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Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas

Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas

Quick facts

City
Lima
Country
Peru
Type
Private
Founded
1994
Students
72,352
National ranking
#5
Tuition (local students)
PEN 47,040
Guide score
7.3/10

Official website: www.upc.edu.pe

Overview

The Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas (UPC) is a private, for-profit university founded in Lima in 1994. It is affiliated with the Laureate network. UPC is SUNEDU-licensed and, since 2016, the only Peruvian university accredited by the US agency WSCUC. WSCUC reaffirmed that accreditation in 2022 for ten years.

It is one of Peru's largest universities. WSCUC reports about 72,350 full-time-equivalent undergraduates plus about 3,500 graduate students, including its working-adult and online divisions. In QS Latin America & Caribbean 2026 UPC ranks 107th and 5th in Peru. In QS World it sits in the 1201–1400 band for 2026 and 1401+ for 2027. It also leads Merco's reputation ranking of Peruvian universities.

Academic programs

UPC is career-focused. Its best-known areas are Business, Communications, Architecture, Engineering (Industrial, Systems, Software, Civil, Mining, Biomedical), Law, Psychology, Design and Fashion, and Health Sciences, including Medicine. Its international programmes include NCUK pathways and links with the University of Arizona and the University of Leeds. Terms run as semesters (March–July and August–December), taught in Spanish with some English content.

Campus life

There are four Lima campuses:

Facilities are modern: labs, simulation centres, sports grounds and plenty of food courts. Student life revolves around clubs, sports teams and entrepreneurship programmes. Lima traffic is the main downside, so pick housing near your campus.

Exchange programs

Incoming students must be nominated by a partner university. UPC then asks for an application with transcripts and proof of Spanish at B1 or above. The international office (incomingmobility@upc.edu.pe) organises orientation and holds fortnightly follow-up meetings with exchange students. Partner universities report that UPC is well organised for semester exchanges. Exchange students pay tuition at home under the agreement.

Admissions

The main undergraduate modalities are:

Medicine adds an interview. External transfers need at least 72 approved credits.

For the March 2027 intake, exams fall on 5 December 2026 and 20 March 2027, and applications close on 19 March 2027. The August 2026 intake sat its exam on 8 August, with classes from 24 August. UPC does not publish an acceptance rate.

Foreign school certificates must be apostilled (or legalised) and officially translated into Spanish if needed. Degree students need the calidad migratoria de formación residente, applied for online at Migraciones. Semester exchange students usually get a temporary study status or, depending on nationality, tourist entry. Confirm with Migraciones before travelling.

Student housing

UPC has no dorms. Students rent rooms near Monterrico (Surco, La Molina) or in Miraflores and Barranco. August 2026 listings show private rooms near UPC Monterrico at about S/750–850 per month (roughly €185–210). Cheaper rooms from S/400 appear in Pueblo Libre and San Miguel, near the San Miguel campus. Shared flats in Miraflores run higher.

Tuition: fees depend on your school background. Pensions are charged by escala (categories Q, R, S, T, U and H) in five cuotas per semester, plus a matrícula of S/365. For most programmes in 2026, a cuota ranges from S/2,277 (U) to S/4,704 (Q). That's about S/11,400–23,500 per semester (≈ €2,800–5,800). Medicine runs S/4,590–6,594 per cuota.

The headline tuition figure (S/47,040) is ten cuotas at the top standard escala. No separate foreigner price list was found, so the same schedule appears to apply to international degree-seekers.

Career services

Employability is UPC's strongest selling point. It runs a large careers office with job fairs, internship placement, mentoring and an active alumni network among Lima employers, especially in business, marketing, engineering and communications.

Academic programs

Application deadlines

Exchange

Incoming exchange for nominated students of partner universities, Spanish B1 recommended, coordinated by the UPC international office. Parlamento Andino / Uniwords network member.

Universities in Lima

Next steps

Sources