PhD Qualifying Examinations

Achieving PhD candidacy is contingent upon successfully passing a two-stage qualifying examination. The purpose of the qualifying examinations is (a) to ensure that the student has the required breadth and depth of content knowledge, and (b) to evaluate the student’s ability to research a specific topic and critique its state of the art.

Stage One: Written Qualifying Examination (WQE)

The main objectives of the Written Qualifying Examination (WQE) are (a) to enable early assessment of the technical background of the student in the selected major field of study, and (b) to provide an opportunity for early evaluation of the potential of the student to satisfactorily complete the PhD program.

The WQE is intended to test the student’s understanding of the chosen field of study as evidenced by his/her proficiency in three pertinent topical areas. Each topical area will have a well-defined syllabus, similar to that of a standard course, which details its scope and content, as well as a recommended list of references and supplementary material. The student must choose three exam topical areas from an approved list, in consultation with his/her Main Advisor and Co-Advisor(s).

Students must register for the WQE before the end of the Add/Drop period of the semester in which they plan to take the WQE. At the time of application, the student must indicate three topical areas chosen from an approved list. The exams are held twice in each academic year over a one-week period. The duration for each exam is three hours. A minimum score of 73 percent is required to pass the exam for each topical area.

Failing any topical area of the WQE will result in the student failing the entire WQE. However, a failed WQE can be retaken only once and passed upon the next offering of the examination. If the student repeats the WQE, then he/she will be required only to retake the exams in the topical areas that he/she failed during the WQE at the first attempt. The student may have the option to retake the exams in topical areas other than those he/she failed at the first attempt. PhD students who fail the PhD WQE at the second attempt will be placed on Academic Probation Level 2 and will be subject to dismissal from the PhD program.

Full-time students who get admitted to a PhD program and already have an MSc degree, normally take the WQE by the end of the 2^nd semester of study in the case of PhD in Engineering and the end of the 3^rd semester in the case of PhD in Science.  However, students who get admitted to a PhD program and only have a BSc degree, must finish a minimum of 27 credits of coursework before taking the WQE.

• PhD in Engineering WQE

  The examination is coordinated by the Associate Dean for Graduate Studies and the Chair(s) of the relevant Department(s) (or designees).

• PhD in Science WQE

  The examination is coordinated by the Department Graduate Committee (DGC) and the Department Chair. The DGC is appointed by the Department Chair and is usually composed of the Graduate Program Coordinator (Chair of the DGC), as well as three faculty members, who are not on the student’s advisory committee.

Stage Two: Dissertation Proposal and Examination

Following successful completion of the Written Qualifying Exam (WQE), the student is required to submit a written Dissertation Proposal to his/her research committee (RSC), who will conduct a Research Proposal Examination (RPE, as detailed below). Students must submit and successfully defend the research proposal in order to be eligible to proceed to PhD Dissertation research.

The purpose of preparing the Dissertation Proposal is to focus the student’s attention on a careful description of the proposed research problem and its background and context. The proposal should clearly specify the following:

• The main problem that the student intends to work on and why it is important;
• The kind of results which the student hopes to achieve, and why they would be original and of significant value in the area of research;
• A critical review of the principal literature relevant to the research topic placing the student’s contribution in context, accompanied by a full bibliography of relevant sources;
• An outline of work that the student has already carried out in the area and how it supports the proposed research;
• The general strategy that the student intends to pursue in dealing with the research problem, together with a work-plan for the stages of research; and
• A provisional table of contents for the dissertation.

All students must register for the Research Proposal Examination (RPE) before the end of the Add/Drop period of the semester in which they plan to take the exam. The RPE consists of a public presentation of the proposal followed by a private examination session with the RSC as described below.

The RPE will typically be arranged within two weeks of receiving the Dissertation Proposal from the student. The Main Advisor serves as the RPE Committee (RPEC) Chair.

The RPE generally consists of a public presentation of approximately 45 minutes’ duration (typically, 30 minutes for student presentation and 10-15 minutes for questions) followed by a private examination session of typically up to 60 minutes’ duration (which can be extended to 90 minutes, if needed). Following the examination, the RPEC members including the Chair will meet privately to decide on whether the student has successfully defended the research proposal. The advisor(s) decision is divided equally among the Main Advisor and Co-Advisor(s) such that each may decide independently but the total advisor(s) decision equals one. The other RPEC members have one decision each, with the exception of any external members who do not have a role in the outcome of the examination. The final outcome of the Dissertation Proposal and Examination will be the lowest outcome reported by the RPEC. The Chair will report the examination result to Associate Dean for Graduate Studies who subsequently informs the Graduate Studies Office.

Typically, the questions presented to the student at the proposal examination will address the research proposal and topics related to the general subject area of the proposal. The purpose of the examination is to:

• Evaluate the proposed research problem to ensure that, if completed as proposed, it constitutes an original contribution to knowledge;
• Evaluate the progress made by the student since starting to work on the research problem;
• Ensure that the relevant expertise and facilities are available within the University to support the proposed research;
• Determine whether the student is adequately prepared to undertake the proposed research and communicate the results; and
• Provide the student with research direction and feedback.
  
  

Dissertation Proposal Examination outcome for Regular PhD students (with MSc Degree).

The following outcomes of the dissertation proposal and examination are possible:

Dissertation Proposal Examination outcome for Direct PhD students (with only BSc Degree).

The following outcomes of the dissertation proposal and examination are possible: