Address: Largo Agostino Gemelli 1, 20123 Milan, Italy
Economics, Law, Medicine and Surgery, Agricultural Food and Environmental Sciences, Education, Humanities, Political and Social Sciences, Psychology, Banking and Finance
The Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, or Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, is a private Catholic research university in Italy. It was inaugurated on 7 December 1921. The sponsoring institute was founded in 1919 and legally recognised in 1920. The founder was Agostino Gemelli, a Franciscan friar, physician and psychologist.
The main campus is in Milan, in the historic monastery near the Basilica of Sant’Ambrogio. Other seats are in Via Necchi and Via Carducci. The university has five campuses: Milan, Brescia, Piacenza, Cremona and Rome. In 2016 it counted 30,263 students across all campuses, and the Rome campus has more than 7,000 students, among them 5,000 undergraduates and 2,000 graduates.
The structure includes 12 faculties and 7 postgraduate schools, known as Alte Scuole. The offer includes bachelor, master, specialising master and doctoral programmes, with degrees taught in Italian and in English. The record dates the research data to 2009: about 3,000 projects, 4,668 publications, 22 departments, 54 institutes and 70 research centres.
The medical school opened in Rome in 1961, and the first graduates came in 1967. Its teaching hospital is the Agostino Gemelli University Hospital, named after the founder. Admission is very competitive: in 2017 there were 8,907 candidates for 300 seats.
The alumni and faculty include public figures. Romano Prodi, former prime minister of Italy, Oscar Luigi Scalfaro, former president of the Republic, Lorenzo Ornaghi, Enrico Mattei and Tina Anselmi are among the alumni. Giovanni Bazoli, Luigi Giussani and John Ikenberry belong to the faculty. The QS World University Rankings 2025 place the university 442nd. Tuition fees in a private university depend on income and programme. Check the current tariff.
The university presents itself as a large private institution with an international orientation, with degrees available in Italian and in English. Applicants should check the official pages for the language of each programme, the admission tests, especially for medicine, and the grants available for students on each campus. The Milan campus is the historic centre, while Rome hosts the medical school and the Gemelli hospital. Brescia, Piacenza and Cremona serve students in the north of Italy, and they host faculties and programmes according to the official pages. A student should compare the campuses before choosing.
Domains taught:
Agriculture, Data Analytics, Finance, Food Science, Life Sciences, Mathematics, Statistics
Diplomas*:
Bachelor, Doctor, Master, MBA
Status:
Private
Partnerships:
Campuses in Milan, Brescia, Piacenza, Cremona and Rome, Agostino Gemelli University Hospital in Rome.
Research:
Medicine, economics, law, humanities, agricultural sciences and social sciences, with 22 departments and 70 research centres.
Famous Alumnis:
Romano Prodi, Oscar Luigi Scalfaro, Lorenzo Ornaghi, Enrico Mattei, Tina Anselmi
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
N/A
Current students***:
30263
Foreign students***:
N/A%
Cumulative former students***:
N/A
Pros
Medical school with the Gemelli University Hospital, five campuses, 12 faculties, degrees in Italian and English.
Cons
Private tuition, highly competitive medical admission, campuses in several cities.
Best For
Students looking for a large private Italian university with a medical school and a teaching hospital.
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Most Similar Schools Locally
Where this university leans on agriculture, food science and statistics, University of Milan does the same, and it covers microbiology and genetics and chemistry as well, and is larger, enrolling about 64,878 students against roughly 30,263 here.
A good alternative in the same country is University of Turin, which likewise covers finance, agriculture and statistics; it is public, whereas this institution is private, and does not run the mba programmes found here.
Vita-Salute San Raffaele University follows much the same lines as this university, with life sciences as common ground, and it is also a private institution and does not run the mba programmes found here.
Think of Università degli Studi di Bari Aldo Moro when agriculture, food science and statistics is the priority: it covers bioinformatics and geotechnics as well, and is slightly larger, at about 45,000 students against roughly 30,263 here.
The comparison with Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca is straightforward on subjects, since both focus on statistics, mathematics and life sciences, and it is slightly larger, at about 35,000 students against roughly 30,263 here, and is public, whereas this university is private.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
Students considering a move abroad can look at Emory University in the United States, where finance, statistics and mathematics also form the core, and it is smaller, enrolling about 16,142 students against roughly 30,263 here, and is also a private institution.
Stellenbosch University brings a South Africa setting to the same core fields, finance, agriculture and food science, and it is slightly larger, at about 36,125 students against roughly 30,263 here, and is public, whereas this institution is private.
Abroad, George Washington University (the United States) covers finance, statistics and life sciences in a comparable way, and it covers software engineering and engineering as well, and is slightly smaller, at about 24,500 students against roughly 30,263 here.
Renmin University of China, in China, takes a similar route through finance, statistics and mathematics; it teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's, doctoral and mba, and covers project management as well.
Looking internationally, Tel Aviv University in Israel is where finance, statistics and mathematics get a comparable treatment; it covers computer vision and chemistry as well, and has almost the same size, at about 28,500 students.
*our own picks (our criteria: a mix between domains, diploma delivered, reputation and size), but obviously too many criteria for an apple-to-apple ranking.
FAQ
Where is the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart?
Its main campus is in Milan, near the Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio.
When was it inaugurated?
On 7 December 1921.
Who founded it?
Agostino Gemelli, a Franciscan friar, physician and psychologist.
How many campuses does it have?
Five: Milan, Brescia, Piacenza, Cremona and Rome.
How many students does it have?
30,263 in 2016.
How many faculties does it have?
12, with 7 postgraduate schools.
What is the Gemelli hospital?
The teaching hospital of the medical school in Rome.
When did the medical school open?
In Rome in 1961.
Which former prime minister studied there?
Romano Prodi.
What does it cost?
Tuition fees depend on income and programme. Check the current tariff.
Agriculture, Biology, Financial, Innovation, Research and Development
*: without any judgment of the quality, readers are strongly encouraged to check the official status of the exact diploma envisioned as many universities have a mix of recognized diplomas, not recognized, “co-delivered,” “equivalent to”, “some pathways” (…), can change over time, and can be named differently from one country to another.
**: international reputation: is based on some criteria that do not mean much in some domains or specialties (number of researchers, of scientific publications, on budget ….). Our approximate 1-4 scale:
known locally
known locally and internationally
is listed in some of the world university’s classifications
is listed among the 20 firsts in some of world university’s classifications
***: estimated numbers, based on online sources and/or feedbacks. The numbers can vary greatly depending on school organisation (ex.: school is part of a group, it employs internal staff or external consultants or has public staff without employing them …). Refer to all the links provided to have accurate and updated numbers.
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