The University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland (SUPSI, ) is a

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociology, sociological concept of the ''Öf ...

vocational university A vocational university or university of applied sciences (UAS), less commonly called a polytechnic university is an institution of higher education and increasingly research that provides applied professional education and grants academic de ...

located in

Ticino Ticino ( ), sometimes Tessin (), officially the Republic and Canton of Ticino or less formally the Canton of Ticino, is one of the Canton of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eight districts ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

. It offers over 30 bachelor's and master's programs, blending theoretical scientific knowledge with practical technological applications in real-world projects. Instruction is mainly in

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

, with some courses delivered in English and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

History

SUPSI was established on 11 March 1997 by Canton Ticino and it received federal recognition in 2003. The new institution integrates preexisting specialized schools and public and private research institutes which date back to 1852 with the Cantonal High School initiated by Carlo Cattaneo and providing higher education courses in mechanics and architecture. In 1997 SUPSI integrates within its new organization: * STS Electronic Engineering Section (established in Manno in 1993) * SSQEA College for Financial and Administrative Managers (established by Canton Ticino in 1987 as a third cycle following the commercial schools) * SSAA College of

Applied Arts The applied arts are all the arts that apply design and decoration to everyday and essentially practical objects in order to make them aesthetically pleasing."Applied art" in ''The Oxford Dictionary of Art''. Online edition. Oxford Univ ...

(established by Canton Ticino in Lugano in 1985 as a third cycle of the CSIA Educational Centre for Artistic Industry) * ICIMSI Institute of Computer Integrated Manufacturing of Southern Switzerland (established in Manno in 1992 as a private-public initiative to develop applied research in support of industry) * ICTS the Cantonal Experimental Technical Institution * the Cantonal Office of

Geology Geology (). is a branch of natural science concerned with the Earth and other astronomical objects, the rocks of which they are composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Earth ...

and

Hydrology Hydrology () is the scientific study of the movement, distribution, and management of water on Earth and other planets, including the water cycle, water resources, and drainage basin sustainability. A practitioner of hydrology is called a hydro ...

which becomes the Institute of

Earth Science Earth science or geoscience includes all fields of natural science related to the planet Earth. This is a branch of science dealing with the physical, chemical, and biological complex constitutions and synergistic linkages of Earth's four spheres ...

(IST). In 1997 SUPSI is divided into four departments: Construction and Territory,

Computer Science Computer science is the study of computation, information, and automation. Computer science spans Theoretical computer science, theoretical disciplines (such as algorithms, theory of computation, and information theory) to Applied science, ...

and

Electronic Engineering Electronic engineering is a sub-discipline of electrical engineering that emerged in the early 20th century and is distinguished by the additional use of active components such as semiconductor devices to amplify and control electric current flo ...

Applied Art The applied arts are all the arts that apply design and decoration to everyday and essentially practical objects in order to make them aesthetically pleasing."Applied art" in ''The Oxford Dictionary of Art''. Online edition. Oxford Univ ...

and

Business Administration Business administration is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. Overview The administration of a business includes the performance o ...

. In the following years other specialized schools and public and private research institutes were integrated: * 1998 College of

Social Work Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social wo ...

(established by Canton Ticino) becomes a department. * 1999 IDSIA Dalle Molle Institute for Artificial Intelligence Research (established in Lugano in 1988); it is jointly run by Università della Svizzera italiana and SUPSI thanks to an agreement between the two institutions. * 2004 Fernfachhochshule Schweiz (FFHS) based in

Brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the l ...

and with training centers in

Basel Basel ( ; ), also known as Basle ( ), ; ; ; . is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine (at the transition from the High Rhine, High to the Upper Rhine). Basel is Switzerland's List of cities in Switzerland, third-most-populo ...

Bern Bern (), or Berne (), ; ; ; . is the ''de facto'' Capital city, capital of Switzerland, referred to as the "federal city".; ; ; . According to the Swiss constitution, the Swiss Confederation intentionally has no "capital", but Bern has gov ...

and

Zurich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...

. * 2006 Conservatorio della Svizzera italiana - Scuola Universitaria di Musica (Conservatory of Southern Switzerland/Ticino Music Conservatory) * 2006 Accademia Teatro Dimitri (established in 1975 by the Swiss clown Dimitri as a school of movement theatre). * 2007 Phsyiotherapie Graubünden (based in Landquart); Bachelor in Physiotherapy affiliated to the Department of Health Sciences. * 2011 MAInD; Master of Arts in Interaction Design.

Organization and administration

As a Swiss University of Applied Sciences (''

Fachhochschule A (; plural ), abbreviated FH, is a university of applied sciences (UAS), in other words a Hochschule, German tertiary education institution that provides professional education in many applied sciences and applied arts, such as engineering, te ...

'', ''Haute école specialisée'', ''scuola universitaria professionale''), SUPSI is an autonomous organization, and it has a university status with a focus on professional training and applied research. Its four institutional mandates are first and second level university education (

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

and

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

), continuing education,

applied research Applied science is the application of the scientific method and scientific knowledge to attain practical goals. It includes a broad range of disciplines, such as engineering and medicine. Applied science is often contrasted with basic science, ...

and consulting and support services to businesses and institutions. The governance of SUPSI is based on: * SUPSI Council is composed of members nominated by the State Council of Canton Ticino and it has a mandate of strategic direction and control. * SUPSI Board * University administration includes the director, the head of shared services and the directors and deans of the departments and the associated schools. * Departments and associated schools * Consultative commissions. Each department and associated school has a Consultative Commission appointed by the SUPSI Board. From a financial point of view, SUPSI is supported by Ticino cantonal contributions, contributions from the

Swiss Confederation Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerlan ...

and is self-financing. The support of Canton Ticino is regulated by a performance contract based on the number of students enrolled and on the volume of projects acquired.

Departments and associated schools

SUPSI is organized in departments and associated schools. The associated schools are managed by private institutions, and they are integrated within SUPSI general administration. Departments include institutes, laboratories, and centres of expertise; they are organized in academic disciplines. Due to the progressive integration of preexisting specialized schools and public and private research institutes, the structure of the departments changes through time

Department for Environment, Constructions and Design

SUPSI DACD Campus in Mendrisio - Visto dalla stazione

* Institute for Materials and Constructions * Institute of

Earth Sciences Earth science or geoscience includes all fields of natural science related to the planet Earth. This is a branch of science dealing with the physical, chemical, and biological complex constitutions and synergistic linkages of Earth's four spheres ...

* Institute for Applied Sustainability to the Built Environment * Institute of

Design A design is the concept or proposal for an object, process, or system. The word ''design'' refers to something that is or has been intentionally created by a thinking agent, and is sometimes used to refer to the inherent nature of something ...

* Laboratory of Applied Microbiology

Department of Business Economics, Health and Social Care

The departments works in basic training, continuing education, research and services. * Inno3 Competence Centre *

Tax Law Tax law or revenue law is an area of legal study in which public or sanctioned authorities, such as federal, state and municipal governments (as in the case of the US) use a body of rules and procedures (laws) to assess and collect taxes in a ...

Competence Centre * Laboratory of methodology and

statistics Statistics (from German language, German: ', "description of a State (polity), state, a country") is the discipline that concerns the collection, organization, analysis, interpretation, and presentation of data. In applying statistics to a s ...

* Medical Humanities Centre

Department of Innovative Technologies

The focus of the Department of Innovative Technologies is applied engineering sciences in the industrial sector, technological and IT services for both educational and research purposes. Within the department there are: * Institute CIM (Computer Integrated Manufacturing) for Sustainable Innovation. * AI Lab IDSIA Institute Dalle Molle for Artificial Intelligence. * Institute for Information Systems and Networking * Institute for Systems and Applied Electronics * Institute of Systems and Technologies for Sustainable Production

Department of Teaching and Learning

The department works in education, research and services.

Associated schools

# Accademia Teatro Dimitri # Conservatorio della Svizzera italiana # Fernfachhochschule Schweiz

Campus

SUPSI is located in southern Switzerland, in cantons

Valais Valais ( , ; ), more formally, the Canton of Valais or Wallis, is one of the cantons of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. It is composed of thirteen districts and its capital and largest city is Sion, Switzer ...

and Graubünden.

Academics

The first SUPSI diplomas are awarded in 2000 in architecture, civil engineering, computer science, electronic engineering, interior design, visual communication, conservation and restoration, business administration and social work. In 2001 the Canton Ticino Chamber of Commerce for Industry and Craftsmanship, the Association of Ticino Industries, the Ticino Banking Association and by Ticino Section Swiss Construction Companies establish the Ticino Economy Prize (Premio dell'Economia Ticinese) for the best SUPSI graduates; in 2011 the Prize Talenthesis is established.

Undergraduate programme (Bachelor's degree)

Graduate programme (Master's degree)

Continuing education

SUPSI provides further trainings and qualifications: * Master of Advanced Studies (MAS) * Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) * Diploma of Advanced Studies (DAS) * Certificate of Advanced Studies (CAS)

Research

A research service is co-managed by SUPSI and Università della Svizzera italiana.The research service on USI website http://www.usi.ch/en/universita/container_university_services/servizio_ricerca.htm.

Notes and references

External links

*
The University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland on the official website of Lugano
{{coord, 46.0233, N, 8.9172, E, source:wikidata, display=title Universities of Applied Sciences in Switzerland Lugano Schools in the canton of Ticino Educational institutions established in 1997 1997 establishments in Switzerland SUPSI