CHEI is offering two research training programmes in 2026.
The CHEI Milan Writing Marathon is open to doctoral students at any stage of their research journey and early stage academic writers who are seeking dedicated writing time within a structured, supportive environment.
The CHEI Pathway Programme is a two-year programme preparing professionals in internationalisation of higher education for application to the CHEI PhD Programme.
Further information below.
Writing is hard, but it can also be fun!
The CHEI Milan Writing Marathon is designed to support doctoral and early-stage academic writers through an intensive, structured week that combines protected writing time with targeted interventions addressing the real challenges of academic writing. The week creates a protected space for writing within the rhythm of an academic working environment.
The CHEI Milan Writing Marathon, to be held at the Milan campus from 15 to 19 June 2026.
Register your interest HERE and be the first to receive updates.
The writing marathon creates a focused, shared environment in which academic writing can be approached with seriousness, support, and momentum. The writing marathon is open to doctoral students at any stage of their programme, in any subject or discipline in Social Sciences or Humanities, and in any type of doctoral programme (PhD, DBA, etc.), who wish to focus on their writing in an international academic environment. Postdoctoral researchers and early-career researchers are also welcome. Students in the application stages of a doctoral programme are not excluded, provided they are currently working on a concrete writing project. The week is organised in English, and participants should be able and willing to conduct all interactions in English; writing itself may be in any language. If in doubt about suitability for the week, participants are encouraged to contact the Centre.
Writing can be challenging for many reasons such as lack of time, difficulty in getting ideas on paper, knowing where to start, finding structure, or critically engaging with one's own writing. This writing marathon offers a supportive environment to help you overcome these barriers, develop new writing habits, and experience the reward of seeing your thinking take coherent shape on the page. You may be someone looking for a dedicated writing week or you may want to improve your writing skills. The week will make writing more enjoyable and productive for everyone, supporting you on your research journey. Writing is hard but it can also be fun!
The writing marathon provides dedicated time for individual writing to advance your research project and enhance your academic productivity. Participants work on their own thesis chapters, articles, or other academic texts, within a shared group setting that offers structured support from academic writing coaches and opportunities for peer interaction and learning. Each day starts with a brief planning session and ends with a review of the day’s work. Writing takes place in assigned time slots, interspersed with breaks for reflection and peer exchange. The programme also includes Aid Stations focused on developing effective writing strategies and becoming familiar with selected writing tools, including AI, as well as clinics for individual support. Social opportunities for those staying in Milan during the writing marathon help sustain energy and focus across the week. Participants will receive guidance in advance on how to prepare for the writing marathon. It is important to arrive ready to write.
This week is built on a few simple principles that make writing time productive.
Writing is thinking made visible
Writing is not a final step that happens after you have “clear thoughts.” It is the process through which clarity is built. This takes time. The marathon protects time for this process and provides structures that make it easier to stay with the work.
Write for perspective, not novelty
Most academic readers are not primarily looking for completely new information. They are looking for a clearer perspective on questions they already recognise. During the week, we encourage you to focus on what your reader already knows—and what you can uniquely help them see.
Protect your reader from the curse of knowledge
Expertise makes it hard to imagine what it feels like not to know what you know. In practice, this shows up as acronyms, compressed logic, unexplained leaps, and “conceptual backstory” that your reader doesn’t need. Throughout the week we will work on clarity strategies that make your writing accessible without oversimplifying it.
Momentum in writing comes from rhythm
Academic writing needs structure and logic, but it also needs pace. Sentence rhythm, paragraph length, and the strategic use of tension and release are not “style extras”—they shape how ideas move through the reader’s mind and help sustain attention across a text.
Sustained writing comes from structured time
Writing momentum also depends on rhythm in the writing process itself. The marathon models this through the alternation of focused writing blocks, short breaks, and moments of reflection, offering a repeatable structure that supports sustained attention and can be adapted beyond the week.
A finished thesis comes from managing your time and energy
A key practical takeaway from the writing marathon is a repeatable way of structuring writing time. The alternation between focused writing blocks, short breaks, reflection, and targeted feedback provides a model for organising writing beyond the week itself. Participants are encouraged to adapt this structure to their own contexts as a sustainable approach to academic writing.
How we use these principles
They show up in the design of the week: short, protected writing blocks; structured reflection; Aid Stations focused on one high-leverage skill at a time; and clinics that help you apply these principles directly to your current text.
Across the week, participants will encounter recurring tensions in academic writing—between clarity and complexity, productivity and reflection, critique and confidence—which the Aid Stations and Clinics are designed to help navigate rather than resolve. Aid Stations are structured group activities, and clinics are individual follow up meetings.
CLICK HERE to download the Aid stations and clinics Schedule across the week.
Fiona, Jeanine, and John have worked together for several years in the design and delivery of doctoral programmes at CHEI, supporting PhD and DBA candidates through supervision, coaching, and structured writing development. Their collaboration combines expertise in international higher education, academic leadership, and the psychology of writing, with a shared focus on helping doctoral researchers develop clarity, confidence, and sustainable writing practices. Their academic backgrounds are in psychology, higher education, management and business.
Fiona Hunter
Fiona Hunter is Associate Director at the Centre for Higher Education Internationalisation at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milan, Italy, Faculty Member for the DBA in Higher Education Leadership and Management at LUISS, Rome, Italy, and Visiting Tutor for the DBA in Higher Education Management at Bath University, United Kingdom.
Jeanine Gregersen-Hermans
Jeanine Gregersen-Hermans is Academic Board member at the Centre for Higher Education Internationalisation at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milan, Italy, senior researcher and principal investigator at centre Sustainable International Business at Zuyd University of Applied Sciences, and member of the Supervisory Board of Thomas More University of Applied Sciences, the Netherlands.
John Lawrence Dennis
John Lawrence Dennis is an Academic Board member at the Centre for Higher Education Internationalisation at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milan, professor at the University of Perugia, and licensed psychologist and writer. He is the author of Beyond Comfort (forthcoming), drawing on two decades of research across cognitive science, psychotherapy, international education, and behaviour change.
The early-bird rate for the writing marathon is €590 and applies to registrations received by 30 April 2026. From 1 May 2026, the standard rate is €750.
The fee covers participation in the writing marathon only. It does not include travel, accommodation, or any additional expenses.
Students enrolled at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore may be eligible to request reimbursement of the registration fee through their annual individual research fund, subject to the applicable rules and procedures.
Registration will open on Monday 30th March 2026 and close on Friday 15th May 2026.
Confirmation will be sent to registered participants that there are sufficient numbers for the writing marathon to take place by 20th April 2026 at the latest. The early-bird rate for the writing marathon is €590 and applies to registrations received by 30 April 2026. From 1 May 2026, the standard rate is €750. Registered participants are advised not to make any non-refundable travel or accommodation arrangements until they have received confirmation of the event.
Register your interest HERE to receive updates and be notified about online information sessions.
Participants are responsible for making their own travel and accommodation arrangements. Information on nearby accommodation options, including university residences, will be made available once participation has been confirmed.
The CHEI Pathway programme is a two-year programme that prepares students for application to the CHEI PhD Programme in Internationalisation of Higher Education at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore. If you are accepted to the Programme, you will attend your first CHEI research seminar as a Newcomer in preparation for the Pathway Programme that starts the following September.
The application process to the CHEI Pathway Programme opens in October every year and information appears on the CHEI website. You are informed of the outcome of your application by December and, if you are successful, you will be invited to join the Spring Seminar of the following year in March/April as a Newcomer. Please note that the number of places varies from year to year based on capacity. We have 6 Newcomers for the 2026 Brescia seminar (March 23-27).
