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Graduate Study Student Information The purpose of this page is to provide you with information regarding student requirements, policies, and other information. Student Information
Candidacy Exam Graduate Requirements Forms, Calendars and Student Guides Coursework and Advising Committee Forms
Candidacy Forms
Final Examination and Thesis Forms
Petitions
Graduate Office Forms Calendars and Timelines
Student Guide Contacts for General Information
Upon Arrival
During Your First Year
During the Summer of Your First Year
Third and Fourth Year Students You are encouraged to meet with your Dissertation Supervision Committee each year. These meetings are an opportunity for you and your faculty to discuss your work and your progress. Fifth Year and Beyond Students If you plan to register beyond the 15th term, you will need to obtain a Petition to Dean for Excessive Registration, and a Petition to the Advisory Committee for Excessive Registration, fill them out, obtain approvals, and return them to the Option Secretary for further processing. You must meet with your committee annually and obtain their approval.
Selecting an Advisor and Thesis Supervision Committee An interim advisor is appointed for each student upon admission. The interim advisor will serve as your primary mentor until you find a research advisor. It is your responsibility to find an academic and research advisor within three terms of graduate residence at Caltech. In consultation with your advisor, you must form a Ph.D. Dissertation Supervision Committee within one year of graduate residence at Caltech. This committee shall consist of at least three members of the Caltech professorial faculty, with at least two members from the faculty in Mechanical Engineering. The advisor shall serve as chair of this committee and the committee shall meet as requested by the student. Further, this committee shall meet annually to review progress and, if needed, to approve your registration beyond the fifth year of graduate residence at Caltech. The advisor and the Thesis Supervision Committee will provide the majority of mentoring to you. The option representative and other members of the faculty are always available to provide advice and mentoring on any aspect of research, progress toward the Ph.D., future careers, and other aspects of life in graduate school and as a professional scientist. Coursework Component of Candidacy Exam The Ph.D. candidacy examinations have two distinct components, one based on coursework and one based on research. The coursework component of the candidacy examination is given at the beginning of each fall term. Ph.D. students are expected to take this exam in their second year of graduate study at Caltech; exceptions must be approved by the faculty. The research component of the examination is given to students who have passed the coursework component of the exam. The research exam takes place during May of their second year of graduate study at Caltech. Each student is required to select three of the ten areas listed below for the coursework examination. See form for selection of coursework. One area must be mathematics. The exam in each area will include common questions to be asked of all students who have selected that area, regardless of the student's individual field of specialization. In addition, for each student, the examination will extend beyond the common questions in one of the areas that the student has designated as his or her major area of interest. The ten areas are as follows:
As indicated, a student may petition the faculty to replace one of the specified areas (other than mathematics) with an area that is not on the list and is not a sub-specialty of one of the listed areas. Examples of "other areas" that might be appropriate are biomechanics and scientific computation, to mention only two. While the exam in each subject area need not be limited to the content of any particular course, the nominal level of preparation for the exam is suggested by the Caltech course or courses appearing opposite each area listed above. The subject area descriptions listed in the Candidacy Exam Memo indicate the topics from which exam questions will be drawn. The examination is offered during a single time window in the first term of the academic year. This window is approximately a week in length and normally during the second week of classes, depending on the number of candidates. A fixed set of examiners conduct the exams, all of which are oral. Exams in each area are approximately forty-five minutes in length, and each will be preceded by a fifteen minute period during which the student will be allowed to review the written questions for that exam. The fifteen minute period is for the student to collect their thoughts and there will be no consultation of reference material. The student may write some notes during this time to bring into the exam. In the one exam in the student's designated major area, the examiners will probe more deeply into the issues raised in the questions. At least one month prior to the examination, students must notify the Option Secretary in writing of their choice of the other two subject areas (other than Mathematics) for the exam, and which of these is the major area. A student, who intends to use the "other area" option in the list above, should seek and obtain approval of the faculty of the area to be substituted at least one month prior to the exam. Research Component of Candidacy Exam It is the responsibility of the student to find a research advisor and in consultation with this advisor, identify a research topic that is appropriate and adequate for a doctoral thesis. The scope of this examination is to demonstrate that the student has the ability and is adequately prepared to undertake Ph.D. level research in the proposed area. This preparation includes necessary knowledge of the chosen subject, a review of the literature and preparatory theory or experiment as applicable. It is not necessary to have final results, a working computer program, a functioning piece of equipment or fully analyzed data. It is also not necessary to present a definitive thesis outline. Eligibility Students who are in good standing in the Ph.D. program and who have passed the coursework component of the candidacy examination are eligible to take this examination. Examination Committee The membership of the Examination Committee is usually the same as the Ph.D. Dissertation Supervision Committee. The committee shall elect a chair other than the research advisor. The student shall propose the committee in consultation with the advisor in writing to the Option Secretary by the end of the third term of your first year of graduate study at Caltech. You are advised to seek the consent of the members before proposing them. Any changes must be approved by the Option Representative, at least one week prior to the exam. Scheduling The student shall schedule the examination at a time acceptable to the committee before the last day of the third term of your second year of graduate study at Caltech. You will need to schedule a room for your exam. The room reservation books are located in Room 208 Thomas. The faculty members will make every reasonable effort to make themselves available for the examination. Exception must be approved by the faculty and the Option Representative, at least one week prior to the usual exam period. The Examination The student shall submit a 5-10 page written Candidacy Report to the Option Secretary and to the three members of the committee at least one week before the examination. The candidacy report should describe the proposed topic of research, relevant survey of the literature and any preliminary results or laboratory preparation. The student shall bring the following to the exam:
Item 1 can be obtained from the Registrar's Office and items 2 and 3 can be picked up from the Option Secretary Office at the time your Report is submitted. The student shall make a half-hour oral presentation of the research proposal, followed by questions from the committee consistent with the scope of the examination. The examination is expected to last for approximately one hour. The Result The Examination Committee can make one of four recommendations to the Admission Committee.
The chair of the Examination Committee shall notify the Option Representative through the Option Secretary of the recommendation. The final decision shall be made by the Admission Committee. If the decision of the Admission Committee is:
Honor Code The students are reminded that the examination is administered under the Caltech Honor Code. The degree of Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering provides the student with advanced training beyond the undergraduate fundamentals, and may include an introduction to research. A minimum of 138 units of courses numbered 100 or above, that meet the distribution requirements listed below, must be passed with a grade of at least C for completion of the Master's Degree in Mechanical Engineering. All units must be taken for grades, except for courses offered only on a pass/fail basis. Each student's program must be approved by the Option Representative in mechanical engineering. The student should refer to Institute requirements for the Masters of Science Degree. Required Program
Students admitted for study toward a Master's degree but interested in pursuing subsequent study toward a Ph.D. degree should also read the section below relating to this degree. Degree of Mechanical Engineering Greater specialization is provided by work for the Engineer's Degree than by work for the Master's. The degree of Mechanical Engineer is considered to be a terminal degree for the student who desires more highly specialized advanced training with less emphasis on research than is appropriate to the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. However, research leading to a thesis is required for both degrees. The student should refer to Institute requirements for the Engineer's Degree. Required Program Not less than 55 units of work shall be for research and thesis; the exact number shall be determined by a supervising committee, appointed by the Dean of Graduate Studies. Courses should be closely related to mechanical engineering. The specific courses (to be taken and passed with a grade of C or better by the candidate) will be finally determined by the supervising committee. The courses must include an advanced course in mathematics or applied mathematics, such as AM 125 abc or ACM 101 abc, that is acceptable to the faculty in mechanical engineering. A suitable course program may usually be organized from the more advanced courses listed under Ae, AM, ACM, CDS, JP, ME, and MS. Degree of Doctor of Philosophy The Ph.D. degree in mechanical engineering is focused on research, and prepares students to develop new understanding and advanced technology to address contemporary problems. Study and research programs for the Ph.D. degree are individually planned to fit the interests and background of the student. A comprehensive research project resulting in an original contribution to the field documented by a dissertation is required. Institute requirements for the Ph.D. degree are described in the section on degree requirements in the Caltech catalog. Approximately two years of coursework are required, and two or more additional years are usually needed for preparation of the dissertation. Admission to Candidacy for the Ph.D. To be recommended for candidacy for the Ph.D. degree in mechanical engineering, you must, in addition to meeting the general Institute requirements, do the following:
Area 1 Fluid Mechanics (Ae/APh/CE/ME 101 abc). Mechanics of Structures and Solids (Ae/AM/CE/ME 102 abc) Continuuum Mechanics of Solids and Fluids (Ae/Ge/ME 160 ab) Area 2 Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics (ME 118, APh 105, Ch/ChE
164, Ch 165) Area 3 Dynamical Systems (AM 151 abc or CDS 140 ab) You may petition the mechanical engineering faculty to accept alternate subjects or areas. These changes should retain core mechanical engineering knowledge and represent sufficient breadth. The petition must be submitted to the Option Representative and approved before you register for the course. These 54 units may also be used in your program for the Master's degree.
The requirement of a minimum grade of C will be waived for an advanced course which (i) lists one of the courses in Areas 1, 2 and 3 as a prerequisite, and (ii) is offered only pass/fail. If you elect to take a subject minor, these units cannot be used to satisfy any of the Ph.D. degree requirements in mechanical engineering. The faculty will evaluate the your research progress, class performance, advisor's input, and oral candidacy exam results to determine whether you will be admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree. Subject Minor A student majoring in another branch of engineering or another division of the Institute may, with the approval of the faculty in mechanical engineering and the faculty in his or her major field, elect mechanical engineering as a subject minor. The program of courses must differ markedly from the major subject of study or research, and must consist of at least 54 units of advanced work. The student must also pass an oral examination that is separate from the examination in the student's major. Thesis and Final Examination The thesis examination will be given after the thesis has been formally completed. This examination will be a defense of the doctoral thesis and a test of the candidate's knowledge in the specialized field of research. The format of the examination will be a public seminar presented by the candidate, with an open question period, followed by a private examination by the Examining Committee. The Examining Committee shall consist of at least four Caltech professorial faculty members, at least three of whom shall be from the Division of Engineering and Applied Science, and at least two of whom shall be mechanical engineering faculty members. One member of the committee shall be from outside the student's area of Ph.D. research. The student's advisor shall act as chair of the committee. |
