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Doctoral Program in Civil Engineering

Doctoral Program
The Ph.D. degree is awarded for original research on a significant civil engineering problem. Graduate students who have completed their M.S. degrees work closely with individual faculty members (see Faculty Research Interests below). Ph.D. dissertation research is usually supported by a research grant from a government agency or an industrial contract.

Doctoral students normally take at least 45 credits, including research credits, beyond the master’s degree requirements. Full-time residency for one continuous academic year is required for the Ph.D. degree to ensure students the opportunity for intellectual association with other scholars. Many doctoral students take two, three, or four years of full-time graduate study to complete their degrees. Involvement in the teaching activity of the Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Department is required of all Ph.D. applicants.

After approximately one year of study beyond the master’s degree, doctoral students take a qualifying examination, consisting of written and oral parts. Each Ph.D. candidate is supervised by a major professor and a doctoral committee chaired by the major professor.

Ph.D. candidates submit a detailed proposal for dissertation research to the doctoral committee. The students then take a candidacy examination; successful completion of this examination is required to become a Ph.D candidate. After approval of the proposal, the committee meets from time to time to review the progress of the research. The dissertation must be submitted to the doctoral committee at least 90 days before the graduation date. The committee schedules and conducts a final oral examination before approval of the dissertation.

Ph.D. graduates find positions in

• Universities
• Consulting engineering
• Industrial or government research
• Public operating agencies