One must obtain admission in order to matriculate in one of the four schools of the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross.

Admission is granted only to the cycle of studies applied for, and it must therefore be requested again in order to obtain admission to other cycles of studies; in that case, however, it is not necessary to present the documentation already once presented.

Applicants will be accepted on the basis of their curriculum of studies and, if considered necessary by the academic authorities, on the result of an entrance examination. Admission to the third cycle of studies will be based on the general result of the studies completed in the second cycle.

Students that do not matriculate within the academic year they have been admitted to lose their right to matriculation, and must apply again in order to matriculate at a later date.

Priests, candidates to holy orders, members of institutes of consecrated life and members of societies of apostolic life must observe the norms of ecclesiastical dress, and the disciplinary rules in force for clerical and religious residents of Rome. Only registered students have the right to attend the courses of the plan of studies. Students that interrupt their studies without justification, or break the rules of academic discipline, lose this right.

The academic office receives the applications for matriculation. When matriculating, students must identify themselves by means of their passport or other identification papers.

Documents to present

Application for matriculation using the form supplied by the academic office.
Four photographs size 4.5cm x 3.5cm (1.8in x 1.4in).
Receipt for the payment of the registration fee.
Priests and candidates to holy orders require a residency certificate from the national colleges or residence hall, or the corresponding annual “rescript of extracollegiality” from the Vicariate of Rome for permission to live outside such residences.
Priests must furthermore present the document that grants them the authority to hear confessions habitually (cf. C.I.C., 969 and 973).

Period of matriculation

The academic office receives the applications for matriculation to the ordinary courses from September 1 to October 4. After October 4 the academic office only accepts applications after conferring with the Rector, and only after the applicant has paid an indemnity for the delay.

When matriculating for the second semester of the academic year these dates are extended by four months.

Students that do not have Italian as their first language must prove a sufficient knowledge of the Italian language by taking a test. Students that do not pass the test must repeat it before the end of the academic year.

Students must present an application for registration (on the form provided by the academic office) together with the receipt for the payment of the registration fee, in order to register for the second and following years of a cycle of studies.

Priests and candidates to holy orders must, furthermore, present their certificate of residency in an ecclesiastical college or hall of residence, or the corresponding annual “rescript of extracollegiality” from the Vicariate of Rome for permission to live outside such residences.

The period of registration is the same as that of matriculation.

Registration to the doctoral cycles is considered valid until the date of the examination of the thesis, which must be held within five years from the date of the approval of the topic. The student may renew this registration for another five years by re-presenting the topic for the approval of the School, and by paying the increase in the presentation fee.

In order to receive the stamp of the academic year students must present their student card when registering.

Students that attend courses regularly and that are admitted to academic degrees are considered ordinary students.

Students can register again, at the end of the normal duration of a cycle of studies, for one or more courses of this cycle, in order to attend these or only take the exams. This procedure will be chosen when a student has not obtained the certification of attendance of the courses, or if he/she failed to pass one or more exams. These students will not be considered ordinary.

If a student has passed all the exams of a cycle of studies, but is not able to take the comprehensive degree exams within the February session of the following academic year, he/she must present the application for registration as a student "fuori corso" before October 2nd. Students must pay the registration fee by February 28 if they do not pass the degree exams in the February session.

Students who follow a personal plan of studies or research may audit classes at the University. These students can register for one or more courses chosen in agreement with the Coordinator of Programs, or for all the courses of the plan of studies of the School. The procedure of registration is the same for these students as for ordinary students. The academic authorities will ascertain, case by case, the student's capacity to follow the courses. For these students, academic qualifications are not necessary for admission since they can not be admitted to degree exams. A certificate of attendance can be issued if the student so desires.

There are 3 exam sessions during the course of the year: the winter session at the end of the first semester (during the first two weeks of February), the summer session at the end of the second semester (during the month of June) and the autumn session before the beginning of the academic year (at the end of September/beginning of October). Students that have registered and attended the courses are automatically admitted to these sessions.

When a student, without a justifiable and provable motive, does not take an exam, the exam will be considered failed. The same exam can be repeated up to four times. The fourth time the exam will be taken in front of an ad hoc committee.

Students that fail an exam cannot sit for the same exam again before the following exam session.

Attendance at the lectures of all four Schools is compulsory. While writing their doctoral thesis, students of the third cycle of studies must stay in frequent contact with their moderator. Attendance will be calculated on the basis of credits; one credit equals one hour of lectures a week per semester.

Lectures start October 9 and end May 31. There are no lectures at Christmastime, at Easter and during the first two weeks of February (first exam session).

Students that are absent from more than a third of the lectures of a subject lose their right to sit for the exam in that subject.

When a student has completed a cycle of studies and has passed the degree exams, the School of Theology issues the pertinent qualification: Bachelor's degree, specialized Licentiate or Doctorate in Theology.

The School of Canon Law issues the qualifications Licentiate or Doctorate in Canon Law once the students have completed the cycle of studies and have passed the degree exams.

The School of Philosophy issues the qualifications Bachelor's degree, Licentiate or Doctorate once the students have completed the cycle of studies and have passed the degree exams.

The School of Social Institutional Communication issues the qualifications Licentiate or Doctorate once the students have completed the cycle of studies and have passed the degree exams.

In order to obtain the qualification of Doctorate, in all four cases, the students must publish their doctoral thesis or at least the main part of it. For the writing out of the final text the student must take the observations of the board of examiners into consideration and present two copies of the text to obtain the permit to publish.

The criteria for the formal characteristics of the publication are released by the academic office.