Physics PhD degree handbook

Revised Fall 2023

Welcome

to the Graduate Program of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at:

The University of Texas at San Antonio

The Department of Physics and Astronomy of the University of Texas at San Antonio provides opportunities for

advanced studies and world-class research leading to the Doctor of Philosophy degree in Physics.

The PhD degree in Physics is awarded, by the University of Texas at San Antonio, to candidates who have 1)

displayed an in-depth understanding of the subject matter and 2) demonstrated the ability to make a significant

independent and original contribution to research in their field of specialty. This document describes the Policies

and Procedures for the PhD in Physics.

We hope that it provides you with helpful information. Much of the information included here can be found in the

Graduate Catalog or the Physics & Astronomy website.

Please be sure to check with the Graduate Advisor regarding information about program-specific policies and

procedures.

We hope that you have a rewarding experience and wish you success! Please keep handing the Physics and

Astronomy Department website often. There you will find useful information, such as, forms, guidelines, contacts

you will need throughout your academic career with our department at UTSA.

On Behalf of the Faculty and Staff of Department of Physics and Astronomy

Revised Fall 2023

Table of Content

Topic

Page

GRADUATE FACULTY IN THE PHYSICS PHD PROGRAM

ORGANIZATION & ADMINISTRATION OF DOCTORAL PROGRAM

PHYSICS DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

Registration

Course Requirements

PROGRAM OF STUDY

SEMINAR AND NON-CREDIT REQUIREMENTS

Purpose

Seminar Requirements

Non-Credit Requirements

SUGGESTED COURSE SEQUENCE FOR THE PHD PROGRAM

Independent Study

Transfer of Credits

99-HOUR CREDIT LIMITATION

SELECTING A DISSERTATION ADVISOR

ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENT

Leave of Absence

Enrollment

SEMI-ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT

QUALIFYING EXAMINATION

Comprehensive Requirement

Oral Qualifying Exam

MASTER’S DEGREE OPTION

Unsuccessful Defense of QE

Interim Master’s Degree

ADVANCEMENT TO PHD CANDIDACY

Dissertation Committee

Dissertation Proposal

FINAL ORAL EXAMINATION (DISSERTATION DEFENSE)

GRADUATION

PROGRESS TOWARD THE DEGREE

RECOMMENDED SEQUENCE OF EVENTS FOR COMPLETION OF PHD

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE INFORMATION

Graduate Assistantships

Teaching Assistantships

GENERAL ACADEMIC REGULATIONS

Grade Point Average

Academic Probation and Dismissal

GRIEVANCE PROCESS

Revised Fall 2023

GRADUATE FACULTY IN THE PHYSICS PHD PROGRAM

The Core Faculty members of the Physics PhD program are divided into two campuses:

The Department of Physics & Astronomy at the University of Texas at San Antonio

Arturo Ayon, PhD

Lorenzo Brancaleon, PhD

Andrey Chabanov, PhD

Chonglin Chen, PhD

Liao Y. Chen, PhD

Nicolas Large, PhD

Xochitl Lopez-Lozano, PhD

Marcelo Marucho, PhD

Kathryn Mayer, PhD

Jose Morales, PhD

Kelly Nash, PhD

Christopher Packham, PhD

Arturo Ponce Pedraza, PhD

Abelardo Ramirez, PhD

Eric Schlegel, PhD

David Silva, PhD

Elizabeth Sooby-Wood, PhD

Angela Speck, PhD

Xinting Yu, PhD

Xuan Zhou, PhD

Southwest Research Institute, Division of Space Science and Engineering

Maher AlDayeh, PhD

Frederic Allegrini, PhD

Mihir Desai, PhD

Robert Ebert, PhD

Heather Elliot, PhD

Stephen Fuselier, PhD

George Gladstone, PhD

Jerry Goldstein, PhD

Jörg-Micha Jahn, PhD

Stefano Livi, PhD

Keiichi Ogasawara, PhD

Ujjwal Raut, PhD

Kurt Retherford, PhD

Peter Roming, PhD

Benjamin Teolis, PhD

Affiliated Research Faculty

Necip Guven, PhD (Texas Tech)

Larry Tankersley, PhD

Revised Fall 2023

I. ORGANIZATION & ADMINISTRATION OF DOCTORAL PROGRAM

The Physics doctoral program is administered through the Graduate Studies Committee (GSC). The GSC is comprised of

five core faculty members. The GSC elects its own chairperson, who is then appointed by the Department Chair to be

the Graduate Advisor of Record (GAR) for the Physics PhD program. The GSC reviews and recommends the academic

policies and the degree requirements to the Graduate faculty. The GSC also recommends and approves students for

candidacy for the PhD.

The Graduate Advisor of Record (GAR) for the Physics PhD program advises all doctoral students, supervises the

maintenance of records, and represents the Physics and Astronomy Department as well as the Space Science and

Engineering Division at SwRI in most matters relating to Physics doctoral students. Questions about degree

requirements and academic policies should be directed to the Graduate Advisor of Record. Final authority for the

Physics PhD program rests with the Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.

II. PHYSICS DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

A. REGISTRATION

Rules recommended by the GSC and approved by the core faculty, the Department Chair, the Graduate Council and the

Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs govern the registration of the doctoral students. Students

departmental approval. Students should register no later than two weeks prior to the beginning of the semester in order

to allow enough time to process the requests for those courses that require Departmental approval. The student should

discuss selection of lecture courses with the graduate advisor or his/her Dissertation Advisor, once this faculty member

is selected. First year students are strongly encouraged to register for two of the core classes in the Fall semester and

the remaining two core classes in the Spring semester.

The Graduate Advisor of Record and the Dissertation Advisor (once appointed) must approve the Program of Study

(POS). Students are therefore encouraged to review the POS with their advisor and their dissertation committee

periodically.

B. COURSE REQUIREMENTS

The doctoral degree requires a minimum of 81 semester credit hours beyond the Baccalaureate Degree. The

coursework in the Program of Study includes a Core Curriculum (12 hours) and advanced electives (21 hours) which

could include a total of 6 credits (2 graduate courses) taken in another program (e.g., chemistry, electrical engineering,

etc.) upon approval of the DSC and/or the Dissertation Advisor. Research hours include Research Seminar (3 hours),

Directed Research* (minimum of 6 hours), Doctoral Research* (minimum 27 hours) and Doctoral Dissertation (12

hours), and together total a minimum of 48 research credit hours. They complete the Program of Study as well as one of

the requirements to graduate. The choice of classes beyond the 12 hours of Core courses must be coordinated with the

dissertation advisor or the GAR.

* Doctoral Research requires approval of the Chair of the GSC (or GAR) prior to advancement to candidacy.

Revised Fall 2023

III. PROGRAM OF STUDY (POS)

A. Core Curriculum (12 credit hours)

PHY 5103 Classical Mechanics I

PHY 5203 Electrodynamics I

PHY 5303 Statistical Mechanics

PHY 5403 Quantum Mechanics I

B. Advanced Physics electives (21 credit hours from the following)

PHY 6103 Classical Mechanics II

PHY 6113 Fluid Mechanics

PHY 6123 Plasma Physics and Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD)

PHY 6133 Scientific Writing

PHY 6203 Electrodynamics II

PHY 6303 Quantum Mechanics II

PHY 6313 Solid State Physics

PHY 6323 Nonlinear Optics and Lasers

PHY 6403 Fundamentals of Space Physics

PHY 6413 Fundamentals of Astronomy

PHY 6503 Mathematical Physics I

PHY 6513 Mathematical Physics II

PHY 6523 Computational Physics

PHY 6613 Methods of Experimental Physics

PHY 6623 Space Physics Laboratory

Topics courses may be repeated for credit as the topics vary. The student should consult her/his Graduate Advisor if

in doubt.

PHY 7403 Topics in Biophysics and Biomedical Physics

PHY 7503 Topics in Experimental Physics

PHY 7603 Topics in Condensed Matter Physics

PHY 7703 Topics in Space Physics

PHY 7803 Topics in Theoretical Physics

PHY 7903 Topics in Astrophysics

PHY 7973 Special Topics in Physics

PHY 7983 Current Topics in Physics

C. DOCTORAL RESEARCH (minimum 48 credit hours from among the following)

PHY 7001-3 Directed Research (minimum 6 hours; prior to passing qualifying exam)

PHY 7013 Research Seminar (3 hours)

PHY 7101-3 Doctoral Research (minimum 27 hours)

PHY 7111-3 Dissertation (12 hours)

The final Program of Study must be approved by the student’s Dissertation Committee, Dissertation Advisor, Graduate

Studies Committee, and submitted via the Department Chair to the Dean of the Graduate School. Students should

periodically (at least twice a year) review the POS with their advisor and, once it is formed, with their dissertation

committee.

Revised Fall 2023

The satisfactory progress of each student is followed by the advisor and the qualifying exam (QE) committee, but also by

the Chair of the Graduate Studies Committee (GSC) through regular audits that are requested by the semi-annual

progress reports submitted by the student. If a student fails to make good progress, the student’s advisor as well as the

student will be required to meet with the chair of the GSC and/or the Chair of the Department.

IV. SEMINAR AND NON-CREDIT REQUIREMENTS

A. PURPOSE

In order to promote general awareness of research activities and to share ideas between members of the Physics

program, all students and faculty are expected to regularly attend Physics graduate program functions. Since the level

of students’ PhD activity is mostly based on their research proficiency, all students are expected to attend as many

seminars as possible beyond the required Research Seminar class that is taken for credits.

B. SEMINAR REQUIREMENTS

The Research Seminar course (PHY 7013) is a 3-hour course and the credit hours are earned in the semester when the

student officially enrolls for the class. However, to receive full credit a student must attend at least three semesters of

PHY 7013. For example, a student could sign up in semester one, but is required to attend the seminars for at least two

consecutive semesters after that. Failure to do so will result in an “incomplete” grade or an “F” grade which would

prevent graduation of the student or cause dismissal from the program, respectively.

C. NON-CREDIT REQUIREMENTS

The following is a summary of requirements that must be completed to obtain the PhD degree in Physics.

1. Continued attendance at Physics (Graduate) Research Seminar.

2. Meet the Comprehensive Exam requirements to advance to the Oral Qualifying Exam.

3. Selection of Advisor and formation of Qualifying Exam/Dissertation committee by the end of year 1.

4. Advance to candidacy (i.e., pass the oral qualifying exam) by the summer of the second year.

5. Completion of Semi-Annual Progress Reports after passing the oral QE.

6. Completion of written dissertation.

7. Oral defense of dissertation.

V. SUGGESTED COURSE SEQUENCE FOR THE PHD PROGRAM ***Important***

YEAR

TERM

PROGRAM OF STUDY

Fall

2 Core Courses (Electrodynamics And Classical Mechanics) + Research Seminar (9 hours)

Spring

2 Core Courses (Quantum Mechanics I and Statistical Mechanics) + 1 Advanced Elective (9

hours) and attendance of Research Seminars

Summer

Directed Research (3 hours)

Complete the comprehensive requirement

Fall

2 Advanced Electives + 1 Directed Research (9 hours) and attendance of Research Seminars

Identification of Supervising Professor, Research topic and Qualifying committee.

Spring

2 Advanced Electives + 1 Doctoral Research (9 hours)

Summer

Doctoral Research (3 hours)

Passing Oral Qualifying Exam and advance to candidacy.

Fall

2 Advanced Electives + 1 Doctoral Research (9 hours)

Spring

3 Doctoral Research (9 hours)

Summer

1 Doctoral Research (3 hours)

Fall

2 Doctoral Research + 1 Doctoral Dissertation (9 hours)

Spring

3 Doctoral Dissertation (9 hours)

Dissertation completed & successfully defended by the end of summer of 4

year

Revised Fall 2023

A. INDEPENDENT STUDY

Up to six hours of independent study are allowed and can be used in place of Advanced Elective courses. However, the

recommendation is to limit the number of coursework taken as independent study to a minimum.

B. TRANSFER OF CREDITS

Students matriculating with a Master’s degree or transferring from another PhD program in Physics may request up to

30 credit hours to be transferred to the UTSA program. The request will be considered by the GSC which will

recommend how many credit hours are approved for transfer. The application process requires the Transfer of Credit

form as well as the syllabus of the courses for which the student requests transfer. The GSC will recommend

approval/denial based on the material of the course compared to the material of the equivalent course at UTSA. If

approved, the credit transfer request will be forwarded to the Graduate School for final approval. Note that the

Graduate School has an independent evaluation process and may deny transfer even if the GSC has approved.

• Credit transfer (including grade) for the four core classes is allowed only from schools where a PhD program in

Physics is in place. Students who transfer from schools that do not have a PhD program in Physics are required

to either re-take the core classes or pass a placement exam for that class.

• Research credit hours (including seminars, directed or doctoral research) cannot be transferred. The following

classes that have been used for Master’s Degree credit cannot be applied toward the PhD: Directed Research

and Independent Study.

Conditions for transfer of credit:

1. Students must complete the form “Transfer of Graduate Credit towards Doctoral Degree”

2. The courses must have been completed with a “B” or better.

3. Coursework must be from an accredited university and have not been used in another degree program at UTSA.

4. An official transcript from the institution where the coursework was completed must be submitted.

5. All coursework must have been completed no more than eight years before the degree was awarded. *

6. Coursework is subject to approval of the appropriate Graduate Studies Committee and academic College in

which the program is administered.

7. Courses must be defined as graduate-level work at the institution where the credit was earned.

* If courses exceed the eight years limitation a separate Time Limitation Petition Form. This form is reviewed by the

GSC that decide whether to approve or not the petition based on the material covered in the expired course.

Exceptions may be approved upon recommendation of the Graduate Advisor of Record and with the approval of the

Graduate Studies Committee, the Department Chair, and the Dean of the Graduate School.

VI. 99-HOUR CREDIT LIMITATION

The 75

Texas Legislature placed a 99-hour limit on the number of doctoral semester credit hours a student can obtain

while receiving/eligible for funding support. The 99 credit hours are counted after the first 30 credit hours in the

program (considered Master-level credit hours).

VII. SELECTING A DISSERTATION ADVISOR

This is the most important decision taken by any students in the program. During the first semester of residence,

students have the opportunity to attend an introductory orientation to learn about research opportunities in individual

faculty groups. In addition, students are urged to meet with individual faculty to discuss research interests as early as

the first semester. By the end of the first summer in the program or at the very latest by December of the second year,

every student should have identified a faculty member who is willing to advise the student and to supervise research for

the dissertation. In order to make appropriate progress toward completion of the PhD, it is important that the student

initiates dissertation research as soon as possible, no later than the middle of the second year.

Revised Fall 2023

A student must submit to the Graduate Advisor of Record the P1 form selecting a Dissertation Advisor with the signed

consent of that faculty member. All students are expected to have selected the advisor and formed the QE committee

before the end of the first year. If extenuating circumstances have prevented a student from arranging a Dissertation

Advisor by that time, the student can petition the GSC for up to a maximum of one semester additional time.

A student who is not awarded additional time, or who has not been approved for a Dissertation Advisor following

completion of the additional time will not be allowed to continue in the PhD program. The student may then petition

the Department Chair for approval to transfer to the master program. See Master’s Degree Option.

VIII. ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENT

Students must attend classes and fulfill research credit hours. If a student cannot attend classes or fulfill research

commitments and does not notify the Chair of the GSC, then his/her stipend may be suspended, and procedures will

begin to ascertain whether or not the student should be dismissed from the Doctoral Program.

A. LEAVE OF ABSENCE:

Continuous full-time registration as a doctoral student is required unless a formal Leave of Absence is granted by the

Dean of the college in which the student’s program is administered. A leave of absence, not to exceed one year, may be

granted for military duty or medical reasons. It may be granted for other reasons upon additional approval by the Vice

Provost and Dean of the Graduate School. No degree examinations may be taken while a student is on a leave of

absence. If the student has not yet advanced to candidacy for the doctoral degree, this request must be approved in

advance of the leave by the graduate advisor. If the student has advanced to candidacy, the application must be

approved in advance by the graduate advisor and the graduate associate dean of the college and dean of the graduate

school. A leave of absence is required for Fall and Spring semesters (and/or Summer if doctoral program mandates

Summer enrollment). A Leave of Absence Request should be submitted no later than or during the semester prior to the

requested leave. Under no circumstances may a leave of absence be applied retroactively.

A leave of absence will prevent the student from receiving student funding from his/her program and may affect

ability to receive financial aid or loans and/or to defer payments on loans. Students should contact the Office of

Financial Aid with questions regarding financial aid or loan status.

A student returning from a leave of absence must enroll for the following Fall or Spring semester or provide a written

request for an extension of the leave of absence (a leave of absence may not exceed one year throughout the student’s

degree program). A student without an approved leave of absence who fails to register each semester will be considered

to have withdrawn from candidacy for the degree. Approval of a Petition for Reinstatement will be required for

reinstatement. For more information, visit the graduate school’s Petition for Reinstatement.

B. ENROLLMENT:

Students who receive support as Teaching Assistants or through most other forms of grants and support MUST be

enrolled full-time. To fulfill this requirement a student must be enrolled for a minimum of 9 credit hours in each long

semester and a minimum of 3 credit hours in the summer semester.

International students must be enrolled full-time throughout the course of study in order to maintain eligibility for their

student visa status.

Students have a one-time option to petition to remain full time students at a reduced course load. This can be applied

only once and for only one semester.

IX. SEMI-ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT

In order to assess student progress toward the Physics degree, a semi-annual written progress report will be submitted

to the GSC by the student and the Dissertation Advisor. It is suggested that this report be submitted each Fall and Spring

semesters will be reviewed by the GSC.

Revised Fall 2023

The major requirement of the semi-annual progress report includes the student meeting with their committee members

to provide information

• Date of the meeting

• Year and Semester of Admissions

• Advisor’s Name

• Date of last meeting

• Expected date of graduation

• Research Accomplishments since last meeting

• Plans for upcoming semester

• Attach a Program of Study

Each committee member must sign the form and the research advisor provides overall feedback on the student’s

progress.

X. QUALIFYING EXAMINATION

The purpose of the Qualifying Examination (QE) is to determine if the PhD student has acquired the knowledge expected

of a doctoral candidate in the area of physics and test the soundness of the research approach and skills. The QE has two

parts: a comprehensive requirement and an oral qualifying exam. Satisfying the comprehensive requirement is a pre-

requisite to advance to the oral QE. Both parts need to be fulfilled in order to advance to candidacy.

A. COMPREHENSIVE REQUIREMENT.

• A student must obtain a minimum of 4 “B” grades in the four core classes (Classical Mechanics I, Statistical

Mechanics, Electrodynamics, Quantum Mechanics I).

o If after the first year a student fails to meet this requirement, he/she will be required to pass a written

exam of the core course where a “B” or better was not obtained.

• For students who are required to take the written exam, it will be administered in four parts (one for each core

class) at the beginning of August of each year.

• In case a student fails the written exam, he/she can re-enroll in the core class(es) for a chance of getting the

grade(s) needed to fulfill the 4 ”B” requirement AND (in case they fail) take the written exam once more. THE CORE

CLASSES CANNOT BE RE-TAKEN FOR CREDIT.

• A student cannot repeat each attempt more than once. If a student fails to achieve the 4 “B” grades or pass the

equivalent requirement for the written exam (Scenario # 1), he/she will not advance to candidacy and will be given

the option to obtain a terminal MS degree.

• For students entering the program with a MS degree in Physics from another University or having taken the four

required graduate core classes at other institutions, the requirement to take or not a written QE will be taken on a

case by case basis by the admission committee.

• For students entering the program with a MS degree in Physics from the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley the

4 “B” rule will apply considering the equivalent core classes they have taken at UTRGV. The Physics program at

UTRGV has already aligned its syllabi in graduate Classical Mechanics, Statistical Mechanics, Quantum Mechanics

and Electrodynamics to the ones used at UTSA.

B. ORAL QUALIFYING EXAM.

Once a student has successfully completed the comprehensive requirement, he/she will advance to the oral qualifying

exam. A student will schedule the oral QE after having selected a Dissertation Advisor and assembled a Qualifying Exam

Committee (QEC). The QEC must be composed of 5 members. The chair of the committee should be a faculty member

other than the research advisor. At least 3 members must be core faculty of the Doctoral Physics program at UTSA. At

least one member must be external to the university. This external member must hold a doctorate degree and must

Revised Fall 2023

hold a position at an academic institution or in industry. The fifth committee member can either be a core faculty

member, from another department at UTSA or SwRI, or a second outside member. Approval of former UTSA

faculty/adjunct faculty who are now affiliated with another institution must be reviewed and approved by the GSC for

potential conflicts of interest prior to approval. Students must complete their QE by the end of their 3

year.

For students whose dissertation advisor is an adjoint faculty at SwRI, the dissertation committee MUST include at least

one non-adjoint UTSA graduate faculty member of the Physics Department. The student should complete, acquire

signatures from all QEC members and submit the QEC form as soon as the QEC is assembled (Form P2).

The oral QE should be scheduled within 12 months of the successful completion of the comprehensive requirement.

The oral QE will consist of the presentation of the student research plan and will test his/her depth of knowledge of

his/her research field as well as his/her preparation to undertake the research project.

To fulfill the requirements for the oral QE the student must provide a research proposal that conveys

• Cover page listing title, student’s name, committee member’s names, and date

• the motivation for the research undertaken

• the depth and breadth of knowledge of the student in the subject

• the state-of-the-art regarding the research topic

• preliminary results obtained prior to the QE and

• a research plan

• comprehensive bibliography

The members of the QEC will be presented with the completed form of the proposal 15 working days prior to the

scheduled oral exam. The 15 working days prior specifically excludes days which fall on the weekend or holidays (i.e.

official university holidays). Note that if you fail to provide your QE proposal to your committee members in a timely

manner, members may refuse to review your proposal or sit for your oral examination. Each committee member will

test the examinee on the proposal and the student will be required to defend it. A majority passing vote by the

committee is needed for the student to pass and advance to candidacy. The QEC may also suggest remediation steps to

be taken by the student to correct deficiencies perceived during the oral portion of the exam.

These will be put into written form and the Dissertation Advisor, the student’s Qualifying Exam will oversee progress

with a final report being sent to the GAR upon completion.

Upon successful completion of the oral QE the student will advance to candidacy (upon submission of the formal

paperwork for the advancement to candidacy). If a student fails the oral QE, he/she will have six months to re-attempt

it. In case the student fails it a second time, he/she will not advance to candidacy and will be given the option to obtain a

terminal MS degree. The student may also pass conditionally, in which case the student may be required to take

additional coursework or satisfy other requirements determined by the QEC and approved by the GAR.

XI. MASTER’S DEGREE OPTIONS

A. UNSUCCESSFUL DEFENSE OF QE

A doctoral student who has failed either component of the QE or the dissertation defense may petition the Department

Chair for approval to transfer to the MS Program in Physics, to receive a Master Degree. The student must complete all

degree requirements for the MS degree, including the comprehensive examination.

B. INTERIM MASTER DEGREE

Students who are admitted to doctoral programs directly from the bachelor’s-degree level (without the requirement of

a master’s degree) and who want to obtain a Master’s degree as part of the PhD program, must meet the following

requirements:

Revised Fall 2023

1. Complete the appropriate set of 30 semester credit hours of coursework, matching to the satisfaction of the

appropriate Graduate Studies Committee, the 30 hours required for regular master’s degrees at UTSA in the

specified area.

2. Pass a qualifying examination related to the above 30-semester-credit-hour program, administered under the

standard UTSA regulations. (If the Doctoral Qualifying Examination has been administered and passed, this

requirement has been met.)

3. Apply for the master’s degree at the time and in the manner prescribed for regular master’s degrees at UTSA

a. Present to the graduate school, through COS-Dean’s office.

i. An approved program of study for the master’s degree

ii. Certification of having passed the Qualifying Examination (Form P3)

iii. A transcript (or certification from the Office of the Registrar) showing a grade point average of

3.0 or better and current good academic standing.

iv. Certification of removal of any conditions imposed on admission (if applicable)

Courses counted as indicated above toward the master’s degree may also be included in the overall requirements for

the doctorate degree. More information can be obtained at by visiting the UTSA Graduate School.

XII. ADVANCEMENT TO PHD CANDIDACY

Upon completion of the Qualifying Examination and receipt of the signed Approval form (Form P3) from the QEC and

Dissertation Supervisor, the student can advance to candidacy for the PhD. The GSC Chair will notify the student of

his/her advancement to candidacy. If advancement to candidacy is not recommended by the QEC and the Dissertation

Supervisor, the student will be notified by the GSC within two days, and the student may make a written appeal to the

GSC within two weeks of the recommendation.

As soon as the student is notified of the recommendation to advance to PhD candidacy, the student should apply for

advancement to candidacy (Form P4).

The criteria for admission to candidacy are:

1. Completion of all required core course work.

2. Fulfillment of the Comprehensive Requirement and successful completion of the oral Qualifying Exam.

3. Approval by the GSC, the Department Chair, and the Dean of the Graduate School and the Office of the

Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.

Any student who is admitted to the program to earn the PhD should be advanced to candidacy within two years after

enrollment. Any student who has not been advanced to candidacy within two years can continue in the program only

after individual review and recommendation by the GSC to the Department Chair, and the Dean of the Graduate

School.

A. DISSERTATION COMMITTEE

Upon advancement to candidacy the student must appoint his/her Dissertation Committee (Form C1). The Dissertation

Committee has the responsibility for general supervision of the student’s research and ultimately for certifying to the

Dean of the Graduate School that an acceptable dissertation has been submitted and that all degree requirements have

been completed. The committee is selected by the student in consultation with his/her Dissertation Advisor and with

approval of the GSC, the Department Chair, and the Dean of the Graduate School and should be appointed soon after

the Qualifying Examination is passed. The requirements for the composition of the dissertation committee are the same

as those applied to the QE committee. The Dissertation Advisor chairs the committee. The formal approval of the

Dissertation Committee is included in the Application for Advancement to Candidacy (Form P4)

Although the QEC and the Dissertation Committee can technically be different it is strongly recommended that the

membership of the committee be the same. Thus, when assembling the QEC the students and advisors should keep in

mind that such committee should carry on as the Dissertation Committee.

Revised Fall 2023

While the supervising professor provides day-to-day guidance to the student, all members of the committee should be

available for consultation, and the student should feel free to ask for advice. Both the Dissertation Committee and GSC

have the general responsibility for monitoring the student’s research progress through the Semi-Annual Progress

Report and Program of Study. The student and his/her advisor should be proactive with ensuring these meetings take

place in a timely fashion.

If it is necessary to change the membership of the dissertation committee prior to completion of the dissertation, the

student should consult with the Graduate Advisor of Record before initiating any action. Changes in the committee

should be completed well in advance of the final oral examination.

B. DISSERTATION PROPOSAL

As part of the Qualifying Examination, the student must present a dissertation proposal to the Dissertation Advisor and

the Qualifying Exam/Dissertation Committee for approval. The dissertation proposal will in most cases coincide to the

proposal written for the oral component of the qualifying examination, with revisions suggested by the QEC. The

Dissertation Committee must sign the title/signature page of the approved Dissertation Research Proposal (Form C2).

This signed form page is submitted along with the Dissertation Proposal, the signatures of the GAR, and the Department

Chair, to the Dean of the Graduate School.

XIII. FINAL ORAL EXAMINATION (DISSERTATION DEFENSE)

When the dissertation is in final form, it is circulated to the Dissertation Committee. The Dissertation has a specific

format required by the Graduate School, thus contact the Graduate School’s office for information about the format

requirements (information can also be obtained from the Graduate School website).

When all members of the committee agree, the final oral exam (defense of dissertation) should be scheduled. The

request for scheduling of the final oral exam is to be submitted to the Physics GSC at least 15 working days prior to the

defense and should be advertised as extensively as possible to the public. At the same time the dissertation document

should be provided to the dissertation committee members no later than 15 working days prior to the defense. The 15

working days prior specifically excludes days which fall on the weekend or holidays (i.e. official university holidays). Note

that if you fail to provide your QE proposal to your committee members in a timely manner, members may refuse to

review your dissertation or sit for your oral examination.

The defense of the doctoral dissertation consists of two parts. The first is a public seminar that is open to all faculty and

students. The Program Manager posts notices of the seminar at least one week prior to the exam. Immediately

following the seminar, the student meets privately with the Dissertation Committee to answer any questions that the

committee members may have. Once the dissertation is approved by the Dissertation Committee, the committee

chairperson notifies the Department Chair and the Dean of the Graduate School of successful completion of the exam

(defense) and that all degree requirements have been met using the appropriate form (Form C3). This must be done no

later than three weeks prior to the end of the semester to include the completion of final POS (Form C4).

The Graduate School Office provides guidelines on the format of the dissertation and all signature pages and forms for

notification of successful completion of all degree requirements and submission of the dissertation to the library.

XIV. GRADUATION

In order to graduate, students must have at least one manuscript published in a peer-reviewed journal, where they are

listed as first or main author.

Prior to approving the forms for graduation, the Gar will complete the following steps which must be fulfilled by all

students:

1. Carry out an exit interview. Students can access the exit interview by completing the online form.

2. Provide the most current CV to the GAR and Program Manager.

3. Provide the information regarding employment after graduation (when available).

Revised Fall 2023

XV. PROGRESS TOWARD THE DEGREE

All students are expected to make reasonable progress toward the degree in a timely fashion. It is the responsibility of

the students and their dissertation advisors that substantial progress towards the degree is made and monitored

regularly. Once student reach the seven-year milestone in the program, every semester (Fall, Spring, Summer) an

evaluation by the GSC, Department Chair, Associate Dean for Graduate Studies Students and/or Vice Provost and Dean

of the Graduate School will result in students being placed in one of the following categories:

1. Student is in good academic standing and sufficient progress is being made towards defending dissertation thus

continuation is recommended.

2. Student is in good academic standing but insufficient progress being made towards defending dissertation, thus

the student will be referred to academic and dissertation coaching.

3. Student is in good academic standing but insufficient progress being made toward defending dissertation thus

student should be dismissed from program

Student should consult their ASAP account to verify their year of admission. Consideration is made for students who

have filed a leave of absence during the first 7 years of their program of study.

XVI. RECOMMENDED SEQUENCE OF EVENTS FOR COMPLETION OF PHD REQUIREMENTS

YEAR ONE

1. Arrival at UTSA – Meet Department Chair, Physics & SwRI core faculty & hear about faculty research programs at

the PhD Student Orientation.

2. Meet with Physics Graduate Advisor of Record for the PhD Program.

3. Submit any graduate level classes to be transferred to the Physics GSC for preliminary approval & take

placement exams (if necessary).

4. Complete requirements for unconditional admission (if necessary).

5. Fulfill the core classes’ requirements for the qualifying exam.

6. Select Dissertation Advisor and form the (partial) Dissertation Committee before end of Fall semester.

7. Submit semi-annual progress reports.

YEAR TWO

1. Complete the majority of course work.

2. Form Dissertation Committee – at least 5 members, including one external member.

3. Initiate research project for dissertation.

4. Write Qualifying Examination proposal and submit to Dissertation Advisor & Dissertation Committee for

approval.

5. Schedule, take & pass Oral Qualifying Examination administered by Qualifying Examination Committee before

August.

6. Be recommended for Advancement to Candidacy by the Physics GSC.

7. Submit semi-annual progress reports.

YEAR THREE

1. Make constant and substantial progress in the research project.

2. Schedule at least one Dissertation Committee meetings.

3. Submit semi-annual progress reports.

YEARS FOUR & BEYOND (if necessary)

1. Make constant and substantial progress in the research project.

2. Continue to meet with Dissertation Committee twice yearly.

3. Submit semi-annual progress reports.

4. Complete research.

5. Prepare dissertation.

Revised Fall 2023

6. Complete dissertation, get Dissertation Committee approval.

7. Set date for Dissertation Defense.

8. Work with the Department Program Manager to notify Graduate School Office and publish the time, date, place

and title of Defense.

9. Submit copy of dissertation to Dissertation Abstracts for publication.

10. Submit required and personal copies of dissertation for binding.

11. Complete exit interview with GAR.

XVII. FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE INFORMATION

A. Graduate Assistantships

Students accepted into the program may receive support in three forms:

1. University support for first academic year, including stipend, tuition and some fees; this stipend has both

research and teaching responsibilities. The stipends are awarded competitively. The stipend is paid

monthly contingent upon satisfactory progress toward the PhD degree. The stipend cannot be received

simultaneously with other forms of support.

2. Teaching assistantship. With this support the students are expected to fulfill their teaching responsibility of

2 introductory laboratories per semester or equivalent teaching assignments. Support for tuition is not

provided to Teaching Assistants beyond the first year in the program.

3. Research assistantship. This form of support is typically provided by external funds available to individual

advisor and the dollar amount may vary depending on the funding agency. The terms of this support depend

on the type of funding (scholarship, fellowship, etc.) and the funding agency (e.g., NSF, NIH, DoE, etc.) This

form of support requires the students to dedicate their time to research and their coursework.

Students receiving University support or research assistantships MUST be registered full time; 9 hours per long

semester and 3 hour per summer. Students supported by external funds can be registered for a variable number of

credit hours each semester. In order to receive any type of assistantship students MUST maintain good academic

standings and they have to make good progress towards the obtainment of their degree.

Outside employment for students receiving University support is not permitted, except under conditions of

substantiated hardship. Approvals for outside employment must be obtained from the Dissertation Advisor, the

Graduate Studies Committee (GSC), the Department Chair and the Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic

Affairs.

B. Teaching Assistantships

During the first year, students who are not supported by an external grant will be required to provide Teaching

Assistantships which may include at least two introductory Physics laboratory or recitation for various classes, and/or

assisting an instructor in organized lecture classes (e.g., grader, tutor, etc.). The teaching duty effort will correspond to

the equivalent of 20 hours/week.

Teaching assistantship is one possible way for students to receive support for their studies. However, since the post-

degree careers of Physics graduates are likely to involve some teaching, students are encouraged to be involved as

Teaching Assistants before obtaining their degree.

Becoming a teaching assistant should be considered a great and rewarding responsibility. As a TA, you will be granted

access to an office located in the MS building for grading and storing any supplies/papers, a separate location for office

hours. Also, you will have a chance to improve your public speaking skills, refreshing the foundation of physics, and

improve your time management skills. On the other hand, as a Teaching Assistant, there are some requirements that are

expected of you consisting of weekly meetings, maintaining a good GPA, and maintain good evaluations from your

students.

Revised Fall 2023

XVIII. GENERAL ACADEMIC REGULATIONS

Rules concerning registration, late registration, adding classes, dropping classes, and auditing classes are all found in the

schedule of classes. Academic standing, cancellation of enrollment, withdrawal procedures, reinstatement in the

University and student classification are also addressed in the Graduate catalog.

A. GRADE POINT AVERAGE

To remain in good academic standing a minimum grade point average of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) must be maintained in each

of the following:

1. all coursework completed at UTSA

2. graduate courses in the student’s major

3. graduate courses in the student’s support field.

In computing grade point averages, grades from other institutions are not used.

B. ACADEMIC PROBATION AND DISMISSAL

1. Academic Probation

Academic probation describes the standing of a student at the graduate level who is in one of the following

categories:

• A student who fails to achieve a grade point average in any term at UTSA of 3.0 or higher, irrespective of

level of courses taken.

• A student who received a grade of “D” in any course in a term.

• A student who does not meet all requirements for unconditional or regular admission and who, by special

action, is admitted on academic probation.

• A student who has been reinstated following academic dismissal.

• To graduate, all graduate students must have a grade point average of at least a 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale).

Academic probation is cleared only when none of the above criteria apply and when the student achieves an

overall grade point average of 3.0 as a graduate student at UTSA. Students on academic probation are

encouraged to discuss their status with their academic advisors.

A student on academic probation cannot be supported as a Teaching Assistant or as a Graduate Research Assistant.

2. Academic Dismissal

Academic dismissal occurs:

• When a student at the graduate level earns a grade point average of less than 2.0 in any term

• When a student at the graduate level earns a grade of “F” in any course

• When a student at the graduate level is admitted on probation with conditions and fails to meet a condition

• When a student at the graduate level who is on academic probation during a term would again be placed on

academic probation under the provisions of academic probation set forth above in the subsequent term. If,

however, the student’s UTSA grade point average for the term is at least 3.0, he or she will continue on

academic probation.

A student on academic dismissal cannot be supported as a Teaching Assistant or as a Graduate Research Assistant.

Revised Fall 2023

XIX. GRIEVANCE PROCESS:

Students who wish to discuss problems, concerns or file a formal grievance in regards to academics or research matters,

should in general follow this line of contacts:

1. Dissertation Advisor

↓

2. Program Manager

↓

3. Graduate Advisor of Record

↓

4. Associate Chair of the Department

↓

5. Chair of the Department

↓

6. Associate Dean for Graduate Studies (College of Sciences)

In case the complaints or grievance is in regard to one of the individuals listed above the students should contact the

subsequent person in the list.