A clear guide to university qualifications: what they are, how long they last, what they require and how each gives access to the next. At the end, the value of academic honours.
Since the Bologna Process, European university qualifications have been organised in three successive cycles, measured in credits (CFU/ECTS). One credit conventionally corresponds to 25 hours of total student workload.
Entry with an upper-secondary school diploma.
Entry with a bachelor's degree and the curricular requirements.
Entry with a master's degree.
Single-cycle master's degree: a single 5-year programme (300 credits) combining the first and second cycles, entered directly after secondary school. It then gives access to the doctorate.
Provides a sound grounding in a discipline and the methods to explore it further. It gives access to the master's degree and to many professional paths.
Deepens and specialises the first-cycle preparation, developing independent analysis and advanced design skills. Together with the bachelor's it forms the "3+2" route.
Reserved for disciplines that require continuous, unified training, such as law, architecture or primary education. It leads to a qualification equivalent to a master's degree.
Advanced programmes for people already in work. The Master of Advanced Studies (MAS) is the typical continuing-education format in the Swiss system.
The highest level of academic education. It trains for scientific research through an original project, defended in a final thesis.
How they connect: the bachelor's leads to the master's; the master's, or the single-cycle master's, leads to the doctorate. Each step requires the qualification of the previous cycle.
Beyond academic qualifications, academic institutions confer honours on figures who have distinguished themselves in professional, cultural and civic life.
In Italy the honorary degree (laurea honoris causa or ad honorem) is governed by Article 169 of Royal Decree no. 1592 of 31 August 1933, the consolidated act on higher education. It may be conferred only on people who, through their works or publications, have earned recognised distinction in the disciplines of the conferring faculty.
The faculty council's decision requires a two-thirds majority and ministerial approval. Once conferred, the law states that it "confers all the rights of ordinary degrees". Implementing rules are set out in the ministerial circular of 26 March 2012.
«The laurea ad honorem confers all the rights of ordinary degrees.»R.D. 31 agosto 1933, n. 1592, art. 169 (Italian text translated)
These rules apply to honorary degrees conferred by Italian universities through the procedure described. Honours conferred by institutions in other countries, including those of I.S.F.O.A., fall outside that procedure and are honorary in nature.
Honorary degree. Awarded to figures who have distinguished themselves through professional, cultural or civic merit in the Institution's disciplines.
University diploma of merit. Recognises the value of a professional career or body of work, awarded to those who have made a significant contribution in their field.
International career awards. Awards recognising academic and professional careers.
The Rectorate will help you understand where to start, taking account of the qualifications and experience you already have.
