Master's Degree in Biotechnology for the Bioeconomy
DURATION
2 Years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
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EARLIEST START DATE
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TUITION FEES
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STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
Introduction
Bioeconomy responds to the environmental challenges the world is facing, oriented to reduce the dependence on natural resources, transform manufacturing, promote sustainable production of renewable plant, microbial and animal resources and their conversion into food, feed, materials, bio-based products and bio-energy, while growing new jobs and industries.
Biotechnology is one of the key enabling technologies to sustain a new green and sustainable economy (i.e. bioeconomy), offering solutions for an efficient and sustainable production of plant and microbial biomasses; the production of bioenergy from (waste) biomasses; environmental protection and safety in terms of bioremediation; green chemistry processes and applications; sustainable agri-food production and processes, circular economy.
In this context, the Biotechnology for the Bioeconomy (BforB) Master degree aims at providing students with advanced molecular and cellular background of microbe and plant systems, which are the basis for the several sectors of the biotechnologies applied to the bio-economy. The BforB Master degree will equip students with a solid and broad expertise about the structure and function of biological macromolecules of interest for the bioeconomy sector, and complete knowledge about the analyses of informational molecules and the expression of characters with a special focus on multidisciplinary and integrated approaches. The BforB Master degree will provide theoretical and practical instruments for the set-up, analyses and improvement of biotechnological processes for:
- the transformation of renewable raw materials in biotechnological processes exploiting microorganisms, plants and enzymes;
- plant and microbial-based bioremediation strategies;
- bio-based approaches in food and agriculture sustainable development
The BforB Master degree will be taught entirely in English, providing the students with knowledge and competences that can be spent at European and extra European level, to which the bioeconomy sector is faced. Moreover, the English language will allow the participation of students from out of Italy, making the Master degree a stimulant international learning environment.
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Admissions
Curriculum
1st Course Year
- Biomass and waste recycling promoting the circular economy
- Fermentation biotechnology
- Methods in biotechnology
- Structure and functions of biomolecules
- Environmental microbial biotechnology
- Environmental plant biotechnology
- Plants as biofactories
- Protein engineering and proteomics
2nd Course Year
- Bioeconomy: Management, Assessment, and Intellectual Property
Further Elective Courses
- Bio-based Innovation in Food Industry
- Biostatistics and Design of Experiments in Biotechnology
- Developing Soft Skills in Science: Case Studies from Microbial Biotechnology
- Molecular Analysis and Traceability of Biotechnological Products
- Applied Biocatalysis
- Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals
Program Outcome
The students of the BforB Master's degree will acquire advanced skills and competencies in:
- Set up and optimize the production efficiency of biological systems (microorganisms, plants, enzymes) involved in bioprocesses in the agriculture, food, and environmental sectors, in relation to consumer needs and environmental sustainability
- Exploitation of bioinformatics tools and genomics, proteomics, and metabolomics databases
- Set up molecular and chemical analysis methods for basic and applied research activity
- Scientific experimental planning project design and management
The BforB Master's Degree offers courses specifically focused on biotechnology, both general and applied to the agriculture, environmental, and food sectors. These will be integrated with courses on the chemical and biochemical sectors, necessary for the comprehension of bioeconomy applications (e.g., bioprocesses with cells and enzymes, recovery and application of biomolecules from biomasses and agri-food waste). Knowledge of life-cycle assessment, intellectual property, technological transfer, and project management will provide basic tools for biotechnology application to the bioeconomy sector.
The students will have the possibility to personalize their study plan by choosing additional courses on specific bioeconomy sectors like functional foods, molecular traceability, bio-based food industry, biocatalysts, and to acquire horizontal skills like biostatistics and design of experiments, and soft skills enabling team working and moving into the work market or the scientific research field.
Students will have the possibility to further develop the acquired knowledge by participating in seminars and workshops led by experts in different sectors.
The acquired knowledge will be applied during the lessons, in work-group and discussion-based activities, laboratory activities, and technical visits to companies involved in the bioeconomy market. A fundamental part of the Master's Degree is dedicated to laboratory training, with the possibility to choose short laboratory internship experiences and the mandatory final thesis internship during which the student will perform an original research project under the guidance of an academic tutor, complete by a final public dissertation.
The knowledge and learning capacity acquisition will be verified with exams, oral and/or written, and also on the basis of laboratory practical activities, group works, and literature presentations (e.g., journal clubs), discussion-based activities.
Program Tuition Fee
Career Opportunities
The BforB graduate is a biotechnologist, expert in coordination, management, and setup of research and development laboratories in public entities and in private companies in the chemical, agro-environmental, and biotechnological sectors. The function will primarily be the development, implementation, and coordination of laboratory activity within basic and applied research projects, the setup of bioprocesses, and quality control.
- More in detail, the BforB graduate is an expert in planning, development, analyses, and control of processes for
- Industrial fermentation for the production of metabolites and renewable energy
- Plant and microbial cells as biofactories for molecules of interest in the fine chemical and polymer industry, agro-food, and pharmaceutical industry with particular application to green chemistry and the bio-based industry
- Bioremediation of contaminated land and waters, using plants and/or microorganisms
- Innovative diagnosis tools, applied in particular to the traceability in the agro-food chain
The employment opportunities for the BforB graduate are in research bodies (both public and private) and bio-based chemical, pharmaceutical, agro-food, and biotechnological enterprises.
BforB graduates can access the Italian State exams for professional qualification and registration in the Professional Register of the Order of Agronomists and Forestry Doctors (section A), and in the Professional Register of the National Order of Biologists (section A). Furthermore, graduates can participate in the qualifying exams for the profession of Agrotechnician and Graduate Agrotechnician.