Cattolica TIEC: Certifications and School Record

The official Milan TIEC bando provides for a total bonus of up to 6 points for extracurricular certifications. The certifications that earn points are two — and only two: a language certification at B1 or higher (recognised in Annex 1 of the bando) is worth 4 points; an ICDL or EIPASS IT certification is worth 2 points. The school record (maturita grade, GPA) is not itemized in the Milan bando as a quantified score component: the eligibility calculation and ranking placement are based on the test score plus the certifications bonus. The Rome campus and candidates with foreign diplomas follow separate rules.

In this guide:

• The certifications bonus: up to 6 points
• The language certification: 4 points
• The IT certification: 2 points
• Procedure: how to declare them
• The role of the school record
• Special cases: Rome and foreign diplomas
• FAQ

The certifications bonus: up to 6 points

The official Milan TIEC bando states that up to 6 points are awarded for extracurricular certifications. The calculation is simple: a recognised language certification is worth 4 points, an IT certification is worth 2 points, and the two bonuses are cumulative. Candidates who hold both certifications accumulate the maximum of 6 additional points on top of the raw test score.

The raw TIEC score (48 questions, +1.05 per correct answer) has a theoretical maximum of 50.4 points. The certifications bonus is added on top. The overall maximum (perfect test + both certifications) is therefore 56.4 points.

In practical terms, these two certifications are equivalent to about 5-6 additional correct answers on the test (given that each correct answer is worth +1.05). On a test where the eligibility floor is 25 total points and seat reservation is tiered at 25/30/35, the 6 bonus points can shift a candidate up an entire tier in seat reservation.

A B1+ language certification is worth more than a quarter of the eligibility floor. For candidates who already hold a certification, declaring it is a clear net gain. For those who don't, it is worth weighing whether to take a certification exam if the timing allows.

For the full TIEC scoring structure and the three eligibility conditions, see Cattolica TIEC: complete guide.

The language certification: 4 points

The bando assigns 4 points for a language certification at level B1 or higher, issued by one of the bodies recognised in Annex 1 of the official bando. Annex 1 lists specific certifying bodies for English, French, Spanish and German. Accepted levels range from B1 to C2 on the CEFR scale. An A2-level certification does not earn points.

English: recognised bodies

English is the most relevant language for most TIEC candidates. Annex 1 of the bando recognises certifications issued by the following bodies:

• Cambridge English - PET (B1), FCE (B2), CAE (C1), CPE (C2), BEC (B1-C1).
• British Council / IDP - IELTS, IELTS UKVI Academic, IELTS one-skill retake.
• ETS - TOEFL iBT.
• Pearson - PTE Academic.
• Trinity College London - Trinity ISE (levels I-IV, B1 to C2).
• Oxford University Press - Oxford Test of English Advanced.

The accepted range for English is B1 to C2. The most common certifications among Italian candidates are Cambridge B2 First (formerly FCE), C1 Advanced (formerly CAE) and IELTS with equivalent score.

French, Spanish, German

Annex 1 also recognises certifications in other languages. The choice of language is free: there is no requirement to certify English. A DELF, DELE or Goethe-Zertifikat at an adequate level earns the same 4 points.

• French: DELF B1/B2, DALF C1/C2, EsaBac.
• Spanish: DELE issued by the Instituto Cervantes (levels B1-C2).
• German: Goethe-Zertifikat B1/B2/C1/C2, OeSD B1/B2/C1/C2, TestDaF (Stufe 2-5), Telc Deutsch (B1-C2), DSD I (B1), DSD II (B2/C1 depending on score).

The minimum level: B1

The threshold rule: a certification at A2 or below does not earn the 4-point bonus, regardless of which body issued it. A B1 certification from a recognised body earns the full 4 points, exactly the same as a C2 certification. The bando does not scale the bonus by level: the certification value is binary (4 points or 0 points).

The practical implication: if you already hold a B1 certification (for example, a Cambridge PET taken in the second year of high school), it is worth the full 4 points of the bonus. There is no need to wait for a higher level.

What to do without a certification

For candidates preparing for the TIEC who do not yet hold a language certification, there are two options:

Take a certification exam in time for the TIEC registration window. Cambridge, Trinity and IELTS hold regular exam sessions across Italy. The valid document must be uploaded by the test registration deadline (see the "Procedure" section). Typically, 4-8 weeks pass between the exam session and the issue of the official document: plan ahead.

Register for the TIEC without a certification and rely on the test score. Without the language bonus, the 25-point floor is still reachable, but 4 bonus points make a concrete difference in seat reservation. For candidates with strong English but no formal certification, weigh the cost-benefit of a last-minute certification.

The IT certification: 2 points

The bando assigns 2 points for the ICDL (International Certification of Digital Literacy, formerly ECDL) or EIPASS IT certification. These are standardised certifications on basic digital competence and can be obtained during high school.

ICDL and EIPASS are general IT competence certifications: they typically cover modules on word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, IT security, computer fundamentals. They are relatively accessible (in both cost and exam difficulty), and many Italian high-school students obtain them during their three-year upper-secondary cycle.

What level is required

The bando simply lists "ICDL or EIPASS IT certification" without specifying a minimum level or a minimum number of modules. The base (full standard) certification is typically what earns the 2-point bonus. For precise details on the required level, check the current version of the bando when you register.

What does NOT earn the 2 points

Other IT certifications (Microsoft Office Specialist, Adobe Certified, programming certifications, basic cybersecurity certifications) are not listed in the TIEC bando as a source of points. The IT bonus is specific to ICDL and EIPASS.

Candidates with a different IT certification don't lose anything compared to not having one, but they can't declare it for the bonus. The fastest way to earn the 2 points, if you don't already hold ICDL or EIPASS, is to enrol in a standard certification path — usually a few weeks of prep and an exam.

Procedure: how to declare them

Certifications must be self-declared at the time of TIEC registration, and the documents must be uploaded by the session's registration deadline. Invalid or late-uploaded documents result in the points not being awarded — the candidate receives an email notification. Self-declaration without uploading a valid document is not enough.

The certification declaration process follows these phases:

1. TIEC registration. During online registration (on the official Cattolica portal), the candidate indicates the certifications they intend to declare. This is a self-declaration: the candidate states that they hold the document, without uploading it yet.

2. Document upload. By the session's registration deadline, the candidate must upload to the portal the official certification document (original certificate or authenticated digital copy, as required by the current bando). Certifications declared but not documented by the deadline earn no points.

3. Verification and notification. The university verifies the uploaded documents. If a document is not valid (unrecognized body, insufficient level, expired, illegible) the candidate receives an email notification and loses the points for that certification. Verification is at the university's discretion.

Common mistakes to avoid:

• Uploading the course attendance certificate instead of the final certificate.
• Uploading the preliminary version (statement of results) instead of the definitive certificate.
• Uploading the document without the required electronic signature / authentication.
• Uploading an unreadable document (blurry photo, cropped scan).
• Declaring a certification but uploading nothing, assuming the self-declaration is enough.

The certification bonus points are visible on the final test result published on the platform: that's how you verify the university accepted your documents.

The role of the school record

The Milan TIEC bando itemizes in the scoring calculation only the test and the certifications bonus. The maturita grade and GPA are not quantified with an explicit weight in the Milan bando: the eligibility calculation (test score >= 25 + section thresholds) and seat reservation (at 25, 30 and 35 points) are based on the test score plus the certifications bonus. Some programme pages refer qualitatively to the school record, but they do not quantify a specific weight for the Milan campus.

This is a sensitive aspect of the bando that many candidates interpret differently. It is worth being precise about what the bando does and does not say.

What the Milan bando says about the school record. The bando paragraph on scoring and ranking (§3.6) explicitly itemizes:

• The test score (48 questions, +1.05 / 0 / -0.21).
• The certifications bonus (up to 6 points: 4 for the B1+ language certification, 2 for ICDL/EIPASS).

What the Milan bando does NOT quantify as a score component. The bando does not assign in §3.6 a specific number of points for the maturita grade or the GPA. Phrases that generically reference "also considering the school curriculum" may appear on some summary pages of individual programmes, but the Milan bando does not itemize a quantified weight for the curriculum within the TIEC scoring formula. The eligibility calculation and ranking tier placement are based on test score + certifications bonus.

How to act in practice. For the Milan campus, the preparation that maximizes the TIEC score should focus on two levers quantified by the bando:

1. The test score (maximum 50.4 raw points).
2. The certifications (maximum 6 points).

The maturita grade remains important for other reasons (selection at other universities, parallel pathways, course access requirements, etc.), but for the quantified TIEC score in Milan the bando itemizes the test and the certifications as the explicit components.

For candidates coming from non-standard paths (foreign diploma, transfer from another programme, Rome campus), the rules may differ.

Special cases: Rome and foreign diplomas

Two candidate profiles follow different rules from the framework described for the Milan campus: candidates for the Rome programme (Economics and Management of Services) and candidates with foreign diplomas. The Rome campus has a different scoring scale (60-point reference) that, according to the programme admission page, includes "also the school curriculum and extracurricular certifications." Candidates with foreign diplomas follow a separate evaluation process that gives explicit weight to school grades, in particular the Mathematics grade, and accepts SAT or ACT as evidence of math competence.

Rome campus: 60-point scale

The Economics and Management of Services programme in Rome also uses the TIEC, but the admission page indicates a different scoring scale from Milan: the reference is a minimum of 60 points, "calculated also taking into account the school curriculum and extracurricular certifications." The specific details of the Rome formula and the quantitative school-curriculum criteria for the Rome campus require consulting the programme admission page and the official documents.

For candidates undecided between Milan and Rome, it is important to read the two admission pages separately. The Milan campus remains the prevailing case for the majority of candidates aiming at the seven economics-area bachelor programmes of the Milan faculty.

Candidates with foreign diplomas

Candidates with a foreign (non-Italian) high-school diploma follow separate admission criteria indicated on the Cattolica International page. For Economics bachelor programmes in particular:

• "School grades, with particular attention to the Mathematics grade" are evaluated — an explicit assessment of the school record.
• The SAT (with a minimum per-section score of 560) or the ACT (with Composite 23 and Math 23) are accepted as evidence of math competence.

This path is typically relevant for candidates who attended international schools in Italy (IB, A Levels, Abitur) or abroad. For the detail of specific requirements, the source is Cattolica International - Economics admission criteria.

FAQ

How many certifications can I declare? You can declare a language certification at B1+ (+4 points) and an ICDL/EIPASS IT certification (+2 points) at the same time, for a maximum cumulative bonus of 6 points. Declaring two language certifications does not give 8 points: the language bonus is one-off.

Does an A2 English certification earn the 4 points? No. The bando requires level B1 or higher. A2 certifications (Cambridge KET, Trinity ISE Foundation, IELTS with equivalent score) do not earn the 4-point bonus.

Can I declare an expiring certification? It depends on the document. Some certifications have unlimited validity (Cambridge, Trinity), others expire (IELTS, TOEFL: 2 years). Check that the certificate is still valid at the time of upload on the portal. If the document is expired at the time of upload, the university may not recognise the bonus.

Does a French / Spanish / German certification earn the same 4 points as English? Yes, if the certifying body is in Annex 1 of the bando. DELF B1, DELE B1, Goethe-Zertifikat B1 earn the same bonus as a B1 Cambridge or Trinity English certification.

What happens if the document is late? Certifications declared but not documented by the test registration deadline earn no points. Self-declaration without an upload is not enough. Plan the upload well ahead of the deadline.

Does the maturita grade count for seat reservation in Milan? The Milan TIEC bando itemizes in the score calculation and in seat reservation the test score plus the certifications bonus. The maturita grade is not quantified with an explicit weight in the Milan bando. The maturita grade remains relevant for course access requirements and parallel pathways, but not as a quantified component of the Milan TIEC formula. For the Rome campus and for candidates with foreign diplomas the rules are different.

I'm taking Cambridge B2 First in June. Can I use it for the September TIEC? Typically yes, if the certificate is available and uploadable by the September session's registration deadline. Cambridge issues the certificate approximately 4-8 weeks after the exam: plan the timing. For added safety, also consider registering for a later session (second September date) if the certificate timing is uncertain.

I'm in the IB programme. Does my diploma count as a language certification? No. The IB is a high-school programme, not a stand-alone language certification. If you took Cambridge / Trinity / IELTS / TOEFL during or before the IB, those separate certifications can earn the 4-point bonus. The IB itself is not listed in Annex 1 of the bando as a language certification.

What is the bonus really worth? Up to 6 points on a maximum test score of 50.4. In relative terms, about 12% of the maximum test score. In practical terms, on a 25-point eligibility floor and seat reservations tiered at 25, 30 and 35 points, 6 points can shift a candidate up an entire tier.

Want to understand how to integrate the certifications score with TIEC preparation? The Up to Ten TIEC path calibrates test preparation around the candidate's certifications profile and the initial diagnostic. Discover the TIEC path.