Chemical Engineering Ph.D.

Overview of the Department of Chemical Engineering Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

Financial Support and Satisfactory Progress

As detailed in their offer letter of admission, students admitted to the University of Virginia Department of Chemical Engineering Ph.D. program receive a financial aid package including a stipend, health insurance (for all full time graduate students who choose to accept the University’s health plan), and all tuition and fees as long as the student maintains satisfactory progress. 

Satisfactory progress in the University of Virginia Chemical Engineering Ph.D. program requires:

1. A graduate student to successfully find a suitable research advisor approved by the Department of Chemical Engineering in their first academic year.
2. Passing the Ph.D. qualifying exam. Subsequently, the Ph.D. Proposal should be completed within two years of completing the doctoral qualifying exam (which includes the research exam).
3. A grade of “satisfactory” assigned for research credit hours.
4. A cumulative GPA of 3.0 

Since students are expected to complete the Ph.D. program in 5 years beyond the B.S. degree, financial aid is not guaranteed beyond 5 years after matriculation at UVA. Continued funding past 5 years is at the discretion of the advisor and approval of the department. Four years beyond matriculation will be the expectation for students entering with a master’s degree in chemical engineering.

Chemical Engineering Core Courses

The five core graduate chemical engineering courses for the CHE Ph.D. program are:

• CHE 6605 - Research Methods Credits: 3
• CHE 6615 - Advanced Thermodynamics Credits: 3
• CHE 6618 - Chemical Reaction Engineering Credits: 3
• CHE 6625 - Transport Processes Credits: 3
• CHE 6665 - Techniques for Chemical Engineering Analysis and Design Credits: 3

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  Matriculated PhD students who have completed what they believe to be equivalent graded coursework elsewhere before entering our PhD program can petition to have their prior coursework reviewed and request that they not be required to take the corresponding core course(s) at UVA. If the student did not receive a master’s degree equivalent before matriculating to UVA the maximum number of core courses that can be satisfied will be two due to SEAS course transfer limitations. To initiate approval for equivalent coursework, students must submit a request to the graduate program director and provide the name of the course(s) for which they are seeking to be approved as equivalent coursework, supporting materials (e.g. syllabus, assignments) that detail the topics covered in the prior course, and their transcript showing their grade in that course. Additional materials may be requested at the discretion of the instructor evaluating the course materials. No CHE faculty or staff will assist in obtaining necessary supporting materials from prior coursework on behalf of the student, and the decision to approve or deny the request will be based on information provided by the student. This request must be submitted at least 30 days before the first day of class (as posted by the by the UVA registrar) of the student’s first semester in the UVA PhD program. The graduate program director will then provide this information to the UVA graduate course instructor(s) who are planned to be teaching the next, or immediately prior, instance of the corresponding course(s) the student has petitioned. The instructor(s) will decide to either approve or deny the request based on the prior course’s materials and the student’s grade, with that decision being final. The outcome of these decisions will be communicated to the student by the graduate program director prior to the first day of class of their first semester. In the event of a delay in the communication, a student should register for courses under the assumption that the request will be denied.

  A grade of B- or lower does not satisfy the core course requirement for the Ph.D. degree. 

  Although there are no specific elective departmental course requirements for the doctoral degree, students should work closely with their advisors on how to structure their electives. Their courses should ensure both depth in the specific research area and breadth in the chemical engineering and related sciences.

I. Qualifying Examination and Admission to Doctoral Study

All Ph.D. students must pass the Ph.D. qualifying exam, which includes a Research Examination, in the beginning of their second year and also requires achieving a grade of B or higher on all Chemical Engineering core courses. The Research Examination is to be taken within one month after completing the first summer of research. The faculty committee for the Research Examination will be assigned by the Graduate Program Director. The student is to describe, in both written and oral forms, his/her research progress to that time as well as plans for further work. Although the motivation, background and technical originality of the research are important components, the overall goal is to assess the student’s aptitude for research. The written document and oral presentation will be limited in length. Following the oral presentation to the faculty exam committee, faculty serving on the committee will ask the student questions on their research which will focus on connections to core chemical engineering principles, e.g., Thermodynamics, Transport, Fluid Dynamics, Heat Transfer, etc. The outcomes of this exam are pass, pass with conditions, or fail. The expectation for satisfactory progress for students in the Ph.D. program is passing the Research Exam on the initial attempt, and thus passing Ph.D Qualifying after the initial attempt. Students failing the exam taken on the first attempt at the beginning of the semester (typically September) will have an opportunity to retake the exam at the end of that same semester. Students must indicate in writing their intention to take the Research Exam when it is announced. Admission to Doctoral Study is a formal action of the departmental faculty. It indicates acceptance of the student into the ultimate research phase of the doctoral program. In order to pass the Qualifying Examination and be admitted to doctoral study the student must have:

1. Completed a program of advanced chemical engineering course work, here or elsewhere, by satisfying requirements for Chemical Engineering Core courses. All courses which are used to satisfy the Chemical Engineering Core course requirements must have a grade of B or higher, regardless of whether those courses were taken at University of Virginia or satisfied with transfer credit from another institution.
2. Passing the Research Examination by demonstrating to the faculty’s satisfaction a capability for independent research of the quality expected for the doctorate.

II. Dissertation Proposal and Admission to Candidacy

Ph.D. students are required to prepare a written Dissertation Proposal. The proposal should indicate the purpose and objectives of the work to be undertaken, the current state of the art with bibliography, and the strategy to be followed and techniques to be employed in the research. Preliminary data, calculations, and/or theoretical developments may be included in support of the proposed work. The proposal document should also include a one-page outline summarizing career planning activities prior to the proposal and the career planning trajectory moving forward. The proposal will be presented orally and discussed publicly. 

The Doctoral Advisory Committee must include a minimum of 3 CHE faculty, one additional UVA faculty member from outside the student’s home department, and a minimum of 4 total members. The outside member must be UVA faculty. The committee should be chaired by a CHE faculty member other than the research advisor. 

The purposes of the dissertation proposal are:

1. To determine if the student’s knowledge of the area chosen for research and the pertinent literature is adequate.
2. To determine whether the proposed work, if completed, would provide the basis for an acceptable dissertation.
3. To advise the student on general approaches and specific techniques that may be helpful in the proposed research.

If, in the judgement of the Advisory Committee, the student’s proposal is not satisfactory, the student may be required to submit a revised proposal for further discussion with the Advisory Committee.

The Dissertation Proposal should be completed within two years of completing the doctoral qualifying exam (which includes the research exam). Upon successful defense of the Dissertation Proposal, the student will be admitted as a doctoral candidate. Ph.D. students are encouraged to consult with their dissertation committee no later than six months prior to the dissertation defense. The Dissertation Proposal and plans for work must be completed prior to defense.

III. Teaching Experience

To contribute to the educational and professional development of CHE Ph.D. students, each doctoral student must serve as a graduate teaching assistant for a CHE course for a minimum of two semesters. Participation and completion of the UVA Engineering Teaching Fellowship Program can be counted as one TA assignment. A grade of “S” for two TA assignments (via enrollment for 1 credit of CHE 9897 during the semesters the assignments are completed) is required in order to graduate. If a student receives an unsatisfactory grade for their TA assignment, this is deemed unsatisfactory progress in the Ph.D. program, and can be considered grounds for dismissal from the Ph.D. program. If a student receives two unsatisfactory grades for their TA assignments, the student will be dismissed from the Ph.D. program.

IV. Research

Research begins as soon as the student has chosen a research advisor. Research remains a primary focus of the student throughout enrollment in the graduate program.

V. Dissertation Defense

Finally, the candidate must present and publicly defend a dissertation based on their independent original research to a committee of 5 faculty members, including the Doctoral Advisory Committee and one additional member. Dissertations should be submitted to committee members two weeks prior to the defense date.

The Ph.D. Dissertation Defense Committee form (Graduate Forms) is used to request appointment of the dissertation defense committee. Copies of the Dissertation Proposal should be given to the committee members at least one week before the date of proposal.

After the dissertation has been approved by the defense committee, the Report on Final Thesis or Dissertation Defense form will be sent to the Dean from the department. The student is responsible for submitting the thesis electronically through LIBRA. (http://libra.virginia.edu/)

Please note that Chemical Engineering requires that the Ph.D. dissertation bibliography include titles of journal articles.