LUMSA Rome: #1 among medium private universities CENSIS, psychology, law and communication with values
LUMSA — Libera Università Maria SS. Assunta — ranks 1st in the CENSIS 2025-2026 ranking among medium-sized Italian private universities (83.0/100). With 8,000 students, 30 programmes in psychology, law, communication and international relations, and a unique campus in Borgo Sant'Angelo steps from the Vatican, it is the excellence choice for those seeking a quality Catholic university in Rome.
LUMSA: psychology, law and Catholic communication steps from the Vatican and Castel Sant'Angelo
The LUMSA — Libera Università Maria Santissima Assunta is a Catholic private university with its main campus in Rome and branch campuses in Taranto and Palermo, ranking 1st in the CENSIS 2025-2026 ranking among medium-sized Italian private universities, with a score of 83.0/100. With approximately 8,000 students and 30 degree programmes in law, economics, education sciences, psychology, humanities, communication and international relations, LUMSA is a medium-sized Catholic university with a well-defined values identity.
LUMSA's flagship strength is psychology: programmes in clinical, occupational and organisational psychology are highly regarded, with training oriented towards both clinical practice and organisational applications. Education sciences and pedagogy — consistent with the Catholic tradition of attention to the integral formation of the person — are another key pillar.
The female ratio is particularly high (68%), reflecting the university's humanistic and psychological vocation. 5% of students are international, with active Erasmus+ agreements. The employment rate is 73%. The historic campus in Borgo Sant'Angelo, steps from St Peter's and the Vatican, is a setting of great charm and Roman centrality.
Academic Areas
LUMSA Rome by the numbers
From 1939 to Borgo Sant'Angelo: LUMSA and Catholic women's education in twentieth-century Rome
The LUMSA — Libera Università Maria Santissima Assunta was founded in 1939, during the Fascist period, as a Catholic women's university institution, with the aim of offering young women a higher education inspired by Christian values. The name reflects the Marian devotion that has always characterised the institution's spiritual identity.
In the post-war decades, LUMSA progressively opened to male students and expanded its academic offering, adding psychology, law and communication to the traditional humanities and education disciplines. The location in Borgo Sant'Angelo — one of Rome's most evocative historic districts, immediately adjacent to the Vatican — has always given the university an atmosphere of contemplation and belonging to a millennia-old cultural tradition.
Today LUMSA is a growing university, with campuses in Rome, Taranto and Palermo, that has built a solid and recognisable academic identity within the Italian Catholic private university landscape. Its CENSIS top ranking in the medium private category attests to a high level of service and training quality.
FAQ — LUMSA – Libera Università Maria SS. Assunta – Roma
Study psychology and law in Rome: useful resources for your journey
LUMSA Rome is the excellence choice among Italian universities for those wishing to study psychology, communication and law at a quality Catholic university in the capital. Explore the guide to private universities in Italy and discover everything about living and studying in Italy.
