Admissions
Admission to the programme is based on a selection process that includes a review of your academic background and verification of specific curricular requirements, as well as your English language level (according to the standards set by the University for master’s degree programmes).
How can I apply?
You can apply for admission with entry in either the first or the second semester, according to the procedures established by Politecnico di Milano and the School of Industrial and Information Engineering. The application process and the available time windows depend on your applicant profile:
Admission Requirements
In case of specific gaps in skills considered essential for HPC, the evaluation of the admission request may result in the assignment of study plan obligations ("obblighi formativi"), which are specific exams that must be included in the Master's study plan, replacing one or more elective courses. Depending on the gap, in some cases the admission committe may even assign curricular integrations ("debiti"), courses that must be passed before enrolling in the Master's programme).
Evaluation
If you meet both of the following conditions, you are automatically admitted:
- weighted grade point average of at least 24/30
- a Bachelor’s degree from Politecnico di Milano in: Computer Engineering, Mathematical Engineering, Physics Engineering, Automation Engineering, or Electronic Engineering
If you are not automatically admitted (e.g. you are transferring from another degree program at Politecnico, coming from a different university, or do not meet the GPA requirement) your application will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. We will review your academic background, performance, and achievements. In particular, we will assess how well your completed coursework aligns with the required knowledge and skills, with special attention to the grades you obtained in core subjects relevant to the degree program and in courses that are foundational for High Performance Computing.
Useful tips if you are still in your Bachelor studies
Plan ahead! If you are in the second or third year of a Bachelor's degree at Politecnico di Milano and are considering continuing with your studies in HPC Engineering, here are some tips to help you prepare effectively and avoid any curricular constraints (obligations) in your Master's study plan.
If you are studying Mathematical Engineering, we recommend choosing Algoritmi e Architetture per il Calcolo ad Alte Prestazioni (10 ECTS) as elective course (it is already included among the possible choices of the third year).
If you are studying Computer Engineering, we recommend including Fondamenti di Calcolo Numerico (5 CFU) among your elective courses in the third year (it is already listed among the available options). Moreover, if you do not have specific constraints on your elective choices, we also suggest adding Fondamenti di Ricerca Operativa (5 CFU): you can include it as an autonomous course — it will be subject to approval by the Computer Engineering study plan coordinator.
If you come from other Bachelor's programmes, use your elective credits to include courses that will ease your admission to HPC Engineering, especially if you have not already taken equivalent exams. Where possible, we particularly recommend:
- Fondamenti di Calcolo Numerico (or other courses on numerical methods)
- Fondamenti di Ricerca Operativa (operations research)
- Algoritmi e Architetture per il Calcolo ad Alte Prestazioni, 10 credits
(if you are missing exams in both algorithms and in computer architectures).
Alternatively, depending on the case
- Computer Architecture and Operating Systems [mod. 1 “Computer Architecture”, 5 credits]
(if algorithms are already addressed in other exams you have taken) - Algoritmi e Principi dell’Informatica [mod. 2 “Informatica 3”, 5 credits]
(if computer architectures are already addressed in other exams you have taken)
If these subjects are not already foreseen in the course offerings of your Bachelor's degree, in many cases these exams (or others with equivalent content) can still be added by submitting a independent study plan ("piano autonomo"), subject to approval by the study plan coordinator of your Bachelor's programme, who will assess the compatibility of these choices with the rest of your study plan and the academic regulations.
During the admission process to HPC, if these recommended subject areas are not covered in your previous bachelor studies, they may be assigned as mandatory courses to include in your Master's study plan (study plan obligations).
If you would like to check whether your current study plan is aligned for continuing to the MSc in HPC Engineering and whether you might receive any additional study obligations upon admission, you can contact: hpc-master@polimi.it
If you are studying at another university, the suggestion is similar: where possible, we recommend including in your current study plan courses that cover, fully or partially, the topics listed above (i.e. foundations of numerical methods or numerical analysis, operations research, computer architectures, algorithms), in order to facilitate your continuation of studies in HPC Engineering.