1

GENERAL PROCEDURES

FOR

GRADUATE STUDY

IN

NUCLEAR ENGINEERING

Department of Nuclear Engineering North Carolina State University

Raleigh, North Carolina

2

1 INTRODUCTION Dear Student, This manual is prepared as a guide to help graduate students in the MNE, MS and PhD degree programs in nuclear engineering meet their educational goals. It contains specific requirements of the Department of Nuclear Engineering and procedures that supplement those in the NCSU graduate catalog. Further questions or clarification should be directed to:

Dr. Korukonda Linga (KL) Murty Director of Graduate Programs

Room 3143 Burlington Engineering Laboratories

Tel: 919 515 3657 murty@ncsu.edu

Disclaimer – This document is subject to change based on amendments to policies and procedures. If

contradictions are noticed, please consult with Dr. K.L. Murty or Mr. Mario Milev.

3

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1 INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................................................................ 2

TABLE OF CONTENTS ......................................................................................................................................................... 3

2 SUMMARY OF STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES ............................................................................................................... 4

2.1 Master's Degrees (MNE and MS) ..................................................................................................................................... 4

2.2 Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) ............................................................................................................................................... 5

2.3 Teaching and Research Assistantships .............................................................................................................................. 5

2.4 Student Code of Conduct ..........................................................................................................................................6

2.5 Graduate Office Suite Rules ......................................................................................................................................................... 7

3 GENERA L REGULATIONS (GRA DUATE SCHOOL AND DEPARTMENT) ................................................................ ....7

3.1 Grades .................................................................................................................................................................................. 7

3.2 Provisional Admission to the Graduate School .......................................................................................................... 8

3.3 Advisory Committees......................................................................................................................................................... 8

3.4 Credit Hours for Degrees and Research Credits .............................................................................................................. 9

3.5 Required Attendance at Departmental Research Seminars ............................................................................................ 10

3.6 Research Publications ...................................................................................................................................................... 10

3.7 Graduate Student Travel Support for Professional Society Meetings ................................................................................ 10

3.8 Responsibility of the Advisor ............................................................................................................................................ 11

3.9 Thesis Research with Graduate Faculty in Another Department ........................................................................................ 11

3.10 Direct Study to the PhD Degree ....................................................................................................................................... 11

3.11 Transfer to Other Departments for non-Thesis Masters ................................................................................................... 11

3.12 Departmental Records of Progress Towards the Degree .................................................................................................. 12

3.13 Maintaining Full-Time Graduate Status ........................................................................................................................... 12

4 PROGRAMS OF STUDY – GENERA L ............................................................................................................................... 13

4.1 Plan of Work for Graduate Study ............................................................................................................................ 14

4.2 Curricula / Instruction ...................................................................................................................................................... 14

4.2.1 Master's Degree ..................................................................................................................................................... 14

4.2.2 Combined BS/MNE-MS Accelerated Baccalaureate/Master’s (AMB) Degree Program ................................. 14

4.2.3 Combined BS / MNE Curriculum - Senior Year ................................................................................................. 16

4.2.4 BS/MNE Combined Engineering – Fifth Year (1st year of Graduate School) ................................................................. 17

4.2.5 Master of Nuclear Engineering (MNE) Curriculum ................................................................................................ 17

4.2.6 Master of Science (MS) Curriculum ....................................................................................................................... 18

4.2.7 Options & NE Courses............................................................................................................................................ 18

4.2.8 Doctoral Degree Curriculum ................................................................................................................................... 18

5 PhD QUALIFYING EXAMINATION ................................................................................................................................. 19

6 APPENDIX – Weblink to Graduate NE Courses ................................................................................................................. 20

4

2.0 SUMMARY OF STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES

At the start of each semester, students are required to complete a preregistration checklist,

http://www.ne.nc su.edu/ac ademics/doc uments/NE_G rad _p re -re gistratio n_c hec klist.pdf. Each student must take

primary responsibility for meeting each requirement in the following sequence of steps towards the completion of

their degree.

2.1 Schedule of Required Documents and Actions (MS and MNE)

REQUIRED FORMS/ACTIONS* WHEN REQUIRED WHO INITIATES

Complete, official transcripts from

universities and colleges attended,

including degrees and dates awarded

Before the beginning of the first semester of

enrollment

Student is responsible for providing

official transcripts to the Graduate School.

Signed Patent Agreement Before the end of the first semester of enrollment Initiated by student and submitted to the

Graduate School by the Director of

Graduate Programs (DGP)

Appointment of Advisory

Committee and submission of Plan

of Work (doctoral students only)

During second semester or earlier Initiated by student with Advisor and

Committee. Approved and submitted to

the Graduate School by the DGP

Assignment of Graduate School

Representative, if required (doctoral

students only)

After Plan of Graduate Work has been approved

by Graduate School

Appointed by the Graduate School

Request to Schedule the Preliminary

Oral Examination (doctoral students

only)

After student passes written qualifying

Exam, but no later than one semester prior to

final oral exam. Request must be received by

Graduate School at least 5-10 working days prior

to proposed exam date.

Initiated by student and submitted to the

Graduate School by the DGP

Report on Outcome of Preliminary

Oral Examination (doctoral students

only)

Immediately after preliminary oral exam is

completed

Submitted to the Graduate School by the

DGP within 5 working days of exam

Application to Graduate (replaces

old Diploma Order Request card)

Thesis Students - when Final Oral Exam is

Scheduled but no later than the Apply to

Graduate Deadline

Non-Thesis Students - due by the Option- B

Apply to Graduate Deadline

Initiated by student online via MyPack

Portal, by navigating to Student Self

Services > Degree Progress/Graduation >

Apply for Graduation

Request to Schedule the Fin al Oral

Examination (doctoral

students only)

Must be received by the Graduate School at least

2 weeks prior to proposed final oral exam date

(see right), and no earlier than 4 calendar months

after successful completion of preliminary oral

exam

Initiated by student and submitted to the

Graduate School by the DGP.

Student must also apply to graduate at the

same time via MyPack Portal.

Request for a Permit to Schedule the

Masters Oral Examination (master's

students only)

Must be received by the Graduate School at least

10 working days before the Master’s oral

examination is scheduled

Initiated by student and submitted to the

Graduate School by DGP.

Student must also apply to graduate at the

same time via MyPack Portal.

Report on Outcome of Final Oral

Examination (master's or doctoral)

Immediately after final oral exam is completed Submitted to the Graduate School by the

DGP within 5 working days of exam

* Submission of materials to the Graduate School can be by campus mail, hand delivery, fax, or e-mail, as

appropriate.

5

Above table adapted from http://www.nc su.edu/grad/hand bo ok /sec tions /3.25- req uired-doc um ents.html

Associated forms are available through the Graduate School, http://www.nc su.edu/grad/fac ulty-an d-

staff/ forms-list.html, or the Nuclear Engineering Main Office.

2.2 Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) The procedure outlined for the graduate degree (section 2.1) generally applies to the PhD degree except for the

following changes:

1. A student is considered a PhD candidate by the Department only upon passing the PhD Qualifying

examination. A student who enrolls in the Graduate Program with the degree objective of PhD must

attempt this examination, no later than the beginning of the second year of study (or the earliest time it is

offered during the second year of study). The rules and regulations pertinent to the examination are given

in Section 5.

2. Identification of the dissertation topic, dissertation advisor, student's Graduate Committee (consisting of 2

from NE, 1 from minor/interdisciplinary and 1 from another department whom acts as a graduate school

representative) submission of the Plan of Work to the Graduate School must be completed immediately

following the passing of the Qualifying examination.

3. Following a year of research on the dissertation topic, the student, in consultation with the advisor, will

write a dissertation proposal and submit it to the Graduate Committee at least two weeks prior to the

Preliminary Oral (PO) examination. Simultaneously, the Graduate School is notified of the intention to

schedule the PO exam by submitting a form obtained from the Graduate Administrative Assistant in the NE

department office. The examination will consist of a presentation of the research proposal followed by

questions on the student’s research and relevant science and engineering knowledge. The PO exam is to be

taken within one year after passing the Qualifying Examination.

4. Upon passing the PO examination, the Graduate School will grant the student "Admission to Candidacy"

for the PhD degree.

5. Completion of the PhD requires passing a Final Oral (FO) examination before the Graduate Committee and

acceptance of dissertation by the Graduate School. Copies of the final dissertation draft, approved by the

student's advisor, are submitted to all members of the Graduate Committee at least two weeks in advance

of the FO examination. As in the case of the PO examination, the Graduate School must be notified of the

date and time of the examination at least two weeks prior to the intended date using a form obtained from

the NE Graduate Administrative Assistant.

2.3 Teaching and Research Assistantships (known collectively as Graduate Assistantships) Most all of the teaching assistantships (TA) and research assistantships (RA) offered in the NE Department are

for half-time (20 hours/week) assistantship assignments. A half-time TA or RA is required to carry 9 credit

hours of course load per semester for the number of semesters specified by the Graduate School. For details of

the Graduate School policy, please refer to http://www.fis.nc su.edu/grad financialService/poc ket chart.htm.

Adherence to the Graduate School requirements of course loads provides tuition and health insurance benefits as

indicated in the web site.

TAs and RAs must not assume that reappointment is guaranteed and automatic. It is contingent upon strong academic

and TA/RA performance as well as on availability of funds. An assistantship appointment is not a scholarship,

students are expected to fulfill specified work assignments to the satisfaction of his /her supervisor in

return for stipend, and other benefits received. This may include additional effort to improve language and/or

teaching skills. A student not meeting the work obligations for an assistantship may be dropped from the appointment

prior to the state expiration date for the as assistantship.

6

Departmental graduate appointments are for the academic year (i.e. August 16 or January 1 for Fall or Spring

semester start, respectively, through the following May 15) except for the first year, if and when the offer is made

for 12 months. Additional support beyond this limit may be granted to those supported by faculty on their research

contracts. It is the graduate student’s responsibility to seek out and secure support from a faculty member.

In addition, the graduate school requires students who are not in good standing (GPA < 3.00) after having

completed 18 credit hours or more at the 400-level or above to be dropped from the program. Those who have

completed between 9 and 18 hours and are not in good standing are given academic probationary status for

one semester to overcome the GPA deficiency. If the GPA deficiency occurs with 0-9 credit hours of courses

attempted, the student is placed on academic warning. Students on academic probation are ineligible for

assistantship or fellowship support and hence ineligible for tuition and health insurance benefits

An out-of-state US graduate assistant (GA) is assured of tuition support and other benefits only during the first

twelve months of study because they may obtain NC residency after one year by completing a few simple tasks

such as registering to vote in NC, registering their car in NC, getting a NC driver's license, etc. Within the first

week of arrival on campus out-of-state GAs are strongly urged to complete the necessary tasks to qualify for in-

state status in the following year. NC residency status is granted only 12 months from the time of completion of the

last task.

Any such student who fails to obtain NC residency because of failing to complete the tasks within the first

week on campus stand to lose tuition support and insurance privileges past the first year of study. An

application to Graduate School for NC residency must be filed online. Further information and forms are available

at http://www.nc su.edu/grad/future-students/resident.html.

ENROLLMENT SEMESTER APPLICATION WINDOW

OPENS

APPLICATION WINDOW

CLOSES

Spring October 1 10th day of classes, Spring semester

Summer Session I March 1

3rd day of classes, Summer Session I

Summer Session II May 1 3rd day of classes, Summer Session II

Fall June 1 10th day of classes, Fall semester

2.4 Student Code of Conduct

Academic Integrity: “The free exchange of ideas depends on the participants' trust that they will be given credit

for their work. Everyone in an academic community must be responsible for acknowledging, using the methods

accepted by the various academic disciplines, their use of others' words and ideas. Since intellectual workers'

words and ideas constitute a kind of property, plagiarism is like theft. Furthermore, as a reader you may want to

follow other writers' paths of research in order to make your own judgments about their evidence and arguments.

You will depend on those writers' accuracy and honesty in reporting their sources. In turn, your readers will depend

on yours. The free exchange of ideas also depends on the participants' trust that others' work is their own and that it

was done and is being reported honestly. Intellectual progress in all the disciplines demands the truthfulness of all

participants. Plagiarism and cheating are attacks on the very foundation of academic life, and cannot be tolerated

within universities. Section eight (8) of the Code defines academic dishonesty and provides information on

potential sanctions for violators of academic integrity."

(NCSU Code of Student Conduct, http://www.ncsu.edu/studaffairs/osc/AIpage/acaintegrity.html)

Academic Dishonesty: "Academic dishonesty is the giving, taking, or presenting of information or material by a

student that unethically or fraudulently aids oneself or another on any work which is to be considered in the

determination of a grade or the completion of academic requirements or the enhancement of that student's record or

academic career… The act of submitting work for evaluation or to meet a requirement is regarded as assurance that

the work is the result of your own thought and study, produced without assistance, and stated in your own words,

except as quotation marks, references, or footnotes acknowledging the use of other sources. The submission of

work used previously must first be approved prior to submission."

(NCSU Code of Student Conduct, http://www.ncsu.edu/studaffairs/osc/AIpage/acaintegrity.html)

7

If a violation Occurs: If you are aware of another student in the class violating the academic integrity policies,

please notify the instructor or department immediately. Once a violation has occurred, the case will be pursued

through procedures outlined by the University. For more information about the procedures, see the Student

Conduct site http://www.ncsu.edu/studentconduct/.

2.5 Graduate Student Office Suite Rules For everyone’s comfort, please adhere to the following guidelines:

• Please keep the aisles clear

• Do not share door lock combination code with anyone

• Place nothing on the walls of the cubicle, except on the provided bulletin board area

• No appliances, except radios in cubicle (electrical code issue)

This includes personal coffee pots and refrigerators

• No extension cords (electrical code issue)

• Place all food trash in either the kitchen or breakout area trash cans

• Only use covered dishes in the microwave and limit selections so that not everyone else knows what

you are having for lunch

• If it looks a little green and it is not supposed to be, and it lives in the fridge, please throw it out!

• Last one out turns off lights and closes windows (normally should be closed if HVAC working)

• Promptly report any problems to the Graduate Administrative Assistant

• Broken items need to be thrown away in the dumpster off the loading dock and not left in hallways

3 GENERAL REGULATIONS (GRADUATE SCHOOL & DEPARTMENT)

3.1 Grades (http://www.ncsu.edu/grad/handbook/sections/3.18-grades.html)

A cumulative grade point average of B or better must be maintained at all times. See the paragraph describing the

status of students unable to maintain GPA ≥ 3.0 under Section 2.3. If there are extenuating circumstances, the

Director of Graduate Programs may be petitioned by the student to request the Graduate School to reinstate for one

semester those whose graduate programs were terminated due to GPA deficiency or to permit a student on academic

probation to continue receiving assistantship support. The grading system described in the Graduate catalog states the

following: (Grade Points/Credit-Hour)

A+ 4.33 C 2.00

A 4.00 C- 1.67

A- 3.67 D+ 1.33

B+ 3.33 D 1.00

B 3.00 D- 0.67

B- 2.67 F 0.00

C+ 2.33

In addition, S (Satisfactory) or U (Unsatisfactory) grades may be given for certain courses. There are no grade points

associated with S/U graded courses. A cumulative GPA exceeding 4.0 is truncated down to a 4.0 value.

Grading of Graduate Courses: Graduate courses numbered at the 500- and 700-levels are graded A+, A, A-, … F, while 600- and 800-level courses

are S/U graded. Typically, lecture courses are at the 500 or 700 level, while research, seminar and individual study

types of courses are 600- or 800-level courses. Courses regularly graded A+, ..., F may not be taken for S/U grading

by graduate students.

8

In order to receive graduate degree credit for a course, a grade of C- or higher is required. To graduate, a student must

have a minimum cumulative 3.0 average on all graduate course work as well as all courses on the Plan of Graduate

Work. This policy is strictly enforced. While S/U graded courses do not affect the grade point average, a student who

receives a U on any course will not receive credit for that course and may be required to repeat it.

All grades on courses taken for graduate credit as an undergraduate at NC State and all grades on courses taken in a

graduate classification at NC State in courses numbered 400 and above are included in the graduate grade point

average. Courses at the 300 level and below are not eligible for graduate credit and subsequently do not affect the

graduate GPA.

Incompletes: At the discretion of the instructor, students may be given an "IN" (Incomplete) grade for work not completed because

of a serious interruption in their work not caused by their own negligence. An "IN" is not used, however, as a

substitute for an "F" when the student's performance in the course is not passing. An "IN" is only appropriate when

the student's record in the course is such that the successful completion of particular assignments, projects, or tests

missed as a result of a documented serious event would enable that student to pass the course. Only work missed may

be averaged into the grades already recorded for that student.

A student who receives an "IN" must complete the unfinished work to have the Incomplete converted to a final grade

by the end of the next semester in which the student is enrolled provided that this period is no longer than 12 months

from the end of the semester or summer session in which the Incomplete was received {“next semester” and “12

months” are inconsistent?}. Otherwise, the "IN" will be automatically converted to "F" or "U," in accordance with

the grading approved for the particular course. All grades of "IN" must be cleared prior to graduation. Students must

not register again for any courses in which they have "IN" grades; such registration does not remove "IN" grades, and

the completion of the course on the second occasion will automatically result in an "F" for the incomplete course.

Except in the case of Inter-institutional Registration (such as courses taken at UNC Chapel Hill, Duke), grades on

courses transferred from another institution will not be included in computing the grade point average.

3.2 Provisional Admission to the Graduate School Students who do not completely satisfy the minimum qualifications for full admission may sometimes be admitted on

a provisional status. A student on provisional admission must establish a "B" or better average in his/her first

semester of study. At the end of the first semester, a recommendation may be made by the Director of Graduate

Programs to the Graduate School to grant the student full status, to keep the student on provisional status, or to

dismiss the student. Assistantship support is not typically available for a provisional student, nor can the student be a

candidate for a graduate degree until full graduate status is attained.

3.3 Advisory Committees

The Graduate School, at the student’s request, will appoint an advisory committee shortly after the program of study

is initiated (see Section 2 for the procedure). The advisory committee is responsible for advising the student on all

academic matters pertaining to that student’s degree program, including pass/fail decisions at oral examinations. The

committee is chaired (or co-chaired) by the student's research advisor(s).

MNE Degree: No graduate committee is needed for MNE the degree. The Director of Graduate Programs serves as

the student’s advisor until the student chooses one of the NE faculty members, as the advisor for the project work

(NE693-MNE Project) at which time that faculty member becomes the student’s advisor. While there is no formal

final examination, a successful completion of the project along with other courses with a minimum GPA of 3.0 is

required for graduation.

MS Degree: A minimum of three members are required for the MS graduate committee. The chairperson will be a

nuclear engineering graduate faculty member. The second member (or co- chairperson) may be from nuclear

engineering or from another department's graduate faculty with expertise and strength in the student's chosen area of

research. The third member can come from another STEM department. Some traineeship students may wish to

include their mentor at the traineeship site as a fourth member (see the last item under this sub- section 3.3 on

“Additional Members”).

9

PhD Degree: A PhD committee will consist of a minimum of four members, usually two from nuclear engineering

including the chairperson or co-chairs, one from another department whom acts as a Graduate School representative

to the committee to observe the general procedures, and the fourth member from the student's interdisciplinary

breadth areas.

Additional Members: Additional members to advisory committees, including faculty members from other

universities, or representatives from industry or national laboratories, can serve as non-voting committee members. If

a student wishes to have the outside representative serve as a voting member (this request must be noted on the plan-

of-work) the individual must have Graduate Faculty Status. If a person is seeking Graduate Faculty Status, a

nomination along with vitae indicating appropriate academic background or equivalent experience is to be submitted

to the Graduate School. Please see the Director of Graduate Programs and the administrative assistant for

appointment of non-NCSU members to a graduate committee. It usually takes a minimum of two weeks to process

the paperwork for an external committee member.

3.4 Credit Hours for Degrees and Research Credits It is the policy of the nuclear engineering department and of the Graduate School to require a minimum of 30 credit

hours for the Master's degree. In particular cases, the total number required may exceed 30 depending on the

background and preparation of the student. Of the 30 hours, typically, 3 – 6 hours are reserved for research (typically

3 for project in the case of MNE), 9 hours in the interdisciplinary breadth and 15 – 18 hours in the major (nuclear

engineering). The purpose of the interdisciplinary breadth is to provide concentration areas different from nuclear

engineering, but closely related to the student's research interest.

Upon selection of an advisor, and thesis or project topic, the student is expected to start taking research credits

(typically the MNE students register for the project during the last semester after completing majority of the course

work). If transfer of graduate credits is desired, up to 12 hours of graduate credits earned can be allowed, subject to

departmental approval. These 12 credit hours may be from:

1) other universities ,

2) A previous graduate degree program at NCSU, or 3) NCSU as Post-Baccalaureate Studies (PBS).

The minimum number of credit hours, as required by the graduate school, is 72 for the PhD. Among the 72 hours, a

minimum of 21 hours in the major.

Course Requirements:

The graduate committee has revisited the requirement for the PhD coursework in the NE department. To encourage

more student involvement on research, the committee is recommending a minimum of 21 course credit hours from

the NE courses at graduate level with at least 2 courses at 750-level or above. Students coming with a Non-Nuclear

degree must take NE 520 “Radiation and Reactor Fundamentals” in the first year of their enrollment.

The total credit hours needed for a PhD (72) do not change (University regulations) although with the new proposal,

the student can use research credits or other graduate courses to fulfill this requirement. Further, the transfer of

MS/MNE credits to the PhD program remains unchanged, and there are no specific minor courses for completing the

program.

Students can potentially take 7 NE courses in 3 semesters, which is more than sufficient for QE Part 1, and continue

on their research thereafter and still can take additional courses if electing to take more courses in Engineering

(including Nuclear), Sciences, Math or other courses related to the students’ plan of work, with a minimum of 21

research hours required.

10

Minimum NE Graduate Courses 21 (= 7 courses)

(With at least 2 course at 750-level or above)

Remaining 51 hours will be in research or additional courses (if the student choses to take more courses) in

NE, Engineering, Sciences, Math or other courses related to the students’ plan of work, with a minimum of 21

research hours required.

Students cannot take 500-level classes that repeat material previously taken

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Total PhD required Hours: 72

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------

Those entering the program with a Master's degree in nuclear engineering or a closely related major from NC State

or an equivalent program at another university may petition the graduate committee to accept some of the Master's

degree courses as transferable to the PhD program (up to 18 hours). It is the student's responsibility to demonstrate

that such courses are indeed equivalent to graduate courses at NC State. If the student has a Master’s degree in

nuclear engineering from NC State and is, continuing for the Ph.D. without a break in residence, up to a maximum of

30 hours of course work, with the Advisory committee’s approval, can be transferred toward the Ph.D. requirements.

3.5 Required Attendance at Departmental Research Seminars Research seminars by experts in nuclear science and technology, or related fields, are held frequently (on

almost a weekly schedule on Thursdays from 4:00 – 5:00 pm) during the academic year in the Progress

Energy Lecture Hall, room 1202 Burlington Engineering Labs. These seminars are valuable for strengthening

and broadening the students’ knowledge base in nuclear engineering. Regardless of the seminar topic, all

graduate students must attend these NE Colloquium Series in order to further their education. One hour

of graduate credit must be taken for attending the seminars regularly (NE 601 for master’s students and NE 801

for doctoral students). In addition, there may be less formal seminars by faculty and their graduate students

working in a particular research area. The faculty who organizes the research groups announces such seminars.

3.6 Research Publications Publication of research results in peer-reviewed journals and paper presentations at national conferences based on the

student’s research are highly encouraged by the department. Peer- reviewed journal publications are expected of PhD

graduates as added evidence of scholarly achievement. The student's advisor, in many cases, is able to defray the cost

of the publication and/or assist with the expenses of attending meetings. In deserving cases, upon the

recommendation of the advisor, the department may be able to assist with the cost of attending a meeting (see below

for the corresponding departmental policy). The NE Chapter of the Graduate Student Association may also e able to

suggest ways of obtaining partial funding for paper presentations at meetings.

3.7 Graduate Student Travel Support for Professional Society Meetings 1. Each graduate student is eligible to up to $1,600 for travel from the department. This eligibility can be

used for a single (in full) OR Multiple travels (partial) during the entire duration of the student's program. This funding will be approved only if the student contributes to the event(s) she/he is attending (has submitted and presents paper in oral or poster session, has a presentation at workshop, etc.)

2. If the student’s advisor is paying for part of the travel expenses, the departmental coverage will be for the difference between what is covered by #1) and the principal investigator’s (PI) contribution.

11

3. When available, the student is expected to work as a student aid assistant at the meeting. Salary received in this capacity will be used to reduce travel expenses charged under departmental coverage under #1.

4. The departmental support is not applicable to those with employment (excluding graduate student appointments) at the time of the meeting, even if he/she is still enrolled as student.

5. Students are expected to register for the meeting early enough to obtain the early registration fee discount if available, which will be covered under #1. Note that for students working as student aid assistants during the conference, many times the meeting registration is waived.

Travel authorization is done through MyPack portal prior to the travel.

3.8 Responsibility of the Advisor

Until the student has selected the research area and the major professor to serve as the mentor, the Director of the

Graduate Programs will serve as the academic advisor. After the student has chosen the advisory committee, it is the

responsibility of the chairperson(s) of the committee to mentor the student and determine that the student is making

adequate progress towards the degree in terms of course work and research. During pre-registration, the student

must meet with their advisor to select the courses they will take in the following semester.

The Director of Graduate Programs will review the progress of the student from time to time and may advise the

student and/or the chairperson, but it is the committee chair along with the committee that bears primary

responsibility for advising the student on matters related to the student’s progress towards the degree. Lack of

progress towards the degree following an objective review may result in termination of support or even

recommendation to the Graduate School to terminate the program of study of the student.

3.9 Thesis Research with Graduate Faculty in Another Department

In certain instances, where a student's research interests coincide with a nuclear engineering related program of a

faculty member in another department, the student may elect to work with such a faculty member. In order to assure

that this work is suitable for a nuclear engineering graduate degree, it is required that the student find a suitable co-

chairperson from the faculty of the Department of Nuclear Engineering. This co-chairperson must be knowledgeable

about the research problem and also must take active interest in guiding the student. In the event the student is unable

to find such a co- chairperson, the research topic will be deemed unsuitable for a nuclear engineering degree.

3.10 Direct Study to the PhD Degree

As a general policy, the department encourages all students to obtain a Master’s degree along the way towards a PhD

degree. However, graduate students with sufficient prior education at the Baccalaureate level in nuclear engineering

may elect to proceed directly towards the PhD degree. The department will automatically classify a student as a

doctoral student after he/she has successfully passed the departmental Qualifying examination. Students, however,

are encouraged for their own benefit to obtain a Master's degree along the way towards the PhD, except that all

students entering with non-engineering degrees are required to complete an MS before proceeding to the PhD

program. Exception to this policy requires the approval of the departmental faculty on a case-by-case basis.

3.11 Transfer to Other Departments for non-Thesis Masters

There are instances where certain students have expressed a desire to obtain a Master’s degree in another department

on their way to obtaining a PhD in nuclear engineering. Sometimes international students desire this Master's degree

because of the perception that it may increase employment opportunities. In the majority of cases, the fields chosen to

transfer to are Computer Science or Computer Engineering which are also used as the interdisciplinary breadth by

some students majoring in nuclear engineering. It is the view of this Department that such a change of degree

objective diverts the student from his/her main mission in nuclear engineering. Hence, such a change of degree

objective is permitted only after the student has passed the Preliminary Oral examination and has made

12

significant progress on their PhD research. The change of degree requires the approval of the Chairperson of the

student's PhD advisory committee as well as the approval of the Directors of Graduate Programs in both departments.

In addition, it must be possible to complete the Master's degree in one semester of "leave of absence" from nuclear

engineering. While the student is not in the NE degree program, financial support from the NE department will not

be provided.

3.12 Departmental Records of Progress Towards the Degree

The Director of Graduate Programs (DGP) will keep records of each student's progress towards the degree. Students

can assist in keeping these files current by promptly notifying the DGP and/or the Graduate Administrative Assistant

of changes in their program of study. For each of the following events, the DGP should be contacted:

1. Selection of Graduate Advisory Committee;

2. Submission of plan of work to the Graduate School;

3. Notification of proposed thesis research and the name of the research advisor as soon as the topic is

selected;

4. Changes in plan of work;

5. Intention to take the PhD Qualifying exam, preliminary oral, and final oral examinations;

6. Change of home address;

7. Expectation to graduate;

8. Thesis title and date of submission to the Graduate School;

9. Forwarding business address; and,

10. Titles and full citation of papers published.

3.13 Maintaining Full-Time Graduate Status Information regarding full-time enrollment can be found in the Graduate Student Handbook at http://www.nc

su.edu/grad/handbook /subjec t-index .html# F.

Please note that when seeking advisement for registration compliance, students should consider information

provided by the site above as the most accurate source of information even if it differs from other sources (i.e.

Graduate Student Support Plan, http://www.ncsu.edu/grad/support-plan/). Please see Director of Graduate

Programs (DGP) with any questions in this regard.

NC State uses a uniform Schedule of Full-time/Half-time Status of Graduate Students. These definitions apply to

ALL graduate students and can be found at:

http://w w w .ncsu.e du/gra d/ha ndbook/se ctions/3.15-re gistra tion-a nd-residence.html#C.

Excerpt follows:

1. Fall and Spring Semesters

Classificatio

n

Full time Half Time

Non-Thesis

Master's

Registration for nine (9) or more credit hours per Fall or Spring

semester, or a minimum of three (3) hours per semester during the

semester in which the student is completing the last course(s)

required to complete the degree. Students who have completed all

credit hour requirements for their degree must register for three

(3) hours of XXX 689 (Non-Thesis Master Continuous

Registration - Full Time Registration). Students may register for

this course a maximum of one semester.

Registration for 3-8 credit hours per

Fall or Spring semester, or one (1)

hour of XXX 688 (Non- Thesis

Master's Continuous Registration-

Half Time Registration) for students

who have completed all credit hour

requirements for their degree.

13

Thesis

Master's

Registration for nine (9) or more credit hours per Fall or Spring

semester, or a minimum of three (3) hours per semester during the

semester in which the student is completing the last course(s)

required to complete the degree. For thesis students, this could

include XXX 695. Students who have completed all credit hour

requirements (including research credits) for their degree except

for completing their research and/or writing and defending the

thesis should register for three (3) hours of XXX 699 (Master's

Thesis Preparation) each semester until graduation.

Registration for 3-8 credit hours per

Fall or Spring semester, or one (1)

hour of XXX 699 (Master's Thesis

Preparation) for students who have

completed all credit hour

requirements (including research

credits) for their degree and are

completing their research and/or

writing and defending the thesis.

Doctoral Registration for nine (9) or more credit hours per Fall or Spring

semester until the student completes all credit hour requirements

for the degree, including research credits, and the oral

preliminary examination, or three (3) hours per semester of XXX

899 (Doctoral Dissertation Preparation) for students who have

completed all credit hour requirements for their degree (including

research credits and the oral preliminary examination) except for

completing their research and/or writing and defending the

dissertation.

Registration for 3-8 credit hours per

Fall or Spring semester, or one (1)

credit of XXX 899 for students who

have completed all credit hour

requirements for their degree

(including research credits and the

oral preliminary examination)

except for completing their research

and/or writing and defending the

dissertation.

2. Summer Semester

Graduate students are not required by the University to be registered during the summer. However, students who

receive a stipend but who are not enrolled in the University during a period of five weeks or more are subject to

Social Security tax withholding. In particular, this means that Social Security taxes will be withheld from the

paychecks of Graduate Research Assistants (RAs) who do not register in the summer. Specifically, Social Security

taxes will be withheld in June for RAs who are not registered in Summer Session I and in July for RAs who are not

registered in Summer Session II. The source of funds that pays the stipend must pay the same amount of Social

Security tax as is withheld from the student's paycheck during these months.

Two special registration categories have been created for Research Assistants who would not otherwise take courses

in the summer: XYZ 696 (Summer Thesis Research) and XYZ 896 (Summer Dissertation Research), where XYZ

represents the course prefix of a specific department or program, i.e. NE for the Department of Nuclear Engineering.

Each of these courses is for 1 hour of credit, with registration for 10 weeks, beginning the first day of Summer

Session I. Social Security taxes will not be withheld from the June or July paychecks of RAs who register for either

NE 696 or NE 896.

Please note if they are not registered during the summer, students do not have access to financial aid during that

period, nor do they have access to the Student Health Service unless they pay the student health fee for each of the

two summer sessions.

4 PROGRAMS OF STUDY – GENERAL The department of Nuclear Engineering has three tracks of graduate study and the student is free to elect the track of

interest provided that he/she has secured an advisory commitment from a faculty member in that area. These three

tracks are:

- Reactor Engineering - fission reactor physics and technology including thermal- hydraulics,

instrumentation and control, and nuclear materials;

- Plasma Engineering - applications of plasmas including fusion reactor technology, other plasma

applications such as plasma propulsion, plasma guns, plasma processing of materials, and surface

modification using plasmas;

- Radiation and Radiological Engineering - industrial and medical applications of radiation, radiation

transport computational methods, shielding calculations, radioactive waste management, and criticality

safety assessment.

14

Two additional informal cross-cutting tracks with applications in the above formal tracks are:

- Nuclear Computational Science – development and analysis of numerical methods and algorithms for

nuclear systems, Sensitivity Analysis and Uncertainty Quantification, Data Assimilation;

- Nuclear Materials Science – atomistic modeling and simulation of radiation effects on materials,

experimental studies on deformation, creep and fracture of materials for current and advanced nuclear

reactors

While the three formal and two informal tracks are related to one another in terms of some of the basic courses,

specialization requires learning one of these tracks in depth while maintaining breadth in other areas. Students are

advised not to concentrate entirely in the track of their choice for course work in order to broaden their

knowledge base.

4.1 Plan of Work for Graduate Study

The Plan of Work (POW) is prepared by the student in consultation with his/her committee chairperson and entered

online through MyPack Portal, of the North Carolina State University homepage, www.ncsu.edu.

Log-in to MyPack Portal then navigate to Student Self Service > Academic Records > Graduate Plan of Work

POW describes the set of courses that the student has taken and commits to take, the names of the members of the

graduate committee, and a thesis/dissertation title that describes the general research problem (need not be the exact

final title of the thesis/dissertation). The student obtains approval of his committee on the POW. The Director of

Graduate Programs (DGP) is responsible for the departmental approval of the POW.

Students may begin working on the plan of work (POW) and advisory committee as soon as they are activated in the

graduate career. Students may save in‐progress work and submit it later.

Once a student submits the Plan of Work/Advisory Committee for approval, an email invitation will be sent to

committee members asking them to access the plan of work through their Worklist in order to accept the student’s

invitation to serve and indicate their approval of the plan. Once all committee members have accepted membership

and approved the plan it will go into a Worklist for the Director of Graduate Programs (DGP) to process for

departmental approval.

4.2 Curricula / Instruction

4.2.1 Master's Degree

The total credit hour requirement is 30 semester credit hours of which 9 credits must be interdisciplinary breadth

that is closely aligned with nuclear engineering and with the student's research interest areas. All credits must be at

the graduate level (course numbers 500 and above) with the exception of a maximum of one course in the

interdisciplinary breadth area(s), which may be at the 400-level. All of the nuclear engineering graduate courses

that are currently approved, as regular courses can be accesses Registration and Records:

http://www2.acs.ncsu.edu/reg_records /crs_cat/dir_NE.html .Explanations of general nomenclature is available at

http://www.nc su.edu/grad/hand book /sections /3.19 -graduate -courses.html.

Refer to section 3.4 above on the policy related to transferring graduate credits from other universities, previous

graduate degree program at NCSU and PBS at NCSU.

4.2.2 Combined BS/MNE-MS Curriculum – Accelerated Baccalaureate/Master’s (ABM) Degree Program

The combined Bachelor of Science and Master of Nuclear Engineering is tailored for those students who, by the end

of their junior year at NC State, have decided to attempt a Master's degree and have demonstrated strong academic

15

abilities. The program is designed such that the student may receive an ABET accredited BS degree at the end of the

fourth year of study and the Master's degree within a summer from the completion of the 5th academic year.

The shortened time is a result of up to 12 graduate credits taken by the student during the 4th year, which may be

counted towards both degrees (double counted). To be admitted to the program, the student must have applied

formally (using standard application procedures ) to the Graduate School by the end of the Junior year of study

after having completed a minimum of 75 credit hours in their undergraduate programs. This includes credits earned

from advanced placement, and must have a GPA of at least 3.5 overall and 3.25 or better in engineering, science,

and mathematics courses.

Transfer students must have completed a minimum of two semesters as a full-time student at NC State,

corresponding to a minimum of 24 hours. In addition, a Plan of Graduate Work, signed by the prospective student

and the Directors of Undergraduate and Graduate Programs must be submitted.

Official admission to the Graduate School is not granted until there is assured completion of the BS degree on

schedule. Students must receive a grade of B (3.0/4.0) or better in the double counted graduate level courses.

Courses with a grade of B- or below cannot be double counted between the two degrees. Students must complete the

Master’s degree within 12 months from the completion of the baccalaureate degree for a non- thesis Master’s degree

and within 18 months for Master’s programs requiring a thesis. If the Master’s program is not completed within

these time limits, none of the courses can be double counted. Permission to pursue an ABM degree program does

not guarantee an admission to the Graduate School. Admission is contingent on meeting eligibility requirements at

the time of entering the graduate program.

All three graduate program tracks are available for the MNE degree: Nuclear Fission Reactor Engineering,

Plasma/Fusion Engineering, and Radiological Engineering, plus the two crosscutting tracks: Nuclear Computational

Science and Nuclear Material Science.

Please speak with Ms. Lisa Marshall, Director of Outreach, with initial ABM eligibility questions.

Application to the Accelerated Bachelor's/Master's Program

1. A prospective student who meets the eligibility requirements above should schedule a meeting with the

Directors of Undergraduate and Graduate Programs to develop Plans of Work for the bachelor's and

master's degree programs.

2. Before admission to an ABM program can be finalized, students must submit the standard application for

admission to the Graduate School including an application, application fee, and transcripts. In addition, a

Plan of Graduate Work (as described below), signed by the prospective student and the Directors of

Undergraduate and Graduate Programs must be submitted. The Department of Nuclear Engineering

requires GRE scores and potentially other information.

3. The Plan of Graduate Work for the Master's degree should clearly indicate:

a) the courses (a maximum of 12 graduate credit hours) that will be double counted for both

bachelor's and master's degrees,

b) the graduate courses (a maximum of 6 additional graduate credit hours) that are taken as an

undergraduate student at NC State and that will not be counted towards the bachelor's degree,

c) the courses that will be taken after matriculating into the graduate program,

d) the graduation date for the master's degree that meets the time limit for the ABM program (i.e.

obtaining a non-thesis master's degree within 12 months of completing the bachelor's degree or

obtaining a thesis based master's degree within 24 months of completing the bachelor's degree).

4. Upon review of the materials submitted by the Directors of Graduate and Undergraduate programs to the

Graduate School, a letter of acceptance (or denial) to the Master's program, contingent on meeting the

16

ABM requirements, will be sent to the student with a copy to the Directors of Graduate and Undergraduate

programs.

5. Any changes to the courses (a maximum of 12 graduate credit hours) that will be double counted for both

bachelor's and master's degrees or the graduate courses (a maximum of 6 additional graduate credit hours)

that are taken as an undergraduate student at NC State and that will not be counted towards the bachelor's

degree must be approved by the Directors of Undergraduate and Graduate Programs and submitted in

writing to, and approved by the Dean of the Graduate School.

4.2.3 Combined BS / MNE-MS Curriculum - Senior Year

Courses in italics are counted in both BS and MNE/MS

Typical interdisciplinary breadth areas: Mechanical Engineering, Computational Engineering, Materials Science &

Engineering, Civil Engineering.

Typical interdisciplinary breadth areas: Physics, Materials Science and Engineering, Mechanical Engineering.

Fission Reactor Engineering Curriculum: Y. Azmy, D. Anistratov, I. Bolotnov, J.M.

Doster, J. Eapen, A. Hawari, J. Mattingly, K.L. Murty, P.J. Turinsky

Fall Semester Credits Spring Semester Credits

NE 402 Reactor Engineering

NE 504 Rad. Safety & Shielding

NE 5112 Nuclear Fuel Cycles

NE Elective

Tech Elective

NE 406 Nuclear Engineering,

Design Prep

4

3

3

3

3

1

NE 408 Nuclear Engineering, Design Project

NE 505 Reactor System

NE 409 Nuclear Materials

Engr. Technical Elective [MNE Minor]

GEP Requirement

GEP Requirement

3

3

3

3

3

1

17

16

Plasma/Fusion Engineering Curriculum: M. Bourham, J. Gilligan, S. Shannon

Fall Semester Credits Spring Semester Credits

NE 402 Reactor Engineering

NE 528 Principles of Fusion

Reactors

NE 504 Radiation Safety &

Shielding

NE Elective

Tech Elective

NE 406 Nuclear Engineering,

Design Prep

4

3

3

3

3

1

NE 408 Nuclear Engineering, Design Project

NE 7XX From list of 700 level Plasma Courses

NE 7XX (another one)

Engr. Technical Elective

GEP Requirement

3

3

3

3

3

17

15

17

Typical interdisciplinary breadth areas: Environmental Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Biomedical

Engineering, Civil Engineering.

ABM students specializing in one of the crosscutting tracks (Nuclear Computational Science or Nuclear Material

Science) will typically select their courses from the above list that best matches the application of their crosscutting

research.

4.2.4 BS / MNE-MS Combined Program - Fifth Year (1st year of Graduate School)

Required courses of all students: NE695 (3-6) for MS and NE693 (3-6) for MNE. The interdisciplinary breadth area

requirement of 9 CHs would be satisfied by a combination of the technical elective in the senior year and two (6 CHs)

additional courses taken during the fifth year. Among the required remaining graduate NE courses, at least one of

them must be at the NE 7XX level.

4.2.5 Master of Nuclear Engineering (MNE) Curriculum

The Master of Nuclear Engineering curriculum requires a prior degree in an engineering or science discipline that

need not be Nuclear Engineering (NE). All our past students in the MNE program have come with nuclear

engineering BS degree or with a non-nuclear BS but after having taken a few nuclear engineering courses.

MNE Requirements:

30 credit hours (CH) are required with the following breakdown:

15-18 CH in NE graduate level courses (5XX level and above);

3-6 CH of NE 693 to complete a project, usually taken during the final semester with the report

to be approved and graded by the faculty adviser along with one other NE faculty member;

9 CH in graduate level courses other than NE (interdisciplinary breadth) with at most 3 CH at

the 4XX level;

No graduate student committee is required;

No final oral examination is required; and,

The total GPA (TGPA) of 3.0 must be attained.

To receive graduate degree credit, a grade of "C-" or higher is required in the courses taken after

admission. Grades on courses taken for graduate credit as an undergraduate at NC State, in PBS

classification, or transferred from other universities must have a grade of "B" or better to be

transferred. Refer to http://www.ncsu.edu/grad/handbook /sections/3.18-grades.html.

At least one NE course must be at the 7XX level.

Radiological Engineering Curriculum: R. Gardner, A. Hawari, J. Mattingly

Fall Semester Credits Spring Semester Credits

NE 402 Reactor Engineering

NE 504 Radiation Safety &

Shielding [MNE Minor]

NE Elective

NE 770 Nuclear Radiation

Attenuation

NE 406 Nuclear Engineering,

Design Prep

4

3

3

3

3

1

NE 408 Nuclear Engineering, Design Project

NE 7XX From list of 700 level Radiological

Courses

Engr. Technical Elective

GEP Requirement

3

3

3

3

3

17

15

18

4.2.6 Master of Science (MS) Curriculum

The MS curriculum requires a graduate student committee (see section 3.3) comprised of 3 committee members,

submission of a thesis, and a final oral examination.

MS Requirements:

A minimum of 30 credit hours (CH) is required with a GPA of 3.0 or greater with the following

breakdown:

15-18 CH in NE graduate level courses (5XX level and above);

3-6 CH of NE 695-Master’s Thesis Research to complete a thesis;

9 CH in graduate level courses other than NE (interdisciplinary breadth) with at most 3 CH at

the 4XX level;

At least one course must be at the advanced NE7XX level;

Graduate advisory committee, MS thesis and final oral exam;

Non-NE BS students are required to take NE520 on Radiation Fundamentals.

4.2.7 Options & NE Courses

Fission Reactor Engineering

Plasma/Fusion Engineering

Radiation Applications

Radiological Engineering

NE 505, 509, 722, 723, 724, 725, 751, 752, 753, 755, 757

NE 509, 528, 724, 732, 745, 746, 780, 781

NE 727, 726, 761, 762

NE 504, 509, 531, 532, 585, 730, 770, 771, 772,

BME* 141 & 142, ENVR* 164, 263, & 264 (these

courses will provide background but are not counted

towards a graduate degree)

Common to all fields of study:

(NE 740): Laboratory Projects in Nuclear Engineering

4.2.8 Doctoral Degree Curriculum The doctorate is a research degree, designed to have flexible course work requirements that can be structured to suit

the educational needs and research interests of the student. The minimum number of credit hours for the PhD degree

is 72 hours. Among the 72 hours, the minimum required course work comprises 21 hours in nuclear engineering

courses at the graduate level with at least 2 courses at 750-level or above. Students coming with a Non-Nuclear

degree must take NE 520 “Radiation and Reactor Fundamentals” in the first year of their enrollment. Remaining 51

hours will be in research or additional courses (if the student choses to take more courses) in NE, Engineering,

Sciences, Math or other courses related to the students’ plan of work, with a minimum of 21 research hours required.

Students entering the PhD program with a Master's degree in nuclear engineering from NC State may petition the

graduate committee to accept up to 24 hours of course work as transferable to the PhD program. Those entering the

program with a Master's degree in a very closely related major from NC State or an equivalent program from another

university may petition the graduate committee to accept up to 18 hours of the Master's degree courses as transferable

to the PhD program. It is the student's responsibility to demonstrate that such courses are indeed equivalent to

graduate courses here. If the student earns a Master’s degree in nuclear engineering from NC State and is, continuing

for the PhD without a break in residence, up to a maximum of 30 hours of course work, with the Advisory

committee’s approval, can be transferred toward the PhD course requirements.

19

5 PhD QUALIFYING EXAMINATION

The exam has two components:

1) Proficiency in course-work “NE courses” and

2) Competency and aptitude in research “NE research”

PART 1: Proficiency in course-work “NE courses”

To satisfy the proficiency requirement in the QE examination “Part 1: Proficiency in NE course-work”, PhD

students have to select 4 courses from the list of named graduate classes (which includes all permanently named 5xx

and 7xx level classes) and declare them as selected core classes and complete them by their third semester of

enrollment in the program. The three courses with the highest grades from the selected 4 courses will be used to

calculate a minimum average 3.5 GPA or higher with no course grade less than (B-) in these 3 courses is required to

advance to the written/oral examination “Part 2: Competency and aptitude in NE research”. Students coming with a

Non-Nuclear degree must take NE 520 “Radiation and Reactor Fundamentals” in the first year of their enrollment.

MS, MNE, ABM (Accelerated Bachelor's/Master's Program) and PBS students who plan to continue for the PhD

program must also declare their selection of the classes from this list within the first 3 months of enrollment in the

program OR by Fall semester October 31 and Spring semester by March 31 to count graduate classes taken during

their MS, MNE, ABM or PBS. Declaring at a later time will not permit including previously completed classes in

the selected four courses; it will follow the procedure described in the first paragraph upon enrollment in the PhD

program.

PART 2: Competency and aptitude in research “NE research”

The student completes a written report and provides an oral presentation within 8 weeks from the date of

assignment; Students must complete part 2 by their fourth semester of enrollment in the program. The student’s

adviser initiates Part 2 assignment [examples: journal article(s) or conference paper (s) or a selected research topic]

and the formation of the Q-Committee of 3 members in consultation with the DGP. The student’s adviser attends the

presentation and participates in the comments and evaluation; the adviser is the chair of the committee but does not

vote. The DGP will serve as the interim adviser in the rare case that the student's adviser is not available to serve in

this capacity.

For clarification, and as written and published, the rule for the Part II Q exam is that the adviser initiates Part 2

assignment, formulates the committee and then leave the student to prepare for the exam within 8 weeks. There will

be no communication between the adviser and the students regarding the exam during the period in which the

student is preparing for the presentation and the written report. The student must submit the written report to the

committee 1 week prior to the oral exam. The adviser chairs the exam committee on the day of the exam. What this

means is that the student do not get any help from the adviser nor consultation after receiving the assignment.

The committee will recommend a PASS / FAIL / CONDITIONAL PASS upon the completion of the report and the

oral presentation.

In case of CONDITIONAL PASS, the committee will guide the student towards the additional required work to be

completed within FOUR weeks and re-present his/her work, after which the student either passes or fails. There is

no second chance in the research competency.

For requirements for Part 2 of QE, please see appendix 1.

20

APPENDIX

General nomenclature:

5XX Letter Graded Master's Courses

6XX S-U Graded Master's Courses

7XX

Letter Graded Doctoral Courses

(ALL 7XX courses are restricted to the following classification of students: MR,

DR, SR, SP and GR)

8XX

S-U Graded Doctoral Courses

(ALL 8XX courses, with the exception of those specifically listed at the end of

this section, are restricted to the following classification of students: MR, DR,

SR, SP and GR)

9XX Professional Courses in the College of Veterinary Medicine are not

graduate courses and may not be counted in Plans of Work for graduate

degrees. NE graduate course descriptions available at

http://catalog.ncsu.edu/undergraduate/coursedescriptions/ne/

Appendix 1

Requirements for Part 2 of QE

1. The objective of Part 2 of QE is to ensure that the student has the ability for and meets the requirements

to perform research at the Ph.D. level in nuclear science and engineering. It includes preparation of

technical report on the paper/project assigned to the student from her/his advisor. Based on this report

of the paper the student has to prepare a presentation for the exam. The ability of the student to

write a technical report with a critique of the paper/project will demonstrate if the student has

understood the paper/project and the impact of the paper/project on the field.

2. The report should be ten to fifteen pages long and it should contain a summary of the contents of the paper

and the student’s critical review. The report is to be prepared using standard 8.5” × 11” paper with 1-inch

margins (top, bottom, left, right), using a font size no smaller than Times New Roman 11 point. The

preferred file format is PDF. The paper will serve as the basis for the oral presentation.

3. The technical report should be submitted to the Q-Committee by the student one week before the date

of exam.

4. At the beginning of the Part 2 of QE the Q-Committee has to select one of the two options: either the

student will present uninterrupted or the student could be interrupted during the presentations with

questions form the members of the committee. In the first option, the presentation will be no longer than

30 minutes, uninterrupted, and will be timed. In the second option there is no time limit.

5. The duration of Part 2 of QE is up to 2 hours. At the end of the exam the Q-Committee is filling in and

signing the QE form (Appendix 2) and filling in Graduate Student Evaluation (Appendix 3). The Chair

of the committee is submitting these forms to DGP and Assistant Director for Graduate Student Activities.

6. During the Part 2 of QE the Q-Committee is evaluating 3 components, which the final committee decision

should account for: a) the written report (review-critique); b) the presentation; and c) how the student

answers the questions from the committee.

7. The adviser can discuss with the student and answer questions about the Part II assignment BUT NOT

reviewing or editing neither the written report nor the Power Point presentation.