Program Overview

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Doctoral Degree in Astronomy

The UCR Department of Physics and Astronomy offers a PhD program in Astronomy. The degree is designed to provide a broad background in observational, theoretical, and computational astrophysics through a combination of courses and research.

Coursework

Satisfactory completion of the core courses listed below is required. Each course must be passed with a grade of B- or better, and the student must maintain an average for all courses of B or better.

• PHYS 206: Computational Astrophysics
• PHYS 211A: Radiative Processes in Astrophysics
• PHYS 213: Astrophysics of the Interstellar Medium
• PHYS 214: Techniques of Observational Astrophysics
• PHYS 215: Dynamics & Evolution of Galaxies
• PHYS 217: Stellar Structure & Evolution
• PHYS 219: Cosmology & Galaxy Formation
• PHYS 297: Directed Research (two quarters)
• PHYS 401: Professional Development in Physics and Astronomy
• PHYS 296: Summer Research in Physics and Astronomy

Elective Courses

Students should also take two elective graduate lecture courses from the list below. Other courses, including those outside the Department, may also count as electives with the approval of the Astronomy Graduate Advisory Committee.

• PHYS 203: Statistical Astronomy
• PHYS 204: Advanced Galaxy Formation and Cosmology
• PHYS 208: General Relativity
• PHYS 211B: Astrophysical Fluid Dynamics
• PHYS 216: Star Formation
• PHYS 218: Fundamentals of Astrophysics
• PHYS 226: Cosmology (Advanced Topics)
• PHYS 227: Particle Astrophysics
• PHYS 229: Theory of Dark Matter Halos and Galaxies
• PHYS 247: Introduction to Applied Data Science
• PHYS 261: Special Topics in Astrophysics

Comprehensive Exam

Ph.D. students must pass a comprehensive exam, with two parts: a written test on the courses and an oral test on the research. They will both be taken at the end of the summer of the first year. Students must pass both parts.

Written Section of the Comprehensive Exam

Each course will have about 1 hour of material, set and graded by the instructor of the course. The exam is closed-book. No external notes are allowed. No phones or other electronic devices are allowed, with the exception of a basic calculator for some exams. Grading will be done blind based on a pre-written mark scheme.

Research Section of the Comprehensive Exam

Students will present an oral report, approximately 30 minutes in length, on the background, motivation, and methods of their research. This will be based on the two quarters of research time in winter and spring, as well as the first summer of research.

Qualifying Oral Examination

Ph.D. students must complete an oral qualifying exam in the general area of the student's proposed dissertation research. The oral presentation should provide background and motivation for the dissertation research, preliminary results from this research, and a clear plan for completion of the thesis, including a timeline for the acquisition of data (if relevant), analysis, other key milestones, and papers to be submitted to journals.

Completion of the Degree

The student is recommended for the Ph.D. degree following their advancement to candidacy and completion of the following requirements:

Doctoral Thesis

Doctoral candidates must complete a satisfactory written thesis that presents a review of existing knowledge relevant to the candidate's original research, an outline of specific problems addressed by the candidate's work, and a detailed description of the strategies, analysis techniques, and results of the candidate's original research.

Final Oral Examination

Doctoral candidates must perform satisfactorily in a final oral defense of their thesis before the candidate's thesis committee.

Normative Time to Degree

If the student is full-time with no deficiencies, the normative length of time pre-candidacy (before the Qualifying Exam) is not more than three years. The normative time between Candidacy and Defense/Ph.D. completion is three years. Overall, the normative time from enrollment in the program to Ph.D. degree is expected to be six years.