PhD Course Requirements

Students entering the PhD Program must complete the requirements below.

• 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 EnSE 398 and  receive a Satisfactory grade for a minimum of four Semesters. However it is recommended that students register for Seminars every Semester.

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
• 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. Students who complete their Proposal Defense within threeSemesters 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

The outcome of the meeting will result in a committee recommendation (Pass/Pass with conditions/Fail). If substantial issues are identified, the Committee will determine a course of action for the student to follow. This may be placing the student on academic sanction (probation/dismissal) with an associated action plan or any other recommendation (up to and including that no action be taken).  

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. Students who complete their Proposal Defense within 2 Semesters and 1 Summer Session do not have to complete the Pre-Proposal Committee Meeting.  

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 GPC).
• 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 Proposal Defense Committee, which must be approved by the Dean, must consist of at least three members and typically includes no more than six members. The Chair, plus one additional Faculty member must be affiliated with the student's Program. The Committee is as follows:

Notes:

• If you have a co-advisor, this person can be considered one of the members, provided they come under the categories listed.
• Members 1-3 are required; Member 4 is optional.
• Co-Chairs may serve as members 2 or 3.
• Adjunct Professors and Professors Emeriti may retain their roles on current Committees but may not serve as Chair on any new Committees.
• Professors of Practice and Research Professors may serve as members 2 or 3 depending upon their affiliation with the student's Program; they may also serve as Co-Chair.
• Once constituted, the composition of the Proposal Committee can only be changed with the approval of both the Academic Advisor and the Dean.

View a list of Faculty and their affiliations here.

Proposal Defense Results

At the end of the Proposal Defense students will be deemed to have either:

• Passed their Proposal.
• Failed but invited to re-take within 6 months and by the end of their fifth Semester. If substantial issues are identified, the Committee may determine a course of action for the student to follow. This may include but not limited to, academic sanction (probation/dismissal) study plan etc.
• Failed- unsuccessfully defended their Proposal resulting in the termination of their candidature. In the instance of a "Fail Without Retake," the decision of the Committee 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 GPC. 

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, which must be approved by the Dean, must consist of at least four members and typically includes no more than six members. At least three of the required members must be KAUST Faculty, and one must be an external examiner who is external to KAUST. The Chair, plus one additional Faculty member must be affiliated with the student's Program. The external examiner is not required to attend the Defense but must write a report on the Dissertation and may attend the Dissertation Defense at the discretion of the Program.

Notes:

• Members 1-4 are required; members 5 and 6 are optional.
• Co-Chairs may serve as either members 2, 3 or 6.
• Adjunct Professors and Professors Emeriti may retain their roles on current Committees but may not serve as Chair on any new Committees.
• Professors of Practice and Research Professors may serve as members 2, 3, or 6 depending upon their affiliation with the student's Program; they may also serve as Co-Chairs.
• Visiting Professors may serve as member 6 but not as the external examiner.

The only requirement with commonality with the Proposal Committee is the Dissertation Advisor, although it is expected that other members will carry forward to this Committee. Co-supervisors can be considered one of the above four members required, provided they come under the categories listed (i.e., meets the position's requirements).

View a list of Faculty and their affiliations here.

Dissertation Defense

The Dissertation Defense is a public presentation followed by a Q&A and an oral Defense. It should last three hours at most.

A Pass is achieved when the Committee agrees with no more than one dissenting vote. In the case of a Pass, the Dissertation must be archived within 2 weeks. In the instance of a Pass with conditions, the entire Committee must agree on the required conditions and if they cannot, the Dean decides. The deadline to complete the conditions is three month after the defense date, unless the committee unanimously agrees to change it. If the conditions will take more than three months, or more than one member casts a negative vote, one retake of the defense is permitted. The deadline to complete the retake is decided by the Committee with a maximum of six months after the Defense date, unless the Committee unanimously agrees to reduce it. 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 met by the end of the extension period which prevails over the date set by the Committee. In the instance of a Fail without retake, the decision of the Committee must be unanimous. Students who fail without retake or who fail the retake will be dismissed from the University.

The outcome of the Dissertation Defense must be recorded by submitting the Dissertation Defense Evaluation Form within 2 days after the Defense to 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.

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.