The Politecnico di Milano is one of the most outstanding universities in Europe, ranked 31st in the world and 8th in Europe among technical universities, according to the QS World University Ranking – Engineering & Technology 2014. Founded in 1863, it is the largest school of architecture, design and engineering in Italy, with three main campuses located in Milan, the heart of fashion and design industries and the future venue of Expo 2015, and five more premises around the Lombardy region. Many important scientists and architects studied and taught here; among them Achille Castiglioni, Gio Ponti, Renzo Piano and Aldo Rossi, both Pritzker Prize in 1990 and 1998 respectively, and Giulio Natta, Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1963. The Politecnico di Milano is organized into 12 departments, responsible for planning of the research strategies, and 6 schools, responsible for the organization of education. Among these, 3 schools cater for the different fields of engineering and 3 schools for the fields of architecture and industrial design. Thanks to a strong internationalization policy, many programs are taught entirely in English, attracting an ever-increasing number of talented international students, which now form a diverse community from more than 100 different countries.
In the academic year 2013/2014, 23% of the total students enrolled on Master of Science Programs were international. Inter and multidisciplinarity is fostered throughout the academic path, and it is the methodological approach of the Phd School and the ASP (Alta Scuola Politecnica), a school for young talents from all over the world, who develop their skills in a team work context to pursue complex innovation projects. Teaching is increasingly related to research, a key commitment that enables to achieve results of high international standards, while creating connections with the business world. Strategic research is carried out mainly in the fields of energy, transport, planning, management, design, mathematics and natural and applied sciences, ICT, built environment, cultural heritage, with more than 250 laboratories, among these also a Wind Tunnel and a Crash Test centre.
