The final examination (thesis) is a written report on a topic related to your Course but different from the topic of the internship, allowing you to expand your knowledge in various areas of physics.
The workload of the thesis is 6 CFU, equivalent to 150 hours of study.
The thesis should generally not exceed 30 pages and is written in Italian, in which case the title and summary can optionally be in English. To write your thesis in English, submit a motivated request signed by your supervisor to didattica.df@units.it for approval by the Academic Board. Theses written in English must include title and summary in Italian.
The thesis is prepared with the support of a supervisor (Relatore) who is a lecturer of the Department. The supervisor may also be an external expert who is not a lecturer of the Department but their appointment must be approved by the Board of Studies. To choose an external supervisor, fill in the Modulo per Relatore Esterno and send it to didattica.df@units.it before applying for graduation in Esse3. If the Academic Board approves your request, in the absence of an internal co-supervisor, it will also appoint an internal counter-supervisor.
Remember that you must email the PDF version of your thesis to didattica.df@units.it at least 10 days before the start of the graduation session. The file size must not exceed 15 MB.
Thesis Defence
The degree is awarded after presenting and discussing the thesis before an Examination Board consisting of at least three members, in compliance with the University's Academic Regulations. Time limits are as follows:
- Presentation: 15–18 minutes
- Discussion: 5–7 minutes
At the end of the discussion, the Examination Board assigns a score to be added to the final degree grade.
Degree Grade
The Examination Board calculates the degree grade based on criteria that include:
- Weighted average of grades (expressed out of 110)
- According to your graduation session:
- 5 points for graduating by the September session of the 3rd year
- 3 points for graduating by the December session of the 3rd year
- Up to 4 points awarded by the Board for the final examination
- 0.2 points for each honours (lode), up to a maximum of 2 points
With a unanimous decision, the Board may also award honours (lode).
Further information
Detailed information on the thesis and final examination, the composition of the Examination Board and grading criteria are in the Academic Regulations.
Sessions and deadlines
- Summer session
Submission of online graduation application: from 22 April 2025 to 12 May 2025
Deadlines for the session from 25 to 28 July 2025:
- Passing the last exam: 10 July 2025
- Cancelling the graduation application (online only): 10 July 2025
- Changing the thesis title (online only): 10 July 2025
- Sending the PDF version of the thesis to didattica.df@units.it: 15 July 2025
Deadlines for the session from 18 to 19 September 2025:
- Passing the last exam: 3 September 2025
- Cancelling the graduation application (online only): 3 September 2025
- Changing the thesis title (online only): 3 September 2025
- Sending the PDF version of the thesis to didattica.df@units.it: 8 September 2025
- Autumn session
Submission of online graduation application: from 25 August 2025 to 12 September 2025
Deadlines for the session from 17 to 20 October 2025:
- Passing the last exam: 2 October 2025
- Cancelling the graduation application (online only): 2 October 2025
- Changing the thesis title (online only): 2 October 2025
- Sending the PDF version of the thesis to didattica.df@units.it: 7 October 2025
Deadlines for the session from 12 to 15 December 2025:
- Passing the last exam: 21 November 2025
- Cancelling the graduation application (online only): 21 November 2025
- Changing the thesis title (online only): 21 November 2025
- Sending the PDF version of the thesis to didattica.df@units.it: 2 December 2025
- Extraordinary session
Submission of online graduation application: from 7 January 2026 to 23 January 2026
Deadlines for the session from 13 to 16 March 2026:
- Passing the last exam: 26 February 2026
- Cancelling the graduation application (online only): 26 February 2026
- Changing the thesis title (online only): 26 February 2026
- Sending the PDF version of the thesis to didattica.df@units.it: 7 March 2026