The NCU entrance exam
Nicolaus Copernicus University admits with fifty questions online, a short oral the next day, and no grade minimums — your exam route to study Medicine in Poland. We prepare you with NCU's own sample tests, free.
Everything about the exam, at a glance
NCU has an entrance exam: to get your place, you sit this test and pass it. Here is exactly what it looks like, and we prepare you for every part of it, free.
No grade requirements at all
Your diploma just needs Biology plus Chemistry or Physics on it — and if you only have a combined Natural Science subject, NCU assesses it individually. The exam decides — not your school results.
Three simple steps to your place
Register — by 25 August or 15 September
Message us and we check your diploma subjects the same day, then register you in NCU's admission system together. The 85 PLN fee goes straight to the university.
Sit the test — prepared
Fifty questions from home on 8 or 23 September, covering biology, chemistry and physics. You prepare with NCU's own official sample tests, a study plan and our coaching, all free. Score 25 or more and you move on. Score 24 and it stops there, which is exactly why we drill the format with you.
The oral, then your result
A short online conversation the next day about the sciences, your English and your motivation and predisposition to study Medicine — we practise it with you first. Results come within days, and studies begin 1 October. There are 96 places for the year, so 70 points makes you eligible and everything above it is what wins you a seat.
Exactly what they ask, published in full
NCU Collegium Medicum sent us their official topic list for the admission test and the interview, and we publish all of it here in their own words. Seven interview themes and fifty-three science topics. Nothing on this page is our guesswork, and nothing they can ask you is missing from it.
The interview questions
NCU calls these the general questions, and they belong to the oral exam only. The wording below is theirs, not ours. Have an honest answer ready for each one and the conversation holds no surprises. We run a practice oral with you on exactly these.
- Motivation, interest, career choice. Why did you choose this study programme?
- Tell us about yourself, experience, interests etc.
- Why this medical school? What do you know about this school?
- Your strengths and attributes, how you handle stress, main weaknesses.
- Concerns about studying the selected study programme.
- Knowledge of the medical profession, other professions allied to medicine. Recent developments.
- What medical publications do you read?
The science topics
These carry both parts of the exam. The written test draws its fifty questions from them, and the oral comes back to the sciences again. The split beside each subject is the exam's own weighting, so you can see where your revision hours are worth the most.
Biology21 topics · 30 of the 50 written questions
- The structure, function and examples of main molecules (carbohydrates, proteins, nucleic acids and lipids). The importance of water for organisms, based on its physico-chemical properties.
- The characteristic features of the protein enzyme structure and the course of enzymatic catalysis. The examples of different ways to regulate enzyme activity in a cell. The general principles of metabolism. The substrates and products of major catabolic pathways (photosynthesis, aerobic respiratory stages, anaerobic respiration, glycolysis).
- Similarities and differences in structure and function between Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic cells. Cell surface structures. Motility. Internal organization. Membrane. Compartmentalization. Cytoskeleton. Endomembrane system: endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi Apparatus and lysosomes, nucleus, ribosomes, mitochondria. The course of plasmolysis in plant cells, referring to the phenomenon of osmosis.
- Cell cycle. Mitosis and meiosis. Cellular organization of genetic material. Phases of cell cycle. The stages of mitosis and meiosis. A comparison of mitosis and meiosis.
- Viruses. Structure of viruses. General features of viral replication cycles.
- The importance of arthropods in nature and human life. The characteristics of fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals in connection with the environment and lifestyle.
- Chromosomal and molecular basis of inheritance. The chromosomal basis of sex. Inheritance of X- and Y-linked genes. Alternation of chromosome number and structure. Human disorders due to chromosomal alternation. Inheritance of organelle genes. The examples of inheriting according to Mendel's laws. DNA as genetic material. Structural model of DNA. Chromosomes' structure.
- Genetic mechanisms. The flow of genetic information. Replication: Transcription (alternation of mRNA ends, RNA splicing). Translation. Genetic code. Type of mutations. Regulation of gene expression (promoters, transcription factors). Tools to control gene expression.
- Tissues and body membranes. Structure and physiology of connective, muscle, epithelial and nervous tissue; serous, mucous, synovial and cutaneous membranes.
- Nervous system. Organization of nervous system. The central nervous system. The organization of human brain. Peripheral nervous system: motor and autonomic nervous system. Neurons, synapses and signalling. Neurons structure and function. Resting and action potential. Conduction of action potentials. Examples of neurotransmitters.
- Hormones and endocrine system. Intercellular communication. Endocrine tissues and organs. Chemical classes of hormones. Multiple effects of hormones. Simple hormone pathways. Feedback regulation.
- Immune system. Innate and adaptive immunity. Antigen. Antibody. The humoral immune response. The cell-mediated immune response. Inflammatory response. Immunological memory. Allergies.
- Cardiovascular system. Organization of human circulatory system. Heart and heart's rhythmic beat. Structure of the heart. Blood vessels structure and function. Blood pressure. Blood composition and function.
- Respiratory system. Organization of human respiratory system. Function and basic structure of haemoglobin and myoglobin.
- Musculoskeletal system. Organization and function of human skeletal and muscular system, general structure of bones. Classification of junctions and joints. Classification of skeleton.
- Visual and auditory sensory systems. Visual apparatus. Eyeball, accessory visual apparatus. Optic nerve. Nerves of extraocular muscles (III, IV, VI). Pupillary light reflex and accommodation reaction.
- Auditory and vestibular apparatuses. External, middle and internal ear. Vestibulocochlear nerve. Sound pathway.
- Organization of human digestive system. Chemical digestion in the human digestive system. Examples and location of digestive enzymes. The correct glucose levels. What information cholesterol measurement provides us. Role of water in maintaining health.
- Human reproduction and development. Gametogenesis. Conception.
- The basic elements of the organism's ecological niche. The trophic levels of producers and consumers of organic matter, and among the latter - herbivores, predators and destructors. The similarities and differences between different interspecies relationships (like competition, predation, herbivorousness and parasitism).
- The basic sources of knowledge about the mechanisms and course of evolution, i.e. divergent and convergent evolution, homologous and analogous structures.
Chemistry19 topics · 12 of the 50 written questions
- Modern atomic theory. Elements and atomic number. Isotopes and atomic weight.
- The Periodic Table. Symbols of elements. The periodic table and some characteristics of different groups. Electronic structure of atoms and electron configurations. Electron configurations and the periodic table.
- Molecular compounds. Covalent bonds and the periodic table. Multiple covalent bonds and coordinate covalent bonds. Characteristics of molecular compounds. Molecular formulas and Lewis structures. Polar covalent bonds and electronegativity, polar molecules. Naming binary molecular compounds.
- Classification and balancing of chemical reactions. Classes of chemical reactions. Chemical equations and balancing chemical equations. Acids, bases, and neutralization reactions. Redox reactions.
- Mole and mass relationships. The mole and Avogadro's number.
- Reaction rates and chemical equilibria. Endothermic and exothermic chemical reactions. Factors that influence chemical reaction rates.
- Physical quantities. Metric system of units. Metric units of length, mass, volume.
- Fundamental chemical laws. Law of conservation of mass, definite proportions, multiple proportions.
- Mole concept and chemical formulas. Calculations involving chemical equations. Calculations involving volume and concentration.
- Acids and bases in aqueous solution, some common acids and bases, the Bronsted-Lowry definition of acids and bases, acid dissociation constants, acid and base strength.
- Buffers measuring acidity in aqueous solution: pH. Buffer solutions. Titration.
- Alkanes. The nature of organic molecules. The structure of organic molecules: alkanes and their isomers. Drawing organic structures. Naming alkanes, cycloalkanes.
- Alkenes and Alkynes. Naming alkenes and alkynes. The structure of alkenes, cis-trans isomerism.
- Aromatic compounds and the structure of benzene. Naming aromatic compounds.
- Alcohols, some common alcohols. Naming alcohols. Phenols, some common phenols.
- Carboxylic acids and their derivatives, properties and names. Some common carboxylic acids.
- Amino acids structures. Chemical properties of proteins.
- Enzymes and vitamins. Catalysis by enzymes. How enzymes work. Some of vitamins and minerals.
- Nucleic acids and protein synthesis. DNA, chromosomes, and genes. Composition of nucleic acids. The structure of nucleic acid chains. Base pairing in DNA: the Watson-Crick model.
Physics13 topics · 8 of the 50 written questions
- Scalar and vector physical quantities, SI system of units.
- Velocity and acceleration. Uniform motion and uniformly accelerated motion.
- Force, mass and weight. Newton's laws of motion.
- Work, kinetic energy, potential energy, power. Energy transformations. Conservation of energy.
- Temperature, heat and internal energy. Thermal equilibrium, calorimetry. Specific heat and latent heat. First law of thermodynamics.
- Pressure. Pascal's principle, Archimedes' principle, buoyant force.
- Electrostatics. Electric charge, electric field, field lines. Coulomb's law.
- Electric current, voltage. Ohm's law, electric resistance. Resistors in series and parallel.
- Magnets and magnetic fields. Magnetic induction. Current as a source of magnetic field.
- Mechanical and electromagnetic waves; wavelength, period, frequency, speed of wave. Electromagnetic spectrum.
- Geometric optics. Law of reflection and refraction. Index of refraction. Images in mirrors and lenses, focal point, focal length, optical power, lens equation.
- Atomic nucleus. Natural radioactivity: alpha, beta and gamma decay. The radioactive decay law; the radioactive half-life.
- Photon theory of light, photon energy. Atomic spectra, energy levels, transitions, absorption and emission.
Source: "Topics for the admission test and interview", NCU Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, sent to Medently on 10 August 2026. Already signed up? The same list, plus the exam format and a preparation plan, is waiting in your student portal.
Everything else about NCU, one click away
The things students ask us most
What is on the NCU entrance exam?
A written online test of 50 multiple-choice questions: 30 in biology, 12 in chemistry and 8 in physics. One correct answer per question, one point each, and one minute per question. It is proctored, so you take it from home under supervision.
What score do I need?
Two numbers matter. First, at least 25 of the 50 points on the written test, which is what gets you invited to the oral the next day. Score 24 and the application ends there, whatever else is in your file. Second, your final score, which is half your written points plus your oral points out of 75. That has to reach 70 of 100, and 70 is the minimum to be admitted rather than a guarantee, because NCU has 96 places for the year and 84 of them are in the round that closes 25 August.
What grades do I need for NCU?
None. NCU sets no minimum grades — your diploma just needs to include Biology and at least one of Chemistry or Physics — and a combined Natural Science subject can be assessed individually, so message us first. The exam decides, not your school results.
Do I need IELTS or TOEFL?
Norwegian applicants do not — NCU confirmed to Medently in writing that English is assessed inside the entrance exam. Applicants from some other countries need a B2 certificate; we tell you which rule applies to you.
What is the oral exam scored on?
Three parts of 25 points each, 75 in total: English proficiency, the natural and exact sciences, and what NCU itself calls your motivation and predispositions to study Medicine. That last part is their wording, not ours, and it is broader than simply asking why you want to be a doctor.
Is the oral exam online too?
Usually yes, the day after the written test. NCU can arrange it on site in Bydgoszcz if you prefer.
When are the exam rounds?
Register by 25 August 2026 for the test on 8 September (oral 9 September, results 11 September), or by 15 September for the final round on 23 and 24 September (results 25 September). Studies begin 1 October 2026.
What does it cost?
The application fee is 85 PLN, about €20, paid to NCU. Medently's guidance and preparation are free.
What topics are on the NCU entrance exam?
NCU has an official topic list and we publish the whole of it further up this page. It is 21 biology topics, 19 chemistry topics split between inorganic and organic, and 13 physics topics, plus the seven interview themes. The written test draws its 50 questions from the science topics, and the oral returns to the sciences alongside your English and your motivation.
How do I prepare?
Start with the official topic list on this page, which is NCU's own and covers everything they are allowed to ask. We work through it with you alongside NCU's sample tests, a study plan, and a practice oral on the real interview questions. All of it is free, and preparation moves the result a lot.
Ready to sit the NCU exam?
Message us today. We check your diploma the same day, register you for a September round, and prepare you with NCU's official materials — free.
