MATERIALS ENGINEERING, PHD
Materials Engineering
PhD Program
The PhD program in Materials Engineering is offered jointly with the Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering at the University of Alabama (Tuscaloosa).
Admission Requirements
In addition to the general Graduate School admission requirements, requirements for admission to the Materials Engineering PhD program include the following:
- A baccalaureate degree in materials or metallurgical engineering or in a similarly named engineering program. A student with an undergraduate degree in another field of engineering or in the physical sciences may also be accepted.
- An undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or better on a 4.0 scale on all degree major courses attempted
- Personal statement identifying research interest
- CV/Résumé
- 3 recommendations from academic or professional contacts
- Original transcripts from all colleges and universities attended since high school must be sent directly to the UAB Graduate School (detailed instructions are included during the online application process)
- International applicants must submit English proficiency scores in accordance with UAB Graduate School requirement. Click here for details
Preparation Requirements
All students will be required to demonstrate competence at the undergraduate level in engineering materials, physical behavior of materials, thermodynamics, and mechanical behavior of materials as well as in fields of study that emphasize the interrelationship among structure, processing, performance, and properties of materials. Students may be exempted from individual courses or examination if they demonstrate that they possess the knowledge from that course, usually with a grade of a B or better. However, the burden of proof is on the student. He/she may accomplish this by passing a prerequisite examination on the portion of the following course content depending on the student's academic background or by one of the two options be.
This can be accomplished by one of the methods described below.
- Successful completion (minimum grade of B) of MSE 280 Engineering Materials, MSE 281 Physical Materials I, MSE 380 Thermodynamics of Materials, MSE 381 Physical Materials II, and MSE 382 Mechanical Behavior of Materials;
- Successful completion (minimum grade of B) of a prerequisite examination on the content of the courses listed above; or
- Successful completion (minimum grade of B) of MSE 602 Intro to Thermodynamics and Mechanics of Materials and MSE 605 Introduction to Physical Materials
| Requirement | Fulfilled By: |
|---|---|
| Deadline for Entry Term(s) | Fall: August 1; Spring: December 1; Summer: May 1 |
| Deadline for All Application Materials to be in the Graduate School Office | Seven business days before term begins |
Additional Academic Policies
Special Topics (590/690/790) courses and Independent Study (591/691/791) courses are reviewed for degree applicability for each program in the School of Engineering. No more than 6 combined hours of Special Topics and/or Independent Study courses will be applied to the PhD without appeal to and approval from the Program Director.
The School of Engineering offers similar courses at the 400/500 and 600/700 levels. While the higher numbered course has more advanced content, there is a significant overlap in topics. Therefore, students are not allowed to take a 500-level or 700-level course for credit if they have previously taken the related 400-level or 600-level course, respectively.
Coursework for Students with a BS
It is expected that students entering the PhD program with a BS degree will also earn a Plan II masters degree after completing the required coursework.
PhD students must complete 72 credit hours of (primarily) materials engineering graduate work as a requirement when entering with a BS degree according to the guidelines below:
- A minimum of 48 credit hours of approved graduate coursework in metallurgical engineering, materials engineering, or approved supportive fields
- 15 credit hours may be at the 500-level
- At least 6 credit hours but no more than 12 must be in supportive fields, which must include GRD 717 Principles of Scientific Integrity (a maximum of 6 credit hours can be in management)
- A student may apply 6 credit hours of MSE 798 Non-Dissertation Research toward the coursework requirement
- A full time graduate student is required to be registered for MSE 701 Materials Science and Engineering Seminar for each fall and spring semester
- Additional coursework may be required at the discretion of the dissertation committee
- A minimum of 24 credit hours in MSE 799 Dissertation Research after admission to candidacy
Coursework for Students with an MS
The PhD student must complete 51 credit hours of materials engineering graduate work as a requirement when entering with a MS degree in Materials Engineering or a closely related field according to the guidelines below:
- A minimum of 27 credit hours of approved graduate course work in metallurgical engineering, materials engineering, or fields supportive of these
- 6 credit hours may be at the 500-level
- At least 3 credit hours but no more than 6 must be in supportive fields, which must include GRD 717 Principles of Scientific Integrity
- A student may apply 6 credit hours of MSE 798 Non-Dissertation Research toward the coursework requirement
- A full time graduate student is required to be registered for MSE 701 Materials Science and Engineering Seminar each fall and spring semester
- A minimum of 24 credit hours in MSE 799 Dissertation Research after admission to candidacy
Graduation Requirements
In addition to completing coursework requirements (above), doctoral students must form a Graduate Dissertation Committee consisting of at least five faculty members, one of whom must be from the Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering at the University of Alabama (Tuscaloosa). Admission to candidacy must take place at least two semesters before the student may graduate. A student is eligible for admission to candidacy after successfully completing the following:
- A written examination on topics related to the student’s research
- An oral dissertation proposal
- A written dissertation proposal (following the NSF Proposal Preparation and Submission Guidelines),
- Completion of GRD 717 Principles of Scientific Integrity.
A written dissertation embodying the results of the student’s original research must then be publicly defended, approved by the committee, sent to a department-approved proofreader, and submitted to the Graduate School with edits incorporated.
