Università degli Studi di Padova
Ingegneria Edile-Architettura (LM-4 c.u.) · Italian
Last checked: 26 July 2026
2026/27 admissions at a glance
Ingegneria Edile-Architettura (Padova) — Padova
Degree taught in Italian
Official admission notice · Tuition schedule · Checked: 26 July 2026
Programmes and campuses
Each campus is a separately comparable option: seats, and sometimes delivery mode, differ by campus even for the same programme name.
Ingegneria Edile-Architettura (Padova)
ItalianPlaces for 2026/27
Both quota columns headed 'provvisorio', pending MUR confirmation. Bando is internally inconsistent on the recovery-round closing date (31 Aug body vs 1 Sept summary).
International students & enrolment
Sources
TEST ARCHED results are valid only for the university where the test was taken (CISIA rule). This page states facts published by the university and CISIA; always confirm against the current admission notice before acting.
University Guide
Beyond admission: what this school is like, how it teaches architecture, and what studying here actually involves.
History
Universita degli Studi di Padova was founded on 29 September 1222, the second-oldest university in Italy after Bologna. Galileo Galilei held the chair of mathematics at Padua from 1592 to 1610, improving the telescope during his tenure. It enrols roughly 76,000 students, 11% of whom are international.
Academic reputation
QS World University Rankings 2027: 204th globally, its best-ever result. CENSIS ranks Padova 1st among Italy's mega-universities for the third consecutive year (2026).
Position in Italian architecture education
Padova does not have a standalone Facolta di Architettura -- architecture-track education is delivered as a single-cycle engineering degree housed inside the Dipartimento di Ingegneria Civile, Edile e Ambientale (ICEA), part of the Scuola di Ingegneria.
International reputation
~76,000 students, 11% international.
The architecture school
ICEA -- Dipartimento di Ingegneria Civile, Edile e Ambientale — Three sites in Padova: Via Marzolo 9, Via Loredan 20, Via Ognissanti 39
ICEA carries on an educational tradition established in the early 1800s for technicians in transportation systems, hydraulics and civil architecture.
Official course description: the building engineer-architect handles the typological, compositional, structural and technological characteristics of building works -- design, transformation and restoration in relation to natural, social, economic and productive context, with a multidisciplinary approach integrating technical-scientific and humanistic-compositional disciplines.
ICEA was selected by ANVUR as a "Dipartimento di Eccellenza" for 2023-2027. The Ingegneria Edile-Architettura course holds EUR-ACE (European Accredited Engineer) certification.
Curriculum by programme
Ingegneria Edile-Architettura (Padova)
Year 1
Subjects: Tecnologia dei Materiali e Chimica Applicata; Elementi di Algebra Lineare e Geometria; Diritto Amministrativo; Fisica; Fondamenti di Analisi Matematica 1; Lingua Inglese B2; Storia dell'Architettura e Laboratorio; Disegno e Fondamenti di Geometria Descrittiva e Laboratorio di Architetture dell'Abitare
Skills developed: Mathematical/physical/chemical engineering foundations, foundational architectural drawing, descriptive geometry, architectural history
Year 2
Subjects: Informatica; Analisi Matematica 2; Urbanistica e Laboratorio; Storia dell'Architettura Contemporanea e Laboratorio; Architetture dell'Abitare e Laboratorio di Modellazione CAD; Rappresentazione Digitale Avanzata dell'Architettura e Laboratorio
Skills developed: Urban-planning literacy, CAD modelling, digital representation, continued architectural-history grounding
Year 3
Subjects: Fisica Tecnica Ambientale; Costruzioni Idrauliche, Marittime e Idrologia; Architettura Tecnica e Laboratorio; Scienza delle Costruzioni e Laboratorio; Fondamenti di Modellazione BIM per il Settore delle Costruzioni; Composizione Architettonica e Urbana e Laboratorio
Skills developed: Structural mechanics theory, hydraulics, and a dedicated BIM course
Year 4
Subjects: Tecnica e Pianificazione Urbanistica e Laboratorio; Architettura Tecnica 2 e Laboratorio; Tecnica delle Costruzioni; Geotecnica; Sistemi e Componenti per l'Edilizia; Architettura della Citta e Laboratorio
Skills developed: Advanced structural design, foundation/geotechnical engineering, urban-scale design and planning technique
Year 5
Subjects: Tecnica delle Costruzioni 2; Restauro e Laboratorio; Tirocinio; Fondamenti di Economia e Valutazione dei Progetti; Prova Finale; electives (Problemi Strutturali dei Monumenti, Workshop of Architectural and Urban Design (English), Urban and Regional Analysis and Planning (English), Recupero e Conservazione degli Edifici)
Skills developed: Restoration/heritage conservation, internship, project economics, thesis-level synthesis
Educational characteristics
Design education
Every major architectural subject is paired with a "Laboratorio" studio component (Storia dell'Architettura e Laboratorio, Architettura Tecnica e Laboratorio, Composizione Architettonica e Urbana e Laboratorio, Architettura della Citta e Laboratorio, Restauro e Laboratorio), using group work with constant faculty interaction.
Technical education
A structural-engineering course load substantially deeper than typical stand-alone architecture faculties: Scienza delle Costruzioni, Tecnica delle Costruzioni (1 & 2), Geotecnica, Costruzioni Idrauliche, Fisica Tecnica Ambientale -- a five-course structural progression across three years.
Historical & cultural education
Two dedicated architecture-history courses (Storia dell'Architettura, Y1; Storia dell'Architettura Contemporanea, Y2), plus a full Restauro e Laboratorio (restoration studio) in Year 5, with an optional advanced elective on structural problems of historic buildings/monuments.
Digital education
Explicit named coursework: Laboratorio di Modellazione CAD (Y2), Rappresentazione Digitale Avanzata dell'Architettura e Laboratorio (Y2), and Fondamenti di Modellazione BIM per il Settore delle Costruzioni (Y3) -- a dedicated BIM course not universal across Italian architecture-adjacent programmes.
Laboratory activities
Heavy studio-hour loading (most 12-CFU Laboratorio pairings run 150 contact hours vs ~60 for a standard 6-CFU lecture course), plus an elective English-taught "Workshop of Architectural and Urban Design" in the final year and a mandatory 3-CFU internship.
What makes it different
Integration inside a top-ranked, 'Department of Excellence' civil/environmental engineering department (ICEA) rather than a standalone architecture faculty. EUR-ACE accreditation of the specific course of study. Housed at one of the world's oldest universities (1222) with an exceptionally deep historical/scientific pedigree (Galileo, Vesalius). A named design-competition tradition, including an RPBW (Renzo Piano Building Workshop) prize/programme, an international Archizinc competition, and a Concorso di idee.
Is this university right for you?
A good fit if you: want architecture housed inside a top-ranked, EUR-ACE-accredited civil engineering department at one of Europe's oldest universities, and want a structurally rigorous LM-4 with strong design-competition culture (RPBW prize).
Less suitable if you: want a dedicated architecture faculty rather than an engineering-department setting, or want a lower-cost city than Padova.
International environment
International students
At least two Year-5 electives are taught in English -- Workshop of Architectural and Urban Design (12 CFU) and Urban and Regional Analysis and Planning (9 CFU) -- plus a compulsory Lingua Inglese B2 course in Year 1 and a mandatory English proficiency requirement.
Exchange programmes
Erasmus+ Studio offers 3-12 month exchange periods for coursework, thesis research or internships abroad; the TIME (Top Industrial Managers for Europe) consortium offers an extended double-diploma track at the Scuola di Ingegneria level.
Erasmus
ICEA runs Blended Intensive Programmes (BIP) -- short intensive mobility plus virtual collaboration with partner universities across at least 3 European countries.
Career
Career outcomes
Typical professional domains per the official programme description: applied research, advanced/innovative building design, planning and management of complex territorial systems, infrastructure networks, and the design/execution process for recupero e restauro (recovery and restoration) of historic building heritage. Typical employers: architecture/consulting design firms, building-materials and component manufacturers, property management/services companies, quality-control/safety/coordination services, and technical offices of public administrations and industrial companies.
Internships
A mandatory Tirocinio (3 CFU) is built into Year 5.
Professional qualification pathway
The LM-4 c.u. is Italy's standard single-cycle route to the Esame di Stato, generally leading to dual eligibility for registration with the Ordine degli Architetti (Sezione A) and/or the Ordine degli Ingegneri (settore civile e ambientale, Sezione A).
Student life
Living cost level: Medium
Third-party cost-of-living aggregators (not official unipd.it figures) put single-room rent roughly EUR300-600/month and double/shared rooms roughly EUR250-400/month, with overall single-person monthly cost of living excluding rent estimated around EUR900-950.
Housing/accommodation support is handled by ESU Padova via a dedicated Welcome and Accommodation Service.
Padova sits roughly 25-40 minutes by train from Venice.
The university describes the campus as an integral part of the city -- classrooms, libraries and labs spread through the historic centre rather than an isolated campus.
Admission at a glance
For exact seats, dates and fees, see the admissions section above — this is a qualitative summary only.
Frequently asked questions
Che differenza c'e tra Ingegneria Edile-Architettura a Padova e un corso di Architettura tradizionale?
A Padova il corso e collocato nel Dipartimento di Ingegneria Civile, Edile e Ambientale (ICEA) anziche in una Facolta di Architettura autonoma: il piano di studi ha quindi una componente tecnico-strutturale piu estesa rispetto a molti corsi di Architettura, mantenendo comunque laboratori di progettazione, storia dell'architettura, composizione architettonica e restauro in ogni anno.
Il corso e accreditato a livello europeo?
Si, il Corso di Studio in Ingegneria Edile-Architettura di Padova ha ottenuto la certificazione EUR-ACE (European Accredited Engineer).
Come si accede al corso e cos'e il Test ARCHED?
L'accesso e a numero programmato su base nazionale tramite il Test ARCHED, la prova di ammissione nazionale.
Ci sono opportunita di studio all'estero durante il corso?
Si: il corso partecipa al programma Erasmus+ Studio, ai Blended Intensive Programmes e alla rete TIME della Scuola di Ingegneria per il doppio titolo; nel quinto anno sono inoltre offerti insegnamenti opzionali in lingua inglese.
Prepare for the test
Study the same TEST ARCHED syllabus with cards, practice questions and mock exams.
- Research and data verification
- IMATNOTE Team
- Architecture review
- RYU
- Academic year
- 2026/27
- Last verified
- 26 July 2026
Applying from outside the EU? The non-EU application guide covers pre-enrolment, the study visa and qualification recognition. Common questions are answered separately.