IB Diploma and University Admission in Bulgaria: NACID, Grades and Entrance Exams

Fee figures: catalogue of 6 October 2026.

Bulgaria has no special admission rules for the IB Diploma. It treats the IB like any other foreign school-leaving qualification: the diploma is recognised by a national body, your grades are converted to the Bulgarian scale, and then each university applies its own admission rules. For most IB students, and for almost all who apply to medicine, the decisive step is the university's entrance exam.

Recognition: the NACID certificate

The National Centre for Information and Documentation (NACID) recognises secondary education completed abroad. For university admission it issues a certificate (удостоверение) that confirms your secondary education and converts the grades in your diploma to the Bulgarian scale. Universities ask for it together with a legalised copy of the diploma and a Bulgarian translation.

Points to know:

NACID decides within one month of receiving complete documents.
The certificate is valid only in Bulgaria and can be issued electronically.
If your diploma does not list subject grades, or a university needs grades from other documents, NACID can issue an official note converting them.
The regulation on school education allows recognition to be refused if the documents come from a school that the authorities of its own country do not recognise. If you studied at an international school, ask your IB coordinator how the school is recognised locally.

The legal basis is Ordinance No. 11 of 2016 on assessment, which sets the Bulgarian scale: excellent (6), very good (5), good (4), average (3) and poor (2).

How IB grades are converted

Bulgaria publishes no IB conversion table. NACID converts the grades case by case and writes the Bulgarian equivalents into the certificate. In practice this means:

IB subject grades become grades on the 2–6 scale, and universities rank you using those converted grades or their own exams;
there is no national formula that turns your IB total into an admission score.

Ask NACID or the university how your grades will appear before you rely on a particular result.

What universities ask for

Each university sets its own rules and publishes them by 31 March for the following autumn. Three examples for 2026:

Medical University of Sofia: foreign applicants to medicine, dentistry and pharmacy in English sit an exam in English, biology and chemistry. Applicants are ranked on their biology and chemistry grades from the school diploma together with the exam results, so both subjects should be on your IB transcript. All foreign applicants submit the NACID certificate.
Medical University of Varna: non-EU applicants to English-taught medicine, dentistry and pharmacy sit online biology and chemistry tests, held on several dates (in 2026: 4 April, 16 May and 13 June). The ranking score is the grade in the official language of the country where you finished school plus three times the test results, with a maximum of 42. An IB Diploma taught in English with English at grade 4 (SL or HL) is accepted instead of an English test.
American University in Bulgaria (private): the recommended minimum for a provisional offer is 31 IB points, including TOK and EE points. It accepts predicted grades and can withdraw the offer if the final score is lower. English A at grade 5 (6 for Literature at SL) or English B HL at grade 6 waives the English test.

Medicine: things IB students should check

Take biology and chemistry. Medical universities test both, and Sofia also uses your diploma grades in them.
The language of the country. Varna and Pleven count a grade in the official language of the country where you completed school (Varna asks for at least 65% of the maximum, Pleven 62%). An IB student at an international school abroad may not have one, so ask the university early.
Two intakes. Most programmes start in the autumn, but the Medical University of Pleven admits to medicine in English in February; applications for February 2027 run from 1 June to 1 October 2026.

Timing with IB results

May session results come out in early July. Bulgarian deadlines for non-EU students follow closely: for 2026 the Medical University of Sofia took documents from 27 July to 31 August, and the Medical University of Varna wanted all paper documents, including the NACID certificate, by 11 September. Because NACID needs up to a month, apply for recognition as soon as your results arrive. Students from the November session have more time, and the February intake at Pleven fits a May session well.

EU and non-EU applicants

Citizens of the EU, the EEA and Switzerland apply on the same terms as Bulgarians and pay the same fees. Others apply as foreign students under Article 95(8) of the Higher Education Act, pay higher fees, and need a visa D after admission. See how to get into a university in Bulgaria and student visa for Bulgaria.

Where to look next

Official sources

Always check current information on the official website of the university before you apply.