One thing is the need, which must naturally be supported, and another thing is the merit that must finally be rewarded.
In small steps, even in the Italian university, something is moving. The academic recognition of students' talent through an adequate economic incentive provided by the Bicocca University of Milan goes in this direction.
Basically, a sort of virtual bonus will be awarded to all students who present a high average, a number of exams taken on schedule, all regardless of their income bracket. Starting from the next academic year, it will be possible to accumulate up to 4 credits of 125 euros each to spend on books, language courses, or to finance a possible stay abroad during an Erasmus programme. For the project, which will involve more than 400 students in the first year, a budget of 500 million euros is foreseen, identified within the university budget and obtained through a rationalization of expenses, i.e. the result of a careful "spending reviews". The value of the “merit credits” initiative – explains the rector Cristina Messa – is that of “restoring a positive sense to commitment and quality”.
Paolo Cherubini, didactic pro-rector of the Milanese university, adds that the goal is also "to curb abandonment and attract more students". To reward those who study more and better, one can already count on various types of support, regional scholarships, university scholarships and contributions for international mobility. With a limit though. These are interventions whose duration is directly linked to the funds disbursed. Once these are exhausted, the intervention ceases. There is no shortage of private initiatives, which aim for excellence, regardless of income.
Since 2009, the Alma Mater University of Bologna has also awarded its deserving students a check for 2500 euros. "First in Italy - explains Ivano Dionigi, rector of the Bolognese university - four years ago we launched the idea of total exemption from university fees for students who graduated with 100 cum laude". Other universities in the Emilia region, but also universities in Val d'Aosta, Cagliari and the University of Rome La Sapienza, then followed this example.
And that's not all: for 15 years a rule has been in force whereby the best 30 students are reserved hospitality in the Collegio Superiore which guarantees food, lodging and tutoring in an environment of academic excellence recognized by the MIUR. Merit is also the basic criterion for initiatives, such as those of the University of Enna and the Polytechnic of Turin, of solidarity for the victims of the mafia. The tuition fee is abolished for deserving students whose families have been affected by organized crime.
