Ph.D. Degree in Physics—An Overview

• Satisfy the Graduate School residency and course requirements for the Ph.D.:

  (Extracted from the Graduate School Rules)

  • Doctoral Degree: A student must formally apply for Admission to Candidacy for the doctoral degree on forms supplied by the Graduate School at least two weeks before attempting the comprehensive examination. Before being admitted to candidacy a student must earn at least three semesters of residence, and pass the comprehensive examination.
    
  • Doctoral Degree: The minimum requirements for the Ph.D. or D.M.A. degree are 30 credit hours of course work at the 5000 level or above. Those students pursuing the Ph.D. shall complete a minimum of 30 credit hours of dissertation work beyond the minimum course work requirement.

    Unless otherwise specified by departmental requirements, all courses taken at the 5000 level or above, taken for the master’s degree at CU-Boulder, may be applied toward the doctoral degree. Course work taken in completion of a doctoral degree cannot be applied toward subsequent master’s degree work.

• Time limit—six years.
  
 
• Complete 30 hours of course work, with at least a "B-" in each class.

  27 hours—Physics 5000+.
  3 hours—Suitable grad-level course(s).

• Complete Comps II (Download a PDF of the guidelines here).
  
• Accumulate 30 hours of dissertation credit;
 

• Minimum GPA—3.0
 

• File a Ph.D. candidacy application at least two weeks before the Comprehensive Examination (known in our department as Comps III);
 

• Pass the Ph.D. Comprehensive Examination;
 

• Meet with and obtain a progress report from thesis committee once each year;  
  
• Submit an acceptable thesis reporting original research approved by the thesis committee.
 

• Pass a final oral examination by a committee (thesis defense).