The Best Universities for Business & Management in Italy (2026)

Italy offers Masters programmes in business and management covering areas such as strategy, finance, marketing, and entrepreneurship. Universities provide academic teaching alongside opportunities for practical experience and industry engagement. Comparing universities and seeing where they rank can help you decide which programme might suit your goals best.

I’ve put together this guide to help you navigate the different business and management programmes in Italy. We’ll look at how universities rank in 2026 and give you a clearer picture if a Masters in Business or Management is right for you.

There are many reasons why someone might want to study Business & Management at a university in Italy. Here are just a few:

• By studying a Masters Degree in Business and Management in Italy, you get first-hand exposure to international business strategies and management styles. This gives you a broader perspective on how companies function across different cultures.
• Various programmes at Italian universities offer opportunities to interact with business gurus, corporate speakers, successful entrepreneurs etc. These networking sessions can be extremely beneficial for building future professional relationships.
• Italy is renowned for its high standard of education. Top-ranked universities such as Bocconi University and University of Milan offer excellent curricula that are designed keeping current industry trends in mind.
• Alongside the academic benefits of studying in Italy, it provides a culturally rich environment that enhances your overall learning experience within an international setting, enhancing your capability to work globally afterwards.

The following tables give the 10 best Italian universities for Business & Management, according to global and local university rankings. It can show you which Italian universities are amongst the best in the world and help you compare institutions on an international level.

This information is based on the latest rankings tables, researched and published by Times Higher Education, QS and Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU).

Each ranking system uses its own methodology, with different factors having more or less influence on a university's result.

For more information on using international rankings as a postgraduate, see our guide.

The Times Higher Education rankings are strong in academic focus and diverse teaching metrics, but do not include employer-specific metrics. Additionally, the rankings may not include all specialist institutions.

The QS World University Rankings are designed to meet the needs of prospective students, with more weight given to student-centric metrics such as staff/student ratio, international recruitment and employer opinion. The rankings are balanced between qualitative and quantitative data, but give less weight to research than some other rankings.

The ARWU rankings reflect the presence of elite academics and the future academic success of graduates. However, they do not directly assess the quality of education at a university or take into account other aspects of university performance.

Tips from the Author

Before you continue the hunt, I’ve picked out a few tips to help you decide which course and university might be the best fit.  The highest ranking doesn’t always mean the right choice for you and so lets just make sure you have checked out a few things:

• Check the course focus: Some universities specialise in entrepreneurship or international business, others in finance or marketing. Make sure the programme matches your career goals.

• Look at practical opportunities: Internships, workshops and projects with local companies can be just as valuable as classroom teaching.

• Consider location and lifestyle: Italian cities vary widely in culture, cost of living and pace of life. Pick a place where you will enjoy both studying and living.

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