Giulio Rampa PhD Thesis Prize for Outstanding Research in General Relativity and Gravitational Physics 2025 Edition.
Call for nominations
A graduate of the University of Pavia and among the distinguished alums of Collegio Borromeo, Giulio Rampa, in his short life, had a profound impact on his fellow students and the faculty of the Department of Physics of the University of Pavia. Following his Master in Physics, he soon entered The Graduate School at the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics (Albert Einstein Institute), Potsdam, where he became deeply interested in general relativity. Known for his remarkable personality and outstanding intellectual potential, Giulio Rampa’s life is celebrated through this prize, honoring an outstanding PhD Thesis in general relativity or gravitational physics.
Under the aegis of the University of Pavia, the Almo Collegio Borromeo, and the Italian Society for General Relativity and Gravitational Physics a monetary prize of 2,000 EUR, an honorary lecture (the Collegio Borromeo Giulio Rampa Honorary Lecture and Medal), will be awarded every two years to a graduate student for outstanding research on all aspects of general relativity or gravitational physics. The prize was established in 2011 and is endowed under the terms of a donation from Nadia and Giorgio Rampa. Any PhD student who graduated from a University or research center worldwide defending a PhD Thesis on all aspects of general relativity or gravitational physics between January 1st, 2021, and December 31st, 2024, is eligible to be nominated for this prize.
The nominator should submit – preferably via email – all relevant material described below to the following address:
Secretariat of The Rampa Prize Committee,
c/o Department of Physics,
Via Bassi 6, 27100 Pavia, Italy
e-mail: mauro.carfora[AT]unipv.it
The candidature material should comprise: 1) a one-page abstract of the PhD Thesis; 2) a full copy of the PhD Thesis; 3) a letter of recommendation from the Thesis Advisor; 4) one or more letters of endorsement – possibly from the Thesis reader – substantiating the candidate’s contributions; 5) a complete CV. The material should be submitted no later than March 31st, 2025. Self-nominations will not be accepted.
The following criteria are reviewed when selecting the Giulio Rampa prize recipient: (i) Originality of Contribution; (ii) Breadth of Work; (iii) Publications; (iv) Quality of Nomination; (v) Quality of the Endorsment.
The prize recipients will be selected by a committee of international experts, whose resolutions will be communicated to the winners by June 30th, 2025.
The prizes will be presented at the 26th edition of the “Italian Society for General Relativity and Gravitation (SIGRAV) Conference”, to be held in September 2025 at the University of Milano Bicocca (Milano). This is the biennial Conference of the Italian Society for General Relativity and Gravitation (SIGRAV), devoted to all aspects of gravitational physics. The Rampa Prize-winner will have the opportunity to present their work during a special session of the conference and will be awarded the Giulio Rampa Honorary Lecture to be held at the Salone degli Affreschi of the Collegio Borromeo, a prestigious university college associated with the University of Pavia. During the Lecture ceremony, a medal will be presented to the winner.
Previous Awardees:
2012 Thomas-Paul Hack
2014 David Radice
2016 not assigned
2018 Davide Gerosa, Jan Ostrowski
2020 Tommaso De Lorenzo
2023 Elisa Maggio