Scuola Svizzera di Roma

The educational goal of all students is the Swiss Matura exam. It provides access to all colleges and universities in Switzerland. For the admission to universities it is equivalent to the Italian Esame di Stato, and therefore it also offers access not only to all Italian universities but also to all universities in the European Union.

In addition, the school offers its students access to the Italian school system. Pupils take the “esame di idoneità” at the end of primary school (esame di idoneità al termine del quinto anno di scuola primaria, ai fini dell'ammissione al successivo grado d'istruzione) and the “licenza media” (esame di Stato conclusivo del primo ciclo d’istruzione) at the end of middle school.

The Swiss School of Rome guides its students to personal maturity in the cultural, social, economic and political spheres of life. It promotes the development of each student by teaching basic knowledge, various forms of expression and different working methods, integrating physical and artistic education according to the Swiss pedagogical model, which goes back to Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi’s basic concept: learning with head, heart and hand. The school encourages adolescents to develop their independence, an authentic sense of responsibility, social skills and critical thinking, placing values such as mutual respect, solidarity and tolerance at the heart of its educational work.

The Swiss School Rome is a place where different cultures meet. It is shaped on the one hand by teaching most subjects in German and by the curricula of the Canton of St. Gallen,[3] and on the other hand by the culture of the host country Italy and the cultural diversity of the school community which includes people from about 20 different nationalities.

From the kindergarten level on, the students grow naturally into the German language, which is the main language in the following school levels. In primary school, in addition to the Swiss curricula, the children learn Italian to take into account the goals of the Italian educational system. From the third school year onwards, English is added as a third language.

In middle school, in the sixth school year, French is added as a fourth language, and in high school, from the ninth school year, students can additionally take Latin as an elective.

Students achieve a high level of proficiency in all four school languages, which is certified by external language examinations.

On the celebration for the 75th anniversary of the school, an alumni association was founded with the aim to create a network of the alumni of the Swiss School of Rome.

The school was founded in 1946 by members of the Swiss community in Rome, who were looking for a suitable and future-oriented education for their children after the collapse of Italian fascism. It is currently one of 18 Swiss schools abroad that have joined in the umbrella organization Educationsuisse. It is officially recognized both in Switzerland [4] and in Italy.[5]

The school is neutral from a political and religious point of view. The Federal Department of Home Affairs, through the Federal Office of Culture, exercises the financial supervision, while the Canton of St. Gallen, as patron canton, is responsible for the pedagogy and curricula. The association “Swiss School Rome” is the body that runs the school in the narrow sense of the term. Every three years, the members of the association elect a board of directors, which – together with the principal – is responsible for the strategic management of the school.

• (in English) Swiss School of Rome