The Ph.D. Program is intended to prepare students for a variety of careers in research and teaching. The emphasis is on research. PhD students, in consultation with their faculty advisors, develop appropriate course programs that will prepare them for the Preliminary Qualifying/Comprehensive, Literature Review, and Advancement/Senate Exams, and for the defense exam of their dissertation research. These programs must be planned to meet the time limits established to advance to candidacy and to complete the requirements of the degree. A Ph.D. in NanoEngineering requires the selection of a specific focus [Biomedical Nanotechnology, Molecular and Nanomaterials, or Nanotechnologies for Energy and the Environment], and consists of the successful completion of 10 courses: the 5 required core courses, 3 electives from the approved courses in the student’s selected focus area, and 2 electives from the approved courses in any of the two remaining focuses, the ENG-10X courses (for team engineering, leadership, and entrepreneur skills), or a graduate level course from a department in JSOE engineering, mathematics, or general science (Biology, Physics, Chemistry), with the faculty advisor’s consent. While only one degree title is offered, 'NanoEngineering’, the choice of a specific focus area is to ensure that the graduate student curriculum is both tailored to their interest and sufficiently in-depth to ensure a complete understanding of their field of interest.
PhD Course & Program Requirements
After completing the M.S. degree (or meeting equivalent requirements) and meeting the minimum standard of 70% on the comprehensive examination to be admitted to or continue in the Ph.D. program, a student must:
- Meet all the university’s residency and other requirements.
- Successfully complete 10 courses: the 5 required core courses, 3 electives from the approved courses in the student’s selected focus area, and 2 other electives. See focus areas and approved courses on the Nano MS web page.
- Any courses that are not graduate level JSOE Engineering, Sciences (Biology, Chemistry, Physics), or Mathematics courses, must be approved by the Graduate Affairs Committee prior to enrollment and may not be approved as an elective.
- In addition, students must enroll in NANO 200 every quarter, (note, Nano 200 units do Not count towards degree units). See “Courses” for descriptions.
- Pass the Literature Review Examination. This requirement must be successfully completed within one year after passing the Comprehensive Examination.
- Pass the Ph.D. Advancement to Candidacy or Senate Exam, before the Pre-Candidacy Time Limit (PCTL) deadline, to be advanced to Ph.D. candidacy.
- Complete 1 quarter as a Teaching Assistant in a Nano, Ceng, or STEM course, prior to the dissertation defense.
- Successfully complete and defend a dissertation, which in the opinion of the dissertation committee, contains original work that should lead to publication of at least one significant article in an appropriate refereed journal.
All Ph.D. Students are required to pass four examinations. All exams MUST be completed in-person.
Departmental Examinations
General Exam Timeline for Ph.D. Students
- Comprehensive Exam in the Spring of 1st year
- Literature Review Exam (detailed below), by the end of the second year
- Ph.D. Senate Exam (often referred to as the Advancement to Candidacy Exam), in 3rd year, no later than 4th year
- Defend Dissertation usually by the end of the 5th year
Students planning to take the Literature Review Exam, Advancement to Candidacy / Senate Exam, Defense Exam, or who need to Reconstitute the doctoral committee, or change exam information already submitted, need to notify the department's Graduate Coordinator at least 4-5 weeks in advance of the exam date, by entering the information into the PhD Exam form.
- The Comprehensive Exam
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NOTE: This examination must be completed in-person.
The examination will consist of questions from each of the five-core courses. A passing grade of 60 percent is needed for successful completion of the Master's degree, and 70 percent for Ph.D. program qualification. The examination is usually administered in the second or third week of the Spring quarter. Students typically take the exam after completion of the core courses. This exam may only be retaken ONCE. Failure to pass the retest exam component may result in termination from the Ph.D. program.
- Literature Review Examination
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NOTE: This examination must be completed in-person.
The Literature Review Examination tests the student's ability to prepare and present a comprehensive overview of a topic based on existing journal literature. It should be a comprehensive oral discussion of the literature (3-5 key papers), scientific theory, problems, or theoretical deficiencies, and possible areas of research in some area related to nanoscience or nanoengineering. The topic may be in the general area in which the student plans to pursue their research, or it may be in a unrelated field of Chemical or Nano Engineering. The topic must also be approved by the faculty member committee (3 members): your faculty advisor and 2 other faculty of the department. The prepared material should be around 40 minutes in length, but students should plan for 90 minutes to ensure adequate time for questions and discussion. The exam will conclude with a short preliminary overview of the student's research project or their research proposal (approximately the last 20% of the presentation).
This exam must occur within one year of the student having passed the Comprehensive Examination. The following rubric are some expectations for the Literature Review Exam. Students should work closely with their faculty advisor and committee in determining expectations for the exam.
Graduate Students must notify the Graduate Coordinator of their intent to hold the Literature Review Exam at least four weeks prior to the exam via the Ph.D. Exam Form.
- Ph.D. Senate Examination
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NOTE: This examination must be completed in-person.
The Ph.D. Senate Exam is often known as the Advancement to Candidacy Exam. Prior to taking this exam, the candidate must have complete the Comprehensive Exam, Literature Review Exam, obtained a faculty research advisor, and must have initial progress on a chosen dissertation project. Each student will be required to take an oral qualifying examination that will advance the student to candidacy in the Ph.D. program. The Senate Exam must be successfully completed before the Pre-Candidacy Time Limit (PCTL) found on their Student Portal.
Membership of the Ph.D. committee must comply with the Manual of the San Diego Division, Academic Senate, Regulation 715. The candidate will establish, with consultation of their faculty advisor, a dissertation committee. The committee with include the student's Ph.D. advisor as the Chair of the committee, who will have the majority of responsibility for the student's research and dissertation.
- Minimum of 4 member with UC San Diego faculty appointments
- At least 1 member must have a primary appointment in a different department than the chair's primary department
- At least 2 member must be from the student's home department or program
- At least 1 member must be tenured or emeritus
The committee conducts the Ph.D. Qualifying Examination, during which the student must demonstrate the ability to engage in thesis research. The process involves the presentation of a plan for a thesis research project. Students should work closely with their faculty advisor and committee in determining expectations for the exam.
Upon successful completion of the exam, subject to the UC San Diego time limit policy, the student is advanced to candidacy and is awarded the Candidate in Philosophy degree (see "Graduate" section in this catalog). Please note that there is a $50 candidacy fee upon completion of the exam.
- Teaching Experience
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Prior to the dissertation defense, the candidate must have served at least one quarter as a teaching assistant.
- Dissertation Defense
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NOTE: This examination must be completed in-person.
The Dissertation Defense is the final Ph.D. examination. Upon completion of the dissertation research project, the student writes a dissertation that must be successfully defended in an oral examination and public presentation conducted by the doctoral committee. The final defense must be open to the public.
A complete copy of the student’s dissertation must be submitted to each member of the doctoral committee two weeks before the defense. It is understood that this copy of the dissertation given to the committee members will not be the final copy, and that the committee members may suggest changes in the text at the time of the defense. This examination may not be conducted earlier than three (3) quarters after the date of the Advancement to Doctoral Candidacy. Acceptance of the dissertation by Graduate Education & Postdoctoral Affairs (GEPA) and the University Librarian represents the final step in completion of all requirements for the Ph.D. degree.
Graduate Students must notify the department’s Graduate Coordinator of their intent to hold the Literature Review Exam at least four weeks prior to the exam via the Ph.D. Exam Form.
- Ph.D. Time Limit Policy
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Pre-Candidacy status is limited to four (4) years. Doctoral students are eligible for university support for six (6) years. The defense and submission of the doctoral dissertation must be within seven (7) years.
- Annual Evaluation
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During the Spring quarter of each year, the faculty advisor evaluates each doctoral student’s overall performance in course work, research, and prospects for financial support for future years. A written assessment is given to the student after the evaluation. If a student’s work is found to be inadequate, faculty may determine that the student is not fit to continue in the Ph.D. program.