Before starting the application for the recognition of a doctoral degree obtained abroad, it is important to know what you may request a:

1. recognition for the purpose to obtain the Italian degree (equipollenza), through an evaluation procedure of the foreign doctorate aimed to award a corresponding third-cycle Italian degree, with legal value in our system; 

2. recognition for the purposes of participation in public competitions intended for staff recruitment (equivalence), pursuant to art. 38, paragraph 3, Legislative Decree no. 165/2001. The equivalence of a foreign degree allows you to participate in a competition without an Italian qualification being awarded and without applying for an academic recognition. The equivalence procedure is the responsibility of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers - Department of Public Administration - P.P.A. Office. – Recruitment Service (www.mur.gov.it/it/aree-tematiche/universita/equipollenze-equivalenza-ed-equiparazioni-tra-titoli-di-studio/titoli-1).

With reference to the recognition for awarding an Italian degree (nostrification), the evaluation is carried out by the University of Udine in accordance with the "Guidelines for the academic recognition of foreign PhD degrees in Italy" issued by CIMEA - Information Center on Mobility and Academic Equivalences (https://www.cimea.it/) with document n. 137 of July 2022 and any subsequent updates.

Academic recognition involves detailed verification of the level and contents correspondence between the foreign degree and the Italian degree.

The University can make recognitions only for doctoral degrees it awards and that have reached the end of the first activation cycle.

The evaluation of a foreign PhD Programme for the purposes of awarding a PhD degree may produce the following results:
- direct awarding of the corresponding Italian PhD degree;
- refusal of the degree recognition in the event of a "substantial difference".

For the purposes of evaluating the direct awarding of the Italian PhD degree, the foreign degree must always comply with all the following features:
- be an official third-cycle doctoral degree of the foreign educational system, awarded by an official, accredited and/or recognized institution of the foreign system;
- confer the same academic rights in the foreign system;
- present the same elements as the corresponding Italian degree with regard to disciplinary, nature of research, duration (minimum of three years) and way of obtaining it;
- a doctorate must be active in the University that is comparable to the foreign doctorate, both in type and in disciplinary field.

These requirements apply to all students with a foreign doctoral degree, regardless of their citizenship, for both degrees awarded in European Union (EU) and non-EU countries.

Recognition procedure 

1. The University of Udine can make recognitions only for PhD degrees it awards and that have reached the end of the first cycle of activation.
2. The interested person fills in and submits the online application, available at https://pica.cineca.it/uniud/, uploading the documents referred to in the paragraph "Required documentation".
3. The Research Services Area - Research Training Office carries out the administrative verification of the application within 60 working days of its receipt. The Research Services Area - Research Training Office may request additions to the submitted documentation; the request freezes the verification deadline until receipt of the requested documentation, which must be received within the next 60 days after the request for additions.
   The administrative verification will cover: the officiality and denomination of the degree, the status and nature of the institution which has awarded the degree and the institution which has administered the studies, if different; the nature, level and minimum 3-year duration of the programme; the mode and title of access to doctoral studies.
4. Upon completion of the administrative review, the Research Services Area - Research Training Office sends the documentation to the Teaching Board of the Phd Programme for which academic recognition has been requested, which must provide its opinion (positive means recognition; negative means refusal) within 60 working days of receiving the documentation.
   The evaluation of the Teaching Board takes into account the content of the thesis, the training and research activity undertaken (also in terms of delivery mode) and its consistency with the doctorate for which recognition is sought.
   It is within the College's authority to request additional documentation. The request freezes the audit deadline until the receipt of the documentation, which must take place within the following 60 days.
5. Academic recognition of the degree, subject to the opinion of the Teaching Board, will be decided by the Academic Senate. The outcome of the recognition procedure will be formalized by Rectoral Decree.

Required documentation 

1. Valid identity document (passport, for non-EU citizens);
2. Self-certification of the Italian degree or copy of the foreign second cycle degree which allowed access to the foreign PhD programme. The foreign title must be accompanied by an official translation into Italian or English, if not already issued in one of these languages;
3. A copy of the foreign official doctoral degree corresponding to the third cycle according to the Bologna Process qualifications framework or level 8 according to the European Qualifications Framework (EQF) obtained at a foreign official higher education institution. The foreign degree must be accompanied by:
   - official translation in Italian or in English, if not already issued in one of these languages;
   - legalization or Hague Apostille stamp for countries that have acceded to the Hague Convention issued by the competent bodies of the country where the University is located (unless exempted). Legalization or Hague Apostille stamp can be substituted by a verification certificate issued by the Italian ENIC-NARIC center (CIMEA).
4. With reference to the foreign doctoral degree mentioned in point 3) the following documentation must also be submitted:
   - certificate of comparability issued by the Italian ENIC-NARIC center (CIMEA) or Declaration of value in loco, issued by the Italian diplomatic or consular representation abroad competent for the territory where the foreign institution is located, expressly showing: the minimum legal duration of the doctoral programme attended as provided for by the foreign university system (at least three years) and the legal nature of the foreign institution with evidence of its ability to issue valid degrees in its national territory;
   - attestation/certification issued in English (or, if in another language, accompanied by translation into English or Italian) by the relevant foreign higher education institution showing: the name and the number of years (or months) of duration of the doctoral programme (where possible, with details of the locations and laboratories attended), the date of the first enrolment, the academic years of subsequent enrollment, the date of graduation, the final evaluation (and, if applicable, the grading scale adopted), the elements and activities (teaching and research) of the doctorate carried out for the purpose of obtaining the final degree (and, if applicable, the nature of the doctoral programme, academic/research or professionalizing). Alternatively, the Diploma Supplement may be sent if it contains the salient data of the doctoral programme undertaken (as indicated above).
5. copy of the doctoral thesis and/or statement of the repository conducted and/or indication of the web address of the Institution's repository or library in which the approved dissertation is stored and searchable, or indication of the references of the relevant office where access may be requested for verification of correspondence. he thesis must be accompanied by appropriate translation into Italian or English if it is not already written in these languages. An exception is the thesis written in French, Spanish and German, which may be accompanied by an extended abstract in Italian/English when submitting the application for recognition. The full translation of the thesis into Italian/English must be submitted later only if requested by the Theaching Board of the doctoral program concerned.
6. Curriculum vitae/studiorum in Italian or English, in which any additional titles, publications and research and teaching activities are listed.

Expected amount

Euro 350 plus stamp duty to be paid through the application procedure.