Mechanical Engineering PhD Program

Program Mission:

The mission of the Mechanical Engineering PhD program at KAUST is:
To develop independent scholars and ethical research leaders who generate original knowledge and advance the frontiers of mechanical engineering. Through rigorous doctoral training and sustained engagement in high-impact research, the program prepares graduates to formulate transformative research questions, develop novel theoretical, computational, and experimental methodologies, and contribute substantively to the global mechanical engineering community while addressing complex and emerging technological challenges in the service of society.

Program Goals:

Provide advanced doctoral education that ensures mastery of mechanical engineering theory and research methodologies at the frontier of the discipline.
Require candidates to conceive, design, and execute a sustained program of original research that produces new knowledge and advances the state of the art in mechanical engineering.
Develop independent researchers capable of formulating novel research questions, critically evaluating existing paradigms, and proposing innovative theoretical, computational, or experimental frameworks.
Cultivate research leadership, mentorship capability, and effective collaboration within interdisciplinary and international research environments.
Prepare graduates to contribute to national and global technological advancement through high-impact scholarship, innovation, and responsible engineering practice.

Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs)

Knowledge and Understanding:

K1: Demonstrate comprehensive and frontier-level understanding of a specialized field within mechanical engineering, including its foundational theories, advanced methodologies, and current research developments.
K2: Critically evaluate and integrate existing theoretical, computational, and experimental frameworks to identify limitations, unresolved questions, and opportunities for original research.
K3: Demonstrate deep understanding of advanced research methodologies, including the development, adaptation, or extension of theoretical, computational, or experimental approaches within highly complex, emerging, and globally significant technological contexts.

Skills:

S1: Formulate original research questions that address highly complex, unpredictable, or emerging problems in mechanical engineering and related interdisciplinary domains.
S2: Design and execute a sustained program of independent research that generates new knowledge, advances theoretical understanding, or produces innovative technological solutions.
S3: Develop, apply, or extend advanced analytical, computational, and experimental methodologies to investigate novel or highly complex phenomena
S4: Produce scholarly contributions of international standard, suitable for publication in high-impact peer-reviewed venues, and defend original research findings with clarity and authority.

Values, Autonomy, and Responsibility:

V1: Demonstrate intellectual autonomy and the highest standards of research integrity in the conception, execution, and dissemination of original research
V2: Assume primary responsibility for the direction, quality, and impact of research outcomes, including ethical stewardship of data, computational tools, laboratory methods, and collaborative scholarship
V3: Provide academic and professional leadership through effective collaboration, mentorship of junior researchers, and constructive engagement within interdisciplinary and international research communities
V4: Critically evaluate the long-term technological, environmental, economic, and societal implications of research contributions, particularly in areas of strategic national and global importance, and promote responsible and sustainable innovation in mechanical engineering.

PhD Course Requirements

Students entering the PhD Program must complete the requirements below:

Two 300-level ME courses* (6 credits)
One 200/300 level course from the AMCS or STAT program (3 credits)
One Elective Course- a 200/300 level from any program at KAUST (3 credits)
Graduate seminar (non-credit)
Winter Enrichment Program (non-credit)

The Academic Advisor may request the completion of additional courses. Courses taken while pursuing the KAUST MS degree cannot be counted towards the PhD course requirements. Courses must be technical courses and cannot be substituted with Research, Internship, or Broadening Courses to fulfill degree requirements.

* The following alternative courses may be used to fulfill the ME 300-level requirement; AMCS 329, AMCS 370, ECE 245, ECE 372, ErSE 304, MSE 318, ECE 376

Graduate Seminars (non-credit)

Students must register for five semesters to ME 398 and receive a Satisfactory grade in each semester. They must attend a minimum of 8 Graduate Seminars per semester to earn a Satisfactory (S) grade. The seminars can be chosen from any Graduate Seminar series offered by the PSE division.

Additional Workshop (non-credit)

In preparation for assignments and courses it is strongly recommended that PhD students take a relevant skills workshop in the area, such as Scientific Presentation skills, Scientific Research Writing or Writing a Research Proposal. For further details, support or any questions, please contact the English Language and Communication team in the Student Center (Building 18) or at elcp@kaust.edu.sa .

Winter Enrichment Program (non-credit)

All students must complete the Winter Enrichment Program (WE 100) for credit at least once during their studies at KAUST. Students who have previously completed WEP will be exempt from this requirement in their future studies.

PhD Candidacy

In addition to the coursework requirements, students must successfully complete the required PhD candidacy milestones to progress toward PhD candidate status. These milestones are as follows:

A subject-based qualifier
PhD Proposal Defense

Once students have advanced to candidacy, students are designated as PhD or Doctoral Candidates.

Qualifying Exam

The qualifying exam (QE) aims to:

Test the students’ depth of knowledge in core skills of mechanical engineering;
Evaluate the students’ maturity and creativity in synthesizing and applying concepts that have been learned, in isolation, in classes;
Gage the students’ ability to think-on-their-feet during an evaluation.

PhD students must pass an oral comprehensive subject examination. The QE will be given twice a year during a single time window. This window is approximately a week in length: the first week of Spring and Fall semesters (exact times will be announced by the program). PhD students must pass the QE before the third semester (two Semesters + one Summer Session). Students should, therefore, plan to make their first attempt after their first Semester.

Subjects

The QE will comprise of one oral examination in mathematics and two oral examinations in any of the following areas: (a) fluid mechanics, (b) solid mechanics, (c) dynamics and control and (d) thermodynamics. The exam in each area will include common questions for all students who have selected that area. In addition, the examination will extend beyond the common questions to test students’ ability to answer questions on their feet. Students may petition the ME program to replace one of the specified areas (other than mathematics) with an area that is not on the list and is not a subspecialty of one of the listed areas. Examples of "other areas" that might be appropriate are biomechanics and scientific computation, to mention only two.

Multiple Attempts

At the first attempt, students must take the exams in all three subjects simultaneously. In the event a student fails the qualifying examination in one or more subjects, then at most one additional attempt (in the failed subject) will be allowed at the discretion of the ME Program.

Format

All examinations will be closed book and closed notes. The exams are forty-five minutes in length, preceded by a thirty-minute period during which students will be allowed to review the written questions for that exam. The thirty-minute period is for students to collect their thoughts. Students may write notes during this time to bring them to the exam. The examiners will probe more deeply into the issues raised in the questions. At least one month prior to the QE, students must notify the GPSA in writing of their choice of the two subject areas (other than mathematics) for the exam.

Subject Contents

Subject area descriptions which detail the topics from which exam questions may be drawn are available on the PSE website. In general, the expected preparation is the relevant undergraduate material and begging graduate knowledge.

PhD Academic Policy

For more details on the Qualifying Exam results, Dissertation Proposal Defense and committee formation, Proposal Defense results, Petition to Defend the Dissertation and committee formation, Dissertation Defense results, Dissertation document, and Dissertation archiving, please refer to the Policy page.