Italian universities’ facilities for foreign students

University scholarships are a vital support tool for many students. The Italian university landscape is distant from the Anglo-Saxon one, especially at the level of costs to be incurred by students and their respective families. Not everyone can afford tuition fees in the tens of thousands of dollars or pounds a year in order to secure a respectable academic education. It is precisely to cope with these kinds of situations that university institutions, in the Anglo-Saxon world as well as in the European world, set up tools for financial support of students. These benefits can come in different forms and natures, so today we will try to talk about Italian university scholarships for foreign students.

The Italian university context

The Italian university landscape presents excellence in every academic field. The presence of several Italian universities in the QS World University Ranking 2024, one of the most important rankings in the academic world, consolidates a positive trend for the Italian academy. In addition to the celebrated university centers of excellence such as Politecnico di Milano, La Sapienza in Rome and Alma Mater Studiorum in Bologna, there are a large number of Italian universities climbing the global rankings. High quality of teaching, trained faculty, modernized facilities, exchanges and interchanges with other universities, these are just some of the factors that justify this growth trend. These hubs of academic excellence attract thousands of students, both Italian and international, on an annual basis.

International students in Italy

In this context, the voice of international students becomes preponderant in the evaluation of Italian universities. Indeed, these are European and non-EU citizens who decide to pursue their university careers in Italy, and if they do, there must be a reason. The presence of a growing number of international students therefore is an excellent indicator of the health of the Italian university system. In addition, international students create a variety of synergies with the Italian academic system. These students, in addition to enjoying the Italian experience socially, create connections with their home countries, enabling the transit of information and knowledge between universities.

What is it like to study in Italy?

To recap, excellent universities, high level of preparation of professors, modernized facilities and social life, need anything else? Actually, yes. There are considerations that any student, Italian or foreign, must make before embarking on a university journey in Italy. We stated that the tuition fees of Italian public universities are nothing like their Anglo-Saxon counterparts. Italian fees are correlated with certain indicators such as ISE and ISEE, Indicatore Situazione Economica and Indicatore Situazione Economica Equivalente, respectively. Through these parameters, students pay in relation to the economic situation of the household. Such instruments are very useful to less affluent families as they allow proportional distribution of tuition fees. Are these measures enough to support the costs of college life?

The implicit costs of university life in Italy

Foreign students and Italian students who decide to study in our country have to put in a number of implicit costs that in other nations are covered by the university system. The main implicit cost is housing rent. Foreign students arriving in Italy necessarily face this expense, the burden of which varies from city to city. This is an issue that affects both foreigners and Italians who still carry on protests by sleeping in tents in front of universities in many cities. In addition to the cost of rent, there are the costs of food. Again, Italy is definitely not among the cheapest countries. Finally, there are utilities, from utility bills to local public transportation expenses.

So what? How do I go about studying in Italy?

In summary, each student must weigh the sustainability and economic feasibility of studying in Italy. This factor is not negligible for many students who come from countries other than North America and Northern Europe. Otherwise, the cost of living, especially in the aforementioned cities, may be so onerous that the study experience itself may be questioned. Precisely to meet these economic needs, the university system and, consequently, the Italian state allocates scholarships for foreign nationals on an annual basis. There are various forms of incentives and concessions currently in place, let's try to examine some of them.

What are college scholarships?

These are sums of money donated by universities and other entities to facilitate and support a course of study. Their award stems from participation and subsequent eligibility in a competition that may be held at the university and/or regional and/or national level. Participation in a competition presupposes that the student must meet entry and achievement requirements. Thus merit scholarships and "economic" scholar ships are born. Scholarships also mean partial or total exemption from paying college tuition.

How to access college scholarships?

A foreign student can access several scholarships at the same time. First, the Italian government allocates grants for foreign nationals every year. Application can only and only be made by registering on the appropriate portal "Study in Italy." Concurrent with those established by the government are grants from individual universities. In addition to merit and economic scholarships, universities can also propose projects, facilities and other types of university scholarships to support international students. For example, as a result of the Ukrainian conflict, there are many universities that reserve scholarships specifically for Ukrainian citizens, similar discourse for Afghan students. Take the Alma Mater Studiorum of Bologna as an example.

The case of the Alma Mater Studiorum of Bologna

These are largely scholarships and or exemptions aimed at specific communities or allocated for specific reasons. Europe's oldest university has created several projects, in conjunction with the City of Bologna and various ministries:

• Unibo Action 1&2. Scholarships and tuition waivers for deserving international students;
• Superior College. Competition open to Italian and international students;
• Unibo for Refugees. Project sponsored by the University of Bologna and the City of Bologna for the integration of refugee students into the university world;
• Home Ministry Refugee Scholarships (CRUI). The Ministry of the Interior, with the support of CRUI, offers scholarships for students with international protection.

  These are just some of the examples of facilities that Italian universities arrange to facilitate the exchange of ideas and movement of students.

Welcome Association Italy and international students

The Welcome Association Italy union is dedicated to providing assistance to foreign nationals arriving in Italy. These include international students who intend to pursue their university education in Italy. For them, the union has made available the Welcome Package for non-EU citizen, applicant for residence permit in Italy over 90 days for study purposes. In the package is the health protection required by the authorities in charge of issuing residence permits. Therefore, through joining the Welcome package, non-EU students who decide to study in Italy are covered from a health perspective, and can enjoy their study experience in Italy to the fullest.