Prerequisites for admission.

The 1st cycle degree programme in Mathematics has open access; admission to the 1st cycle degree programme in Mathematics is subject to the possession of a secondary school certificate or equivalent suitable and approved qualification obtained abroad. Students may enrol on a part-time basis.
The aptitude for undertaking a Degree Programme in Mathematics is assessed in an entrance exam or interview to assess the minimum requirements for students wishing to enrol in the degree programme. The assessment is based on mathematical topics relating to the secondary school curriculum, deemed to be prerequisites for studying Mathematics. The topics are defined in agreement with the secondary schools and the National Conference of Deans and Directors of University Sciences and Technologies Structures. Example tests are distributed to schools to allow students to evaluate their own skills level prior to enrolment.
The outcome of the test does not prejudice the possibility to enrol in the programme, as the programme organises preparatory courses to fill any learning gaps immediately prior to the start of lessons in Year I, as well as a tutoring services to help student fill any gaps.
Specific remedial activities are offered to overcome such gaps.
Enrolment to year II of the programme is subordinate to the passing of any additional learning requirements.

Admission procedures

Enrolment in the Degree Programme in Mathematics requires the possession of an Upper Secondary School diploma. Students wishing to enrol must take a non-selective test to verify their academic background, which may take the form of a TOLC-I from CISIA (Consorzio Interuniversitario Sistemi Integrati per l'Accesso), or an OFA-FIM test administered directly by the Department of Physical, Computer and Mathematical Sciences of the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia.

Test characteristics, methods and dates are announced in good time on the website of the Department of Physical, Computer and Mathematical Sciences.

The test also aims to assign students any Additional Learning Requirements (ALRs). Any information on how to pass the test and comply with any ALRs will also be published well in advance on the Department of Physical, Computer and Mathematical Sciences website.

Skills associated with the function

Graduate mathematician (bachelor’s degree)
Graduates have a background knowledge in almost all sectors of mathematics and a basic knowledge in the fields of physics.
They are able to use programming languages. They are able to independently carry out technical or professional tasks defined in the activities of industry, finance, services, and public administration, within the field of learning mathematics and disseminating the scientific culture.

Function in a work context

Graduate mathematician (bachelor’s degree)
Bachelor graduates in Mathematics stand out for their skill to face logical problems with precision. Mathematics training allows students to successfully access the job market in the IT, industry, and service sector, and to quickly gain the specific additional skills required.

Employment and professional opportunities for graduates.

Graduate mathematician (bachelor’s degree)
Graduates in Mathematics may access Master’s degree programmes, 1st Level Vocational Master Programmes and Higher Training programmes.
They are skilled to disseminate the scientific culture with expertise. Ultimately, they may integrate in different application fields (scientific, environmental, healthcare, industrial, financial, service, and public administration).
They may work as IT technicians and Statistics technicians.

Educational goals

Degrees belonging to this class provide a good deal of theoretical, methodological, and application skills in the essential areas of mathematics. During the Degree Programme in Mathematics, analysis and synthesis skills, individual learning and problem solving skills are developed. All graduates in Mathematics are expected to have a good background knowledge of the following topics dealt with in essential teachings: algebra and basic mathematics, some algebraic structures, linear algebra, Euclidean geometry, basic geometry of curves and surfaces, differential and integral calculation, basic differential equations, basic statistics and calculation of probability, application of mathematics to the other disciplines and, in particular, to Physics, the use of computational techniques to the purpose of numerical solution of specific problems.
This objective is pursued by providing for a single programme, mainly divided in essential teachings to which a consistent number of credits are attributed; only at the third year, students may choose among different complementary teachings.

The preferred educational tool for the development of such knowledge are traditional lectures and practical exercises. These are considered a very effective tool for students to learn part of the wide materials of the mathematics corpus. In some cases, students receive teaching handouts (sometimes available free of charge on the Internet) or have one or multiple reference texts; in other cases, the activity of taking notes is seen as part of the learning process. Practical exercises are essential in Mathematics, where understanding is learned through practice and not by simply memorising the concepts. Practical exercises are often offered to be carried out independently, through which students are encouraged to explore the limits of their skills. The assessment is made by evaluating a written paper and/or an oral interview.

Additional teaching tools used to reach specific objectives are IT laboratories. These probably represent the most significant change in the teaching of Mathematics over the last years, as they introduce an experimental aspect of the discipline. They are distinctive not only of related IT sciences and IT programmes, but also statistics, finance mathematics, dynamic systems, etc.

More specifically, the acquisition of the independent learning skills is assessed by taking and passing the examination tests of some free teachings of the third year, and by preparing the final thesis, which normally require students to read scientific texts and bibliography in a foreign language and the personal exploration of issues that are not dealt with in the common teaching activities.

Most training activities provided feature a strong logic precision and a high level of abstraction. Seminar and tutoring activities are also provided and are mainly aimed to develop the abilities to face and solve issues, along with computational and IT laboratory activities. Considerable room is also given to students’ free choices, as they will also be offered training activities that are useful to place the specific skills that are characteristic of the class in the general scientific-technological, cultural, social, and economic context.

Communication skills.

Students are required to:

- be able to communicate issues, ideas and solutions relating to Mathematics, both their own or other authors’, to a specialised or general audience, in their language or in English, both in written and oral form;
- be able to work in a team, operate with certain degrees of independence, and rapidly integrate into working environments.

These training objectives are achieved through practical exercises in the IT and computational mathematics laboratory that include team work, the preparation of the degree thesis, optional studies abroad; they are assessed by means of oral tests of the examinations and the final degree examination.

Making judgements.

Students are required to:

- be able to take on study periods in other Italian and European universities, using the mathematical and computational skills acquired in a suitable manner;
- be able to build and develop logical argumentations with a clear identification of the assumptions and conclusions;
- be able to recognise correct demonstrations and identify deceptive reasoning;
- be able to propose and analyse mathematical models associated to real situations resulting from other subjects and use such models to make the study of the original situation easier;
- be experienced in team work, but also to be skilled to work independently.

These training objectives are achieved through individual study, practical exercises in the IT and computational mathematics laboratory, the preparation of the degree thesis, optional studies abroad; they are assessed by means of oral tests of the examinations and the final degree examination.

Learning skills.

Students are required to:

- be able to promptly integrate in the various work environments by adapting themselves to new types of issues, and easily and rapidly acquiring any specific knowledge;
- be able to continue their studies with Master’s Degree Programmes and 1st Level Vocational Master Programme with a good level of independence, both in Mathematics and other disciplines.

These training objectives are achieved through practical exercises in the IT and computational mathematics laboratory that include team work, the preparation of the degree thesis; they are assessed by means of oral tests of the examinations and the final degree examination.

Knowledge and understanding.

Mathematics area
Students are required to:

- possess suitable basic mathematical knowledge. More specifically, all graduates in Mathematics are expected know: some essential algebraic structures, linear algebra, Euclidean geometry, essential elements of geometry of curves and surfaces, differential and integral calculation, some classes of differential equations, essentials of statistics and calculation of probability, some significant applications of mathematics to other disciplines, and the use of computational techniques to the purpose of numerical solution of specific problems;
- be able to prepare and recognise rigorous demonstrations, and formalise problems formulated in the natural language from a mathematical perspective;
- be able to build and develop mathematics topics clearly identifying assumptions and conclusions;
- be able to read and understand even advanced texts of Mathematics.

These training objectives are achieved through traditional lectures; they are mainly assessed by means of oral tests of the examinations.


Physics area
Students are required to:

- possess suitable basic knowledge in the area of Physics and know the applications of Mathematics to Physics,
- be able to formalise physics problems in the natural language from a mathematical perspective;
- be able to read and understand a texts of Physics.

These training objectives are achieved through traditional lectures; they are mainly assessed by means of oral tests of the examinations.


Information Technology and Computational Mathematics Area
Students are required to:

- possess suitable basic knowledge of Computational Mathematics and IT. More specifically, all graduates in Mathematics must know how to use computational techniques for the purpose of numerically solving specific problems;
- have suitable computational and IT skills.

These training objectives are achieved through traditional lectures in the classroom and IT laboratory; they are assessed by means of oral tests of the examinations.

Applying knowledge and understanding.

Mathematics area
Students are required to:

- be familiar with the scientific method and be able to understand and use mathematical descriptions and models of real situations of scientific interest or describing phenomena of the real world;
- be skilled to draw qualitative information from quantitative data;
- be able formalise problems formulated in the natural language from a mathematical perspective, and use such formulations to clear and solve them;
- be able to acquire information and any specific knowledge on a mathematical issue not dealt with before.

These training objectives are achieved through practical exercises; they are mainly assessed by means of written tests of the examinations.


Physics area
Students are required to:

- be familiar with the scientific method and be able to understand and use mathematical descriptions and models of physical phenomena;
- be able to use a standard formulation of a Physics problem to properly analyse and solve it.

These training objectives are achieved through practical exercises and laboratory sessions; they are mainly assessed by means of written tests of the examinations.


Information Technology and Computational Mathematics Area
Students are required to:

- be familiar with the scientific method and be able to understand and use mathematical descriptions and models of real world situations;
- be able to use IT tools supporting mathematical processes and useful to acquire information;
- know some programming languages or specific software;
- develop communication abilities also through group activities, operating with set levels of independence.

These training objectives are achieved through practical exercises in the classroom and IT laboratory; they are assessed by means of IT laboratory tests of the examinations.