To be admitted to doctoral programme, candidates are required to hold a master's degree (or an equivalent qualification under regulations prior to Ministerial Decree 270/2004) or a second-level academic qualification issued by an institutions within the AFAM sector, or a degree awarded by a foreign institution that is comparable in duration and level to the Italian qualification and recognised as suitable by a selection committee in charge of the comparative evaluation.

In addition, candidates must provide certification demonstrating knowledge at least B2 level in one of the main European languages, chosen from Italian (only for international candidates), English, French, German or Spanish.