1. Final Test and Thesis

At the end of the course, after passing all the exams as set out in the study plan, the student takes a final test, made up of a presentation of a project and a discussion of a thesis developed  within one of the subjects studied during the Two-Year course. Students attain course credits for the final test and the preparation of the thesis, as set out in the study plan presented in the first year of the course.

2. Thesis requirements

The subject of the project and the preliminary thesis title, which do not have to necessarily be correlated, must be indicated in the specific request form for the exam, which must be submitted to the secretariat by the 20th of December or the 10th of April* of the second year of enrollment. The request form must include the signatures of the thesis supervisor and at least one project supervisor. The project is the result of a final synthesis studio that includes several laboratory courses and is outlined at the beginning of the second academic year.  The subject and the title are agreed on, falling within a range of topics indicated at the beginning of every year, with the teacher-cum-supervisor, who must teach a theoretical discipline. The student must have taken at least one exam with the supervisor over the two year course. The thesis must not be less than 100 sheets, 1,500 letters per sheet, and must have references in the footnotes and a final bibliography drawn up to academic humanistic research standards. The project papers must reflect professional presentation standards and may also be accompanied by a short written report.
Please note that the thesis, to be submitted by the set deadlines, must be the final version and include a hard cover and be thermally bound.
Students should take the necessary steps to prepare three copies, one of which will be submitted to the secretariat (to be returned to the student during the thesis discussion), and a CD which will be submitted to the library for archive purposes.

* For the Academic Year 2019-2020, due to the health emergency, the deadlines for submitting the aforementioned form have been extended to a later date.

3. Final Test Admission Terms and Conditions

Students must have passed all the exams as required by the study plan in order to be admitted to the final test. It is possible to comply with exam requirements by taking any pending exams in the same session in which you present yourself for the final test.

One month before submitting the thesis to the secretariat, the course coordinator checks with the supervisor if the level of progress allows the student to reserve the final test. The deadlines for the papers are mandatory. The thesis must be submitted in all its parts, countersigned on the title page by the supervisor and the course coordinator. At the time of discussion, the Degree Board will verify the correspondence between the copy deposited in the secretariat and the copies presented to the Degree Board. Any differences will lead to the exclusion of the student from the final test. The papers will be presented to the Degree Board during the final test. The thesis must be submitted to the secretariat, together with the thesis request form and a 2 page long abstract (1,500 letters per page) on the subject together with the selected bibliography.

4. Deadlines and calendars

The project papers will be submitted to the Degree Board during the final test.

The thesis must be submitted to the secretariat, together with the CD and the abstract 15 days, at the latest, before the start of the thesis session.

The thesis confirmation form with the student’s record book must be submitted no later than:

- the 10th of June for the summer session
- the 10th of October for the fall session
- the 10th of February for the winter session.

In the event that the 10th falls on a Sunday, the deadline is postponed until the following Monday. The discussion of the final test will take place according to the timetable as published on the web site. There is a set limit of 10 candidates per day.

5. Degree Board and Final Mark

The Degree Board is chaired by the Director, or a delegate on his behalf, and is made up the course coordinator, the thesis supervisor, the project supervisor and at least two teachers of disciplines found within the study plan. The final mark, expressed out of 110, is equal to the mathematical average of the marks attained in the exams, including a potential increase of up to 10 marks awarded by the Board. Honors (cum laude) are awarded unanimously and applied only if the thesis student has a starting mark of 104 before the discussion of the thesis and has attained a mark of at least 30/30 in the specialized or main subject.

Finally, students are reminded of the importance and the role of decorum of the final test. Suitable behavior and clothing are therefore recommended.

Students can find example copies of thesis covers and CDs at the bottom.

AS SET OUT IN THE MINISTERIAL DECREE DATED 26TH OF MAY 2009, N.87, art.6 “the final exam of the training courses is organized by the institute and is divided into two tests, one of an applicative nature, consisting in a practical laboratory work, and one of a theoretical methodological nature, consisting in the discussion of a written paper. In the event the first test is not passed, the candidate can repeat the exam in the following session” AND WITH REFERENCE TO THE GENERAL INFORMATION IN THE MINISTERIAL NEWSLETTER “ABA REGULATIONS  FOR THE FINAL EXAM SCHOOLS OF RESTORATION”  (rev. G. Cassese 4th of June 2014).

THE ACCADEMIA DI BELLE ARTI DI BRERA, THE SCHOOL OF RESTORATION CAMILLO BOITO, SETS THE FOLLOWING: 

• the scheduling of the final exam for the Second Level Academic Diploma in Restoration (DASLQ01), qualifying for the "Profession of Cultural Heritage restorer/conservator" is defined nationally and includes two sessions per year:

1. The first session in October-November; 

2. The second session in March-April. 

• The First practical test must be carried out on products/objects/artefacts corresponding to the Professional Training Profile of the candidate. It is a practical test and consists in drawing up a written paper, accompanied by images and any other resources necessary to showcase the best possible result, and a powerpoint presentation on a practical restoration work in the cultural heritage field, according to ex.art10, law 42 and its subsequent amendments, and reflecting the student’s Professional Training Profile, including public contemporary art works created in the last fifty years or those works done by a living artist/creator (Law 42, art.10). The first test will focus on an intervention carried out by the candidate in all its phases or on restoration project including the practical execution of some of the fundamental phases. The practical -laboratory interventions may be related to: 

1. Interventions carried out in intra moenia didactic activities
2. Interventions carried out as part of the apprenticeship and on-site training activities as provided for during the five year course
3. Interventions carried out in specialized public or private institutions and affiliated with the Accademia where the student graduates.

The Degree Board will be able to ask specific questions concerning the methods applied in order to evaluate the candidate’s knowledge and skills in dealing with a restoration intervention in all its phases.

The practical papers, that is the restoration works which are the subject of the thesis, must be completed before the discussion, any exemption to this rule is at the discretion of the supervisor and the internal Board.

• The second theoretical-methodological test, may concern the same content as the first test or however be correlated in content and in any case focus on issues attributable to the sectors of restoration and conservation. According to current legislation it provides for the discussion of a written document that has an original, innovative and investigative air, which focuses on methodological, historical-artistic, archaeological or scientific aspects related to restoration.
• The tests cannot be taken jointly by two or more candidates. In the event that the final examination of different candidates concerns the same piece/object/artifact, as in the case of interventions on large-scale works, the individual thesis will analyze different phases and problems. 
• The thesis work must always be original and unique in its content and identifiable with the intervention carried out.

• The supervisor whose task it is to follow the candidate in the preparation of the first test must be a teacher of a technical restoration discipline at the Accademia, and must meet the requirements as set down in the Ministerial Decree 87/2009 ex art 5 and, given that the final qualifying exam, even if divided into two tests, is in fact one, will have this coordination role even if there are additional supervisors in the second test, based on the specific disciplines and professional skills. There will be internal and external assistant supervisors for both the first and second tests, defined in agreement with the thesis coordinator. 

• The final exam, consisting of both tests, is attributed with 12 credits as set out in the study plan and a mark out of ten which contributes to the final mark of the course. The institute takes the necessary steps to issue comfortable certification. 

• The subject of the thesis and its assignation must be agreed to with the supervisor and assistant supervisors at least one year before the completion of studies, therefore by the end of the fourth year.

• The subject of the thesis must be identified in a specific list of topics put forward by teachers and published on the Accademia’s website. It is updated on an annual basis by the end of the first semester.

• The relevant reference teacher decides the assignation of the subjects. His decision is irrevocable.

• The inclusion of subjects put forward by the teachers is based on didactic projects and works already in esse, with the necessary legal authorizations or in any case planned; in the latter case, any red-tape procedures must be activated together with the direct participation of the graduating student immediately after the assignation of the subject.

• Students can put forward subjects independently if they have a specific and unique didactic and/or scientific focus and in any case are subject to the irrevocable decision of the Degree Board. They must be put forward in a project work accompanied by an abstract/report no later than the beginning of the 4° academic year.

• If the students’ proposal is authorized, the student should bear in mind that the time required may be considerably longer due to red tape procedures necessary for activating agreements or external apprenticeships.

• Times and procedures for carrying out restoration activities must be agreed to with the teaching coordinating supervisor, who in some cases, may request the completion or verification of works before signing the submission of the final paper form.

• Following the assignation of the subject, the student must draw up and submit a work plan including a preliminary table of contents by the end of the second semester of the 4° academic year (May), to the relevant reference teacher/supervisor

• The subject and the title of the two tests must be indicated in the request form for the exam, to be submitted to the secretariat approximately nine months before the thesis discussion session (first: October-November, second: March-April), countersigned by the coordinating supervisor and by any other additional supervisor and assistant supervisor.

• Students are required to perform two reviews during the nine months, presenting the finished chapters to be corrected to their reference teachers (supervisors and assistant supervisors) in order to ensure constant supervision. The complete draft must be submitted for final correction 45 days before the discussion date. The dates of these reviews are subject to prior agreement  with the reference teacher and must be complied to..

• The coordinating supervisor is responsible for granting final approval of both documents that make up the qualifying test. They must be in impeccable Italian.

• The two tests must be presented in two distinct volumes together with the relevant reference abstract.

• Students must submit a digital copy (PDF on DVD or CD) of the final thesis work 21 days before the discussion date.

• Students are required to carry out a general test of the powerpoint presentation of their thesis work at least 15 days before the date of discussion. The date is subject to agreement with the coordinating supervisor.

• The thesis must be submitted to the didactic secretariat in its digital final version at least 21 days before  the date of discussion. 

• This copy will be sent to the external members of the Commission at least 15 days before the discussion

• The thesis is made up of two papers, divided into two volumes. A written paper for the first practical-laboratory test including an IT support (CD) containing the presentation to be presented to the Degree Board, inserted in the inside front cover of the first volume. The second written paper for the theoretical-methodological test, including the presentation (CD) that the student will present to the Board, included in the inside front cover of the second volume.

• The written papers must be submitted in three paper copies with the attached CD of the presentation: one copy for the School of Restoration, one for each supervisor of the first and second test.
  Three digital copies of the entire work (the two volumes and the presentation) are to be submitted to the Degree Board at the moment of the thesis discussion. 

• The requirements of the written papers include that they must not be less than 160,000 letters each (approximately 100 pages excluding notes) and must be accompanied by an iconographic and graphic image with references in the note and a final bibliography. Students should refer to the specific document drawn up by the School of Restoration regarding EDITORIAL REQUIREMENTS published on the Accademia’s website. Students should also follow the EDITORIAL REQUIREMENTS to ensure the correct writing of the two thesis papers.

• On the day of the discussion the two tests will be taken one after the other, subject to the examining Board’s consent.

• The powerpoint presentation must not be more than 20 minutes.

• The Accademia di Brera will issue the final Diploma together with the Diploma Supplement as provided for by law.

REQUEST FOR THE DIPLOMA EXAM

The thesis request and confirmation (forms 1 and 2 in the attachment) for the diploma exam must be submitted to the Didactic Secretariat by downloading the attached online models and complying to the set times. 

1. THESIS REQUEST FORM. The form must be submitted to the Didactic Secretariat nine months before the thesis session: 

• 1° session (Fall) October-November by the 10th of February 
• 2° session (Spring) April-May by the 10th of July 

2. THESIS CONFIRMATION FORM. The form must be submitted to the Didactic Secretariat approximately two months before the thesis session: 

• 1° session (Fall) October-November by the 10th of March 
• 2° session (Spring) April-May by the 10th of September 

The forms must be submitted to the Secretariat with the signature of the supervisor and of any assistant supervisor for the first and second tests. The signing of the thesis confirmation form certifies that the thesis has been approved and the practical project has been examined.

Forms must have all the necessary signatures in order to be accepted. The Director of the School validates and authorizes the thesis request. Students must have their payment of taxes and contributions in order for every year of enrolled studies in order to submit a request. 

DOCUMENTATION TO BE SUBMITTED TO THE DIDACTIC SECRETARIAT

The following documents must be submitted together with the thesis confirmation form:

• Exam transcripts 
• On-site training attendance sheet certifying the performance of 300 hours of thesis work, including an attached synthesis on the project signed by the teaching supervisors of the first and second tests.