1st Call

Application deadline: by 11/07/2024 (by noon local time)
Admission interviews (online): 24-25/07/2024 (26/07/2024, if needed) (via MS Teams)
Publication of ranking lists: by 05/08/2024

Confirmation of the PhD position - 1st Call

Applicants with grant: by 20/08/2024 (by noon local time)
Enrolment: Starting from 21/08/2024 until 31/10/2024

Total Positions: 10

1st Call

Positions with university grants: 4
Positions with other types of grants: 2
Positions MD 630/2024 under PNRR: 3
Position ESF+: 1

In the academic year 2024/2025, the PhD program Food Engineering and Biotechnology offers 17 possible research topics.

1st Call

At the following link you can find a list of potential research projects and their corresponding proposed supervisors. Please read carefully the document, consider that you must indicate on the portal a max. of 3 research topics chosen from the list of titles indicated. The choice is not binding.

At the following link you can find the detailed project description of the position with ESF+ scholarship.

All citizen may apply to be admitted to a PhD programme:

• Applicants holding a postgraduate degree as per Italian Ministerial Decree no. 509/1999, a postgraduate degree as per Italian Ministerial Decree no. 270/2004, a degree of the former Italian university system, or an equivalent degree obtained abroad;
• Applicants achieving one of the above mentioned titles within the enrolment deadline. In this case applicants will be admitted conditionally to the selection procedure and they must produce the degree certificate within the enrolment’s deadline. If not, their application is considered null and void.
• The prerequisites for admission to doctoral programmes are related to having achieved an appropriate educational, and/or cultural background, and/or have worked in the PhD course areas of research. Qualifications in food science, agriculture, biotechnology and food engineering are preferable.

To apply for the position financed by European Social Fund Plus ESF+

• Participants must also be under the age of 35 years, to be understood as up to the day before the participant's thirty-fifth birthday. The requirements must be fulfilled at the time of the deadline of the relevant call for applications (11/07/2024).

English Language certification at level B2 (or higher levels). 

Linguistic competence can be proven by: 

1. If the main language of instruction in the final year of the diploma is English, it counts as C1.
2. A bachelor's or master's degree in English certifies the C1 level. unibz graduates must upload the language certificates they have obtained or declare that they have passed the language examinations at the unibz Language Centre (B2, B2+ or C1).
3. A recognised language certificate (see the list of recognised certificates from the Language Centre). Please note: the certificate must not have been obtained more than 5 years before the application for recognition.

The proficiency in English will also be assessed during the interviews. At the end of the three-year programme each PhD student must have achieved the C1 level.

Applications to the selection procedure can be submitted from the date of the announcement of the public competition.

Each application is subject to a payment for administrative expenses (30 €). This registration fee cannot be reimbursed under any circumstances.
In order to apply, you need to follow these steps:

1. Create an account at Application Portal and upload in electronic format a passport-size colour photo and a valid ID (passport or identity card, front/back);
2. In the application portal, select the PhD programme and pay the registration fee of 30 € (see instructions in the portal);
3. Fill in the online form in the same portal and upload the additional required documents (see the specific attachments to the call for each PhD programme).

Completing the application online is the only way to submit the application. Applications will not be considered if:

• incomplete or without compulsory entry qualifications/requirements;
• sent by e-mail.

It is necessary to upload the required documentation for each PhD programme chosen in the portal. A traffic light system indicates complete/incomplete documentation (missing documents will be marked in red).

Only documents uploaded by the deadline will be evaluated. It is advisable to apply online well in advance and to check the portal regularly to take note of any notes concerning missing and/or incorrect documents.

After the deadline, it will no longer be possible to complete/correct incomplete applications.
The University is not liable if the portal is overcharged, due to the net or to the software itself.

To apply to the PhD programme, applicants must include the documentation listed below. Incomplete applications will be excluded from the competition.

Attention: text exceeding the maximum allowed length (if clearly indicated for a document) will not be taken into account! Please respect the format/length indicated.

• Diploma supplement or the Master degree diploma together with the transcript of records of all passed exams (=certificate with exams list of Master degree):
• if graduated in Italy: diploma supplement or self-declaration (following the Italian D.P.R. no. 445/2000) of the degree awarded with the exams passed (if graduated) or just with the exams passed (if not graduated yet); 
• if graduated abroad: diploma supplement or final degree certificate with exams passed (if graduated) or transcript of records (if not graduated yet) in Italian, German or English related to a second level university qualification.

The above must contain the following information:

• final grade, exams passed with grade and date of passing, credit points, scientific fields (the latter only for Italian titles), university where the degree was or will be awarded and date of graduation.

For qualifications obtained abroad, also:

• scale of grades awarded by the home university (with a minimum final grade to obtain the qualification and a maximum final grade achievable). Unibz reserves the right to request a description of the contents of the single courses and/or teaching hours where necessary.

For admission, the (exams) average grade of master's degree (or equivalent) must be greater than or equal to 24/30.

• A personal statement written in English (max. 1 page).
• Curriculum vitae (CV) in English (possibly following the EU format that can be downloaded here). The CV must be updated with all data and information of the current year 2024.
• English Language certification at level B2 (or higher levels). 
  If the language skills are demonstrated by a high school diploma/diploma or master's degree, the diploma must also be uploaded a second time in the above section.

Other (optional) documents to be included in the application if available:

• reference letters, written in Italian, German or English from a university lecturer or a researcher from a research institute;
• List of publications (published, being published or submitted for publication), with related links, if possible.

Only the applicants with the above mentioned pre-requisite will be taken into account. The Evaluation Committee will first evaluate the CV, the personal statement letter and the applicant's qualifications - including publications (if any) - taking also into account the appropriateness of the candidates’ profiles with the PhD programme research areas, and will then draw up a list of applicants admitted to the next stage of the selection process. This will consist of an interview, in which their basic knowledge in one or more research areas of the PhD programme will be assessed. The interview can make use of media such as video-conferencing, telephone and the like. The Committee will select the best applicants on the basis of a comparative assessment.

The following points will be awarded:

• up to 10 points for: the applicant’s CV, cover letter and qualifications;
• up to 10 points for the appropriateness of the CV regarding the research areas of interest for the PhD programme;
• up to 20 points for the interview.

The final score is the sum of the previous scores. The maximum score is 40. The lowest score to be admitted to the rank list is 20/40. The final score is used for the ranking of applicants and to establish access to the PhD programme and who will receive grants.

Fees amount to € 189

In order to confirm your study place, you need to log on to the application portal and pay the tuition fees (€ 189) which includes the provincial tax for the right to study of € 173 and a revenue stamp of € 16. by one of the methods indicated on the portal by the deadline indicated above.

If you do not respect this deadline, you will automatically lose your study place. If, by paying the instalment you have confirmed the study place, there will be no refund of the tuition fees unless you are a non-EU applicant resident abroad and you do not receive the necessary documents from the Italian authorities in your country.