The degree awarding ceremony
For the first time in 25 years, the degree awarding ceremony of the GIS Master took on a different twist this year, as it was held online on 29 January. The 17 graduates of 2019/2020 symbolically received their degrees by Carlo Borzaga, president of Euricse, and Marco Bombardelli, director of the Master's programme. The ceremony was also attended by Giulia Tallarini, a young researcher at Euricse, who shared her experience about how new generations approach the third sector. "We received 35 applications for this edition of the Master's programme. At a time of uncertainty like this, this means that our programme is very attractive and the candidates are interested in the subjects we cover, including because of the employment opportunities available in the third sector", Bombardelli commented. "The organizations of the third sector are always looking for young and skilled collaborators, now that a lot of services and activities must be reviewed and reformed", underlined Borzaga.
The GIS Master and the Covid-19 emergency
The ceremony marks the end of a 6-month programme organized in classes, seminars, and workshops with 25 faculties with different backgrounds from the academic and business world, and a 5-month full-time internship at non-profit organizations in Italy or Europe. The graduates of this 24th edition are from Trentino, Alto Adige, Veneto, Tuscany, Emilia, Lombardy and Marche, with an average age of 26.
The course moved to online teaching when the lockdown started in March last year. Internships started in mixed mode, partly from home and partly in-presence, in May 2020. Most students continued to work with their internship provider after the training period, which confirms the excellent employment rate of our graduates. Over 25 years, about 87% of former students found employment within 6 months of graduation, with peaks reaching 90%.
The 26th edition, 2021/2022
The Master's edition of 2021/2022 will feature traditional face-to-face classes and, thanks to support from Fondazione Caritro, MOOC modules (massive open online course) that will focus on a number of subjects, and multimedia guidelines on management skills.
Finally, to strengthen the relationship with the local economy, since last year the course has been accepting applications from candidates employed by local companies: graduates and undergraduates will have the opportunity to attend one or more modules, to present the organization they work for and to provide internship positions, if available.
Applications for the 26th edition will open in May with classes starting in November 2021 to continue until April 2022, when internships are scheduled to start. For information, please email to formazione [at] euricse.eu
The Master’s history
It was 1995 when Istituto Studi Sviluppo Aziende Non profit (ISSAN) of the University of Trento – today, Euricse – promoted the first edition of the Master as a 150-hour postgraduate course. One year later it became a one-year programme including an internship period. When the Italian university system was reformed, in 2002, the postgraduate course officially became a first-level Master's programme, while the GIS acronym was established in 2006. Euricse was founded in 2008, and since then has been the organizer of the master. In 2016, the Department of Sociology and Social Research and the Faculty of Law joined the Department of Economics and Management in the course's organization.
The GIS Master in numbers
25 professors and researchers
400 alumni, from 1995 to today
362 hours of teaching
5-month internships
61% of student from out of Trentino
40% of students are graduates of UniTrento
87% found a placement 6 to 12 months after the master
52% of former students are employed in the organization that provided their internship