Ph.D. Qualifying Exam

The objective of the qualifying exam is to examine the student's foundation in materials science and engineering which will enable him or her to carry out research in a chosen field of study.

All MSEN students pursuing the Ph.D. degree with or without a prior M.S. degree are required to pass the qualifying exam to continue their Ph.D. work. The MSEN qualifying exam consists: (1)written review consisting of a cocused literature review and critical analysis on specific topic, not directly connected to the student's Ph.D thesis and (2) an oral defense consisting of (i) a presentation and defense of the written review and (ii) an oral examination of fundamental material science and engineering concepts and to the student's prior coursework.

Qualifying Exam Committee
The Chair of the MSEN Program selects the Ph.D. Qualifying Exam Committee at the beginning of each semester for each student (no later than the end of September for fall semesters and the second week of February for spring semesters).

The exam committee is composed of four MSEN faculty members. The committee includes the student's chair as a non-voting member. The student�s dissertation chair (advisor) or co-chair (co-advisor) must attend the qualifying exam. If the student does not have a research advisor at the time of the exam, he/she can select one MSEN faculty to serve in the committee as a non-voting member. Voting members must represent at least two different departments.

The chair of the qualifying committee (not the dissertation chair) directs the exam.

Request for Qualifying Exam
To register for the Ph.D. qualifier exam, students provide the MSEN program office with an electronic version of a completed application form in the first week of classes for that semester. The application should include the following: the name of the student's chair (advisor), degrees received, degree plan (classes taken to date and grades, plans for future coursework), current thesis topic and a one-page, double spaced abstract of dissertation research.

The MSEN program office e-mails the completed form to all members of the qualifying exam committee, no later than the end of the first month of classes for that semester. The student is cc�d on this e-mail. The �Ph.D. Qualifying Exam Instructions� are an attachment on this e-mail.

This information is used by the Qualifying Committee to suggest and assign the topic for the written portion of the qualifying exam. In cases where students do not have an advisor or have otherwise not begun their dissertation research, the student should provide a general synopsis of their past and anticipated research area (thereby providing the committee the information to assign an appropriate topic).

Selection of the Topic
Within 3 business days of the form being e-mailed to the members of the qualifying exam committee, the student e-mails the committee members to request one qualifying exam topic from each member.

Within 1 week of the student's request, each committee member suggests one topic that is outside of the student's dissertation topic but complements his or her coursework and general area of research. The suggested topic is to be e-mailed to the student, other committee members and MSEN program office. Each committee member must suggest a topic and cannot merely "agree" with a topic suggested by another committee member.

Within 10 days of requesting topics from their committee, the student will e-mail his or her selected topic to the committee members and the MSEN program office.

In case of a re-take, a new topic must be assigned to the student.

Format of the Exam

(a) Written review: - The written review is composed of a rigorous literature review of the selected topic including a critical analysis identifying future challenges and suggesting possible directions. This paper must be prepared and written by the candidate alone. The paper should be at most 15 double-spaced pages in length, excluding references. Figures, schematics, and other graphics should be used for clarity and appropriately referenced.; - The student must e-mail a pdf of their paper at least 1 week in advance of their examination date. Committee members may request that a hardcopy be also delivered to them.
(b) Oral Defense: - b.i. Oral Defense of the Written Review:
The student will present and defend his or her paper in front of the qualifying exam committee. The presentation should be ~30-35 minutes. During or after the presentation, the committee will ask questions regarding the written review and related topics. This defense component should be ~15-20 minutes. (Times noted are at the discretion of the committee).; - b.ii. Oral Exam:
The exam committee members will ask questions about other topics related to fundamental material science and engineering concepts and to the student's prior coursework. This portion of the exam should be ~15-25 minutes. (Times noted are at the discretion of the committee).

The designated chair of the qualifying exam committee will be responsible to ensure the integrity of the exam is maintained and that all components of the exam are completed. It is recommended that the exam chair bring a copy of the "Ph.D. Qualifying Exam Instructions" to the meeting.

Evaluation of the Exam
The (three) voting members of the qualifying exam committee decide whether the student has passed or failed, along with any coursework recommendations. The voting will take place after the mini defense in the absence of the student and the student's research advisor. At least two "yes" votes from the three-member voting committee will indicate that the student has passed the exam. The committee will sign an evaluation form (with comments/recommendations, if any) and return it to the MSEN Program office right after the mini-defense.

Timeline The qualifying exam is offered in the Fall and Spring semesters only.

The qualifying exam must be taken by the end of the third semester, excluding summers.

In the event that the student fails the first attempt, a retake must be completed by the end of the fourth semester. If the student does not pass on the second try, he/she will not be permitted to continue in the MSEN Ph.D. program. Such a student can be allowed to continue to study for an M.S. degree in MSEN if he/she has not already earned a master's degree from Texas A&M University.

The student should file an application before the end of the first week of the semester to take the qualifying exam that semester. The program chair appoints three faculty members for each qualifying exam. The committee will come up with three topics no later than the end of October in the fall, and no later than the end of February in the spring. Then the student will have 4 weeks to write the paper and turn it in to the MSEN Program Office in electronic form on his/her selection among these three topics. The MSEN Program Office will forward the paper to the committee. The mini defense should take place within 2 weeks after the submission of the report. It is the student's responsibility to arrange for the examination time and the room. If it is not possible to arrange for the mini defense due to the unavailability of the members, the student can request the replacement of one of the committee members by the MSEN Chair.

For M.S. students switching to the Ph.D. program before completing the M.S., the three-semester clock should start whenever they started their studies at Texas A&M. If they have already exceeded the third semester, then they should take the qualifying exam in the first semester they switched to Ph.D.

If a Ph.D. student from another Texas A&M program, who has already passed the qualifying exam of that program, wants to switch to MSEN, they still need to pass the qualifying exam for MSEN. Their three-semester clock will start whenever they apply for the MSEN program.

Note: If a student fails to take the qualifying exam before the end of the third long (fall or spring) semester, they will be considered to have failed the Ph.D. qualifying exam.