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The PhD program at the Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche “Mario Negri”
The International Graduate Program of the Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri" (IRFMN)
is organized in collaboration with the Open University (Milton Keynes, UK) which confers a
PhD title recognized worldwide. The Program is part of the educational and training activities
taking place in the two campuses of Milano and Bergamo. The major aim of the Graduate Program
is to train students for research careers in the field of Pharmacology and Toxicology with
reference to Cancer, Neurological, Cardiovascular and Kidney diseases. Other areas of
interest are Organ Transplantation, Rare Diseases, Molecular Pharmacology, Environmental
Toxicology, Public Health and Human Epidemiology.
Student induction and training
The PhD training programme is based on a "hands-on" approach and focuses on teaching the
scientific methodology necessary for successful completion of the specific thesis project. The
quality of the scientific training of the single PhD students is predominantly the responsibility
of the Director of Studies. S/he supervises and has the responsibility for the student’s scientific
work and reports regularly to the Research Degree Coordinator.
The IRFMN departments and laboratories are equipped with state-of-the-art scientific
instrumentation which is fully accessible to the PhD students. The Director of Studies has to
see that the student has proper training in the use of the instruments and is aware of the general
and specific risks and hazards associated with the experimental work, when this is applicable.
Modern science calls for access to and constant updating of the literature relating to the
specific topics of interest. This is an essential part of the training programme and the
Director of Studies checks that the student consults the literature regularly and keeps up to date
not only in his specific field. The scientific literature is available at the Institute's
Pfeiffer Library with its staff of professional librarians. On-line access to the major
scientific journals and a large array of other scientific publications is guaranteed by the
subscriptions and licenses managed by the Pfeiffer Library, which is part of the large network of
libraries of the Regione Lombardia. Courses on advanced computer literature search techniques are
organized regularly by the Library Manager and are compulsory for the PhD students.
Another aspect of the PhD training programme emphasized by the IRFMN scheme is development of
the student's communication skills. Students are encouraged and trained by the Director of
Studies to present their data at department meetings and at the Institute's internal
seminars. After completion of the probationary period PhD students are required to present at
least one institute internal seminar in English. Further oral presentations in English can be
delivered within the framework of the department seminars.
The IRFMN has a regular schedule of scientific seminars and talks open to all the staff and
students (institute seminars). Two types of presentations are available: internal seminars
presented by members of the scientific staff ("Two o'clock Club") and external seminars presented
by invited Italian and foreign scientists. Small Department meetings consisting of individual
presentations are regularly held and are organized by the single Departments of the Institute.
Internal and external courses and mini-courses on specific topics are also organized on a regular
basis. These are all important educational opportunities and are part of the PhD training
programme, as attendance is compulsory for all the PhD students.
Selection criteria
The PhD course is an educational programme of excellence. To guarantee the highest
scientific standards, access is generally limited to young investigators with at least one year's
experience in any field of experimental or clinical research. When exceptions to these
general rules arise, a case must be made and presented to the Research Degree Coordinator.
Preferential qualifications include one or more original scientific articles in peer-reviewed
international journals.
- Access to the PhD Course is regulated by a competitive yearly call for applications that
is open to both internal (already working inside the Istituto "Mario Negri") and external
candidates.
- The PhD programme is open to individuals below the age of 35 years, unless exceptional
circumstances apply. In this last instance, a case must be submitted to the Research Degree
Coordinator.
- In accordance with international, European and Italian legislation, and the "equal
opportunity employer" status of the IRFMN, no distinction for applicants is made as to sex,
nationality, health status or religious opinion.
- Italian prospective PhD students must have an Italian doctorate degree (laurea breve o
laurea magistrale) in any scientific discipline.
Foreign students must have a graduate degree equivalent to those for the Italian candidates.
Terms of Registration with the Open University
The annual tuition fees (currently 1750 GB pounds) for each PhD student are covered by IRFMN for
the entire duration of the PhD programme and for no longer than the maximum accepted duration of
the course (four years).
In case of withdrawal or extension requests by the PhD student and approval by the OU, the
student is asked to reimburse the tuition fees advanced by IRFMN, on the basis of a document
describing the terms.
Throughout the PhD course, IRFMN provides the student with a monthly stipend in the form of
a fellowship. For year 2009, the gross stipend is set at 15,000 €/YEAR.
Procedures for registration with the Open University
A limited and variable number of new registrations is scheduled annually by the Research Degree
Coordinator. One competitive call for new registrations is issued every year. The
deadline for the submission of new registrations to the Open University is October 1. The
procedure for the registration is divided in four phases. For Year 2009, the deadlines for
the completion of each phase are listed below:
2009 deadlines
1. Publication of the competitive call:
January 31
2. Pre-registration:
May 30
3. Evaluation of the applications:
July 20
4. Registration of the accepted students:
September 15
1.
Publication of the competitive
call
The 2009 annual competitive call for applications containing the indication of the number
of positions available for internal and external students is present in the document entitled
"Applications for the PhD course organized by the Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri
in collaboration with the Open University".
2.
Pre-registration
2.1 Prospective internal students are proposed by a member of the IRFMN
permanent staff (Director of Studies, DS) and communicated directly to the Research
Degree Coordinator. In response to the call, the internal candidate must transmit the
following documents necessary for the submission of the pre-registration to the School
Office:
2.1.1 the completed provisional
ARC9 form
2.1.2 a first version of the Research Project to be redacted under the supervision of
the DS
2.1.3 the applicant's CV
2.1.4 the completed provisional
ARC4 form with the indication of the DS
2.1.5 an appropriate English language certificate (applicable for Italian students and
students from non-English-speaking countries).
2.2 Prospective external students will first contact the Head of the Department
in which they intend to carry out the thesis work and obtain approval (a list with the
corresponding contact information is available in Appendix 1). The contacted scientist will
inform the Research Degree Coordinator and/or the School Office about approval of the potential
applicant and selection of an appropriate DS. In response to the call, the external candidate
will transmit the following documents necessary for submission of the pre-registration to the
Office of the School:
2.2.1 the completed provisional
ARC9 form
2.2.2 a first version of the Research Project to be redacted under the supervision
of the DS
2.2.3 the applicant's CV
2.2.4 the completed provisional
ARC4 form with the indication of the DS, i.e.
the internal tutor to be selected from the "Mario Negri" Institute permanent staff
2.2.5 an appropriate English language certificate (Italian students and students coming from
non-english-speaking countries).
3.
Evaluation of the applications
Applications will be evaluated by a panel of three internal reviewers, including the
Research Degree Coordinator, who will rank the candidates according to various criteria
including: CV, clearness and scientific merit of the proposal. Two distinct rankings
for the internal and external prospective students will be issued and posted on the WebSite of the
Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri". Internal and external candidates passing
the admission threshold (score >70/100) will be interviewed by the same examination panel as
above. As the Institute will not cover relocation expenses for the interview, Skype or MSN
video-interviews can be arranged for foreign students. Italian students and students from
non-English-speaking countries will be assessed for English language skills during the
interview. The final decision on the acceptance of the candidate cannot be appealed and will
be communicated by the School Office.
4.
Submission of the final documents to be transmitted to the Open University by the School
Office for the registration
After notification of the acceptance, the Student must transmit the following to
the School Office:
4.1 the final ARC9 form
4.2 a final version of the Research Project (if necessary amended according to the
suggestions communicated to the student by the Research Degree Coordinator)
4.3 the applicant's CV
4.4 Animal Care Unit certification (for thesis projects requiring the use of animals)
4.5 the completed ARC4 form and CVs of the Director of Studies and external Supervisor
4.6 the results of the internal English test or a copy of the appropriate English
language certificate.
The material will be transmitted to the Open University by the School's Office before
October 1.
Appendix 1
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Campus in Milano
ONCOLOGY
Maurizio D’Incalci, M.D. (E-mail address: dincalci@marionegri.it; Tel. No.
+39-02-39014571)
NEUROSCIENCE
Dr. Gianluigi Forloni (E-mail address: forloni@marionegri.it; Tel. No.
+39-02-39014462)
CARDIOVASCULAR RESEARCH
Maria Grazia Franzosi, M.D. (E-mail address: franzosi@marionegri.it; Tel.
No. +39-02-39014482)
BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR PHARMACOLOGY
Dr. Mario Salmona (E-mail address: salmona@marionegri.it; Tel. No.
+39-02-39014447)
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
Dr. Roberto Fanelli (E-mail address: fanelli@marionegri.it; Tel. No.
+39-02-39014498)
PUBLIC HEALTH
Maurizio Bonati, M.D. (E-mail address: mother_child@marionegri.it; Tel. No.
+39-02-39014478)
EPIDEMIOLOGY
Carlo La Vecchia, M.D. (E-mail address: lavecchia@marionegri.it; Tel. No.
+39-02-39014527)
Campus in Bergamo and Transplant Research Center in Ranica
(Bergamo)
MOLECULAR MEDICINE
Dr. Ariela Benigni (E-mail address: benigni@marionegri.it; Tel. No.
+39-035-319888)
RENAL MEDICINE
Piero Ruggenenti, M.D. (E-mail address: ruggenenti@marionegri.it; Tel. No.
+39-035-45351)
BIOENGINEERING
Dr. Andrea Remuzzi (E-mail address: aremuzzi@marionegri.it; Tel. No.
+39-035-319888)
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