Italian Master’s Program Information

• Admissions Requirements
• Timeline for program
• Paying Tuition
• Housing
• CampusCare
• Choosing a Thesis Advisor
• Contact

To qualify for the Italian Master’s program you will need:

• A Bachelor of Science degree in the same or similar field of study as you intend to study at UIC
• A Minimum GPA: 3.0 out of 4.0 (24 out of 30 average)
• English test: Listening, speaking, reading, writing
• IELTS 6.5 (6.0+ for each subject) or TOEFL 80 (L17, R19, S20, W21) required by beginning of classes
• A completed application by November 1

• September – November 1: Submit an application to UIC
• November – December: UIC makes admissions decisions
• January: Register for spring semester courses to be taken at your home institution
  
• February – April: Tuition for the Spring semester is due February 28.Register for fall semester courses and on-campus housingReceive UIC’s I–20 forms, apply for F-1 visa
• August: Fly to Chicago in mid-August, attend orientations, and become a UIC student. Fall classes begin in late August. Tuition is due 9/28
  
• October: Attend OPT and thesis seminars (required)

Your tuition gets adjusted after the system freezes on day 10 of the semester. It will reflect the contract amount and you should wait to receive an email from Jenna or Lynn to prepare your tuition payment. The current contract tuition amount is $9,000. That is tuition only and does not include fees. For information about UIC tuition, visit the graduate tuition and fees page.

Without the contract tuition and as a regular international student, your total would be much higher: $17,828 plus the engineering differential and all fees and assessments.

In Spring 2024, you will pay the contract amount of $9,000 in addition to limited fees. In Fall 2024, you will pay the same contract amount of $9,000, in addition to all fees and assessments. The contract tuition ends with the last required semester in the program (Fall 2024).

Tuition for the Spring semester is due no later than February 28. Fall semester tuition is due no later than September 28. Please allow at least five business days (ideally seven) for payments to reach UIC.

The University of Illinois uses Flywire for international payments from accounts outside the United States. Flywire aims to provide the best price for all international payments. Using Flywire allows you to bypass fees and unfavorable exchange rates you would traditionally be assessed by a bank. Flywire also offers a best-price guarantee for cases in which you may find a competitive rate.

Payment instructions

To make an international wire payment, log into UI-Pay, follow the login instructions for your campus, then select “Student Account”, then select “View & Pay Accounts”, then select the “Make Payment” icon.

• Visit https://paymybill.uillinois.edu/Access and follow the login instructions for your campus.
• Select “Student Account,” “View and Pay Accounts,” and then “Make Payment.”
• Enter payment amount, then select “International Payments” from the Payment Method drop-down menu.

If you have questions about Flywire or the payment process, please contact Flywire’s 24/7 customer support team at support@flywire.com or toll-free at 1 (800) 346-9252.

PLEASE NOTE: Do NOT make your payment to UIC Global if you see that choice. It is NOT the correct account to send the transfer to.

We no longer recommend using wire transfers from your own bank. Please be aware that wire transfers from certain Italian banks are regularly short about $25 or $30, which causes problems with your UIC account. Please email Jenna Stephens if you have questions or concerns about your bill.

On-campus options:

We recommend living in SSR (Single Student Residence) housing. These apartment-style units include a private kitchen and bathroom and primarily house graduate students.

You may choose other residence halls, but ONLY if you will be here for the entire academic year (August through May).

If you know you will be here only through December, select SSR or PSR (Polk Street Residence), as you will not have to pay any penalty for breaking the contract if you return to Italy. PSR units include a private bathroom but access to a community kitchen rather than a private kitchen. Please note: All students who live in ARC, Commons West, Courtyard, or James Stukel Towers are required to choose a meal plan. This is an additional expense. For more information on housing options, visit the UIC housing website.

If you break your contract in December only to move elsewhere but remain at UIC, you will be charged for the cancellation. This involves substantial financial penalties, including loss of the security deposit, a $100 cancellation fee, and 75% of the remaining contract cost. A no-penalty cancellation is offered to our students who will be here for one semester only.

For now, you should carefully consider where you wish to live. It is always easiest to live in the residence halls, as you do not have to worry about finding someone to sublet your apartment when you leave. In addition, all on-campus units come with furniture. Furthermore, if you have any problems, Jenna Stephens can assist you, as can the UIC Housing Office.  This is NOT the case if you choose to live in an off-campus apartment.

To start the process of applying for an on-campus space visit the UIC Housing application page. Under “Learn more reasons to live on campus today,” click the APPLY NOW box.  You will need your NetID and password to complete this process.  Instructions for this were included in your welcome email. The application will ask for:

• Your residence hall choice(s); the apartment-style residence halls (and PSR) do not require a meal plan.
• Roommate preferences, if applicable. All parties must be in agreement and list one another’s UIN on their applications.

For the best chance at receiving your preferences, we suggest that you complete the process by April 1st or sooner.  Choosing SSR increases your chances for a successful match. Please note: There is a $50 non-refundable application fee that is collected online.

Information about move-in is online. This page is updated from time to time; depending on when you visit, you may see information from the prior semester.  Remember that orientations take place the week before classes start, and you should be here for that full week. You can find information about requesting an early arrival here.

If you choose to arrive at UIC to look for an apartment near campus, Guest Housing spaces are available either for a private space or a shared space for short-term needs.  Information about this service and an application can be found here.  Off-campus housing information is on the UIC commuter website. We do not recommend signing a lease on any apartment you have not seen and inspected yourself. In the past, some students chose to live around the Chicago metropolitan area and used Airbnb. For some, it worked out; for others, it didn’t, and they were forced to move in the middle of the year. If you are looking into this option, reach out to those students so you can speak directly with them about their experiences.

Off-campus options:

Here are a few resources to help you search for off-campus housing.

• UIC’s Commuter Student Resource Center provides a service for those seeking off-campus accommodations. Students can use their UIC NetID and password to access the information or set up a guest account (that expires after 60 days). Creating a profile allows students to find roommates and view properties available. https://offcampushousing.uic.edu/
• The Letterman Chicago: https://www.lettermanchicago.com/
• Connect with Italian students from previous cohort groups to take over leases or furniture. Jenna Stephens can assist you in reaching these students who are still in Chicago.

We do not recommend signing a lease on any apartment you have not seen and inspected yourself.  In the past, some students chose to live elsewhere around the Chicago metropolitan area and used Airbnb.  For some it worked out, for others, it did not and they were forced to move in the middle of the year.  If you are looking into this option, you should reach out to those students so you can speak directly with them about their experiences. You may need to pay a security deposit, especially because as international students you do not have a social security number for property owners to do a credit check of your financial history.

Medical Immunization Records 

Whether you are living on-campus in a residence hall or off-campus in an apartment or house, all students are required to show proof of certain vaccinations. University of Illinois Chicago is partnering with Med+Proctor to submit your immunization record.

Effective Spring 2022 on forward, the Illinois Department of Public Health requires that all incoming students born on or after January 1, 1957, who are enrolled for 6 or more credit hours (excluding those in Dentistry, Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy- see below for additional information) present documented proof of immunity (pdf) against the following diseases:

1. Measles (Rubeola) – two (2) doses at least 28 days apart and on or after 1st birthday
2. Mumps – two (2) doses at least 28 days apart and on or after 1st birthday
3. Rubella (German Measles) – two (2) doses at least 28 days apart and on or after 1st birthday
4. TD (Tetanus and Diphtheria) – at least  one (1) dose within the past 10 years
5. Meningitis – Required for students under the age of 22 – Must be given on or after 16th birthday

Please visit https://registrar.uic.edu/student-records/medical-immunization-2/  for full instructions on how to upload a copy of your immunization forms to your Med+Proctor account. Please note: All records not in English must be accompanied by a certified translation. Be sure to submit your form to www.medproctor.com

CampusCare is an affordable self-funded student health benefits program that has been providing comprehensive health care benefits to eligible enrolled students and their covered dependents at the University of Illinois Chicago, Rockford, and Peoria campuses since 2004.

The University of Illinois requires all students to be covered by major medical health insurance, therefore all students are automatically enrolled in CampusCare and assessed the CampusCare fee on their tuition when registering for courses that are charged with tuition & mandatory fees. There are no enrollment forms to complete. CampusCare qualifies for minimal essential coverage under the Affordable Care Act as a self-funded health benefits program and is not a licensed insurance company.

Please read and bookmark the CampusCare website.

From there, you can:

• Access the Waiver Form. You also will need to show proof of other insurance coverage. You have until day 10 of the semester before the system freezes to get this taken off of your account or it will be calculated in with Tuition and Fees that will be due.
• Print your CampusCare ID Card.

*Registered students can reinstate at any time

Please note that you have four weeks from the start of the term to complete all forms for CampusCare if you elect to use it.

Please note: All records not in English must be accompanied by a certified translation. Be sure to submit your form to www.medproctor.com

If you have not been matched with a thesis advisor yet, we encourage you to go to your department’s web page and search the core faculty listings (look under the “Faculty and Staff” menu) to see who specializes in your area of interest. The sooner you are matched with an advisor, the sooner you can get going on your research and write your thesis! Links to our department websites are here:

• Bioengineering
• Civil, materials, and environmental 
• Computer science
• Electrical and computer engineering
• Mechanical and industrial engineering