Roma Tre University is an Italian public research university in Rome, Italy, with its main campus in the Ostiense quarter. Founded in 1992 by the Ministry of Public Education, under the request of several professors of the Sapienza University of Rome, it was the third public university to be established in the metropolitan area of Rome. It is the second-largest university of Rome by enrollment and one of the largest research-based institutions in the country.

History

The idea of founding a third university in Rome was flagged in the middle 1980s when the Ministry of Public Education formed a committee of inquiry into higher education to deal with a perceived emergency in university enrollments in Rome. After much debate, a future campus location was selected in what was a semi-industrial part of the city and it was decided that the future university be named with a number in chronological order. Roma Tre University, was formally established in 1992 under the name Terza Università degli Studi di Roma ('Third University of Rome'). One of the milestones for Roma Tre, since its foundation, as well as a guideline for its development, was its incorporation in the surrounding area, characterised by the reclamation of old buildings and school premises, transformed into facilities for study and research. Pope Francis visited the university, Rome's youngest, on February 17, 2017.

Organization and administration

The university comprises 8 schools and 12 departments, enrolling 34,763 students and having 1,370 academic and professional staff. At present, the university offers 54 undergraduate degree programs, 75 master's degree programs, 16 doctoral schools, and 5 PhD programs. The Rector, the Vice Rector, the Academic Senate and the Board of Governors are the main governing bodies of the university, which are responsible for setting university policy and development strategy. The statute also provides for a University Executive Committee, the students' representative council, the Council of Faculty Deans, and a University Ombudsman. The Rector is the official representative of the university. As well as calling and chairing meetings of the Academic Senate, the Board of Governors, and the University Executive Committee, the Rector supervises the university's teaching, scientific, and service structures, and gives appropriate guidance. The Rector also acts as ombudsman for the teaching and research autonomy of academic staff. The current Rector is Prof. Massimiliano Fiorucci.

International relations

Double degree agreements

The university has double degree agreements with:

International agreements

Roma Tre University holds a number of academic cooperation agreements with foreign universities, promoting professors, researchers, and students mobility and exchange. The global partnerships include the University of Brasília, the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, the University of Passo Fundo, the University of Talca, and the University of Valparaíso.

International networks

Roma Tre University takes part into a series of international university networks that share the task of promoting cooperative activities in diverse fields and seek to create a European area of communal higher education. The association groups and networks of which Roma Tre University is a member are:

Academics

Admission

Admission to the university is restricted and competitive. Every School offers a limited number of places for each program, and admissions are regulated by an entrance examination delivered by the University Admissions Committee.

Schools

The primary objective of the 8 schools of Roma Tre University is to define, organise, and connect the academic activities of the degree courses:

Research centers

Other facilities

Rankings

Roma Tre University is ranked: The School of Economics is ranked in the top 25% institutions in Italy in the RePEc ranking. The School of Law is constantly ranked among the top-five in the country with a note of AAA (Censis-La Repubblica), mostly due to the selective entry test and to the small-size of the classes.

Student life

Student life at the university does not merely revolve around lectures and exams, as there is a diverse array of student activities. There are many student organisations organizing student exchange programmes throughout Europe. Students elect their representatives (Student Vice-Dean and the Student Parliament) to coordinate various student activities, represent their interests in the Faculty bodies, participate in the evaluation of studies and the faculty, and secure the involvement and participation of students in all matters and issues of interest to them.

Traditions

Every year, during the academic year opening ceremony, a distinguished public figure is invited to address the students with a lecture on a current global issue. Since the university foundation, there have been 5 Heads of state speaking at the ceremony. Past speakers include Antonio Ruberti, the ninth President of Italy Oscar Luigi Scalfaro, the 49th Prime Minister of Italy Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, Leah Rabin, Shirin Ebadi, the member of the executive board of the European Central Bank Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa, the seventh European Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science Philippe Busquin, the 264th Pope John Paul II, Kerry Kennedy, Marco Travaglio, the sixth President of the European Parliament Josep Borrell Fontelles, the 34th President of Chile Michelle Bachelet, the 11th President of Italy Giorgio Napolitano, and the 52nd Prime Minister of Italy Romano Prodi.

Notable alumni and faculty

Notable alumni include: Andrea Alù, Alessandro Di Battista, Joseph Pace, Marco Lo Muscio, Raffaele Monti, Virginia Raggi, and Cinzia Giorgio. Among the prominent scholars who have taught at Roma Tre University include Pier Luigi Luisi, Pierangelo Garegnani, Paolo Leon Andrea Riccardi, Luciano del Castillo, Giuseppe Conte, Giorgio Melchiori, Giacomo Marramao, Mario De Caro, Roberto Cipriani, Vittorio Cotesta, Amos Luzzatto, and Federico Schiano di Pepe.