The Italian university system is ready to start again safely, resuming its in-person lectures from the very beginning of the first semester. Intense and at times feverish work has proved necessary to start the new academic year and to manage the complex scenario created by the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Sapienza faced a first significant test, welcoming thousands of aspiring freshers to take the admission tests for our restricted-access programmes. In recent months, the University has guaranteed distance learning sessions for everyone in a very short time. However, as soon as it was possible and in compliance with the regulations in force, it was decided to return to the University for dissertations, laboratory activities, library services and exams. From September 2020, returning to the classroom for in-person lectures has required compliance with rules, procedures and shifts, but allows teachers and students to finally get together, experiencing the dialogue and debates that are the engine of professional and intellectual growth.

These are the topics the Rector Eugenio Gaudio examines in depth in the latest issue of Sapienza Medica, the online magazine of the Faculty of Health Sciences. The Deans, Antonella Polimeni for the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Carlo Della Rocca for the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Fabio Lucidi for the Faculty of Psychology and Medicine, also talks about the subject. The Students, PhD students, research fellows and postgraduate students of the three medical Faculties also participate with their contributions.