Postgraduate training plays a fundamental role in the employment prospects of any young graduate student. The technological and innovative goals of modern industry are more and more complex and require a multidisciplinary and multisectoral approach. It is therefore of the utmost importance to integrate multiple specific skills in areas ranging from engineering to physics, involving chemistry, biology and medicine. This entails a necessary remodeling of the training courses, providing specialist knowledge, scientific methodology, flexible mentality and ability to work in organized research teams in order to solve complex problems and make the most of the potential of Industry 4.0.
The PhD in Industrial Engineering of the Rome “Tor Vergata” University has made multidisciplinary approach and close relationships with national and international companies its distinctive character. The research topics present in the PhD program cover a wide range of applications such as: industrial design, new materials and technologies, energy and the environment, engineering applications for medicine and sports, sensors, robotics, diagnostics for cultural heritage and management.
This choice has proved successful and the doctorate has grown remarkably in the past years, bringing together colleagues from other universities and thematic areas. An extensive network of international relationships was developed and quite a few agreements were achieved with companies with research and development departments operating in different industrial sectors. This approach is assessed by the fact that members of the teaching panel belong to research institutes and universities from 12 countries of the European community. In addition, many national and international companies actively collaborate to the PhD programme, 12 of which have signed specific permanent agreements.
The Doctorate is also associated with 6 international universities from France, Germany, Switzerland, Albania, India and Mexico. As a result, an average of about 80 PhD students have been attending the programme each year in the last 5 years, approximately 30% of them coming from foreign countries.