Course Regulations

TITLE 1 PURPOSE AND EDUCATIONAL ORGANISATION Art. 1 - Purpose The Master's Degree Course in Medical, Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Biotechnology (BMVF) belongs to the LM-9 Class (Medical, Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Biotechnology) and is part of the Department of Medicine and Surgery, in association with the Department of Medical-Veterinary Sciences and the Department of Food and Pharmaceutical Sciences These Regulations, in harmony with the University Teaching Regulations, govern the content and organizational procedures for the operation of the Master's Degree Course (MDC).
  The training objectives are set out in Annex 1.
Art. 2 - General aspects The CLM in BMVF provides for training activities amounting to 120 Credits (ECTS), 8 of which are allocated to disciplines freely chosen by the student.
Each ECTS credit corresponds to 25 hours of work per student including classes, theoretical-practical exercises, seminar activities, guided tours and other documented activities.
The time that must be reserved for personal study or other individual training activities for the entire CLM is at least 50 % of the total hourly commitment with the possibility of lower percentages for individual training activities with a high experimental or practical content.
The standard load corresponding to 1 ECTS credit may include:
7 hours of classes or equivalent teaching activities; the remaining hours, up to a total of 25 hours scheduled, are devoted to individual study, including assisted study; 12 hours of tutorials and laboratory activities; the remaining hours, up to a total of 25 hours scheduled, are devoted to study and revision; 25 hours of internship 25 hours for the thesis.
The ECTS credits corresponding to each teaching course unit are acquired by the student by passing the relevant examination or by other forms of profit verification.
The Councils of the Departments of Medicine and Surgery, Medical-Veterinary Sciences and Food and Pharmaceutical Sciences plan the educational activities by identifying the courses to be activated and the supplementary, guidance and tutoring activities and allocate the annual teaching duties to the professors and researchers on the proposal of the Course Council. They then propose any other covers to the Boards of Departments of tenured university instructors not belonging to the associated Departments.
The facilities available in the Departments are consistent with the number of courses for the activation of the CLM with the number of enrolled students.
Art. 3 - Admission Students in possession of a Bachelor's degree in classes L2, L13 and L/SNT03, obtained in Italy or abroad and recognised as suitable under current regulations, are admitted to the course in chronological order of enrolment until the maximum number is reached. Undergraduates in the above-mentioned classes who have not yet graduated but are graduating by 31 October of the academic year in which they intend to enrol may also be admitted to the course; the latter must pre-enrol and will be admitted to attend the course as HEARING students and must finalise their online enrolment by 31 October of the academic year in which they intend to enrol. If the maximum number is not reached, candidates may also be admitted if they hold another degree involving biotechnology content with at least 50 ECTS credits in total (documented by the degree certificate and/or examinations taken) from the scientific disciplinary fields BIO, CHIM, FIS and VET. In this case, admission to the master's degree course is subject both to the possession of curricular requirements and to an assessment of the adequacy of personal preparation, which will be evaluated by a special committee by means of an analysis of the curriculum vitae of studies and a possible interview.
Students for whom verification of the requirements is necessary must apply to the CoS.
A knowledge of English at a level of at least B1 is also required for admission to the first year of the 'Medical, Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Biotechnology' degree programme.
Admission procedures are laid down year by year by the Department Council on the proposal of the Degree Course Council, are reported in the SUA-CdS under A3b and are published in the Study Manifesto and on the Degree Course website.
 
During the first semester of the first year, the student is required to indicate a preference ranking in respect of the orientations provided by the course.
To ensure highly interactive and personalised course unit, the number of students attending each orientation may be limited and evenly distributed. In this case, the assignment of students to the various orientations will be made by the aforementioned Commission.
Art. 4 - Teaching organization The CLM in BMVF lasts two years and is organized into curricula, of which there are currently three:
Applied biotechnology for prevention and therapy Applied biotechnology for regenerative and restorative medicine Applied biotechnology for animal production and food safety In order to obtain the academic title, the student must acquire at least 120 ECTS credits as follows
Basic training activities (type a), characterising (type b), related or complementary (type c): 79 Student-choice training activities (type d) 8 For the final examination (type e): 12 Additional knowledge, internships, etc. (type f): 21 The teaching timetable, which includes: the programme of study of the degree course, any propedeuticity, the ECTS credits assigned to each educational activity, the start and end dates of the lessons, the provisions on attendance obligations, is approved by the Department Council, on the proposal of the CCLM, and is published annually on the University website.
With regard to acquiring knowledge and passing examinations, students must comply with any propaedeuticities recommended in the course programmes.
Art. 5 - Types of examinations and profit tests To ascertain the candidate's knowledge and skills in each subject area, an examination is provided for at the end of the courses, which may consist of an oral and/or written test, an oral and/or written report on the activity carried out, tests with free-response or multiple-choice questions, and a practical test.
The methods for testing learning, as well as the possibility of in-progress tests, are indicated by the instructor responsible for each course at the beginning of each Academic Year on the specific 'Syllabus' of the Course/Teaching.
Integrated courses and student-choice training activities (type d) are subject to specific regulations (Regulation of student-choice training activities), which lay down the procedures for their activation, execution and evaluation.
The internship activity (type f) will be carried out and evaluated as per the appropriate regulations (Internship Activity Regulations).
Art. 6 - Composition and functioning of the examination committees The examination committees are composed of at least two members and are proposed by the Course Coordinators at the beginning of each academic year in accordance with the provisions of the University Teaching Regulations.
The assessment of the internship activity will be carried out by the didactic tutor of the accredited university or non-university structure in the manner defined in the specific regulations.
Art. 7 - Terms and procedures for awarding the thesis At the end of the first year, students will choose a thesis supervisor. The speaker will be an instructor of the CLM. It is possible to choose a second Speaker from among instructors at the University and other universities, including foreign ones, and/or a Tutor from among experts belonging to non-university laboratories and research centres. The Second Rapporteur and the Tutor may participate in the work of the Committee, but may not contribute to the determination of the degree grade.
The orientation title of the thesis must be deposited in the Student Registry Office at least three months before the date of the final examination.
Art. 8 - Final examination The final examination consists of the preparation and discussion of a written dissertation (thesis) of an experimental nature, normally written in Italian, but which may also be in English; in this case, it must in any case be accompanied by an abstract in Italian.
For the preparation of the final paper, the student, in agreement with the supervisor, may make use of the experience gained during the performance of type d) and f) activities. The thesis will be discussed by an Examination Committee appointed by the Director of the Department and composed of at least 5 members, at least 4 of whom are official instructors of the Degree Course. As a rule, the Degree Course President chairs the Commission but, in the event of his absence or impediment, may propose another instructor from the Degree Course in his place.
The student will only be admitted to the thesis discussion if the ECTS credits acquired, including those allocated to type d) and f) activities, equals 108.
Art. 9 - Grading and awarding of the degree The following parameters contribute to determining the degree grade, expressed in 100ths: a) the average of the marks obtained in the curricular examinations, expressed in 100ths; b) the points, up to a maximum of 8 in total, awarded by the Degree Committee during discussion of the thesis, according to the following criteria: assessment of the supervisor on the thesis: maximum 4 points; mastery of the subject, quality of the presentation and ability in the discussion: maximum 2 points; current student: 1 point; stays abroad on Erasmus, or participation in traineeships, or particular commitment demonstrated throughout the whole school year; 1 point; The overall mark, determined by the sum of the marks under the headings listed above, is rounded off to the nearest whole number.
The examination is deemed passed if the mark obtained is 66/110 or higher.
Honours may be awarded by unanimous decision of the committee to candidates who achieve a final mark of at least 110. The Commission may also unanimously propose an 'honourable mention'.
TITLE II RULES OF OPERATION Art. 10 - Obligatory attendance Attendance at teaching activities is compulsory. Attendance will be ascertained in accordance with the procedures and criteria established by the individual instructor, who will assess the margin of tolerance in relation to the types of teaching carried out (theoretical lectures, tutorials, laboratory activities, etc.).
At the end of each semester, the coordinator of each integrated course will notify the student registry office in writing of the names of students who have not complied with their attendance obligation. The certificate of attendance at the compulsory teaching activities of each course is indispensable for the student to sit the relevant examination.
Art. 11 - Admission to subsequent years There are no restrictions on admission to the second year.
     
Art. 12 - Transfer from other courses of study 1.  The transfer of students from other courses of study must be approved by the CCLM and the recognition of the ECTS credits acquired will be carried out after analysis of the coherence of the objectives and teaching/training content.
2.    Students coming from degree courses of the same class will be recognised the ECTS credits acquired in the course they came from up to the number of credits of the same S.S.D. foreseen by the CLM in BMVF 3.    Any excess ECTS credits may contribute to the completion of activities in the disciplines of the student's choice (d).
Art. 13 - Criteria for the recognition of ECTS credits from different classes Students coming from other Italian or foreign university courses will be recognised the credits acquired in the disciplines common to the CLM in BMVF after evaluation of the relative equivalences established on the basis of the recognition of no less than 80% of the relative contents.
Art. 14 - Tutoring The CCLM organises tutoring activities in accordance with the University Regulations for Tutoring. Tutoring is an institutional task and an integral part of instructors' teaching activities in order to guide and assist students throughout their studies.
Each student has the opportunity to choose from among the CLM instructors a tutor who will assist him/her throughout his/her university career up to the independent choice of thesis advisor.
If the student does not avail himself of the option, the CoS organises tutoring through a Tutoring and Guidance Commission consisting of a group of tutors and student tutors.
The purpose of this service is to guide and assist students throughout their studies, to make them active participants in their training, to remove any obstacles to successful course attendance, including through initiatives tailored to the needs and aptitudes of individuals.
Art. 15 - Evaluation of teaching activities The University implements initiatives for the evaluation and monitoring of the teaching load for students in order to ensure an adequate correspondence between the ECTS credits attributed to the various training activities and the actual workload.
The University, the Department and the CCL provide for the monitoring and evaluation of teaching activities in accordance with the provisions of the regulations in force.
 
TITLE III FINAL RULES Art. 16 - Amendments to the Rules 1.    Amendments to these Rules may be proposed by the President of the CCLM or by at least one third of the members of the Council and must be approved by an absolute majority of the members of the CCLM.
2.    With the entry into force of any amendments to the Academic Regulations or the Faculty Regulations or other new provisions on the subject, these Regulations shall in any case be reviewed and supplemented.
 
Annex 1 QUALIFYING EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES The qualifying educational objectives of the CLM in BMVF fall within those defined by the decree for the LM-9 class below The aim of the Master's Degree Course in Medical, Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Biotechnology is to train a master's graduate who can be offered on the labour market with an original curriculum and already oriented in terms of professional skills. The aim of the training courses is to produce master graduates with the specific professional skills that are necessary for a rapid entry into the world of work, while also promoting the relevant skills for further academic qualification.
The course offers students several curricula, identified on the basis of the area's peculiarities and employment needs:
 1) Biotechnology for prevention and therapy 2) Biotechnology applied to animal production and food safety 3) Biotechnology applied to regenerative and restorative medicine
 
The educational pathway of the CoS stipulates that graduates must all acquire:
 1) a sound and thorough knowledge and understanding of:
 - structure and function of biomolecules, cells and organs; - molecular bases of diseases and defensive responses in complex animals; - molecular bases of drug action; 2) ability to apply knowledge in drug formulation 3) adequate knowledge of biotechnology patent law and bioethics.
 4) ability to select, prepare and use cellular and animal models experimentally Depending on the chosen orientation, graduates will acquire sound knowledge as well as the ability to apply it in different contexts:
 
 1. Curriculum 'Biotechnology for prevention and therapy' in the prevention of major diseases; in the design of biotechnological drugs and devices in molecular and cellular therapies in haematology; in diagnostic methodologies of genetic, metabolic, tumour and infection diseases 2. Curriculum 'Biotechnology applied to animal production and food safety' in biotechnology applied to animal reproduction and genetic improvement for animal production in biotechnology applied to food quality and safety; in the design and use of biotechnological vaccines 3. Curriculum 'Biotechnology applied to regenerative and reparative medicine' in the biological bases of repair and regeneration in the principles and techniques of regeneration and repair of differentiated tissues in the biology and biotechnological bases of cell therapy in biomaterials and biocompatible synthetic materials used in tissue engineering The course of training includes, in relation to the specific objectives, the performance of internships and the preparation of the final examination, consisting of an original experimental thesis. Both the internship and the preparation of the dissertation can be carried out in the University's departments, in public and private laboratories, private companies, as well as in other Italian or foreign universities. Specific agreements are in place for this purpose.
The master's degree holder is thus prepared to perform tasks of high responsibility in the field of research for the development of projects in various biotechnology-related fields.
The knowledge and skills acquired will also enable the master's degree graduate to move on to higher education in molecular and health-related master's and doctoral schools as well as specialisation schools in the biomedical area.