Programs & Universities in Greece - Study in Greece

Programs & Universities in Greece

Greek higher education is overwhelmingly public and tuition-free for EU/EEA students. Around 24 public universities (panepistimio) cover every field, and a 2025 reform opened the country to private universities and international branch campuses for the first time. Public study is academic and research-led; most undergraduate teaching is still in Greek, but English-taught programs are growing fast — especially Master's. This guide walks you through the major institutions, what each is known for, and how to choose the right program for your field.

The Major Public Universities

Greece's public system is broad and serious for a country of 10.4 million. Most international research, English-taught programs, and PhD activity concentrate at the largest universities.

National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA)

Founded in 1837, NKUA (often "University of Athens" or UoA) is the oldest university in the modern eastern Mediterranean and Greece's most prestigious. Broad and research-led, it is strong in medicine, law, the humanities, the natural and social sciences, and economics, and now runs a growing catalogue of English-taught programs in the capital.

Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTh)

Based in Greece's vibrant second city, AUTh is the largest university in the country by enrolment, with around 70,000 students. It covers nearly every discipline — sciences, engineering, medicine, law, the humanities, agriculture — and is a magnet for international and Erasmus+ students, who consistently rate Thessaloniki the best student city in Greece.

National Technical University of Athens (NTUA)

The NTUA — the Polytechnic (Politechneio) — is Greece's elite engineering and architecture school, founded in 1837. Highly selective and internationally respected, it leads the country in civil, mechanical, electrical, and chemical engineering, plus naval and marine engineering and architecture. It is Greece's strongest performer in the global engineering tables.

University of Patras

In Greece's third city, the University of Patras is a large research university strong in engineering, the natural sciences, medicine, and economics. It has a substantial campus, an active research culture, and a lower cost of living than Athens or Thessaloniki.

Athens University of Economics and Business (AUEB)

AUEB is Greece's top specialist business and economics university, based in central Athens. Founded in 1920, it is the country's leading school for economics, business administration, finance, marketing, and informatics, and runs several English-taught Master's programs aimed at international students.

University of Crete

Based across Heraklion and Rethymno, the University of Crete is one of Greece's strongest research universities in the natural sciences, medicine, and the humanities, closely tied to the renowned FORTH research institute. The island setting offers a calmer, cheaper student life.

Other Notable Public Universities

• University of the Aegean — spread across several Aegean islands; strong in environment, geography, and Aegean/Mediterranean studies
• University of Ioannina — broad research university in Epirus, strong in medicine and the sciences
• University of Thessaly (Volos / Larissa) — medicine, agriculture, engineering
• University of Macedonia (Thessaloniki) — economics, social and political sciences
• University of Piraeus — economics, maritime studies, informatics — fitting for Greece's main port
• Agricultural University of Athens — agriculture, food science, biotechnology

Private and Affiliated Colleges

Greece's 2025 higher-education reform opened the country to private universities and international branch campuses for the first time. Even before that, established affiliated colleges offered English-taught, foreign-validated degrees:

• American College of Greece (Deree) — Athens; US-style and UK-validated degrees in business, liberal arts, and the sciences, entirely in English
• The American College of Thessaloniki (ACT) — English-taught liberal arts and business
• New international branch campuses — arriving under the 2025 reform, expanding English-taught options

These charge market tuition but offer a fully English environment and degrees recognised abroad, making them a common route for international students who do not speak Greek.

Universities Compared

Degree Levels and Structure

Greek degrees follow the European Bologna structure:

• Bachelor's (Ptychio) — 4 years, 240 ECTS in most fields; 5 years for engineering, architecture, and some others
• Master's (Metaptychiako) — 1-2 years, 60-120 ECTS; often charges tuition (~€1,500-4,000) even for EU students
• Doctoral (PhD) — typically 3-4 years or more, by research, frequently conducted in English
• Combined degrees in some fields (e.g. medicine: a 6-year integrated program)

All Greek degrees are internationally recognised Bologna qualifications, automatically valid across the EU and widely accepted elsewhere.

Choosing the Right Program

Match the institution to your goal

• Want academic depth, research access, or a path to a PhD at low or no cost? Look at the public universities — free for EU students, very low fees for non-EU English programs.
• Want a fully English-taught, foreign-validated degree? Look at the private and affiliated colleges (Deree and the new campuses).
• Want a specific specialism (engineering at NTUA, economics at AUEB, marine studies at the Aegean or Piraeus)? Match the university to the field, not the city.
• Want the cheapest possible student life? Patras, Crete, and the smaller cities beat Athens and Thessaloniki on cost.

Always check the language of instruction

Most Greek public Bachelor's programs are still taught in Greek and require a Greek proficiency exam. English-taught Bachelor's are the minority — confirm the language of instruction on the official program page before applying. For Master's, English is much more common; for PhDs, English is frequently the default. Private colleges teach entirely in English.

Match the city to your life

• Athens (NKUA, NTUA, AUEB, Piraeus, Deree) — biggest hub, most international, most English programs, strongest job market, moderate costs
• Thessaloniki (AUTh, Macedonia, ACT) — Greece's top student city, lively nightlife, cheaper than Athens
• Patras — large university, third city, lower costs
• Heraklion / Rethymno (Crete) — coastal, calm, cheap, strong sciences
• Aegean islands (University of the Aegean) — small, scenic, distinctive

How to Read a Program Page

Greece has no single central portal, so you read each university's own admissions pages. Program pages share a common logic — learn to scan them:

• Language of instruction — confirm it is English (the program will say so explicitly)
• Entry requirements — the prior qualification, English level (or Greek proficiency), and any subject prerequisites
• Tuition fee — €0 for EU undergraduates; €1,500-7,000/year for non-EU English programs; market rates at private colleges
• Scholarships — IKY, Onassis, and university-specific scholarships where available
• Application period — set by each university, often spring to summer for autumn entry
• Selection — exam-based, motivation-letter-based, or grade-based (varies by program)
• Duration and ECTS — Bachelor's: 240 ECTS / 4 years (5 for engineering); Master's: 60-120 ECTS / 1-2 years

If anything is unclear, the university's international admissions office is the right contact — and the only safe channel to verify documents and translations.

A Note on Tuition

Tuition depends on your status and the institution. Public undergraduate study is free for EU/EEA students (only small admin costs). Non-EU/EEA students pay roughly €1,500-7,000/year for English-taught programs (some Bachelor's up to ~€9,000). Master's programs often charge €1,500-4,000 in total even for EU students. Private and affiliated colleges charge market tuition. Greece remains one of the cheapest routes into an EU degree — always check the specific figure on the program page, and use our costs and funding guide to plan the full budget, or run a quick estimate with the cost-of-study calculator.

Rankings — Useful, Not Decisive

Greek universities appear in the global tables — NKUA, AUTh, and NTUA lead, with NTUA particularly strong in engineering, and several others in the broad mid-bands. But treat rankings as a rough guide, not a verdict. For most students, the specific program, the language of instruction, the cost, the city, and the post-study sector matter far more than overall position. A specialist program at NTUA in engineering or AUEB in economics will beat a generic admission for someone aiming at those fields.

Next Steps

1. Admissions and application — deadlines, language of instruction, entrance tests, requirements
2. Costs and funding — tuition by status, living costs, IKY and Onassis scholarships
3. Why study in Greece — the honest case, if you are still deciding
4. Student visa — the national (D) visa and residence permit, step by step