The Best Universities for Mathematics in Italy (2026)

Italy offers a wide selection of Mathematics programmes, from pure mathematics and statistics to applied maths and computational modelling. With many universities to choose from, it’s worth knowing which ones offer strong teaching, supportive departments and good academic environments.

In this guide we’ll look at the best places to study Mathematics in Italy. I’ll keep it straightforward so you can stop comparing decimals and start imagining yourself working through theorems perhaps with gelato on your break.

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

• Italian institutions like the University of Pisa and University of Padua have excellent Mathematics courses that offer a comprehensive curriculum with exposure to latest mathematical theories and principles.
• Many Italian universities offer scholarships, which can help mitigate costs for students whilst studying their Mathematics Masters degrees.
• From pure mathematics to applied mathematics, statistics and financial mathematics - Italian Masters programmes offer a multitude of specialisation to match the interests or career goals of students.
• Many graduates from Italian universities find themselves in high demand industries such banking, finance and data science due their strong quantitative analytical skills that have been honed during their course.

The following tables give the 10 best Italian universities for Mathematics, 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

Here are some things to keep in mind:

• Check the course focus – Applied maths, pure maths, or statistics? Make sure it matches your interest.

• Look at research groups – Active research labs and seminars can deepen your learning and give you project options.

• Assess computational resources – Strong computing facilities are key if your maths involves modelling or simulations.

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