Bergamo, 15 May 2024
 
CIID, a global centre of excellence for Interaction Design, selects talent in Italy.

Together with Intesa Sanpaolo, with merit-based loans of up to €50,000 for the annual course

 

Imagine spending a year of your life working with people from around the world, from different professional backgrounds, while learning from experts in innovation, design and digital technologies. In an immersive practical and creative learning environment, you complete courses in physical and spatial computing, and work on projects with companies and biomimicry laboratories, creating solutions inspired by nature. Through these activities you learn to design products, services and environments with the most advanced digital technologies, emerging as highly-trained and sought-after Interaction Designers.

 

These elements—and many others—make up the world-famous Interaction Design Programme (IDP), a one year course of the Copenhagen Institute of Interaction Design (CIID), which arrives in Italy this autumn and is now welcoming applicants. Registrations for the course, which starts in Bergamo in September 2024, are open.

For Italian resident students, CIID is pleased to offer a special “per Merito” honour loan of up to €50,000 in conjunction with Intesa Sanpaolo, sufficient to cover the programme tuition of €36,500, as well as food, accommodation and transport costs. The “per Merito” loan is offered with no guarantee requirements, as part of the Group’s Fund for Impact, created to promote credit inclusion for social impact and encourage educational engagement. The loan includes a two-year “bridge period” following completion of the IDP course before repayment begins, which can be structured with a repayment period of up to 30 years. Furthermore, Intesa Sanpaolo will apply no additional costs in the case of early repayment. All information about this unique loan opportunity is available on the Copenhagen Institute of Interaction Design website (https://www.ciid.dk/idp-admissions).

 

The Interaction Design Programme (IDP)

 

CIID is a centre of excellence for the design of digital products and services, which arrives in Italy after almost 20 years of activity in Denmark, Costa Rica, and in training programmes offered in more than 20 countries. Today it opens a new chapter with the establishment of its new headquarters in Bergamo, on the grounds of the historic Monastery of Astino, thanks to the hospitality of the Municipality of Bergamo and the generous support of the Mia Foundation.

It is here at Astino, in a place rich with history, that new talents will have the opportunity to discover—or delve deeper into—the world of Interaction Design, and learn about the critical interactions between human beings and digital technologies. The Interaction Design Programme is an opportunity to make a change in your professional life, as well as a window on the world, thanks to CIID's international network and collaborations with companies such as Enel, Google, Lego, and Meta .

 

The IDP is a full-time programme lasting one year, plus an optional six month extension to develop professional networks and build relationships with CIID’s partner companies. Conducted in English, the Programme is open to candidates from a wide range of backgrounds, including engineering, architecture, design, art, and human, social and computer sciences. The course welcomes recent graduates as well as candidates already advanced along their professional path.

 

The programme’s unique structure is built around a series of modules, each with a team-based project at its centre. “In the first few weeks,” explains Simona Maschi, co-founder and director of the CIID, “students learn the basic elements of Interaction Design, from physical computing to artificial intelligence, and then apply them to the design of products, services and digital environments. Each course aims to work on real problems and contexts, implementing a 'project-based learning' dynamic. We believe that without concrete situations to work on, we cannot teach effectively.” At the end of their year of training, each student will have developed their own Final Project, and worked with partner companies on real-world problems during the "Industry Projects" phase of the programme.

 

An opportunity for a new professional life

 

By working on topics such as digitalisation and circularity, you’re able to prepare for a new professional life by learning to design products and services that have a positive impact on the lives of people and the planet. The year spent at CIID is an intense one: "At CIID you learn to push yourself beyond your limits, beyond your knowledge, helped by your classmates and learning from each of them,” says Clara Subirats Ribas, a former IDP student. “You learn different disciplines, which allows you to give shape to ideas in a variety of ways: through prototyping, ideas are transformed into concrete experiences, which improve people's lives and their relationship with technology. This ability to give shape to things is disruptive." Clara is an Interaction Designer who worked at HP where she explored the boundaries between the physical and digital worlds, and now leads the Global Customer Experience team at Roche Diagnostics. “I have asked myself many times how to explain in simple words, for example to my son, what Interaction Designers are,” she says, smiling. “In the end I gave myself this answer: we are inventors. Inventors of the future. ”

 

“We are proud to collaborate with CIID to offer students the opportunity to access qualified training with peace of mind, which allows for concrete job opportunities,” adds Andrea Lecce, head of the Impact Department Intesa Sanpaolo. “Our “per Merito” honour loan is designed to meet the needs of young people and address their right to education and training. It represents a tool to combat school dropout, often driven by economic circumstances, and to help bridge the gap between job demand and training supply. Since 2019, Intesa Sanpaolo has activated over 285 million euros in financing for around 17,000 students, helping to ease costs for families and students who support themselves during their studies."

Admissions for the September 2024 cohort of the IDP is now open, and with Intesa Sanpaolo’s “per Merito” honour loan facilitating access, the course opens up professional employment opportunities both in Italy and abroad, thanks to CIID’s robust network of alumni, teachers and partner companies. Information about the programme is available on the website www.ciid.dk, along with the opportunity to book an individual session with the CIID team.

 

Information for the press

The Copenhagen Institute of Interaction Design is an international hub of creative and strategic minds. We share a passion for people, nature and technology. Our life-centred approach enables us to create impact through the design of innovative products, services and systems.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/school/copenhagen-institute-of-interaction-design/

Press contact: g.destefanis@ciid.dk

Intesa Sanpaolo

Intesa Sanpaolo, with over €420 billion in loans and €1.3 trillion in customer financial assets at the end of 2023, is the largest banking group in Italy, with a significant international presence. It is a European leader in wealth management, with a strong focus on digital and fintech. The Group will provide €115 billion of Impact lending by 2025 to support communities and the green transition, together with a €1.5 billion programme(2023-2027) to help people in need. The Bank's network of museums, the Gallerie d'Italia, hosts its owned artistic heritage and cultural projects of recognized value.  

News: group.intesasanpaolo.com/it/sala-stampa

X: @intesasanpaolo

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/intesa-sanpaolo