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Course Objectives

The goal of this PhD Course is to provide students with a first-level education, allowing them to pursue professional careers in Science. Although the major emphasis of the Program is on experimental research, we also provide ample learning opportunities through weekly Journal Clubs, dedicated Courses, Progress Reports and Seminars which cover most aspects of the Life Sciences.

The goal of the program is to form an individual able to perform self-directed research and possessing a level of competence allowing the student to compete with the best International Schools for postdoctoral positions, and/or to enter competitive programs in Industries.

Educational Activities

In Progress Report students develop their teaching and lecture skills. During Courses and Seminars, they are trained in problem-solving, and acquire information from qualified investigators in fields that can be distant from their ongoing research activity, thus contributing to their overall vision of Biomedicine. Care is taken to ensure adequate and direct interaction of the speaker with the students. In Journal Clubs, the students learn how to structure a scientific paper and to critically discuss the evidence presented in the manuscript.

- Courses
A number of courses specifically tailored for PhD students are organized by the faculty during each academic year. The courses span a broad spectrum of topics, and consist a series of lectures held by the same Professor (typically during one-two intensive weeks, 10-20 hr).

- Seminars
A series of seminars by top-level scientists is organized each year at the Vallisneri building. Moreover, students are encouraged to attend seminars organized by other centers and Institutions in Padua, depending on their specific interests and lines of research.

- Journal Clubs
They are organized as group activities with one presenter and one opponent who leads the discussion of a recent scientific manuscript, with the contribution of all the audience which is mainly composed by peers (graduate students), postdocs and young PIs.

- Progress Reports
At the end of each academic year, 2.5 days are devoted to the presentation of the reaserch activity of all the students enrolled in the program (template available on moodle). This formats allow the students to show supervisors and colleagues the work they have been carrying out, and receive suggestions/inputs for future directions. In this occasion, the PhD students are evaluated by the faculty and admitted to the next year of their PhD.

PhD students are strongly encouraged to participate in International summer/winter schools to complete their educational obligations. Financial support is provided for this purpose.

- Soft Skills
The PhD School offers activities aimed at providing the students with soft and transferable skills. Specifically, a course planned for 2024 and 2025 (Science Communication) will deal with the dissemination of research activity. The students are also encouraged to attend a course organized by Research Hub@UniPD on writing and management of international projects, and to attend additional soft skill courses that contribute to their training. Specifically, they are invited to attend the “PhD Educational Week on Transferable skills” organized by the University of Padua.

Research Areas

The PhD course includes a variety of themes, reflecting the richness and diversity of our scientific environment.

Specific lines pursued by students in the last five cycles include:
- Autonomic Control of Cardiac Function;
- cAMP and Ca2+ Signalling in Neurodegeneration;
- Chaperones in Muscle Differentiation and Disease;
- Computational and Molecular Interactomics;
- Extracellular matrix Pathobiology and Tissue Engineering;
- Inflammation and Immunity;
- Mechanisms of Neurodegeneration: Prion Disorders, Alzheimer Diseases, and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis;
- Mitochondria in Cell Death and Cancer;
- Mitochondrial Ca2+ Signalling;
- Muscle Contractility and Plasticity;
- Nanoparticles and Peptides in Biomedicine;
- Neuron-glia Interaction and Epilepsy;
- Neurotoxins, Neuroparalysis and Regeneration;
- Oxidative Metabolism in Cardiac Disease;
- Oxidative Stress and Thiol Redox Regulation;
- Pathophysiology of Striated Muscle;
- Phosphorylation Signalling in Health and Disease;
- Protein Crystallography and Engineering;
- Regulation of the Mitochondrial Proteome;
- Signaling pathways that control protein homeostasis in muscle.

These topics cover several aspects of basic biomedical science and many of them have a high translational potential that make our students capable to approach a wide range of research fields after their PhD.

- Computational and Structural Biology
- Immunology
- Mitochondria and Cellular Signaling
- Molecular and Functional Neurobiology
- Pathophysiology of Muscle and Heart
- Physical activity and Health

Professional Profile

The PhD Program in Biomedical Sciences prepares highly qualified professionals capable of successfully entering various areas of basic and applied biomedical research, both in academic and non-academic settings. The scientific, methodological, and transferable skills acquired during the training pathway enable PhD candidates to access diverse career options that require strong analytical, planning, management, and research communication abilities.

The main career opportunities include:

- Academic and public research careers: many PhD graduates continue their training with postdoctoral research contracts or take on roles within national and international public research institutions, such as universities, institutes of the National Research Council (CNR), IRCCS, the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT), the Veneto Institute of Oncology (IOV), and European agencies. In recent years, academic positions in the scientific-disciplinary sectors relevant to our Program at the University of Padua have been filled by young researchers holding a PhD. The success of our PhD graduates in securing academic positions in Padua and in other Italian and foreign universities is a solid indicator of the excellent quality of the PhD Program in Biomedical Sciences.

- Industrial research and preclinical development: the skills acquired enable graduates to work in positions of responsibility in pharmaceutical, biotechnological, biomedical, and diagnostic companies, in areas ranging from research and development to regulatory affairs, quality management, and scientific communication. In recent years, several of our PhD graduates have found positions in industry, in both research/development and consultancy roles within international companies.

- Healthcare and regulatory institutions: PhD holders may also work in health agencies, regulatory bodies, foundations, and institutions involved in scientific evaluation, health planning, public health project management, or the development of evidence-based health policies.

- Scientific dissemination and communication: thanks to newly implemented training in Science Communication and active participation in seminars and public engagement activities (third mission), PhD candidates are also prepared for professional paths in institutional communication and advanced training.

The Program also strongly promotes the internationalization of graduates’ profiles through a broad network of academic and industrial collaborations abroad and through the development of joint-degree agreements, which will further enhance the attractiveness and global value of the PhD title. For instance, some prestigious universities and research centers abroad where former PhD students continued their careers include: ShanghaiTech University (China), University College London (UCL, UK), Stockholm University – Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics (Sweden), New York University (USA), and the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine (Germany).

Overall, the PhD Program trains highly versatile researchers with a solid scientific background and a strong ability to work in interdisciplinary teams, capable of addressing the challenges of contemporary biomedical research.

  Other information

• Calls and Admissions
• The International PhD guide
• Administrative Informations