Planned activities and deadlines for PhD candidates

Mandatory Activities and Deadlines

The PhD students' educational and research plan should be structured as follows:
1. Development of an individual research program within a specific disciplinary area of the course focus under one or more supervisors' guidance. 
2. Participation in doctoral-level educational activities, complementary to research activities, totaling no less than 30 credits over three years, as specified in Table 1. Credit recognition is granted by the Academic Board, based on Table 2, which authorises participation and evaluates outcomes.
3. Attendance of other training activities that contribute to the student's education but do not include credit acquisition.

Educational Activities
30 ECTS must be acquired following Table 1 and 2. O

. Each PhD student must fill in the Education and training activity report, from which it is possible to deduce the accounting of the earned credits.
The possible teaching activities for the entire three-year cycle are approved before the start of the three-year cycle and are published on the PhD website.

 Table 1: Types of Educational Activities

Each course listed under Type A (Table 1) requires, for assessment purposes, a final exam that must be taken exclusively in person. However, it can be consolidated with exams for other courses.
In the definition phase of the doctoral program’s educational activities and/or when approving certifications provided by PhD students for activities carried out outside their program, the Academic Board must recognise the credits earned according to Table 2

Table 2: Recognition and Attribution of Credits for Various Types of Educational Activities

PhD students' educational and research plan cannot include courses taught in master’s degree programs in their educational activities. If doctoral students attend such classes, they may be recorded as training activities, provided the Academic Board deems them consistent with the doctoral student’s educational plan. 
Doctoral students may participate in educational activities conducted at locations different from the doctoral program’s base in Italy and abroad, subject to authorization by the Academic Board.
Preferably, the PhD student must be left free from teaching commitments in the third year to make room for completing the doctoral thesis

Training Activities
Training activities contribute to the doctoral student’s education and may include teaching, intellectual property, and Third Mission-related activities. These are proposed by the doctoral student, approved by their tutor, and then submitted to the Academic Board for approval in the PhD students' educational and research plan.

Training activities may include the following:
1. Supplementary teaching, up to a maximum of 30 hours per academic year, subject to approval by the Department Council.
2. Activity as a subject expert, with appointments made under the current University Regulations. 
3. Tutoring activities under a formal call, verified by the relevant University Offices.
4. Tutoring of first- and second-level degree students, verified and certified by the tutor or the course’s referring lecturer.
5. Active participation in orientation events organised by the relevant Department or the University.
6. Presentation of scientific works at conferences and seminars upon invitation. 
7. Participation in journal clubs. 
8. Other training activities directly related to the type of doctoral program. 

Training activities are recorded in the doctoral student’s curriculum but do not yield credits or count toward the minimum requirements for educational activities. They are considered in the doctoral student’s final evaluation.

English Language C1 level test should be taken at CLA, University Language Center (or an Institution with the same educational value).

Transition to the second and third years
For the transition to the second and third years of the course, the Academic Board will evaluate the activities carried out by the doctoral candidate during the first and second years, respectively.

To this end, it is necessary that, each year, the PhD student writes a report on the activities carried out during the previous year. The report must include all activities carried out (training, research, participation in conferences, etc.) and a summary of the research results achieved within the project context. The report must be drawn up in more detail following the format structure (Annual report). A copy of the Education and training report for the pages of competence of the last 12 months of activity (training activities and publications) (Education and Training Activity Report)  must be attached to the annual report. The student must also complete the .xls (download).
Furthermore, the PhD student must illustrate the research report during the annual PhD day, which usually takes place in October.

Research Outputs
The PhD students are required to:
1 – Publish at least one article in an ISI/Scopus-indexed journal as first, corresponding, or last author within three years.
2 - Participate in at least two conferences and/or workshops, with at least one as a presenter.

PhD Thesis: It must be written in ENGLISH. The title of the PhD thesis can be changed by the end of the 2^nd year of the program.

Research activities abroad
PhD students must spend at least 6 months conducting research abroad. Before departure, remember to submit a request of authorization for increased grant for study abroad to the Coordinator than to the PhD office and the authorisation to carry out the mission to the Department Director. For non-EU countries, health insurance must be taken out. On your return, you must send the Doctoral Office confirmation of the activities undertaken during your stay abroad.

PhD Student Funds
The funds allocated for each PhD student are approximately €3,500. The funds are usually allocated in June of the first year. These funds are intended to train PhD students in courses and conference participation. Their use for missions or consumable materials is strongly discouraged.