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Phd Program

PhD in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics

The program leading to the Doctor of Philosophy degree in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics prepares students for advanced research-and-development positions in industry and government, and for teaching and research positions in universities. Approximately five years of study beyond the bachelor's degree, or four years beyond the master's degree, are needed to complete the doctoral degree requirements.

Stages of Doctoral Study

The doctoral program involves three stages. The first stage ends when the candidate receives the master's degree or earns the equivalent credit; the second stage comprises 32 additional hours of graduate work at the University of Illinois and satisfactory performance in the preliminary examination; the third stage consists of 32 additional hours of graduate work at the University of Illinois, preparation of the thesis, and the final examination. A student who has earned a Master of Science degree elsewhere may be admitted directly to the second stage.

The term stage refers to the UIUC Graduate College classification of graduate student progress. Formal acceptance of a student into the doctoral program in TAM requires stage II status and a favorable faculty assessment, based in part on the defense of a scholarly work, such as a master's thesis or research paper, as described below.

Minor in Computational Science and Engineering

The Department of Mechanical Science and Engineering is one of several College of Engineering departments participating in an interdisciplinary program in Computational Science and Engineering (CSE). By taking suitable additional course work in CSE, TAM master's students can fulfill the requirements for a minor in Computational Science and Engineering.

Course Requirements

A total of 96 hours of combined course work and thesis hours beyond the bachelor’s degree is required for the doctorate.  A student entering with a master’s degree is credited with 32 hours of course work, leaving 64 hours to be completed at the University of Illinois.

Of the 96 total hours, a minimum of 32 hours of regularly scheduled course work is required beyond the bachelor’s; these consist of 16 hours of core courses and at least 16 additional hours emphasizing beadth.

MS/PhD timetable

Half the course work taken at the University of Illinois must be taken in the Department of Mechanical Science and Engineering. A doctoral candidate must maintain a grade point average of 3.0 (out of 4.0) throughout his or her graduate study. The student must register for 1 hour of TAM 500 each semester. During graduate study, each doctoral candidate is required to present at least one seminar in the TAM 500 series.

Preparations for Doctoral Study

Students seeking the doctoral degree must satisfy the department that they are eligible for admission to this program. This process consists of two steps:

  1. The student must first demonstrate proficiency in the four introductory graduate core courses listed above. A common way to demonstrate this proficiency is to actually take these courses, but if the student enters with an advanced level of preparation, an examination may be set up to test proficiency.
  2. The student must then demonstrate research capability through a major piece of scholarly, scientific work. The written work may be either a master's thesis or a full-length scientific paper of publication quality. Other options include the writing of a major software package with documentation, in which case the defense (see below) could consist of demonstration and testing of the program.

Doctoral Examinations

There are three examinations for the doctoral degree: the Qualifying Examination, which is a defense of the scholarly work just described; the Preliminary Examination, which consists of a doctoral thesis proposal; and the Final Examination, which is a defense of the doctoral thesis.

Qualifying Examination

The core courses and most breadth requirements must be satisfied before the Qualifying Examination is scheduled. International students must also demonstrate proficiency in English, as judged by a passing score on the SPEAK or TSE examination. The student then submits the scholarly work described above to the Student Affairs Coordinator, and asks to be examined on this work. The submitted work requires review and approval by the Graduate Advisor and the Department Head.

The Qualifying Examination committee is then set, subject to approval by the Graduate Advisor and the Department Head. The student, in consultation with the student's current adviser, suggests the names of three committee members. The Department may nominate a fourth member for balance. The student's current adviser may serve on the committee, but will not be assigned to chair the examination.

The examination date and location are announced to all faculty by the Student Affairs Coordinator. The examination date must be at least two weeks later than the submission of the scholarly work, and must be at least one week later than the approval of the committee. The scholarly work and the names of the committee members are kept on file in the Department office and are available to all faculty. The examination is open to any faculty member but not to students.

Students preparing for the Qualifying Examination should consult the Department’s checklist for further details and forms.

Following the examination, the chair prepares a brief report, which must be signed by all members of the examining committee, and submits the report to the Student Affairs Coordinator.

Admission to the Doctoral Program

After the student has completed all course breadth requirements, the faculty votes on the acceptance of the student into the doctoral program, taking into account performance in courses, research, teaching, general interactions with the faculty, and the Qualifying Examination report.

Preliminary Examination

After admission to the doctoral program, and by the end of the fourth year of residence, the student must present a thesis proposal in the Preliminary Examination conducted by a doctoral thesis committee. This committee consists of four faculty: the thesis adviser and one additional faculty member chosen by the student in consultation with the adviser; a faculty member appointed by the department; and a faculty member with relevant expertise from another department or — subject to Departmental approval — from another institution. This committee follows the student's thesis from the preliminary examination through the final defense.

At least one week before the examination, the student must provide to each member of the committee a written document containing:

  • Problem statement
    • What are the physical issues?
    • Why are they important?
    • How is the problem to be addressed?
  • Status statement
    • What has been accomplished?
  • Proposal of work to be done
    • What will be done to complete the thesis?
    • Why are the proposed items chosen?
  • Bibliography

Final Examination

The student must present and defend the thesis itself in an hour-long presentation open to the general public.  The four-member committee that presided at the preliminary examination also presides at the final defense.  At least 3 weeks before the final examination, copies of the thesis should be given to

  • each member of the Final Examinination committee
  • the TAM Thesis Reviewer
  • the Student Affairs Coordinator

After the format of the thesis has been approved by the TAM Thesis Reviewer, the student presents the thesis to the Department Head for his signature.  The student then submits two copies to the Graduate College Thesis Office for acceptance.  The student should allow several weeks for this final processing of the thesis.  The calendar and deadlines for depositing the thesis are set by the Graduate College.

Other Requirements

In addition to the courses, examinations, and other preparation cited above, every doctoral student must:

  • Present a TAM 500 seminar
    • The subject is normally (but not necessarily) related to the doctoral thesis topic
    • The date should be scheduled with the TAM 500 coordinator as early as possible, but no later than 3 months before the semester in which the seminar is to be given
    • The date is normally within a month or two of the Preliminary Examination, but can be earlier
  • Teach at least one semester
    • The appointment must be as a lecturer, discussion group leader, or laboratory assistant—grading assignments are not acceptable
    • The opportunities should be explored with the Student Affairs Coordinator

Transfer Credit

A student who has earned a Master of Science degree from another institution may be admitted directly to the second stage of the doctoral program. The Graduate Advisor may also take into consideration courses taken elsewhere when setting the preliminary exam; such transfer credit, however, cannot be used to reduce the Graduate College residency requirement of 64 hours for the doctorate.

A graduate student who wishes to transfer his or her major from one department to another at the University of Illinois must petition to do so. The petition must be approved by both departments concerned, as well as by the Graduate College.