ABSTRACT
CusMiBio was founded by the University of Milan in 2004 to contribute to the improvement of science education in high schools and works in close collaboration with the Lombardy Educational Office. The centre represents a bridge between high school and university educational systems, with the goals of increasing STEM skills and interest in biosciences and of attracting the most talented and motivated students to a career in science. In addition to activities directed towards students from all types of high schools, CusMiBio has developed actions dedicated to the most gifted students. Through the years CusMiBio has involved talented students in new initiatives, such as 'Attend a top science project', to combine professional-quality research with a novel strategy for research-based undergraduate education and 'From school to university: a round trip', in which talented students together with their teachers were invited to set up activities and learning modules adapted to be transferred to their schools and proposed to their peers.
