PhD in Biorobotics
Pisa, Italy
PhD
DURATION
3 years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
EARLIEST START DATE
Oct 2026
TUITION FEES
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
Key Summary
The Ph.D. Program in BioRobotics is an innovative, cross-sectoral, and interdict- plenary three-year course of advanced studies and supervised research, established at Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies in 2012.
It enrolls 100+ students, on average 30 students or more per year, and thus is among the largest doctoral schools in robotics and biomedical engineering worldwide. The Programme aims to educate and train young students to study, design, and develop radically novel robots, machines, systems, and services, putting the human being and society at the center of the process, according to principles of technological, environmental, social, ethical, and economic sustainability. In the BioRo- biotics Ph.D. path, robotic technologies are bio-applied (e.g. dedicated to medical applications) or bio-inspired, to significantly enhance their abilities.
PhD students can benefit from a living research environment, with continuous supervision by BioRobotics leaders who accompany them in the execution of their research projects. They will be trained in preparing research articles for international scientific journals and international events, as well as in intellectual property and industrial-oriented issues.
BioRobotics is an emerging interdisciplinary field at the intersection of robotics, bioengineering, and biomimetics. The PhD in BioRobotics is a three-year program that offers a stimulating multidisciplinary learning and research environment (see our Research Lines). The program aims to train early-stage researchers in the design and development of radically new robots, machines, and systems, according to the principles of technological, environmental, social, ethical, and economic sustainability. Such robotic technologies are bio-applied (e.g., for medical applications) and/or bio-inspired (aiming at significantly improving their capabilities). Doctoral research projects are carried on in very well-equipped, state-of-the-art laboratories. Personal and teamwork are performed under the supervision of a committed faculty in the framework of international collaborations.
Students admitted to the Ph.D. program are awarded a fully funded three-year Scholarship, renewed annually following a successful assessment. Additional benefits are free meals (about one per day) at the university canteen, a fund for a research stay abroad, a personal fund for research and learning, and, possibly, a yearly contribution for accommodation (for more information see current call and annexes).
Scholarships are for the duration of the relevant Ph.D. Programmes and confirmed annually upon admission to the following year by approval from the Advisory Board of the individual Programme. Ph.D. scholarships are awarded following the ranking order, except for scholarships linked to specific topics or research projects, which may be awarded to the first eligible candidate(s) identified by the Selection Committee.
The annual budget for each student comprises a scholarship of € 16,243.00 (€ 18,800.00 for the PhD Programmes in robotics and Emerging Digital Technologies), including social security charges payable by the recipient and paid in monthly instalments in arrears, and housing grant of € 2,200/year.
Scholarships cannot be combined with other scholarships for any reason whatsoever, except for those granted by national or foreign institutions, aimed at supplementing the student's research activities with visits abroad. Doctoral students who have previously received a Ph.D. scholarship in Italy, even partially, are not eligible for another Ph.D. scholarship.
During the three-year program, doctoral candidates must obtain:
- 20 ECTS (European Credit Transfer System) by the attendance of internal courses as well as of external courses and summer school, and by project works
- 160 ECTS for the research activity
The Ph.D. in BioRobotics guarantees a wide and multidisciplinary training offer on the scientific themes of robotics, biomedical engineering, bioengineering, and biomimetics (see Courses). At the end of the PhD Program, Doctors of Philosophy will possess solid scientific and engineering skills, the ability to conceive and carry out original research projects, and an autonomous entrepreneurship spirit.
Research lines
- Applied Materials for Printed and Soft Electronics
- Artificial Hands
- Bioelectronics & Neural Engineering
- Biorobotic Ecosystems
- Brain-Inspired Robotics
- Computational Mechanics
- Creative Engineering Design
- Gravitational biology and automated bio-regenerative life support systems
- Healthcare Mechatronics
- Human-Robot Interaction
- Mechanobiology
- Microscale Robotics
- Nanotechnologies applied to medicine (IIT)
- Neuromodulation for cancer therapy
- Neuro-Robotic Touch
- Regenerative Technologies
- Robot Companions
- Soft BioRobotics Perception (IIT)
- Soft Robotics
- Surgical and Interventional Robotics
- Textile Robotic & Musculoskeletal Expansion
- Wearable Robotics
- PhD students in BioRobotics work in a stimulating environment, with multiple opportunities for scientific and personal growth.
- State of the Art technologies and novel equipment from the Excellent Department of Robotics and Al allow us to design and develop in a short time all the brilliant project ideas of the Ph.D. students.
- Variegated teaching offer, merging fundamental courses with high-level seminars and tailored to the specific needs of the students.
- Multiple collaborations with industries also in the form of Joint Labs between industries and universities.
- Multiple collaborations with hospitals and clinical centers, for a straightforward translation of the bioengineering activities.
- Multiple collaborations with international- nal teams, thanks to a 30-year tradition of European and International collaborative projects.
Placement information of PhDs in Bio- phdbiorobotics@santannapisa.it Robotics report an occupation rate of 100% in a very short time from graduation, if not even before the thesis defense, both in the academic field (with positions at prestigious universities such as Harvard University, Stanford University, Boston University, ETH Zurich, EPFL, University of Pittsburgh, University of Alabama, Khalifa University) and in national and international research centers. A quite large rate of PhDs find an industrial job, both in existing companies and in high-tech start-up ones.