Courses

PhD students can attend each of the following teaching activities once during the three-year frame of the PhD program. 

Disciplinary and Multidisciplinary Courses organized by the PhD program:

• Technologies for genome instability (15 hours); Lecturer: Prof. Jessica Marinello 
• Introductory Statistics (15 hours); Lecturer: Prof. Elena Bacchelli
• Communicating science: languages, narratives, and tools (15 hours); Lecturer: Prof. Barbara Zambelli
• Genome editing technologies using CRISPR-Cas systems (15 hours); Lecturer: Prof. Francesco Chemello
• Digital processing of biomolecular images (15 hours) Lecturer: Prof. Alberto Danielli

Other courses:

• Disciplinary and multidisciplinary courses organized by the UNIBO master's degree programs.
• The courses offered by the Earth, Life and Environmental Sciences (STVA) PhD program are listed in the  "Courses offered by STVA 2025-2026" section.
• English language improvement (Academic English Skills, 48 hr): Organized by The University Linguistic Centre.
• Soft skills - Competenze trasversali: Organized by UniBO; please visit https://centri.unibo.it/teaching-learning/it/studenti-e-studentesse/per-chi-frequenta-un-dottorato

Seminars:

• Seminars organized by the FABIT Department are communicated by email.
• Interdisciplinary seminars organized by the Institute for Advanced Study of the University of Bologna.

Upon completion of the course, the doctoral student possesses solid knowledge of new technologies for studying the cellular, molecular and genomic mechanisms leading to the onset of DNA damage and repair mechanisms. The doctoral candidate is familiar with the main methods of damage analysis and mapping, such as immunofluorescence with specific markers, Comet Assay, Proximity Ligation Assay, End-Seq and Bliss. The doctoral student also acquires the ability to select the most suitable ones for potential use in the design of his or her own research.

CRISPR-Cas systems are revolutionizing the field of genetic engineering. By the end of the course, the PhD student will understand how CRISPR-Cas systems were discovered, how this technology can be applied, and the latest “CRISPR-Cas based” tools that can be used for genome editing in vitro and in vivo. The PhD student will also learn how to design genome editing experiments, gaining the skills to design sgRNAs, select the most appropriate gene editor, and choose the best model for testing.

The course will cover the fundamental concepts of statistics and the principles of statistical inference. By the end of the course, students will be able to: i) manipulate and summarize data; ii) visualize and interpret relationships within data; and iii) apply the most commonly used statistical tests in research. The student will learn to perform statistical analyses with Excel and interpret the output in the context of the analyzed phenomenon or experiment.

At the end of the course, the PhD student:

• has acquired basic elements for the correct digital manipulation of scientific images and their composition in vector graphics;
• understands the management of channels, layers and colours to optimise the visual rendering of blots and micrographs;
• is familiar with freeware applications for the analysis and management of scientific images (ImageJ-FIJI, GIMP) and vector graphics (Inkscape);
• has knowledge of the risks and responsibilities associated with image manipulation and is able to recognise the most common artefacts.

In particular, the student acquires skills on:

• elements of the scientific figure;
• correct management of colours and levels (contrast, brightness);
• common artefacts: how to recognise and avoid them;
• introduction to ImageJ (FIJI) for image analysis;
• principles of vector graphics;
• figure composition in vector graphics (cartoons, deuglifying Excel graphs, lettering etc.)

The Programme is  designed by UniBO for all PhD students and has the following goals:
- Supporting the international dimension of the PhD curriculum and strengthening the role of academic research within industry and Public Administration;
- Enhancing future Research Doctors’ career prospects by means of specific training on soft skills;
- Designing curricula for the taught components of Doctoral degrees and through standardized formats and practices.

The 2025-26 edition of the Programme aims to build and deepen cross-discipline skills for PhD candidates in the following areas:
Promoting and communicating research;
Methods and tools;
Planning one's personal future.

PhD students interested in the courses offered by the STVA PhD program are invited to contact Prof. Fabrizio Ghieselli (fabrizio.ghiselli@unibo.it) and Prof. Liliana Milani (liliana.milani@unibo.it) by email at least 20 days before the start of the course to complete the registration procedure.

Please make sure to copy the Program Coordinator and your Supervisor in the email.