Degree Title: Doctor of Philosophy

Program Name and Number: Mechanical and Systems Engineering - PH7259

Department/Unit: Russ College of Engineering and Technology

Delivery Mode: Athens Campus

Terms of Entry: Fall and Spring

Program Mission: To graduate engineering professionals with advanced engineering research and problem solving skills, who can effectively communicate graduate-level engineering concepts and applications, who are able to continue to contribute to their discipline after graduation, who can contribute to the wellbeing of the society, and who are prepared to become leaders in research and teaching in academic, government, and industry positions.

Program Learning Objectives:

• An ability to develop personal expertise in one or more areas of technical specialization
• An ability to conceptualize, design, and execute advanced engineering research and to test a scientific hypothesis or proposed engineering solution using prior published knowledge as a foundation
• An ability to use analytical and computational methods to process data and solve engineering problems
• An ability to effectively communicate graduate-level engineering concepts and applications in oral and written forms

Program Overview:  The Mechanical and Systems Engineering Ph.D. program is an interdisciplinary Ph.D. program with specialization tracks in Mechanical Engineering (ME) and Industrial and Systems Engineering (ISE). A minimum of 60 semester hours beyond the Master of Science (M.S.) degree is required. An interdisciplinary component, for which graduate coursework is taken outside the program track, is a general program requirement. In addition to general program requirements, specific track requirements must also be satisfied. Students must pass qualifying and comprehensive exams, as well as successfully defend a doctoral dissertation. A minimum of 30 semester hours of dissertation and 30 semester hours of approved graduate coursework are required. A plan of study is approved by the student’s dissertation advisory committee, the specialization track coordinator, and the chair of the program steering committee.

Concentrations: There are two tracks:

• The ME track includes academic and research specialties in the areas of biomedical engineering, CAD/CAM, machine and automotive design, energy, manufacturing, materials and deformable solid body mechanics, robotics and rigid body mechanics, and thermo-fluid systems.
• The ISE track includes specialization areas in manufacturing systems, manufacturing information systems, artificial intelligence, systems simulation, process planning, warehousing, genetic algorithms, data mining, neural networks, human factors, transportation, logistics, humanitarian logistics,  supply chain management, reliability, and optimization in manufacturing and  service sectors.

Opportunities for Graduates: the Mechanical and Systems Engineering Ph.D. program prepares students for advanced engineering work in industry, government, or academia.

Link to Program:  For the Industrial and Systems Engineering track, please email morrisop@ohio.edu or go to https://www.ohio.edu/engineering/ise/academics/graduate/phd.cfm.  For the Mechanical Engineering track, please email MEgrad@ohio.edu or go to https://www.ohio.edu/engineering/mechanical/academics/graduate/phd.cfm

Graduation Requirements: A minimum of 30 credit hours of formal course work above the M.S. degree is required.  At least 15 credit hours must be at the 6000 level or higher, of which at least 6 credit hours must be at the 7000 level or higher. Because the nature of this degree program, this not a fixed curriculum but an integration of course work from at least two departments, it is necessary that the student develop an individualized Plan of Study that is appropriate for one of the two specialty areas: (1) Industrial and Systems Engineering or (2) Mechanical Engineering.  The Plan of Study must include at least 9 credit hours of doctoral coursework from an engineering department outside the major track discipline or 12 credit hours from two other engineering programs, 6 hours per program.   Students in both specialty tracks shall take the “capstone” synthesis course (ET 7990) after completion of a majority of the Ph.D. courses. Courses taken by a graduate student at Ohio University prior to admission into the Ph.D. program can satisfy the requirements of credit hours for the major areas and the core courses.  However, the student must still complete 30 credit hours of course work above that required for the M.S. degree. Students are required to take the 1-credit hour ET 6020 Technical Writing Seminar.  Students who satisfied this requirement while earning an M.S at Ohio University are not required to retake this course during the doctoral program.

The student must demonstrate mastery of the necessary fundamentals to pursue the Ph.D. degree by taking and passing the Ph.D. qualifying examination.  The subject areas of this examination include those that are deemed necessary to pursue study at the advanced graduate level in preparation for performing research in one of the two specialty areas.  The exam is a two-part exam.  Part A of the exam covers math and physics topics, and Part B covers topics from the student’s specialty track.  Both parts of the qualifying examination test basic knowledge at the advanced undergraduate and beginning graduate level. After successfully passing the qualifying exam, each student is also required to pass a comprehensive examination.  This examination will test the student’s knowledge of the advanced level (Ph.D.) course work and his/her ability to integrate knowledge from courses to conduct independent research in the specialty track.  The student must deliver a research proposal and then make an oral presentation. The oral presentation is intended to evaluate the student’s plan and ability to carry out his/her proposed dissertation research.  Once the research work is completed, the completed dissertation will be delivered to the committee members and then it will be defended orally

Culminating Experience: The doctoral dissertation serves as the culminating experience in the Mechanical and Systems Engineering Ph.D. program. A dissertation must make an original contribution to the body of knowledge in the specific field selected by the student and his/her dissertation advisory committee. The dissertation typically defines the problem; proposes the methodology to address the problem; states the assumptions and limitations of the methodology; reports the results; and explains the significance and contribution of the findings.

Admission Requirements: The basic requirement for admission is a Master of Science degree in engineering or a related field, i.e., chemistry, physics, or applied mathematics, computer science, production/operations management. Applicants holding degrees in closely related fields or from non-accredited engineering institutions may be required to compensate for deficiencies with additional coursework. The Graduate Record Exam (GRE) general test (with a quantitative score of 158+) and Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL score of 80+) is required for applicants whose native language is not English. The minimum BS GPA requirement is 2.75, and the minimum MS GPA requirement is 3.3.  Three letters of recommendation are required from persons who can attest to the applicant’s academic and research aptitude. Admission to the program is restricted to those students whose educational plans fall within one of the two specialty areas. Up to 9 credit hours are accepted for students seeking dual degree.