Art. 3 of the Degree Course Academic Regulations: Entry requirements, admission procedures, and initial preparation assessment methods

The Degree Course is established without restricted access. Admission is free and does not require an entrance examination. Admission to the Degree Course requires a second-cycle secondary school diploma (high school diploma) or another qualification obtained abroad and recognized as equivalent, as well as basic knowledge in chemistry, biology, and geography. The expected level of preparation corresponds to the ministerial syllabi of secondary schools.

The possession of the aforementioned knowledge will be verified by the Degree Course through a multiple-choice test administered to enrolled students. This test will focus on the aforementioned disciplines and will also aim to verify proficiency in the Italian language and logical reasoning skills. The test consists of a multiple-choice quiz prepared by the Degree Course and covers the areas of:

• Chemistry (10 questions)
• Biology (10 questions)
• Geography (10 questions)
• Italian language proficiency (10 questions)
• Logical reasoning (10 questions)

The assessment is considered passed with a score of 30/50 correct answers. 

Assessment Syllabus

The 50 questions planned for the admission test to the Bachelor's Degree in Scienze per la Valorizzazione del Patrimonio Gastronomico (Sciences for the Enhancement of Gastronomic Heritage - L-GASTR) are distributed as follows:

The questions will be prepared based on the following syllabus: 

Chemistry Area

Topics: Atomic structure and elementary particles (atomic number and mass number); the periodic system of elements (symbols of the chemical elements of the most common chemical compounds); chemical bonding (ionic bond, covalent bond; bond polarity; electronegativity); chemical formulas; fundamentals of inorganic chemistry (nomenclature of inorganic compounds: oxides, acids, bases, and salts); chemical reactions (chemical reactions and stoichiometry: atomic and molecular weight, concept of mole, conversion from grams to moles and vice versa, elementary stoichiometric calculations, balancing simple reactions; oxidation-reduction: oxidation number, concept of oxidizing and reducing agents); solutions (molarity; solution dilutions; concepts and definitions of acids and bases; acidity, neutrality, basicity of aqueous solutions; pH); organic chemistry (fundamentals, single and multiple bonds between carbon atoms; aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons with basic IUPAC nomenclature rules; functional groups of alcohols, amines, carboxylic acids, with basic IUPAC nomenclature rules). 

Biology Area

Topics: General information on the structure and function of biological macromolecules: carbohydrates, lipids, amino acids and proteins, nucleotides and nucleic acids. The role of enzymes. The Cell: Common features and fundamental differences between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells. Cellular structures and their main functions: cell membranes, cell wall, cytoplasm, ribosomes, endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus, mitochondria, plastids, vacuole, lysosomes, nucleus, chromosomes. Genetics, reproduction, and evolution: Cell divisions: mitosis and meiosis / reproduction mechanisms. Inheritance. DNA and genes. Genetic code, protein synthesis / Principles and foundations of evolution. General concepts on cellular energy processes: Respiration, Photosynthesis, Transport. Diversity among living organisms: Classification, organization, and kingdoms of living beings (Viruses, Bacteria, Protists, Fungi, Plants, Animals). 

Geography Area

Topics: Main concepts: environment-territory-landscape. Cities, environment, landscape, soil consumption. The role of agriculture and the consumption of agricultural land. Reading the landscape. Values and skills in geography. The tools of geography. 

Italian Language Area

Topics: Text analysis and comprehension to assess core language skills (logical-syntactic, textual, semantic-lexical, stylistic, and sociolinguistic). 

Logical Reasoning Area

Topics: Foundations of Propositional Logic. The Logical Proposition: Definition and principles. Logical Connectives: Negation (NOT), Conjunction (AND), Disjunction (OR). Logical Implication: Distinction between sufficient and necessary conditions. Verbal Logic and Critical Reasoning. Categorical Syllogism: Structure, quantifiers ("all", "none", "some"), and use of Venn diagrams. Verbal Analogies and Relations: Recognition of logical relationships between words (e.g., part-whole, cause-effect). Problem Solving and Numerical/Abstract Logic. Numerical and Alphabetical Series: Identification of patterns and sequence rules. Logical-Mathematical Problem Solving: Application of percentages, elementary probability, and riddle solving.

Procedures for Fulfilling OFA

Students who achieve a negative result in the aforementioned test will be assigned an Additional Educational Obligation (OFA), which must be fulfilled within the first year of the course. To recover basic knowledge, students may use the educational materials prepared for this purpose and available on the dedicated platform (elearning-test.uniba.it). To fulfill the OFA, students must take a further test on the same platform.

OFA will, in any case, be considered fulfilled upon passing the exams in the disciplines related to Biology, Chemistry, or Geography. Failure to satisfy the OFA by the second appeal of the autumn session will result in the impossibility of taking exams for the second year of the course.

The assessment of basic knowledge is also considered passed for those who have attended at least 75% of each of the preparatory courses (precorsi) related to Biology, Chemistry, and Geography. In the case of attendance lower than 75% of an individual course, the student will be assigned an OFA in the corresponding discipline.

The competent Academic Body evaluates the possibility of exemption from passing the test in cases of holding an academic degree or having educational affinity from foreign Universities, transferring from another Degree Course within the same University, or transferring from another University.

If a transfer or degree course change request is accepted beyond the standard deadlines, students who are not exempt from passing the test will be directly assigned the additional educational obligations.