OVERVIEW
OBJECTIVES
OUTCOMES
STRUCTURE & REQUIREMENTS
OVERVIEW
The PhD in Chemistry (PhD CHEM) builds on Khalifa University’s internationally leading research activity in science, engineering, and medicine. It supports the University’s alignment with the Abu Dhabi Economic Vision 2030 plan through the provision of internationally excellent education and student experience in Chemistry, producing highly skilled science professionals capable of transferring state-of-the-art technologies to priority sectors of industry, business and government. The aim of the PhD in Chemistry program is to produce graduates who are able to conduct independent research in Chemistry at the highest levels of originality and quality. The degree will be awarded to students who demonstrate a range of advanced knowledge and skills at the forefront of Chemistry and who complete an independent investigation of a novel specialist topic in order to present a dissertation addressing a problem in cutting edge research. Candidates for the degree will be supervised by teams of experienced researchers.
OBJECTIVES
The objectives of the PhD in Chemistry program are to produce graduates who have the ability to:
- Synthesize and critically evaluate complex current knowledge in the chemical sciences in order to plan and implement new and creative approaches so as to generate new knowledge and solve research challenges with effective dissemination of the results to a variety of audiences;
- Work to the highest professional and ethical standards in an area of chemical sciences and develop their individual academic, professional and career skills; and
- Keep abreast of the latest developments in chemistry that contribute to the advancement of knowledge for the benefit of society.
OUTCOMES
Upon successful completion of the PhD in Chemistry, a graduate will be able to:
- Demonstrate and critically analyze comprehensive, deep and overarching knowledge that is at the frontier of recent developments in chemical sciences.
- Conduct and defend original independent research that creates significant new knowledge in chemical sciences of publishable quality that leads to scholarly articles or other intellectual outputs.
- Analyze and critically evaluate the uses and limitations of diverse methodologies and techniques for solving problems in chemical research, leading to informed and valid judgements.
- Select and deploy advanced experimental and related skills to investigate and solve complex problems in chemical research.
- Communicate effectively and professionally, in written and oral forms as appropriate, the major tenets of areas of chemistry and their individual specializations to a variety of audiences.
- Demonstrate a commitment to safe, responsible and ethical behavior in all research and professional activities.
- Reflect upon their role(s) in their research specialization and in the wider research community to ensure that they take responsibility for their own development and that of peer groups and networks.
STRUCTURE & REQUIREMENTS
The structure and requirements for the PhD in Engineering program for candidates with a Master’s degree and those with only a Bachelor’s degree are detailed below.
Candidates with a Master’s Degree
Overall Program Structure
The PhD in Chemistry consists of a minimum 60 credit hours, distributed as follows: 24 credit hours of coursework, 36 credit hours of PhD Dissertation, two zero credit PhD Seminar courses, as well as PhD Written Qualifying and PhD Research Proposal Examinations. The components of the program are summarized in the table below.
| Program Component |
Credit Hours |
| Program Core (2 courses) |
6 |
| Research Seminar I |
0 |
| Research Seminar II |
0 |
| PhD Written Qualifying Examination |
0 |
| PhD Research Proposal Examination |
0 |
| Program Electives |
18 |
| PhD Research Dissertation |
36 |
| Total |
60 |
Program Requirements
Students seeking the degree of PhD in Chemistry must successfully complete a minimum 60 credit hours as specified in the program requirements detailed below, with a minimum CGPA of 3.0. Course selection should be made in consultation with the student’s Main Advisor. All courses listed below have a credit rating of three credits each, except for PhD Research Seminar, Written Qualifying Exam, Research Proposal Exam, and the PhD Research Dissertation.
Program Core (6 credit hours)
Students must complete the core courses listed below.
Core Courses
| CHEM 701 |
Methods and Techniques in Chemical research |
3
|
| SCIE 701 |
Research Methods in Science |
3
|
| SCIE 702 |
Research Seminar I |
0
|
| SCIE 703 |
Research Seminar II |
0
|
| SCIE 795 |
PhD Written Qualifying Examination |
0
|
| SCIE 796 |
PhD Research Proposal Examination |
0
|
Program Electives (18 credit hours)
Students must complete a total of six elective courses. Program electives are listed below.
Program Elective Courses
| CHEM 711 |
Recent Developments in Inorganic Chemistry |
3
|
| CHEM 712 |
Recent Developments in Organic Chemistry |
3
|
| CHEM 713 |
Recent Advances in Physical Chemistry |
3
|
| CHEM 714 |
Recent Developments in Analytical Chemistry |
3
|
| CHEM 715 |
Recent Developments in Nanochemistry |
3
|
| CHEM 716 |
Recent Developments in Environmental Chemistry |
3
|
| CHEM 717 |
Advanced topics in Biochemistry |
3
|
| CHEM 719 |
Adv in Energy Storage Material |
3
|
| CHEM 720 |
Adv Topics in Theoretical Chem |
3
|
| CHEM 721 |
Green Analytical & Bioanalytic |
3
|
| CHEM 722 |
Adv Topics in Organic Chem |
3
|
| CHEM 723 |
Advanced Polymer Chemistry |
3
|
| CHEM 799 |
Entrepreneurship in Chemistry-Science |
3
|
Subject to approval of the Main Advisor and the Program Coordinator, up to two electives (6 credits) may be taken from outside the student’s department and ONLY chosen from the list below, if these courses support the student’s dissertation topic.
Elective Courses from Other Departments
Mathematics
| MATH 705 |
Mechanics of interacting particles |
3
|
| MATH 707 |
Nonlinear Optimization |
3
|
| MATH 708 |
Partial Differential Equations |
3
|
| MATH 777 |
Mathematical Models for Biology and Epidemiology |
3
|
Earth Sciences
| ERTH 720 |
Organic Geochemistry |
3
|
| ERTH 723 |
Isotope Geochemistry of Sedimentary Systems |
3
|
Physics
Biomedical Engineering
Chemical Engineering
Civil Engineering
| CIVE 720 |
Nanotechnology in Water Purification |
3
|
Electrical Engineering
Mechanical Engineering
| MSEN 712 |
Imaging of Materials: Scanning Electron Microscopy and X-ray Microanalysis |
3
|
| MSEN 715 |
Advanced Imaging of Materials: Transmission Electron Microscopy |
3
|
| MSEN 750 |
HighEfficiency Silicon Solar Cells: Designs and Technologies |
3
|
| MEEN 782 |
Materials Characterization Techniques |
3
|
| MEEN 792 |
Advanced Nanomaterials and Their Mechanical Applications |
3
|
PhD Research Dissertation (36 credit hours)
Students must complete a Dissertation that involves creative, research-oriented work within the field of chemistry, under direct supervision of a full-time faculty advisor from the Chemistry Department, and at least one other full-time faculty who acts as a co-advisor. The outcome of research should demonstrate the synthesis of information into knowledge in a form that may be used by others. The research findings must be documented in a formal dissertation and defended successfully in a viva voce examination.
Dissertation
Candidates with only a Bachelor’s Degree
Overall Program Structure
| Category |
Credit Hours |
| Core Courses |
12 |
| Technical Electives |
Ìý24Ìý |
| SCIE Â 702 PhD Research Seminar I |
0 |
| SCIE 703 PhD Research Seminar II |
0 |
| SCIE 795 PhD Written Qualifying Exam |
0 |
| SCIE 796 PhD Research Proposal Exam |
0 |
| PhD Research Dissertation |
36 |
| Total |
72 |
All the courses that the students will take are at PhD level. The students will only be able to attempt SCIE PhD Written Qualifying Exam (WQE) after successfully completing a minimum of 27 credits of formal coursework.
Program Requirements
Students seeking the degree of PhD in Chemistry must successfully complete a minimum 72 credit hours as specified in the program requirements detailed below, with a minimum CGPA of 3.0. Course selection should be made in consultation with the student’s Main Advisor. All courses listed below have a credit rating of three credits each, except for PhD Research Seminar, Written Qualifying Exam, Research Proposal Exam, and the PhD Research Dissertation.
Program Core (12 credit hours)
Students must complete Research Methods in Science in addition to 9 credits from the list of technical courses below.
Core Courses
| SCIE 701 |
Research Methods in Science |
3
|
| CHEM 701 |
Methods and Techniques in Chemical research |
3
|
| CHEM 704 |
Electrochemistry & Corrosion S |
3
|
| CHEM 705 |
Synthesis & Reaction Mechanism |
3
|
Program Electives (24 credit hours)
Students must complete a total of eight elective courses (24 credits) from the list of program elective courses below.
PhD Research Dissertation (36 credit hours)
Students must complete a Dissertation that involves creative, research-oriented work within the field of chemistry, under direct supervision of a full-time faculty advisor from the Chemistry Department, and at least one other full-time faculty who acts as a co-advisor. The outcome of research should demonstrate the synthesis of information into knowledge in a form that may be used by others. The research findings must be documented in a formal dissertation and defended successfully in a viva voce examination.
Dissertation
