"MERITA, the network for talent", promoted by five Italian Institutions for Higher Education, aims to foster merit, nurturing talent and overcoming socio-economic differences through orienting, international mobility, investments in infrastructures and digitalization.
MERITA supports the growth and social mobility of students by providing them with support and opportunities to excel in their studies and future careers within five main strategic areas:
- Orienting and social mobility: to provide more opportunities for talented students from unfavourable socio-economic backgrounds, with special emphasis on STEM disciplines and gender balance;
- Internationalization and mobility for students and research staff: to increase exchange studies and secondments abroad, also based on the Fulbright programme.
- Digital ecosystem: to share resources and to offer Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) in open and innovative environments through a shared platform.
- Infrastructures: investments in renewed teaching and residential spaces, fully accessible and technologically advanced.
- Seasonal and Summer Schools: short and intensive interdisciplinary learning experiences for bachelor, master's and PhD students.
Within the digital ecosystem, MERITA has produced a series of MOOCs addressed to high school students, PhD candidates and early-stage researchers about cutting-edge disciplinary topics and core transversal skills to provide immersive learning activities. The MOOCs increase the teaching curriculum of the Institutions and open it up to a diverse and wide audience.
MERITA is a hub for academic and non-academic excellence which contributes to the training of a new generation of leaders and innovators.
Under the co-ordination of the Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna di Pisa, the MERITA network includes the Scuola Normale Superiore, the Collegio Superiore of the University of Bologna, the Scuola Galileiana di Studi Superiori of the University of Padua and the Scuola Superiore di Studi Avanzati della Sapienza Università di Roma.
Funded by the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP – Mission 4 – Education and Research).
