Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano

The "Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano" is not to be confused with the Università degli Studi di Milano, which is one of the most important accredited Italian universities, or with the "Università Popolare di Milano" (without "degli Studi") — a historical folk high school established in Milan in 1901, which is no longer active. In both cases, the name differs by just one word. Besides, the organization sometimes uses the name "Università Popolare di Milano", identical to the latter.

Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano was created in 2006[1] by Marco Grappeggia,[2][3] also known as Marco Edgardo Grappeggia. The organization has no campus or staff, and issues Bachelor's degrees, Master's degrees and even PhDs, based on life experiences. Not being accredited by the Italian Ministry of Education, it is not on the official list of accredited Italian universities.[4]

The issued degrees are orthomolecular and naturopathic medicine, holistic science, political science, sociology, psychology, criminology and criminal investigation, cultural property, international law, sports science, communication science, economics, marketing and finance, environmental engineering and civil engineering, management engineering, fashion and luxury goods.[5][6]

Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano also claims, under the false name of Università Popolare di Milano, to have a journalism school in New York, though it is unclear where it is precisely located.[7]

Moreover, Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano says that former president of the European Commission and former Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi received a degree from Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano, represented by Marco Grappeggia, in Vatican City.[8] The date of the alleged commencement is undisclosed. However, Prodi doesn't mention Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano in his official biography,[9] and the video is blurred, which makes it difficult to tell if the person is Prodi or someone else.

According to the "disclamer" [sic] in its website and the attached papers,[10] the Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano claims to be an "international university" governed by international law but not Italian law; it could therefore issue degrees in Italy, valid in Italy, without having Italian accreditation. The "disclamer" explains that its degrees are valid because Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano is affiliated with the University of United Popular Nations (UUPN), a limited liability company[11] created by Grappeggia and his wife in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso in 2012 and allegedly operating in the Ivory Coast as well. UUPN used to have two websites, www.uupn-edu.net and www.uupn.org, which are both inactive and seem to be superseded by www.uupn-edubf.org (in French) and www.unidep-edu.org (in Italian). The "disclamer" also explains that the African alleged university/corporation can issue degrees in the EU pursuant to the Lisbon Recognition Convention – although neither Burkina Faso nor the Ivory Coast belongs to the group of countries that ratified the Lisbon Convention.[12]

In 2011, an Italian former politician, Sen. Guido Viceconte, stated that the degrees issued by the Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano must be recognized in Italy (and the EU); as a consequence, Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano gained popularity after operating under the radar for several years.[2]

Since 2012, Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano has received several cease-and-desist orders from the Italian Ministry of Education,[3][2] and has been convicted by a final judgment,[3] but most of its websites still advertise the services and the degrees, which are chiefly sold online.[3][2]

In 2016, the Italian Competition Authority sentenced Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano for false advertising on the web.[3][13][14] The Italian Ministry of Education sent cease and desist letters in 2014 and 2016; in retaliation, Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano sued the Ministry of Education and the CIMEA (Information Centre on Academic Mobility and Equivalence), claiming they were "slanderers".[15] In January 2020, the Ministry of Education, together with the Council of agricultural technicians at the Italian Ministry of Justice, issued an official statement saying the Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano's degrees are invalid in Italy (nota MIUR 13 January 2020, prot. n. 646) and the organization is not allowed to offer degrees.[16]

Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano has often changed its address and/or website. Among the various addresses, we find Viale Tunisia 43 20124 Milano, Via Luigi Settembrini 33 20124 Milano (which is also Grappeggia's house[17]), Corso Buenos Aires 65 20124 Milano, Via Terraggio 1 20123 Milano, Via G. Murat 17 20159 Milano, Via Luciano Manara 5 20122 Milano, Via Quinto Aurelio Simmaco 7 00122 Ostia (Rome). Among the various websites, we find www.unimilano.org, www.unipmi.org, www.unimilano.net, www.universita-popolare.it (currently inactive), www.unipopmi.it, www.iscrizioneuniversitaria.eu, www.universitapopolaremilano.online, www.laureainternazionale.eu, www.universitatelematica.info, www.sdlcorporateuniversity.it (currently inactive), www.unipmi.it (currently inactive), www.unidep-edu.org/international, www.unised.it (resells Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano's criminology degrees[18]), www.isf.college (resells Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano's criminology degrees,[18] same address as unised.it).

The president of the institution, Marco Grappeggia, is also founder and president of the Yorker International University,[2] which is supposed to be based in South Dakota, New York City, Florida and Argentina, but actually operates in Milan, Italy, using the same address[19] as the Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano and even the same email address (newyorker@tiscali.it). The Oregon Office of Degree Authorization and the New York State Education Department made it known that Yorker International University was never accredited.[20] However, Yorker International University used to issue degrees in Italy through Paulo Freire University, a private university located in Nicaragua that was going to be accredited in 2002. Since the Nicaraguan university had (and still has) no authorization to issue degrees in Italy, those degrees are invalid.[21]

According to the Italian Chamber of Deputies, the first rector Giuseppe Catapano has been arrested for fraud and conspiracy.[22]

The founder, current president/director, and former rector Marco Grappeggia (also known as Marco Edgardo Grappeggia) claims to hold a PhD from Columbia Business School in New York City[23][24][25] although Columbia University stated he never graduated or received a certificate;[26] he uses the Italian title of "prof."[23][27] even though he is not a professor[28] according to the Italian Ministry of Education, and claims to be a member of the American Psychological Association,[23][24] the American Marketing Association,[23][24] and the Government Accreditation Association of Delaware, an accreditation mill.[23] He also claims to have received awards and/or commendations from Jimmy Carter, George W. Bush, Daniel Ortega and US military veterans.[23][24]

• Educational accreditation
• List of unaccredited institutions of higher learning
• List of universities in Italy

• Official website
• Commencement at Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano on YouTube (in Italian)