How Buket Gürbüz, a Turkish Scholar, Secured a Fully Funded Master’s at Politecnico di Milano Through the Invest Your Talent in Italy Scholarship

I am Buket Gürbüz, and I am from İzmir, Türkiye. I recently graduated from the master’s program in Building and Architectural Engineering (recently renamed Building Engineering for Sustainability) at Politecnico di Milano in Italy. I earned my bachelor’s degree in Architecture from Bilkent University in Ankara, Türkiye, with high honours.

After completing my undergraduate studies, I decided to pursue a master's degree abroad. With a background in architecture, I aimed to deepen my knowledge of the technical side, so I chose the Building Engineering specialization track. The program’s focus on sustainability and energy efficiency in the built environment specifically attracted me to choose this master's degree.

Invest Your Talent in Italy Scholarship Details

I was awarded the Invest Your Talent in Italy (IYT) scholarship, issued by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. This program is a merit-based scholarship that aims to attract international talent to Italy.

It covers the full university tuition fee and provides a monthly stipend to cover living expenses for a 9-month period. It is also possible to renew your scholarship for the second year. In that case, the requirements are to achieve at least 30 credits and attend the Italian language course offered by your university. Additionally, the renewal of the scholarship requires you to complete an internship in an Italian company by the end of the second year of your studies. When these obligations are fulfilled, you can receive your scholarship for the full 2 years.

I submitted my application with these required documents:

• An ID document
• CV
• Diploma and transcript of records
• Language certificate
• A motivational video

Since I applied a few years ago, I advise checking the official website to keep up with the up-to-date requirements. You can find all the relevant information on this website:

Invest Your Talent in Italy Official Application Website

Other Offered Scholarships

I was awarded partial fee waivers from some other universities I applied to across Italy and Europe.

Educational Background

I studied Architecture at Bilkent University, one of the well-known universities in Türkiye. It is a private university, and thanks to the university’s “Comprehensive Scholarship” (which included a full tuition fee waiver + monthly stipend), I was able to complete my undergraduate education there.

During my 3rd year, I had the opportunity to participate in the Erasmus+ mobility program to spend one semester abroad. I was admitted to Politecnico di Bari in Italy. This experience constituted my first exposure to an international environment. After that, I knew that I wanted to build more experience abroad to deepen my professional competencies with broader perspectives.

One year later, I successfully completed my bachelor's degree as a high honours student and earned my architecture degree, ready to search for further opportunities abroad.

How Did You Prepare to Apply for Politecnico di Milano?

How Did You Find Information About the Invest Your Talent in Italy Scholarship and Politecnico di Milano?

I applied to a variety of universities across Italy and Europe and was accepted to several of them. Although I was awarded partial fee waivers from some, Italy stood out for providing scholarships to cover living expenses. Affordability was just as important to me as academic excellence, so I aimed to find the optimum option that would satisfy both. Therefore, Politecnico di Milano was the best option for me. It is an internationally well-ranked university with a high level of educational quality.

However, reaching this decision took a vast amount of time searching for universities and scholarships. The most important source in this search is definitely the official websites of the universities. I suggest that everyone carefully read all the information and instructions on these websites.

Did You Take Any Standardized Tests? If So, How Did You Prepare for Them?

As my program at POLIMI was entirely in English, I submitted my IELTS score. It was not a difficult process for me because my bachelor's degree was also taught entirely in English. However, it can be more challenging for some students, so it would be wise to allocate some time to prepare for these tests, as almost every university asks for a language certificate for the program's language of instruction.

How Did You Prepare to Apply for the Invest Your Talent in Italy Scholarship?

The IYT scholarship is merit-based, so, above all, having a strong academic record is definitely important.

Apart from that, the application process for the IYT scholarship requires more or less the same documents as university program applications. You need to make sure you have all those documents ready before you apply.

The most unique difference is the motivation video. It is a maximum 1-minute video where you introduce yourself and your motivations. Since it is quite short, it is crucial to express yourself, your background, your competencies, and your motivations clearly.

How Was Your Experience at Politecnico di Milano?

POLIMI is a highly respected and competitive institution. The quality of the education is quite high, which you can see while studying there. I gained a lot of new knowledge and competencies. One thing to note is that the courses often involve intense theoretical knowledge alongside practical hands-on projects, which require intensive study efforts.

Are Your Classes Conducted in English or Italian?

Politecnico di Milano is a highly international institution and offers many master's degree programs in English alongside those in Italian. My master’s degree program was also entirely in English.

Would Potential Students Have Any Problems Academically Without Knowing Italian?

As I mentioned, POLIMI is a highly international institution, so students would not have any academic problems if they do not know Italian. If the selected program’s language is English, the courses are taught completely in English, and the exams are also conducted in English.

However, apart from the university, I would suggest that any potential student aiming to come to Italy start learning Italian. In daily life, they will need at least a basic level of Italian, as the percentage of English speakers is not very high in Italy in general.

What Advice Would You Give Those Looking to Apply for a Similar Scholarship?

First of all, I would advise them to prioritize their academic performance during their undergraduate studies if they aim to pursue postgraduate studies with a scholarship. Aside from that, specific to the IYT scholarship, I believe the motivation video is an important factor in communicating your motivation to the selection committee.