Italy’s Universities and Colleges with no Attendance Requirement

Choosing the Right University: Understanding Attendance Requirements

Choosing the right university is a crucial decision for high school graduates looking to pursue higher education after the 2024 school year.
Among the many factors to consider, attendance requirements play a significant role in shaping the academic journey.

Importance of Attendance Requirements

Attendance requirements vary across different fields of study, with scientific and medical faculties generally enforcing compulsory attendance for lectures and labs.
However, the notion that only these disciplines have attendance obligations is a common misconception.
It’s essential for prospective students to carefully review the curriculum of each program to understand the specific attendance policies.

But what happens if a student fails to meet the attendance requirements of a particular course? Which faculties and universities do not impose such obligations? Let’s explore these questions to assist both prospective and current students in navigating the university landscape.

Understanding Attendance Obligations

Attendance requirements represent a fundamental condition set by universities in certain degree programs to be eligible for examinations.
For example, disciplines like Medicine often mandate compulsory attendance for lectures deemed essential for comprehensive learning.
Typically, students are expected to attend 70-80% of the hours for each mandatory course, although this percentage may vary.

It’s crucial to note that failing to meet the prescribed attendance quota not only disqualifies students from taking exams but also necessitates revisiting the missed lectures as the hours are not cumulative with previously attended sessions.

For students balancing work commitments with a program that enforces attendance, certain provisions apply:

• Working students enrolled in a university are entitled to 150 hours of annual study leave.
• Working individuals can benefit from the student-worker or part-time student status, offering advantages related to attendance and tuition fees.

Faculties without Attendance Obligations

To accommodate diverse student needs, universities without compulsory attendance offer a varied educational experience with alternatives.
In traditional institutions where lecture attendance is not mandatory but strongly recommended, students can opt to take exams either as attendees or non-attendees.

In the former scenario, the required reading material is limited as students can rely on lecture notes provided by professors.
Conversely, non-attending students have a broader bibliography to compensate for any gaps in knowledge, which can be effectively addressed during lectures.
It is advisable for students to attend professor consultations at least once for clarifications.

Faculties generally not enforcing mandatory attendance (subject to variation) include:

• Engineering
• Law
• Economics
• Letters
• Political Science
• Communication Sciences
• Education Sciences

Universities without Attendance Requirements: Online Universities

For individuals seeking flexibility in their studies, online universities offer an excellent solution.
These private institutions provide the opportunity for fully online education through an e-learning platform accessible 24/7.
This format enables students to balance their studies and commitments effectively, eliminating the need to find a university without attendance obligations.

It’s essential for these online institutions to be recognized by the Ministry of Education, ensuring that the degrees issued hold the same value as those from traditional universities.
Currently, there are 11 accredited online universities:

• e-Campus University
• Guglielmo Marconi University
• International Telematic University Uninettuno
• University of Rome UnitelmaSapienza
• IUL Telematic University
• Giustino Fortunato Telematic University
• San Raffaele Roma Telematic University
• Leonardo da Vinci Telematic University
• Niccolò Cusano University (UniCusano)
• Pegaso Telematic University
• Mercatorum Telematic University

Furthermore, to adapt to the shift towards online learning, traditional universities allow professors to upload study materials and handouts to ensure students are continually updated, although this is not mandatory for individual instructors.