Frequently Asked Questions

Registration is only possible using the on-line registration form and is conditional until you have paid by online payment or bank transfer (within 30 days of the reception of the invoice).

If you pay with online payment, you will be registered as soon as you receive the payment confirmation.

If you applied for the reduced (student) fee, a recommendation letter/copy of an official document stating your student status is required to make your registration final.

Registration deadline: 17th of July 2026.

Registration will formally close on the 17th of July. However, late registrations can be accepted if workshops are not fully booked. Please get in touch if you would like to join us!

Please note, however, that most courses fill up quickly and will have a waiting list; and if the waiting list gets too long, registration will be closed for that workshop. (Check the “Status” column on the workshop list).

No, you can also choose to attend only one week (or only the Preliminary Workshop).

However, it is not possible to register for two Workshops in the same week.

The Summer School cannot grant credits. We only deliver a Certificate of Participation, i.e. we certify your attendance.

If you consider using Summer School workshops to obtain credits (ECTS), you will have to investigate at your home institution (contact the person/institute responsible for your degree) to find out whether they recognise the Summer School, how many credits can be earned from a workshop/course with roughly 35 hours of teaching, no graded work, and no exams.

Make sure to investigate this matter before registering if this is important to you.

Although the courses have been mostly conceived to answer the needs of postgraduate students, doctoral students and researchers who need to learn research methods for their research projects, there a no formal requirements: anyone who is motivated can apply. Note that many workshops have some prerequisites.

You can apply for the reduced fee if you are student (any level: bachelor, master, PhD, post-doctoral).

You need to send proof of your student status, copy of a (valid) student id, letter of recommendation from your supervisor, or any document that shows that you are currently a student.

No, the Summer School is financed exclusively by participants' fees and has no resources of its own.

USI will send you only a confirmation e-mail when payment has arrived. If you need a formal receipt, please write to us. 

Please note that if you paid online with credit card, we can only send you a formal payment receipt, we cannot issue an invoice. 

If you pay with on-line payment, the payment confirmation will be automatically sent.

If you choose to pay by bank transfer, we will send out an invoice by 10 working days after registration.

You will receive a confirmation e-mail once we have received your payment.

If you did not receive your invoice three weeks after registration, probably something went wrong (on-line registration problem, e-mail problems, etc) and you should contact us.

Technical problems, like our server not working (problems, maintenance periods), disturbances on the Internet or in your local network, happen. Waiting some time usually makes the problem go away.

If you experience other internet related problems (web browsing, e-mail) the problem might be local or even specific to your computer. If nothing helps, drop us a note.

Unless you have already received your invoice, we will only take into account the last form you have sent. In our experience, a number of registrants change their mind or need to make corrections soon after they registered.

However, if you wish to make corrections, etc., weeks later, please do not use on-line registration again but send us an e-mail.

If you would like to change your workshop selection, add a workshop or cancel one of the workshops, please do not use the online application form a second time. Send an email to [email protected] and explain what you would like to change.

Normally, other than the invoice and a confirmation of the reception of your payment, you will receive our Handbook via e-mail a couple of weeks before your workshop starts and our Newsletter.

All information regarding the Summer School can be found on this website.

Subscribe to the mailing list in order to have more information about the workshops.

When a workshop you have selected is full, you will be placed on the waiting list: you'll have the possibility to officially register to the workshop if a place becomes free.

When a place becomes free, we will send you an e-mail message to ask whether you would like to attend. If you agree, we will send an invoice. Your place will be confirmed upon payment.

You will then receive an invoice only for the workshop you have been accepted for. You have to pay within three weeks (or less when you register close to the Summer School) to make the registration final.

You cannot wait to find out whether a place becomes available for the full workshop. We will issue a second invoice if you becomes entitled to attend this workshop. 

During the first period (the first six to twelve weeks after registration opens, i.e. February to April/May, later for less popular workshops) up to 25% of the registrants cancel or are removed, for different reasons.

• If you register early and are placed on a waiting list, chances are quite good for you to attend.
• If you are still on the waiting list after late April/early May, chances to attend are decreasing.

A late cancellation implies that the workshop fees are not reimbursed, fully or partially

You will receive a Certificate of Participation if you attend all five days of the workshop. Absences (half-day increments) will be noted on the Certificate.

We do not deliver a certificate to a participant who has attended less than three full days or who has not submitted the final assignment (if requested by the instructor).

Yes. The workshops are very intensive, both the more formal presentations (50% of the time) and the practical work on assignments and project work (50% of the time).

Many workshops will have an important group-project component and these projects are defined at the beginning and presented on the last day.

Check the section on prerequisites and readings in the workshop description. Consider carefully how the skills and knowledge you will acquire fit into your projects. Depending on the topic and didactic options, some workshop instructors encourage you to present your own data or problems, but – to avoid disappointment – do not expect, time being short, that all your problems will be solved. Again, carefully read the workshop description to understand what to expect.

Yes, the laptop is required. We will provide you with the requested software used in the workshop.

No, food is not provided. There is a student restaurant in the Main Building (West Campus), as well as various vending machines (drinks, snacks). There are various takeaway providers opposite the campus, and several restaurants in close proximity to the University.