The Region of Tuscany supports the right to university education through DSU Toscana, which provides services and measures to support university students in accordance with Articles 3 and 34 of the Italian Constitution.
These articles state that “school is open to all”, “capable and deserving students, even if lacking financial means, have the right to attain the highest levels of education” and that it is the duty of the Republic “to remove economic and social obstacles that, by limiting the freedom and equality of citizens, prevent the full development of the human person”. DSU provides services for all students, including catering, guidance and activities, assistance in searching for accommodation, and concessions for cultural and sporting events.
It also offers benefits to capable and deserving students with limited financial means, such as scholarships and accommodation in university residences, as well as other types of financial contributions for initiatives such as international mobility, culture and the arts and other projects.
DSU Toscana provides various forms of financial support to deserving university students in disadvantaged economic conditions, either on request or through competition. The main form of support is the scholarship, which helps to cover the costs students face in obtaining their academic qualification, although additional forms of financial support exist.
Calls for applications are published annually.
As an example, 14,622 scholarships were awarded in the 2018–19 academic year, confirming a record for Tuscany: all students who were eligible according to income and merit requirements received a scholarship, with no waiting list. Specifically, 5,300 scholarships at the University of Florence, 5,845 at the University of Pisa, and 3,477 at the University of Siena.
In terms of student accommodation, there were 4,706 beds available in university residences as of December 31 2018: 1,692 in Florence, 1,578 in Pisa, and 1,436 in Siena. In 2019, an additional 60 beds were added in Pisa through an agreement. Numbers were set to increase further in 2020, with 120 more beds in Florence (Viale Morgagni) and an additional 240 beds in Pisa in 2021 (San Cataldo residence).
These are significant figures, complemented by between 1,200 and 1,500 annual rent-support contributions and over 3.751 million meals served by canteens the previous year. Total expenditure in 2018 for scholarships and other student contributions exceeded 46 million euros.