The third mission

The term Third Mission refers to the set of activities of scientific, technological and cultural transfer and productive transformation of knowledge, through processes of direct interaction of the University with civil society and the business fabric, with the aim of promoting the economic and social growth of the territory, so that knowledge becomes instrumental in obtaining benefits of a social, cultural and economic nature.

The Third Mission, as defined by ANVUR, is in all respects an institutional mission of universities, alongside the traditional missions of teaching and research. It is recognized as such by Legislative Decree 19/2012, which defines the principles of the “Self-evaluation, Periodic Evaluation and Accreditation” (AVA) system, and by the subsequent Ministerial Decree 47/2013, which identifies the indicators and parameters of periodic evaluation together with those of research.

Its potential is directed towards two main axes:

mission of economic valorisation of knowledge, through the transformation of the knowledge produced by research into knowledge useful for productive purposes (the management of intellectual property, the creation of businesses, third-party research and research-industry relations, and the management of intermediation and support structures, generally on a territorial scale);
cultural and social mission, through the production of public goods that increase the well-being of society, in the educational field (adult education, life-long learning, continuous training), cultural field (events and cultural assets, management of museum centers, archaeological excavations, scientific dissemination), social field (public health, activities for the benefit of the community, technical/professional consultancy provided in teams), civil awareness field (public debates and controversies, scientific expertise).
It is therefore a question of valorising, in the application, the products of teaching and research, encouraging comparison, exchange and mutual development between the University and the stakeholders, in relation to the territory and the social contexts of reference, to build a knowledge society.