How Lombardy’s short cycle tertiary education promotes innovation

The contribution investigates and highlights the extent to which Lombardy’s short cycle tertiary education fosters and supports innovation. This explorative research, which is grounded in semi-structured interviews conducted with nine higher technical education institutions across the region, sheds light on the nuanced role that this segment of regional vocational education and training plays. Contrary to the assumption that such education is necessarily and entirely market-driven, the findings suggest that, despite maintaining strong and substantial ties with the world of work, it is not fully aligned with market demands. Nonetheless, this branch of education could be considered a significant and crucial element within the broader skills ecosystem and play an essential role in promoting the development of new professional profiles, albeit within certain limits. Through this function, it contributes to shaping and enhancing the regional labour market, thus holding potential for long-term impact on innovation and economic growth.