Vita-Salute San Raffaele University

Vita-Salute San Raffaele University
Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele
Motto	Quid est homo? (What is man that thou are so mindful of him')
Established	1996
Rector	Prof. Luigi Maria Verzé
Location	Milan, Lombardy, Italy
Sports teams	CUS Milano (www.cusmilano.it)
Affiliations	San Raffaele Hospital
Website	unisr.it

The Vita-Salute San Raffaele University is a university located in Milan, Italy. It was founded in 1996 and is organized in three departments.

History and Profile

The Vita-Salute San Raffaele University was first established in 1996 with the Department of Psychology stemming from the Department of Cognitive Science founded by Massimo Piattelli-Palmarini in 1993. The program follows the general-cognitive and the experimental-clinical lines of thought.

The San Raffaele College and University was fundamentally born as an off-spring of an internationally renowned research hospital structure, where students attend basic research laboratories in many research fields, including neurology, neurosurgery, diabetology, molecualar biology, AIDS studies among others. It has expanded since then to include research fields in Cognitive Science and Philosophy. Among the issues that are being studied in this university, beside clinical issues, are: philosophy of science, perception, biolinguistics, generative grammar and vision. San Raffaele University is a private university but all the professors teaching there do have the same status as public university professors and must have undergone a national selection as all other university professors in the country, such as the case of the Università Cattolica or the Bocconi University in Milan.

The Faculty of Medicine and Surgery proposes courses in Medicine and Surgery and in Biotechnology, both with strong scientific connotations, where the students go on ward rounds from their very first year. Moreover the University Courses in Nursing and in Physiotherapy offer advanced teaching together with intense practical clinical training. In addition to these courses the Vita-Salute San Raffaele University also houses a number of Medical Training Programmes.

From 1999 a new Department has been created: the Department of Philosophy.

A new medical course will open along side the Italian medical course and will start recruiting in 2010. The International MD Program at Vita-Salute San Raffaele University has been designed to foster a new kind of doctor. This doctor will possess the necessary human, cultural and professional values to provide healthcare and share ideas in today’s globalized world. The course, entirely in English, offers an innovative curriculum.

On July 18, 2011, the Italian national newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore published a general ranking of Italian universities. Vita-Salute San Raffaele University was awarded the top placement among Italian private universities.

Mission

The guiding principles of San Raffaele

In founding and naming the San Raffaele clinical, research and teaching bodies that now enjoy worldwide renown, don Luigi Maria Verzé drew inspiration from two sources: Jesus’ invitation to his disciples to go forth into the world, to teach and to heal; and the Angel Raphael himself, the patron saint of medicine whose name means “God heals”.

The mission, then, is to go forth, teach and heal. The Ospedale San Raffaele in Milan provides the healing, as do the increasingly numerous satellite health care institutions bearing the San Raffaele name. Spread around the world, these institutions also obey Jesus’ invitation “to go forth” in a literal sense. In a metaphorical sense, the various San Raffaele Research Institutes go forth too, by exploring and expanding the limits of cognition.

The mission’s third component, teaching, was realized by the creation, firstly (in 1987) of a secondary school, the Liceo Classico di Ricerca San Raffaele, and secondly (in 1996) of the Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele.

Quid est homo?

As well as teaching, the University fulfils an additional mission: that of answering the question “Quid est homo?” Its three Faculties – Medicine and Surgery, Psychology, Philosophy – explore and explain the bio-psycho-spiritual composition of mankind. All the University’s Degree programmes range, mutatis mutandis, from cell biology to pathology to the discovery of intellectual and cognitive potential; all depict mankind within a constantly developing social environment, one that poses innumerable and extensive issues (genetical, ethical, bioethical, etc.)

The teaching project

The key words for San Raffaele University’s teaching project are: excellence, integration, interdisciplinarity, and the central importance of the learner.

Excellence is provided by high quality teaching staff and methodology, by first class facilities, by rigorous entrance tests and by small class sizes, all of which ensure a real and beneficial contact between teachers and learners. Striving constantly towards improvement, the University aims to produce competent, high-level professionals for the future.

Integration, the second key word, determines that the respective Faculty cultures are transversal, in keeping with the idea that the human being is a “single entity”. At a very early stage, students gain real experience in world class clinical and research settings, all of which are to be found immediately adjacent to the University.

Interdisciplinarity is a natural product of transversal Faculty cultures, and of constant collaboration both with Hospital divisions and with the Biotechnology and Cognitive Neuroscience laboratories. It is enhanced by an intense programme of cultural activities, from meetings, to seminars, to lectures given by distinguished international visitors.

The central importance of the learner derives directly from the University’s specific mission of defining “Quid est homo”. Excellence in teaching is counterbalanced by an atmosphere of total respect for individual aptitudes and vocations. Close student-teacher contact ensures personalized career development plans and establishes the habit of continuous, culturally transversal learning.

Departments

Medicine

Advanced Degree Course of Medicine and Surgery (in Italian)
International MD Program (in English)
Degree Course in Nursing
Degree Course in Physiotherapy
Degree Course in Dental Care
Degree Course in Biotechnology
Advanced Degree Course of Medical, Molecular and Cellular Biotechnology

Psychology

Degree Course in Psychological Sciences
Advanced Degree Course of Clinical Psychology
Advanced Interdepartmental Degree Course in Cognitive Neuroscience (including dept. of Medical Studies and Philosophy)
Degree Course of Sciences of Communication

Philosophy

Degree Course in Philosophy
Advanced Degree Course in Philosophy
PhD Program in Philosophy and Cognitive Sciences

Courses

Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery

Molecular Medicine (Ph.D)

Bachelor of Biotechnology

Developmental Psychopathology (Ph.D)

Nursing (B.Sc)

Philosophy and Cognitive Science (Ph.D)

Bachelor of Physiotherapy

Sciences of Communication (B.Sc)

Bachelor of Dental Care

Master in Diagnostic and Therapeutic ERCP

Bachelor of Psychological Sciences

Master in Diagnostic and Operative Endoscopic Ultrasonography (EUS)

Molecular Biology (Ph.D.)

Bachelor of Philosophy

Faculties, bachelors and masters

FACULTY OF PHILOSOPHY

Bachelor's in Philosophy

Masters degree in Philosophy

FACULTY OF MEDICINE AND SURGERY

Masters degree in medicine and surgery

International MD Program

Masters degree in dentistry ance dental implantology

Bachelor's in nursing

Bachelor's in physiotherapy

Bachelor's in medical and pharmaceutical biotechnology

Bachelor's in dental hygiene

Masters degree in molecular and cellular medical biotechology

FACULTY OF PSYCHOLOGY

Bachelor's in psychological sciences and techniques

Masters degree in Psychology

POST-LAUREAM

PhD Programs

Master’s degree course in Diagnostic and Therapeutic ERCP (second-level)

Master’s degree, second level, in diagnostic and operative endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS)

Second Level Master’s degree course in Economics and Politics

Faculty of Philosophy

The Faculty offers two Degree programs: a Bachelor in Philosophy (3 years) and a Masters in Philosophical Science (2 years).

An exceptionally strong teaching staff includes such internationally renowned names as Luca Cavalli-Sforza, Edoardo Boncinelli, Enzo Bianchi, Massimo Cacciari, Emanuele Severino and Andrea Moro, to name but a few. As is characteristic of San Raffaele, the subjects are deliberately interdisciplinary and hence range widely: from theoretical philosophy to the philosophy of biological and cognitive science; from phenomenology and the philosophy of language to the study of religious cultures.

Work Prospects

Holders of Bachelor of Philosophy degrees typically find jobs in the areas of corporate publicity and PR, HR development and training, editing (traditional and electronic) and applied ethics.

Masters graduates will find opportunities, inter alia, in specialized journalism, in editing and publishing, in the management of museums and exhibitions, in continuous learning programs in the areas of ethics and bioethics, in the running of think tanks specializing in political and social issues, and in creative marketing and publicity.

Bachelor's degree in Philosophy

Masters degree in Philosophy

Teachers

Faculty of Medicine and Surgery

"Go, teach and heal!" That is our mission at the San Raffaele School of Medicine; a progressive urban institute of medical education, clinical practice and research. We attract talented teachers and students, who have made and will make important contributions to human health and welfare across the globe.

Known for its excellence and innovation, the Vita-Salute San Raffaele University (founded in 1996) will continue to make it’s mark. Our second decade is fast becoming an era of expansion and development. We are attracting nationally and internationally known faculty at an unprecedented rate, along with pre-graduate students, post-graduate students and residents of exceptional quality. We are expanding our portfolio of world-class interdisciplinary clinical and research centres (Urology, Oncology, Genetics, Cardiovascular Medicine, as well as others). We have unveiled a new curriculum that will further enhance our reputation to producing graduates with superior clinical skills. We have recently inaugurated a new purpose-built University building, which delivers state-of-the-art teaching facilities.

The teaching and practice of humanistic medicine is central to San Raffaele’s mission. We are recognized as providers of exceptional primary care, as well as of tertiary and quaternary services that attract patients, faculty and students from near and far. Our campus includes a School of Psychology, a School of Philosophy, a College for Allied Health Professions, an Internationally recognized Research Institute, a Science Park and a 1,300 bed hospital in Milan: all of this on the same site. San Raffaele is in constant expansion and is building other hospitals in Italy, namely Taranto in the Apulia region, Cefalu in Sicily and Olbia in Sardinia. San Raffaele is also present abroad with a hospital in Brazil and an NGO, AISPO, that provides quality healthcare services to countries like Uganda, Brazil, India, and Afghanistan, to name just a few.

San Raffaele graduates are well-known for their abilities, compassion and professional skills; they secure residencies in top programs across the globe, and many of our alumni work in academia, clinical practice, industry and public services.

As Dean, it is my privilege to steward this mission. I wish you every success in fulfilling your dream to study Medicine at our University.

Masters degree in medicine and surgery

International MD Program

Masters degree in dentistry ance dental implantology

Bachelor's degree in nursing

Bachelor's degree in physiotherapy

Bachelor's degree in medical and pharmaceutical biotechnology

Bachelor's degree in dental hygiene

Masters degree in molecular and cellular medical biotechology

Teachers

Contacts :

facolta.medicina@unisr.it

Faculty of Psychology

Developed in response to the question posed by our founder Don Verzè “Quid est homo?”, Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele defines man as the synthesis of body, mind and spirit.

The Psychology Faculty’s mission is to study the mind by looking at man as a “whole”. As well as exploring the biological and cognitive aspects of the mind, the course investigates the socio-environmental elements that influence a person’s personality.

Our three-year Bachelor of Psychology course gives you the basic theoretical, methodological and applied skills you need both to become an accredited Junior Psychologist and to enrol on postgraduate programs, whether here at San Raffaele (on a Masters in Neuroscience or Clinical Psychology), or in any other Italian or Overseas University.

Bachelor's degree in psychological sciences and techniques

Masters degree in Psychology

Teachers

CONTACTS

facolta.psicologia@unisr.it

Research

Research at the Università Vita-Salute San Saffaele

With its atypical, but perfectly interlinking assortment of basic and clinical research units, of hospital divisions and teaching-research laboratories, the Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele is without doubt a rarity in Italian biomedical research. From the teaching point of view, the distinctive affinity that exists between the University’s diverse units immediately eases interaction between the students, teachers, doctors and scientists who work there. Thanks to this extensive interaction, students are exposed from the outset to the realities of scientific research. The aim is to prepare all our students for a “Medicine” and a “Psychology” that are transforming massively towards being “Molecular”. The training they receive will be fundamental for those students who enrol on Doctoral Research programs, and thus opt for a lifetime of research. The exceptionally high level of competences harnessed by the University, along with the innovative attitude of its research units, in which clinicians and researchers work shoulder to shoulder, has brought and will continue to bring great developments in numerous research fields, such as genetics, cell biology, physiology, immunology, stem cells, functional brain imaging.

Revolutionizing the future

Thanks to the generosity of public and private investments, the Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele is highly committed to basic research. The commitment manifests as a series of research projects that aim to reveal the cellular and molecular mechanisms that enable the cells of our organism to grow, to divide, to send signals, to defend themselves from viral aggression. On the basis of the important results generated by basic research, the University is trying to revolutionize how we diagnose, treat, block and cure many of the commonest diseases. Within this context, it is clear how the recent cloning of the human genome has created a situation without precedent in modern history by enormously facilitating our understanding of the molecular bases of many cell processes and of many diseases, hereditary or otherwise. Spurred by this knowledge and by the results of scientific research, the University has for many years been deeply committed to creating new diagnostic methods, new treatment protocols, new vaccines, new therapies. The challenges of modern medicine require substantial investments, but the University continues, and will continue, to invest immense human financial resources in order to achieve great turning points for human health. Since inception, the University has accorded primary importance to the recruitment of the best Italian and foreign researchers to implement current projects and to open new seams for research to explore in the future.

Rerearch Centers

University Center for Statistics in the Biomedical Sciences (CUSSB)

Center for Cognitive Neuroscience (CCN)

Center for research in experimental and applied epistemology (CRESA)

Center for Public Ethics Studies (CeSEP)

Laboratory for Research in Phenomenology and Science of the Person

Contacs

Research Office

Maria Rosa Pedrazzi

Tel: +39 02 2643 4845

Fax: +39 02 2643 3781

e-mail: pedrazzi.mariarosa@hsr.it