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

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 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 Courses Certificate

On the way to graduation, students often avoid the opportunity to dive deeper into subjects they are interested in. It may be because they have already completed their mandatory course requirement and their thesis work is demanding. The lack of recognition of their courses beyond the PhD course requirements goes unnoticed and is challenging to share with future employers.

The ME Program offers many courses on the cutting edge of research in many areas, and it encourages students to deepen their understanding of multiple areas of mechanical engineering. Therefore, the ME Program has developed certification tracks that students can pursue in addition to their degree requirements. Once a student completes the requirements of a specific track, the student will be awarded an official certificate signed by the chair of the program. Students who complete the certifications are better prepared to discuss, research, review, and teach in those areas. Students must take 4 courses in a track, of which at least 3 must be taken for credit and no more than 1 as an official audit. Students must maintain a B average with no one course scoring less than a B- within the certification. The seven tracks and the courses included therein are given here.  

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. 

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 exam consists of two items: 

• Students must submit a 10-page proposal document (note: the number of pages is a recommendation and not a strict requirement) to the three members of the committee at least 10 days before the examination. The proposal should describe the proposed research topic, relevant literature survey and any preliminary results or laboratory preparation. 
• Students must make a 30-minute oral presentation of the research proposal, followed by questions from the committee consistent with the scope of the examination. The examination is expected to last approximately one hour. The exam is not open to the public. 

It is not necessary to have results, a working computer program, a functioning piece of equipment or fully analyzed data. It is also not necessary to present a definitive dissertation outline. The student must include a tentative timeline for the completion of their PhD which should be consistent with the overall PhD duration. Students should schedule the examination at a time acceptable to the committee before the beginning of the fifth semester of their PhD studies.  

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 beginning end of their fifth fifth third semester after commencing the PhD program.

PhD Dissertation Proposal Committee 

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

Member	Role	Affiliation
1	Faculty	Primary affiliation within the student’s program
2	Faculty	Primary affiliation within the student’s program
3	Faculty	Primary affiliation outside the student’s program
4	Faculty or Research Scientist	Affiliation within or outside of KAUST

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. If the advisor holds a primary affiliation within the student’s program, then they act as member 1. If the advisor has a secondary or one-time affiliation within the student’s program, then they act as member 3.
• The student’s co-advisor may serve as member 4.
• Adjunct Professors and Professors Emeriti may continue serving on existing Committees but may not serve as Chair on new Committees.
• Professors of Practice, Research Professors and Visiting Professors may serve as member 4.
• Once approved, any changes to the committee require the approval of both the student's advisor and Dean.
• The proposal defense committee must remain the same for the dissertation defense. 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 GPSA and the Dissertation Advisor by the deadline published in the Academic Calendar and at least two months prior to the defense date. The required documents include: (i) a list of proposed committee members (including a CV of the external examiner), (ii) a current CV of the student (including a list of publications), (iii) a current transcript, and (iv) the dissertation. 

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 three members and may have up to five members. The committee structure 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 cannot serve as the chair of the committee. The chair can be within or outside the program. If the advisor holds a primary affiliation within the student’s program, then they act as member 1. If the advisor has a secondary or one-time affiliation within the student’s program, then they act as member 3.
• The student’s co-advisor may serve as member 5.
• Professors of Practice and Research Professors may serve as member 5. 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 existing committees 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.
• Guidelines for selecting the external examiner can be found on the PSE website. 
• 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 when they write their Dissertation. The PhD dissertation must contain original results demonstrating the student’s scholarly activities during the course of the PhD. The student must be fully aware of what is considered plagiarism and must avoid all forms of plagiarism. The PhD dissertation must be written in fluent high-quality English using proper language, style, and appropriate methods of scientific reasoning. Parts of the dissertation research should have been presented at international conferences. The dissertation research must lead to high quality scientific publications in international peer-reviewed journals, ideally leading journals of the field. The ME program requires that at least one such journal publication has appeared in print (or accepted for publication) before scheduling the PhD dissertation defense. In the introductory part of the dissertation, the student must list all scientific publications coming out of their work. For each publication, the student must indicate any significant contributions made by the co-authors. 

Dissertation Archiving

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