SERVICE DESIGN FOR PUBLIC SECTOR

Call for application 41st cycle

Bando ordinario

Educational goals and objectives

The Associate Doctorate in Service Design for Public Sector (SDPS) aims to train executives and professionals capable of responding to the innovation process of the Public Sector, particularly Public Administrations (PA). The specialization and uniqueness of the Doctorate is to prepare researcher figures in the field of Service Design who operate in the public sector. The associate nature of the Doctorate connects the resources and expertise of 7 universities and training institutes: Sapienza University of Rome, Politecnico di Milano, University of Bologna, IUAV University of Venice, ISIA Florence, ISIA Rome, and L'École de design Nantes Atlantique.
In addition to internal mobility within the educational path, there is an internationalization perspective with the use of the English language as the medium of instruction, mandatory research periods at foreign research centers and institutions, and an international teaching staff.

The doctoral program focuses on two main themes: the digital transition and the ecological transition, which involve all citizen services through processes of participation, awareness, and sharing, with the goal of improving social contexts. Specifically, the Doctorate is developed along four thematic axes:
- the green transition;
- the digital transition;
- public engagement;
- the health society and healthcare services.

The training objective of the doctoral program is the development of training experiences in non-academic areas as well, in the fields of public administration, services, and institutions, with industry experts involved in the training activities. This is to develop cross-functional skills and facilitate their transfer to the professional sphere.
The TRAINING OBJECTIVES of the doctoral program include:
- designing and planning research programs to generate innovation for public systems and civil society;
- conducting critical analyses, evaluations, and syntheses of processes within public administration and other actors who view the public sector as a partner and/or beneficiary;
- contributing to the achievement of certain UN SDGs of the 2030 Agenda: SDG 3 "Good Health and Well-being," SDG 4 "Quality Education," SDG 5 "Gender Equality," SDG 8 "Decent Work and Economic Growth," SDG 10 "Reduced Inequalities," and SDG 11 "Sustainable Cities and Communities."

The doctoral program is organized to ensure:
- an advancement of knowledge through research training, particularly in the multidisciplinary field of Service Design and applied research, carried out in partnership with public entities;
- an attractive and stimulating institutional environment, which, through the associative dimension with different national institutions, enables the acquisition of autonomy and responsibility useful for a professional research path in the public sector;
- the strengthening of international research relationships through co-tutorship and periods of mobility abroad.

Specifiche economiche

Sapienza Scholarships	Other Scholarships	Departments	Without scholarship
2	4	0	2

Themes, curriculum and specific competence

Borse ENTI TERZI, PARTENARIATI ESTESI, ECCELLENZA

Tematica: Progettazione sistemica per promuovere l'innovazione nei servizi del settore pubblico
Ente finanziatore: POLITECNICO DI MILANO
Competenze richieste: nessuna competenza specifica richiesta
- Systemic design to advance innovation in public sector’ services
Founded by: POLITECNICO DI MILANO
Required skills: no specific skill required

Tematica: Service Design per i Nuovi Processi di Innovazione del Settore Pubblico
Ente finanziatore: ISIA (FIRENZE)
Competenze richieste: nessuna competenza specifica richiesta
- Service Design for Emerging Innovation Processes in the Public Sector
Founded by: ISIA (FIRENZE)
Required skills: no specific skill required

Tematica: Design innovativo per l'inclusione e la partecipazione attiva
Ente finanziatore: ISIA (ROMA)
Competenze richieste: nessuna competenza specifica richiesta
- Innovative Design for Inclusion and Active Participation
Founded by: ISIA (ROMA)
Required skills: no specific skill required

Tematica: User experience design and enabling technologies for the public sector
Ente finanziatore: CENTRO INTERDIPARTIMENTALE SAPIENZA DESIGN RESEARCH
Competenze richieste: nessuna competenza specifica richiesta
- User experience design and enabling technologies for the public sector
Founded by: CENTRO INTERDIPARTIMENTALE SAPIENZA DESIGN RESEARCH
Required skills: no specific skill required

Admission Procedure

Qualifications assessment	Candidates who regularly applied are admitted to the assessment by the committee. The assessment focuses on the examination of the candidate's quality and predisposition to research in the scientific areas related to the research field in "Service Design for Public Sector", as evidenced by the curriculum vitae, letter of motivation, and research proposal, attached at the time of application. The candidate should submit a letter of motivation and a research proposal. The research described in the motivation letter and research proposal submitted with the application does not necessarily represent the research to be carried out during the doctoral program. In case of admission, the actual doctoral research project to be conducted will be subsequently defined and approved by the Doctoral Faculty Board, after the start of activities. Candidates who obtained at least 40/80 in the assessment of their qualifications and project are admitted to the oral exam.

Oral interview	The interview aims to further understand the candidates through the materials submitted (curriculum vitae, letter of motivation, and research proposal). The interview will be conducted in English. The minimum positive score for the oral test is 20/40.
language	INGLESE

contacts and info

https://web.uniroma1.it/pdta/home Dott.ssa Marina Cocci, 06-49919083, marina.cocci@uniroma1.it Prof. Lorenzo Imbesi, lorenzo.imbesi@uniroma1.it

Curriculum studiorum

Graduation date and grade of the Master's degree
detailed list of exams including completion dates and scores of Masters's degree
Graduation date and grade of the Bachelor’s degree
detailed list of exams including completion dates and scores of Bachelor's degree
History of Scholarships, Research Grants (or similar)
Certificates of Foreign Languages
Certificates of participation in post-graduate university courses
certificates of Participation in research groups
certificates of Participation in internships
Other University Awards/Degrees (e.g.: awards in competition, second degree)
Computer skills

Required documentation

§ research project

mandatory
The research proposal (maximum 10,000 characters, including spaces) should outline the specific thematic scope and research activities that the candidate intends to develop for the doctoral research related to the topic of the program. It should display the candidate's ability to conceive, organize, and independently carry out a scientific research project. In particular, the proposal should clearly display the candidate's knowledge of the subject matter and identify one or more open issues to which the project is answering. Additionally, it should outline the general and specific objectives, a state-of-the-art overview, and describe the activities to be conducted over the three years., the file must be uploaded within le ore 23:59 del 19/06/2025

§ letter of motivation (by the candidate)

mandatory
The letter of motivation (maximum 5000 characters) should display the candidate's inclination towards research and briefly describe the motivations towards the activities and topics related to the doctoral program. It should explain the educational background, previous research experiences, and future scientific interests., the file must be uploaded within le ore 23:59 del 19/06/2025

§ Curriculum Vitae et Studiorum

mandatory
The candidate's curriculum vitae should contain all aspects, activities, and qualifications acquired over time, related to the research field of the PhD program, and also included in the online CV compilation. The curriculum vitae should be prepared according to the European CV format.
The following qualifications will be assessed in the CV:
- Date and grade of the second-level degree (master's, specialist or single cycle degree);
- List of exams taken for the Master's degree and the related grades;
- Date and grade of the Bachelor's degree;
- Additional academic qualifications (master's degrees, diplomas, postgraduate courses, workshops or equivalent);
- Publications (books, chapters in books, journal articles, conference proceedings);
- Research experience (scholarships, research contracts and grants, participation in research groups, participation as a speaker at scientific conferences);
- Professional experience, internships and apprenticeships, experiences abroad, awards, patents, spin-offs related to the topic of the PhD program;
- Computer skills, other foreign languages (in addition to the official language of the Doctorate), other
qualifications relevant to the topic of the PhD program.
Together with the assessment of the CV, the presence of the certificate of knowledge of the English language at least at the B1 level (or alternatively the candidate's declaration that this will be provided by the date of the exam) and any other certificates of knowledge of foreign languages other than English will also be verified., the file must be uploaded within le ore 23:59 del 19/06/2025

Language Skills

the candidate must know the following languages

ENGLISH

Exam Schedule

Qualifications assessment

day	17/07/2025
notes	none
publication on notice board	NO
publication on the web site	Yes
web site	https://phd.uniroma1.it/web/SEMINARI-SERVICE-DESIGN-FOR-PUBLIC-SECTOR_nH3972_IT.aspx
date of publication	17/07/2025
contacts	Dott.ssa Marina Cocci, 06-49919083, marina.cocci@uniroma1.it, Prof. Lorenzo Imbesi, lorenzo.imbesi@uniroma1.it

Oral interview

day	22/07/2025
notes	none
time	09:30
classroom	Dipartimento PDTA
address	via Flaminia, 70/72
publication on notice board	NO
publication on the web site	Yes
web site	https://phd.uniroma1.it/web/SERVICE-DESIGN-FOR-PUBLIC-SECTOR_nD3972.aspx
date of publication	22/07/2025
contacts	Dott.ssa Marina Cocci, 06-49919083, marina.cocci@uniroma1.it, Prof. Lorenzo Imbesi, lorenzo.imbesi@uniroma1.it

Evaluation scale

Qualifications assessment

Valutazione titoli

Punteggio massimo complessivo per la prova/overall max score: 80

Curriculum Vitae
Curriculum Vitae

Punteggio massimo/max score: 40
I titoli verranno valutati secondo la seguente griglia di valutazione: 1.1 Voto di laurea (magistrale, specialistica o a ciclo unico – max 5 punti); nota: gli studenti che discuteranno la tesi prima della data stabilita per la valutazione dei titoli sono tenuti a comunicare al Coordinatore del corso o al Presidente della commissione il voto di laurea conseguito, mentre coloro che discuteranno la tesi dopo la data stabilita per la valutazione dei titoli, ma comunque prima del 31 ottobre 2025, il voto di laurea è sostituito dalla media aritmetica degli esami; 1.2 Altri titoli di studio (master, diplomi, corsi post-laurea, workshop o equipollenti - max 5 punti); 1.3 Pubblicazioni (monografie, contributi in volume, contributi su rivista, contributi in atti di convegno – max 9 punti); 1.4 Esperienze di ricerca (borse di studio, contratti e assegni di ricerca, partecipazione a gruppi di ricerca, partecipazione come relatore a convegni di carattere scientifico - max 9 punti); 1.5 Attività professionali, stage e tirocini, esperienze all’estero, premi, brevetti, spin-off pertinenti alla tematica del dottorato (max 9 punti); 1.6 Conoscenze informatiche, altre lingue estere (oltre quella ufficiale del Dottorato), altri titoli pertinenti alla tematica del dottorato (max 3 punti).
The titles will be evaluated on the basis of the following evaluation grid: 1.1 University final degree mark (graduate level or equivalent – max 5 points); note: students who have not obtained their title by the application deadline (or graduands who will obtain the degree by October 31st, 2025) will be assessed on the average grade resulting from the list of the exams; 1.2 Additional study qualifications (master, diplomas, postgraduate qualifications, workshops or equivalent - max 5 points); 1.3 Publications (books, book chapters, journal articles, conference proceedings– max 9 points); 1.4 Research experiences (scholarships, research contracts and grants, participation in research groups, speaker for scientific conferences - max 9 points); 1.5 Professional activities, internships, experiences abroad, awards, patents, spin-offs relevant to the topic of the PhD (max 9 points); 1.6 Computer skills, other foreign languages (besides the official language of the PhD Program), and other relevant titles related to the topic of the PhD Program (max 3 points).

110, 110 e lode 110, 110 cum laude	5,0
109 -108	4,0
107 -106	3,0
105 -104	2,0
103 -102	1,0
<102	0,0
Altri titoli di studio (master, diplomi, corsi post-laurea, workshop o equipollenti) Additional study qualifications (master, diplomas, postgraduate qualifications, workshops or equivalent)	5,0
Pubblicazioni (monografie, contributi in volume, contributi su rivista, contributi in atti di convegno) Publications (books, book chapters, journal articles, conference proceedings)	9,0
Esperienze di ricerca (borse di studio, contratti e assegni di ricerca, partecipazione a gruppi di ricerca, partecipazione come relatore a convegni di carattere scientifico) Research experiences (scholarships, research contracts and grants, participation in research groups, speaker for scientific conferences)	9,0
Attività professionali, stage e tirocini, esperienze all’estero, premi, brevetti, spin-off pertinenti alla tematica del dottorato Professional activities, internships, experiences abroad, awards, patents, spin-offs relevant to the topic of the PhD	9,0
Conoscenze informatiche, altre lingue estere (oltre quella ufficiale del Dottorato), altri titoli pertinenti alla tematica del dottorato Computer skills, other foreign languages (besides the official language of the PhD Program), and other relevant titles related to the topic of the PhD Program	3,0

Lettera di motivazione
Motivation letter

Punteggio massimo/max score: 10
La lettera di motivazione (massimo 5000 battute) dovrà attestare la propensione alla ricerca del candidato e altrettanto descrivere brevemente le motivazioni verso le attività e le tematiche di riferimento del dottorato, spiegando la propria formazione, le esperienze di ricerca precedenti e gli interessi scientifici futuri. In particolare, verranno valutati: 2.1 la propensione alla ricerca del candidato (4 punti); 2.2 le motivazioni verso le attività e le tematiche di riferimento del dottorato (3 punti); 2.3 gli ambiti di interesse scientifico nei quali sviluppare le ricerche future (3 punti).
The motivation letter (maximum 5000 characters) should display the candidate's inclination towards research and briefly describe the motivations towards the activities and topics relevant to the doctoral program. It should explain the educational background, previous research experiences, and future scientific interests. In particular, the following aspects will be assessed: 2.1 Candidate's inclination towards research (4 points); 2.2 Motivations towards the activities and topics related to the PhD program (3 points); 2.3 Areas of scientific interest for future research (3 points).

Propensione alla ricerca del candidato Candidate's inclination towards research	4,0
Motivazioni verso le attività e le tematiche di riferimento del Dottorato Motivations towards the activities and topics related to the PhD program	3,0
Ambiti di interesse scientifico nei quali sviluppare le ricerche future Areas of scientific interest for future research	3,0

Proposta di ricerca
Research proposal

Punteggio massimo/max score: 30
La proposta di ricerca non potrà superare le 10.000 battute. In particolare, verranno valutati: 3.1 la conoscenza dello stato dell’arte relativo alla tematica del Dottorato (10 punti); 3.2 l’originalità e il contenuto innovativo (5 punti); 3.3 la chiarezza e la completezza dell’esposizione degli obiettivi, delle metodologie e dei potenziali risultati (5 punti); 3.4 la fattibilità del progetto di ricerca (5 punti); 3.5 la pertinenza con gli obiettivi formativi del Dottorato (5 punti). La ricerca illustrata nella lettera di motivazione e di proposta di ricerca inviati all’atto della presentazione della domanda, non rappresenta necessariamente quella da svilupparsi nel corso del dottorato. In caso di ammissione, il progetto di ricerca di dottorato che si andrà effettivamente a svolgere verrà successivamente definito ed approvato dal Collegio dei Docenti del dottorato, dopo l’avvio delle attività.
The research proposal should not exceed 10.000 characters. In particular, the following aspects will be assessed: 3.1 Knowledge of the state of the art related to the topic of the PhD program (10 points); 3.2 Originality and innovative content (5 points); 3.3 Clarity and extensiveness of the description of objectives, methodologies, and potential results (5 points); 3.4 Feasibility of the research project (5 points); 3.5 Relevance to the educational objectives of the PhD program (5 points). The research described in the motivation letter and research proposal submitted with the application does not necessarily represent the research to be carried out during the doctoral program. In case of admission, the actual doctoral research project to be conducted will be subsequently defined and approved by the Doctoral Faculty Board, after the start of activities.

Conoscenza dello stato dell’arte relativo alla tematica del Dottorato Knowledge of the state of the art related to the topic of the PhD program	10,0
Originalità e il contenuto innovativo Originality and innovative content	5,0
Chiarezza e la completezza dell’esposizione degli obiettivi, delle metodologie e dei potenziali risultati Clarity and extensiveness of the description of objectives, methodologies, and potential results	5,0
Fattibilità del progetto di ricerca Feasibility of the research project	5,0
Pertinenza con gli obiettivi formativi del Dottorato Relevance to the educational objectives of the PhD program	5,0

Oral interview

Prova orale

Punteggio massimo complessivo per la prova/overall max score: 40

Prova orale
Oral examination

Punteggio massimo/max score: 40
La prova orale è finalizzata ad approfondire e chiarire gli aspetti riguardanti i titoli presentati, la lettera di motivazione e il progetto di ricerca. In particolare, saranno valutati: 1.1 la chiarezza e la completezza espositiva; 1.2 la capacità di analisi, di interpretazione critica e di sintesi; 1.3 gli interessi scientifici e la competenza relativamente alla tematica del Dottorato; Il colloquio sarà svolto in lingua inglese. Il punteggio minimo complessivo per l’ammissione al Dottorato di ricerca è di 60/120
The oral examination aims to explore and clarify aspects related to the qualifications, the motivation letter, and the research project. In particular, the following will be assessed: 1.1 Clarity and extensiveness of the presentation; 1.2, Critical interpretation, analysis and synthesis; 1.3 Scientific interests and competence in relation to the topic of the PhD program. The interview will be conducted in English The minimum overall score for admission to the PhD programme is 60/120

Discussione dell’elaborato e dei titoli del candidato: chiarezza espositiva, capacità di sintesi e interesse scientifico del curriculum
Discussion of the paper and the candidate's qualifications: clarity of presentation, ability to synthesize, and scientific interest of the CV

40,0