and also because I made so many friends from so many different cultures and all over the world. And I’m so grateful for that.

Why Does Charles University Have 5 (or Even 6) Medical Faculties?

When going to study in the Czech Republic, future doctors are usually surprised by the large number of medical faculties at Charles University. How come there are so many? We decided to tell you why it is like this and explain how the faculties differ from each other.

Current state of Medical Faculties

If you are confused, here is a list of all six modern medical faculties at Charles University:

• First Faculty of Medicine (1. lékařská fakulta)

• Second Faculty of Medicine (2. lékařská fakulta)

• Third Faculty of Medicine (3. lékařská fakulta)

• Faculty of Medicine in Pilsen (Lékařská fakulta v Plzni)

• Faculty of Medicine in Hradec Králové (Lékařská fakulta v Hradci Králové)

• Faculty of Pharmacy in Hradec Králové (Farmaceutická fakulta v Hradci Králové)

ÚJOP STUDENTS’ REFERENCES

Abdullah, Iraq

Student of the Medicine and Pharmacy in English COMPLEX, 2022/23

"I came to the Medical Prep course in ÚJOP because I did not cope well at the Faculty of Medicine of Charles University.

The preparatory year gave me enough time to revise as well as learn new skills to take care of myself.

In addition to the English language, I also improved the Czech language enough to travel around the Czech Republic.

I love the fact that the school is located in a spa town. When I realized I will study in a castle on the riverbank, it seemed pretty interesting to me.  

The school organizes lots of events like Christmas, Halloween, or St. Nicholas' day. It helps us to socialize with different people in our diverse community of students from both the English and Czech preparatory programs."

Ann, UAE

Student of the Medicine and Pharmacy in English COMPLEX, 2022/23

"First, I applied to General Medicine at Charles University directly, but unfortunately, I did not pass. This Pre-Medical course really helped me to prepare for the entrance exam – I can say it now, as I am actually accepted to the university now.

One of our teachers here is actually a professor at the Faculty of Medicine of Charles University that I wanted to go to. This is a really big advantage. The teachers and curators are very supportive. They helped me also with my school reports, nostrification, and visa."

Farah, UAE

Student of the Medicine and Pharmacy in English COMPLEX, 2022/23

"I did not pass my entrance exam to Charles University, but I did not want to give up on my dream. My agency advised me of this Preparatory program.

The course did really help me, as now I have got to the university I wanted. I am confident; I do have more knowledge than I did a year ago.

I find medical ethics really useful, as this topic I have not really learned about previously. We covered practical situations that can happen in the everyday life of a doctor. Now I have the chance to consider different aspects, and I will be able to make a well-thought-out decision faster.

ÚJOP is really flexible - for personal reasons, I could not join the program at the beginning. The staff here is very caring and made sure I felt welcomed and settled down well. I feel ÚJOP is a safe place to be and express myself freely.

My initial expectation was that the preparation year would be long and sad waiting for my university, but I was wrong. It is funny, but I am grateful that I did not get to the university straight away. Now I have more knowledge, more friends that are coming with me to the university. This year was definitely worth it!"

Hadi, UAE

Student of the Medicine and Pharmacy in English COMPLEX, 2022/23

"I applied directly to the Faculty of Medicine of Charles University one year ago. During the exam, I realized there were topics I had never learned at school. I did not pass the exam. I was recommended the preparatory program at ÚJOP CU.

Throughout this year, I have learned subjects and topics I had not covered in biology, chemistry, or physics so far. This knowledge gave me the foundation to pass the entrance exam now, and I have been accepted for next year's studies.

Poděbrady is a nice and safe town. I recommend everyone to come here and study. During the year here, I visited many other places in the Czech Republic, such as Pilsen, Prague, and Hradec Králové. It is easy for foreigners to travel and navigate here. I also had time to go to other countries in Europe. Here we are in the center of Europe, so catching a train, bus, or plane is pretty cheap and easy. During the year, I found a group of new friends who helped me feel at home. We love watching football matches together and having a lot of fun in our free time."

Mark, UAE

Student of the Medicine and Pharmacy in English COMPLEX, 2022/23

"I was exploring my options to go to universities all over Europe. In the Czech Republic, I found the Faculty of Medicine of Charles University in Hradec Králové. It seemed pretty interesting. But that time it was too late because the admission was closed. So, I was about to lose one year, but I continued my search on the website, and I found the Medical preparatory course.

My main objective was to increase my knowledge and become more aware of the country.

Poděbrady is a small and pretty town; I familiarized myself with the environment: trains, buses, food, communication, banking system. Even though the Czech language is not that easy, with the support of the teacher, I acquired the basic knowledge and can get on with life here easily."

Most of the graduates of our “Medicine and Pharmacy COMPLEX” course in Prague-Krystal enter medical faculties of Charles University. They have several options to get qualifications:

1. become a healthcare professional (complete a three- or four-year bachelor’s degree, after which the graduate is not a doctor, but can work, for example, as a physiotherapist or nutritionist);

2. to obtain a general higher medical education (studying a 6-year master’s program without a bachelor’s degree, graduates receive the MuDr title and the opportunity to become a doctor);

3. to get a higher education in dentistry (same 5-year master’s degree).

In this article we will talk about the third option. Or rather, we will show it to you through the eyes of a student of the Faculty of Medicine at Charles University in Pilsen. Artem is a future dentist and he is a ZUBloger (‘zub’ meaning ‘tooth’ in Czech). He tells about his studies on TikTok and on Instagram.

Artem is finishing his fifth year, and that is why his blogs contain a lot of photo and video sketches of interesting practical classes. The videos show us modern equipment: electron microscopes, mannequins, dental units, etc.

Dentistry Practice

In order to enter the Faculty of Medicine in Pilsen, you need to have Czech language proficiency at the C1 level (read about the levels of proficiency in Czech) – this is a high one. Our preparatory course in Prague is organized in a way that allows students to prepare as much as possible in terms of both the linguistic and the specialization skills within a year. If you work hard (and this is what is expected from students of medical programs), after one-year course at ÚJOP, you will be able to pass a special language exam for admission to faculties of medicine (more about the exam).

Klasický zubařský trénink / Traditional dental practice

Can you make a tooth of a soap bar within an hour?

Even more practice

And by watching the next tiktok, you can experience one day of a student of the Faculty of Medicine in Pilsen within 1 minute.

Subscribe to Artyom on Instagram and TikTok. And apply to our preparatory courses if you want to study dentistry using the latest equipment at the oldest Czech university.