History
In 2015, Architect Mario Cucinella founded SOS School of Sustainability to welcome young professionals into an academic context connected to the professional world, with the aim of bringing practice and theory together to reinvent the figures of architects and designers to tackle the environmental issues of the future giving birth to a unique and higlhy professionalizing experience for students.
Education
The SOS School of Sustainability offers a First Level Master’s Degree (60 CFU/ETS) in Sustainable Architecture and Design that seeks to reinvent the professional figures of architects and designers by bringing together the competencies that Mario Cucinella Architects has acquired over thirty years of professional practice in the global context. The program’s structure combines online instruction with hands-on project work at the SOS campus in Milan. The Master’s Program gives our students the flexibility to manage the workload with the comfort of remote learning while still getting the crucial practical experience and opportunity to work directly with SOS faculty members and trusted institutional partners.
Research
Through it's practical hands on approach, SOS serves an international platform of research and development with its roots grounded in the “design philosophy” of Mario Cucinella Architects (MCA), designing with the impact of our actions in mind, while never restricting the freedom of thought that allows for creative experimentation. This research path is at the basis of the SOS Curriculum that features applied research of materials, processes, and advanced technology to keep up with the changing shape of practice with the awareness of the concept of real sustainability. The research principles learned through the more theoretical part of the program are put into practice through 4 months of active projects.
Career
SOS School of Sustainability provides the skills students need to succeed in their careers as experts in sustainabily.
The 4 months of active project work within the top ranked MCA firm alongisde institutional partners such as BMW Group, ARUP, Artemide, Unipol, Manni Group, Salvatore Ferragamo, IRIS Ceramica, Saib Spa and many others offer our students invaluable networking possibilities. Other activities include site visits, study trips, regular client and community meetings, and public presentations to assist SOS students in identifying rewarding professional careers.Thanks to these activities that facilitate placement, 84% of SOS students are hired by international firms, within two months of graduation.
Distance Learning Courses
Arts, Design & Architecture (1)
Environmental Studies & Earth Sciences (1)
Student services
The Student Office, located on the ground floor of the campus, is open daily from 9:00 to 18:00 and the SOS staff is committed to facilitating students' journey throughout the entire program, supporting incoming students with matters concerning their stay in Milan and administrative and academic needs.
Housing services
Although SOS School of Sustainability does not have accommodation facilities, it offers support in evaluating accommodation opportunities and is constantly working to develop partnerships with housing search platforms and residence halls to help students in their search before their arrival in Milan.
Library services
The SOS campus has a dedicated space within the Mario Cucinella Architects (MCA) firm for classes, group work and individual study. This gives students access to a vast amount of equipment and didactic material (publications, journals, books).
Being in the same building as MCA, students can also have the opportunity to be in touch with professionals from the studio for mentoring and counseling.
ICT services
The Foundations Courses are carried out using the Uninettuno e-learning platform and the latest digital tools of Parametric & Computational Design and Environmental Design. Students are required to have access to their own personal computers to participate in the online lessons as well as for the project work phase on campus at the SOS and MCA headquarters.
Campus life
SOS School of Sustainability headquarters are located in Via Poma 52 in Milan.
The 1000 sqm structure is also home to Mario Cucinella Architects (MCA), in order to allow for the continuation of the crucial collaboration on the research and development of sustainable design between the School and the Firm. All floors are connected through wide galleries and a central opening spans all the way up to the dominant skylight, at the center of the rooftop terrace.
The School is in the Risorgimento neighborhood, on the East side of Milan, the historical and contemporary heart and soul of the city, a symbol of Made in Italy design. This area is conveniently connected to Milan’s efficient public transportation.
SOS offers a First Level Professional Master’s Degree (60 CFU/ETS) to all students who complete the course. The program is accessible to recent graduates and young working professionals through an innovative blended format, made possible by the partnership with Uninettuno International University. Following the Uninettuno e-learning model, the program’s structure combines online instruction (video lessons, sharing of didactic material, live virtual classrooms, tutorials, and discussion forums), with hands-on project work at the SOS campus in Milan (within the MCA Mario Cucinella Architects Firm).
