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Full details are presented in the Department of Physics and Astronomy Graduate Handbook
Contact the Graduate Registrar for further details.
Graduate Advising Guidelines & Expectations
Entering Ph.D. students are expected to enroll in Physics 256 (Instruction in Teaching for Graduate Students) fall and winter term, which is taken in addition to three regular course credits.
A student will be admitted as a Ph.D. candidate upon:
Physics students:
Students must achieve thesis proposal certification by the end of the fall term of their fourth year, in order to remain in good standing. The Department will admit students who successfully complete these requirements to Ph.D. candidacy.
Astronomy students:
Students must achieve thesis proposal certification by the end of the fall term of their fourth year, in order to remain in good standing. Students who successfully complete these requirements will be admitted to Ph.D. candidacy by the department.
Students are required to meet with their committee at least once per year between the time of their thesis proposal and their defense. The yearly progress report meeting can take whatever form the advisor deems appropriate (short presentation, informal discussion), but requires that the student, the advisor and the in-house members of the committee all be in attendance. It is the responsibility of the student to arrange each meeting and deliver a completed confirmation sheet within one week of the meeting. Confirmation sheets are available from the department office or online here.
The candidate will receive the Ph.D. degree upon:
It is expected that most students will receive the Ph.D. degree by the end of the fifth year of graduate study.