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Voluntary civilian service

Choose to become a civilian service volunteer at the University of Bologna.

General information 

What is civilian service?

Universal civilian Service is the voluntary choice to dedicate a few months of your life to unarmed and non-military national service to education, to promote peace among peoples and to promote the founding values of the Italian Republic, through actions for communities and the territory. 

Why do civilian service?

To take advantage of an important and often unique opportunity for personal development, add a qualifying experience to your CV and dedicate your time to solidarity and the good of others.

How long does it last?

Civilian service can last between 8 and 12 months, depending on the project. Details of the duration and the required time commitment can be found in the description of the individual projects.University of Bologna projects have a duration of 12 months.

What does it offer?

  • Training - minimum 80 hours
  • Course credits
  • Civilian service certificate of participation
  • Recognition and value of the competencies acquired
  • Those who complete the Universal Civil Volunteer Service without demerit may benefit from the 15% reserve of places in public competitions for non-executive staff, in accordance with current legislation.
  • Monthly allowance of approximately €519.47
  • Variable leave of absence in proportion to the period of service (20 days per 12 months)
  • Possibility of a tutoring period (up to three months) for some projects based in Italy to facilitate knowledge of the world of work
  • Preferential access, in some projects, for young people with fewer opportunities

Who is eligible to become a volunteer worker?

To take part in the civilian service you must:

  • be between 18 and 29 years old 
  • be a European citizen or a non-EU citizen with a valid permit to stay in Italy
  • not have been convicted in Italy or abroad, even if it is a non-final judgment, to imprisonment of more than one year for a crime committed with criminal intent or to a penalty even of a lesser amount for a crime against the person or relating to the possession, use, carrying, transport, illicit import or export of weapons or explosive materials or for crimes relating to belonging to or aiding and abetting subversive, terrorist or organized crime groups.

For further requirements, see the full text of the call for applications. You can only take part in civilian service once.

How to become a volunteer worker

  • Participate in the call for applications published each year by the Department for Youth Policies and the Universal Civil Volunteer Service.
  • The call for application presents several projects, some of which are proposed by the University of Bologna. The first thing to do is to choose the one that best suits your interests and expectations.
  • You can only apply online and you need the CIE or a SPID digital identity.
  • You will then be invited to attend a selection interview by the institution to which you submitted the application.
  • If selected, you will become a volunteer civilian service worker and will sign a contract with the Youth Affairs and Universal Civilian Service department of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers.

2026 Call for Applications – Deadline 16 April 2026 at 2:00pm

The projects proposed by the University of Bologna

For 2026, the University offers you the opportunity to choose between one project that you can carry out at the Bologna campus and one project that you can carry out at the Forlì and Ravenna campuses. Below is a brief overview of the new projects prepared by the Multicampus University.

Volunteers for the University’s cultural assets - 37 places Bologna Campus 

The University Museum Network (SMA), together with the Bologna University Library (BUB), enhances the value of and makes accessible to the public the historical, artistic, scientific, book and documentary wealth of the University of Bologna. In the civil volunteer service project, volunteers will assist with opening to the public, providing support for visits and educational activities, updating web content and collecting user data.

Download the project summary sheet.

University campuses serving local communities – 10 places at the Ravenna Campus, 12 places at the Forlì Campus

A comprehensive project with various aims: facilitating participation in cultural and training activities offered by the University, making it easier for students to use facilities and spaces, expanding initiatives for social inclusion, integration and the inclusion of students in the local community, and disseminating knowledge about the training, research and career guidance activities promoted by the University.

Download the project summary sheet.

The commitment required

The voluntary civilian service lasts 12 months: 1,145 hours per year and a minimum 25 mandatory hours per week, including 20 days of paid leave.

How to participate

You must be over 18 and under 28 years of age, be a European citizen or a non-EU citizen legally residing in Italy, not have already performed civil volunteer service and meet other requirements that you will find in the call for applications.

You can choose one of the projects offered by the University and submit your application using the DOL (Application On Line) platform, accessible from PCs, tablets and smartphones. 

To access the application submission services on the DOL platform, you must login to the system using a SPID or other specific credentials. 

  1. Italian citizens resident in Italy or abroad can access the platform only with a SPID, the Public Digital Identity System. Information on the SPID, the services it offers and how to request it can be found on the Agency for Digital Italy website. For the Civilian Service On-Line application, you will need SPID credentials with security level 2.
  2. The citizens of European Union countries and non-EU citizens legally residing in Italy, who cannot acquire a SPID may access the DOL platform services with specific credentials provided by the Department; access to this procedure can be found on the platform home page.

A guide on how to fill in and submit applications on the DOL platform can be found on the Universal Civilian Service website.

Applications must be submitted exclusively via the online procedure described above no later than 8 April 2026 at 2:00pm. Applications submitted after this deadline will not be accepted by the system.

We recommend reading the call for applications carefully as it describes the requirements, procedures and documents required and how to submit applications.

Candidates can submit only one application for one project at one location and, after the deadline, will have to attend a selection interview. The start of the service is scheduled for September 2026.

Where to obtain further information

Visit the website www.trovailtuoposto.it/emilia-romagna/ and discover the details of the servicefor the projects at the individual campuses of the University of Bologna.

If you have any doubts or need clarification, Arci Servizio Civile is at your disposal. It is important that your request for clarification is sent to the Arci Servizio Civile office associated with the project you have chosen.

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