Having reached its seventh edition, the University for Foreigners of Siena has launched the one-year preparatory educational program named “Foundation Year”.
Such a preparatory course aims at representing an ideal bridge in order to facilitate students with different educational backgrounds who wish to enroll in Italian Universities and Academies. Thanks to this program, international students will have the opportunity to improve their language and communicative competence, as well as to familiarize with pedagogical and study methods traditionally belonging to European contexts.

WHO ARE THE TARGET STUDENTS?
- International students with an educational background of less than 12 years who aim at enrolling in Bachelor Degree courses within an Italian University;
- All the students who need to integrate and enrich their own study program with the purpose of joining Italian universities.

HOW TO APPLY
Students are required to:
1. Fill and send to the University of Foreigners of Siena (foundationyear@unistrasi.it) a Declaration of Interest in the “Foundation Year”, together with the Declaration of Legal Value of their last degree and a copy of their Passport.

2. If the application is declared eligible, students will be emailed an admission letter.

3. Admitted students must register on the Universitaly platform and apply for the pre-enrollment (read our guidelines). Once obtained it, they must present the admission letter of our program and the validation from Universitaly to the Italian Representation in their country in order to obtain the study Visa.

The University for Foreigners of Siena reserves the right to verify the language and educational level of students with an incoming test that might be carried out before admission to the program.

The Program will be activated with a minimum of 10 students, until full capacity. 

STUDY PROGRAM
The Foundation Year aims at offering students a solid preparation in Linguistics, Pedagogy, Philology and Literature, History and Art Studies. Taking into consideration learners’ prospective studies, specific study programs based on macro-disciplinary contents might be additionally planned and implemented: 

STUDENTS OF HUMANITIES
STUDENTS OF SCIENTIFIC DISCIPLINES
STUDENTS OF ECONOMICS DISCIPLINES
STUDENTS OF MUSICAL DISCIPLINES
FOOD SCIENCES AND CULTURES (in cooperation with the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Pollenzo)

NEWS A.Y. 2025/2026

STUDENTS OF DANCE AND CLASSICAL BALLET (in cooperation with Balletto di Siena)
THE COURSE
The course will be taught in blended mode, favouring presence and mobility for some disciplines. The curriculum includes the acquisition of elements of the language (in the case of non-Italian-speaking students) or Italian literature, and of the artistic, historical and political condition of the centuries belonging to the modern age, a historical period corresponding to that of the greatest development of classical dance and ballet. The disciplines include both theoretical and practical acquisition of classical dance technique, as well as choreographies taken from the classical romantic repertoire. The final exam will focus on both these latter aspects and purely theoretical ones, in a two-part final exam that can only take place after passing the learning tests for each individual teaching.

RECIPIENTS
Graduated students with an interest in the world of arts, theatre and classical dance, and in particular in modern and Italian classical culture. Young aspiring professionals in the world of ballet and entertainment.

ACCESS REQUIREMENTS
High school diploma or equivalent qualification. Previous physical activity, choreographic in general, of an academic/professional nature in particular, is encouraged.

STUDENTS OF DANCE AND CONTEMPORARY ART (in cooperation with Balletto di Siena)
THE COURSE
The course will be taught in blended mode, favouring presence and mobility for some disciplines. The curriculum of studies includes the acquisition of elements of the language (in the case of non-Italian-speaking students) or of Italian literature, and of the artistic, historical and political condition of the centuries belonging to the contemporary age, a historical period corresponding to that of the greatest development and diffusion of contemporary art and dance. The disciplines include both theoretical and practical acquisition of the main techniques of contemporary dance, as well as technical elements useful for choreographic practice. The final exam will focus on both these latter aspects and the purely theoretical ones, in a two-part final exam that can only take place after passing the learning tests for each individual course.

RECIPIENTS
Graduated subjects with an interest in the world of art, theatre, dance and performance, in particular in contemporary and Italian culture. Young aspiring professionals in the world of art, live performance and contemporary dance.

ACCESS REQUIREMENTS
High school diploma or equivalent qualification. Previous physical activity, dance in general, of an academic/professional nature in particular, is encouraged.

FOUNDATION CREDITS
At the end of the Foundation Year students will obtain 60 Foundation Credits aiming at integrating their study program and allowing them to join the Degree courses. Such ECTS credits, however, will not allow students to reduce the total number of credits they will have to obtain during their Degree courses.

COURSE TIMETABLE
October 1st 2025 – May 26th 2026

EXAMS SCHEDULE
every month for the Italian language courses
May - June - July 2026 (for the disciplines)

ATTENDANCE
Class attendance of all Foundation Year courses is mandatory. Students will attend all courses in person in Siena.

BASIC LANGUAGE REQUIREMENTS FOR INCOMING STUDENTS AND LANGUAGE LEVEL FOR OUTGOING STUDENTS

OPTION A: Students can join the Foundation Year with at least B1- level (CEFR) incoming language competence in Italian.
At the end of the Foundation Year at least an outgoing B2 - level (CEFR) competence in Italian will be assured. This corresponds to the level required by Italian Universities for admission in a Degree course. 

OPTION B: Students can join the Foundation Year with at least A2 - level (CEFR) incoming language competence in Italian 
At the end of the Foundation Year an outgoing B1 - level (CEFR) (or superior) competence in Italian will be assured.

OPTION C: Students can join the Foundation Year with at least A1 - level (CEFR) incoming language competence in Italian
At the end of the Foundation Year an outgoing B1 - level (CEFR) (or superior) competence in Italian will be assured. 

OPTION D: Students who already have a competence of B2 in Italian can join the Foundation Year with a reduction of the program. They will be exempted from the language course and their program will start on February (instead than October).
It is possible to opt for Option D until November 30th of each year.

OPTION E: Students with the status of refugees, asylum seekers or temporary protection can apply for the Foundation Year at a reduced rate.

FEES
In order to join the Foundation Year (for students of Humanities, Scientific Discipilines, Economics, Musical Disciplines, Dance and Classical Ballet, Dance and Contemporary Art) the following tuition fees are required:
OPTION A:  € 4.800,00 per student
OPTION B:  € 5.500,00 per student
OPTION C:  € 5.800,00 per student
OPTION D: € 2.240,00 per student
OPTION E: € 1.000,00 per student.

In order to join in the program “FOOD SCIENCES AND CULTURES” the following tuitions fees are required:
1st fee (to be paid directly to the University for Foreigners of Siena) for the activities which are planned in Siena: Italian language and culture courses, writing workshop, CILS certification, final exam.
€ 4,000.00 per student for option A
€ 4,600.00 per student for option B
€ 4,800.00 for option C
€ 2,000.00 for option D.

2nd fee (to be paid directly directly to the University of Gastronomic Sciences of Pollenzo) for the disciplinary courses planned in Pollenzo, the extracurricular activities managed by the University of Gastronomic Sciences both in Siena and Pollenzo (such as tastings and educational visits), and for housing services in Siena and Pollenzo for a total of 9 months.
€ 17,200.00 per student for option A
€ 17,200.00 per student for option B
€ 17,200.00 for option C
€ 12,000.00 for option D.

(The fees include a revenue stamp of € 16,00. At the end of the program students can get an official transcript by paying a revenue stamp of € 16,00).

The “Foundation Year” ends on October 16, 2026.

APPLICATION CONDITIONS
At the time of registration, a fee of € 1,000.00 (non-refundable) is required in order to obtain the acceptance letter. The balance is due upon arrival in Siena, following the mandatory and binding Placement Test aiming to define the entry language level and the consequent registration fee due, and in any case by 31 October 2025.
In case of rejection of the visa, the non-refundable fee of € 1,000.00 will be used in order to get 8 credits of Italian language (equivalent to 160 hours of on-line Italian course delivered during the period October - March).

APPLICATION THROUGH RECOGNIZED AGENTS OR PARTNERS
In case of application through agents or recognized partners, it will be possible to appy the following discounts to the contact person, via specific agreements,.

In case of application through agents or recognized partners, it will be possible to apply a discount to the contact person, via stipulation of a specific agreement. The discount will be rewarded to the contact person by the month of May of each year, following the regularity of accounting checks and the effective arrival of the students.

For further enquiries:

Prof. Carla Bagna (Rector’s Delegate for International Relations): bagna@unistrasi.it
foundationyear@unistrasi.it