Assessment Details
Academic Year: 2021-2022 Level: Graduate
Campus Department: Morrissey College of Arts & Sciences [UG and Grad]
Program Type: Major [UG] / Program [Grad]
Program Name: Physics PhD (Link)
Description of Data Collection:
• Meetings with assigned academic advisor during semesters
• Passing of the Comprehensive Examination
• Passing of the Research Proposal Examination
• Thesis advising
• Thesis committee input and successful thesis defense
• Placement upon graduation
• Graduate Affairs Committee interviews with students as necessary.
Review Process:
Faculty academic advisors meet with advisees periodically to discuss their academic standing, course selection, progress through the program, learning outcomes, etc. The Comprehensive Examination is administered by a faculty committee at the beginning of the student’s 2nd year in the program to test their broad understanding of physics. The results are discussed and voted on at a faculty meeting. Subsequently each student takes a public oral Research Proposal Examination to evaluate their ability to undertake PhD-level research and communicate the relevant scientific principles and results appropriately. The Research Proposal exam is administered and evaluated (pass/fail) by a faculty committee headed by the thesis advisor. At the completion of their PhD thesis research, a student’s Doctoral Thesis Committee evaluates
both the content of the written thesis and quality of the defense to confirm that the student’s work was at the PhD-level and the results were communicated appropriately. The graduate students also have input into the process with representatives on the Graduate Affairs Committee (when discussing curricular issues) and on our Teaching Committee. The overall responsibility for evaluating a student’s achieving the desired outcomes rests with the Graduate Affairs Committee, in consultation with the department Chairperson and the entire faculty, as necessary (e.g., Comprehensive Exam, recommendations from Graduate Affairs Committee on changes in the curriculum).
Resulting Program Changes:
Based on student feedback and subsequent faculty discussion, the time frame over which the Comprehensive Examination (CE) takes place was extended. Previously the exam was administered in a two-day window. As of the Fall of 2021, it is administered over a four-day period with each day covering a reduced amount of material. The change was well-received and has reduced the stress level of the students taking the CE. Any changes in student performance will be monitored in the coming years.
Discussions are ongoing about possible changes to the format of the CE. Currently, our CE has four parts covering the four fundamental areas of physics (classical mechanics, electrodynamics, quantum physics and statistical physics). A student must receive an overall passing grade on the CE or retake the entire exam. Nationwide the format of CEs offered varies widely, with some physics graduate programs requiring students to pass each of the four parts independently, and must retake and pass only those parts of the CE they fail; others offer waivers of sections of the CE based on high course grades. A small number of physics graduate programs no longer required a CE at all. Our faculty agreed that a CE should still be required, but the future format is still under debate. Given the time since the last review and the educational changes precipitated by the pandemic, a new comprehensive departmental review will be initiated in fall of 2022.
Date of Most Recent Program Review:
Based on student feedback and subsequent faculty discussion, the time frame over which the Comprehensive Examination (CE) takes place was extended. Previously the exam was administered in a two-day window. As of the Fall of 2021, it is administered over a four-day period with each day covering a reduced amount of material. The change was well-received and has reduced the stress level of the students taking the CE. Any changes in student performance will be monitored in the coming years.
Discussions are ongoing about possible changes to the format of the CE. Currently, our CE has four parts covering the four fundamental areas of physics (classical mechanics, electrodynamics, quantum physics and statistical physics). A student must receive an overall passing grade on the CE or retake the entire exam. Nationwide the format of CEs offered varies widely, with some physics graduate programs requiring students to pass each of the four parts independently, and must retake and pass only those parts of the CE they fail; others offer waivers of sections of the CE based on high course grades. A small number of physics graduate programs no longer required a CE at all. Our faculty agreed that a CE should still be required, but the future format is still under debate. Given the time since the last review and the educational changes precipitated by the pandemic, a new comprehensive departmental review will be initiated in fall of 2022.
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