Graduate Studies
In
Physics,
Astronomy, Engineering Physics
University of
Oklahoma
June 2005
Note: this version is the direct conversion to HTML by MS Word and may not always look like the printed version
University of Oklahoma
Department
of Physics and Astronomy
Faculty and Staff
Chairman: Ryan E. Doezema
FACULTY:
|
ASTRONOMY: |
|
Ed Baron |
|
David Branch |
|
John Cowan |
|
Richard Henry |
|
Karen Leighly |
|
William Romanishin |
|
Yun Wang |
PHYSICS:
|
Brad
Abbott |
Chung
Kao |
Mike
Santos |
|
Eric
Abraham |
Bruce
Mason |
Neil
Shafer-Ray |
|
Lloyd
Bumm |
Kimball
Milton |
James
Shaffer |
|
Ryan
Doezema |
Michael
Morrison |
Patrick
Skubic |
|
John
Furneaux |
Kieran
Mullen |
Michael
Strauss |
|
Phillip
Gutierrez |
Sheena
Murphy |
Deborah
Watson |
|
Matt
Johnson |
Greg
Parker |
|
|
Ron
Kantowski |
Stewart
Ryan |
|
ENGINEERING PHYSICS:
|
Associated
Physics Faculty: Brad Abbott Sheena Murphy Eric Abraham Stewart Ryan Lloyd Bumm Mike Santos -
Chair Ryan Doezema Neil Shafer-Ray John
Furneaux Jim
Shaffer Phillip
Gutierrez Patrick Skubic Matt Johnson Michael Strauss |
STAFF:
Assistant to
the Department Chair Danette
Loyd
Graduate &
Undergrad Programs Coor Debbie
Barnhill
Account &
Budget Representative II Marie
Brooks
Computer
Systems Manager Andy Feldt
Librarian Kathryn Caldwell
Lab Equipment
Supervisor Bill See
Instrument
Shop Joel Young, Supervisor
Bob Littell
Barry Bergeron
Electronics
Technician Adrienne Wade
Electrical
Engineer Rusty Boyd
Research
Equipment Specialist Tetsuya
Mishima
Sriram Sivasubramaniyan
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE
FACULTY AND STAFF 2
TABLE OF CONTENTS 4
PREFACE.... 6
WEBSITE AND E-MAIL ADDRESSES 7
I. APPLICATION AND ADMISSION....................... 8
A. All Applicants 8
B. Admission in Unclassified Status 9
C. Admission as a Special Student 9
D. International Applicants 10
II. GENERAL
INFORMATION FOR ALL GRADUATE STUDENTS 11
A. Advising 11
B. Graduate Credit 11
C. Grades and Grade Point Averages 11
D. Enrollment Limitations 11
E. Annual Review of Progress 12
F. Dismissal of Graduate Students 13
G. Transfer Credit 13
H. Departmental Colloquia 13
I. Teaching
Practicum 14
J. Introduction to Research/Teaching
Workshop 14
K. Job Postings and Career Services 14
III. MASTER'S DEGREE
PROGRAMS 16
A. MS in Physics 16
B. MS in Physics with Emphasis in
Astronomy 17
C. MS in Engineering Physics 17
D. Master's Thesis 18
E. Master of Natural Science Program 19
IV. DOCTORAL
PROGRAMS 20
A. Physics and Astronomy Course and
Hour Requirements 20
B. Physics Qualifying Exam 21
C. Special Oral Qualifier 23
D. Advisory Conference 24
E. Doctoral Committee 25
F. Annual Evaluation of Doctoral
Students 25
G. Specialist's Examination 26
H. Doctoral Dissertation 27
I. Final
Examination 29
J. Doctoral Degrees in Engineering
Physics 29
V. FINANCIAL
SUPPORT 30
A. Teaching and Research Assistantships 30
B. Financial Support Policy 32
C. Stipend Increases 34
D. Graduate College Fee Waiver Program 34
E. Student Health Plan 34
VI. NIELSEN HALL 36
A. Building and Lab Access, Study
Areas, Keys 36
B. Library Policy 36
C. General Safety Procedures 37
D. Student Shop 37
E. Computing 38
VII. APPENDICES 39
B - Quick
guide to steps in the PhD programs 43
C -
"Optimal Path" for Courses for the PhD 44
D -
Schedule of Advanced Topics Courses in Physics 45
E – English
Proficiency Exams 46
PREFACE
This “Red Book” has been designed by the Graduate Studies Committee to guide you through the various degree programs offered by the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Oklahoma.
This is
by no means a condensation of all University regulations. Refer to the table of contents for
guidance. To obtain a complete
listing of all current regulations for graduate students at the University,
contact the Graduate College, Robertson Hall 100, 325-3811.
Keep in
mind that the rules and guidelines herein are subject to the discretion of the
full faculty.
We have
tried to prepare this information in as palatable and clear a form as the
nature of the materials permits. If you
have any questions or suggestions, we would appreciate the input!
Kimball Milton, Graduate Liaison - Physics
GRADUATE STUDIES COMMITTEE:
Kimball Milton, Chair
GRADUATE RECRUITING
COMMITTEE:
Eric Abraham, Chair
Mike
Strauss Deborah Watson
WEBSITE AND E-MAIL ADDRESSES
Website http://www.nhn.ou.edu
The Department of Physics and Astronomy maintains an
up-to-date website featuring a departmental tour, information on departmental
research, the colloquium schedule, application materials for an NSF sponsored
summer undergraduate research program (REU), and a comprehensive look at the
graduate studies program.
A quick look at the site’s index reveals additional online
information such as course websites, copies of this handbook as well as the
undergraduate handbook, personnel, facilities, etc. We encourage you to visit our website anytime.
You may find a need to contact members of our Graduate Studies Committee and/or our Graduate Recruiting Committee. Individual e-mail addresses for committee members are listed below. In addition, you may wish to contact the Graduate Studies Secretary for general questions about our program.
Graduate Studies Committee:
Dr. Kimball Milton, Chair (High Energy Physics)
Dr. Eric Abraham (Atomic, Molecular & Chem Physics)
Dr. Phil Gutierrez (High Energy Physics)
Dr. Kieran Mullen (Solid State & Applied Physics)
Dr. James Shaffer (Atomic, Molecular & Chem Physics)
Dr.
Yun Wang (Astrophysics)
Graduate Recruiting Committee:
Dr. Eric Abraham, Chair (Atomic, Molecular & Chem
Physics)
Dr. Lloyd Bumm (Solid State Physics)
Dr. John Cowan (Astronomy)
Dr. Michael Strauss (High Energy Physics)
Debbie
Barnhill
I. APPLICATION AND ADMISSION
A. All Applicants:
When you apply for admission to the Graduate College of the University of Oklahoma and indicate on your application an interest in the study of Physics, Astronomy, Astrophysics, or Engineering Physics, your application materials are sent directly to our department for an initial review by the Physics and Astronomy Graduate Recruiting Committee. Atlernatively, you may apply directly to the Departmental Graduate Recruiting Committee. Admission to a graduate degree program in the Department of Physics and Astronomy is contingent on the approval of both this Committee and the Dean of the Graduate College.
Complete
application packets with instructions are available from the Graduate programs
coordinator. All applicants are
required to take both the general and the physics portions of the Graduate
Record Examination (GRE).
If you have
earned a bachelor's degree in physics or a related field at an accredited
college or university and have an overall grade point average of 3.0 or better
(4.0 scale) for the last 60 hours of undergraduate work, or a 3.0 for at least
12 hours of graduate-level coursework, the Graduate Recruiting Committee will
consider you for admission to the graduate program.
If your
overall grade point average is between 2.75 and 3.0, the Graduate Recruiting
Committee will closely review your application and recommendations. Once your application has been evaluated,
the Graduate Recruiting Committee may under exceptional circumstances recommend
for conditional admission to the Graduate College. For conditional admission, your application must be supported by a
recommendation from the Department, together with documentation of our reasons
predicting success in your graduate studies.
In addition to this documentation, the Department must state in writing
what we expect from a student during his or her first year of enrollment. Minimum requirements are a 3.0 average on
all work attempted and, except in very unusual circumstances, completion of all
work in which the student is enrolled.
The Graduate Dean will then consider – but not automatically approve –
the application. If a student is
admitted in a conditional status but does not meet the conditions set by the
department, he or she cannot enroll for a second year.
B. Admission in
Unclassified Status
Any student who has earned a bachelor’s degree or the equivalent and has earned at least a 3.00 average over the last 60 hours of letter-graded undergraduate coursework or a 3.00 average over 12 hours of letter-graded graduate work may be admitted to the Graduate College in a unclassified status. A student in this status is not a candidate for a degree, but may later apply to our graduate program. Since a graduate student can earn no more than 12 graduate credit hours in the unclassified status, those students who initially enroll, as “unclassified” need to complete a Change of Major form during their first year of enrollment. The Graduate Recruitment Committee sometimes recommends this classification to those students who may need to take refresher courses because they have been out of school for an extended period of time or to students who need supplemental courses prior to taking graduate level courses.
C. Admission as a
Special Student:
A student
who fails to meet the Graduate College admission requirements may be admitted
as a Special Student.
This category
applies to any person eligible for admission to the University (as an
undergraduate) who wishes to take courses but does not plan to pursue a degree,
or who has a bachelor's degree but cannot be admitted to the Graduate College (e.g., because of a low overall grade
point average or excessive undergraduate deficiencies).
Work
completed as a Special Student will not be counted toward a graduate
degree unless the student was eligible for admission to the Graduate College at
the time such work was taken, and then only if approved by the Department and
the Graduate Dean. However, if a
Special Student later decides to apply (or reapply) for admission to the
Graduate College, his or her record of performance as a Special Student (e.g.,
in 3000-4000 level courses) will be taken into consideration in the admission
decision.
D. International
Applicants:
Prospective international students for whom English is a second language must also submit TOEFL scores (University minimum 213/Department 250) in order to be considered for admission. Furthermore, international students for whom English is a second language, who serve as graduate teaching assistants, must demonstrate a certain level of proficiency in both oral and written English. Proficiency in oral English is demonstrated by first scoring 45 or higher on a SPEAK TEST administered by the OU English Assessment Program (EAP) or a TSE examination administered by the Educational Testing Service. Students who meet the scoring requirement are eligible to take a TEACH TEST to demonstrate their oral English skills. A satisfactory oral presentation before a panel of judges selected from the University community will qualify the student for classroom duty (“PI” rating = Pass to Instruct – teach courses, lab sections, or discussion sections). Passing the written examination at the Proficient level shows proficiency in written English. More information on the testing procedures, dates of exams, etc. is available from the EAP office in the Graduate College. See also Appendix E.
II. GENERAL INFORMATION FOR ALL GRADUATE
STUDENTS
A. Advising:
Initially,
you will be advised by a faculty mentor/advisor selected by the Graduate
Studies Committee. Once you have
determined an area of research you wish to pursue, you will select a member of
faculty in the related field as your advisor.
Later, if you are a PhD candidate, the chair of your Doctoral Committee
(i.e., your research director)
becomes your advisor. The Engineering
Physics Graduate Liaison or his designee advises students in the Engineering
Physics Program.
B. Graduate Credit:
You can
receive graduate credit only for courses listed with a "G" before the
course number in the current Graduate College catalog. Whether a particular course is acceptable
for credit toward the degree on which you are working is determined by the
Department and/or your advisory committee, and by the Dean of the Graduate
College. No 3000 level courses from the
Department of Physics and Astronomy will be accepted for degrees in Physics and
Astronomy, and no undergraduate core courses will be accepted for degrees in
Engineering Physics.
C. Grades and Grade
Point Averages:
You retain
your status as a graduate student as long as you fulfill the specific
requirements of the department and maintain a 3.0 grade point average on all graduate
coursework taken as well as on all course work attempted. All grades obtained in graduate level
courses, whether comprising a part of the degree program or not, will be used
in calculating the GPA. Exceptions are
grades of S, U, I, X, P, and NP, for which no grade points are awarded. Earning two or more hours of U will also
place you on probation.
D. Enrollment Limitations:
You must be
a full-time graduate student to be eligible for financial support from sources
under the control of the Department (or any faculty member in the
Department). Thus, if you are supported
by the Department [either as a TA or an RA] and have not yet passed your
Specialist’s Examination, you must enroll in a minimum of 9 hours per
Fall/Spring semester. Exceptions to this rule will be considered
if the cumulative average number of hours over the course of your career as a
graduate student does not fall below 18 per year (excluding summer
session). Students who have passed
the Specialist’s Examination, and are therefore advanced to PhD candidacy, may
enroll in six (6) credit hours per regular semester. It is no longer necessary to enroll in the summer if you are
holding an assistantship unless you are a PhD candidate (see below).
If you are
not supported by the Department, you normally will enroll in at least 4 hours
per Fall/Spring semester. However, for full-time status you must be enrolled in
9 hours per Fall/Spring semester and 4 hours per summer session.
Students who
are not supported by the Department and are enrolled in research hours only (MS
research 5980 and PhD research 6980) are required to maintain a continuous
enrollment with a minimum of 2 hours of research each fall and spring until the
thesis/dissertation defense is held.
Summer enrollment is not required unless the student plans to defend
during the summer semester.
No student
can enroll in more than 16 hours per semester (9 per summer). If you want to take more hours, you may
request additional hours from your advisor and the Graduate Dean. If you have a half-time (0.5 FTE) teaching
or research assistantship, you may not take more than 12 hours per semester (6
per summer).
E. Annual Review of
Progress:
The
Graduate Studies Committee will interview you during each spring semester to
ensure your steady progress toward graduation and to help you with any problems
that may have arisen since your previous interview. The committee will report their findings to you and the Graduate
Dean.
PhD
students who have had their Advisory Conference (see page 24) will be
interviewed by their Doctoral Committee, who will in turn report to the
Graduate Studies Committee (see page 25)
F. Dismissal of
Graduate Students:
Under some
circumstances the Department may dismiss a student from his or her graduate
program even though that student may have maintained a B average in his or her
coursework. Grounds for dismissal
include (but are not limited to): failure to adhere to ethical codes of
scholarship; failure to obtain a thesis/dissertation advisor; failure to
assemble a complete and appropriate Advisory Committee; failure to make timely
progress toward the degree; or failure to perform in coursework, Qualifying
Exam, or research at an acceptable level for students in the Department.
G. Transfer Credit:
If you have
transferred from another graduate school, you may transfer up to 25 percent of
the total number of hours required for the MS (8 hours), provided the Graduate
College accepts your previous coursework.
The number of transfer hours accepted from each doctoral candidate will
be individually determined at the Advisory Conference. The Advisory Committee will write a memo to
the Dean of the Graduate College, who has the final authority for approving
transfer credits. The maximum allowed
by the Graduate College is 44 hours.
H. Departmental Colloquia:
The
Department Colloquia are an important part of the education program, because
they provide both students and faculty with the opportunity for contact with
researchers in a variety of fields from other parts of the nation and the
world. This exposure is a necessary
part of the education process, and students
are expected to support the colloquium program and related activities with
their attendance.
I. Teaching
Practicum:
All PhD
students will be required to take an appointment as a Teaching Assistant with a
minimum of 2 contact hours per semester for two semesters. This appointment must involve contact with
students, through a discussion section, a laboratory section or teaching a
class in the summer; a grading assignment would not be acceptable. As a TA, the student will be required to
attend the University-sponsored TA instruction workshop, and like our other TA's
will receive feedback on his or her teaching methods by having his or her class
visited once a semester by the course instructor (see page 32). This practicum is independent of financial
support by the Department, either in the form of Graduate Assistantship,
Research Assistantship, or Fellowship.
(The Advisory Committee, with the concurrence of the Graduate Studies
Committee, can modify this requirement in exceptional circumstances.)
This
requirement ensures that our PhD graduates have experience in teaching, a
valuable skill whether the student pursues an academic or industrial career.
J. Introduction to Research/Teaching Workshop:
All
first-year graduate students to our program are required to participate in a
one credit hour course entitled "Introduction
to Research." This fall semester
workshop/seminar includes both exposure to the research being conducted in the
department, and a teaching workshop to improve the skills of new TAs.
K. Job Postings and Career Services
The most
current listings of academic (postdoc and faculty) positions exist on the web,
with various listings specific to sub disciplines in physics. These change rapidly, so consult your fellow
students and faculty for advice.
An active job referral network exists between graduates of
our program and current students.
The University provides an office of Career Services, housed
in the Oklahoma Memorial Union.
Students are encouraged to visit the office anytime during their
graduate studies. Counselors are
available for one-on-one career planning sessions. Other services include maintenance of credential files, resume
writing and interviewing workshops.
Potential employer files on hundreds of companies are available for
review as well as teaching opportunities at educational institutions across the
country.
III. MASTER'S DEGREE PROGRAMS
The
Department offers Master of Science degrees in Physics, Physics with Emphasis
in Astronomy, and Engineering Physics.
The thesis program requires that you take and pass at least 30 hours of
coursework and complete a thesis detailing results of a research
investigation. The non-thesis program
requires that you complete at least 32 hours of coursework and pass the PhD
Qualifying Examination. In both of
these cases, you must be enrolled as an MS student. A student enrolled in a PhD program may apply for and receive an
MS degree once he or she has passed the General Examination or the Qualifying
Examination and has the requisite number of course hours. Permission
to take the Comprehensive Examination (Qualifying Exam) must be obtained from
the Graduate College in advance.
Students should be sure to consult the Graduate College for general
Graduate College requirements. In
particular, you should note that a maximum of 12 credit hours of 3000
and 4000 level courses might be counted toward a Master's Degree. Details regarding the accumulation of hours
and required courses follow.
A. MS in Physics:
There are
two routes to the MS degree in Physics: the thesis option and the non-thesis
option. For the thesis program, you
must complete at least 18 hours of Physics and Astronomy courses numbered 4000
or above. These hours must include 2 to
4 hours of Physics 5980 (Research for Master's Thesis), but may not
include courses 4153 and 4300. You also
have to complete at least 12 hours of other graduate coursework, which may
include 4153 (Statistical Physics and Thermodynamics), and 4300 (two hours of
Senior Lab) or their equivalent.
There are
actually two ways to obtain a non-thesis Master's Degree. In both you must take 20 hours of physics
and astronomy courses numbered 4000 or above.
The first is to pass the written Qualifying Exam (see section IV. B. –
page 21). After you have completed your
MS coursework, but before you have passed the Qualifying Exam, you must apply
to the Graduate College for permission to take the Comprehensive Examination
for the MS degree. After the Admission
to Candidacy Form has been approved by the Graduate College, (note carefully
the deadlines established by the Graduate College see appendix A) the Graduate
Studies Chair (Graduate Liaison) must request through the Graduate College the
form entitled Authority Report Form of
the Comprehensive Examination/Thesis Defense. The Department will then certify that you have passed the
Comprehensive Exam once you have successfully completed the Qualifying Exam.
An alternati