Industrial Chemistry and Chemical Engineering – (Ph.D.)

Contents

The CII program covers three years for an overall amounts of 180 credits. The responsibility of the organization and of the contents of the doctoral program is attributed to the Professor Committee (PC). At the beginning of the Doctoral
program, a tutor and a thesis advisor is assigned to each student. The tutor has a supervisor function during the whole doctoral program, whereas the thesis advisor is
responsible for the thesis work.

The PC defines a specific curriculum for each student, on the basis of the tutor suggestions. The curriculum has to be designed in order to both cover deficiencies in the student scientific formation and to give a high-quality technical and scientific
preparation.

During the first year of the doctoral program the title of the thesis must be selected, whereas by the end of the third year a referee is selected who has to verify and discuss the research activity. The referee is a professor of an Italian or foreign
university, and must have a specific expertise in the field of the thesis’s work.

The doctoral program is designed according to the following four different lines:

1. Introductory courses

This part of student training does not provide any credit, but it is finalised to complete the student formation. Indeed, the objective of the introductory courses is to create a common background for all the students, and thus the courses are
held during the first year of activity. This part of formation training is specifically designed for students not coming from a second level degree in Chemical Engineering, Engineering of Materials and Industrial Chemistry. For other students, and for foreign students who do not hold a recognised study degree, the relative weight of the introductory formation will be decided ad personam by the Professor Committee. The courses established in the Introductory phase will be selected
among the courses of the first and the second level of the Chemical Engineering degree. These courses will be held during the first year of the Doctoral activity.

2. Main courses (40 credits)

The Professor Committee presents every three years a list different courses. Among these, 2 courses are mandatory for the students with engineering and chemical
background. The other 5 credits courses are focused on more specific topics directly related with the student research activity: the Professor Committee will choose 6
courses ad personam, which will be held during the first and the second year. In this way the student will take 7 courses for a total amount of 40 credits.

3. Elective courses and training on specific themes (5-20 credits)

This part of the student training is more specifically related to the research area of the thesis. This part of the Program will be organized with specific seminars, participation to summer specific schools, participation to congresses, meetings, workshops in Italy and abroad, stages at different companies.

4. Development of the Doctoral Thesis

It is the most important and significant part of the student training in the research activity, since it allows to summarize all the didactical activities carried during the
previous years of work. Accordingly, it results in a verification of the acquired expertise and knowledge. This part of training is strictly managed and controlled by the student advisor. During the first year the student, in agreement with the
advisor, has to prepare a ”research proposal” that the Professor Committee should approve. The research proposal should include some “milestones” to be achieved
each year. At the end of each year the opponent advisor analyses the results obtained and suggests comments, improvements or indications for further work. The
Professor Committee will then verify the work progress and the achievement of milestones. It is recommended in this part of the training for the student to spend a
research period in other qualified international universities or institution.
The development of the thesis will be performed during the entire period of work of the student, but it will be mainly performed during the second and third year of the Doctoral Program.

Faculty

PolitecnicodiMilano is one of the top European Universities in Engineering, Architecture, and Design. In 1963 a Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to Giulio Natta, professor at the PolitecnicodiMilano.

At the PhD School of the PolitecnicodiMilano, 25 high-quality programmes in engineering, architecture, and design offer the possibility of studying and performing research in qualified laboratories and research groups.