Materials Science & Engineering

Thesis Plan. Nine courses (36 units) are required, of which six (24 units) must be graduate courses. These courses are to be selected from the following lists, although suitable substitutions can be made from other engineering disciplines or from chemistry and physics with the approval of the departmental graduate adviser. Two of the six graduate courses may be Materials Science and Engineering 598 (thesis research). The remaining three courses in the total course requirement may be upper division courses.

Capstone Plan (comprehensive exam or capstone project). Nine courses (36 units), six (24 units) of which must be MSE graduate courses, selected from the following lists with the same provisions listed under the thesis plan. Three of the nine courses may be upper division courses.

Ceramics and ceramic processing: Materials Science and Engineering 121, 122, 143A, 151, 161, 162, 200, 201, 210, C211, 246D, 298.

Electronic and optical materials: Materials Science and Engineering 121, 122, 143A, 151, 161, 162, 200, 201, 210, C211, 221, 222, 223, 298.

Structural materials: Materials Science and Engineering 121, 122, 143A, 151, 161, 162, 200, 201, 210, C211, 243A, 243C, 250B, 298.

As long as a majority of the courses taken are offered by the department, substitutions may be made with the consent of the departmental graduate adviser.

Undergraduate Courses. No lower division courses may be applied toward graduate degrees. In addition, the following upper division courses are not applicable toward graduate degrees: Chemical Engineering M102A, 199; Civil Engineering 106A, 108, 199; Computer Science M152A, M152B, M171L, 199; Electrical Engineering 100, 101, 102, 103, 110L, M116L, M171L, 199; Materials Science and Engineering 104, 110, 120, 130, 131, 131L, 132, 140, 141L, 150, 160, 161L, 199; Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering 102, 103, 105A, 105D, 199.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Capstone Plan

Option 1: Comprehensive Exam

The comprehensive examination is offered during each academic quarter in written format. The student must pass five of six questions offered separately from six of the MSE course subjects selected by the student. Students are required to submit a written request which includes the courses the student has taken and wishes to have as part of the exam. If the comprehensive examination is failed, the student may be reexamined once with the consent of the graduate adviser.

Option 2: Capstone Project

The Materials Science and Engineering M.S. capstone project provides an opportunity for students to culminate their M.S. studies by combining ideas from their prior course work with their own additional research. The project is expected to help students to polish their expertise in an area that is especially relevant to their career. A successful capstone project will combine academic knowledge, research, and professional skills into a coherent final product. The student will define a capstone project in under the guidance of an MSE faculty member (any rank) or MSE Faculty Emeritus (any rank) and demonstrate competency in project design and management skills, written presentation of complex ideas, and analytical and creative thinking.

A capstone project differs from an MS thesis as the capstone project does not requiring original research. Instead, the capstone should aim to demonstrate the ability to apply what was learned in the MS courses to a problem in materials science and engineering utilizing original analysis (qualitative, quantitative, or both) of a specific situation, to advance expert understanding of the topic.

The capstone project will be evaluated by three MSE department faculty members: (1) Student faculty adviser, (2) MSE Chair/or Vice –Chair of Graduate Studies, and (3) Another MSE faculty member chosen by the student. The capstone project document length is expected to range from thirty to forty pages, including text, figures, and references using the same style guidelines as required for an M.S. or Ph.D. research thesis. The project is expected to be completed in the quarter after M.S advancement to candidacy is approved.

Once the student’s adviser has provided some feedback on the project report, the student should furnish each member of the committee with a copy of the capstone project at least twenty calendar days prior to the due date. Sufficient time must be allowed for the student to interact with the committee members to incorporate changes, if necessary, before delivering the final version to the Department Student Affairs Office. If the capstone project is failed, the student may resubmit once with the consent of the graduate adviser.

The following guidelines are to be used for the capstone project report.

Thesis Plan

Every master's degree thesis plan requires the completion of an approved thesis that demonstrates the student's ability to perform original, independent research.

In addition to the course requirements, students are required to write a thesis on a research topic in material science and engineering supervised by the thesis adviser. An M.S. thesis committee reviews and approves the thesis. Master's committees consist of a minimum of three faculty members from UCLA - the faculty adviser as chair and two other faculty members. One of the three may be faculty from other UCLA departments. Members must hold one of the following academic ranks: Professor (any rank, regular series), Professor Emeritus, Adjunct Professor (any rank), Professor-in-Residence (any rank) or Acting Professor (any rank).

Time-to-Degree

The average length of time for students in the M.S. program is six academic quarters. The maximum time allowed for completing the M.S. degree is nine academic quarters from the time of admission to the M.S. program in the School.

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Advising

Each department in the Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science has a graduate adviser. A current list of graduate advisers can be obtained from the Office of the Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs, 6426 Boelter Hall, Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science.

Students are assigned a faculty adviser upon admission to the School. Advisers may be changed upon written request from the student. All HSSEAS faculty serve as advisers.

Provisionally admitted students meet with the program adviser upon matriculation to plan a course of study to remedy any deficiencies.

New students should arrange an appointment as early as possible with the faculty adviser to plan the proposed program of study toward the M.S. or Ph.D. degree. Continuing students are required to confer with the adviser or the student affairs officer during the time of enrollment each quarter so that progress can be assessed and the study list approved.

Based on the quarterly transcripts, student records are reviewed at the end of each quarter by the departmental graduate adviser and Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs. Special attention is given if students were admitted provisionally or are on probation. If their progress is unsatisfactory, students are informed of this in writing by the Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs.

Students are strongly urged to consult with the departmental student office staff and/or the Office of Academic and Student Affairs regarding procedures, requirements and on the implementation of the policies. In particular, advice should be sought on advancement to candidacy for the M.S. degree, on the procedures for taking Ph.D. written and oral examinations, and on the use of the filing fee.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Ceramics and ceramic processing; electronic and optical materials; structural materials.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

Students take courses to acquire the knowledge needed for the written and oral preliminary examinations. The basic program of study for the Ph.D. degree in Materials Science and Engineering is built around one major field and one minor field. The major field has a scope corresponding to a body of knowledge contained in six Materials Science graduate courses, plus the current literature in the area of specialization and three required directed individual study and research courses – MSE 597B, 597C and 599. The major fields named above are described in a Ph.D. major field syllabus, each of which can be obtained in the department office. The minor field normally embraces a body of knowledge equivalent to three courses, at least two of which have to be graduate courses and one of which can be an undergraduate course (upper division level), or a pre-existing M.S. degree. Grades of B- or better, with a grade-point average of at least 3.33 in all courses included in the minor field, are required. If the student fails to satisfy the minor field requirements through course work, a minor field examination may be taken (once only). The minor field is chosen to support the major field and is usually a subset of the major field.

For information on completing the Engineer degree, see Engineering Schoolwide Programs in Program Requirements for UCLA Graduate Degrees.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass university written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations, the University Oral Qualifying Examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to university requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

All committee nominations and reconstitutions adhere to the Minimum Standards for Doctoral Committee Constitution.

Oral Preliminary Examination

During the first four quarters of full-time enrollment the Ph.D. graduate program, students must take the Oral Preliminary Examination. This examination is based on topics in six areas: Diffusion & Phase Transformation; Electronic Properties; General Materials Science; Thermodynamics; Characterization; and Mechanical Properties which encompasses the body of knowledge in Materials Science at the level equivalent to that required for a B.S. degree. A student chooses five of the topics. Students must pass four out of the five subjects they choose to take for the examination. If the student does not pass the exam, the exam must be retaken within two academic quarters. If the student fails the exam for a second time, the student can no longer be enrolled in the Ph.D. program.

Oral Qualifying Examination

The University Oral Qualifying Examination is taken after passing the Preliminary Oral Examination, after enrollment in four quarters of academic registration, and after completion of the course requirements. The nature and content of the examination are at the discretion of the doctoral committee, but ordinarily include a broad inquiry into the student's preparation for research. Students must schedule the qualifying examination within the first seven academic quarters in the Ph.D. program.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy upon successful completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student's ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of Dissertation)

Required for all students in the program.

Time-to-Degree

The normative Time-to-Degree from admission to graduate status (includes M.S. degree) to award of the Ph.D. degree is fifteen academic quarters.

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Termination of Graduate Study and Appeal of Termination

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for termination of graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing termination of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

A recommendation for termination is reviewed by the school's Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs.

Master's

In addition to the standard reasons noted above, a student may be recommended for termination for

(1) Failure to maintain a grade point average of 3.0 in all courses and in those in the 200 series.

(2) Failure to maintain a grade point average of 3.0 in any two consecutive terms.

(3) Failure of the comprehensive examination.

(4) Failure to complete the thesis to the satisfaction of the committee members.

(5) Failure to maintain satisfactory progress toward the degree within the three-year time limit for completing all degree requirements.

Doctoral

In addition to the standard reasons noted above, a student may be recommended for termination for

(1) Failure to maintain a grade point average of 3.25 in all courses and in any two consecutive quarters.

(2) Failure of the major field written examination.

(3) Failure of the oral preliminary examination.

(4) Failure of a written minor field examination after failure to attain a grade point average of 3.33 in the minor field course work.

(5) Failure of the oral qualifying examination.

(6) Failure of the final oral examination (defense of the dissertation).

(7) Failure to obtain permission to repeat an examination from an examining committee.

(8) Failure to maintain satisfactory progress toward the degree within the specified time limits.

UCLA is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges and by numerous special agencies. Information regarding the University's accreditation may be obtained from the Office of Academic Planning and Budget, 2107 Murphy Hall.