ADMISSIONS REQUIREMENTS
In order to attend the undergraduate courses offered by the institute, students must have completed the minimum requirement of at least a 12-year course, and have earned a high-school diploma. Italian students are required to have earned the Italian "maturità". For applicants from other national systems, an essential requirement is the successful completion of a secondary school program permitting university admission within their respective system. Candidates are required to have a university degree in order to attend our Masters Programs.

Admission to Polimoda is limited and is based on the positive evaluation of an entrance exam.
All applicants - both Italian and international students - must complete and submit an application form and supporting materials. You may use the application online , either in Italian or in English, depending on the language in which the program you are applying to is taught. To receive a form by mail contact the Admissions Office at either one of the addresses or emails below.

The application form must be completed in its entirety and accompanied by the following:
1. Certified copy of high-school diploma for undergraduate courses or certified copy of university degree for Masters' programs except for the post-graduate programs that are taught in the English language. For international students, the certified copy must be translated and accompanied by a declaration of the degree's value, to be issued by the Italian diplomatic or consular authorities in your area.
2. Two passport photos
3. Photocopy of passport or identity card for international students

Documents and application forms must be submitted to:
Polimoda
Promotion and Orientation Office
Villa Strozzi
Via Pisana 77
50143 Firenze
info@polimoda.com
Tel. +39 055 7399628

ADMISSIONS PROCEDURES
DESIGN UNDERGRADUATE COURSES (in Italian):
· Fashion Design
· Womenswear Patternmaking
· Design - Footwear & Accessories

-Foundation course

1. After submitting their application materials, program candidates will receive instructions on how to compile their portfolio and statement of purpose.
2. Completed portfolios and statements of purpose will then to be sent to Polimoda, to the attention of the Department Head in charge of the program in question (we recommend sending it by registered mail).
3. An Examinations Committee will evaluate the students' work.
4. Polimoda will contact candidates who pass the test in order to let them know the date of their individual interview, as well details regarding a possible drawing test at our Florence campus.


MARKETING COURSES (In Italian):
Masters:
Fashion Marketing & Merchandising
Marketing Management for Fashion Buying
Fashion Marketing and Organization of Events

Fashion Marketing Communication
Marketing Management for Fashion, Beauty & Cosmetics

Masters in International Marketing

Undergraduate Marketing course:
· Fashion Marketing
After submitting their application materials, applicants will be informed of the date of both the Aptitude Test and the individual interview at our main campus.

PROGRAMS IN ENGLISH
Masters:
· Masters in Fashion Merchandising and Management
· Masters in Luxury Management
After submitting their application materials, applicants will be informed of the date of the written entrance exam. The test will be sent to you by e-mail and must be sent back to Polimoda within the established deadline. Upon successful evaluation of the exam, candidates will be required to hold a phone interview.
· Masters in Fashion Design and Master in Fashion Footwear Design
After submitting their application materials, applicants will receive instructions on how to compile their portfolio (for the advanced course) . Upon successful evaluation of the exam, candidates will be required to hold a phone interview.
The Orientation  Course in Fashion Design, and the summer programs offered by Polimoda do not require any entrance exams.

When should you apply?
All candidates are responsible for ensuring that the completed application and all supporting materials reach the University in time for the Admissions Committee to review the application and make their final decision.

Non-European applicants should be especially sure to allow sufficient time for the processing of their student visa by the Italian Consulate in their area of residence.

STUDENT REGULATIONS

Contents and application
All students enrolled in all Polimoda courses are to adhere to the following regulations.

Parties involved
Students, teachers, heads of department, didactic secretaries.



SECTION I APPLYING FOR ADMISSION
SECTION II - SCHOOL DOCUMENTS
SECTION III Absences and Tardiness
SECTION IV EVALUATION CRITERIA
SECTION V SPECIAL REQUESTS ON COURSE WORK
SECTION VI PAYMENT OF TUITION FEES
SECTION VII MISCELLANEOUS







APPLYING FOR ADMISSION
Art.1 How to apply for admission
When pre-registering, students must submit the following documentation:
- an admission form filled out in all its parts and undersigned (MO1P7-5-1 “Request for admission form”).
- a copy of their high school diploma or university degree when required. For foreign students it will be necessary to submit a “statement of equivalency” and a legalized translation of their school documents.
- three passport size photos.

PROCEDURES FOR ENTRANCE EXAMS

Art.2 Dates of Exams
The dates of exams will be communicated by the Promotion and Orientation Office.

Art. 3 Evaluation Criteria
The Heads of Department will agree on uniform evaluation criteria to be applied during the selection process.  These criteria will appear on the Calendar Admission Exam Form.
Applicants who receive a grade equal to or higher than 8/10 (or equivalent) will be immediately admitted and will receive an official admission letter.
Applicants who achieve a grade between 6/10 and 8/10 will be included in a waiting list until the end of the entrance exam session.  If the number of openings is lower then the number of applicants with a grade equal or higher than 8/10, those with highest grades will be admitted; in case of equal scores, admittance will be granted to the students who have taken the exam first.
The Didactic Commission can accept students for advanced placement in the second or third year on the basis of officially documented records that meet requirements.

Art.4 Waiting Lists
Polimoda will use waiting lists only if classes are not completely full or if some students choose to withdraw.
The ranking in the list will be based on the following criteria:
- test score;
- in case of equal scores, on the basis of the date of the entrance exam (precedence is given to those who have taken the exam at an earlier date);
- in case of equal score and date, the Head of Department will decide.

Art.5 Communication of Exam Results
Within a week from the admission exam, students accepted will receive an official letter of admission.
Together with the official letter, students will receive a copy of the present regulations R7-5-7, of the regulations concerning internships R7-5-10 or internships for master courses R7-5-12 (with the exception of non UE students, see art.19 of these regulations), those concerning the Documentation Center R7-5-3 and those about Computer Labs, which must be signed in all their parts and handed back in to the Promotion and Orientation Office.

Art.6 Records of tests
The entrance tests will be on file at the school:
- for the whole length of the course of studies for admitted students;
- for one year after the date of the exam for those not admitted.

Art.7 Notification
These regulations, once approved, will be included in the “Admission Guidelines” on the Polimoda website and on its brochures and will be given to all those who have already submitted an admission form.

SECTION II - SCHOOL DOCUMENTS
Art.8 Enrollment and Attendance Certificates
Enrollment certificates are issued upon the students’ request by the Office of Didactic Affairs only to those applicants who are up-to-date with the payment of the registration fee.

Art.9 Foreign students’ documentation
In order to attend Polimoda, foreign students must comply with the provisions of Italian immigration laws.
During the orientation meeting to our courses, foreign students will be required to submit to the Office of Didactic Affairs a copy of the following documents:
- EU STUDENTS
- a copy of the official permit to stay (permesso di soggiorno) issued by the Questura of the Italian Police
- NON EU STUDENTS
1) a copy of the entry VISA to Italy issued by the Italian Embassy in their country of origin
2) a copy of the certificate of attendance issued by Polimoda upon registration and duly stamped by the Italian Embassy of the country of origin upon the issuence of said visa
3) a copy of the official permit to stay (permesso di soggiorno) issued by the Questura of the Italian Police.
Upon expiration of the validity of these documents, students are responsible for requesting from the Office of Didactic Affairs the documentation to be submitted to the Questura for their renewal.

Students who, at the time of the admission test, are already in Italy with a visa issued for attendance to courses and schools different from Polimoda, must obtain a new visa for studying purposes based on the official letter of admission issued by Polimoda.

Art. 10 On-line services
All students can take advantage of our portal at the following address: www.polimodaservizi.com.  The username and password necessary to access this portal can be obtained from our Front Desk Office.
At press time, the following services are available:
- Personal Profile access
Students are responsible for keeping this section up-to-date as to their address, residence, telephone numbers and e-mail address.
- Electronic Bulletin Board
All messages and communications addressed to the students are exclusively posted on the electronic bulletin board  which must be regularly checked..
- Academic Certificates
All students can verify their academic standing by checking their academic certificates indicating the courses they have attended and the grades they have obtained. Students are recommended to contact immediately the Office of Didactic Affairs should they find any discrepancies between what appears on the academic certificates and what they have in their possession. The Office of Didactic Affairs upon the students’ request issues a printout of academic certificates and it constitutes an official document.
- Courses’ and teachers’ timetables
- Academic calendar

SECTION III Absences and Tardiness
Art. 11 – Mandatory Attendance
Polimoda courses require mandatory and full time attendance; therefore absences cannot constitute more than 20% of the total number of hours specified in the coursework for each subject.
Should this 20% be exceeded, the teacher may lower the students’ grade or, upon the Head of Department’s approval, defer the matter to the Didactic Commission, which will decide whether or not to take disciplinary action, which may include expulsion.
Absences due to illness must be justified directly to the teacher with a medical certificate.
Should the student be absent for any length of time due to special projects, military service, interviews for internships, hospital stays etc., he or she must fill out form M02R7-5-7 “Deferral of Attendance Form” which must be signed by the Head of Department.
Students who are absent for more than three weeks without a formal communication (letter, fax, e-mail, deferral of attendance form) will receive from the  Didactic Office (by registered mail) a statement of withdrawal from courses  that must be signed and sent back.  If such statement is not received within 30 days, the student will be considered withdrawn in all respects.
In case of foreign students the withdrawal will be communicated to the Embassy that issued the Visa for attendance to Polimoda courses.

Art. 12 – Midterm notices/warnings
Halfway through the semester, teachers are required to inform their Heads of Department about the names of students who have attended irregularly or are not working proficiently.
In particularly serious cases the Head of Department will send the student an academic warning which may be followed, if no improvement is shown, by disciplinary action.

Art. 13 – Tardiness
Students are required to be on time and follow the lessons until dismissal.
Tardiness is marked with an R on the register; three Rs correspond to one absence.
As it is not possible to determine general criteria for tardy students, at the beginning of the year teachers will inform their classes about how late they will be accepted to lessons. Time may vary between 5 and 15 minutes according to the length and type of class and it will be agreed upon with the Head of Department.

Art. 14 – Early Departure
Early departures from lessons are allowed only on special circumstances and upon submission of written documentation.

SECTION IV EVALUATION CRITERIA
Art. 15 – Criteria and Grades
At the end of each semester, students will take a final test for all their classes.  The final grade will be calculated on the 30 point system.
Art. 16 – Student Record Book
A student record book is issued to all enrolled students  to attest the progress of their studies.
The student record book is an official I.D. document within Polimoda. Students must keep it in good condition and show it to teachers or other personnel in order to access various services.  A bar code will be affixed on it the first time a student uses the library services and it will be requested for any further consultation and loan from the library.  The student record book can also be used to get discounts in shops which have an agreement with Polimoda.
First year students will receive their student record book on orientation day (with the exception of those who are behind in their payments or have not yet submitted all the required documents). Students must sign their student record book on this day.
In order to have full validity, the student record book must be officially stamped at the beginning of each semester by the Office of Didactic Affairs upon regular payment of the tuition.
The Office of Didactic Affairs must be immediately notified with a written statement upon a loss of the student record book.  A new student record book will be issued upon presentation of a new passport size photo and a payment of a 10 euro fee to the Accounting Office.
Any alteration, erasure or cancellation not authorized by the Office of Didactic Affairs will invalidate the current student record book.
In case of disagreement or objections concerning the information reported in the student record book about dates or scores, only the official documentation issued by Polimoda will bear witness.

Art. 17 – Recording of grades on the student record book
Grades are registered in the student record book at the end of each semester on the date indicated by the teacher.
Should a student, due to illness or other justifiable personal reason, miss the final exam, he/she must take it within the first two weeks of the next semester after reaching an agreement with the teacher about the date.
Should a student, due to illness or other justifiable personal reason, be absent on the day of recording of grades, he/she will agree with the teacher about the place and date for doing so.
In order to be admitted to the next semester, students must have a pass grade in all subjects included in their course work.
Only exceptional cases in which the grade was not made up within the official time limits
will be taken into consideration by the Didactic Commission.

Art. 18 – “F” Failure (Insufficiente)
A grade “F” will be given to students who show a completely unsatisfactory level of achievement. Such grade will not be recorded in the student record book, but the student will have to take the same exam again after agreeing with his/her teacher or Head of Department about the arrangements.  Once made up, the grade will be recorded in the student record book.
The Office of Didactic Affairs is in charge of updating grade records for academic certification. 
In order to be admitted to the next semester, students must have a grade in all subjects taken the previous semester.

Art. 19 – Internships
Please refer to the “Internship Regulations”. According to Italian laws, the period of internship required by Polimoda curriculum, cannot be done by non EU students.

Art. 20 – Final Diploma
In order to receive their final Polimoda Diploma at the end of the course of their studies, students must have received at least a pass grade in all their subjects, must have completed a period of internship (see art.19 for exemptions) and must have handed in by the set date their final dissertation if required. Students who have not paid their tuition in full will not be awarded a diploma.
Art. 21 – Certificate of attendance (for Orientation and Foundation courses)
A certificate of attendance will be issued only for the regularly attended subjects where the student has received a pass grade. Students who have not paid the tuition in full cannot receive the certificate of attendance.

Art. 22 – Teachers’ Evaluation
Before the end of each semester, students are required to evaluate their professors.  The evaluation is anonymous

SECTION V SPECIAL REQUESTS ON COURSE WORK
Art. 23 – Request of Exemption
At the beginning of a semester, students can apply to obtain an exemption for subjects they have already studied or in which they are perfectly proficient (e.g. English native speakers) by filling out form M01R7-5-7 (“Request for Curriculum Variation”) signed for approval by the Head of Department.  The filled out form must be handed in to the Office of Didactic Affairs.
Students will not be reimbursed for classes they have been exempted from. Students will only be able to receive certification bearing information communicated to the school in the above-mentioned way.

Art. 24 Request of Attendance to Extra-Curricular Courses
Students who have been exempted from a course (with the exception of ENGLISH LANGUAGE) can apply to substitute it with another one that is not part of his/her course of studies by filling out form M01R7-5-7 (“Request for Curriculum Variation”). This request must be approved the Head of Department and handed in to the Office of Didactic Affairs
Students will only be able to receive certification bearing information communicated to the school in the above-mentioned way.

Art. 25 Suspension of Attendance
Should students wish to discontinue or defer their attendance of a course, the Office of Didactic Affairs must be immediately be notified in writing with the appropriate ISO form which can be handed in directly (and the office will issue a regular receipt) or sent by A/R mail (in which case the post mark can no longer than the due date).
Students who neglect to follow this procedure will be considered as attending lessons regularly.
In case of non EU students the suspension of attendance will be communicated to the Italian Embassy that issued the visa for attendance to Polimoda’s courses.

SECTION VI PAYMENT OF TUITION FEES
Art. 26 – Terms and methods of payment

Methods:
Payments can be made in the following ways:

1. by cash or bank check directly at our Accounting Office;
2. by money transfer to Polimoda’s account number at the bank “Cassa di Risparmio di Firenze”, Sede, Via Bufalini (IBAN code IT92R0616002800000082838C00). Please specify the student’s name and surname in the transfer document.

Deadlines:
The payment of the enrollment fee and of the first installment, corresponding to 50% of the overall amount due, must be made according to the deadlines specified in the letter of admission.
The following payments are to be made according to the following deadlines:

31st August
31st December
of every year
There will be a 5% yearly surcharge on late payments starting from the deadline till the completion of the payment.

Art. 27 Terms of withdrawal (students who wish to withdraw from classes must inform Polimoda by letter whose due date is based on the postmark or fax whose due date is based on the date sent).

1) courses lasting one or more years and Master:
-    15 or more days before the beginning of the semester:
full reimbursement except for 300 euros as processing and enrolment fee; absolutely non reimbursable.
-    from the 14th to the 1st day before the beginning of the semester:
reimbursement of 75% of-the first semester tuition except for the 300 euros as processing and enrolment fee;
-    from the 1st day of the beginning of the semester:
 no reimbursement

2) Summer Courses and Short Courses (up to 240 hours of lesson):
-  ten days or more before the beginning of classes:
full reimbursement of the fee except for 300 euros as processing and enrolment fee; absolutely non reimbursable.
- between the 9th and 5th day before the beginning of the semester:
 reimbursement of 50% of tuition except for 300 euros as above;
-  less than five days before the beginning of the semester:
payment of the full fee

SECTION VII MISCELLANEOUS
Art. 28 – Behavior
Professors and students must leave the classrooms as tidy as they found them and must use them appropriately (no eating, drinking, damaging of furniture, etc.)
During lessons cellular phones must be switched off or in the silent mode. No telephones conversations are allowed during classes.
Smoking is strictly forbidden in all the buildings.

Art. 29 – Photocopies
Students can make photocopies for a fee with the machines that can be found at the Villa, the Scuderie and Baldovinetti.  Please remember that by law you are allowed to photocopy no more than 15% of the pages of a textbook.
Photocopies of lesson material requested by the professors must be collected by the professors or the Head of class, who will be in charge of distributing them among the students. Front office staff is not authorized to either give them to any other student or make extra copies to replace lost ones.