PHD DEGREE

Our Ph.D. program requires a commitment of 4 to 5 years (for students with a master’s degree this will be 3 to 4 years).

The program consists of coursework, written and oral examination, and conducting research guided by one or more faculty advisors leading to a dissertation and defense.

REQUIREMENTS:

• 50 graduate credit classroom hours (During MS and/or Ph.D.)
• With approved MS this will drop down to 20 classroom hours (The applicant with a master’s degree in a closely related field should generally plan to spend a minimum of one additional year in organized classroom studies)
• At least 1 term of Candidacy Credits (NA 995)
• 3 Math Courses (During MS and/or Ph.D.)

Maximum of 4 credit hours of Independent Study can be included in the classroom hours (exception: Master’s Thesis NA 592 is counted in full).

TO BECOME A CANDIDATE, THE STUDENT MUST SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETE:

• The Responsible Conduct of Research and Scholarship (RCRS) requirement; take 4 Mandatory RCRS Workshops –  https://rcrs.engin.umich.edu/workshops/
• PART I – Qualifying Requirement

To complete the Qualifying requirement, students need to take at least three (3) 500 level or higher NAME classes and receive a grade of  “A-” or better in each one of the classes.

Students will need to fulfill the PART I requirement before they are able to present their prospectus presentation.

• PART II – Research prospectus presentation and oral exam

Open session – 30 minutes (25 minute – oral presentation of the research prospectus with 5 minutes for questions)
Closed session – 90 minutes (with dissertation committee and the candidate)

After finishing the RCRS Workshops and completing PART I and PART II, the graduate coordinator will submit a recommendation for candidacy to Rackham.

AFTER BECOMING A CANDIDATE, THE STUDENT MUST:

• Register in the Fall and Winter terms for 8 credit hours of NA 995 (Candidate/Dissertation credits)
• Write and finish your PhD Thesis
• Verbally present and defend the dissertation