Engineering, Ph.D.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, from 2016 to 2026 there will be a seven percent increase in jobs for biomedical engineers and electrical engineers, and a nine percent increase for mechanical engineering positions. Our Ph.D. program is structured to address, sustain, and increase this dynamic workforce. The education and research aspects of the program will prepare students to join the innovative and competitive environment. Graduates of this degree program will be the technical leaders in the region, the state, and the nation.

The educational objective of the Ph.D. in Engineering is to educate highly talented students in multiple emerging engineering fields with concentrations in: Bioengineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering. The program is designed to be rigorous and innovation-focused, and will include several core fundamental theoretical courses, transformative research, and advanced topics that bridge the gap between high-technology research and its commercialization. The curriculum is designed to prepare students for research careers in industry as well as academia, and provides students with both the concepts as well as the ability to perform independent research in a specialized area.

The Engineering, Ph.D. programs goal is to contribute to the development of well-trained engineer-scientists who will advance the state-of-the-art in engineering through training in cutting-edge research. This is aligned with New York Tech’s mission:

to provide career-oriented, professional education
to offer access to opportunity for all qualified students
to support fundamental and applications-oriented research that benefits the larger world

The program will focus on training students in applied research in one of three concentrations:

Bioengineering: Providing a better quality of life for people through enhanced techniques and technologies can only be achieved through multi-disciplined education. Advances in micro- and nano-technologies, wireless communication and power transfer, sensor miniaturization, on-chip real time signal processing, and mathematical modeling of biological systems, allow bioengineers to develop smart, high-performance systems that are dependable, efficient, and secure.
Electrical and Computer Engineering: Our Ph.D. program will integrate cutting-edge research with coursework to prepare students to work in areas that include robotics, microelectronics, micro and nano systems, control systems, image and signal processing, computer networks, and radar and communications systems.
Mechanical Engineering: As one of the broadest engineering disciplines, our Mechanical Engineering program integrates cutting-edge research with up-to-date coursework to train students in the following areas: solid mechanics, heat transfer and thermo-fluid systems, energy systems, biomechanics and biomedical devices, micro/nano sensors, controls and dynamical systems.

Candidacy for the Ph.D. will be awarded after the student successfully passes both the qualifying examination and the preliminary dissertation proposal—typically in the summer after the third year. Completion of at least 66 graduate core, elective, and research credits will be required to qualify for the degree. The doctoral degree will be awarded only after the submission and approval of a written dissertation supporting the results of an original scholarly investigation, and the passing of an oral defense of the submitted dissertation.

International F-1 students who successfully complete this degree are eligible for an additional 24-month STEM OPT extension to work in the U.S. in an area directly related to their area of study immediately upon completing the customary 12-month post-completion Optional Practical Training (OPT).

Admission Requirements

Applicants must submit an application, Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores, three letters of recommendation, transcripts leading to the applicant's previous degree(s), a statement of purpose, and for applicants whose native language is not English and who have been educated outside the U.S., an acceptable score of Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) is required.

The Graduate Admission Committee of the College of Engineering and Computing Sciences will review all applications and decide whether to grant admission. The general requirement for admission into this Ph.D. program is as follows:

For students with B.S., a minimum GPA of 3.2/4.0 from a regionally accredited university
For students with M.S., a minimum GPA of 3.5/4.0 from a regionally accredited university
A minimum GRE score of 300 is required
For international students, the requirement on acceptable TOEFL IBT score is 79, or 6.5 on IELTS.

These requisites are for advisory purposes only. We will review the applications for positive indications of potential success in the program.

Transfer Credits

Students who have an M.S. degree in a relevant field can transfer a maximum of 18 credits (with at least B+) with the approval of their advisor and the program director.
Pass grades earned during the spring 2020 semester meet this GPA threshold and are transferable to New York Institute of Technology.

Application Materials

Completed application
$50 nonrefundable application fee
A resume or curriculum vitae
A statement of purpose
Three letters of recommendation
Copies of transcripts for all schools attended. All final, official transcripts must be received prior to the start of your first semester.
Copy of college diploma or proof of degree
Official GRE scores, if required (GRE Code: 2561)
International student requirements: English proficiency (TOEFL/IELTS/PTE), I-20, and transcript evaluation

Progression in the Program

Students will be required to maintain an overall GPA of 3.0 in Ph.D. courses and a Ph.D. course grade below a B- will result in the student repeating the course.

Qualifying Exam

All students must satisfactorily complete a qualifying exam no later than the end of year two for students starting with a bachelor's degree or at the end of year one for students starting with a master's degree, in order to remain in the Ph.D. program. This examination will cover all relevant coursework taken by the student. Elements of engineering, physical and biological sciences, mathematics, computer science, and statistics may be included in this examination. The examination will be both written and oral. A committee of five faculty members (excluding student's research advisor) will give the student a major open-ended problem in the student's general area of research interest. The student will have limited time (72 hours) to address the solution in writing, in the form of a research proposal, and submit to the chair of the committee. Then student would orally defend and critique this solution in front of the committee. During this oral session, the committee members will ask questions of the student to evaluate their depth of knowledge in the field. The committee will then make a decision to either pass or fail the student. In the case that a student fails the exam, they can retake the exam within six months. A second failure will result in disqualifying the student from continuing in the Ph.D. program.

Preliminary Dissertation Proposal

Within 8–12 months of a satisfactory completion of the qualifying examination, each student, working with their dissertation advisor, will develop a preliminary dissertation proposal in a chosen area, together with the selection of an acceptable topic for the dissertation. This document will describe in detail the proposed research project with a timeline and possible research strategies, and alternatives should problems be encountered.

A dissertation committee will be formed by the student in concert with their advisor and be submitted to the program director for approval. The dissertation committee will be comprised of a minimum of four (4) members, with at least three core faculty members. The fourth member will be from outside the department, preferably outside the university, but in an area associated with the proposed dissertation field of study.

Preferably by the end of year two, but not later than the end of year three, the student will present a written proposal and oral presentation to the dissertation committee for approval. Once approved by the dissertation committee, the dissertation proposal will be forwarded to the program director for final approval.

Advancement to Candidacy

After a student has passed the dissertation proposal defense, they must submit the Ph.D. candidate approval form to the program director to advance to candidacy.

Dissertation Defense

In order to reach the dissertation defense, students must have satisfied the following requirements:

Completed all required coursework, with a minimum overall GPA of 3.0
Passed the qualifying examination
Selected a dissertation committee and convene a committee meeting; written reports from each meeting were submitted to the program director
Submitted the dissertation proposal and received approval for the proposal from the dissertation committee
Advanced to candidacy
Completed a written dissertation

Committee members may be consulted in preparing the dissertation. The committee may request that the written portion be revised and schedule an additional meeting to review and approve the changes. Before final approval of the written document, the dissertation committee will schedule an oral examination at which the student must successfully defend the dissertation. The oral examination by the dissertation committee members will follow immediately after a public seminar by the student describing the complete body of work contained in the submitted thesis. Based on the outcome of the oral examination, the dissertation committee may require changes to the written dissertation document and schedule another meeting with the student. The student must submit the written document to the committee members at least two weeks before the oral defense. Following successful oral defense and approval of the written document, all committee members must sign the Ph.D. dissertation approval form, which is forwarded to the program director for final approval.