For the talents of the sea there is the Accademia Marina Mercantile di Genova

Our journey to tell the story of Italy's Its Academies takes us to the Accademia Italiana della Marina Mercantile in Genoa, which was founded in 2005 and became an Its Academy in 2012. This is where excellence is trained in maritime, port, logistics, railways and in the hospitality and on-board service management sectors.

A real 'treat': from the Genoa Academy come deck and engineer officers, who comply with all international regulations and meet the requirements of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport. The Academy has over 40 active courses and hosts more than 800 students.

All Its courses are of two-year or three-year duration, according to specific requirements. They have the characteristic of being designed in synergy with companies: one part of the training activities is carried out in the classroom, the other part in internships at partner companies. The internship is aimed at future employment. In fact, the employment rate is close to 100 per cent. Over the years, the training offer has expanded: today it also includes short courses from 300 to 800 hours and includes continuing education programmes and courses aimed at professional development.

"The maritime sector has changed according to the technological revolution as far as the management and running of vessels is concerned, and it has also changed a great deal as far as the general organisation is concerned," emphasised the historical president of the Merchant Marine Academy of Genoa, Eugenio Massolo. "Let's also say the management of crews and the skills that are required. It has also developed with additional specialised figures on board both in the ship management sector and in the passenger hospitality sector. It is a sector that is evolving rapidly and requires ever-increasing and increasingly differentiated skills. This implies courses that are often differentiated in certain parts and also implies year by year a revision of the programmes to update them according to the new needs and customisation of the companies'.

"The new projects we have in the pipeline," continued Massolo, "are substantially linked to the new headquarters, to the major investment we have made in simulators: 8 million euro in simulation equipment, machinery, and deck. We are going to build a centre in the new Porto Antico premises that will be on a par with the great simulation centres of northern Europe. So we are aiming to be a national and international level naval simulation centre, also looking to the south, let's say, of the Mediterranean'.