Health, Safety and Green Systems

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Academic year 2025/2026
Dept. of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences
Alma Mater Studiorum - Università di Bologna
EQF level: 8
41° cicle
Field of study: natural sciences, mathematics, physics and statistics health and pharmacy
Place of teaching
imola (BO), italy
Attendance methods
Full time
Teaching
Classroom-based
Languages in which the course is held
English
Cost
157,04
Duration of the course
Nov 2025 - Oct 2028
Scholarships
7 

Course contents

The Health, Safety and Green Systems (HSGS) Doctorate aims to provide participants with the skills necessary to conceive and implement advanced research programs at academic institutions, public bodies or private companies. Furthermore, it prepares doctoral candidates to take on managerial roles in both the public and private sectors, as well as providing them with the skills necessary for technology transfer in a wide range of sectors, including medicine, environment and agriculture, chemistry and pharmaceuticals, engineering and architecture, with a particular focus on the development of sustainable solutions to improve the quality of environmental systems and the life of communities. HSGS's education and research program offers a wide range of options for young researchers keen to delve deeper into the challenges and opportunities in the above-mentioned fields. It is a highly interdisciplinary program designed to meet the growing demand for professionals capable of integrating different scientific and professional disciplines in the fields of health, safety and green systems.
Among the central themes of the doctorate are urban health, health-focused green systems, the promotion of physical activity, the improvement of health and quality of life in urban areas. The program is in line with various United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals and is based on disciplines such as medical and health sciences, botanical-pharmaceutical sciences, agricultural sciences, architecture and civil and environmental engineering sciences, in their different articulations and in their mutual relations.
The central themes of the doctorate are divided into complementary areas, developed at the interface of thematic clusters relating to health, safety and green systems: prevention and promotion of healthiness and safety in places of living, work, care, recreation and sociality, recycling of plant matrices for new products for the pharmaceutical, phytocosmetics and food supplement industries, quality control of medicinal and non-medicinal herbal food supplements, toxicity and safety of non-food supplements and the environment, production, design and sustainable green management, resilient cities, biodiversity and ecosystem services, territorial planning.
The Doctorate course trains researchers and professional figures equipped with interdisciplinary methodological, scientific and technological skills, capable of integrating sustainable urban planning and design with the planning of decision-making processes and initiatives to improve health and quality of life. Through an innovative scientific approach, these professionals are able to synthesize different areas of research relating to the aforementioned central themes and complementary areas, considering their environmental and social implications. They know how to explore new methods to promote the safety, health and accessibility of urban environments, sustainable food production, the design and management of green and urban and territorial systems, as well as the identification of active ingredients in plants and the application of green chemistry. Furthermore, they are committed to the valorization of territorial resources and the regeneration of the territory, to comprehensively address the challenges related to health, urbanization and environmental management.
For doctoral students, the job prospects are mainly related to two professional categories defined by ISTAT. The first concerns intellectual, scientific and highly specialized professions, which require a notable level of competence to analyze complex problems, propose solutions and make decisions, especially in the field of scientific research. The second category includes the roles of legislators, entrepreneurs and high-level executives, which require deep knowledge to develop and implement strategies in the political, institutional and economic context, such as formulating laws and public policies, planning, directing, coordinating and evaluating policies and objectives, the orientation of the general activities of enterprises, organizations or complex organizational units, public and private. These employment opportunities extend to a wide range of sectors, including businesses, public and private entities, research institutions, and organizations involved in technological innovation. The course aims to satisfy the growing demand for researchers and policy makers capable of integrating these different scientific and professional areas, playing a bridging role that has not been filled until now. Their capacity for analysis and transversal vision allows them to guide complex decision-making processes, synthesizing specific insights and contributing to cost reduction both in the healthcare sector and in territorial governance, thus promoting economic growth.
Page of the course on the University's website

Teaching

Place of teaching
imola (BO), italy
Duration of the course
Nov 2025 - Oct 2028
Attendance methods
Full time
Compulsory attendance
Teaching
Classroom-based
Languages in which the course is held
English

Admission requirements

Type of degree required
2nd Level Degree
Field of study
architecture and construction, agriculture, forestry and veterinary, health and pharmacy, sports sciences and physical education, natural sciences, mathematics, physics and statistics
Foreign language skills
English
During the oral examination, the applicant’s English language proficiency shall be assessed.

Admission

Available places
7
Admission
Admission selection
Qualifications and research proposal evaluation Oral examination
Cost
157,04 €
Scholarships
7
4 scholarships funded by the University of Bologna general budget and /or by departmental budget
3 scholarships funded by an external public body or a company

Employment opportunities

With reference to the professional activities classified by ISTAT, doctoral students find job opportunities in the field of intellectual, scientific and highly specialized professions (Large Group 2), for which a high level of knowledge is required to analyze and represent complex situations and problems, define possible solutions and make decisions, promoting and conducting scientific research, as well as within legislators, entrepreneurs and senior management (Large Group 1), professions that require a level of knowledge necessary to define and implement directing and regulating strategies in the political, institutional and economic fields, for the definition and formulation of government policies, laws and regulations, the planning, direction, coordination and evaluation of policies and objectives, the orientation of the general activities of companies, organizations or complex organizational units, public and private. The HSGS Doctors possess the necessary skills to conduct high-profile research activities, suitable for roles with research and innovation tasks in the academic field, at public and private research centres, public bodies, as well as in research and development divisions or in high-level operational departments of small, medium and large companies and businesses, at a national and international level, professional firms and consultancy organisations. These skills allow SSSV PhDs to find opportunities in various application and professional fields, such as:
- Medical-health sector, with particular reference to health-wellbeing-lifestyle relationships;
- Agri-food, environmental and territorial fields, with particular reference to sustainable production and processing systems and green systems;
- Pharmaceutical sector, with particular reference to botanicals and the chemical-analytical sector;
- Engineering-architectural field, with particular reference to solutions that promote accessibility, safety and sustainability of infrastructures in the context of smart cities.
The areas and types of employment include very diversified sectors: businesses, public administrations, trade associations, schools, public and private research bodies, bodies operating in the sector of technology transfer and innovation.
In particular, the course aims to respond to the growing demand from the social, productive, institutional (political, administrative and management) context, also at an international level and in developing countries, for researchers and policy makers capable of systematising the aforementioned scientific and professional fields, connecting figures that do not exist today. Their capacity for analysis and transdisciplinary vision allows them to guide complex study and decision-making processes, directing specific insights and bringing the results to a synthesis, with important consequences in terms of reducing direct and indirect costs in the healthcare and territorial governance sectors, and therefore of economic growth.
Training and research activities are increasingly co-planned in collaboration with organizations and companies, which in several cases host doctoral students for periods of study at the company, as well as with organizations and companies that fund or co-fund positions to allow the doctoral student to acquire a training and an approach strongly rooted in specific areas in which collaboration opportunities are foreseen.
The mastery of the scientific approach in facing challenges and in devising new solutions, combined with the multidisciplinary competence and high professionalism of the PhDs in Health, Safety and Green Systems, promotes flexibility in the professional field which allows transition to other roles in contexts similar to those in which experience has already been accumulated.

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Other editions of the same course
Academic year edition 2024/2025Academic year edition 2023/2024Academic year edition 2022/2023
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