Revised requirements outlined below will apply only to students entering the PhD in Mechanical Engineering program in Fall of 2022 and later.
PhD Requirements
For students who have earned:
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MS degree in mechanical engineering from Drexel University
The PhD student will be required to complete a minimum of 45 credit hours, in accordance with University policy.
Because the nature of the research is widely ranging and instruction should be selected to be tailored to the needs of the students, the student must determine the number and selection of courses in a Plan of Study. This plan should encompass the total number of required credit hours. Both the Program Manager of Graduate Studies and the student's thesis supervisor must approve this plan.
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MS degree in mechanical engineering or aerospace engineering from an institution other than Drexel Engineering
PhD students must complete 18 MEM course credits (6 courses). Among these credits 2 courses must be selected from the MEM Selected Core Course list and must be in one of the two-course sequences (as grouped by A, B, C, D).
Because the nature of the research is widely ranging and instruction should be selected to be tailored to the needs of the students, the student must determine the remaining number and selection of courses in a Plan of Study. This plan should encompass the total number of required credit hours. Both the Program Manager of Graduate Studies and the student's thesis supervisor must approve this plan.
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MS degree in another STEM field, whether from Drexel University or another institution
PhD students must complete at least 18 course credits (6 courses) selected from the MEM Selected Core Course List. At minimum, one two-course sequence (as grouped by A, B, C, D) must be taken from any of these cores.
Because the nature of the research is widely ranging and instruction should be selected to be tailored to the needs of the students, the student must determine the remaining number and selection of courses in a Plan of Study. This plan should encompass the total number of required credit hours. Both the Program Manager of Graduate Studies and the student's thesis supervisor must approve this plan.
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BS degree in mechanical engineering or another STEM field, but not an MS degree
Candidacy Requirements
The PhD candidacy exam consists of two parts: a course examination part and an oral examination part.
- For the course examination part, an earned grade of A- or higher on 2 courses from the MEM Selected Core Course list is required. These 2 courses should be from a two-course sequence (or any two of a three-course sequence, such as MEM 611/612/613) in (1) Mechanics, (2) Thermal and Fluid Sciences, and/or (3) Dynamic Systems and Controls Cores. Note that grades earned in (4) Design and Manufacturing Courses cannot be the basis for fulfilling this requirement. However, completion of MEM 619, 687, 678 and T680 may be counted towards the fulfillment of selected the required number of core courses.
- For the oral examination part, the research component examination consists of a written report and an oral presentation. The Candidacy Committee selects three or more research papers in the student’s declared research area for student to conduct a critical review and identifies areas for future research and development. In three weeks after the papers have been assigned to the student, the student submits a written report not exceeding 15 single-spaced pages, excluding references. One week after the written report is submitted the student makes an oral presentation. The presentation is followed by questions by the Committee. The goals of the questions are to evaluate the student’s knowledge in the scientific fields related to the research area, including related background and fundamental material, and to assess the student’s ability to integrate information germane to success in research.
The candidacy may be completed at any time following matriculation but must be attempted no later than the end of the second academic year, for full-time students, and successfully completed not later than the end of the third academic year, for full-time students. The composition of the Candidacy Committee should be selected with the approval of the Program Manager of Graduate Studies. Special circumstances should also be discussed with the Program Manager.
Students are encouraged to visit the Term Master Schedule for planned availability of courses.