Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti（新美术学院）, known on its website as NABA, is a private academy of fine arts founded in Milan in 1980, offering degree and master courses in design, fashion, visual arts and communication taught in Italian or English. This guide is written for international students and their families, and is organised in the order an application actually unfolds: programs, entry requirements, costs, the application process, and the support that follows enrolment. All facts come from the official website as seen on 5 August 2026; the Academy’s own statements are used only to describe NABA itself, not to compare it with other institutions.
Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti at a glance
Nuova Accademia di Belle Artiwas founded in Milan in 1980 by Ausonio Zappa and accredited by the Italian Ministry of University and Research (MUR) in 1981; in 2018 it joined the Galileo Global Education group. The Academy belongs to the Italian AFAM system (Higher Education in Art and Music), and the website states that its Bachelor of Arts, Master of Arts and Academic Master programmes are all accredited by MUR, with degrees equivalent to university degrees. NABA describes itself as the largest academy in Italy in arts and design, with more than 6,000 students from over 90 nationalities. The school runs three campuses: Milan, its home base; Rome, opened in 2019; and London, where programmes are delivered in English and validated by Regent’s University London, leading to a BA (Hons) degree. For applicants the practical starting point is that each campus carries its own programme list, so the target major should be checked against the campus before planning the application.
Programmes at Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti
NABA’s course ladder has three levels. The undergraduate offer consists of three-year Bachelor of Arts (BA) programmes across design (interior, product, product and innovation design), fashion design, fashion styling and communication, fashion marketing management, graphic design and art direction, media design and new technologies, painting and visual arts, set design, film and animation, comics and visual storytelling, creative technologies, and marketing and management for creative business; most BA programmes include the chance of a semester abroad, and the London campus runs design, fashion design and fashion marketing management BAs. At postgraduate level, the two-year Master of Arts (MA) programmes carry 120 credits and cover creative media production, digital and live performance, fashion and costume design, fashion design, interior design, product and service design, social design, textile design, user experience design, visual arts and curatorial studies, and visual design and integrated marketing communication. The one-year Academic Master programmes carry 60 credits and are aimed at professionals seeking new technical and project skills, with directions such as contemporary art markets, creative advertising, luxury brand management, photography and visual design, sneaker design and screenwriting for series. The website notes that credits from the MA and Academic Master programmes are valid for further study in Italy or abroad, and NABA also runs a PhD programme plus foundation and summer courses.
Entry requirements for international applicants
For a BA place, Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti requires a higher secondary school diploma (the Italian maturità or an equivalent diploma legalised by the Italian embassy, translated and notarised, usually with a Declaration of Value), at least 12 years of school attendance, a pass in the admission test, and proof of the language of the chosen programme; the Academy states that degree places are limited and admission depends on meeting the minimum educational and language requirements. Italian-taught programmes require a complete B1 level on the CEFR scale (certificates such as CILS, CELI, CERT.IT or PLIDA are accepted). For English-taught programmes the accepted certificates include IELTS (Academic or General) with an overall score of 5.0, TOEFL iBT with a minimum of 45, Cambridge ESOL tests with a minimum overall score of 160, PTE Academic 36–42, and TOEIC with Listening & Reading at least 680 and Speaking & Writing at least 280; native speakers and students whose high school diploma was taught in English (subject to verification) are exempt. Language certificates must be submitted within one month before the programme begins and must not be older than 2 years. For the MA and Academic Master programmes, NABA sets admission requirements per programme on qualifications and project skills, and states that applicants whose background differs are still considered when motivation and research interest are strong; the language requirements are the same as for the BA. Foreign qualifications are finally confirmed through the complete enrolment dossier and the Foreign Qualification Assessment Board.
Tuition fees, scholarships and financial aid
Fees at Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti are published per programme and per residence status. For non-EU residents, the BA tuition fee is EUR 22,250 per academic year and the diploma programme EUR 21,600 (2025/26 academic year figures, regional tax included); EU and EFTA residents pay by household income bracket, with 2026/27 BA fees ranging from about EUR 8,450 in the lowest bracket to EUR 21,850 in the highest. For the two-year MA in 2026/27, non-EU residents pay EUR 22,250 per year (regional tax included) while EU residents pay between EUR 10,550 and EUR 21,850 by bracket; the one-year Academic Master programmes carry a flat fee of EUR 19,300 for EU and EFTA citizens and EUR 23,800 for non-EU citizens, covering pre-enrolment, tuition and academic contribution. The website notes the fee comprises a pre-enrolment fee, an academic contribution fee and tuition, rising at a fixed rate of 2% from the second academic year and 2.5% from the third. Scholarships listed by NABA include the London campus scholarships (deadline 10 July 2026), a European international scholarship competition for October 2026 undergraduate entry with awards up to EUR 6,000 (deadline 24 July 2026), and an early-application promotion giving a 15% tuition reduction for BA programmes starting October 2027 (deadline 3 July 2026); there is also financial aid based on academic merit and financial need, and a 20% reduction for former NABA bachelor’s graduates on further NABA programmes (excluding the regional tax). All figures are from the official site as of 5 August 2026.
Application process and timeline
Applications to Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti are assessed in two phases: an evaluation of technical skills by the relevant course leader, and a pre-evaluation of qualifications by the International Admissions Office, with the outcome communicated by email. The undergraduate admission test is a distance evaluation: an artistic statement of maximum 500 words (covering the job you want after graduation, why you chose NABA, your favourite means of expression, your inspirations, and how studying in Milan would influence your work) plus a project assignment or portfolio per programme. Results arrive within five working days, and a positive result is followed by a conditional admission letter; applicants then confirm their place within 20 days by paying the pre-enrolment fee and completing the document formalities (legalisation, e.g. a Hague Apostille where applicable, and translation). For non-EU students the critical steps are the mandatory pre-enrolment on the MUR’s UniversItaly platform, usually open between March and November each year, followed by an entry visa for study at Italian universities and academies (the national type D visa); the website advises starting early because the visa process usually takes 90 days. NABA admits for October and February intakes, and exact application deadlines for each intake should be checked against the latest version of the official website.
Enrolment support, campuses and careers
The Milan campus of Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti sits near the Navigli district in a historical complex of 14 buildings covering about 23,000 sqm, with specialised design, fashion, media and visual arts laboratories (including laser cutting, 3D printing, a knitwear and textile library with 4,000 fabric samples, and a virtual production studio with an LED volume and motion capture), a library, green areas and a cafeteria; Milan is Italy’s fashion and communication capital, and the school lists collaborations with institutions such as Teatro alla Scala, Triennale Milano and the National Chamber of Italian Fashion. The Rome campus occupies three early-20th-century buildings in the Ostiense district, around 6,000 sqm, with a library giving access to databases such as BoF, JSTOR, WGSN and the Vogue Archive, in a city that hosts Cinecittà and much of Italy’s film industry. Career support includes Career Day events connecting students with companies in design, fashion, communication, media and visual arts. The website cites research by BVA Doxa reporting that 92% of NABA graduates are employed within one year of graduation. Housing support is handled through the Academy’s student services, and details should be confirmed against current official information. Students should match their visa planning to their target campus, as the Milan and Rome campuses follow the Italian student visa route while London follows the UK system.
Planning your application
A practical sequence for an international applicant at Nuova Accademia di Belle Artiis: choose the programme and campus, prepare the portfolio or project assignment and the artistic statement, line up the English or Italian certificate from the accepted list, submit the online application and sit the admission test for the target intake (October or February), pay the pre-enrolment fee within 20 days of the offer, then start the UniversItaly pre-enrolment and visa process immediately, allowing about 90 days, while preparing the legalised and translated school documents. All figures in this guide come from the official website of Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti, accessed 5 August 2026; tuition, language standards and deadlines change each academic year, so the official site remains the reference for current information. If you would like to work through how these programmes, requirements and costs apply to your own background and timeline, our advisers can help you map the options.