The Higher Technical Institutes (in Italian, Istituti Tecnici Superiori or ITS) were created by application of the 2008 Italian Presidential Decree of the Council of Ministers with the aim of ensuring a stable offer of two-year courses in technological fields and in line with European, national and regional economic planning.
The ITS are constituted according to the 'Participation Foundation' model, a sort of small-scale polytechnic with a specialised training offer on a particular product sector, with a high percentage of training in the company and an educational activity based on project work, simulation of cases, and workshops in which to train 'supertechnicians'.
- They are "special high-tech schools" aimed at training supertechnicians with high tech and high touch skills
- They constitute a post-secondary level training channel, parallel to the academic pathways
- They train senior technicians in 6 strategic technological areas for economic development and competitiveness
- They facilitate their students' development in a 2-year course over 2,000 course hours
- They focus their teaching on workshop activities, and through compulsory internships for at least 30% of the total amount of time, including abroad
- Students are taught by at least 50% of teachers from the world of work and the related professions
- Students obtain Training Credits (ECTS) that are valid in every university
