Ph.D. in Physics

Note: We have new Ph.D. requirements, effective for students entering in Summer 2003 or later. To receive a hard copy, please see Tess Gratton in the Physics & Astronomy Office in 1082 Malott for the latest Graduate Handbook.

Residency Requirements

The student must spend at least the equivalent of three full academic years in graduate study at this or another approved institution or laboratory. Two semesters, which may include one summer session, must be spent in resident study at the University of Kansas. During this period of residence, the student must be involved full-time in academic or professional pursuits, which may include an appointment for teaching or research if the teaching/research is directed specifically toward the student's degree objectives

Time Limits

Students must complete the requirements for the Ph.D. in Physics within seven (7) years if they enter with a bachelor's degree and within six (6) years if they enter with a master's degree. Note that earning a master's degree while at K. U. does not change the seven year period from the initial enrollment in the graduate program. An extension may be granted for one year by the College upon receipt of a satisfactorily documented petition by the student concerned, supported by the chairperson of the department. A second year extension is very difficult to obtain.

Continuous enrollment is expected, but leaves of absence may be granted by petition to the College. However, after an absence of five years, a doctoral aspirant or candidate loses status as such, and, in order to continue, must apply for readmission to the program and to the Graduate Division

Steps towards the degree

The student is expected to maintain satisfactory progress toward the degree. The various steps are discussed in detail in the following sections, but are listed here briefly for a convenient check list.

1. Beginning of second year. A student who entered into the regular course of graduate study may be able to complete the Departmental requirements for preliminary candidacy by this time. ("Preliminary candidacy" refers to status within the Department. One principle requirement is the certification of Undergraduate physics knowledge, as outlined below. The second requirement is a 3.2 gradepoint average in the four core courses and two other lecture courses. Formal University status as a doctoral candidate then requires successful completion of the Comprehensive Examination. Please see the fourth year and beyond section below.) A student who needed some undergraduate courses should proceed to complete these requirements as soon as possible. At the appropriate time the Department faculty will decide on admitting the student to preliminary candidacy for the Ph.D.

2. Second year. During the year after attaining preliminary candidacy, a student should select a research area, if this has not been done before, and a research supervisor. The computing skills requirement should completed by the end of this year.

3. Third year. A student should complete almost all lecture course work during this year and prepare for the comprehensive examination, to be taken toward the end of this year.

4. Fourth year and beyond. Following the successful completion of the Comprehensive Examination, the student becomes a doctoral candidate. A dissertation committee is formed, chaired by the student's research supervisor. The student is expected to be actively engaged in dissertation research.

5. Final stages. The student will prepare a dissertation based on the student's original research, which must be satisfactory to the committee, and will defend it in a final oral examination before a committee composed of the dissertation committee and two other members of the Graduate faculty. This examination is open to the public.

Graduate Courses

A sample academic schedule for a student who has a half-time teaching or research assistantship during the first four semesters is shown below. It includes the core courses for admission to preliminary candidacy (described in a subsequent section) and a set of lecture courses that meet the Ph.D. course requirements. It is the schedule for a full-time resident student with the normal preparation described above and who is working toward the Ph.D. degree. Students admitted with less preparation should begin with less advanced courses. Courses numbered 500 and above carry graduate credit.

Admission to Preliminary Candidacy

To be admitted to preliminary candidacy for the Ph.D. degree, each graduate student is expected to satisfy the following Departmental requirements.

1. Certification of Undergraduate physics requirement for degrees with Physics emphasis (Approved by faculty on November 29, 2006)

Certification of knowledge of undergraduate physics must normally be completed within 12 months (extension possible with recommendation of the graduate admission committee) of entering the program in addition to the required course work. The certification can be achieved in several ways: (1) A scaled GRE ¬ Physics score greater than or equal to 600; or (2) THE DETERMINATION BY THE GRADUATE DIRECTOR AND GRADUATE ADVISOR, BASED ON the diagnostic exam given on entering the program combined with the student's undergraduate record, that the student understands all major elements of undergraduate physics“; or (3) successful completion with grade of “B” or better on all undergraduate courses that the graduate director and/or advisor recommends based on the results of (2). The student who has not succeeded in certifying their undergraduate physics knowledge in one of the above three ways could, within 12 months of starting the program, petition the Graduate Committee for an oral exam on undergraduate physics. The oral exam will be administered by a committee of six faculty members assigned by the department.

2. Achieve a minimum core course grade point average of 3.2. The core course GPA is computed from the following five equally weighted elements:

grade obtained in PHSX 711 Quantum Mechanics I

grade obtained in PHSX 811 Quantum Mechanics II

grade obtained in PHSX 821 Classical Mechanics

grade obtained in PHSX 831 Electrodynamics I

average grade of two other PHSX lecture courses numbered 700 or higher

a. Students may repeat one of the four named courses (711, 811, 821, and 831) once for the purpose of improving the core GPA. In calculating the core GPA, the Department will use only the better of the two grades.

b. The two "other PHSX lecture courses numbered 700 or higher" must be taken at KU, but students entering with graduate credit from other institutions may petition the Graduate Committee for transfer credit for any of the four named core courses. For the purposes of the core GPA, grades (of "B" or better) from the previous institution may be used for at most three of the four named courses. For the remaining course the student must obtain written certification of "B" performance or better from the instructor of the course at KU. Such certification may be obtained by taking the course, taking the final exam of the course (if there is one), or other means which may be determined by the instructor. An appropriate higher level course may also be used to obtain certification in a core course (for example 911 for 711 or 811, 931 for 831).

c. Graduate students are normally expected to complete all core courses by the end of their second year of enrollment. (Extensive AEC courses, prolonged illness, or extended military service might provide exceptional circumstances.)

Decision on Preliminary Candidacy:

Once Undergraduate requirements have been certified and once sufficient information has been received regarding the core courses, the Graduate Committee will make a recommendation to admit or not to admit the student to preliminary candidacy. The recommendation will be based upon the certification and on their GPA in the core courses.

The Graduate Committee Chair will present these recommendations to the Graduate Faculty. The final determination of a student's preliminary candidacy status will be made by a vote of the Graduate Faculty.

Milestones Towards PhD

After a graduate student has successfully become a preliminary candidate for the Ph.D., several milestones must be met along the way to becoming a Ph.D. candidate, and later to completing the Ph.D. defense. Failure to meet any of these milestones may result in the loss of funding (TA- or RA-ships) and/or in the denial of candidacy for the Ph.D.

Milestone 1. Within the first 6 months after being granted preliminary candidacy, the student should present a short (1-2 pages) written report to the Graduate Director and the Graduate Advisor detailing his/her efforts and progress in exploring research opportunities within the Department relevant to a possible Ph.D. research topic.

Milestone 2. Before the end of a 12 month period following the preliminary candidacy, the student is expected to join a research group in the department, or, at least to have spent significant effort in seeking a thesis advisor. Again, a brief (1-2 pages) written report should be presented to the Graduate Director and the Graduate Advisor by the end of this time period.

Milestone 3. Before the end of an 18 month period following preliminary candidacy (this is the end of the third six month time period), the student should have completed the comprehensive exam and should be carrying out Ph.D. research.

Postcomprehensive Milestones. The student is now a candidate for the Ph.D. A written 2-3 page-long progress report should be given to the Graduate Director and the Graduate Advisor every 12 months. This report should summarize his/her research activities and his/her general progress towards successful completion of the Ph.D. In addition, the student should request at least two members of his/her dissertation committee, including the thesis advisor, to write comments in this report.

Additional pre-comprehensive exam requirement: all graduate students are expected to have passed the English speaking test (if relevant) within two years since entering the PhD program and to have carried out a minimum of one semester of being a TA in the department.

Course Requirements for Ph.D.

A total of 11 courses (33 hours) of advanced lecture courses are required. In addition, one credit hour of Colloquium is required.

a. Core courses
   711 Quantum Mechanics I
   811 Quantum Mechanics II
   821 Classical Mechanics
   831 Electrodynamics I

b. Other required courses
   700 Colloquium
   718 Mathematical Physics
   815 Computational Physics (satisfies FLORS)
   871 Statistical Physics I
   931 Electrodynamics II

c. Two additional PHSX lecture courses (Numbered 700 or above). The two courses must be in different sub-fields of physics and they may not be used to simultaneously satisfy other degree requirements in force. (For example, if PHSX 911 is being used to satisfy the PHSX 811 core requirement, it may not also be used for this requirement.)

d. One additional advanced PHSX lecture course (Numbered 800 or above)

e. A Ph.D. student who has not had the equivalent of 6 credit hours of advanced undergraduate laboratory course work (Junior/Senior level) is required to take one of the four advanced laboratory courses offered in the Department. Other experimental work (for example, senior thesis or undergraduate research experience) may be considered toward meeting this requirement.

   516 Physical Measurements I
   536 Electronic Circuits and Measurements
   616 Physical Measurements II
   636 Electronics Designs

The courses listed above comprise the Department course requirements common to all students. There is no foreign language requirement. Subsequent work, consisting of advanced courses in appropriate fields and seminars, will be selected by the student and the adviser on the basis of the student's need and intended field of specialization. There is no prescribed minimum number of hours for the Ph.D. degree. The student's dissertation committee will determine the adequacy of the student's courses and seminars and will specify the total course requirements. Neither the Graduate School nor the Department has a requirement for a minor.

Colloquim and Graduate Seminar

All Ph.D. students are required to enroll in PHSX 700, Colloquium, in their sixth semester resident on campus. Students need to have attended at least 75% of the regularly scheduled colloquia during their six semesters to achieve a passing grade. In Spring of the first year, each graduate student is expected to attend the graduate seminar in order to familiarize themselves with research programs in the Department and gain experience in oral presentations.

Computing Skills

Preferably within one year after being admitted to preliminary candidacy, the student must complete PHSX/ASTR 815, Computational Physics and Astronomy, with a grade of "A" or "B" in order to satisfy the computing skills requirement. Note that this course has significant prerequisites in undergraduate Computer Science, and that it also requires completion of a definite computer program to solve a physical problem.

The Comprehensive Examination

After completing a major portion of the required course work and satisfying the computing skills requirement, the student must pass the comprehensive examination. The Department recommends at least five people for committee membership to the Graduate Division, which makes the final appointments. One committee member must come from outside of the Department to serve as a representative of the Graduate School. Requests to take the examination must be made at least three weeks in advance of the date of the examination.

The student will write a 2000 to 4000 word paper on a topic in their chosen sub-field that is relevant to their thesis work. This paper must be presented to the committee at least one week in advance of the scheduled oral exam. The student will make a presentation at the oral examination based upon this paper, and the student will be examined on the contents of the talk, the paper, and works listed in the paper's bibliography. The bibliography must include at least one recent article from a peer-reviewed journal not authored by the student or the student's advisor. In addition, the committee may ask questions at the oral examination that cover the entire field of physics plus any related material (such as mathematics or chemistry) considered relevant by the examining committee.

In order to pass the comprehensive exam, the student must receive passing grades on both the written and oral components of the exam. The overall grade on this examination, determined by the examining committee, will be "Honors," "Satisfactory," or "Unsatisfactory."

Post-Comprehensive Enrollment

Upon passing the comprehensive examination, the student becomes a candidate for the Ph.D. degree. The Graduate Division will then designate the candidate's dissertation committee based on the recommendation of the Department. Each candidate must complete a research project that has been approved by this committee. This committee establishes the candidate's course requirements and directs the research. Unless granted a leave of absence, the candidate must be continuously enrolled full-time, including summer sessions, until all requirements for the degree are completed. During this time, the candidate must enroll in a minimum of 6 hours a semester and 3 hours a summer session until the completion of the degree or of 18 hours of post-comprehensive enrollment, whichever comes first. (Post-comprehensive enrollment may include the semester in which the comprehensive examination is passed.) After 18 hours of post-comprehensive enrollment, the candidate must continue to enroll each semester and each summer session until all requirements for the degree have been met. The number of hours of each enrollment will be determined by the dissertation committee, and should reflect accurately the candidate's demands on faculty time and University resources. At least once each year after passing the comprehensive examination, the student should schedule a meeting in the form of a seminar with his or her dissertation committee. A report of the committee's consensus of the meeting should be prepared by a member of the committee other than the student's adviser and placed in the student's file. Copies are to be given to the Departmental Chairman, the Graduate Committee Chair, and the student.

Final Oral Exam

At least five months must elapse between the successful completion of the comprehensive examination and the date of the final oral examination. The chair of the dissertation committee makes a request of the Graduate Division to schedule the exam at least two weeks before the desired examination date. The Graduate Division appoints at least five members to the examining committee, based upon the Department's recommendations. (Typically, the candidate's dissertation committee is appointed as the examining committee.) One member of the examining committee must be from another Department and will represent the Graduate School.

After authorization to hold the final oral examination has been received, the chairman of the dissertation committee notifies the examining committee and the entire departmental faculty of the time and place of the examination. The schedule must be set so that each member of the examination committee shall have at least two weeks to study the thesis before the exam.

The candidate must defend his or her dissertation in an open meeting at which any member of the graduate faculty may ask questions about the dissertation and on other pertinent material as well. The candidate's grade on the examination, determined by the examining committee, is Honors, Satisfactory, or Unsatisfactory. Following a successful defense and the completion of any final corrections, the members of the committee sign the dissertation.

The candidate must deposit two unbound copies of the dissertation with the Graduate Division and one copy in the Department office by the final date for meeting degree requirements set by the Graduate School for the desired graduation date. The copy submitted to the Department should follow the same rules that apply to the copies submitted to the Graduate Division. Complete information on these rules can be found by clicking on "Thesis and Dissertation Format Instructions" at the web site "www.ukans.edu/~clasgrad". The candidate must also submit a 350 word abstract to the Graduate Division (written according to instructions on file in the CLAS Graduate Division) and make arrangements to have the dissertation microfilmed