Scrivere con Sapienza - Manuale per testi chiari, corretti ed efficaci (Writing with Sapienza – Handbook for clear, correct and effective texts) is the manual adopted by Sapienza on how to write clear and effective administrative and communicative texts in Italian.

Valeria Della Valle and Luca Serianni, distinguished linguists and former professors at Sapienza University signed the introduction and contributed to its creation and entire revision. The document, which follows on from experience gained in 2015 with Sapienza's previous guidelines on the subject, refers to the reflection on the simplification of administrative language, which began in the 1990s, thanks in part to the impetus provided by the then Minister of Public Administration, Sabino Cassese, professor emeritus of Sapienza University, who promoted the Code of Style for written communications for use by public administrations. In his preface, Cassese stresses the importance of a language that is as transparent as possible so as to facilitate the relationship between the administration and the public. Whenever this does not happen, the risk is to 'alienate the citizen from the shared house, which should be the State'.

Therefore, Sapienza manual includes an initial chapter devoted precisely to the general rules for writing short, simple and clear texts, with several examples of how to rewrite texts in a way that is easily understood by the public, without sacrificing the precision of administrative language.  

The second chapter deals in-depth with the use of male and female gender in the Italian language. The issue has been debated since the 1980s, and linguists have mainly argued in favour of using the feminine noun, especially when referred to positions or professions held by women, thus accepting in the lexicon the changes that have taken place in the society and culture of our country. Sapienza heartily accepts this orientation. Therefore, the general indication is to always use the feminine noun when present in the Italian language for professions or roles, as in avvocata, sindaca, ministra, rettrice, direttrice. Numerous examples then clarify how to avoid, whenever possible, the prevalence of "inclusive" masculine nouns, for example, by highlighting the presence of both female and male students (studentesse e studenti) within the university community.

Chapter three analyses how to use the first letter in upper or lower case. Although the Italian language generally uses the first letter in upper case for proper names and the first letter in lower case for common names, a series of conventions have been adopted to use upper and lower case in the names of bodies, institutions, offices and other abstract nouns. The Sapienza handbook proposes that the use of the first capital letter should be limited to what is strictly necessary to not fall into an excess of emphatic capital letters, which make reading texts more difficult.

Chapter four explains how to quote legal acts, from the full wording to the most recent and universally accepted abbreviations, such as the well-known abbreviation 'Dpcm' (Prime Minister Decree)

The fifth chapter is an extensive glossary presenting in alphabetical order words and expressions frequently used in universities' administrative and communicative language, analysing the correct spelling and possible variants.

Finally, the sixth chapter provides a brief list of regulatory sources and useful public administration language materials. The handbook, prepared by the Strategic Planning and Communication Area - Communication Office with the Student Services Area collaboration, is intended to be a useful tool for those working at the University who write texts in Italian for an internal audience. The Academic Senate approved the document on January 26, 2021, and the Board of Governors acknowledged it on 28 January 2021.