MS with Thesis degree requirements, WE

The master's degree program in MSE is designed to give students the opportunity to gain additional knowledge and necessary skills in a specific area of Welding Engineering. A thesis option master's degree is made up of two primary aspects; academic course work and research used to support a written document. The requirements for the MS with Thesis degree, as established by the WE Graduate Studies Committee, are as follows:

Degree requirements effective AU19

For graduate students who entered the graduate program in or after AU19 and for those students admitted before AU19 choosing to follow this curriculum.

WELDENG MS with Thesis Requirements Worksheet (PDF)

I Minimum of 30 total graduate credit hours are required

A Of these 30 hours, at least 18 must be graded graduate level courses.

B Of these 18 credit hours, at least 15 credit hours must be taken in WE.

  • Of these 15 credit hours in WE, at least 6 credit hours must be taken at the 7000 level or greater in WE. 2
     
  • Of these 15 credit hours in WE, the student is to take at least four (4) courses from the WELDENG Core courses. At least two (2) must come from two (2) unique categories on the Primary Core list. Remaining two courses are to come from remaining Primary or Secondary Core categories.

    WELDENG Core
    • Primary Core Categories:
      Processes: 7001 or 7002 1
      Design: 7201
      Materials: 7101
    • Secondary Core Categories:
      Modeling: 7115
      NDE: 7301
      Polymers: 7406
       
    • Note: effective for all WE MS students admitted for AU23 and moving forward, a Core GPA of 3.0 or greater is required in order to graduate.

C Additional credit hours may come from other courses, besides those listed above, to bring the total graduate credit hours to 30 or greater.

These credit hours will include:

  • WE 7895 (Graduate Seminar and Colloquium)
    Full-time students are to enroll in WE 7895 every Autumn and Spring term.
    Part-time students are expected to enroll in WE 7895 at least once per year.
    Students are not required to enroll during the semester of graduation.
     
  • WE 6999 (Research in Welding Engineering). The student is to register for research credits under his/her advisor. Minimum of 10 credits.
     
  • Instructional Assistant service. The student will serve as an Instructional Assistant aiding the faculty with the instruction of undergraduate students.
    • The student will register for two (2) credit hours of WELDENG 7193.01 Independent Study during the term of IA service.
    • One (1) term of assistance is required of Thesis Master’s students.
    • Students will attend a university training workshop in support of this curricular requirement.

II Presentation and/or publication requirement

View requirement
Dissemination of research results is important for all students that write a thesis or dissertation. To earn the MS with Thesis degree students will be required show evidence of having met this requirement by means of the Welding Engineering Publication Form, as detailed at the link above.

III Presentation and defense of an acceptable thesis

Within the first term of registration the student is to submit a thesis topic summary to the student’s advisor. The summary is to include a proposed title, problem definition, objective, and a method of approach.
The MS examination committee consists of the student’s WE advisor and at least one other Graduate Faculty member (may be from WE or outside of WE). 3

  • Public announcement of the MS defense--At least one week before the MS defense date the student is to announce the title, abstract, and location/video conference link for the defense. The student is asked to complete this form which will then be formatted and forwarded to the WE graduate students and faculty: Speaker Presentation form

The student is permitted two (2) MS final examination attempts.

 

Notes:

  • Please be sure to review Graduate School Handbook for additional requirements.
     
  • 1 Only one of the 7001 or 7002 courses can be counted as a core course, not both of them.
     
  • 2 The student’s advisor should verify that any non-WELDENG classes are from the “hard sciences” such as Math, Chemistry, Physics, and/or Engineering. Any question about the applicability of a given course in relation to degree requirements should begin with the student consulting with his/her advisor. Non-engineering/hard science courses must be petitioned, and receive approval from, the WELDENG GSC prior to enrolling in the petitioned course. Petitions must include a syllabus for the course. At time of graduation the WELDENG GSC will verify that all classes have complied with this requirement.
     
  • 3 If the student is co-advised, the co-advisor is allowed in addition to the aforementioned examination committee. For example, the MS exam committee would comprise advisor, co-advisor and one other faculty member.
     
  • Graduates of the WELDENG undergraduate program:
    • Students who have taken the 4000-level version of a WELDENG course are not permitted to take the 7000-level version of that course as a graduate student. For example, a student who completed WE 4001 as an undergraduate may not enroll in WE 7001 as a graduate student.
       
    • Addressing the WELDENG Core requirement
      If a graduate student has taken the 4000-level version of a WELDENG Core course as a WE undergraduate, s/he has met the Core requirement for that course. The student must still meet the graded graduate credit requirement in I B above.

      For example if the student has taken WE 4001, 4201, 4101, and 4301 as an undergraduate, the student will have met the WELDENG Core requirement and no further Core courses are required. S/he must still complete 18 graded graduate credits, 15 credits of which are to be from WELDENG courses. Former undergraduates of the WELDENG program may petition the WE GSC to use course work from outside of WE to meet the graded graduate credit requirements (ex., MSE, ISE, Physics, etc.).

Pre-AU19 semester-based degree requirements

For graduate students who entered the graduate program in or after Summer term 2012.

Program of Study—Working with the faculty advisor, the student will plan a Program of Study having: (1) an emphasis in one of the five areas of welding engineering (welding processes, materials, design, nondestructive evaluation, or plastics joining), and (2) breadth of study in other areas of welding engineering. During the student’s first semester of enrollment the Program of Study is to be submitted to the Graduate Studies Committee for approval.

I 30 total graduate credit hours are required

A Of these 30 hours, at least 20 must be graded graduate level courses.
Note: Courses selected are to emphasize one of the five welding engineering areas (processes, materials, design, non-destructive evaluation, or plastics joining). However, students are to take at least one course from each of the four remaining WE subjects outside their area of interest.*

  1. Of these 20 credit hours, at least 10 credit hours MUST be taken in WE
    • Of these 10 credit hours in WE, at least 6 credit hours MUST be taken at the 7000 level or greater in WE.
  2. The 20 credit hours are to consist of:
    • At least 8 credits in the WE concentration area
    • At least one course each from the remaining four concentrations
    • Additional graded graduate credits may be taken in WE or out of WE--it is understood that any non-WE credits are to be related to the student's discipline (hard sciences and/or engineering) unless previously approved by the Graduate Studies Committee.

B At least 10 credit hours may come from other courses, besides those listed above, to bring the total graduate credit hours to 30 or greater.

  1. Full-time students are to enroll in WE 7895 (Graduate Seminar and Colloquium) every Autumn and Spring term. Part-time students are expected to enroll in WE 7895 at least once per year. Students are not required to enroll during the semester of graduation.
  2. At least 10 credit hours are to come from WE 6999 (Research in Welding Engineering).

II Presentation and defense of an acceptable thesis

  • Within the first term of WE 6999 registration the student is to submit a thesis topic summary to the student’s advisor. The summary is to include a proposed title, problem definition, objective, and a method of approach.
  • The MS examination committee consists of the student’s advisor and at least one other Graduate Faculty member.
  • The student is permitted two attempts at examination.

Courses that apply toward the degree:

  • WE courses at the 5000 level or above that may be taken for graduate credit.
  • Non-WE courses at the 5000 level or greater in the hard-sciences, math, and engineering that may be taken for graduate credit.

*Course key for WE concentration areas:

  • Process: #0## (i.e., WE courses with a zero in the hundreds place)
  • Materials: #1## and 7023
  • Design: #2## and 7115
  • Non-destructive Evaluation: #3## and 5038
  • Plastics and Composites: #4##, 5038, and 7201

Rev SU12


Quarter-based degree requirements

For graduate students who entered the graduate program prior to Summer term 2012.

Program of Study—Working with the faculty advisor, the student will plan a Program of Study having: (1) an emphasis in one of the five areas of welding engineering (welding processes, materials, design, nondestructive evaluation, or plastics joining), and (2) breadth of study in other areas of welding engineering. During the student’s first semester of enrollment the Program of Study is to be submitted to the Graduate Studies Committee for approval.

I 45 total graduate credit hours are required

A Of these 45 hours, at least 30 must be graded graduate level courses.

  1. Of these 30 hours, at least 15 credit hours MUST be taken in WE
    • Of these 15 hours in WE, at least 9 credit hours MUST be taken at the 700 level or greater in WE.
    • Note: Courses selected are to emphasize one of the five welding engineering areas (processes, materials, design, non-destructive evaluation, or plastics joining). However, students are to take at least one course from each of the four remaining WE subjects outside their area of interest.
    • Individual Study, WE 793: Students may petition to have up to 6 credits of WE 793 applied toward the 30-credit graded course requirement. Approved credits earned in 793 may not be counted toward the WE 700+ level requirement.
  2. These requirements permit up to 15 hours of non-WE study to count toward fulfillment of a WE Master's degree—it is understood that all non-WE credits are to be related to the student's area of welding study unless previously approved by the Graduate Studies Committee.

B At least 15 credit hours may come from other courses, besides those listed above, to bring the total graduate credit hours to 45 or greater.

  1. Full-time students are to enroll in WE 795 (Graduate Seminar and Colloquium) every Autumn, Winter, and Spring Quarter. Part-time students are expected to enroll in WE 795 at least once per year. Students are not required to enroll during the quarter of graduation.
  2. Of these 15 hours, at least 15 credit hours are to come from WE 999 (Research in Welding Engineering).

II Presentation and defense of an acceptable thesis

  • Within the first quarter of WE999 registration the student is to submit a thesis topic summary to the student’s advisor. The summary is to include a proposed title, problem definition, objective, and a method of approach.
  • The MS examination committee consists of the student’s advisor and at least one other Graduate Faculty member.
  • The student is permitted two attempts at examination.

Courses that apply toward the degree:

  • WE courses at the 600 level or above that may be taken for graduate credit.
  • Non-WE courses at the 500 level or greater in the hard-sciences, math, and engineering that may be taken for graduate credit.