L Magni, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering will give an informal introduction to the Engineering Courses and take questions from Volta students tomorrow 4 October 2018 at 6.00 pm in the board room (ground floor, adjacent to the porter's desk). All Volta undergraduates reading Engineering (construction, electonic, etc) are invited to participate. Participation is compulsory for freshers. The poster of the meeting can be downloaded here.
Image: The 'Auditorio de Tenerife' designed by Santiago Calatrava.
Students of Collegio Volta need to make sure that they have full access to medical care. The College is very close to Policlinico San Matteo and this hospital, unlike other ones in town, has an Accidents & Emergencies Department. Accidents and Emergencies, however, means exactly what the words mean but students spend from 3 to 10 years studying at Pavia depending on the courses and it is certain or nearly certain that during such time they will to see a doctor. The provisions for medical care differ for Italian students, for EU students and for non-EU students and are briefly outlined here.
Italian students
Details of procedures are summarised in this University page. There are basic two approaches. The first and most appropriate is that students register with a general practitioner (GP) for one year, chosen from the full list of GPs active in town, and renew their registration for subsequent years. This enables students to develop a close and effective interaction with their GP on all matters medical and results in students receiving the best medical care. The second approach is more casual and involves access to a surgery that has close links with the University and ensures that even students of the University of Pavia who have not registered can see a doctor when they need (details and contacts are found on the same page). This is an excellent back up provision but not a substitute for the most direct and effective course of action, which involves registration.
EU students
Details and procedures are summaries in this other University page. EU students who carry a valid European Health Insurance Card may chose and contact directly one of the GP from the list of GPs active in Pavia and register with them. They have access to medical care on the same terms that apply to Italian students
Other students
Details of procedures are summarised in this University page. Students from selected, non EU countries have medical insurance that covers their access to medical services in Italy. Non EU students who do not have valid medical insurance for Italy should purchase insurance through the Italian NHS. Outline instructions can be found on the page indicated. he local NHS office is at: 3 viale Indipendenza, Pavia (tel +39 0382 4311). The cost for this insurance is € 150 per year of part of.
The College will conduct a survey in a near future in order to establish and ensure that all Volta students have adequate access to medical care in case of need. Foreign students who need assistance in order to comply with paperwork in Italian should contact the College Office.
Formal College library support, which involves cataloguing new books and journals and providing a loan service to the members of Volta, will only start early November as a result of the broad changes that EDiSU is introducing about students' paid contributions. These changes were outlined by M Aramini, Director General of EDiSU, during the General College Assemby of 1 October 2018.
The College needs to provide a library loan service even during the month of October, however, and I am calling on the members of Volta to step forward, give a bit of their time to the College community and provide basic library support starting from Monday the 8th of October. Service is between 6.00 and 7.00 pm Monday to Friday in a small office near the Director's office and students willing to help will find that they can use most of that time for their own revision in between loan requests. Applications in writing to the College Director.
Image: the JTM Needham College library (photograph by former Volta undergraduate S Tondi).
P Carretta, Dean of the undergraduate Physics Course will give an informal introdction to the Course and take questions from Volta students today 3 October 2018 at 6.00 pm in the board room (ground floor, adjacent to the porter's desk). The Physics undergraduate Course is a challenging one and the College named after A Volta leaves no stone unturned in order to ensure that College students reading Physics will succced in their studies. All Volta Physics undergraduates are invited to participate. Participation is compulsory for freshers. The poster of the meeting can be downloaded here.
UP Gianazza, Director of the Department of Mathematics will chair the introductory meeting about the University Courses in Mathematics today 3 October 2018 at 5.00 pm in the board room (ground floor, adjacent to the porter's desk). The focus of the meeting will be the undergraduate course and will discuss course strengths and hurdles, the supervisions available in the Department and the role of College supervisions. All Volta Maths are invited to participate. Participation is compulsory for Volta freshers reading Maths. The poster of the meeting can be downloaded here.
The College is making available the presentation given by L Ruzza and V Lai of Blue Systems (Pavia) during the General Assembly of 1 October 2018 about the new Volta wifi network. Blue Systems had supplied earlier instructions to the College Office and the Porter's Desk about network access but the presentation by L Ruzza and V Lai during the General Assembly is a useful guide to Volta wifi. The file can be downloaded here.
Meetings of the following Clubs & Societies will take place today, the 2nd of October: Volta Cine Club 6.30 pm, Volta Drama Society: 6.45 pm and Volta Science Society: 7.00 pm. All students who enrolled in these Clubs & Societies are asked to participate. Students who have enrolled in these activity groups may also wish to encourage other members of Volta to join in.
The Health & Safety Induction will take place this evening Tuesday the 2nd of October at 6.00 pm in the College lecture theatre. Participation will review emergency and contacts, basic procedures, fire alarm and building evacuation. Attendance is compulsory for all Volta freshers.
College PhD student Gianluca Lombardo has suggested a Volta Judo Club (VJUC) and he made himself available for acting as Club secretary and teaching Judo to College members. interested students should write to Gianluca Lombardo (email address and mobile numbers available at the porter's desk) in order to review the proposal and decide whether there is sufficient interest in the Volta Judo Club.
October 2018