Materials Sciences 2nd cycle

Educational activity and employability of graduates students

The Master study program "Materials Science" is interdisciplinary and research-oriented. The program is designed in cooperation with the National Institue of Chemistry and the Jožef Stefan Institute in accordance with excellent personnel and research conditions in the fields of physics and chemistry of materials, characterization of materials, as well as materials technologies and development of innovative products and services at all partner institutions. It is intended for students who want to acquire top competencies and knowledge in the fields of understanding and development of various new types of functional materials, with an emphasis on environmental and energy applications.

Conditions for enrollment and transitions between years

On the study program Material Science can be enrolled students who are completed the 1st level program in the scope of at least 180 ECTS in the field of Natural sciences and engineering in Slovenia (Physics, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Materials, Materials and Technology, Environment, Construction etc.).

For the transition from the first to the second year, students must select at least 48 ECTS from the exams passed.

Program

In academic year 2018/2019, we introduced the Master Program "Material Science", which is interdisciplinary and research oriented. The program is designed in cooperation with the Chemical Institute and the Jožef Stefan Institute in accordance with good personnel and research conditions in the fields of materials physics and chemistry, characterization of materials, as well as materials technologies and the development of innovative products and services, including the protection of intellectual property.

Programme description

The Master study program "Materials Science" is interdisciplinary and research-oriented. The program is designed in cooperation with the National Institue of Chemistry and the Jožef Stefan Institute in accordance with excellent personnel and research conditions in the fields of physics and chemistry of materials, characterization of materials, as well as materials technologies and development of innovative products and services at all partner institutions. It is intended for students who want to acquire top competencies and knowledge in the fields of understanding and development of various new types of functional materials, with an emphasis on environmental and energy applications.

Admission requirements

Check the enrollment requirements at the Student Office

Criteria for the recognition of knowledge and skills acquired prior to enrolment
Higher education institutions shall recognise the acquisition of knowledge, skills or competences acquired through formal, non-formal or experiential learning, the content and complexity of which correspond, in whole or in part, to the general or subject-specific competences specified in the study programme, as a completed study requirement weighted according to ECTS. Based on a documented request by the candidate to the School’s study programme committee, other competencies acquired through formal, informal or experiential learning, whose content and complexity correspond in whole or in part to the general or subject-specific competencies specified in the programme of study, will also be credited up to a maximum of 12 ECTS. Knowledge acquired outside the degree programme can be recognized to the extent of a maximum of 60 ECTS.

Conditions for progressing through the programme (Pogoji za napredovanje po programu)
Student obligations at the degree programme level are specified in the study regulations for the second cycle programmes at the University of Nova Gorica. The obligations in each course are specified in the course’s syllabus.
To be admitted to the second year of the Master's programme in Physics and Astrophysics, students must have accumulated at least 48 ECTS in compulsory courses in the first year of studies. Students may re-enrol in the first year of the programme if they have earned at least 18 ECTS from courses in that year. Students may repeat a year only once during their studies. A student whose student status is terminated retains the right to complete the remaining degree requirements of the final year of enrollment for two years after termination of student status.

Educational and professional goals

The main objective of the second cycle Materials Science programme is to train professionals who are able to engage in research and industrial processes by analysing, improving, and designing new materials for advanced devices and technologies, as new materials enable better efficiency, quality, and sustainability of products and processes in all modern industries.

General competencies acquired through the programme
- Research skills (problem formulation, experimental design, project management - selection and organization of information, communication of results - research/development report, scientific work)
- Mastery of research methods, procedures and processes, development of critical and self-critical judgments
- Ability to apply and transfer knowledge to practise
- Ability to implement an engineering project
- Independence in professional work and responsible and creative execution of activities
- Development of communication skills, especially communication in an international environment

Subject-specific competences acquired through the programme
- Knowledge of all major material types and their applications
- Ability to integrate various skills in identifying and analysing technological problems
- Knowledge of related technologies, both in the production of materials and in their applications
- Knowledge of synthesis processes with advanced knowledge of advanced inorganic and other materials synthesis
- Knowledge of basic laboratory, spectroscopy, diffraction and microscopy techniques in the field of materials
- Understanding of systems at the atomic, molecular and process levels
- The ability to conduct research and development work in the field of materials
- Knowledge of the "problem-oriented" concept
- Acquisition of the fundamentals of materials science and engineering knowledge in the form of integration of existing solutions
- Basic skills to implement materials research and development in an entrepreneurial environment

Access to further studies

After finishing the Master programme “Materials Science” the graduates can continue their studies at the Graduate School of the University of Nova Gorica and pursue a PhS in materials or in physics

Assessment

The criteria and methods for checking and assessing student learning outcomes for each subject at the School of Science, as reflected in the curricula, are uploaded on the website UNG. For each subject, students are informed about the assessment methods at the beginning of the academic year or at the beginning of the course. The forms of assessment are tailored to the needs of each course (oral exams, written exams, term papers, ....). For all forms, students receive the results directly from the instructor administering the exam. Students have access to the grades through the Study Information System of UNG, which is password protected. The grade distribution analysis is regularly carried out by the Student Office, where it is also accessible to students for comparison. The analyses are not published online by the university to protect personal data. In the University's annual Quality Assurance Report, a section of the report is devoted specifically to each school/programme ((Quality at UNG https://www.ung.si/en/university/quality-assurance/). The analysis of studies in the Faculty of Science is published in the UNG self-evaluation report and in the UNG self-evaluation report and is based on the quality assurance manual https://www.ung.si/documents/302/poslovnik_kakovosti_en.pdf.

h.2 Forms of working with students and description of the teaching process
Teaching methods depend on the course and are outlined in the syllabus. In general, teaching takes the form of lectures, tutorials, practical experiments, and independent work. The ratio between contact hours and independent work is on average 1:3. Lectures are held at the School of Science, and practical experiments are partly held at the National Institute of Chemistry and at Jožef Stefan Institute.

h.2 Conditions for completing the programme
The completion of the Master's degree requires the accumulation of 120 ECTS, which corresponds to the completion of all examinations in all subjects of the curriculum and the successful defence of the Master's thesis.

If a student completes a specific examination, semester or year in another degree programme or institution according to the evidence provided, the requirements of that degree programme or institution apply to the completion of that examination, semester or year.