You have decided to train in gastronomy, and you want to do it far from home. Spain is a natural choice, but to study cooking in Spain as an international student you need practical answers about language, visas, paperwork and what your first weeks will look like.
To study cooking in Spain as an international student, you need to have completed the studies that give access to university in your country, prove your language level and, if you come from outside the EU, apply for a student stay authorization or visa. The university then guides you through admission and arrival.
This guide lays out each step using official sources, so you can build a calendar with some margin.
For a university degree, the basic requirement is to have completed the studies that give you university access under your home country’s rules. Foreign academic documents usually need an apostille or legalization, plus a sworn translation into Spanish if they are not in Spanish. Set aside four to eight weeks to collect them.
Do not mix these documents up with the official recognition of a foreign qualification. They are separate procedures. Recognition goes through Spain’s Ministry of Education and depends on your situation.
Many degrees in Spain are taught in Spanish, and universities ask for a minimum level, usually measured with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. Before you choose, find out whether there is an English-language track for the first year, how the language changes in later years and what support exists for learning Spanish.
Language shapes your results from day one, so settle it before you enroll.
Doubts about language or paperwork?
Ask the GASMA team: request information.
The long-stay student authorization applies to people who are not citizens of the European Union, the European Economic Area or Switzerland. It allows you to remain in Spain for more than 90 days.
According to the information sheet of Spain’s Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, updated in November 2025, for higher education you must be admitted to a recognized institution for a full-time program, with the enrollment fee paid. You also need sufficient financial means, set at 100% of the monthly IPREM (Spain’s public income indicator), and health insurance from an insurer authorized in Spain. If your stay exceeds six months, you must show that you have no criminal record.
From abroad, you apply in person at the Spanish consulate at least two months in advance. After you arrive, you have one month to request your foreigner identity card (TIE). The page itself says its content is for guidance only, so confirm the requirements with the consulate in your country.
Each university runs its own process. As an example, admission to GASMA’s Bachelor’s Degree in Gastronomy has six steps:
There is no elimination test, and interviews can be held online. Intakes are in September and February. Check with admissions which documents you must submit at each stage.
Partly, yes. For international students who do not speak Spanish yet, the Bachelor’s Degree in Gastronomy at GASMA offers an English-language track in the first year. It is delivered entirely in English and includes up to 200 hours of Spanish training to support a gradual transition. From the second year onwards, all classes are taught in Spanish.
The minimum level is B2 on the Common European Framework: English for the English track and Spanish to follow classes normally. The curriculum combines cooking and product knowledge with business management, marketing, communication and entrepreneurship, on a campus in Castellón.
GASMA also issues the admission letter and the enrollment documents you need to present at the consulate. Handling the file at the consulate is the student’s responsibility.
It depends on the program. The Bachelor’s Degree in Gastronomy at GASMA has an English-language track in the first year, with up to 200 hours of Spanish training. From the second year, classes are in Spanish.
Yes. Citizens of the EU, the EEA and Switzerland fall outside the student stay authorization. GASMA lists the European Health Insurance Card among the documents for EU students.
The admission process for GASMA’s degree has no elimination test or exam. It includes interviews, which can be held online.
According to GASMA, non-EU students with a student visa can apply for authorization to work part-time. Check the current conditions with the immigration office.
Consular appointments can take several months in some countries, so it
pays to start early. GASMA is the Gastronomic Campus of CEU Cardenal Herrera University in Castellón, Spain, with an international community and support services for students from other countries. If you want to know the steps for your own case, talk to the admissions team.
International students | Bachelor’s Degree in Gastronomy | Admissions
