PhD Degree Requirements
Degree Requirements
The Ph.D. program in Robotics Engineering strives to educate men and women to:
- Have an advanced understanding of the Computer Science, Electrical and Computer Engineering, Mathematics, and Mechanical Engineering underlying robotic systems.
- Apply tools and concepts from Management and Systems Engineering to realize robotics systems and exercise professional leadership.
- Make significant research contributions in selected areas of robotics.
Admission Requirements
Students will be eligible for admission to the program if they have earned an undergraduate or graduate degree in Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Robotics Engineering, or a related field from an accredited university. Applicants must supply a Statement of Purpose, three Letters of Recommendation, and Graduate Record Examination scores. The GRE requirement may be waived for WPI students and alumni, or at the discretion of the Robotics Engineering Graduate Program Committee when supplied with additional supporting materials such as published papers or a record of work experience. Admission decisions will be made by the Robotics Engineering Graduate Program Committee based on all of the information presented in the application.
Degree Requirements
The Ph.D. program in Robotics Engineering requires 60 credit hours of work beyond the M.S. degree or 90 credit hours beyond the B.S degree. Coursework must include 3 credit hours of Management courses and 3 credit hours of Systems Engineering courses. This requirement may be satisfied as part of the M.S. in Robotics Engineering or other M.S. program. All entering students must submit a plan of study identifying the courses to be taken and a prospective research area before the end of the first semester in the program. The plan of study must be approved by the student’s advisor and the RBE Graduate Program Committee, and must include the following minimum requirements.
For students proceeding from Master’s to Ph.D. degree, the 60 credits should be distributed as follows:
- Coursework, including Special Topics and Independent Study (12 credits). If not already included in the M.S. degree, the credits must include:
- Management: 3 credit hours at the 500 level or above.
- Systems Engineering: 3 credit hours selected from courses prefixed by SYS at the 500 level or above. - RBE 699 Dissertation Research (30 credits).
- Other. Additional coursework, Independent Study, RBE 598 Directed Research or RBE 699 Dissertation Research (18 credits).
For students proceeding from Bachelor’s to Ph.D. degree, the 90 credits should be distributed as follows:
- RBE M.S. Degree Requirements (36 credits).
- Coursework, including Special Topics and Independent Study (12 credits).
- RBE 699 Dissertation Research (30 credits).
- Other. Additional coursework, Independent Study, RBE 598 Directed Research or RBE 699 Dissertation Research (12 credits).
Professional Development Requirement
A doctoral candidate must demonstrate professional development by participating in an activity requiring responsibility and leadership. Sample activities include: corporate internship, visiting position at an external research laboratory, coadvising a WPI Junior or Senior project (IQP or MQP). The activity must be pre- and post-approved by the Graduate Committee.
Summary of Credit Requirements
| Enter with M.S. | Enter with B.S. | |
|---|---|---|
| M.S. Degree Requirements | – | 36 |
| Coursework | 12 | 12 |
| Additional Courses/Research | 18 | 12 |
| Dissertation | 30 | 30 |
| Total | 60 | 90 |
Diagnostic Examination
Doctoral students must complete the Diagnostic Examination requirement by the end of their second year of Ph.D. study. The Diagnostic Examination, which evaluates each student’s level of academic preparation and identifies any shortcomings in the student’s background, consists of two parts: a Written Examination and Directed Research.
Written Examination
The Written Examination part of the Diagnostic Examination consists of the following elements:
- A basic skills examination which covers
- Engineering mathematics, and
- Principles of Computer Science, Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering at the advanced undergraduate level. - Advanced skills examinations in two areas selected from Computer Science, Electrical and Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, and Systems Engineering at the graduate level.
All students must take the basic skills examination. The areas of the advanced skills examination are selected with the approval of the Research Advisor. The Written Examination is administered and evaluated by the Graduate Committee.
The student may pass, fail, or be required to do additional work. This result is determined by the Graduate Committee in consultation with the Research Advisor. A grade of Pass concludes the Written Examination. A grade of Fail results in dismissal from the Ph.D. program. A grade of Conditional Pass requires the student to complete any remedial work identified by the Graduate Committee and the Research Advisor before re-evaluation. Remedial work may include retaking identified sections of the Written Examination.
Directed Research
The Directed Research part of the Diagnostic Examination tests the student’s ability to conduct research. The student must register for one semester comprising at least three credits of Directed Research (RBE 598) with the Research Advisor.
Before the Directed Research begins, the student must notify the Graduate Committee that it is part of the Diagnostic Examination and identify the general area of the work. The Graduate Committee will then approve a Co-advisor for the Directed Research. At the end of the Directed Research semester, the student will submit a written report and deliver a presentation about the research. The Research Advisor and Co-advisor will evaluate the work to determine if the student has shown sufficient research potential to become a Ph.D. Candidate.
The student may pass, fail, or be required to do additional work. This result is determined by the Advisors. A grade of Pass concludes the Directed Research. A grade of Fail results in dismissal from the Ph.D. program. A grade of Conditional Pass requires the student to complete any remedial work before re-evaluation. The result is independent of the actual project grade.
Upon successful completion of the Written Examination and Directed Research parts of the Diagnostic Examination, the student becomes a “Ph.D. Candidate”.
Dissertation
Dissertation Committee
Within one semester after the successful completion of the Diagnostic Examination, the student, in consultation with the Research Advisor, assembles a Dissertation Committee. The committee consists of the Research Advisor and three additional members, at least one of whom must be from outside the WPI RBE Program. The Dissertation Committee is responsible for approving the Dissertation Proposal and the Dissertation.
Dissertation Proposal
The Dissertation Proposal describes the student’s proposed research. The Dissertation Proposal should be sufficiently detailed to convince the Dissertation Committee of the student’s understanding of the problem domain along with the significance of the proposed work.
The Dissertation Proposal must be defended in a public presentation, immediately followed by private questioning from the Dissertation Committee. The Dissertation Committee then determines the outcome of the Proposal Defense. It may accept the proposal, reject the proposal and recommend pursuit of a different topic, or require the student do additional work before reconsidering the proposal. The time frame for the student to do additional work on the Dissertation Proposal is determined by the Dissertation Committee.
Dissertation
All Ph.D. students must complete and orally defend a Dissertation prepared under the supervision of the Research Advisor. The research described in the Dissertation must be original and constitute a contribution to knowledge in the major field of the candidate. The Dissertation must be defended in a public presentation, immediately followed by private questioning from the Dissertation Committee. The Dissertation Committee then determines the outcome of the Dissertation Defense, certifying the quality and originality of the research, and the satisfactory execution of the Dissertation. It may accept the Dissertation with or without revisions, reject the Dissertation, or require the student do additional work before reconsidering the Dissertation. The time frame for the student to complete additional work is determined by the Dissertation Committee.
Admission
Students will be eligible for admission to the program if they have earned an undergraduate or graduate degree in Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Robotics Engineering, or a related field from an accredited university. Applicants must supply a Statement of Purpose, three Letters of Recommendation, and Graduate Record Examination scores. The GRE requirement may be waived for WPI students and alumni, or at the discretion of the Robotics Engineering Graduate Program Committee when supplied with additional supporting materials such as published papers or a record of work experience. Admission decisions will be made by the Robotics Engineering Graduate Program Committee based on all of the information presented in the application.
Faculty
This is a joint program administered by the Computer Science, Electrical & Computer Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering departments, comprising faculty members who are interested in robotics graduate education and research and who hold advanced degrees. The Robotics Engineering undergraduate and graduate programs share the Director and Associate Directors.
