Graduate Requirements

Exchange Program 2025-26

Bocconi graduate students have the chance to join the Exchange Program during the 2nd year of their Master's degree. 
The application opens once a year, during the 1st year of the study cycle.  

 

Academic Requirements

To be eligible for the Exchange Program all students need to meet the following academic requirements: 

  • GPA: minimum 22/30 of average weighted on credits, the average is not rounded.

  • Credits: at least 16 credits registered

Please note that:

  • the calculation of GPA and Credits includes all the exams officially registered in your career before the end of the ordinary exam session, 1st  February 2025 for the AY 2025/26 selection;

  • exams which are not part of the 1st year study plan - 1st semester - are not included as the exams must be taken in the ordinary exam session;

  • courses subdivided in modules will be considered as separated courses for the minimum academic requirements and exchange score calculation;

  • some destinations might require a specific minimum GPA. When necessary, the details can be found on the Brochure;

  • if the applicant moves from an MSc program to another one, exams which are not part of the 1st year - 1st semester of the NEW MSc program study plan will not be included.

Language Requirements

Minimum language requirements are sufficient to apply for all the destinations that do not state further requirements other than the language of selection inside the destination brochure. 
In addition to the minimum requirements for the Exchange program, some partner universities have additional language requirements. You can check them in our destination brochure.
Please read carefully both sections below:

To be eligible for the Exchange Program it is always required to have a minimum level of English, French, German, Spanish or Portuguese according to the institutions you are applying for.

Level B2 obtained with a minimum grade of 25/30 or higher for English, proved by one of the options listed below:

  • Citizenship
  • International Certification
  • University Language Exam
  • Enrollment in a Degree Program entirely taught in English
  • Secondary School Diploma or Bachelor's Degree – Please contact the Study Abroad office providing any document which can be useful to evaluate your case
  • Previous Exchange Program completed

Level B1 or higher for French, German and Spanish, proved by one of the options listed below:

  • Citizenship
  • International Certification
  • University Language Exam
  • Secondary School Diploma or Bachelor's Degree - Please contact the Study Abroad office providing any document which can be useful to evaluate your case
  • Previous Exchange Program completed 

Level A2 or higher for Portuguese, proved by one of the options listed before or by the enrollment to the Bocconi Language Center course

How to fulfill the Minimum Language Requirements:

Citizenship citizens from a country where English, French, German, Portuguese or Spanish is the first language, can certify their minimum language proficiency by submitting their passport at the time of application to the program at Punto Blu.
Bocconi Language Exam applicants with the exam already registered in their undergraduate Bocconi career do not have to submit any international certification at the time of application to the program unless the university they are applying to has additional requirements.
Students who passed the exam at a University other than Bocconi must provide proof of level and grade during the application procedure.
International Certifications for English
  • certificates must be recognized by Bocconi Language Center with an equal or higher level of B2 with a minimum passing grade of 25/30 for English and must be submitted at the time of application. For the certifications and scores accepted, please visit the Language Center website and B in Touch here;
  • IELTS Indicator and TOEFL Essentials are not accepted;
  • TOEFL/IELTS: must be awarded no more than 2 years prior the Exchange Program application deadline;
  • other certificates: awarded no more than 3 years prior the Exchange Program application deadline.
International Certifications for Other Languages
  • certificates must be recognized by Bocconi Language Center with an equal or higher level of B1 and must submitted at the time of application. For the minimum scores accepted, please refer to the Bocconi Language Center tables;
  • for Spanish, SIELE GLOBAL is accepted in on-site or remote mode; 
  • certificates must be awarded no more than 3 years prior the Exchange Program application deadline.
Portuguese Language students who do not meet the Portuguese language requirement must attend and complete the Portuguese Language course provided by Bocconi Language Center.

 

 

 

To apply for destinations with the additional language requirements all Bocconi students, even native speakers, must submit an international certificate (e.g. a British student must submit TOEFL or IELTS for the University of Pennsylvania).

For the language additional requirement, please note that:

  • applicants will need to satisfy both minimum and additional requirements;
  • FCE, CAE, CPA, TOEFL My Best Scores, and IELTS General Training are not accepted;
  • TOEFL and IELTS Academic certificates must be issued no more than 2 years before the departure date;
  • all other certificates must be issued no more than 3 years before the departure date;
  • the Bocconi Study Abroad Office accepts IELTS Online, TOEFL Home Edition, and IELTS One Skill Retake to meet additional language requirements. However, many institutions may require the standard in-person version. Therefore, we strongly recommend choosing the most widely accepted format, as it cannot be excluded that some partner institutions may request the standard certificate to be submitted within a short timeframe after the Bocconi selection and during the Host School application process;
  • for students applying for a destination with limited slots per semester, the certificate needs to be valid at the beginning of the latest semester available (e.g. if you are selected for a destination where the latest departure date is in April 2026, your IELTS/TOEFL must have been obtained no earlier than April 2024).