Access to this Master’s Degree Programme is subject to the possession of the curricular requirements, knowledge and skills specified below, pursuant to Art. 6, paragraph 2 of M.D. no. 270/04.

As regards the specific curricular requirements, students must possess one of the following qualifications obtained in an Italian university, or other qualifications obtained abroad and deemed equivalent: Three-year University Degree or Diploma, Specialist Degree or Master’s Degree, pursuant to MD 509/1999 or MD 270/2004, five-year Degree (previous to MD 509/1999).
A university degree in class L-9 is deemed sufficient to comply with the requirements.
A minimum of 85 credits are required in the scientific disciplinary sectors (SSDs) as shown in Table 1 below, also referring to the minimum requirements set in Table 2.

TABLE 1 - List of the SDSs for which a minimum of 85 credits are required
INF/01, ING-INF/05, MAT/02, MAT/03, MAT/05, MAT/06, MAT/07, MAT/08, MAT/09, SECS-S/02, CHIM/03, CHIM/07, FIS/01, FIS/03, ING-IND/02, ING-IND/03, ING-IND/04, ING-IND/05, ING-IND/06, ING-IND/07, ING-IND/08, ING-IND/09, ING-IND/10, ING-IND/11, ING-IND/12, ING-IND/13, ING-IND/14, ING-IND/15, ING-IND/16, ING-IND/17, ING-IND/19, ING-IND/21, ING-IND/22, ING-IND/25, ING-IND/31, ING-IND/32, ING-INF/04, L-LIN/12

TABLE 2 - Minimum number of credits (CFUs) required in the corresponding SSDs (Scientific Disciplinary Sectors)
GROUPS OF SSDs minimum CFUs
INF/01, ING-INF/05, MAT/02, MAT/03, MAT/05, MAT/06, MAT/07, MAT/08, MAT/09, SECS-S/02, CHIM/03, CHIM/07, FIS/01, FIS/03 : min 32 credits (CFUs)
ING-IND/02, ING-IND/03, ING-IND/04, ING-IND/05, ING-IND/06, ING-IND/07, ING-IND/08, ING-IND/09, ING-IND/10, ING-IND/11, ING-IND/12, ING-IND/13, ING-IND/14, ING-IND/15, ING-IND/16, ING-IND/17, ING-IND/19, ING-IND/21, ING-IND/22, ING-IND/25, ING-IND/31, ING-IND/32, ING-INF/04: min 48 credits (CFUs)

In terms of knowledge and skills, access to the programme is subject to a minimum degree score as provided for in the Education Regulation.
Students possessing the curricular requirements listed above will then be assessed to check their personal knowledge, based on the procedure indicated in the Education Regulation of the study programme.
Suitable language skills will also be assessed, level B1 is required. Before obtaining the Master’s Degree, students admitted with lower skills than level B2, must gain the skills equivalent to level B2 by means of training activities to which a suitable number of university credits are assigned, as per the training activity table (“Further linguistic knowledge”).

Graduates in all classes must possess:
- a minimum entry score of 90/110.
- the knowledge of the English language proven by a reasonable number of credits gained in the previous study programme, or a level B1 certificate.
- fulfilment of the curricular requirements indicated in the admission notice and verifiable via a Calculation Sheet available on the Course of Studies webpage

In addition, the knowledge and skills of each single student will be assessed by a specifically appointed board that will examine their previous career. In the event of a less than fully positive verification, specific curricular additions are indicated to be completed by the deadline for enrolment in the Degree Programme, in the manner specified for each individual case.

The access procedures are described in the call for applications for the Master’s Degree Programme.

Vehicle Mechanic Engineering
Master graduates in Vehicle Engineering have acquired knowledge and skills that are mainly related to the design and numerical simulation, which allows them to handle engineering complex issues, or look for original and highly innovative solutions in advanced research contexts or in top sectors of the vehicle industry.

Vehicle Mechanic Engineering
The main functions carried out by master graduates in Vehicle Engineering concern the design of ground vehicles and their components, the research aimed at their development, the modelling and simulation of components and systems of ground vehicles. Master graduates in Vehicle Engineering shall also be able to carry out coordinating roles.

Vehicle Mechanic Engineering
The common job opportunities for Master graduates in Vehicle Engineering relate to manufacturing sectors dealing with alternative endothermal power-trains designed for cars, motor vehicles, agricultural tractors, and earth moving machines, as well as electrical-mechanical and industrial automation fields applied to control, management and safety of vehicles.
Graduates in Vehicle Engineering may continue their studies by completing their preparation in a PhD School or a 2nd level Master.
Master graduates also possess the skills and the requirements in accordance with the applicable legislation to work as Engineers in the various specialisations that are governed by the State law within the Professional Association of Engineers, section A, Industrial sector.

The Master’s degree programme in Vehicle Engineering of the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia aims to provide the knowledge and skills relating to the design, manufacturing, management and use of mechanic components, complex mechanic machines and systems belonging to a wide spectrum of sectors that are distinctive of Vehicle Engineering, such as alternative endothermal engines, vehicles, motor vehicles and agricultural machinery, using the methods and techniques typical of Engineering.
Even developing skills that cover and are common to multiple sectors of Mechanic Engineering, and therefore ensuring graduates the opportunity to find a suitable career option in a wide range of industrial sectors, the degree programme focuses on providing a specialised training that can be used immediately in vehicle manufacturing companies, including those specifically operating in the sports racing sector, which has always been the crown-jewel of the regional production system.
In order to achieve the objective described above, the Master’s Degree Programme in Vehicle Engineering involves the following learning fields:
- Distinctive engineering subjects
- Related and integrating engineering subjects.
In the first of the two learning areas, students already possessing proper basic knowledge that are typical of Mechanic Engineering have the opportunity, during the study programme, to gain further skills in the field of Motors, Aerodynamics, Vehicle Mechanics and Dynamics, and Structural Design of engines and chassis. In the second learning area, students complete their training by exploring mathematic disciplines such as Numerical calculation, with the purpose of using the various tools available to learn and apply the simulation and calculation techniques, and have the opportunity to further explore the control systems required. Such knowledge is enriched by learning and applying computer assisted design tools and virtual prototyping tools in the structural (FEM), fluid-dynamic (CFD) and design (CAD) fields, as well as by using highly specialised research and experimentation laboratories.
The knowledge acquired during the study programme can be further explored in specific training curricula after the degree, which are already available at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia (PhD, Advanced master programmes in Vehicle Engineering, Advanced master programmes in Hydraulics - Fluid Power).

The Master’s Degree in Vehicle Engineering provides students with the communication skills used to describe engineering issues, perform team work, and report the results of research and working activities in general to third parties. Learning such communication skills is an integral part of the study programme: useful tools for this purpose are reporting to peer students and professors the results achieved during practical exercises and laboratory activities, carried out individually or in team, the preparation of thesis projects, the drawing up of technical reports on the activities carried out, and the oral assessments during examinations.
Any internship that is taken up in companies is a further testing ground, useful to check and encourage communication and speaking skills in students. Ultimately, presenting the results achieved during the thesis is the perfect opportunity for students to test their communication skills acquired, which are an integral part of the assessment upon assignment of the final degree score.
Graduates must prove to master at least one language of the European Community, besides Italian.

Master graduates in Vehicle Vehicle Engineering are able to critically deal with common Mechanic Engineering issues, which are made even more complex by the temporary presence of topics relating to other engineering sectors, such as controls and electronics, electric drives, material science.
At the end of the training programme, graduates are able to:
- identify and collect the data required to deal with the issues by means of bibliographic researches, use of data banks and other sources of information;
- ideate and directly carry out analytical surveys by using theoretical models, computer virtual prototypes and experimental measures;
- make a critical analysis of the data available and the results achieved, and draw the appropriate conclusions;
- assess the applicability of innovative technologies in real time by inserting them into the specific context being analysed;
- carry out activities (measures, tests, computer simulations, etc.) and promote evaluations also by working in team.
The improvement in critic and judgement abilities is also encouraged through meetings with research and industry experts, by organising seminars, conferences, and corporate visits.

The training programme of the Master’s degree in Vehicle Engineering, highly multidisciplinary and specialist at the same time, allows students to develop and enhance the learning skills they have acquired during their previous study programme.
In the working environments after graduating, students will therefore be able to independently deal with analysing highly specialised engineering issues that do not belong to the vehicle sector exclusively, but also to Engineering fields non directly included in the study curriculum.
The training activities of the study programme are aimed at providing not only detailed information and state-of-the-art tools for solving technical issues that are peculiar or Vehicle Engineering, but also and mainly a state of mind focused on innovation, on the acquisition of new methodologies, and on the ability to strictly deal with engineering problems that are not necessarily the same or similar to those dealt with during the study period. Such skill offers graduates an adequate base for technical and technological challenges that they will have to deal with during their working career, including any post-degree training programmes (PhD, Master).
The learning skill is encouraged during the study programme through project and laboratory activities, in which students are encouraged to search for complementary information on technical magazines, texts, databases; preparing the thesis is ultimately the summary and evaluation of such skills, as students are required to deal with highly innovative applied research themes.

Engineering training
The study programme is divided into two curricula: Powertrain Curriculum; Vehicle System Curriculum.

As far as the common part is concerned, Master's graduates in Vehicle Engineering develop specific skills at an advanced level in the automotive field, which can be traced back to the following disciplines: internal combustion engines and hybrid and electric propulsion systems, vehicle mechanics, aerodynamics, automatic controls, numerical methods and general design methods.

In these common courses, students acquire knowledge indispensable for understanding and handling complex mechanical engineering problems, with particular reference to the automotive sector; they also develop the basis for tackling the more specialised courses, which are divided between the two curricula.
It is the task of the latter to train students to develop original solutions with a high innovation content in advanced research contexts or in cutting-edge automotive sectors, such as racing.
Technical training is backed by purely practical activities carried out in experimental, numeric calculation and simulation laboratories (both in structural and fluid-dynamics fields).


Specific engineering training: curricula
Master graduates in Vehicle Engineering consolidate the engineering knowledge acquired during their previous studies by exploring topics that are specific to the two curricula: POWERTRAIN and VEHICLE SYSTEM.
In particular, graduates gain the following specific knowledge:
• Powertrain curriculum: design and calibration of combustion systems, fuel injection, turbocharger and charge replacement in endothermic engines; design and management of hybrid thermal/electric power trains and electric power trains; structural design of engine components such as shafts, pistons, connecting rods, etc.; thermo-fluid dynamics simulation of endothermic engines; operating principles and methods of choice and use of electric motors; theoretical/numerical/experimental techniques of vibroacoustics applied to the vehicle, NVH (Noise Vibration Harshness); methodologies for experimental engine testing.
• Vehicle System Curriculum: dynamic vehicle behaviour (car and motorcycle); vehicle thermal comfort and control systems; hydraulic actuation and braking systems; chassis design for strength, crash, handling.

Engineering training
Master graduates in Vehicle Engineering acquire the ability to face and solve issues in the field of Mechanical Engineering in general and the vehicle sector in particular. Because of the high complexity and interdisciplinary feature of the issues being dealt with, graduates must develop a strong vocation for technological innovation, applied research, the use of design techniques and calculation analysis, and teamwork.
Graduates are required to get the skills to critically analyse the technical and legislative evolution of the specific sector, in particular by evaluating the problems related to the environmental impact, the use of innovative materials and technologies, the integration of mechanical mechatronic and electronic systems, the management of experimental methods and the experiment design. The requirements described above are a key element of the professional success, both for graduates in charge of the design or production of standard vehicles or motor vehicles, by virtue of the continuous drive towards the introduction of new technologies, materials and solutions with a low environmental impact, and for graduates who have to deal with the field of sports competitions, where the exacerbated technological content must combine with the extremely reduced times of intervention and response.

The skills to apply knowledge and understanding are assessed within each single subject, in which students are asked to autonomously explore he knowledge provided in the teachings; assessments may include projects, and written and/or oral tests.

The Degree Programme features suitable procedures for the assessment of the consistency of methods, tools and educational materials described in the sheets of the single subjects and the expected learning results.


Specific engineering training: curricula
Master’s degree graduates in Vehicle Engineering have the ability to apply the knowledge acquired in the field of simulation, testing and control to the design and calibration of vehicle systems. They can also take action in top areas of the automotive sector, such as those of vehicle hybrid and electric drives, and in specific fields highly developed in the industrial structure of the region, such as agricultural and industrial machinery.

The skills to apply knowledge and understanding are assessed within each single subject, in which students are asked to autonomously explore knowledge; assessments may include projects, and written and/or oral tests.

The Degree Programme features suitable procedures for the assessment of the consistency of methods, tools and educational materials described in the sheets of the single subjects and the expected learning results.