The program of study for the Doctor of Philosophy degree in computer science and engineering includes formal course work, independent study and research. The purpose of the degree is to produce a professional capable of directing and conducting independent research within the discipline of computer science and engineering.
Admission requirements
Students seeking admission to the doctoral program must meet all general requirements for doctoral candidates at UNT and must have completed all of the requirements (or equivalent work) for a master’s degree in either computer science or computer engineering or other CSE department MS degrees. Additional requirements are listed below.
- Have taken the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). See the department’s web page for information concerning typical admission test scores.
- A 3.5 GPA on the most recent 30 hours of course work.
- All applicants to the University of North Texas must show proof of English language proficiency (see admissions.unt.edu/international/english-language-requirements).
- Three letters of recommendation.
- Statement of purpose.
An overall and holistic evaluation of the student’s credentials is used as a basis for admission. Admission is competitive, and satisfaction of the minimum requirements does not guarantee admission.
Degree requirements
The PhD in computer science and engineering requires 72 graduate semester hours beyond the bachelor’s degree or 42 graduate semester hours beyond the master’s degree. Students cannot apply more than 12 hours of dissertation work toward their degree.
In addition to satisfying the general requirements for all UNT doctoral degrees listed in this catalog (i.e., those of the Toulouse Graduate School), each PhD student must satisfactorily complete the following:
- A minimum of 6 hours of 6000-level organized courses in computer science and engineering;
- The residence requirement, consisting of two consecutive terms/semesters of enrollment in at least 9 semester hours other than thesis or dissertation hours; or three consecutive terms/semesters of enrollment in at least 6 semester credit hours other than thesis or dissertation hours.
- PhD qualifying requirements:
- Formation of a PhD committee after, at most, four long semesters. This committee shall consist of the student’s advisor (major professor) and at least three additional members.
- Students must have a copy of their degree plan, completed and approved by the Graduate School, after being enrolled in 18 semester credit hours.
- Student shall complete, with a grade of B or higher, a theoretical course (such as CSCE 5150 - Analysis of Computer Algorithms) that is recommended/approved by the student’s PhD committee.
- Complete the Research Readiness Exam: an oral exam to be conducted by the student’s PhD committee. The format of this oral exam is to be determined by the student’s PhD committee.
- PhD Proposal Qualifier: The student must convene their committee for the Dissertation Proposal Defense. The committee must admit them for PhD candidacy by approving their research plan to take dissertation credit; the student can be admitted for PhD candidacy without formally passing the proposal defense.
- Pass the Dissertation Proposal Defense: an oral presentation of a detailed research plan. The research plan (prospectus) is distributed to the committee well in advance, and an examination announcement will be distributed for interested graduate faculty and students.
- Dissertation Defense: upon completion, the dissertation is to be distributed to the committee members at least four weeks prior to the final examination date. The candidate will prepare a formal presentation of their dissertation research and present and defend their results during an oral examination.
Pass-through master’s degree
Pass-through degree only. Students who have completed the PhD Qualifier may apply for this option after the completion of 40 hours in the doctoral program. 30 hours of organized graduate courses will be applied toward the pass-through master’s degree.
