Admission to the final exam
The procedure for admission to the final exam is as follows:
- the thesis, together with the doctoral student's report on the activities carried out during the Doctoral Course and any publications, is examined by at least two evaluators, not belonging to the University of Messina and in possession of highly qualified experience, of which at least one is a university professor, identified by the Supervisor and the Teaching Board; the evaluators may belong to foreign or international institutions;
- within thirty days of receiving the thesis, the evaluators express a written analytical opinion, proposing admission to public discussion or postponement of the discussion of the thesis for a period not exceeding six months. After this period, the thesis, accompanied by a new written opinion given by the evaluators, is in any case admitted to discussion.
The Teaching Board, on the basis of the evaluators' proposal, decides on admission of the thesis to public discussion or postponement of the discussion for the period possibly proposed by the evaluators.
Final exam procedure
The final exam for the award of the degree consists of a public discussion, on the theme of the Doctoral thesis, previously examined and evaluated. At the end of the discussion, the commission expresses a written and motivated opinion on the thesis, and attributes an overall evaluation choosing between the following evaluations: 'sufficient', 'good', 'excellent'. When it unanimously recognizes a particular scientific importance, it can award honors. If the thesis is rejected, it will no longer be possible to discuss it.