The course aim is the advancement of knowledge of hydrological processes for enhancing the comprehension and the management of hydrological practical problems. Specifically, the course will focus on small and ungauged basins.

It is possible to identify two main aims:
Refresh of notions about hydrological processes and their modelling, with particular emphasis of the design discharge concept and its practical usefulness.
Learning the design hydrograph concept and the event-based modelling approach either theoretically and in practice.
Moreover, the course will provide some soft-skills about GIS tools particularly useful for hydrological applications.

Expected outcomes following the Dublin descriptors:

Knowledge and understanding.
hydrological phenomena, specifically, rainfall and runoff formation. Design hydrograph notion and its practical implications.

Applying knowledge and understanding
Rainfall-runoff modelling. A freeware software, nowadays adopted by the professional community, will be introduced to the students and they will be asked to develop a practical project. The software application will guarantee the full comprehension of the hydrological applications.

Making judgements - Communication skills - Learning skills
Students will be asked to develop a project that, other to provide a practical example for estimating the design hydrograph, will allow them to investigate on the role of the physical parameters. The project will be assigned without a rigid scheme, student will be invited to identify himself a scientific question on which he can investigate with the software application. During the project he will identify the answer to the scientific question and motivate his conclusions. Setting small groups and interacting with the lecturer will stimulate Making judgements - Communication skills - Learning skills under the hydrological perspective.