Each year a business plan competition for innovative use of technology is held right here in Milano, promoting and awarding new ideas for using technology in business. The annual event is sponsored by Milano's main universities, including Università Bocconi and Politecnico di Milano, and several winners are chosen among the submissions. Cash prizes will go to the top three business plans, helping companies carry out their ideas.

The StartCup website has a lot of great material for entrepreneurs and prospective entrepreneurs. There is a detailed description of how to make a business plan: what needs to be included and what order to fill in the information. This year the website is available in both Italian and English, so be sure to browse all the info and take advantage of the various resources before filling out your application.

Many business or economics students might already be well-versed in writing business plans, but remember that participants will be provided tutoring and mentoring. And the best ideas will have access to free classes, tutors and experts who will information on how to write a good business plan.

Each year, there are 2 kinds of contests: a Call for Ideas, which requires a less-complete form of business plan, and an actual Business Plan Competition. The deadline for a concrete Business Plan is 17 September. There's no registration fee to participate.

If you have an innovative entrepreneurial idea, but don’t know how to write a business plan, apply to the Call For Ideas 2010 and submit your idea before the upcoming deadline 18 June.  If you don't have a concrete business plan for this year and can’t make the imminent deadline, keep working on your idea for next year's competition: the next Call for Ideas deadline should be in May-June 2011.

In any case, don't forget to look out for this year's winners. The 5 best ideas submitted to Start Cup Milano will be announced and recognized in late October. In addition to prizes, the winners will also get the chance to qualify for the 2010 National Prize for Innovation, to be held in Palermo on 3 December.

For more information, you can contact Politecnico di Milano, Acceleratore d’Impresa del Politecnico di Milano, either by email, polimi@startcupml.net, or by tel. +39 02.23992997.

Spring and sunny weather are here and we all feel lot more energetic and happier! MilanoZine wanted to take advantage of such a mood and organized a "Miss and Mister International Bocconi 2010" competition"!!! It was advertised on our Facebook page and we were pleased with the over 20 interested applicants! However, after a careful consideration of all of them, we choose our two pretty cool finalists!
We are proud to announce the winners of this competition, Miss Inga Bakuridze and Mister Marin Cojocaru! MilanoZine had a quick chat with them about what is their experience of living in Milan like and what are they favorite things about this city.
Have a look, even though you may be familiar with most of the places they mention you may also discover new and interesting hot spots for international students in Milan!

"I have been living in Milan for a few years now and been making the greatest lifetime memories of student life. The Italian lifestyle is very easy to get used to but most of all what I like in this city is its ability to offer an international environment full of fun and entertainment.
The evening is the best part of my day since I go out with my friends for an aperitivo or just for a drink. My favorite places are: Slice, Refeel, B4, Yguana, Fashion Cafee, Shu etc. My favorite restaurants are: Big Pizza (for Pizza of course), Seven (for some good, meat steak), Oscar (very tasty and a big amount of pasta) and Papas and Beer (great Mexican food).
We go pretty often to the Naviglio for a drink and my favorite clubs are: 'Just Cavalli' 'Old Fashion' 'Bobino' 'Le Banque' 'Karma' 'The Club.' During the winter it's always nice to go for ice-skating with friends and to the movies but I prefer the spring time, because the city is more alive and you can go in the park, sit outside in the bar or visit the swimming pool when it gets hotter and, most importantly, people seem happier!
On Sundays I meet up with my friends for brunch in Californian Bakery to eat delicious bagels and pancakes after the wild Saturday clubbing night. Oh, and of course as most Bocconi students know, there is no perfect lunch break during the week without stopping for lunch or for a coffee at Taxi Blues around the corner of Bocconi :)
I think living in a different country away from your home is not easy, so seeing a lot of international students like me and hanging out with them makes me feel so culturaly diverse but at the same time it also makes me feel more at home.

Hope you all are having a great time in Milan, enjoying the best period of your life because this city has a lot to offer and you should definately take advantage of it!!!"

Marin Cojocaru- Mister International Bocconi 2010 (second year student of Bachelor in International Economics and Management at Bocconi, from Moldova)

"I came to Italy in search of new life experiences and also to get a degree in economics at one of Europe's top universities. What I like most about Milan is that it is a living city, there are always things to be seen and to be done, the perfect city for student life.

There are some MUST SEE places, if you stay in Milan you have to go there; Duomo di Milano, Castello Sforzesco, Galleria Vittorio Emanuele, Leonardo Da Vinci's Last Supper at the S.ta Maria delle Grazie, Teatro alla Scalla and San Siro stadium.

When you get tired of touring around Milan and want to spoil yourself with some delicious Italian food, I suggest you to go to ''Wish'', a lounge restaurant located near Parco Sempione. A very friendly and relaxing ambiance, best for spending some quality time with friends while enjoying a good meal. For a special occasion you can go to ''Picolo Sogno'', but I warn you the prices are not consumer friendly.

If you are more in the mood to chat and meet new people, well there is no better place than zona Navigli. You can find there a variety of bars, cocktail bars, pubs etc. After an aperitivo I would suggest you to take your friends and go to ''The Club'' disco. It's not too big nor too small, just perfect, full of beautiful people, and the DJ is really good, and every night there is a different ''serata''. Also it is known to be the disco were famous people go when they come to Milan. In May all of ''The Club'' moves to ''The Beach'', an open air disco, an amazing experinece.

If you are tired of pubs and discos, visit Bowling Corvetto. You will have fun even if don't know how to bowl because the place is totally awesome, the music and the lights will put you in the right mood."

Finally, MilanoZine would like to thank our Miss and Mister International Bocconi 2010 once again on their great presentation!

Stay tuned for more cool places to visit in springtime in Milano!!!

If you are in your final year of high school and considering studying abroad but not sure where and what to study exactly, then you may find the following article useful!

We would like to introduce you to the Talent Scout Program organized by Università Bocconi in Milan. With three intense days (10- 12 February) in which economics, management, finance and university life become reality, carefully-selected outstanding students from abroad had the opportunity to express their full potential in classes, meetings and discussions about Bachelor degree programs and career paths - together with Università Bocconi professors, students and career counseling experts. The schedule of the program was eventful and demanding but as such it surely gave the best perspective of what it would be like to study at Università Bocconi for these prospective international students. For all these reasons, the MilanoZine team thought it would be interesting to interview them and see if and how they find studying in a city like Milan attractive!!!

On their evening break during a typical Milanese aperitivo, a MilanoZine representative was present to have a little chat with the participants to discover their impressions about the whole event and the city of Milan. They were asked a couple of questions and lets have a look at what some of them had to say:

Kleijssen Flavio (17 years old, International School in Strasbourg, France):

MZ: Is this your first time in Milan?

KF: This is my second time visiting Milan. The first time was during the Open Days event at Università Bocconi. I want to come to study at Bocconi and I thought this was an excellent opportunity to get to know the University.

MZ: How do you like everything so far?

KF: I think that the Talent Scout event is really nice. It gave me a valuable insight into what Bocconi University has to offer and allowed me to meet some friends as well. I would definitely recommend it to other students!

MZ: How do you feel about living in Milan? How do you imagine it to be?

KF: Milan is a very modern city and there are so many things you can do here! I come from a relatively big city so I am used to this kind of lifestyle. I am however very curious and would be excited about living in Milan because of its amazing nightlife (among many other things!) It seems like a cool and fun city!

Dario Dragone (18 years old, International School, Brazil)

MZ: How did you hear about this program?

DD: Luckily, I went to the Università Bocconi program presentation held at my high school last year and I absolutely loved it! I kept in touch with their Ambassadors who alerted me about this program. I immediately applied for it because I think its important to "get to feel" the University before applying to it, to feel whether or not it will be the right choice!

MZ: So, based on your impressions about Talents Scout, do you think coming to Bocconi will be a good choice?

DD:I think it will be, for many reasons. Graduating from such a prestigious European Business school like Università Bocconi will certainly offer me good career opportunities. And it will also mean being in a strongly international environment but with the opportunity of getting to know Italian culture and experiencing Italy!

MZ: What about living in Milan?

DD: So far I havent really seen that much of the city, as this is my first time ever in Milan. I do think it will be so much fun to study in this city because I assume there are many places to go out with friends at night, there's football, there's shoppingI would also love to get a chance to learn Italian while here as I already speak English, Portuguese and Spanish.

Arnoldas Blekaitis (18 years old, Lithuania)

MZ: Have you ever been to Milan before?

AB: : No, this is actually my first time. I found out about Università Bocconi and this program during its presentation at my high school in Lithuania. I got really interested and wanted to participate because I want to pursue my studies in economics and get the best possible education. Today has been amazing, the lectures, the meetings, everything made a really good impression of Bocconi on me.

MZ: We are glad you liked it! How about the city of Milan?

AB:I can only judge it from what Ive seen in couple of hours but it definitely gave me the impression of a vibrant city! I can perfectly imagine myself living in a city like Milan in an apartment with other students, both international and Italian, and have unforgettable time!  

 

 

Last but not least, as far as the Talent Scout  Program is concerned, here is something  Andjela Novakovic, an 18-year old student from Austria told us: "The fact that there are 28 participants from 14 different countries makes this program even richer and makes us participants feel proud and motivated to bring our best results. I think we can all benefit from Talent Scout in a great way and we should definitely keep in touch with each other after. I am glad I had the amazing opportunity to take part in this program which can enhance my education and my network of friends in the long run. I hope to become a Bocconi student and have the chance to live in the fashion and finance capital of Italy! " 


So, after showing you the feedback from prospective international students at Università Bocconi, we hope we have at least triggered your curiosity about coming to study in Milan. Now its up to you to make the choice of your academic future and let us know if there is anything you would like to hear more about regarding a life of an international student in Milan! We hope to see you in Milan soon and we would LOVE to be your guide to this city!!

Finally, the MilanoZine team would like to thank all the participants of the Talent Scout Program for their valuable contribution to this article and we wish them the best of luck in pursuing their studies!

Heres yet another way to release your creativity, have fun and learn something more about online and multimedia content management! We would like to introduce you to Be OBjective , or BOB, a bimonthly PDF-format magazine publication founded by the ACME students at Università Bocconi in Milan. This fun and young publication, provides a medium in which students and non-students, young and old, professionals and amateurs are invited to share their thoughts on art, culture, media or entertainment in order to learn from and be inspired by one another.

As such, the magazine exposes its audience to new ideas, people, work fields, environments, professions and events that could stimulate dialogue and inspire future endeavors. For those on the editorial team, BOB creates an environment where people with a managerial eye and a passion for the arts can express themselves and engage in creative thinking. If you feel like you are such a person or would simply enjoy taking a look at this professional yet informal output, visit http://bobmagazine.wordpress.com/

Its simple and easy to be part of BOB, as the team is always looking for creative and motivated members or contributors. BOB also has a regular online presence beyond the bimonthly magazine, through its blog. The blog provides up-to-date information about events and happenings around the city of Milano, additional articles, videos, and most importantly is used as a stage for the continuous exchange of ideas and comments in order to learn and grow as a community.

Make sure you see their videos and we hope you stay tuned for their upcoming issues (next one out February 15th ) and events!

Are you passionate about contemporary art and would like to have a chance to chat with some of the finest Italian and international contemporary artists and art critics? Then you should come to the new Bocconi building in Via Roentgen on 16 December starting at 6:30pm to visit Bocconi Art Gallery, an exhibition of several unique art pieces. On the other hand, you don’t have to necessarily be a contemporary art admirer to come this one–of-a-kind event, because it can also be a nice way to spend the evening with your friends or make new friends, with nice jazz music playing in the background and a free buffet served for all the visitors.

So, why not do something different and enjoy an art collection at Bocconi, whose events are almost always related to economics and finance only?

Take a closer look into the event’s detailed schedule (info in Italian).

What does Britain's economy and finance newspaper have to say about Università Bocconi? Why, that UB is to Italy what the London School of Ecnonomics and Political Science is to the UK and what Sciences Po is to France. Not a bad comparison, considering those two schools are generall considered the top of their leagues.

The Financial Times article gives a good description of Milano's image around the world and quotes Rector Tabellini, as well as several other Deans at the university. The university's look towards the international market and even the newly completed building on Via Roentgen also get nods.

So, what are you waiting for? Why not read about it for yourself?

Parli italiano? Come ti chiami? Di dove sei?

These are usually the very first questions you are asked upon your arrival in Italy. Whether you speak some Italian or don’t speak any at all, you will surely be expected to speak it on various occasions on a daily basis, once you start living in Milan. We all know that learning a foreign language is time consuming and often demanding, especially if you are an absolute beginner. However, your study program will at some point include Italian courses, but before that takes place, make sure you pay a visit to the Bocconi Language Center, located at Piazza Sraffa 11, just next to Velodromo Building.
The Language Center develops and coordinates foreign language offerings at Università Bocconi. As such, it helps you to start to learn or improve your knowledge of not only the Italian language but other languages as well (French, Spanish, English, German, Russian and Portuguese). It organizes and manages language teaching which is composed of learning activities for your curricular language courses and integrative activities which allow you to gain basic knowledge of languages like Arabic, Russian, Chinese, Japanese and Portuguese and they also give you extra points to your final graduation date! If, however, you prefer to organize your studies according to your own schedules, the Language Center enables you to do so too, since it has a very well-equipped language laboratory open to all Bocconi students from Monday to Friday from 9:00am to 7:00pm and Saturdays from 9:00am to 12:00pm. Here you can use some of the finest self studying materials: book, CDs and magazines  to help you become more fluent in any of the above mentioned languages and/or take advantage of tutorial help provided by specialist staff members which is available in the laboratory.

Nevertheless, studying a foreign language at the Bocconi Language Center is not limited to ordinary learning methods and practices only. This office repeatedly organizes a series of events to engage more and more students so they can learn by participating in them while having fun.

Do you already have a foreign language certificate you would like to register in your study plan? The Language Center allows you to that if you meet the requirements explained in detail on their website.

For this and much more information, consult their website.

Or visit their Administrative Office on the ground floor of Piazza Sraffa 11, any time from 9:00am to 1:00pm (Monday, Wednesday and Friday) and 2:00pm to 5:00pm (Tuesday  and Thursday).

Finally, as an international student, you will probably be hanging around other international students a lot. However, in addition to a language course, don’t forget that the best way to learn Italian is to make friends with Italians! So go ahead and introduce yourself to some of your Italian classmates and start experiencing Italian culture!

Studying abroad is already challenging. Life can get hectic and getting a job can be very stressful and demanding too. When it comes to looking for an internship or a job, there are so many things one must know and consider in addition to studies. Even writing a CV or a cover letter is not easy. Lots of information and familiarity with the job market are necessary.

Luckily, Università Bocconi has a specifically designed office to help you address and deal with these matters. If you would like to know more about career opportunities available for you during your studies or upon your graduation it is the Career Service office you should go to. This office will provide you with a lot of job-related facts, as it offers various workshops, seminars and opportunities involving students and allowing them to get a perspective of what the job market is like. For example, you can attend helpful seminars on how to develop a job interview, how to write your CV and cover letter, or lectures to help you realize what specific profession will be suitable for you. This office also prides itself with a vast network of companies it collaborates with and these companies give lectures, opportunities for students to get familiar with their culture (available through an initiative “In- Company Training”) and are interested in recruiting Bocconi students. In addition, the Career Service has a very valuable publication of internship and job listings , available for different industries and specific fields called “JOBGATE” ,which is accessible to current students and graduates and Master holders, up to 3 years after completion, and as such, it surely opens the door to the job market for them.

Last but not least, the Career Service organizes a variety of events engaging both recruiting companies and students to enhance the familiarity with the conditions and requirements needed. Bocconi &Jobs is one of such events, organized once every semester. It hosts some of the most respected and successful Italian and international companies who wish to have ambitious and outstanding Bocconians working on their professional teams.
Again, understanding the type of a job that is the most appropriate for you and finding one is not simple, so do not hesitate to contact the Career office located on the 4th floor at Piazza Sraffa 11.

Also, make sure to visit their website for more information.

Best of luck with your job hunting!!!