Current Students

Information for Ph.D Students

Once admitted to the Ph.D. program, every student (who has a BS degree in civil engineering or a related field) must, at a minimum, fulfill the following requirements satisfactorily:

Typical Timeline for Ph.D Students

*Note that students entering with a Masters degree may receive a maximum of 4 transfer courses. The number of transfer credits accepted is determined by the Department. Students transferring courses from a prior Masters degree must fulfill the remainder of the course requirement with courses only at the 600- or 700-level. Typically, in the Spring of the first year a student’s permanent advisor will consult with the Department to determine the appropriate number of transfer courses.. These credits may accelerate this timeline by as much as 1 year. These are guidelines, exceptions may be made under special circumstances.

Year 1

Year 2 and/or 3

Years 4 and Beyond

Selection of Permanent Advisor

During the course of the first semester students should meet with the faculty and discuss their research interests and learn more about the research being conducted by the faculty. By the end of November the student should state his/her preference(s) for a permanent advisor. The faculty will meet and determine the final advisor placements. Every effort will be made to match students with their requested advisors, but financial constraints may not always make this possible.

In some cases students may be admitted to work with a specific advisor. In such a case the offer letter will state this specifically.

Intercession

Intercession (the period between fall and spring terms) is an important time for research. Intercession is not a vacation. Release time (if any) granted in that period must be approved by the Chair, in consultation with the student’s advisor. Those students on assistantships not present during intercession are not paid for the period of their absence.

Department Qualifying Examination

The Department Qualifying Exams (DQE) are comprehensive written and oral exams to determine whether or not the student is properly prepared to continue in the Ph.D. program. This examination is meant to test the student's general aptitude in the field of Civil Engineering and relevant science, math and mechanics concepts. The DQE does not address proposed research topics.

All first-year students studying for a Ph.D. take the written portion of the DQE exam after their first semester of enrollment, typically in mid-January of the first year. This exam tests whether the student is prepared to continue in their Ph.D. studies, based on their grasp of basic undergraduate Civil Engineering knowledge.

All second-year students studying for a Ph.D. take the oral portion of the DQE exam after their third semester of enrollment, typically in mid-January of the second year. While students are expected to continue demonstrating a full understanding of undergraduate-level Civil Engineering knowledge in this exam, the major focus of the exam is on material studied during the Ph.D. studies. A faculty committee consisting of at least 2 members will serve on the oral exam committee to determine whether or not the student is properly prepared to continue in the PhD program.

If the student passes the DQE, he/she is formally cleared into the Ph.D. program at the Department level, and may begin development of a research proposal.

If the student does not pass all or part of the DQE on their first attempt, they may (upon approval from the Department Chair) be allowed a single re-take of the exam they did not pass, which would typically take place at the end of the semester following the exam. After a non-passing performance in the DQE the student may pursue an M.S.E. or M.C.E. Financial support for a student during this period is not typical.

Department Thesis Proposal

The Department Thesis Proposal is intended to be an informal examination of a student’s ideas, plans, and initial progress on his/her intended thesis research. This exam may occur before or after the GBO, at the discretion of the Advisor. The committee consists of at least 3 members, typically all from within the Department. It is encouraged, but not required, that the same faculty members serving on the Department Thesis Proposal serve on the GBO and Thesis Defense. The student, in consultation with his/her Advisor, selects the makeup of the committee. The exam should be scheduled, at least 2 weeks in advance, through the Department Administrative Assistant. The materials for the thesis proposal should be given to the committee at least two weeks in advance of the exam.
GBO

The University maintains complete guidelines for the Graduate Board orals here . In addition, students should recognize that the GBO must be scheduled with the Graduate Board at least 3 weeks in advance of the exam. The GBO committee consists of 5 members, (3 in Department, 2 outside) with 2 alternates (1 in Department, 1 outside) and is selected by the Chair of the Department.

The GBO committee may recommend, pass, conditional, pass, fail with re-examination, fail (final) as detailed here.

If the student passes the GBO the student continues their PhD research and may file for an M.S.E. degree.

If the student fails (final) the GBO, and if the student has met the course requirements for the M.C.E. degree they may petition for an M.C.E. degree.
Thesis Defense

The Thesis Defense is the final examination before conferral of the Ph.D. degree. It is a comprehensive examination of the student, focused on the thesis research. A committee of at least 3 members administer the exam. It is encouraged, but not required, that the same faculty members serving on the Department Thesis Proposal serve on the Thesis Defense. The Advisor in consultation with the Department selects the committee members. The exam should be scheduled, at least 3 weeks in advance, through the Department Administrative Assistant. The materials for the thesis defense should be given to the committee at least two weeks in advance of the exam. The date and place of the defense, along with the thesis abstract, should be circulated prior to the exam.

  1. Doctoral Theses must be submitted to the Graduate Board Office. Master’s Theses must be submitted to the Whiting School Graduate Committee. In addition, a copy of your Master or Doctoral Thesis must be submitted to the Department of Civil Engineering. The deadline date for filing is set by the Graduate Board Office. This date also applies to filing with the Whiting School Graduate committee and with the Department.

    The Department must also send to the Graduate Board Office or the Whiting School Graduate Committee a form entitled “Certification of Completion of Departmental Requirements for an Advanced Degree.” The Department will only submit this certification after you have fulfilled the requirements described in item (3) below.

  2. University requirements for your thesis can be obtained from the Graduate Board office web site. You should obtain the information sheets entitled “Dissertation Requirements” or “Master’s Essay Requirements” as appropriate. These contain details on the form, cost and timing for submitting your thesis.

    Be sure to obtain information on deadlines set by the Graduate Board for submission of your theses as well as any other information they may provide. It is your responsibility to be aware of requirements and deadlines. It is suggested that you obtain this information before the start of the semester in which you plan to graduate.

  3. In order to be certified by the Department for graduation, you must have your thesis reviewed by at least two full-time faculty members of the Department and one additional reader (who may be from outside the department). Variations to this structure may be considered - as appropriate - on a case-by-case basis. In addition, you must present a seminar on the subject of your thesis. The procedure is as follows:
    • Obtain agreement from three Department faculty members to act as reviewers of your thesis. One of these may be your thesis advisor. It is suggested that you do this at the beginning of the semester in which you plan to graduate. It is your responsibility to make sure that they are informed of your deadline dates and that they will be available to meet them.

    • Schedule a date and time for your thesis seminar with the Department. It is suggested that you make these arrangements as early as possible in order to avoid conflicts. Make sure that your faculty reviewers can attend. Leave sufficient time after the seminar and before the filing deadline date to make any necessary final changes to your thesis.

    • Present a final pre-seminar copy of your thesis to the faculty reviewers at least a week before the seminar. This should allow them sufficient time for thorough review of your thesis before your seminar presentation. This version should be in its final form with the exception of any changes suggested by the reviewers following your presentation, and possibly the final drafting of figures.

    • The important features of your thesis should be presented at the seminar. Time should be allowed for questions, comments and suggestions by the reviewers and others in attendance.

    • Any changes or additions specifically requested by the reviewers before or during the seminar should be incorporated in your thesis in consultation with your advisor. Be sure to allow enough time after the seminar and before the deadline date to make these final modifications.

    • Make a final copy of your thesis available to the reviewers for their final inspection. Allow them at least 48 hours before the deadline date for filing set by the Graduate Board.

    • After their final inspection, obtain the reviewers’ signatures on the Department “Certification for Advanced Degrees.” File this form and a final copy of your thesis with the Department. In return, the Department will send to the Graduate Board Office or the Whiting School of Graduate Committee the “Certification of Completion of Department Requirements for an Advanced Degree,” signed by the Department Chairman.

  4. File your thesis, and any other items that may be required, with the Graduate Board Office of the Whiting School Graduate committee by their deadline date.

 

 

 

Dynamic Testing of Structures Using Shaking Table

Newly constructed uniaxial shaking table allows testing of scaled buildings and bridges under dynamic loadings. Prof. Nakata’s research group is developing innovative structural systems and verifying their concept through shaking table test.

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Lindsey Smith

Lindsey Smith
Graduate Student at IGERT

“Composite materials have been designed somewhat by trial and error. Designers have an intuitive sense of how to arrange fibers in a matrix to make the material as strong as possible. At the civil engineering department at JHU, Professor Guest's lab is coming up with computational algorithms for determining exactly where those fibers should be. These algorithms would determine the structure at the microscale to make a material mathematically optimal for a desired performance property, such as stiffness or conductivity.”  

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