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Coordinator: Prof. Piero Colajanni

Deputy Coordinator: Prof. Michele Fabio Granata

Initial Cycle: XLI (41st)

Curricula:

1. Structural and Geotechnical Engineering
2. Road Infrastructure Engineering, Geomatics and Transportation

 

Description of the Educational Programme

The PhD Programme in Advances in Structure and Infrastructure Engineering, based at the University of Palermo, is conceived as an interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary programme aimed at addressing some of the most pressing challenges of our time in the field of engineering.

The educational programme of the PhD in Advances in Structure and Infrastructure Engineering is designed to foster the personal and professional development of graduates and professionals across a broad range of topics related to Structural and Geotechnical Engineering, Road Infrastructure Engineering, Transportation, and Geomatics.

Through this educational offering, PhD students, in addition to acquiring in-depth knowledge of the topics and challenges of their specific field of study and research, will be able to integrate specialized knowledge from other disciplines. This challenge is addressed by the programme through constructive interactions and an effective synthesis between science and engineering. Research activities envisaged within the programme make use of innovative experimental approaches, new theoretical frameworks, and advanced simulation methods.

The PhD educational offer is structured into two curricula:

• Structural and Geotechnical Engineering
• Road Infrastructure Engineering, Geomatics, and Transportation

Over the three years of the PhD Programme in Advances in Structure and Infrastructure Engineering, students will participate in dedicated educational activities, including attendance at advanced specialized courses, participation in seminars, workshops, laboratories, study days, and other courses offered by the University of Palermo or by other Italian or European universities, to be identified according to the individual training needs of each student.

Based on feedback and improvement proposals from PhD students, suggestions from internal stakeholders (Degree Programmes, Specialization Schools, Master’s Programmes, Doctoral School, Academic Board, University Governance, and Departments), as well as national and international benchmarking, these activities will be periodically reviewed and updated in order to ensure alignment with the cultural and scientific evolution of the disciplinary areas relevant to the PhD Programme.

In line with the University’s strategic planning and with the development of strong interdisciplinarity, multidisciplinarity, and transdisciplinarity, the Doctoral Board promotes common educational activities for all PhD tracks (e.g. basic MATLAB courses, language and IT skills enhancement courses, etc.).

During the PhD Programme, the quality of research and educational activities will be evaluated annually for each PhD student. Moreover, at least one meeting per year with stakeholders will be organised in order to foster dialogue with the professional and industrial sectors, to identify the needs of the evolving labour market, and to support the placement of future PhD graduates in high-level professional positions.

 

Programme Objectives

The PhD Programme in Advances in Structure and Infrastructure Engineering aims to introduce students to advanced knowledge of methods for problem analysis and for addressing scientific questions related to Structural and Geotechnical Engineering, Road Infrastructure and Transportation Engineering, and Geomatics.

The educational objectives of the PhD Programme are defined with reference to the two curricula into which it is structured: Structural and Geotechnical Engineering, and Road Infrastructure Engineering, Geomatics, and Transportation.

The curriculum in Structural and Geotechnical Engineering covers topics related to the scientific-disciplinary sectors of Structural Mechanics, Structural Engineering, and Geotechnical Engineering. Its objective is to train researchers and highly qualified professionals capable of identifying, formulating, and solving complex engineering problems related to construction engineering and its interaction with the ground. Relevant fields include computational mechanics, structural dynamics and monitoring, geomechanics, thermo-hydro-mechanical behaviour of geomaterials, tissue biomechanics and mechanobiology, seismic and landslide risk mitigation, and concrete structures. The curriculum aims to train high-level professionals capable of managing new technologies and innovation in the construction sector. The programme enables the education of both internationally competitive researchers and technical professionals capable of addressing the design of complex structures.

The curriculum in Road Infrastructure Engineering, Geomatics, and Transportation aims to train highly qualified professionals capable of: addressing and solving problems related to the design, construction, maintenance, and management of road and railway infrastructures throughout their life cycle; applying criteria of efficiency, safety, socio-economic and environmental sustainability in the design and operation of transport infrastructures; recognising the fundamental issues of transportation systems in the mutual interaction between demand and supply; managing operational, maintenance, functional upgrading, and decommissioning projects and programmes in accordance with circular economy principles; designing, carrying out, and processing surveys using the most advanced 3D surveying techniques; developing advanced geomatics procedures to support engineering applications; acquiring, processing, analysing, and managing territorial information through remote sensing techniques and geographic information systems.

The curricula aim to specialise the proposed research topics according to priority objectives, consistent with the most advanced areas of international research and with those related to the scientific-disciplinary sectors of the faculty members of the Doctoral Board.

The innovative character of the programme derives largely from the multidisciplinary perspective underlying the educational project and from the openness of the curricula to a wide range of interdisciplinary specialist skills. This approach responds to a concrete and foreseeably growing demand, linked to the implementation of recent legislative provisions and policy orientations at both European and national levels.

Both curricula address highly topical themes that fall within the scope of basic and applied research, recognised by the scientific and industrial communities as strategically important for technological advancement.

In addition to the specific topics of the two curricula, interdisciplinary doctoral theses, including those developed in collaboration with other institutions and on cross-cutting themes, are strongly encouraged. The PhD studies aim to train both internationally recognised researchers and scholars, as well as qualified designers and technical professionals capable of addressing the development of complex structures, road infrastructures, and transportation systems.

Among the objectives of the PhD Programme are mobility and internationalisation, promoted through periods of study and research for PhD students and faculty members of the Doctoral Board at other Italian and international institutions.

 

Career Opportunities and Professional Prospects

The PhD Programme aims to train highly qualified researchers and professionals capable of planning, designing, constructing, and managing activities related to civil construction and materials engineering at an advanced level, including related industrial applications.

In addition to career opportunities in academia and research, PhD graduates in Advances in Structure and Infrastructure Engineering may operate in senior technical and/or managerial roles, with responsibilities commensurate with the level of expertise acquired and with a strong ability to address new and complex problems, within:

• independent professional practice, professional firms, and companies engaged in design and/or consultancy activities aimed at supporting decision-making processes;
• private companies involved in the construction and maintenance of civil works;
• public territorial authorities with technical offices responsible for the planning, design, and management of civil works and road infrastructures (owning bodies and operating companies);
• companies, authorities, consortia, and agencies responsible for the management and control of systems, works, and services, with particular reference to mobility and transportation infrastructures;
• service companies specialising in feasibility studies and in the assessment of the urban and territorial impact of road infrastructures.

PhD graduates will be able to integrate innovative experimental approaches, new theories, and advanced simulation methods through an effective synthesis between science and engineering acquired during the PhD Programme.

The ultimate goal of the PhD Programme is to educate students in the principles of science and technology within the research areas covered by the faculty of the Doctoral Board, and to provide the tools necessary for future activities in both scientific research and technological development, enabling professional integration also within the economic and productive sectors. Considering the employment outcomes of PhD graduates over the last five cycles, career prospects are broad. In recent years, numerous PhD graduates have obtained positions in academic research at the host university and at national and international research centres based in Europe.