When people talk about being admitted to Czech public universities, they usually mean entrance exams: NSZ (Scio) for most specialties, TSP for MUNI, specialized tests in biology and chemistry for medical faculties. However, in the Czech educational system there is a separate category of programmes where admission takes place without entrance examinations.
Sometimes this means "based on the high-school GPA" — the university looks at your school grades and makes a decision without a separate test. In other cases it is literally "on a first-come-first-served basis while there are places left" — meaning it is enough to submit the "přihláška" on time and pay the administrative fee. For an international applicant, in either scenario, the only real barrier is proving Czech language knowledge — usually a B2 certificate or a result from the university's own language test is enough.
This is an excellent path for those who want to focus as much as possible on language learning and guarantee themselves a place at a public university without months of preparing for specific exams. Below are five fields where this option is realistically available today.
1. Chemical technologies and biotechnologies
Where: VŠCHT (University of Chemistry and Technology in Prague).
Description: VŠCHT is a narrowly focused technical university that trains specialists for the chemical, pharmaceutical, biotechnology and environmental industries. Key areas include work with nanomaterials, drug development, food technology, environmental protection, materials chemistry and process engineering. Graduates are sought after by major Czech and international companies: Zentiva, Teva Pharmaceuticals, Synthos, ČEZ, Unilever and dozens of specialized EU laboratories.
Why no exams: VŠCHT has historically been considered one of the most challenging universities in Czechia in terms of curriculum. Given the volume of chemistry, physics and mathematics in the first year, the university deliberately keeps admission open — practically any applicant with verified Czech can apply and be admitted. The tough selection begins after admission: the first exam period "removes" up to 40–50% of the cohort, the second — even more. Those who remain receive one of the most valuable technical diplomas in Central Europe.
2. Mechanical engineering and industrial design
Where: ČVUT in Prague (FS — Faculty of Mechanical Engineering), VUT in Brno (FSI — Faculty of Mechanical Engineering), TUL in Liberec (FS — Faculty of Mechanical Engineering).
Description: This is the heart of Czech industry. Here you learn to design engines and transmissions (close cooperation with ŠKODA Auto, Hyundai in Nošovice, Tatra Trucks), build industrial robots and automated lines, work on aerospace projects (Aero Vodochody, Czech participation in ESA projects), 3D modeling and structural strength calculations. Industrial design as a separate field exists at TUL — it is about the ergonomics and aesthetics of products, from household appliances to cars.
Why no exams: Mechanical engineering is a field where Czechia has had a long and growing shortage of personnel. The industry accounts for about 14% of the country's GDP, but young people massively choose IT and management instead of engineering. The state and the factories themselves are interested in having as many students as possible start engineering studies — therefore most mechanical-engineering programmes at ČVUT, VUT and TUL admit students "without entrance examinations" or take only the high-school GPA into account.
3. Construction and architectural engineering
Where: ČVUT in Prague (FSv — Faculty of Civil Engineering), VUT in Brno (FAST — Faculty of Civil Engineering).
Description: Design of urban infrastructure, bridges, tunnels and roads, civil and industrial construction, hydraulic engineering, construction project management, BIM technologies and sustainable construction. A separate field is "architectural engineering" — a hybrid of architect and structural engineer, who can both draw buildings and calculate their statics.
Why no exams: In a number of construction specialties at ČVUT and VUT the math exam is officially waived for applicants with a good high-school GPA (typically not lower than 2.0 on the Czech scale, roughly equivalent to a "good" grade in the post-Soviet system). This is done specifically for talented technical applicants who are strong in school-level math but do not want to spend half a year preparing for NSZ. Simply show the transcript — and you are admitted. This is particularly important for foreigners: it is usually easier to get an excellent high-school transcript at home than to pass a Czech math test from scratch.
4. Agribusiness and forestry
Where: ČZU (Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague).
Description: This is a multidisciplinary university with six faculties: Economics and Management, Agrobiology and Food Resources, Engineering (including agricultural machinery), Environmental Protection, Forestry and Wood Sciences, Tropical Agriculture. Inside — dozens of specialties: from landscape design and environmental management to precision agribusiness using drones and AI soil analysis.
Why no exams: At several faculties (primarily forestry and agrobiology) the number of places significantly exceeds the number of applications. This creates a direct opportunity: applicants are admitted without tests based on confirmed diploma nostrification and a Czech B2 certificate. At the same time the ČZU diploma is highly valued: graduates work at Komerční Banka, ČSOB, Agrofert, in international agricultural corporations and state structures responsible for agriculture and the environment. This is an excellent choice for those who want a "calm" admission while obtaining a European diploma in a sought-after specialty.
5. Applied natural sciences (physics, geology, ecology)
Where: University of South Bohemia (Jihočeská univerzita in České Budějovice), Jan Evangelista Purkyně University (UJEP in Ústí nad Labem).
Description: Nuclear and solid-state physics, geoinformatics and work with geographic data (GIS), geology and study of natural resources, environmental protection and biology of ecosystem restoration. UJEP has a strong field — monitoring of pollution and rehabilitation of former industrial sites, particularly relevant for northern Bohemia with its coal-mining past.
Why no exams: Regional Czech universities actively attract international students to research-oriented specialties. There are several reasons: Czech students massively go to Prague and Brno, leaving regional universities under-enrolled; scientific programmes receive European grants and must "work them off" — including by training international personnel. If an applicant has a nostrified high-school transcript and proven Czech, they are admitted without additional tests. As a bonus — a small and warm campus, individual attention from instructors and a lower cost of living than in Prague.
Important note: the responsibility lies with the student
The opportunity to be admitted without entrance exams is no reason to relax. Quite the opposite: instructors at universities like VŠCHT or ČVUT assume that the first-year student already knows the school curriculum in chemistry, physics and mathematics at an above-average level. Their task is not to teach from scratch but to develop. So the first semester is perceived by students as a huge shock: lectures are given in professional Czech, the pace is fast, there is a lot of homework, and no one offers help.
The applicant's task during the preparatory course is not only to bring Czech up to B2/C1, but also to master Czech terminology in the future major subjects in parallel. Knowing how to say "derivative of a function", "polymerization", "bending moment" or "biogeocenosis" in Czech is half the success in the first exam session. KOVER education offers Smart Intensive tracks (medical, technical, chemical and others) for exactly this purpose, where alongside the language the student prepares specifically for Czech subject terminology. This significantly reduces the risk of "dropping out" after the first session, especially at technical universities with a high workload.
And finally: even in specialties where the "entrance" is open, nothing replaces the importance of good motivation. If you choose a field only because it is easy to enroll and not because you are genuinely interested in it, there is a high probability you will quit after the first year. So the ideal strategy is to find a balance: a specialty with an easy entrance, but with interesting content and good career prospects on the Czech and European job markets.