The school is offering the project ‘La bella figura’ to the students of the 7th year who are studying fashion specialization and trend study and to those of the Se-n-Se-year (secondary-post-secondary) who are studying creation and pattern design. Their curriculum includes a compulsory internship either in Belgium or abroad. Their eventual qualification/certificate will enable them to work in various fields, such as a fashion studio/workshop, a clothing manufacturer, a theatre company, a fashion designer, etc. ‘La bella figura’ does not only refer to the unique clothing style of Italians, it also suggests a certain way of handling ourselves in social and public situations. This attitude has not been fully acquired yet by all of our pupils, while it is just as necessary as the technical expertise and training in their chosen field. Acquiring this attitude will be an important asset towards finding and keeping a job. In addition, the project intends to emphasize the importance of quality within Italian fashion which is suggested by the label ‘made in Italy’.Over the years, the label ‘made in Italy’ has come to represent tradition and craft, as well as technical innovation. It is this specific combination that has given the Italian fashion industry its unique place in the international fashion world. Our students will be able to establish for themselves what the label ‘made in Italy’ represents in reality and how the meticulous attention to quality has given Italian fashion its outstanding reputation. Well-known Italian designers such as Armani, Valentino and Ferragamo work exclusively with Italian companies. It is only by maintaining their focus on quality that they are able to compete with low-wage countries.The interns will initially be verifying the expert knowledge learnt in class against the reality in the workplace (‘workplace learning’). Beyond that, they will acquire new skills hands-on (‘learning-by-doing’), such as: certain new stitches, learning to operate machinery integral to tricot weaving, other methods for drawing patterns (by hand and on the computer), etc. Schools usually do not have the financial means to acquire high-tech equipment and it is enriching to observe which phases of production are performed by specialized machinery. Our internship host companies are located in the Veneto region, in and around the city of Treviso, where a lot of major players in the fashion world are located, such as the Benetton Group, for example. Some of our internship host companies have developed a special program to offer interns the optimum opportunity to get to know the company and the production process. Students will come to realize that their work needs to be highly accurate, that the work rate is high, that they must be punctual yet flexible and that they must assume an appropriate attitude at all times. They must in themselves be a ‘bella figura’. Italian fashion and ‘la bella figura’ are inextricably linked to Italian culture. This European internship is the ideal opportunity for students to acquaint themselves with this. Since students are staying in B&B’s, they will also immerse themselves in local colour and local mentality and they will soon realize how useful it is to develop their Italian language skills. Weekend excursions to Venice, fashion capital Milan, Padova, Vicenza, and a visit to the city of Treviso will allow our students to broaden their cultural horizon. These excursions offer a pleasant and useful opportunity to come together, to pause and reflect on their experiences as a group. The school is opting for a four week internship on the request of the internship host companies who believe it facilitates a smoother integration of the intern in the company.