Doctoral Degree

Admission

In addition to meeting the requirements of the Graduate Division, applicants to the Ph.D. program in Chemical Engineering are required to take the General Test of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE).

Applicants not having adequate preparation may be admitted provisionally and may be required to undertake certain remedial coursework, which would not be applicable towards the degree. On arrival at UCLA, an adviser helps the student plan a program, which can remedy any deficiencies.

Admission forms, including a departmental supplement to the application, may be obtained on the Worldwide Web at http://www.chemeng.ucla.edu. In addition, these forms may be obtained by writing to 5531 Boelter Hall, Box 951592, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1592, or to the Office of the Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs, School of Engineering and Applied Science, UCLA, 6426 Boelter Hall, Box 951601, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1601. Students are encouraged to apply via the Worldwide Web.

Advising

Each department in the School of Engineering and Applied Science has a faculty graduate adviser. A current list of graduate advisers can be obtained from the Office of the Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs, 6426 Boelter Hall, School of Engineering and Applied Science.

Students are assigned to the faculty graduate adviser upon admission to the School. During the first quarter in residence, the student meets with all faculty members in the department, and chooses three Professors with whom he would like to conduct Ph.D. thesis research. These choices are submitted to the graduate adviser. The faculty meets separately and assigns each student their faculty research adviser, taking into account the students’ choices and the interests of the department as a whole. The department will consider changing an adviser upon written request from the student.

During the second quarter in residence, students should arrange an appointment as early as possible with their faculty research adviser to plan the proposed program of study towards the Ph.D. degree. Continuing students are required to confer with their research adviser during the time of enrollment each quarter so that progress can be assessed and the study list approved.

Based on the quarterly transcripts, student records are reviewed at the end of each quarter by the departmental graduate adviser and associate dean for Student Affairs. Special attention is given if students are admitted provisionally, or if they are on probation. If their progress is unsatisfactory, students are informed of this in writing by the associate dean for Academic and Student Affairs.

Students are strongly urged to consult with the departmental Student Affairs Officer and/or the Office of Academic and Student Affairs regarding procedures, requirements, and implementation of the policies. In particular, advice should be sought on advancement to candidacy, on the procedures for taking Ph.D. examinations, and on the use of the filing fee.


Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Consult the department.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

All Ph.D. students are required to take six courses (24 units). Three of these are Chemical Engineering 200, 210, and 220. Two additional courses must be taken from those offered by the Chemical Engineering Department. The third course can be selected from offerings in life sciences, physical sciences, mathematics, or engineering. All of these units must be in letter-graded, 200-level courses. Students are encouraged to take more courses in their field of specialization. These "minor field" courses should be selected in consultation with their research advisor. A 3.33 grade-point average in graduate courses is required. A program of study to fulfill the course requirements must be submitted for approval to the departmental Student Affairs Office no later than one quarter after successful completion of the preliminary oral examination.

All Ph.D. students are required to enroll in the Chemical Engineering Department’s graduate seminar during each quarter of residence.

For information on completing the Engineer degree, see Engineering Schoolwide Programs in Program Requirements.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

All Ph.D. students are required to take a preliminary oral examination. This examination tests each student’s understanding of chemical engineering fundamentals in the areas of thermodynamics, transport phenomena, chemical kinetics and reactor design. Students are provided problems in writing, and are then asked to solve them orally in front of a faculty committee. Students are required to take Chemical Engineering 200, 210 and 220 in preparation for this examination. Students whose first degree is in chemical engineering take this examination at the end of the second quarter in residence. Students whose first degree is not in chemical engineering (e.g., chemistry) may petition to postpone this examination to the following year. Any student failing the Ph.D. preliminary examination may petition to reenter the Ph.D. program after successfully completing his M.S. thesis. If this petition is granted, then the student takes the preliminary examination concurrently with his M.S. thesis defense.

After successfully completing the required courses and the preliminary oral examination, each student must pass the University Written and Oral Qualifying Examination. This examination focuses on the students dissertation research and is conducted by a doctoral committee consisting of at least four faculty members nominated by the Department of Chemical Engineering, and in accordance with the regulations of the Graduate Division.

The Written Qualifying examination consists of a dissertation research proposal that provides a clear description of the problem considered, a literature review of the current state of the art, and a detailed explanation of the approach that will be followed to solve the problem. The student first presents his ideas for the dissertation research at a pre-candidacy seminar administered by departmental faculty members of the student’s doctoral committee. This seminar is held during the early part of the winter quarter of the student’s second year of residency. Following the seminar, the student submits the dissertation research proposal to the doctoral committee. The written examination is due on the seventh week of the winter quarter.

The Oral Qualifying examination consists of an oral defense of the dissertation research proposal, and is administered by the doctoral committee. The oral examination is held within two weeks of submitting the written examination.

Please Note: Doctoral Committees. A doctoral committee consists of a minimum of four members. Three members, including the chair, are ``inside'' members and must hold appointments at UCLA in the student's major department in the School of Engineering and Applied Science. The ``outside'' member must be a UCLA faculty member outside the student's major department.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy upon completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of Dissertation)

Not required for all students in the program. The doctoral committee makes the decision as to whether a final defense is required.

Time-to-Degree

From admission to graduate status (includes M.S. degree) to award of the Ph.D. degree: 18 quarters (normative time to degree). Doctoral students are expected to advance to candidacy by the spring quarter of their second year in residence. They should then complete their dissertation research within the next three years. All Ph.D. candidates are expected to present an oral progress report to the department at the end of their third year in residence.

Termination of Graduate Study and Appeal of Termination

University policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for termination of graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing termination of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special departmental or program policy

A recommendation for termination is reviewed by the School's Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs.

In addition to the standard reasons noted above, a student may be recommended for termination for:

1) Failure to maintain a grade point average of 3.25 in all courses and in any two consecutive quarters.

2) Failure of the preliminary oral examination.

3) Failure of the written and oral qualifying examination.

4) Failure of a required final oral examination (defense of the dissertation).

5) Failure to obtain permission to repeat an examination from an examining committees.

6) Failure to maintain satisfactory progress toward the degree within the specified time limits