Italy, is a long peninsula, surrounded on the west by the Tyrrhenian Sea and on the east by the Adriatic. It is bounded by France, Switzerland, Austria, and Slovenia to the north. Today, Italy is a democratic republic, and a developed country with the 7th-highest GDP, the 8th-highest Quality-of-life and the 20th-highest Human Development Index rating in the world.

In line with its international vocation, the Istituto Europeo di Design welcomes students of diverse nationalities and cultures to all of its seats.
Each year, more than 1,000 foreign students attend IED courses.
Over a period spanning almost forty years, IED has trained more than 50,000 students from 75 different countries.

IED Moda Lab, IED Design, IED Arti Visive and IED Comunicazione are the schools of the “IED System”, respectively in the fashion, design, visual arts and communication areas. They respond to the demands of the business world, through didactic pathways targeted to answer the real needs of the sectors in question, and all share the same design culture.