Unitech

The Unitech Joint Modules are unique to the programme.

The module contents are provided via academic and corporate seminars, workshops and practical activities. These are aimed at developing leadership and intercultural issues. The students are followed by professional coaches.

The UNITECH programme starts at the end of August every year with a Start-up week, organised in one of the partner universities for all UNITECH students. All UNITECH students meet again at the start of January at another partner university for the Mid-Term week and again at the end of August in a third location for the End-of-the-Year week.

In addition to a series of common activities, during these weeks targeted individual activities will be devised for each student, consisting in a programme that integrates specific technical-scientific skills with economics and management studies and personal development activities.

All joint module activities are conducted in English.

Another unique element of UNITECH is the intership at a partner company, most of which are multinationals offering apprenticeship opportunities in their world branches.

The internship must last at least 12 weeks. Each week is worth 2.5 credits.

The overall duration of UNITECH is approximately one academic year and it includes a period of study at a partner university and the internship at a UNITECH company. The credits obtained during the period of study abroad are fully recognised by Politecnico di Milano.

The UNITECH programme uses the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS). 90 ECTS must be earned throughout the programme:

• at least 20 ECTS are obtained during the study period
• at least 30 ECTS are obtained during the internship
• 10 ECTS are obtained after completing the 3 joint modules
• the remaining 30 ECTS can be distributed freely between the study and the internship periods

In addition to the 90 ECTS, students are required to obtain at least 10 ECTS related to management/non technical courses. The credits related to management/non technical courses may be obtained at  Politecnico di Milano and/or at the partner university before or after the start of the programme.

Students, in collaboration with their mobility tutor, must also prepare a Study Plan containing both technical-scientific and managerial courses. The acceptance criteria are determined by the individual Degree Programme Council: acceptance will depend on the compatibility of the foreign Study Plan presented with the Study Plan of the Degree Programme for which the students are registered.

Upon successfully completing the programme and graduating from their university, students will receive a special international UNITECH diploma and will be entitled to use the designation “UNITECH Fellow”.

• Chalmers University of Technology, Göteborg, Sweden
• Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule - ETH, Zurigch, Switzerland
• Insa-Lyon, Lyon, France
• Loughborough University, Leicestershire, United Kingdom
• Politecnico di Milano, Milano, Italy
• Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule - RWTH, Aachen, Germany
• Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
• Universitat Politecnica de Barcelona – UPC, Barcellona, Spagna

One of the distinctive characteristics of UNITECH is the active collaboration with companies, involved in expanding on the academic objectives and guaranteeing a stimulating internship, offering students a fully-rounded experience of international management within the context of a multinational. The UNITECH industrial partners are:

• ABB
• Biomérieux
• Bühler Group
• Covestro
• Danfoss
• Evonik Industries
• Geberit
• Hilti
• Hyva
• Infineon Technologies
• Kingspan
• Kostal
• Metall Zug
• Truma

Upon completing the UNITECH programme, you can register in the UNITECH Alumni Association (UAA), a network of young professional engineers who have taken part in the UNITECH programme.

The aim of the association is to protect the spirit of UNITECH and to keep its members, the UNITECH International Society and the academic and industrial partners in touch. Every year, the UAA organises a full schedule of cultural, training and social activities for its members.

Furthermore, being a member provides a number of benefits: contacts in the professional world, being part of a network, company visits and other.

There are two selection phases:

Pre-selection

Pre-selection is based on the student's academic achievements, motivations, CV and language skills.

Assessment Centre

Students who pass the pre-selection phase are admitted to an Assessment Centre, organised by UNITECH in collaboration with the partner companies. This assessment concerns the students’ soft skills and consists in a group discussion, in a presentation and in an individual interview. All the Assessment Centre activities are conducted in English. At the end of the activities, each student will be assessed individually based on the results achieved.

The Assessment Centre for the final selection of candidates  takes place at Politecnico di Milano every year in February. In addition to being good experience, it is above all a crucial stage of selection for the UNITECH programme and cannot be skipped. Only students who pass the Assessment Centre can take part in the UNITECH programme.

The number of places available and the admission criteria of each location may vary, therefore passing the Assessment Centre is not an automatic guarantee of spending the academic period in one of the locations requested.

All the detailed information regarding the selection procedure are available on the call for applications.

Students must have good knowledge of English (written and spoken). Particular locations may require a specific TOEFL score, in order to verify your knowledge of English.

In addition to English, locations may also require students to know the local language. In the case of the internship, the company may require students to know the language spoken in the country in which the internship is to take place. The level of knowledge of the local language may vary from university to university: for example, in Zurich and in Gothenburg, students can follow courses in English, while in Aachen, in Barcelona or in Paris, a sufficient knowledge of German, Spanish or French is required in order to follow lessons and to conduct projects.

You can check the specific language requirements of each location by reading the incoming student factsheets found on the website of the UNITECH Association.

Students admitted to the UNITECH programme are only required to pay the fees of Politecnico di Milano and not of the foreign university. Each year, UNITECH bestows a financial contribution to students admitted to the programme. During the UNITECH internship, students may be salaried by the company. The salary will be enough to cover accommodation expenses at least.