SEAS Student Handbook

GRADUATE PROGRAMS
Graduate programs of study in The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied
Science are not formally prescribed, but are planned to meet the particular needs and
interests of each individual student. Requirements for each degree are outlined in detail
in the Academic Bulletin.
Students registered in the School have a minimum requirement for each Columbia degree
of 30 points of credit of coursework completed at Columbia University. The student must
enroll for at least 15 of these points while registered as a matriculating student in a degree
program in the Engineering School. Students wishing to change from the Ph.D. degree to
the Eng.Sc.D. degree must therefore enroll for at least 15 points while registered in the
School. For residence requirements for students registered in the Graduate School of Arts
and Sciences or those wishing to change from the Eng.Sc.D. degree to the Ph.D. degree,
see the bulletin of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.
For graduation, a candidate for any degree except a doctoral degree must file an
Application for Degree or Certificate on the date specified in the Academic Calendar.
Candidates for a doctoral degree must apply for the final examination. If the degree is not
earned by the next regular time for the issuance of diplomas subsequent to the date of
filing, the application must be renewed. Degrees are awarded three times a year—in
October, February, and May.
The Master of Science Degree
The Master of Science degree is offered in many fields of engineering and applied
science upon the satisfactory completion of a minimum of 30 points of credit of approved
graduate study extending over at least one academic year.
All degree requirements must be completed within five years of the beginning of the
Master of Science program. Under extraordinary circumstances, a written request for an
extension of this time limit may be submitted to the student’s department for approval by
the department chair and the Assistant Dean. A minimum cumulative grade-point average
of 2.5 is required for the M.S. degree. A student who, at the end of any term, has not
attained the grade-point average required for the degree may be asked to withdraw.
Doctoral Degrees: Eng.Sc.D. and Ph.D.
Two doctoral degrees in engineering are offered by the University: the Doctor of
Engineering Science, administered by The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and
Applied Science and the Doctor of Philosophy, administered by the Graduate School of
Arts and Sciences. Both doctoral programs are subject to review by the Committee on
Instruction of the School. Doctoral students may submit a petition to the Office of
Graduate Student Affairs to change from the Eng.Sc.D. degree to the Ph.D. degree or
from the Ph.D. degree to the Eng.Sc.D. degree. The petition must be submitted within the
first year of enrollment in the doctoral program. Any petitions submitted after this period
will not be considered.
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