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The Master Programme: One Academic Year  (60 ECTS)

The Master Programme provides a one academic year curriculum the main objective of which is to direct students towards professional and academic careers thereby promoting a sustainable use of land and water in agriculture, in view of important challenges that include water/land scarcity, population growth, climate change and correlated environmental and socio-economic repercussions. A major focus will be on the application of modern tools and technologies that combine agronomic, engineering, environmental and socio-economic aspects of land and water management in agriculture.

Candidates will attend theoretical and practical sessions aimed at framing land and water resources management within a sustainable development context of agriculture and food sectors. The programme presents basic principles and advanced topics of the latest scientific and technological achievements, challenges being debated for the best exploitation of resources and options for a sustainable management at farm and large-scale level. Irrigation systems and technologies are analysed based on technical, social, economic, and environmental issues, taking into considerations the application of innovative “green” management solutions. 

Courses are addressed to graduate students and young professionals with a university background related to agronomic, irrigation, agricultural engineering and socio-economic issues.

At the end of the programme, students will acquire the following skills and competencies:

• Treat water management issues in the context of sustainability of agriculture and food systems taking into consideration the challenges of climate change, water resource scarcity, societal changes, food insecurity;
• Manage the water resource in a variety of agroecosystems for land conservation and increase water use efficiency in the irrigation sector;
• use a range of alternative water resources including saline and treated wastewater for irrigation purposes;
• Plan and evaluate irrigation projects at farm and large-scale level to optimize water/land/nutrient use, based on societal/institutional aspects and economic criteria;
• Use the latest tools and technologies for a sustainable management of water resources at different scales and in different agroecosystems.

The Master of Science Programme: Two Academic Years  (120 ECTS)

The Master of Science Programme provides a curriculum of two academic years curriculum for graduates holding the title of agricultural or hydraulic engineers. 

Access to the second year is only guaranteed to students who have successfully completed the first year and have met all the prerequisites set by the Institute.

The 2^nd year is based on the “problem solving” approach and research themes are derived from specific and relevant problems for which a practical technical solution is sought. Applied research themes and experimental works are developed. In a rigorous scientific framework, works are targeted to innovatory solutions that are feasible in the integrated land and water system they are designed for. 

The main research topics for MSc theses are:

• Eco-Efficiency analysis of irrigation;
• Impact of treated wastewater use on the cropping pattern, irrigation management and hydraulic performance of irrigation network;
• Generation of the discharge hydrograph in large scale irrigation systems;
• Modernization of an on-demand pressurized irrigation system: Assessment of the flexibility impact on the cost effectiveness;
• Formulation of a physically-based pedotransfer function to determine soil hydraulic parameters for an agro-hydrological model;
• Energy and Hydraulic Performance-Based Management of Large-Scale Pressurized Irrigation Systems;
• Actual soil erosion and sediment yield estimate in the Candelaro watershed of Apulia region in Italy using the G2 model;
• Characterization, modeling and participatory simulations of water use and development of strategies for rural households and rural territories;
• The impact of conversion from surface irrigation to drip irrigation on groundwater exploitation;
• Combination of new sensor technologies, satellite navigation and positioning technology to manage irrigation, fertilisation and application of automated optical sensing to detect diseases undetectable by traditional means.

During the second year, some students will be guided towards PhD programmes jointly carried out by Italian Universities and CIHEAM Bari.

For further details, please download here the Information Sheet for 2020-2021 L&W Master and Master of Science Programmes.