University of Science and Technology Houari Boumediene (USTHB)

Key facts

Checked against the sources listed at the bottom of this page on 9 November 2026.

About USTHB

USTHB is a public university in Bab Ezzouar, about 15 km from the centre of Algiers. It was founded on 25 April 1974, and its campus was designed by the architect Oscar Niemeyer.^[1] The University of Algiers’s own history page lists the creation of the University of Science and Technology in 1974.^[8]

The university’s website shows 54,549 students, 2,180 professors, 2,060 other staff and 13,150 graduates in 2022; the page carries no date for these figures. The Wikipedia article gives 28,111 students for 2010–11, so the two figures are about a decade apart and not directly comparable.^[2][1]

How is USTHB ranked?

In the main QS World University Rankings 2027 the aggregator xuanxiao.org shows no Algerian university, so USTHB is “Not ranked” there. We could not read QS’s own pages, so we report this as not confirmed.^[3] The same aggregator shows USTHB in the 2001+ band of the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2027 and at 1950th in its US News 2027 column.^[3] Wikipedia cites 1967th in the 2025 US News edition, which is a different edition.^[1]

In the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2026, published on 25 March 2026, USTHB entered for the first time: top 150 in petroleum engineering (first in the Maghreb), 401–450 in electrical and electronic engineering and 651–700 in computer science and information systems.^[4] Rankings differ by publisher and year, so treat one position as one view. How we compile rankings.

What can you study at USTHB?

The university lists nine faculties:^[2]

• Biological Sciences
• Chemistry
• Civil Engineering
• Earth Sciences, Geography and Territorial Planning
• Electrical Engineering
• Computer Science
• Mathematics
• Physics
• Process and Mechanical Engineering

Studies follow the LMD system with three cycles: a 3-year bachelor’s (licence), a 2-year master’s that ends with a dissertation defended in a public viva voce, and a 3-year PhD that ends with a thesis defended the same way.^[7] The website describes the offer as training in science and technology and gives no list of individual programmes on the page we read.^[2]

How much does USTHB cost for international students?

Algeria publishes one national schedule of annual training fees, in US dollars, for international students who enrol through the ministry’s “Study in Algeria” platform (“open enrollment”).^[5] The fee document is titled “Training fees for the 2025–2026 academic year”, but the page that links it is headed “Tuition Fees for the 2026–2027 Academic Year”. We found no separate 2026/27 table, so confirm the current amounts on the portal before you budget.^[9]

Amounts are per year.^[5] The table sets these rates for “universities” in general and names some higher schools separately at $3,000 to $3,500. It does not list USTHB on its own line, so ask the university which column applies to your programme.^[5]

Housing and living costs

For university residences the schedule lists catering at 1.20 DZD (the table gives no unit), accommodation at $15 a month, and transport at the same rate as for Algerian students. For a private three-room apartment of about 65 m² it quotes $112 to $450 a month, depending on the city, “for reference only”.^[5]

How to pay

Registration fees are paid to the Bank of Algeria through correspondent banks, with the university as beneficiary. Payment may be made after the visa is obtained; students who are exempt from visas or already hold one can pay at once. The receipt is uploaded as a PDF during the application.^[9]

Because USTHB’s faculties are in science and technology, the first column of the table is the one that normally applies. Confirm this with the university.^[5] The university’s own website states no fees.^[2]

How do you apply to USTHB?

Under Presidential Decree No. 25-83 of 20 February 2025, international students may enrol if the host institution admits them on the basis of the available places and they pay the required tuition.^[10] Applications run through the ministry’s Study in Algeria portal: you choose a programme and university, upload your documents, the ministry checks them administratively, and the universities you chose review them academically. Registration at the host university follows once the regulatory steps are done.^[11]

• Bachelor’s: high-school diploma and transcript with certified translations, proof of nationality, the first page of a valid passport, a motivation letter, at least one recommendation letter, a medical certificate stating you are free of bacterial or contagious disease, and a recent photo.^[10]
• Master’s: the high-school and bachelor’s diplomas and transcripts with certified translations, plus the common items above.^[10]
• PhD: diplomas and transcripts from every earlier level (including engineering, architecture, medical or veterinary degrees where relevant) with certified translations, the common items, and a copy of your master’s thesis or internship report.^[10]

The ministry authenticates your diplomas and checks your transcripts. Its Equivalence Department then issues two documents: a certificate that places your degree in the Algerian classification, and a document that converts your grades to the Algerian grading grid.^[10]

We give no dates here because the application window changes every year. Read the current window on the portal and in the programme’s own notice before you start.^[11]

Which language do you need?

Algerian universities teach in Arabic, French and English, and the language depends on the field and specialisation. Students who do not master the language of instruction follow an intensive course at the Intensive Language Teaching Centres (CEIL) attached to their institution.^[6]

The national pages name no language tests and no minimum scores. Ask USTHB which language your programme uses and what level it expects before you apply.^[6]

More about studying in Algeria

• Algeria: best universities
• Cost of Studying Abroad
• International Student Scholarships
• University Ranking Methodology

More university profiles in Algeria

• University of Algiers 1
• University of Constantine 1 Frères Mentouri
• University of Oran 1 Ahmed Ben Bella
• Abou Bekr Belkaid University of Tlemcen