Rome – With 149 votes in favor and 63 against, the Chamber has definitively approved the reform of access to degree courses in Medicine, Dentistry and Veterinary Medicine. The new law, already passed in Senate, cancels the multiple choice entrance tests and delegates to the government the adoption, within a year, of implementing decrees to redefine the access methods.
However, the programmed number is not abolished: the selection will simply be postponed to the end of the first semester of studies, based on a series of exams. Only students who pass this phase will be able to access the second year.
The news of the reform
The reform provides that enrollment in the first year is free, without an admission test. However, to continue with the second year, students must obtain a score useful in a single national ranking.
Those who do not pass the selection will still be able to continue the second semester, attending a course in the scientific area without losing the year. The exams taken, if compatible with the new path, will be considered valid. The Minister of the University, Anna Maria Bernini, has defined the reform as "a revolution" that will allow the training of "at least 30.000 more new doctors in the coming years".
Opposition criticism
There is no shortage of controversy. The Democratic Party has branded the reform as “a bluff to the detriment of universities, students and their families”. “The restricted number is not abolished,” declared Irene Manzi of the Democratic Party, “only the selection is postponed by six months”.
Azione and Avs also expressed doubts, underlining that the reform does not solve the structural problems of the system. Roberto Giachetti (Iv) spoke of “uncertainty”, while Elisabetta Piccolotti (Avs) criticized the maintenance of the limited number, defining it as “essential for a correct planning of the need for doctors”.
The reform will come into force next academic year, but many details will be defined in the implementing decrees. In the meantime, private universities are already organizing themselves to maintain the traditional entrance tests. Minister Bernini has assured that the decrees will arrive “quickly”, but the opposition remains skeptical: “University planning cannot be done in six months”, commented the Democratic Party.
In short, if on the one hand the reform represents a significant change in the system of access to Medicine, on the other it leaves many questions open about its concrete impact and its ability to respond to the needs of the National Health Service.
Article published on March 11, 2025 - 19pm
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The reform of access to medical courses seems good but there are many questions that have no answers. How will they manage the number of students who pass? There are also doubts about the score to obtain.
I don't know if this reform is the right solution. The programmed number has not been abolished, so it remains a problem. Let's just hope it works well for all students and universities.