YOUR SCHOLARSHIP IN EUROPE

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Your Scholarship in Europe 2008-2009
Italy
BASIC INFORMATION ABOUT ITALY
Italy is situated in southern Europe, in the centre of the Mediterranean. Due to its geographical
location, it has been a bridge between different cultures and civilizations for
centuries. The territory of the country includes the mainland and the islands of Sicily
and Sardinia, as well as some other smaller islands.
Most of the cultural sites included in the UNESCO List of World Cultural and Natural
Heritage Sites and one of the most ancient universities in the world (in Bologna) can
be found in Italy.
Italy has a population of 58 million. The offi cial language is Italian, which is spoken by
94% of the population as the mother tongue. There are several ethnic and linguistic minorities,
such as the German speaking population (0.5%), Albanians (0.17%), Slovenes
(0.12%), and a small number of Greeks (0.03%) and French speakers (0.03%).
Rome, the capital of the country, is also the location of the Vatican City State. In 1957,
an agreement was signed in Rome that marked the birth of the European Union.
THE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM
Italian higher education is structured as a binary system consisting of two main
sectors:
• The university sector;
• The non-university sector.
THE UNIVERSITY SECTOR
At present, the university sector is made up of 83 university institutions consisting of:
• 58 state universities (Università statali);
• 17 non-state universities (legally recognised by the state) (Università non statali,
legalmente riconosciute);
• 2 universities for foreigners (Università per Stranieri);
• 3 higher schools specializing in postgraduate university studies (Scuole Superiori);
• 3 polytechnical universities (Politecnici).
Further information about the university sector is available at:
http://www.study-in-italy.it/study/university-sector.html.