The objectives of the Ph.D. program are to provide students opportunities to reach a critical understanding of the basic scientific and engineering principles underlying their fields of interest and to cultivate their ability to apply these principles creatively through advanced methods of analysis, research, and synthesis. The Ph.D. degree is awarded primarily on the basis of research. Applicants for the doctoral degree must have a degree in engineering disciplines and must meet the approval of the department’s graduate committee. Students majoring in this department for doctoral degree must take diagnostic examinations (or preliminary examination) by the end of their second long semester. These examinations are based on the undergraduate curriculum. Each student is required to take the diagnostic examinations in their area of specialization and any three-core areas.

In addition to regulations established by the Graduate School, applicants for candidacy for the doctoral degree are required to demonstrate high proficiency in a single research area. The coursework for each student must meet the approval of the student’s doctoral advisory committee. The department has no specific foreign language requirement (but a foreign language for the Ph.D. degree can be specified at the discretion of the student’s dissertation advisor). Research tools are included as an integral part of the degree program in the leveling, minor, or major courses of each student. Additional information may be obtained from the departmental program advisor.

Please see our handbook for more information. 

Doctoral Program Links

• Overview
• Curriculum & Courses
• Qualifying Exam
• Handbook