Academic credit system and methodology:

The academic credit system of IATH courses and the methodology used for the achievement of the Diploma are as follows:

IATH offers a 2-years course (organized in 2 semesters per year), which leads to a Higher Technician Diploma (Level 5 EQF). The course is sub-divided into 3 macro areas:

1) Specific subjects: modules which develop professional competences correlated to the operational activity;

2) Supporting subjects: modules on management and administrative competences;

3) Core courses: modules which develop other important soft skills which complete curriculum.

Each year foresees the implementation of an internship.

During the first year, the internship has operational characteristics and lasts 440 hours. It aims at introducing students not only to professional functions, but also to teach them how to manage processes, tools and results.

The second year internship lasts 480 hours and has an administrative character. It leads to a specific specialization. In companies, students are supported mainly by a hotel/restaurant manager.

The course includes 13 modules divided into 37 training courses (approx. 1000 hours). Every year 60 credits (CFU) are allocated (30 per semester), according to the following system:

1st year courses include: [percentages of total amount of hours]

-        theoretical lectures (16%): 1 CFU includes 10h in class + 15h of personal study;

-        workshops/on-fields visits/project works (33%): 1 CFU includes 12h of activity + 13h of personal study;

-        meetings with experts (7%): 1 CFU includes 20h of activity + 5h personal study;

-        internship (44%): 25h provide 1 CFU.

2nd year courses include:

-        theoretical lectures (16%): 1 CFU includes 10h in class + 15h of personal study;

-        workshops/laboratories/project works (31%): 1 CFU includes 12h of activity + 13h of personal study;

-        meetings with experts (8%): 1 CFU includes 20h of activity + 5h personal study;

-        internship (48%): 25h provide 1 CFU.

Language Policy

All students in IATH can benefit from the opportunity to obtain, paying reduced fares, the international certification on English language skills TOEIC (Test of English for International Communication) Listening and Reading and/ or TOEIC Bridge.

All competences required for mobility activities will be described in the specific call. Our institution ensures that outgoing participants will be well prepared before mobility.

Students and teachers/ staff members participating in mobility programs, will be selected according to an adequate knowledge of the requested foreign language; English B2 is the minimum.

Before departure, the proficiency level of linguistic competences will be defined. If students do not reach the required level, our institution will check the amount of missing competences, in order to decide if it possible to reach the desired level in time, before leaving. In this way, we will evaluate the capacity of the student to improve their language skills.  

Mobility participants will also be prepared regarding cultural differences, which initially could lead to challenges. If needed, our mobility staff will provide lectures on intercultural communication, meeting and discussion groups with former mobility participants.

Participants will be introduced to the Erasmus+ Online Linguistic Support in order to be better prepared for and make the most out of their period abroad.

Recognition Procedure

For INCOMING students, our institution will check and certify which requirements outlined in the Learning Agreement have been actually fulfilled and which have not been reached.

During the mobility period, records of the incoming student’s achievements are kept and made available to the sending organization if requested. As the receiving organization, we will provide the partner HEI with a Transcript of Records within five weeks after the mobile student’s evaluation has finished.

For OUTGOING students our institution will guarantee to recognize all credits earned during the mobility period abroad within the time-scale and in respect to the conditions stipulated in the Learning Agreement. IATH guarantees also to count the acquired credits towards the final degree in a transparent way.

Once we receive the Transcript of Records written by the hosting organization, IATH will inform the student of the recognition outcomes.

The responsible will guarantee that the Transcript of Records will be signed, stamped and dated to ensure its legal effectiveness.

Erasmus Policy Statement

A) Partners’ selection
At the moment, partners’ selection is based on prior knowing and professional relations among our school and foreign institutions or through other Italian partners’ mediation. IATH companies partners are international entities, e.g. NH Italy, Accor Italy, Starwood Hotels&Resorts Italy, Villa d’Este.
Relations have been already started with companies and institutios: GDF Group (holding company that operates in several areas: healthcare, catering, tourism and hotel business), Intravco (Tour operator and international travel consultants), EHMA – European Hotel Managers Association and Alpitour; Colegio de sao Tomas (Portogallo), Gimnasio Alessandro Volta (Colombia) e la Katholische Universitat Eichstat (Germania).
Through this accreditation at European level, we want to make ongoing partnerships with various entities official and enlarge the number of partners. To this aim, IATH activated relations with some European networks like EfVET (European Forum of Technical and Vocational Education and Training) and Chain5 (5 EQF Level School Association).
Our foreign partners will be selected according to their skills and professionalism. Creating a contact network can increase the number of partnerships also based on partners’ trust that are yet reliable. Our staff supplies to develop a database including schools and institutes similar to ours, operating in various European countries. Special attention will be paid to confirming if other schools and institutions’ formative offer would be similar or complementary to ours. In this way, a common skills recognition will be easily possible. Face-to-face meetings or Skype meetings will be organized with selected partners’ teachers/staff/managers in order to get to deeply know them and develop together a common collaboration strategy.

B) Geographical areas
According to our internationalization vision, we do not exclude any geographical areas, but our choice will be only based  on partners’ quality (high level companies and schools that offer similar courses). Having an advanced and excellent touristic sector will facilitate the choice. Obviously, our students will be more interested in choosing in advance countries of which they can speak the official language, hence more attention will be put on English-speaking countries.

C) Objectives and target groups
Mobility activities play an essential role into internationalization process of our school. We want to increase students’ mobility in order to offer to our students the possibility to improve their qualification level. Taking part in international mobility, our students will improve their professional, social, inter-cultural and linguistic skills. Our school staff could improve both on professional and personal level. The employment level  will increase.