According to the Graduate Catalog, a student must maintain a cumulative average of not less that "B" (3.0 on a 4.0 scale) in the graduate courses undertaken at The University of Alabama, and at least 75% of these hours must be completed with grades of not less than "B". Courses in which a student has made a grade of "P" or "S" are not considered in evaluations of academic standing. Students who do not meet these requirements (after having earned 6 semester hours of credit) are placed on probation. Probationary status must be removed by raising the overall grade point average to "B" or better during the next 12 hours of graduate course work. Students who are conditionally admitted must maintain a "B" average during their first 12 hours. (PH597, AY597, PH598, and PH698 should be taken only as pass/fail and cannot be used in computing GPA.)

B. ENROLLMENT POLICIES FOR GRADUATE TEACHING/RESEARCH ASSISTANTS The following is a summary of the current graduate school policies regarding course loads for all teaching assistants and research assistants.

Graduate assistants must be full-time graduate students during all periods in which they receive financial assistance from the University or associated agencies. Depending upon their assistantship obligations, graduate assistants should normally enroll for 6 to 12 hours of graduate course work. The Graduate School imposes the following enrollment limitations:

TA/RA AWARD MIN-MAX GRADUATE ENROLLMENT

0.25 FTE 9-12 semester hours

0.50 FTE 6-9 semester hours

0.75 FTE 3-6 semester hours

1.00 FTE 1-3 semester hours

In addition it should be noted that Immigration Regulations limit international students to a maximum of 20 hours per week of employment, including any combinations of on- and off-campus positions.

A fellowship, as a non-service award, is outside the scope of these policies. Fellows, by the terms of their appointments, are required to undertake full-time graduate study.

Enrollment during the summer is not mandatory for graduate teaching and research assistants.

A new graduate student who has been awarded a teaching assistantship can normally expect to have the TA renewed as long as he/she is making satisfactory progress towards a degree and fulfilling his/her assigned duties in an acceptable manner, as stipulated by the student's advisor and the department chairperson, and as long as funds are available. There are time limits, however, on the total number of years that a student may hold a TA. A student working toward a M.S. degree will normally be expected to complete the degree requirements within two years, and financial support will not routinely continue beyond that period. In special cases, upon petition and approval of the department chairperson, financial support may be continued for up to three years.

Financial support for Ph.D. students may be withdrawn if they do not pass the Qualifying Exam by the end of their second year in residence and if they do not pass the Preliminary Exam by the end of their fourth year in residence. A maximum of six years of TA support is allowed for Ph.D. students. This does not mean, however, that students are automatically guaranteed six years of support. Students are encouraged to graduate in a timely manner, and support will not be continued if it is decided that the student is not making adequate progress. Students who are required to pass the International Teaching Assistant Program exam must do so by the end of their first academic year in order to receive continued TA support.

Students are encouraged to start research as soon as practical, by discussing opportunities for research with faculty in their area of interest. Many students are supported on research assistantships after their first or second year in residence. This enables a student to focus on research, and make speedier progress toward his or her degree. RA’s are generally funded by external grants obtained by faculty members. The amount of the RA stipend varies somewhat, but is usually at least as much as a TA stipend. Continuation of a research assistantship is contingent on the student’s satisfactory progress, as well as availability of funds, which may change from year to year. When a student’s research assistantship is not renewed, he or she will be considered for a teaching assistantship, using the criteria of length of time in the graduate program, progress toward degree, and availability of TA funds.

The Graduate School has several fellowship programs for which students may apply. Graduate Council Regular Fellowships are primarily awarded to exceptional incoming students. Graduate Council Research Fellowships are for students doing research that is funded externally, or may lead to external funding. Dissertation Fellowships are for students in the final stages of the research leading to their dissertation. Physics and Astronomy students have been rather successful in receiving these fellowships, especially the latter two, which carry nice stipends and a certain amount of prestige. Students do not apply directly for these fellowships, but must be nominated by the department. Let your advisor know if you are interested. Check the Graduate School website for more information.

Summer support is guaranteed by the department for the first summer of a student’s graduate career. The support may be in the form of a RA or a TA. In subsequent years, support is not guaranteed, but almost all students are supported on some sort of assistantship or fellowship. Students interested in summer RA support should approach faculty in their area of interest to see if support is available. Students do not need to register for courses during the summer, and are encouraged to spend as much time on research as possible.

Teaching and research assistants who hold a 0.5 FTE or greater appointment are not allowed to hold additional employment outside the Department, with the exception of tutoring, without special permission from the department chairperson. The Department's policy is that time not taken up by assistantship duties should be devoted to course work, research, and other degree requirements. Since tutoring aids graduate students in learning the fundamentals of their discipline, a maximum of 5 hours of tutoring per week is allowed. Tutoring students for pay in a course in which you are assigned is not allowed.

A total of 48 hours of formal course work is required (in addition to 24 hours of dissertation research). All students must take the following six core physics courses:

PH 501 - Classical Mechanics

PH 531/532 - Electromagnetic Theory

PH 541/542 - Quantum Mechanics

PH 571 - Kinetic Theory and Statistical Mechanics

The completion of any of the above courses (or the equivalent as approved by the department chairperson) with a grade of "B" (3.0/4.0) or better prior to enrolling as a graduate student in this department will constitute fulfillment of the requirement for that course. (See Section V.)

Physics Seminar: All full-time physics students are required to enroll for one hour of PH 597 (Physics Seminar) each semester in residence. Seminar requirements include attending at least 10 specialty seminars (e.g., MINT or High Energy) and/or departmental colloquia. First-year physics students must attend a minimum of one MINT and one High-Energy seminar. For students in the second year and beyond, the division among seminars and departmental colloquia will be determined by the student's advisor in consultation with the student. Students in the second year and beyond must also make one presentation each semester. Grading for PH 597 is pass/fail.

Other course requirements: Physics students must take an additional 18 hours of graduate work as determined by the student's advisor in consultation with the student. The remaining 12 hours of the 48-hour course requirement can be chosen by the student. A maximum of six hours of the 48-hour requirement can come from a combination of PH 597, PH 598 and PH 698 (although students may take more than six hours of these courses). A maximum of 12 of the 48 hours may be taken outside the department.

Some recommended mathematics courses:

MATH 500/501 - Mathematical Methods of Physics

MATH 510 - Numerical Linear Algebra

MATH 511/512 - Numerical Analysis I & II

MATH 513 – Finite- Element Methods

MATH 541 - Boundary Value Problems

MATH 542 - Integral Transforms and Asymptotics

MATH 583 - Complex Analysis I

CS 512 – C Programming under Unix

A total of 48 hours of formal course work is required (in addition to 24 hours of dissertation research). All students must take the following six core physics courses:

PH 501 - Classical Mechanics

PH 531/532 - Electromagnetic Theory

PH 541/542 - Quantum Mechanics

PH 571 - Kinetic Theory and Statistical Mechanics

Astronomy course requirements: At least 15 hours must be from the following list, with at least one at the 600 level:

AY 501 - Celestial Mechanics & Astrodynamics

AY 521 - Theoretical Astrophysics

AY 533 - Observational Techniques

AY 550 - Stars and Stellar Evolution

AY 570 - Galaxy and Interstellar Medium

AY 620 - Extragalactic Astronomy

AY 640 - Radiation Processes in Astrophysics

AY 650 - Astronomy Special Topics (only 3 hrs can count toward the 15-hr AY requirement)

AY 660 - Astrophysical Plasmas & Magnetodynamics

The completion of any of the previously listed astronomy courses or core physics courses (or the equivalent as approved by the department chairperson) with a grade of "B" (3.0/4.0) or better prior to enrolling as a graduate student in this department will constitute fulfillment of the requirement for that course. (See Section V.)

Astronomy seminar: All full-time astronomy students must register for one hour of AY 597 (Astronomy Seminar) each semester in residence. Seminar requirements include attending weekly astronomy seminars, departmental colloquia, and making presentations, as specified by the student's advisor.

Additional course requirements: Three additional hours will be determined by the advisor in consultation with the student, and the remaining courses can be chosen by the student. Six of the required 48 hours of formal course work may include a combination of AY 597, PH 598, and PH 698. A maximum of 12 of the 48 hours may be taken outside the department.

Some recommended mathematics courses:

MATH 500/501 - Mathematical Methods of Physics

MATH 510 - Numerical Linear Algebra

MATH 511/512 - Numerical Analysis I & II

MATH 513 – Finite- Element Methods

MATH 541 - Boundary Value Problems

MATH 542 - Integral Transforms and Asymptotics

MATH 583 - Complex Analysis I

CS 512 – C Programming under Unix

There shall be two separate exams that a prospective Ph.D. candidate must pass. The first of these will be given early in the student's career and will cover primarily advanced undergraduate physics; the second exam will be given before the dissertation research is begun and will be more closely related to the student's research area. The first exam is the Qualifying Exam and is a requirement for entering the Ph.D. program. The second exam is the Preliminary Exam; passage of this exam formally admits one to candidacy for the Ph.D.

The Qualifying Exam will be given each January. Although there is no limit on the number of times a student may take the exam, financial support may be withdrawn if a Ph.D. student does not pass the exam by the end of the student's second year. As an alternative to passing the Qualifying Exam, students can submit a physics GRE score of at least 60 percentile. The GRE may also be taken an unlimited number of times.

The Qualifying Exam will be a written test consisting of four parts: I. Classical Mechanics, II. Electricity and Magnetism, III. Quantum Mechanics, and IV. Mixed Topics (electronics, optics, thermodynamics & statistical mechanics, relativity, and astrophysics). Students wishing to specialize in astronomy are required to answer astrophysics questions in place of electronics in Part IV. The exam will be given on successive days, three hours each day, with each session to cover half the exam. The exam shall be compiled and graded by a committee of at least four faculty members. A score of 70% or above will represent an outright pass, and a score below 60% will be an outright pass. Students receiving a score of 60% - 69% will receive a conditional fail and will be given an oral exam. If these students do well on the oral exam, then they will pass the exam in its entirety. No oral exam will be required for students scoring 70% or above.

The Preliminary Exam shall focus on the student’s area of specialization, and may include areas of graduate-level physics related to the research. The student in consultation with his/her research advisor should choose a committee consisting of four faculty members. The advisor will not be a member of the committee but will be invited to observe the examination. The department chairperson must approve the committee. A form to be used in selecting the committee is given in the appendix. Students without a research advisor will not be allowed to take the exam.

The exam should be taken as early as possible once the student has finished the appropriate graduate coursework and has begun actual dissertation research. The exam will consist of two parts: a written research plan and an oral examination. A written research plan (up to 2000 words) developed with the research advisor will be submitted to the committee members two weeks before the oral exam. The research plan should include a description of the problem to be addressed, a literature survey, the approach that will be undertaken to tackle the problem, and a discussion of expected results. The oral examination will consist of a forty-minute presentation of the research plan followed by questions from the committee on the research plan and the application of graduate level coursework to the proposed research. The decision to pass or fail will be based on these two criteria: 1) the student’s knowledge of graduate-level physics and 2) the feasibility of the proposed research plan.

Financial support may be withdrawn if the student does not pass the Preliminary Exam by the end of the student’s fourth year in residence. The Preliminary Exam chairperson should notify the department chairperson in writing of the committee decision after the student attempts the exam. After the student has passed the exam, the Preliminary Exam Committee should sign the Application for Admission to Candidacy form in the appendix. Only two attempts of the Preliminary Exam are permitted.

Once a student has successfully passed the preliminary exam, he/she has automatically satisfied the requirements for the Plan II Master’s Degree. This is because the Preliminary Exam can be substituted for the comprehensive master’s exam. In order to receive the M.S. degree, the student need only submit three forms (Appendices B-5, B-6, and B-10) as described in Appendix A-1.

The selection of a research area and advisor should be made as soon as possible after the student has passed the Qualifying Examination. The student should first interview several faculty members whose research may be of interest to the student, and the faculty members will describe potential research projects. The selection of a research area and a research advisor will then be made by agreement between the student and the advisor. As soon as the selection is made, both the student and the advisor must notify the department chairperson in writing. If a student and research advisor mutually agree to end their relationship, the student and advisor must both notify the department chairperson in writing of this action. The student must then begin the selection process again. The Department requires that all students doing research toward a degree be supervised by a research advisor approved by the Department. The student must keep his/her advisor fully informed of the progress of his/her research. Failure to do so could result in the dissertation not being approved. At a minimum it is expected that students will report on their research progress at least once a semester, and more frequent reports are highly recommended.

After selection of a research advisor and research area and after passing the Preliminary Examination, the student, in consultation with his/her advisor and the department chairperson, will form a Dissertation Committee. The committee will consist of five members, including the research advisor as committee chairperson, three other faculty members from the Department of Physics and Astronomy, and one faculty member of another department. (The external committee member may be from another institution if prior approval is obtained from the Dean of the Graduate School.) Students doing theoretical (experimental) dissertations are advised to have at least one faculty member on the committee who is an experimentalist (theorist). At least one departmental member of the committee should be from an area outside the student's major research concentration. A form to use in selecting the committee is given in the appendix, page B-2. The student is required to meet with the Dissertation Committee each semester for assistance in monitoring and guiding the student's research.

A final version of the dissertation will be given to each of the five members of the Dissertation Committee at least two weeks before the oral defense. The student is responsible for all aspects of the production of the dissertation, including the preparation, typing, reproduction, dissemination to the committee members, and all costs involved. Departmental resources cannot be utilized for the production of the dissertation.

A final oral examination must be passed after completion of the dissertation. The examination will be primarily on the candidate's research work as embodied in the dissertation, but it may also encompass the complete program for the degree. The examining committee will be the Dissertation Committee previously described.

A total of 24 hours of formal graduate course work is required (in addition to six hours of thesis research).

PH 501 - Classical Mechanics

PH 531 - Electromagnetic Theory

PH 541 - Quantum Mechanics

PH 599 - Thesis Research (6 hours)

At least three of the following:

AY 501 - Celestial Mechanics and Astrodynamics

AY 521 - Theoretical Astrophysics

AY 533 - Observational Techniques

AY 550 - Stars and Stellar Evolution

AY 570 - Galaxy and Interstellar Medium

AY 620 - Extragalactic Astronomy

In addition to the aforementioned physics and astronomy courses, full-time astronomy students should enroll for AY 597 (one hour of seminar) each semester in residence. PH 597 and PH 598 cannot count toward the 24-hour course requirement.

Six hours of additional graduate level course work, which must be approved by the Department, are required.

The general rules concerning research and the thesis that apply to the Plan I M.S. in physics also apply to the Plan I M.S. in physics with astronomy specialization.

A total of 30 hours of formal course work is required. The course requirement is the same as for the Plan I M.S. degree except that in place of PH 599 (Thesis Research) the student will take two of the following courses:

PH 551 - Atomic and Molecular Physics

PH 561 - Nuclear and Particle Physics

PH 571 - Kinetic Theory and Statistical Mechanics

PH 581 - Solid State Physics

A comprehensive oral examination on the course content of the Plan II M.S. program must be passed during the last semester of study. The committee will consist of at least three members of the department to be chosen by the department chairperson in consultation with the student. The student may take the oral examination no more than twice. Note: A student en route to a doctoral degree may substitute the Preliminary Exam for this M.S. oral exam.

A total of 30 hours of formal graduate course work is required. The course requirements are the same as for the Plan I M.S. in physics with astronomy specialization except that in place of PH 599 (Thesis Research) the student will take PH 532 (Electromagnetic Theory) and PH 542 (Quantum Mechanics).

The student must pass an oral examination as described under the Plan II M.S. in physics described in part C.2 above.