Breadth Requirement
PhD candidates are required to take three courses outside of their research concentration, as a part of the breadth requirement. The student must communicate these courses to the ISE Graduate Programs Office via a departmental petition before taking the Preliminary Exam. This approval should be sought before registering for these courses. Courses that satisfy the breadth requirement include 400-598 level courses that are in a STEM field. This includes courses in the College of Engineering, Agricultural & Biological Engineering (ABE), or Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering (CHBE). Industrial Engineering PhD students can count SE courses. Likewise, Systems & Entrepreneurial PhD students can count IE courses. If you wish to take courses outside of these fields, you should include a justification in your departmental petition when submitting your breadth requirement courses.
Preliminary Examination
A PhD exam planning document is available to all students to assist with planning the timeline for their exams and studies.
The Preliminary Examination is intended to prove the student is making satisfactory progress toward the PhD and may be taken any time after successful completion of the Qualifying Examination. Prior to scheduling, the student must select a Doctoral Examination Committee in consultation with his/her advisor and submit a Request for Appointment of Doctoral Examination Committee at least 3 weeks prior to the exam and submit the Dissertaion Proposal at least 1 week prior to the exam to the Graduate Programs Office. The Preliminary Examination will consist of a written Dissertation Proposal and an oral presentation before the Doctoral Examination Committee. Passage of the Preliminary Examination will be determined based upon the vote of the Doctoral Examination Committee. A student who fails the Preliminary Examination must wait a minimum of six months before retaking the examination.
ISE requires a minimum of six months between the preliminary and final examinations.