With over 4200 students from around the world, the Plena Education group is launching its new educational offering, along with a new Educational Hub in the city of Milan.

February 2024 – Plena Education, the Italian Educational Hub specializing in various aspects of creativity and communication, continues to grow, solidifying its position as the third-largest private education group in Italy, attracting students from all over Italy and the world. Arts, Fashion, Design, Cinema, as well as Music and Linguistic Mediation: today, Plena Education, a holding created by Kyip Capital, a growth buy-out fund dedicated to the digital transformation of Italian SMEs, boasts 4,200 enrolled students with a revenue of 22 million euros. It comprises six entities active in the fields of Fine Arts (RUFA, in Rome and Milan), Design (SPD Scuola Politecnica di Design, in Milan and Made Program in Syracuse), Fashion (Ferrari Fashion School in Milan), Music (Saint Louis College of Music in Rome and Milan), and Linguistic Mediation (Ciels Group, with locations in Padua, Brescia, and Bologna).

Led by CEO Alessandro Montel, a manager with a solid background in the academic world, Plena Education, from the biennium 2022 – 2024, has initiated an expansion process aimed at spreading the creativity of its schools nationally and internationally. The new campus in Milan is ready to welcome Saint Louis College of Music, a renowned music school authorized by the MUR, specializing in excellent music education with one of the broadest educational offerings in Europe, and RUFA, a multidisciplinary and international educational center officially recognized by the MUR, offering valid and innovative courses in the fields of Art, Design, Audiovisual, Fashion, Game, Visual Communication, and Media Art. These two academies join SPD Scuola Politecnica di Design, the first school for design disciplines in Italy, which has been on-site for a year. The Milanese campus aims to accommodate approximately 600 students in the first year, with the goal of territorial expansion and providing more job opportunities and networking for both Italian and international students.

Among the collaborations implemented by Plena Education, noteworthy collaborations include Maxxi and Minerva Pictures for RUFA, Studio FM Milano and Ducati for SPD, Auditorium Parco della Musica for Saint Louis, Fashion Technology Accelerator and Terre des Hommes for Ferrari Fashion School, and ItalyPost and ITRADE for CIELS.

Among the faculty, notable individuals include Simone Borile (CIELS), Antonio Solimene, Rosario Giuliani, Ramberto Ciammarughi, Claudio Mastracci, Maria Grazia Fontana, Gianluca Podio, Luca Spagnoletti, Federico Malaman, Lorenzo Feliciati (Saint Louis College of Music), Stefano Cipolla, Maria Chiara Castelli, Antonin Di Santantonio, Fabio Mollo, Luigi Prestinenza Puglisi, Andrea Mennella (RUFA), Gilberto Calzolari, Carolina Guajana, Silvia Spaghi, Valeria Magistro, Federica Meacci, Marco Marezza (FFS), and finally Norihiko Harada, Claudio Fassini, Francesco Faccin, Martí Guixé, Katja Gruijters, Filippo Perfido, Cristiano Bottino, Ico Migliore, Enrica Baccini, Huub Ubbens, Armando Bruno, Massimo Pettiti, Matteo Ragni, Emanuele Viora, 2050+ (SPD).

An attractive hub for foreigners looking to operate in the world of creativity.

When it comes to art and creativity, Italy has always been considered a global center of excellence. For this reason, it is becoming an increasingly coveted destination for students from around the world who want to delve into disciplines related to these fields. Plena Education’s educational offerings, in fact, are drawing more and more talent from abroad to Italy, attracting individuals to study creative professions in cities across the peninsula. The percentage of international students hovers around an average of 40%, varying from school to school, with students coming from Latin America, India, Turkey, the Middle East, the former USSR, and various European countries. Among all, India and Latin America are predominant. Additionally, thanks to CIELS’ Turandot Program, many Chinese students have the opportunity to study Italian through courses specifically designed to connect our country with the most important international businesses.

“Plena positions itself as the first educational platform, with Italian capital and management, focused on transmitting, enhancing, and promoting – also on an international scale – a heritage of skills typically associated with the recognized areas of excellence in our country (history, creativity, craftsmanship), or those that can leverage on these. The combination of the Group’s schools offers, as a whole, a world of methods, projects, cultures, and languages that no school can independently provide, pooling together expertise that stems from unique and diverse stories. Plena’s ambition is to give substance, through the existing and future entities, progressively enhancing the range of offerings in an organic and coherent way, to an educational model that sees the school as a true “social device,” capable of bringing real value to all individuals who come into contact with it.” – comments Alessandro Montel, CEO of Plena Education.

Professional opportunities: from Fashion Manager to Curators

Depending on the chosen academic path, there are countless professional opportunities for students in the contemporary world of work, starting with some of the most sought-after roles today. Whether it’s a Fashion Manager in the fashion or e-commerce sector or a director, producer, or screenwriter in the film, television, and theatrical industry, Plena Education’s courses encompass the world of art in its entirety. This includes areas ranging from photography (fashion, fine arts, or in a more traditional advertising agency) to art, which extends to both the artist and curator roles. There is also a significant focus on designers in various forms: product, interior, exhibition, food, automotive, and transportation, as well as visual, communication, and digital designers. Music is also a crucial aspect, as Plena educates not only future musicians and singers but also individuals working in cinema with music applied to images, such as producers, sound designers, and sound technicians. Finally, in line with today’s needs, in-depth language knowledge is of particular value as an enabling tool combined with specialization demanded by the market. This ranges from commerce and tourism to a focus on international relations, marketing, or criminology.