Key Information for Doctoral (Ph.D.) Students

1.     Academic Qualifications

a.     Holders of a Master’s degree who have passed the GIEE Ph.D. entrance exam

b.     Current GIEE Master’s students who have completed at least 1 semester of study in the department are eligible to apply for direct admission to the Ph.D. program during the Institute’s application period after reviewing the key points, given that one of the following criteria is met:

I.                  The applicant is in the top third rank of the class/division during the Master’s study period (If the University’s ranking system is not updated in time, this can be calculated on the principle of having received grades of “A” or above.).

II.               Under special circumstances, those who are given a special review and evaluation, and determined to have exceptional research results and abilities are eligible.

c.     Current Master’s student applicants for direct Ph.D. admission are only eligible for recommendation to the University after receiving approval by 2/3 of the present committee.

2.     Entrance Examination

a.     In the Institute’s entrance examination, the written exam accounts for 50% of the total score, and the oral interview accounts for the remaining 50%.

b.     Reviewed materials shall include: transcripts, journal submissions, and letters of recommendation.

3.     Degree Advisory Committee

a.     Within 2 months of admission to the Ph.D. program, the student’s advisor should convene a committee of five members, including 3 GIEE Assistant Professors or above, and 2 members at the Assistant Professor level or above, as recognized by the Ministry of Education (including those who are Research Assistants or above at Academia Sinica). If needed, non-full-time GIEE professors may be appointed as committee members.

b.     The advisory committee shall advise on and review the student’s study plan (See Appendix 1), and regularly assess the student’s progress, (including the qualifying exams, the 40% progress report, and the 70% progress report). The assessment result form should be submitted to the Institute’s academic affairs coordinator for review and filing.

4.       Doctoral Student Course Selection Regulations

a.     Course credit requirements: After enrollment, doctoral students may take courses from GIEE and other related departments, which should total to at least 24 credits (for those students who directly enter the Ph.D. program), or at least 48 credits (Master’s and Ph.D. credits combined in total), not including repeated courses (i.e., courses with the same name and course code), Seminar, Dissertation credits, preparatory pre-requisite courses, or foreign language courses. At least 12 credits should be consist of main courses and at least 6 credits should consist of supplementary courses (to be determined through discussion with research advisor). Classes beginning with “U” should only count for credit if the course is related to the student’s research, and is considered to be a fundamental inter-disciplinary course.

b.     Tables 1 and 2 show the curriculum plans for the Environmental Science and Engineering Division (hereinafter noted as “Engineering Division”), and the Environmental Planning and Management Division (hereinafter noted as “Management Division”).

c.     Preparatory Courses: Ph.D. students must be able to account for the required preparatory courses for their respective division. If the student has not previously taken a course, the student must make up the course after enrollment, and preparatory courses taken prior to enrollment are not counted for credit. Overall, no credits shall be awarded for preparatory courses.

d.     Required Courses: Ph.D. students must take at least 2 core courses, 1 laboratory course, and 1 design course (Engineering Division), or at least 2 core courses and 2 practicum courses (Management Division). The fundamental curriculum pre-requisites for core and design/practicum courses are the same as those of the Master’s students.

e.     Required Course Credits: Ph.D. students who have taken any core courses within GIEE bearing identical names and course numbers (not including Seminar) prior to admission may apply for course exemption through the University. However, it should be noted that GIEE still requires students to take the required 24 credits to meet the graduation requirements.

f.      Ph.D. students are required to take the Ph.D. section of Seminar each semester prior to completing the 40% progress report/oral defense.

g.     Engineering Division Ph.D. students are divided into “Air” and “Water” subdivisions according to their research areas, and their chosen pre-requisite and core courses should follow those listed in the curriculum planning table for the appropriate subdivision.

5.     Ph.D. Student Checkpoints and Regulations

a.     The doctoral program at GIEE is divided into the following stages:

I.                  Study Plan (within 2 months of enrollment)

A.   Study Plan: Ph.D. students should complete this within the first 2 months of enrollment and have their respective degree advisory committee members sign. Should there be any changes to the original study plan, students should submit a new study plan with the signatures of the advisory committee.

II.                  Qualifying Examination (written and oral defense) (within the first 3 years of enrollment)

A.   Ph.D. qualifying exams should be carried out in accordance with the new GIEE qualifying exam measures (Appendix 2). The qualifying exam is divided into 3 sections, including a written exam, a research plan, and an English journal paper review. The student’s advisor should designate the 4 fundamental and core courses for which the student should take the written examination (according to the student’s research area). Each exam is worth 100 points, and the student’s overall written exam score must total at least 240 points in order to pass.

B.   The written exam time and location are set by the GIEE administrative office, and are held before mid-July, at the end of each academic year. The exam-writing and grading professors shall be designated in a departmental meeting/conference. If demand is found to be needed during the departmental meeting, exams may be administered during the winter break.

C.   Ph.D. students are limited to 2 attempts of the written and oral examinations, and must pass within 2 years of enrollment in the program. If the requirement is not met, the student should report to the University for withdrawal, per the regulations.

D.   After passing the qualifying exams, GIEE will complete the procedure to indicate the student has met the requirements to be considered a Ph.D. Candidate.

III.            Dissertation Progress: 40% → 70% → 100% (dissertation defense)           

The 40% and 70% reports are divided into 2 parts, including a review and an oral examination, which can take place after application approval. Oral examination shall include an progress report presentation and by a question and answer session.

A.   40% Dissertation Progress Report (completion of qualifying exams and 1 SCI, SSCI, EI journal submission)

(i)               Application: Complete the 40% progress application form and attach the necessary documents (study plan, transcripts, and the journal submission and verification). The application form should be signed/stamped by the student’s advisor, the departmental administrator, and the 40% progress advisory committee, and submitted for review at the departmental meeting. If the meeting is not held, the Institute Director’s signature may replace the meeting approval.

(ii)            Oral Examination: After the 40% progress report application has been approved, the oral examination shall be planned and executed according to the availability of the advisory committee members. After passing the 40% oral examination, students are required to collect the signatures of all oral examination committee members on the 40% progress review form and deliver it to the GIEE administrative office for examination before being considered to have finished the 40% progress report process.

(iii)         Prior to the successful completion of the 40% progress report, Ph.D. student are required to attend Seminar each semester. If the student has missed any semesters of Seminar, it must be made up after the 40% progress report, and before the 70% progress report (students must make up each semester of Seminar they have missed). If students have not finished all semesters of Seminar, they will not be allowed to proceed with the 70% progress report process.

B.   70% Dissertation Progress Report (completion of the 40% progress report and at least 2 SCI, SSCI, or EI journal acceptances)

(i)               Application: Complete the 70% progress application form and attach the necessary documents (study plan, transcripts, 40% progress report completion documents, journal submissions and verification, and English proficiency test results) according to the requirements listed on the audit form. The application form should be signed/stamped by the student’s advisor, the departmental administrator, and the 40% progress advisory committee, and submitted for review at the departmental meeting. If the meeting is not held, the Institute Director’s signature may replace the meeting approval.

(ii)            Oral Examination: After the 70% progress report application has been approved, the oral examination shall be planned and executed according to the availability of the advisory committee members. After passing the 70% oral examination, students are required to collect the signatures of all oral examination committee members on the 70% progress review form and deliver it to the GIEE administrative office for examination before being considered to have finished the 70% progress report process.

C.   100% Dissertation Progress Report (final dissertation defense): After completion of the 70% progress report, apply for a date for defense according to the school calendar and the departmental application announcement, and attach the necessary forms and documents. The oral dissertation defense should be held within the specified time per the school’s calendar and deadlines.

a.     Each semester, Ph.D. students should fill out the Ph.D. student progress report form within the first two weeks of the semester and submit it to the GIEE office for review and filing.

6.     Degree Examination (Dissertation Defense)

The Ph.D. degree examination includes qualifying examinations and oral examinations.

a.     Before applying for dissertation defense, doctoral students must have published at least 2 papers in SCI, SSCI, or EI journals (or have been officially notified that the publication has been accepted), for which the student is listed as the first author.

b.     GIEE requires that the aforementioned publications by doctoral students are “full papers”, published based on the main contents of the student’s doctoral dissertation. This excludes review papers, research notes, technical notes, short communications, commentaries, or other short essays.

c.     The dissertation defense must be held after the completion of the 70% progress report review process. Dissertation defenses held and documents related to the dissertation defense submitted prior to the completion of the 70% progress report process are considered invalid. This regulation does not apply to students in the second semester of their seventh year who have suspended their studies for two years.

d.     Advisors should request that students add an extended English abstract to the appendix of their dissertation, as to increase international visibility/global readership.