Earth & Environmental Sciences

PhD in Environmental and Earth Science

Objectives

The PhD in Environmental and Earth Sciences is designed to provide graduate students an integrated, multidisciplinary education, nurtured through a carefully tailored degree program requiring a breadth of understanding and mastery of a spectrum of scientific and engineering principles. Among the goals is to provide students who have earned engineering or science undergraduate degrees a common ground for interdisciplinary communication, an understanding of the environment, and competence in a discipline that will enable them to evaluate and solve complex environmental problems.

Admissions

There are 3 categories of admission:

Unconditional - all the admission criteria are met and there are no conditions placed on continued enrollment in the program.

Probationary - Applicants that do not meet the standards for unconditional admission may be considered for probationary admission after careful examination of their application materials. Probationary admission normally requires that the applicant receive a B or better in their first 12 hours of graduate coursework at UTA.

Deferred and Provisional Admission

A deferred admission may be granted when an application is incomplete or when a denied decision is not appropriate. An applicant unable to supply all required documentation prior to the admission deadline but who otherwise appears to meet admission requirements may be granted provisional admission.

International students must have a minimum score of 550 on the TOEFL exam.

Degree Requirements

For unconditional admission a student must meet the following requirements:

1. A Masters Degree or at least 30 hours of graduate coursework in environmental science, biology, chemistry, geology, mathematics or engineering.
2. A minimum graduate coursework GPA of 3.00 on a 4.0 scale, as calculated by the Graduate School.
3. Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores are considered in admission decisions. Doctoral students who have succeeded in the Environmental and Earth Sciences Program typically score higher than 600 on the quantitative portion of the GRE.
4. For applicants whose native language is not English, a minimum score of 550 on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (or an equivalent score on a computer-based test) or a score of 40 on the Test of Spoken English.
5. Favorable letters of recommendation from people familiar with the applicant's academic work and/or professional work.
6. Students may be considered for unconditional admission if further review of their transcripts, recommendation letters, correspondence or direct interactions with Environmental and Earth Sciences faculty, and statement of research interests indicates that they are qualified to enter the Doctoral Program.

Degree Requirements

The Doctoral Program provides students with the interdisciplinary knowledge and skills to conduct independent research in Environmental and Earth Sciences. Students conduct dissertation research under the supervision of a faculty member in one of the participating departments (Biology, Chemistry, Geology, Civil and Environmental Engineering, or Urban and Public Affairs). The supervising professor and a faculty committee assign courses in this primary area of emphasis to support the student's research and professional goals. To provide interdisciplinary training, additional courses are assigned in a secondary area of emphasis.

Students enter the Doctoral Program with a Master's degree in a science or engineering field, or with 30 semester hours of graduate coursework. In the first year of residence, a Diagnostic Examination is conducted to evaluate this previous work. If they have not already done so in their previous work, all Doctoral students must take two engineering courses; two or three science courses (two if their prior training is in science, three if in engineering or another non-science field); and one course in policy or planning. The student's supervising committee must approve all courses taken to meet these requirements.

Students may choose among any of the five participating units for their primary and secondary areas of emphasis. Course selection within these areas of emphasis must result in a cohesive program that supports the dissertation research.

Other requirements include:

1. Successful completion of the Diagnostic Examination at the end of the first year of residence.
2. Successful completion of the Comprehensive Examination, an oral defense of a research proposal to be pursued for the dissertation, and a specialization examination over areas of the student's proposed research.
3. Demonstration of proficiency in one foreign language or a research tool such as advanced computer skills, statistics, or operations research.
4. Successful defense of the dissertation and acceptance of the dissertation by the supervising committee.