Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna, is a leader in the European Higher Education Area, it stands among the most important institutions of higher education in EU with 260 degree programmes of which 104 international and 89 taught in English, 32 Departments and over 90.290 students. Further 4.000 are candidates for PhD or other 3rd-cycle programmes. UNIBO offers 51 PhD/Doctoral degree programs10 (46 given in English language) covering all scientific domains and it has been an internationally leading university in H2020 being the 1st Italian university in 2020 in attracting EU funds. UNIBO actively participates in the main national and international initiatives involved in the definition of strategic agendas for research and innovation as useful platforms for networking and internationalisation.
The University of Modena and Reggio Emilia is ranked among the top 8 universities in Italy for its high level of research. It counts about 27000 students, including 3500 postgraduates, 900 faculty members and over 300 international exchange and cooperation programs. It currently offers 81 bachelor and master classes and 17 PhD schools in its 14 departments. UNIMORE is currently managing more than 100 H2020 research projects (2014-2020), 34 projects under Horizon EUROPE (2021 – 2027) and 68 other projects supported by different international funds. UNIMORE is member of partnerships at national/local (i.e. member of the regional association “Big data”). UNIMORE has 21 PhD programs in different scientific areas within 13 Departments and 2 Faculties. 2 departments out of nine have been selected as “Departments of Excellence” by the Ministry of University. UNMORE is also member of EURO High Performance Computing Big Data and Quantum Computing hub, and is member of several university associations and networks ate national and European level, covering the different scientific fields.
The size of the University of Parma (1800 including researchers, administrative and technical staff) and the Parma lifestyle attract a large number of national and international students (30.600). UniPR has 21 PhD programs and 53 master programs coordinated within 9 departments. Three departments out of nine have been selected as “Departments of Excellence” by the Ministry of University. UNIPR has a proven expertise is the field of big data, artificial intelligence and advanced computation. UNIPR is member of several university associations and networks in Europe: European University Alliance EUGreen; European University Association - EUA, European Association for International Education - EAIE, International Association of Universities - IAU, The Conference of Italian University Rectors - CRUI, EUniverCities, Rete delle Università per lo Sviluppo Sostenibile (Network of Universities for Sustainable Development), United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Global Universities Partnership on Environment and Sustainability (GUPES) network.
The University of Ferrara, founded in 1391, is one of the oldest in Italy. It consists of thirteen Departments. Some facts and figures about the University: more than 28.000 students enrolled, 695 Master students, 440 PhD students, 740 permanent academic staff, 550 administrative and tech. Unife has been awarded with two UNESCO Chairs: “Urban and Regional Planning for Sustainable Local Development” and “Education, Growth and Equality”. 46 projects funded by Horizon 2020, 4 as Coordinator and 8 Individual Fellowship Marie Skłodowska-Curie, 20 project funded by Horizon Europe (2 in Grant Preparation), several projects funded by other European research programmes; around 1150 international cooperation agreements. The University of Ferrara has teamed up with eight other European universities to establish the "COLOURS" (COLlaborative innOvative sUstainable Regional univerSities) European University Alliance. Together, they have a student population of more than 126,000 and a workforce of almost 12,300.
The Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (UCSC) is the largest Italian private University counting four locations (Milan, Rome, Piacenza-Cremona and Brescia), fourteen faculties, and more than 40 thousand students. The Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences is located in Piacenza and Cremona and boasts a teaching and academic staff of 72 people including full and associate professors and research assistants. The Faculty is strongly involved in international research. More that 100 funded projects are on-going in 2022. Among them more than 20 are international, the majority of which funded by the European Commission. In 2006 the Faculty launched the Doctoral School on the Agro- Food System (Agrisystem), jointly promoted with the Faculty of Economics and Law at the Piacenza campus.The main strengths of the school are: multisectorality (2 scientific-disciplinary areas and 8 fields of research), interdisciplinarity, both for training and interaction of Ph.D. students and researchers of different faculties, and internationalization.
Politecnico of Milan is a state scientific-technological university, the largest Italian institution in training engineers, architects, and industrial designers, with over 47,500 students. The University has six campuses, located in Milan and other nearby cities, including Piacenza in the Emilia Romagna region.POLIMI is one of the leading Italian research institutions, distinguished by the combination of the theoretical bases of excellence and cutting-edge research facilities across its twelve departments, which span all major areas of Engineering, Architecture, and Industrial Design. This comprehensive setup offers ample opportunities for diverse experimental research lines. POLIMI is particularly recognized for its expertise in Data Science and Data Analytics. This reputation stands on its success in securing national and European grants in recent years, the establishment of a dedicated PhD program in “Data Analytics and Decision Sciences”, and the introduction of the Master's program in “Business Analytics and Big Data”.