The University of Applied Sciences of Southern Switzerland (SUPSI) is the only Italian-language University of Applied Sciences in Switzerland. Since its founding in 1997, SUPSI has been a fundamental part of the Italian-speaking university system in Switzerland in the marvelous Lugano region. Three main principles on which the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland (SUPSI) is based are to provide educational programmes specifically aimed at giving its student the knowledge and skills that will facilitate their search for appropriate employment, to ensure the acquisition of a specialist, methodological, social and personal store of knowledge and to enable those who wish to do so to continue their studies in Switzerland or abroad, benefiting from the mobility opportunities provided by the Bologna reform. Drawing inspiration from our guiding values of concreteness, originality, multidisciplinarity, partnership, innovation, territoriality and internationality, our Bachelor’s and Master’s programmes have been designed with the aim of combining cutting edge technical-scientific methods with a practical and professional approach, leading to an internationally recognised university degree. The high-quality teaching modules are intermixed with periods of work experience and laboratory time on the territory and abroad, all of which help students gain an understanding of their work context, ensuring they are able to compete strongly with multidisciplinary skills in an international market. In order to meet the growing need for balance between study requirements and work or other commitments, whenever possible, courses are also conducted in parallel with professional activity, or in part-time format.

SUPSI executes a large number of applied research projects, and therefore contributes directly to the economic and social development of the region. Since its foundation, SUPSI is the Swiss professional university school with the greatest research intensity and has completed numerous research projects related mainly to the scientific areas covered by its didactic programs. Research is conducted in key sectors by means of projects won in competitions held by major European and National Agencies, or commissioned by companies and/or institutions.