Why study in Prague?

Enroll in a top-level institution

Charles University ranks among the top 2% of universities worldwide, a fact that has been repeatedly confirmed by international university rankings. In computer science and mathematics it does even better. We provide the facts below.

• Shanghai University’s Academic Ranking of World Universities: rank 201–300

• Microsoft Academic Search: Charles University is among the 10 top institutions in Discrete Mathematics worldwide and among the 100 top institutions in Algorithms and Theory

• The Times Ranking: rank 301–350

• Topuniversities: rank 200–300

• Higher Education Evaluation and Accreditation Council of Taiwan: overall rank 247 and 167 in Computer Science and Mathematics

• Charles University is consistently ranked as the No. 1 Computer Science school in the Czech Republic.

The education programs at Charles University are accredited by the Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sports of the Czech Republic and the degrees awarded to our graduates are internationally recognized.

Participate in an outstanding program

Charles University has a long tradition, dating back to the 14th century, of promoting science, knowledge, and education in general. Already in the 14th century foreign students were coming to Prague to study at our university. Today, Charles University’s world-class research is the foundation for its high-quality education. It offers programs at bachelor, master and Ph.D. levels. Teaching and research go hand in hand, both in our vision and work. Even undergraduate courses are taught by prominent and distinguished researchers. These include Jiří Matoušek, Jaroslav Nešetřil, Jiří Sgall and Jan Kratochvíl, to name a few. You can look up these people at Microsoft Academic Search or Google Scholar. In our curriculum we put a strong emphasis on ideas and concepts that have stood the test of time and that will endure. This is the reason for the large number of classes in mathematics. At the same time, we provide opportunities to become acquainted with modern research and technologies. While providing a high-quality education, we strive to maintain a friendly academic environment with an individual approach to students. The ratio of students to professors at the School of Computer Science is only around 13:1. At Charles University we use the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS). A few illustrations of the quality of our education. More than 40% of Internet peering centers worldwide use the BIRD routing server, software that originated as a student project at our university. One of the two main integrated development environments for JAVA is NetBeans, software that originated as a student project at our university. The quality of our program is also confirmed by the fact that our graduates move on to successful careers with companies such as Google, Facebook, IBM, GoodData, Oracle and Avast. Have a look at the Alumnisection.

Enjoy affordable expenditures

The annual tuition fee is 3000 EUR (around $3900) for students from the EU and 5000 EUR (around $6500) for students from outside the EU. Average living costs range from 400 to 600 EUR ($500 – $800) per month, including accommodation, meals, public transport, and leisure activities. For our students we provide convenient and affordable accommodation in student dormitories. To get a better idea about living costs in 2012 we recommend the overview on expats.cz. You won’t need a car while studying at Charles University: Trams, buses and the metro can take you absolutely anywhere you want to go and have very frequent schedules. In fact, using a car in Prague is more of a hindrance than a help.

Get to know a vibrant country and its rich culture and history

The Czech Republic is a country in Central Europe, bordering Germany to the west, Poland to the north, Slovakia to the east and Austria to the south. Since time immemorial the Czech lands have been at the crossroads of European cultures. The Czech Republic is a member state of the European Union and part of the Schengen Area. Thanks to its central location, a large part of Europe is easily accessible by train, car or bus, and the rest by plane. Since the 1989 Velvet Revolution the Czech Republic has become a highly popular destination. Tens of thousands of foreigners have happily settled here, enjoying the country’s combination of high living standards and low costs. The Czech Republic is among the 34 economies in the world classified as “advanced economies” by the International Monetary Fund and also on the list of high-income economies of the World Bank. Many leading IT companies like Google, IBM, Microsoft, Oracle and Hewlett–Packard have branches in the Czech Republic. The antivirus computer programs AVG and Avast originated in the Czech Republic. The Czech Republic is one of the very few countries in the world where Google has a rival. The Czech company Seznam has around 50% market share. You might try to compare the map applications of Google and Seznam. The Czech Republic has a low crime rate and civil disorder is very rare in our country. According to the Australian Institute for Economics and Peace, the Czech Republic is among the 15 most peaceful countries in the world. For more information and a comparison with other European states, you can consult the European Sourcebook of Crime and Criminal Justice Statistics. Natural disasters are extremely rare in the Czech Republic: there are no tornadoes, tsunamis, earthquakes etc.

Live in one of the world’s most beautiful cities

Charles University is located right in the historical city center of Prague. Here you will find stunning architecture, lovely lanes, lofty church spires and cupolas, splendid palaces and town houses, bridges criss-crossing the river Vltava, and extensive green spaces in its gardens, parks and islands. With a more than 1100-year-long history, Prague is a city in which all architectural styles can be found: from Romanesque through Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque to Classical, as well as modern styles such as Cubism, Art Deco, Functionalism and contemporary trends. Since 1992, the historic center of Prague has been included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites. No wonder that Prague is an attractive tourist destination – more than five million tourists visited it in 2011. Its beauty, location and characteristic elements have earned the city many nicknames: the Golden City, the heart of Europe, the City of a Hundred Spires, the Pearl of Cities … The most remarkable monuments in Prague include Prague Castle, the largest ancient castle complex in the world; Charles Bridge, the oldest bridge in Prague, built by Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV in the year 1357; the Old Town Hall with Astronomical Clock, a place associated with the most significant events in the country’s history; and this is just to name a few. The Computer Science building of Charles University is a former Jesuit monastery dating from the 17th century and located between Charles Bridge and Prague Castle. If you haven’t been to Prague yet, you may get some feel for the city by using the Google and Seznammap applications.

Broaden your horizons: Interesting facts you may not have known

• The Bata footwear company was founded in 1894 by Tomáš Baťa, a shoemaker from the Czech town of Zlín.
• The car company Škoda was founded as a family business by Laurin and Klement in 1895. The company is one of only four car manufacturers in the world that can boast more than 100 years of tradition.
• One of the most prominent physicists, Albert Einstein, was appointed as a full professor of theoretical physics at Charles University in 1911 (the German part of Charles–Ferdinand University as it was then), and worked there until 1912 when he moved to Zurich.
• The popular and international word “robot” was introduced by Czech writer Karel Čapek in his play R.U.R. (Rossum’s Universal Robots) in 1921; the word is derived from Czech “robota”, meaning “labor” in English.
• The Czech Republic is one of the very few countries in the world where Google does not have a clearly dominant position on the search market. Its rival is the local Czech company Seznam.
• More than 40% of Internet peering centers use the BIRD routing server, software that originated as a student project at our university.

Sounds interesting?

Take a look at our curriculum, admission process, living in Prague, or testimonials from our graduates.

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