Degree Requirements

From QED

< PlasmaWiki(Link to this page as [[PlasmaWiki/Degree Requirements]])
Jump to: navigation, search

Contents

Graduate Announcement

The Graduate School Announcement(GSA) is the main source for finding degree requirements for either the M.A. or Ph.D. in Plasma Physics (near the middle of the page). Exerpts of the GSA follow:

General

To qualify for the Ph.D., a candidate is required to pass the general examination in his or her subject, present an acceptable dissertation, and pass the final public oral examination.
Individual departments may set specific requirements of their own in addition to those of the Graduate School,
Students are urged to read carefully the specific department's program descriptions and to confer with the director of graduate studies if they have any questions.
If a student fails the general examination, he or she may stand for reexamination within one year. If unsuccessful the second time, the student may not take the examination again, and degree candidacy is automatically terminated.

Dissertation

The dissertation must show that the candidate has technical mastery of the field and is capable of doing independent research. This study must enlarge or modify current knowledge in a field or present a significant new interpretation of known materials.
When the dissertation has been formally presented, the department takes action on the positive recommendation of at least two principal readers to request that the dissertation advance to the final public oral examination. Qualified principal readers are those who are authorized to supervise doctoral dissertations in the University (such as, regular faculty at the rank of assistant professor or higher, and certain others in senior research ranks). External readers must be of comparable standing in another university or in the non-academic research community. Each principal reader submits a written and signed dissertation reader's report to the department. Two copies of the dissertation must be available for interested readers in the department prior to the final public oral examination. The dean's office then authorizes the department to hold the final public oral examination.

Final Public Oral Examination

The department holds the final public oral examination after the Graduate School reviews and accepts the readers' reports and is satisfied that all other requirements have been met. The department is required to post prominently the date, time, and place of the examination for a minimum of three days (including Saturday) between the dean's authorization and the date of the examination, in order to assure the open, public character of the oral examination. There are at least three principal examiners, all of them normally members of the Princeton faculty at the rank of assistant professor or higher, at least two of whom have not been principal readers of the dissertation. The department then determines whether or not the candidate has passed the examination.

Program Specific Requirements

If you go to the section in the GSA about the Program in Plasma Physics, you will only see course listings, but you are referred to the section on the Department of Astrophysical Sciences for further information. In that section it says

For admission to candidacy for a Ph.D. in the astronomy section, students must complete the following requirements: (1) successfully complete all of the courses required by the department (AST 541, two semesters; AST 542, two semesters; and four additional astronomy graduate-level courses); (2) pass the general examination; and (3) produce at least one paper suitable for submission to a journal as part of a departmental research project. The research supervisor must approve the paper.

There is nothing said about admission to candidacy for a Ph.D. in the Plasma Physics section. Seeing as nobody in Plasma Physics takes AST 541 or AST 542, this probably does not apply to us. Therefore, see the section below for the informal list based on previous experience.

Forms

To obtain a degree, one must become a master of paperwork. Barbara Sarfaty is already a master, but in case her knowledge is lost, check out the forms at https://gradschool.princeton.edu/forms/acadforms/. Of particular interest are the following forms:

LaTeX Dissertation Template

Many students like to write their dissertation in LaTeX. This can more easily be done with a template style file, such as this one, which conforms to library standards as of Oct. 2011: Thesis_template.zip

Informal List

Here is an informal list of things that need to be done to get a Ph.D. in Plasma Physics. [You know it's official if this list ends up on the Graduate Program's webpage.]

Pass the Physics Department's Preliminary Exam (Prelims)

  • Prelims are administered in January (and May, if necessary).
  • Passing the Prelims requires a score of 80 or more (out of 160 possible points).
    • If you get a 78 or 79, you can petition the Plasma Physics Faculty to allow that score to be admitted as a passing score.
    • You can only take the Prelims twice, unless there are extenuating circumstances.
  • To prepare for the Prelims:
    • Take the necessary graduate courses to pass the Prelims. These might include
      • E&M (Physics 501),
      • Quantum Mechanics (Physics 505),
      • Statistical Mechanics (Physics 511);
    • Participate in the Prelims Study Group organized by older Plasma Physics students.

Work on 3 Projects

  • Work on an experimental project your first year.
  • Work on a theoretical project your second year (note that this and the previous are similar to the Astronomy requirement).
  • Complete your dissertation project.
  • All three projects can be related or be disjoint (although relatedness may correspond to shorter graduation times).

Pass the Plasma Physics General Exams (Generals)

  • Generals are administered in May (of 2nd year) and consist of:
    • Two 4 hour written sessions,
    • One 30-90 minute oral session.
  • Passing is determined by the professors on the examining committee for the oral session.
  • Passing Generals qualifies a student to apply for the incidental M.A. degree.
  • Take the necessary courses to pass Generals. This might include
    • Fall 1st Year(#)
      • General Plasma Physics I (AST 551)
      • (Physics courses listed above)
    • Spring 1st Year(#)
      • General Plasma Physics II (AST 552)
      • Laboratory in Plasma Physics(##) (AST 562)
      • Physics of Nonneutral Plasmas(##) (AST 565) or Computational Methods in Plasma Physics(##) (AST 560)
    • Fall 2nd Year(#)
      • Plasma Waves and Instabilities (AST 553)
      • Fusion Plasmas and Plasma Diagnostics (AST 555)
      • Analytical Techniques in Differential Equations (AST 557/APC 503)
    • Spring 2nd Year(#)
      • Irreversible Processes in Plasmas (AST 554)
      • Laboratory in Plasma Physics(##) (AST 562)
      • Physics of Nonneutral Plasmas(##) (AST 565) or Computational Methods in Plasma Physics(##) (AST 560)

(#) Seminar in Plasma Physics (AST 558) must be taken all 4 semesters
(##) If prelims were failed the first time, take these in Spring 1st or 2nd year at your discretion

Give a Thesis Proposal

  • The thesis proposal should be given within 6 months after passing Generals.
    • There appears to be some leniency here as no one in recent history has done this in less than 1 year. There may be some confusion as to what exactly needs to be done for a thesis proposal.
  • The thesis proposal seems to consist of:
    • A written proposal,
    • A proposal presentation,
    • Having 3 professors/researchers at the proposal presentation.
  • The expected content of the proposal will vary depending on how quickly after Generals the proposal is given.

Complete the Dissertation

Complete the Final Public Oral Examination (FPOE)

  • Complete the requirements given by the graduate school in the GSA for the FPOE.
Retrieved from "https://qed.princeton.edu/main/PlasmaWiki/Degree_Requirements"
Personal tools