From the 22nd to the 26th of June, Off Campus Provvisorio hosted the first edition of the Industrial Engineering Summer School @OFF CAMPUS, a free initiative developed through the collaboration of the four Departments within the Industrial Engineering area at Politecnico di Milano: the Department of Mechanical Engineering, the Department of Aerospace Science and Technology, the Department of Chemistry, Materials and Chemical Engineering “Giulio Natta”, and the Department of Energy.
The Summer School stems from the collaboration between the Industrial Engineering area and the Off Campus programme, with the aim of bringing teaching, academic orientation and science outreach activities closer to the communities where the Off Campus programme operates. Through a course jointly designed and delivered by the four Departments, high school students had the opportunity to experience university life first-hand, engage with faculty members and researchers, and discover some of the key disciplines within industrial engineering.
Throughout the week, lectures and hands-on activities introduced participants to topics including energy and the energy transition, mechanics of machinery, aerodynamics, sports engineering, chemistry, advanced materials, nanotechnology and aerospace engineering. Each module was designed to highlight the close relationship between research, innovation and real-world applications.
The final day took place at the Leonardo and Bovisa campuses of Politecnico di Milano, where students visited research facilities including the wind tunnel, the driving simulator and laboratories dedicated to materials and energy, gaining first-hand experience of environments normally reserved for research and higher education activities.
Hosted at Off Campus Provvisorio, in collaboration with the site's Scientific Coordinator, Davide Fassi, the Summer School is a tangible example of the Off Campus programme's mission: building stronger connections between the University and local communities by creating more accessible opportunities for learning, academic orientation and personal growth.
The enthusiasm and active participation shown by the students throughout the week confirmed the value of this experience, marking an important step in strengthening the collaboration between the Industrial Engineering area and the Off Campus programme. The initiative lays the groundwork for future joint activities that will continue to connect the University with local communities while expanding opportunities for academic orientation and science outreach for younger generations.