PhD Course Requirements

Students entering the PhD Program must complete the requirements below.

• At least two 300-level courses (6 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. 

Graduate Seminars (non-credit)

All students must register for MarS 398 and receive a Satisfactory grade for a minimum of five Semesters. However it is recommended students register for Seminars every Semester. For more details about MarS Seminars please contact your GPC.

Winter Enrichment Program (non-credit)

All students must register for WE 100 and successfully complete one Winter Enrichment Program (WEP), usually taken in the first year of study. Students who completed WEP as part of their KAUST MS must take the program again.

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 (pre-proposal meeting)
• PhD Proposal Defense

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

Qualifying Exam

The qualifier known in the program as 'The Pre-Proposal Committee Meeting' is a research update meeting to determine progress and readiness toward the PhD Proposal Defense. Students must pass the Pre-Proposal Committee Meeting by the end of the third semester after commencing the PhD degree. However, it is recommended students pass the Pre-Proposal Committee Meeting by the end of their Second Semester after commencing the PhD program. Students who complete their Proposal Defense within three Semesters do not have to complete the Pre-Proposal Committee Meeting. 

Membership of the Pre-Proposal Committee must consist of 2 Faculty from within the program (Dissertation Advisor + 1 other) and 1 from outside of the program. Although not required, the membership of this Committee could be retained for the Proposal Defense Committee.

Expectations for the Qualifier (Pre-Proposal Meeting):

• The suggested time of the meeting is 45-60 minutes.
• Student is evaluated on their overall progress during the last academic year, focusing on the status of research, research milestones, and plans for the following academic year. It is expected that a broad topic has been determined by this stage.
• The student will provide a short (<30 minutes; 8-12 slides) presentation on the state of their research, i.e., what is the research question they are answering (the knowledge gap), how they will do this (the approach), what remains to be done (the activity).
• The presentation will be followed by a brief Q&A from the Committee (10 min).
• The Committee will then meet separately with the Dissertation Advisor (i.e., the student will be excused) to discuss the student's progress, performance, and expectations (optional, 5 min).
• The Committee will meet separately with the student (i.e., the Dissertation Advisor will be excused) to inquire about the relationship between the student and Dissertation Advisor (project feedback; project support; discussion of expectations; etc.) (optional, 5 min). 

The student will be given verbal and written feedback (10 mins) regarding the following:

• Research topic
• Methodology and plan
• Overall performance

 Qualifying Exam Results:
At the conclusion of the qualifying exam, students will receive one of the following outcomes:

• Pass: The student has successfully passed the exam.
• Fail with Retake: The student must retake the exam within the next qualifying exam period or by the milestone deadline, whichever comes first. If significant issues are identified, the Committee may recommend additional actions, including academic sanctions (e.g., probation) or the implementation of a study plan.
• Fail Without Retake: The student has not passed the qualifying exam. This decision requires a unanimous vote by the Committee and endorsement by the Dean.

After the exam, the final proposal document and qualifying exam result form must be submitted to the GPSA within two (2) working days, regardless of the outcome. The GPSA will coordinate the collection of all required signatures.

Dissertation Proposal Defense

The Dissertation Proposal Defense aims to demonstrate that students have the ability and are adequately prepared to undertake PhD level research in the proposed area. This preparation includes necessary knowledge of the chosen subject, a literature review, and preparatory theory or experimentation. 

The Dissertation Proposal Defense is the second part of the qualification milestones that must be completed to become a PhD candidate. PhD students must successfully defend the dissertation proposal by the end of their fifth Semester after commencing the PhD program. However, it is recommended students pass the Dissertation Proposal Defense by the end of their fourth Semester after commencing the PhD program.

Expectations for the Proposal Defense:

• The Proposal Defense Committee is Dean-approved (via the Proposal Committee Form). Although guided by the Dissertation Advisor, students should have a say in Committee formation and agree to its final composition (to be confirmed by GPSA).
• The Proposal should include 1) a Literature Review; 2) a statement of the research problem being addressed and the novelty (i.e., what new contribution will be explored); 3) an outline of the methodology to address these research questions; 4) detail of preliminary results or analysis towards these research objectives; 5) a description of the research plan for future activity, together with a timeline for completion.
• The Proposal (less than 30 pages or 12,000 words; excluding references) should be provided to the Committee at least 10 days before the scheduled Defense date.
• Students will prepare a 30-minute presentation that focuses on an introduction to the problem (i.e., research motivation), an elaboration of the research questions (i.e., the novelty and innovation), a description of relevant research activities, preliminary analysis and results (i.e., the research progress) and a description of the remaining research plans and efforts required for completion (i.e., the plan).
• The remaining time will be allocated to questioning students on the contents and scope of their research. In the event of a public Defense, the audience will be asked to address their questions to students directly.
• On completion of this round of questioning, the audience will be asked to leave the room, and the Committee will directly address their questions to students. These can cover all aspects of candidature and should be designed to establish (and test) the knowledge and understanding of the chosen research topic. After questioning, students are requested to leave the room, and their performance will be deliberated.

Proposal Defense Committee

The PhD proposal defense committee must include a minimum of three members and may have up to four members. The composition of the committee is outlined as follows: 

Notes:

• The committee must be approved by the Dean.
• Members 1-3 are mandatory, while member 4 is optional. 
• The student’s advisor serves as the chair of the committee and must use the affiliation within the student’s program. 
• Either member 1 or member 2 must have primary affiliation within the student’s program
• The student’s co-advisor may serve as member 4.
• Professors of Practice and Research Professors may serve as members 1-4, depending on their affiliation and whether they are the student’s co-advisor. They cannot be the advisor of the student and cannot serve as the chair of the committee. 
• Adjunct Professors and Professors Emeriti may continue serving on committees in the roles they had at the time of their departure but are not permitted to serve on new committees.
• Visiting Professors may only serve as member 4.
• Once approved, any changes to the committee require the approval of both the student's advisor and the Dean.
• Members of the proposal defense committee must remain on the dissertation defense committee. Any exceptions to this rule require approval from both the student’s advisor and the Dean.

Proposal Defense Results

At the end of the proposal Defense, students will be evaluated as follows:

• Pass: The student successfully passes their proposal.
• Fail with Retake: The student is invited to retake the defense within three months or by the milestone deadline, whichever comes first. If substantial issues are identified, the Committee may prescribe a course of action, which may include but is not limited to, academic sanctions (probation/dismissal), or a study plan.
• Fail Without Retake: The student has unsuccessfully defended their proposal, resulting in the termination of their candidacy. For a "Fail Without Retake" decision, the Committee’s vote must be unanimous and endorsed by the Dean.

Students who successfully pass the Dissertation proposal Defense are deemed PhD Candidates. At the end of the proposal Defense, a PhD Proposal Results Form must be completed and submitted to the GPSA. 

Dissertation

The Dissertation is the final milestone of the PhD program. Students must complete the following:

• Petition to defend Dissertation/Form Dissertation Defense Committee 
• Defend Dissertation 
• Archive Dissertation

Petition to Defend Dissertation

Students must determine the Defense date with the agreement of all members of the Dissertation Defense Committee. It is the sole responsibility of students to submit the required documents in consultation with the GPC and the Dissertation Advisor by the deadline published in the Academic Calendar and at least 2 months prior to the Defense date.

Students must defend their Dissertation and obtain the final approval of the Dissertation Defense by the end of their fourth year (8 Semesters and 4 Summer Sessions). Students must follow the Thesis and Dissertation Guidelines available on the KAUST Library webpage when they write their Dissertation.

Formation of Dissertation Defense Committee

The PhD dissertation defense committee must include a minimum of four members and may have up to five  members. The composition of the committee is outlined as follows:

Notes:

• The committee must be approved by the Dean. 
• Members 1-4 are mandatory, while member 5 is optional. 
• The student’s advisor serves as the chair of the committee and must use the affiliation within the student’s program. 
• Either member 1 or member 2 must have primary affiliation within the student’s program.
• The student’s co-advisor may serve as member 5.
• Professors of Practice and Research Professors may serve as members 1-3 or 5, depending on their affiliation and whether they are the student’s co-advisor. They cannot be the advisor of the student and cannot serve as the chair of the committee. 
• Adjunct Professors and Professors Emeriti may continue serving on committees in the roles they had at the time of their departure but are not permitted to serve on new committees.
• Visiting Professors may only serve as member 5, but they are not permitted to serve as external examiner.
• Once approved, any changes to the committee require the approval of both the student's advisor and the Dean.

Dissertation Defense Results

The format of the Oral Defense is left to the discretion of the dissertation Committee. At the end of the Final Defense, students will be evaluated with one of the following outcomes:

• Pass: The Committee agrees with no more than one dissenting vote. The dissertation must be archived within two weeks of the defense, and the student must send the Result Form to the GPSA within two days of the defense.
• Pass with Conditions: All committee members must agree on the required conditions. If they cannot agree, the Dean will make the final decision. The student has up to three months to meet these conditions, unless the Committee unanimously agrees to change the deadline.
• Fail with Retake: If conditions cannot be met within three months, or more than one member casts a negative vote, one retake of the defense is allowed. The retake must occur within six months of the original defense unless the Committee unanimously agrees to a shorter timeline. If the student fails the retake, they will be dismissed from the University. The Committee Chair must immediately inform the GPSA to initiate the necessary actions.
• Fail Without Retake: The decision must be unanimous, resulting in the student’s dismissal from the University. The Committee Chair must inform the GPSA immediately to take the necessary actions. 

Additional Guidelines:

• Students who have exceeded their duration of study must apply for an extension as per the Time Limit and Extension Policy. All conditions must be fulfilled by the end of the extension period, which takes precedence over the Committee’s set deadlines. 
• The outcome of the Dissertation Defense must be recorded by submitting the Dissertation Defense Evaluation Form to the Office of the Registrar within two days of the defense.
• Additionally, students must submit the Defense Results Form by the deadline published in the Academic Calendar.
• The required forms are available on the webpage of the Office of the Registrar.  

Dissertation Document

Students must follow the Thesis and Dissertation Guidelines available from the KAUST Library.

Dissertation Archiving

Students must archive the Dissertation in the KAUST Library two weeks from the defense date. This must not exceed the deadline published in the Academic Calendar. The required form is available from the Office of the Registrar.