Conceived in 1981 by SAE International (Society of Automotive Engineers) of the US, Formula SAE spread quickly to the UK, Australia and Brazil thanks to its success an popularity amongst engineering students in general.
Since signing a long-term agreement with SAE in 2005, ATA now organizes the Italian event in the Formula SAE circuit.
Formula SAE purpose is to encourage students and young graduates to design, realize and test a single-seater racing car. They will be in charge of the project from the design to the marketing stages. It provides each team involved the opportunity to face a real-life professional situation, working in a team context with time deadlines and making both business and managerial decisions in the process of tackling automotive engineering matters.
They will compete through both stationary tests and on-track trials and gain potentially useful "work" experience.
Formula SAE Italy offers two level of involvements: Class 1 for teams intending to participate a complete, fully-functional vehicle, Class 3 for those presenting a vehicle design.
During the event teams will be assessed by a panel of experts from the world of motorsport and the automotive industry.
Formula ATA will be held every  September in accordance with the SAE calendar of international student competitions.