Graduate Program Information
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Curriculum program plans shown reflect current degree requirements. Previous academic year requirements can be accessed from the catalog page by choosing the appropriate academic year.
Doctor of Philosophy in Systems Engineering
| Major Code: | 9097 | Degree Awarded: | Doctor of Philosophy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Delivery Mode(s): | Classroom | Location(s): | Main Campus - Melbourne |
| Admission Status: | Graduate | Age Restriction: | No |
The Ph.D. program in systems engineering is designed to provide advanced education and research opportunities to qualified students with master’s degrees. On completion, the program prepares students to conduct independent scholarly work, teach in academia or pursue advanced research careers in government, commercial or private sectors.
Admission Requirements
Admission to doctoral study is granted to applicants who have received master’s degrees in systems engineering, engineering, physical science, computer science or mathematics from an accredited institution or from an international institution that provides suitable preparation for doctoral-level studies.
The applicant must have a master’s degree GPA of at least 3.50 on a 4.0 scale. International applicants must submit TOEFL scores of 600 or higher in addition to the GPA requirement. All students are required to have a GRE score of 1100 or higher.
Included with the application should be undergraduate and graduate transcripts, TOEFL scores (if required), GRE scores, three letters of recommendation and a statement of objectives.
General admission requirements and the process for applying are presented in the Academic Overview section of the university catalog.
The program is ideally suited to applicants with a master’s degree in systems engineering. Preference will be given to these applicants. If an applicant does not have a master’s degree in systems engineering, five master’s-level core courses (or equivalents as determined by the department) are required before beginning doctoral-level coursework, as follows:
| Core Courses | |
| SYS 5310 | Systems Engineering Principles |
| SYS 5350 | Systems Modeling and Analysis |
| SYS 5365 | Decisions and Risk Analysis |
| SYS 5370 | Research Methods in Systems Engineering |
| SYS 5385 | System Life Cycle Cost Estimation |
Degree Requirements
The Ph.D. in systems engineering requires a minimum of 48 semester credit hours beyond the master’s degree including 24 semester credit hours of doctoral-level coursework and 24 semester credit hours of dissertation research.
| Coursework and Dissertation Summary | Credits |
| Doctoral coursework minimum beyond master's degree | 24 |
| Doctoral research and dissertation | 24 |
| TOTAL MINIMUM BEYOND THE MASTER’S DEGREE | 48 |
In addition to the 24 semester credit hours of coursework, the major adviser may require additional courses to better prepare the student for conducting research in the selected topic.
Each student must have a completed and approved program plan within one month of acceptance into the program. Following successful completion of the courses in the plan, the student must pass the comprehensive examination, prepare a written dissertation proposal and defend that proposal to a committee formed according to graduate policy. Finally, the student must conduct the necessary research to prepare a written dissertation satisfying the elements agreed to by the student’s doctoral committee and defend that dissertation before the committee.
A candidate should have at least one journal paper in review before the dissertation defense, and have completed one conference paper and presented their results at a recognized conference.
General degree requirements are presented in the Academic Overview section of the university catalog.
Curriculum
The program of study must be approved by the student’s doctoral committee and the department head. All prerequisite coursework must be completed before beginning doctoral coursework. There are no exceptions to this policy.
| Required Courses | |
| SYS 6010 | Advanced Topics in Decision and Risk Analysis |
| SYS 6020 | Advanced Topics in Systems Modeling and Analysis |
| SYS 6030 | Advanced Topics in Process Engineering |
| SYS 6040 | Seminar in Systems Engineering |
Elective Courses
In consultation with the major adviser, the student selects four courses applicable to the program from within the College of Engineering or College of Science. Latitude is permitted with the consent of the major adviser. The adviser may require the student to take additional courses (beyond the total of eight courses) if it is felt these courses are needed for research preparation.