Engineering Physics, Ph.D

Ph.D. Degree

Course Requirements

The general Regulations for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy appear earlier in the Calendar. Students with a Master’s degree are required to take two half courses, at least two of which must be at the 700- level. Students entering into the Ph.D. program directly from a Baccalaureate degree, or transferring into the Ph.D. program without being required to complete the Master’s degree are required to take a total of two half courses at the 700-level. Among these two half courses, one can be a non-technical course with approval of the Associate Chair (Graduate). For those students transferring to the Ph.D. without completion of the Master’s degree, courses completed during the Master’s at McMaster’s Engineering Physics M.A.Sc. or M.Eng. program may be transferred to McMaster’s Engineering Physics Ph.D. program. In addition to the minimum of two half courses, Ph.D. candidates are required to complete the mandatory seminar half course ENG PHYS 702 .

Comprehensive Examination

During their course of study, doctoral candidates will be required to pass a Departmental Comprehensive Examination. The purpose of this examination is to ensure that the candidate possesses sufficient knowledge and maturity of approach. The examination format is oral and will test the student’s knowledge and understanding of mathematics, physics, and the engineering sciences. The candidate will normally take the examination within 8 months and no later than 20 months following admission to the doctoral program. The examination may, at the discretion of the Department, be repeated once. Reporting of examination results will be done in accordance with the Regulations of the School of Graduate Studies.

Thesis Proposal

Ph.D. students must present a thesis proposal to their Supervisory Committee, normally at the first Supervisory meeting after completion of one term in their program.

Industrial Ph.D. Option

The general Regulations for the degree Doctor of Philosophy appear earlier in the Calendar. This program option offers the candidate the potential to conduct all or a portion of their research at their company or research institute of employment. To be enrolled under the option, the candidate must be a full-time student in the degree program, have previously completed a Masters of Applied Science or its equivalence, and be employed by a company or research institute outside of McMaster continuously till degree completion. A candidate is required to complete the normal course requirements of their enrolled department as well as any milestones, but is exempt from seminar requirements. As a doctoral candidate they must take the Ph.D. Comprehensive Examination that is designed to test the breadth of knowledge and the ability to synthesize and integrate ideas from within and peripheral to the candidate’s research area. The Comprehensive Examination will normally take place between 6 and 18 months after the candidate initially registers in the Ph.D. program. A supervisory committee monitors the progress of a Ph.D. candidate and determines when he/she is ready to write the thesis. The student is required to defend the thesis at a Final Oral Examination.