DOCTORAL SCHOOL IN ASTRONOMY
Director: Prof. G. Piotto
Introduction
When the programme for Doctoral Research (PhD) started in Italy in 1982, the University of Padova organized a Doctoral School in Astronomy which immediately obtained a national-wide attendance. The Doctoral Course in Astronomy contributed to the formation of a whole new generation of astronomers thanks also to the collaboration with the nearby Astronomical Observatory of the National Astrophysics Institute (INAF).
The high level of the Course is testified by the fact that more than 90% of the graduate students who obtained a Doctoral (PhD) degree in Astronomy at the University of Padova are presently working, in Italy or abroad, in the field of astronomical research, with 72% of them presently holding permanent positions.
The excellence of these results has been aknowledged by the University of Padova with the institution, in 2006, of a more autonomous Doctoral (PhD) School in Astronomy. The University of Padova and the University of Bologna are the only universities in Italy offering all levels of university education in Astronomy: First Level Degree (Laurea Triennale), Second Level Degree (Laurea Specialistica, equivalent to a Master Degree) and the PhD. Only in Padova there is an independent Doctoral School in Astronomy.
Every year, about 10 to 12 students are enrolled, after a selective competition, by our Doctoral School. They come from all over Italy and abroad. Other foreign students attend the PhD School within
specific international agreements for exchange of PhD students. The PhD School has a three year duration, with a final exam for the defence of the thesis. Because of the presence of foreign students,
all the courses and the other activities are in English (including mid term evaluations and final exam). The thesis is written in English.
Aim of the PhD School is the formation of young researchers of excellence, at international level, in their specific field of research in astronomy. The agreement with the European Association for Research in Astronomy (EARA) and many foreign universities and dedicated funding from the Ministry of Reaserch (MIUR), the University of Padova and the INAF-Astronomical Observatory of Padova, allow us to complete the formation of the students also trough stages at foreign Research Institutes.
Doctoral students with supervisor |
|