CIVLEG:PHD - Doctor of Philosophy in Civil Engineering

The minimum requirements for admission to the doctoral degree program in Civil Engineering are:  

(1) Applicants having a Master’s degree in Civil Engineering or Environmental Engineering (the latter for those applicants seeking the environmental area of specialization only) from a U.S. institution must satisfy the following requirements for admission to the doctoral program:  

(a) GPA of at least 3.3/4.0 in the master’s program  

(b) Three letters of recommendation or recommendation forms provided by the department  

(c) A statement of objectives in which, in addition to other information, the intended research area must be clearly stated. (see identification of Research Area)  

(d) A resume containing contact information, education and employment history, practical and research experiences (including publications), skills and other pertinent information. 

(2) Credentials of all other applicants including those with foreign degrees and those with B.S. degrees in disciplines other than Civil Engineering (or Environmental Engineering) will be examined by the Graduate Program Advisory Committee on a case by case basis. Additional credentials that will be considered include, but are not limited to, work experience, awards and recognitions, publications and presentations, and other professional experience.   

(3) International graduate student applicants whose native language is not English are required to submit a score for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or for the International English Language Testing System (IELTS).  A total score of 80 on the iBT TOEFL or 6.5 overall on the IELTS is required.  

(4) In addition to the departmental requirements, all students must satisfy the University’s Admission and Graduate Policies and Procedures. 

Maximum Length of Study

The maximum length of study is seven years for students admitted with an acceptable B.S. degree and six years for students with an acceptable M.S. degree. For those students who have not completed their studies within these limits, the length of study may be extended on a yearly basis after petition by the student and approval by the student’s supervisory committee. Any extension beyond nine years must be approved by the University Graduate School.

Identification of Research Area

There are currently three main areas of research or specialization: (1) Structural, Geotechnical, and Construction Engineering; (2) Environmental and Water Resources Engineering; and (3) Transportation Engineering. The student must contact the Department for a list of all faculty members, visit them, and be accepted by one professor to guide the dissertation research. If no such professor can be found, within 15 months of admission, the student will be dismissed from the Ph.D. program.

Course Requirement

The program will consist of at least 75 semester credit hours beyond the baccalaureate degree, 54 hours of which are course work and 15 hours dissertation. Applicants who have a Master’s degree in Civil Engineering or Environmental Engineering (the latter for those applicants seeking the environmental area of specialization only) or a closely related engineering field from an accredited institution may be given a maximum of 30 transferred semester credit hours. In addition to the above requirements, the selection of courses must meet the following requirements for credits beyond the Master’s degree:

(1) Minimum three credits in Mathematics or Statistics

(2) Minimum 18 core credits (see exception under Core Courses below) in the selected major area in Civil Engineering (or Environmental Engineering).

(3) Any deviation from requirements 1 and 2 above must be justified in writing and approved by the departmental Graduate Program Director.

(4) Complete course – Graduate Seminar.

Additional engineering courses (3000 and 4000 level) may be required as deficiencies for students coming from other engineering and non-engineering majors. 

All courses and dissertation topics must be approved by the student’s dissertation committee. A proposed program of study shall be developed by a student’s major professor together with the student and approved by the Graduate Program Director.

Core Courses

All Ph.D. students must satisfy the core course requirements defined for the MS degree programs, except those students who, upon admission, have completed an eligible and acceptable BS and MS degrees programs in Civil Engineering.  A student may take other courses, preferably at the 6000-level and above, in the specialty as well as in other areas to meet the minimum 18 hours of departmental coursework requirement, as approved by the major professor and the dissertation committee, provided all the core courses have been completed previously during the MS program or will be completed in the Ph.D. program. In addition, all doctoral students are required to take the Research Methods for Civil Engineers courses before or during the first semester of dissertation credits. Students are also required to register for the 0-credit Graduate Seminar (course) at least once and are encouraged to take it each Fall and Spring semesters.

Directed Independent Study Course (course)

A student may take up to a total of three credits of directed independent study, which will be letter graded. If a student needs a course that will not be offered during the student's course of study, special topics in civil engineering courses should be set up to meet the student's needs. There will be no limit on the number of special topics courses provided that the core course requirements are satisfied.

Dissertation Committee

The student’s dissertation committee should be appointed as soon as possible and within the 15-month period after the student has been admitted to the Ph.D. program. The committee must have a minimum of four eligible faculty members, at least three from the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, and at least one from outside the department, but within FIU. All committee members should have a Ph.D. degree and must be members of the graduate faculty.  The major professor must hold dissertation advisor status. The dissertation committee should meet as early as possible to review student’s background, discuss student’s expected research areas, provide guidance on course selection, etc.

Residency Requirements

The Ph.D. student should spend at least one academic year in full residency, after successfully passing his/her Comprehensive Examination (see the following description).

Examinations

A student must successfully complete the following written exam and oral defenses in partial fulfillment of requirements for the Ph.D. degree in Civil Engineering:

(1) Qualifying Exam: The Qualifying Exam must be taken as soon as possible and no later than the semester the student completes the minimum applicable course requirements. The exam consists of a 2-hour oral examination by the dissertation committee on topics related to the student’s dissertation or relevant core courses.  In the event that a student fails the exam, he or she can retake it only once in the subsequent semester.

(2) Proposal Defense: The proposal defense must be completed at least one year prior to the expected graduation date. The student must prepare a detailed proposal that contains, at a minimum, background information, problem statement, objectives, literature review, methodology, work plan, and schedule. The proposal must be submitted to each committee member at least two weeks prior to the defense date. The defense will be given in the form of a graduate seminar that is open to all faculty, students, and visitors. A student can take the proposal defense twice. In addition the student needs to follow the University Graduate School dissertation proposal submission requirements.

(3) Dissertation Defense: A draft dissertation must be submitted to each committee member at least six weeks prior to the date of the defense. The defense will be given in the form of a graduate seminar that is open to all faculty, students, and visitors. A student can fail this defense only once. Students should become familiar with the University Graduate School’s policies, procedures, regulations and deadlines available on line at http://gradschool.fiu.edu.

MS en Route for PhD Candidates

Doctoral candidates who have completed the requirements for the Master of Science degree in Civil Engineering or Environmental Engineering and have filed the D-2 and D-3 forms that have been accepted by the University Graduate School will receive a Master of Science en route to the PhD in Civil Engineering or Environmental Engineering, respectively. Courses to be counted in the MS en route must have been taken at FIU.

Transfer credits cannot be used for MS en route. Students must consult their Graduate Programs Director to ensure they qualify.

There are no majors associated with this program.

There are no tracks, specializations, concentrations, areas of emphasis, or other curricular offerings associated with this program.