Application | Cosmetic Industrial Science | Università degli Studi di Milano Statale

Admissions to academic year 2026/2027

Applications for the academic year 2026/2027 are open from 22 January 2026.
The application deadline for non-EU students VISA applicants is 30 April 2026.

The new academic offer will be published by the end of March 2026.

How to apply to an open-admission master programme

Previous academic year

Admission requirements 2025-26

Admission Requirements
Eligible for admission to the Master's degree programme in CosmIS are:
- graduates in the classes listed below, as well as in the corresponding classes related to DM 509/99:
· L-27 Chemical Sciences and Technologies
· L-29 Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies
· graduates in other classes, as well as graduates in master's, specialist and four-year degree programmes allowed by a resolution of the competent boards, provided they meet the following minimum requirements: at least 35 ECTS earned in mathematical (MAT01-MAT06), physical (FIS01-FIS03, FIS07), chemical (CHIM01-CHIM10) and biological (BIO09-BIO19) disciplines, divided as follows: at least 25 ECTS in chemistry and biology, including at least 15 ECTS in chemistry ones;
- graduates in possession of a degree obtained abroad recognized as eligible on the basis of correspondence with Italian degrees.
In addition, to be admitted to the Master's degree programme, the student must possess proven language skills in English, at least at level B2 (Common European Framework of Reference).

Knowledge Assessment
The verification of the possession of the pre-established curricular requirements for the admission to the Master's degree programme and the evaluation of the personal skills of candidates are in charge of a Committee for admittance appointed by the Teaching Board. Access to the programme is regulated by a compulsory test aimed at ascertaining the initial skills of the candidates, with a view to successfully completing their course of studies. In order to be admitted into the Master's degree in CosmIS, candidates must:
a) meet all admission requirements by 31 December 2025. In the case of applications for admission accompanied by a degree obtained abroad, the verification will be based on the evaluation of the diploma supplement. An interview may be required for clarification. For non-EU students, who may have visa and/or residence permit problems, the interview, if needed, could be scheduled within the month of May 2025;
b) achieve a score in the test higher than the threshold set by the Committee, i.e. at least 50% of answers have to be correct. In case of slight insufficiencies (45-49%) the Committee for admittance reserves the right to take the curriculum vitae presented by the candidate into consideration and eventually call the candidate for an interview (held remotely through a videoconferencing platform) in order to better assess his/her preparation.
The test will assess knowledge and skills in:
- principles of biology, human physiology and biochemistry;
- principles of general, analytical, inorganic and organic chemistry;
All applicants will be required to take the test, including transfer students from other universities/courses.
For admission tests, there are two separate sessions: FIRST SESSION - May 12th 2025, SECOND SESSION - September 9th 2025. Non-EU candidates applying for a student Visa can only partecipate to the first session on May 12th 2025. The test can only be taken once and is open even for upcoming graduates and candidates, who did not proven yet their language skills in English.
For test details including dates, time, venue and delivery modes, please refer to Additional information posted on the web site of the course (https://cosmis.cdl.unimi.it/en/enrolment).

Proficiency in English at a B2 level or higher per the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) is required for admission.
The B2-level requirement will be ascertained by the University Language Centre (SLAM) upon admission as follows:
- Language certificate of B2 or higher level issued no more than three years before the date of admission application. You will find the list of language certificates recognized by the University at: https://www.unimi.it/en/node/39322. The certificate must be uploaded when submitting the online application;
- English level achieved during a University of Milan degree programme and certified by the University Language Centre (SLAM) no more than four years before the date of admission application, including levels based on language certificates submitted by the applicant during their Bachelor's degree at the University of Milan. In this case the process is automatic, the applicant does not have to attach any certificates to the application;
- Placement test administrated by the University Language Centre (SLAM) according to the calendar published on the website: (https://www.unimi.it/en/node/39267)
All those who fail to submit a valid certificate or do not meet the required proficiency level will be instructed during the admission procedure to take the placement test.
Applicants who do not take or pass the placement test will be required to obtain a language proficiency certificate recognized by the University (see https://www.unimi.it/en/node/39322) and deliver it to the SLAM via the InformaStudenti service by the deadline fixed for the master's programme (https://www.unimi.it/en/node/39267).
Applicants who do not meet the requirement by said deadline (December 2025) will not be admitted to the master's degree programme and may not sit any further tests.

Additional information

Admission Test

When the Admission Test will be held?

There will be two sessions: FIRST SESSION - May (the date for a.y. 26/27 will be published as soon as defined), SECOND SESSION - September (the date for a.y. 26/27 will be published as soon as defined). The test can only be taken once and is open even for upcoming graduates and candidates, who have not yet proved their language skills in English.

Non-EU candidates applying for a student Visa can only participate to the first session on May (the date for a.y. 26/27 will be published as soon as defined).

How will I be notified about the Admission Test?

Students who have submitted their applications for admission will receive three emails during the week preceding the test. These emails will include the invitation to participate and information regarding the practical organization for the day of the test.

How can I prepare for the Admission Test?

To revise general, inorganic, and organic chemistry topics, bachelor-level textbooks are optimal (i.e. Chemistry: A Molecular Approach, Tro, N.J.; Organic Chemistry, Bruice, P.Y.). A bachelor level textbook of general biology covering all topics in biochemistry, cell biology, and genetics will be sufficient to be prepared for the Admission test (i.e. Molecular Biology of the Cell, Alberts, B.).

How will the Admission Test be structured?

The test consists of 36 multiple choice questions (24 questions chemistry-based and 12 questions on biological topics), with only one correct answer among 4 alternatives proposed. The score will be assigned as follows: 1 point for each correct answer; -0.25 points for each incorrect answer; 0 points for each unanswered question.

The test will be conducted on Zoom platform, with a duration of 90 minutes allocated for answering the questions. Please consider that the overall time to complete the test may be longer (even several hours) due to the need to initially complete the recognition procedures for the all participants.

How the test will be evaluated?

See the Knowledge Assessment paragraph on the website.

Examples of multiple-choice questions:

What noncovalent bonds stabilize the secondary structure of proteins?
1. hydrogen bonds between the CO and NH groups involved in peptide bonds
2. hydrophobic interactions
3. van der Waals bonds
4. the coordination of metals
In what important cellular biochemical process are both oxaloacetic acid and acetyl-CoA involved?
1. Lactic fermentation
2. The Krebs cycle
3. The Calvin cycleli>
4. Anaerobic glycolysis

Answers: 1. A; 2. B

Student workers

After the enrollment you can apply for recognition as a student worker.

Procedure for attending:

send a request to cosmis@unimi.it using the object line “To Student Workers’ Commission”
the request must provide proper documentation showing the commitment (e.g., employment contract, employer's statement)

Applicants will be contacted by the Tutor of Student Workers and, if deemed necessary, invited for an interview on Teams platform for further discussion.

The Student Workers’ Commission will be responsible for bringing the request to the attention of the Academic Board for the Master's Degree in Cosmetic Industrial Science, which will deliberate on it. Applicants will receive an answer immediately after the first Academic Board meeting scheduled following the submission.

Student worker condition:

Student workers will be provided with the support needed to stay on top of the coursework and attend exams in the scheduled sessions.

By way of example they will have at disposal:

teaching material at the discretion of individual teachers: e.g., lecture PDF files, recordings of lessons at the end of the course, additional insights and material for assessment of individual preparation
dedicated meetings with the student-worker Tutor
dedicated meetings with the teachers

For details, student workers will need to make contact with each of the teachers individually.

Attendance to individual laboratory experiences is compulsory. These are generally provided in the months of January (condensed 2/3 weeks) and June (condensed 3/4 weeks) for the 1st academic year, and 1 day per week from October to December in 2nd year.

Application for exemption may be submitted for those activities for which the student believes that already has adequate competence.

Student workers can also take advantage of the part-time enrolment option offered by the University (further information).

Exemption from individual laboratory activities

The request for exemption from individual laboratory activities must be submitted in time to receive a response before the beginning of the activities.

Procedure for attending:

send a request to cosmis@unimi.it using the object line “To Tutor for recognition of ECTS/exemptions of teaching activities”
the request must provide
- indications of the course for which exemption is sought
- documentation showing the qualifications/experience in the field

The Tutor for recognition of ECTS/exemptions of teaching activities will be responsible for sharing the request with the teacher in charge of the course for which exemption is sought and for bringing it to the attention of the Academic Board for the Master's Degree in Cosmetic Industrial Science, which will deliberate on it. Applicants will receive an answer immediately after the first Academic Board meeting scheduled following the submission.

Further information

Fees, scholarships and exemptions

Fees

For students enrolled on bachelor’s, master’s and single cycle degree programmes are divided into two instalments of different amounts and with different payment deadlines:

the first, corresponding to the minimum amount, is the same for all students
the second - technically referred to as an ‘all-inclusive fee’- that is variable.

The University provides:

A no tax area for students on track with exams and not on track with exams for one year with ISEE certification until 30.000 €.
Fees exemption on account of merit, income or disability, or if they meet other specific requirements;
Concessions for students meeting high merit requirements;
Diversified tuition fees according to the student's home country for international students with assets/income abroad;