ADMISSION

GENERAL REQUIREMENTS

A doctoral student is required to complete the program, including acceptance of the doctoral thesis, within eight years from the date of passing the candidacy examination

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

SELECTING AN ADVISOR

CANDIDACY EXAM

The candidacy exam must be taken within three semesters (summer sessions do not count) of entry into the doctoral program. At least 18 credits must be earned in graduate courses beyond a baccalaureate degree before taking the candidacy exam. The student must be registered as a full-time or part-time degree student for the semester in which the exam is taken.

The candidacy examination is offered by the Graduate Program Office each Fall and Spring semester typically in the second week. The candidacy examination is comprised of both written and oral components. During the 2007 Fall semester, the written exam will administered August 20, 21, and 22. During the 2008 Spring semester, it will be administered January 21, 22, and 23. Written exams will be held from 9:00 AM to 12:00 noon. The oral examination will be held the following Friday, since there are no classes Friday August 24th or January 25th.

The material covered in the candidacy examination is at the terminal baccalaureate level. While the material is based on the baccalaureate degree, the examining committee expects the understanding, competency and maturity acquired in graduate study. The committee expects candidates to possess knowledge and understanding of Mechanical Engineering principles, to be able to recall them quickly, and to synthesize them accurately.

Students will be accepted or denied admission to candidacy by evaluation and vote of the Mechanical Engineering Graduate Faculty. The evaluation will be based on results of the written exam (75%), and results of the oral exam (25%).

Students who do not pass the candidacy exam on the first attempt may retake the entire exam in the next semester it is offered. Students who do not pass the candidacy exam on the second attempt will be denied admission to candidacy and may not take the exam again.

WRITTEN CANDIDACY EXAM

The written portion of the candidacy exam will consist of three separate three- hour written tests covering three areas chosen by the student from the following six topic areas - solid mechanics, rigid body mechanics, system dynamics, fluid mechanics, heat transfer and thermodynamics. All written exams will be closed book unless a different format is announced prior to the exam. Exam problems will be contributed by and graded by faculty with expertise in respective areas. Samples of the Written Candidacy Exams are available in pdf format here. The six topic areas are described below.

• Solid Mechanics
  Equilibrium of a differential element, plane stress and plane strain, stress and strain transformations, stress-strain relations, compatibility conditions, strain energy and Castigliano's theorem. Failure theories, fatigue considerations. Uniaxial loading and deformation, statically indeterminate problems, temperature effects, torsion and bending. Thin walled sections. Elastic solution of thick walled cylinders.
  Texts: Mechanics of Materials, Hibbeler, Prentice-Hall
  Advanced Strength and Applied Elasticity, Ugural, Prentice-Hall
  
• Rigid Body Mechanics
  Dynamics of particles and rigid bodies. Analysis of position, velocity, forces, and acceleration of particles, links, gears, cams, mechanism trains, or other linkage systems.
  Texts: Vector Mechanics: Dynamics, Beer and Johnston, McGraw-Hill
  Kinematics and Dynamics of Machinery, Wilson, Sadler and Michels, Harper & Row
  Theory of Machines and Mechanisms, Shigley and Uicker, McGraw-Hill.
  
• System Dynamics
  Vibration in mechanical systems involving transient as well as steady state motion will be covered. Elementary mechanical, electrical, fluid and thermal systems will also be considered. Emphasis will be placed on basic modeling, differential equation derivation and solution. Basic concepts of feedback controls are included.
  Texts: Mechanical Vibrations, Rao, Addison-Wesley
  Dynamic Modeling and Control of Engineering Systems, Shearer and Kulakowski, Macmillan
  
• Fluid Mechanics
  Application of conservative equations (mass, momentum, and energy) for determining forces due to moving fluids. One dimensional compressible flow: isentropic, flow with friction, flow with heat transfer, choking, normal shocks. Internal viscous flow: friction losses in pipes, velocity distribution, transition, turbulent flow. Separation, lift and drag from external flows. Application of fluid mechanics to the analysis of fluid systems. Other related topics may be included.
  Texts: Fluid Mechanics, White, McGraw-Hill
  Introduction to Fluid Mechanics, Fox & McDonald, Wiley
  
• Heat Transfer
  Application of the conservation equations (continuity, momentum, and energy) to the formulation of mathematical models describing heat transfer processes. Specific areas of importance: Conduction--transient and steady state; convection--laminar and turbulent flow for internal, external and natural convection systems; thermal radiation; heat transfer processing equipment, heat exchangers.
  Texts: Fundamentals of Heat and Mass Transfer, Incropera and DeWitt, Wiley
  Heat Transfer, Holman, McGraw-Hill
  
• Thermodynamics
  First and Second Law analysis of steady and transient systems from the energy and availability standpoint; properties of pure solids, liquids and real and ideal gases; mixtures of gases and liquids, psychrometrics; thermochemical calculations and chemical equilibrium; analysis of energy conversion devices.
  Texts: Fundamentals of Classical Thermodynamics, Van Wylen and Sonntag, Wiley
  Fundamentals of Engineering Thermodynamics, Moran and Shipiro, Wiley

ORAL CANDIDACY EXAM

The purpose of the oral portion of the candidacy exam is to provide an additional form of evaluation and to reveal the depth of the student's understanding of basic concepts compared to their ability to answer specific questions. The oral exam will be composed of but not necessarily restricted to the following:

• follow-up questions on specific portions of the written exam that the student may have missed;
• topics which, because of length or character, were not included in the written exam;
• questions that are better suited to oral exposition;
• questions requiring the synthesis of several areas within Mechanical Engineering;
• questions about new and different physical situations; and,
• questions concerning practical aspects of engineering theory and practice.

The oral portion of the exam will consist of three separate 45 minute periods covering the same three areas chosen by the student for the written portion of the exam. Two faculty evaluators will conduct each oral exam. The student's advisor may observe the oral exams but may not ask or answer questions during the exam.

DOCTORAL COMMITTEE

Names of the proposed committee should be forwarded to the Department Head for approval. The Department Head may approve the suggested committee members or may recommend possible changes. The Department Head will request the Graduate School to form the committee. The Graduate School will appoint the committee and request all committee members to acknowledge their acceptance on an official signature sheet. At this point, the student's program is under the complete control of their doctoral committee.

The chair of the doctoral committee is responsible for the administrative aspects of the doctoral program and coordinating the committee's activities. The chair convenes meetings of the committee. If the chair is also the research advisor, he/she has the following additional responsibilities:

• direct the research program;
• assist the student in selecting courses;
• supervise and release the research proposal;
• supervise and release the final draft of the thesis for defense; and
• approve the final copy of thesis that will be sent to the Graduate School.

A planning meeting of the doctoral committee should occur immediately after the doctoral committee is formed. A written record of the planning meeting must be sent to the Graduate Programs Office for inclusion in the student's folder. The objectives of the planning meeting are:

• brief comments by the student including academic record and work or educational experience;
• define a tentative series of courses to be taken by the student; and,
• define a tentative time schedule.

The committee should meet as a body at least once per year to review the status of the student's research and program of study. Alternatively, the student can meet individually at least once per year with each committee member for these purposes. If there is a substantial change in the student's program of study or research objective, the committee should meet. A written record of each meeting describing changes must be sent to the Department for inclusion in the student's official records.

ENGLISH COMPETENCE

• Assessing Oral English Competence
  Oral communication skills of all Ph.D. candidates will be assessed in the semester in which they pass the candidacy examination. Each candidate must prepare and present a short 8 minute technical presentation (absolute maximum of 10 minutes) whose subject area addresses at least one of the topics that constitute the written candidacy exam. The topic is entirely up to the student. The ability to communicate, not the technical content of the talk, will be evaluated. Therefore, it is in the student's best interest to pick a topic with which they are familiar. For example, it could be a topic from their research, a class project or industrial work experience.

During the presentation, the audience will consist of several other Ph.D. candidates in addition to two faculty evaluators. If a candidate's Ph.D. advisor is one of the faculty evaluators, that student will be placed in an alternate group of presenters. Following the presentation, the candidate will be asked questions by the faculty evaluators and fellow students. Competence will be assessed by the two faculty evaluators using a faculty assessment form. Students will be asked to evaluate each other using a standardized peer assessment form which will be returned to the presenter but will not be used as part of the formal assessment.

• Improving Oral English Competence
  Based on the Oral English Assessment, competence will be evaluated as acceptable or unacceptable. The Oral English Assessment will be administered only one time to each student. There will be no subsequent re-examination.

Those students whose oral English competence is judged unacceptable, must register for SPCOM 100A or B (or CAS 100A or B), or other suitable course assigned by the Graduate Coordinator. The candidate must receive a grade of a B or higher in this course before they can schedule their Comprehensive Exam. If the minimum grade requirement is not met after taking the course twice, the canidate is not eligible to continue in the doctoral program.

• Assessing Written English Competence
  Written communication skills of all Ph.D. candidates will be assessed in the semester in which they pass the candidacy examination. During a three-hour assessment period, the candidates will be asked to read an article related to Mechanical Engineering and provide a written response to written questions prepared by two faculty evaluators. The article will not be difficult to read technically, and each written response will be judged by its effectiveness to communicate the ideas of the student author. The ability to communicate, not the technical content of the written response, will be evaluated. Competence will be assessed by the two faculty evaluators.
  
• Improving Written English Competence
  Based on the Written English Assessment, competence will be evaluated as acceptable or unacceptable. The Written English Assessment will be administered only one time to each student. There will be no subsequent re-examination.

Those students whose written English competence is judged unacceptable must register for either ENGL 202C, ENGL 416, ENGL 418, or other suitable course depending on course availability and background of student; the specific course is determined by the graduate coordinator. The candidate must receive a grade of a B or higher in this course before they can schedule their Comprehensive Exam. If the minimum grade requirement is not met after taking the course twice, the canidate is not eligible to continue in the doctoral program.

LANGUAGE AND COMMUNICATION REQUIREMENTS

RESEARCH PROPOSAL

In preparation for the comprehensive examination, the candidate must prepare a written proposal related to the candidate's planned research. The proposal must be reviewed by the advisor and delivered to the committee at least two weeks prior to the comprehensive exam. The written research proposal should contain:

• a statement of the research problem;
• a thorough literature review;
• preliminary results, if available;
• a work plan describing methods of analysis and/or experimentation;
• a statement of the most significant results expected from the research and their impact on the current state of the art; and,
• a time schedule for completion of the proposed research.

COMPREHENSIVE EXAMINATION

The comprehensive exam is scheduled by the Graduate School upon request from the Graduate Programs Office with at least three weeks advance notice. It is the responsibility of the committee chair to complete all procedures and see that all requirements are met. It is the responsibility of the student to be certain that the committee chair performs these duties in a timely and accurate manner.

The comprehensive exam should cover the specific areas of Mechanical Engineering, designated by the doctoral committee, which relate to the student's program. The comprehensive exam will consist of an oral examination administered by the student's doctoral committee, which will include two parts.
a) Presentation of a proposal related to thesis research. The main purpose of this part will be to demonstrate the candidate's technical communications skills and competency of the subject matter closely related to the thesis topic.
b) Structured oral examination. The main purpose of this part will be to demonstrate the candidate's in-depth knowledge in related areas of research.

A written exam may also be given at the discretion of the committee.

A student must receive a favorable vote of at least two-thirds of the members of the doctoral committee to pass. At least three members of the doctoral committee must be physically present at the exam. The student must also be physically present at the exam. No more than one member of the committee may participate by telephone.

When a period of more than six years has elapsed between passing the comprehensive exam and completing the program, the student is required to pass a second comprehensive exam.

RESIDENCY AND REGISTRATION

After a Ph.D. candidate has passed the comprehensive examination and met the two-semester full-time residence requirement, the student must register continuously for each fall and spring semester (beginning with the first semester after both of the above requirements have been met) until the Ph.D. thesis is accepted and approved by the doctoral committee. Post- comprehensive Ph.D. students can maintain registration by registering for credits in the usual way, or by registering for noncredit 601 or 611, depending upon whether they are devoting full time or part time to thesis preparation. Students may take 601 plus up to 3 additional credits of course work for audit by paying only the dissertation fee. Students wishing to take up to 3 additional credits of course work for credit, i.e., 590, 602, etc., with 601 may do so by paying the dissertation fee and an additional flat fee. Students wishing to take more than 3 additional credits of course work must register for 600 or 611 (i.e., not for 601, which is full-time thesis preparation). Note that the least expensive way for a student to work full-time on research and thesis preparation is to register for 601. This clearly is the procedure of choice for international students who need to maintain status as full-time students for visa purposes.

FINAL ORAL EXAMINATION

The final oral examination may not be scheduled until at least three months have elapsed after the comprehensive examination was passed. The student must be registered as a full-time or part-time degree student for the semester in which the exam is taken.

The final exam is scheduled by the Graduate School upon request from the Graduate Programs Office with at least three weeks advance notice. It is the responsibility of the committee chair to complete all procedures and see that all requirements are met. It is the responsibility of the student to be certain that the committee chair performs these duties in a timely and accurate manner.

The final draft of the thesis must be delivered to the committee at least two weeks prior to the final exam. Both the thesis advisor and the student are responsible for ensuring the completion of the thesis and for adequate consultation with members of the thesis committee well in advance of the oral examination. Major revisions to the thesis must be completed before this examination. The dissertation should be in its final form, with appropriate notes, bibliography, tables and figures. Both the content and style should be correct and polished by the time this final draft is in the hands of the committee.

A student must receive a favorable vote of at least two-thirds of the members of the doctoral committee to pass. At least three members of the doctoral committee must be physically present at the exam. The student must also be physically present at the exam. No more than one member of the committee may participate by telephone.

THESIS ACCEPTANCE

When an initial complete draft of the thesis has been compiled, the student must submit it to the Thesis Office for format review. Submission for format review must be made by the announced deadline for the semester/session in which the degree will be conferred. After a successful defense and after signed approval by the advisors and/or committee members and the department head or graduate program chair, the final archival copy of the thesis (incorporating any format changes requested by the Thesis Office), must be deposited with the Thesis Office by the announced deadline for the semester/session in which the degree will be conferred. It is also expected that the student will provide a final archival copy of the thesis to doctoral committee members.

A Thesis Guide, which gives details concerning format, paper, typing, and other requirements, is available from the Thesis Office.