Qualifying Exams in Application Areas

In many cases the qualifying requirements in these departments have changed. In cases where the exam requirements have not been determined for AMSC students (as denoted by TBA), please contact the AMSC office. Students are strongly encouraged to submit a Study Advisory Plan to ensure their qualifying exam requirement in the application area is met.

Department of Aerospace Engineering

Dynamics of the atmosphere and oceans

• 610 Dynamics of the Atmosphere and Oceans I (Fall)
• 611 Dynamics of the Atmosphere and Oceans II (Spring)

• 610 Dynamics of the Atmosphere and Oceans I
• 614 Atmospheric modeling, data assimilation and predictability

A comprehensive exam in Management Science is defined as an exam comprised of two subject areas, to be chosen by the student among the following:

• BMGT 830 Operations Research: Linear Programming
• BMGT 831 Operations Research: Extension of Linear Programming and Network Analysis
• BMGT 832 Operations Research: Optimization and Nonlinear Programming
• BMGT 833 Operations Research: Integer Programming
• BMGT 834 Operations Research: Probabalistic Models
• BMGT 835 Simulation and Design of Experiments
• BMGT 836 Advanced Topics in Linear Programming
• BMGT 882 Applied Multivariate Analysis I
• BMGT 883 Applied Multivariate Analysis II
• BMGT 808 Operations Research: Special Topics

To sit for the comprehensive exam, a student is not required to take the respective courses at the Smith School, or in any other department at the University of Maryland. If the student does not take the respective course(s) at the Smith School, however, the student is responsible for getting the syllabus from the instructor currently teaching the respective course(s) to learn about the expectations for the exam(s).

Department of Chemical Engineering

Qualifying Coursework - (As of Fall 04) 2 courses must be taken at the 600-800 level (in a non-AMSC area) with at least one A and one B. PhD coursework requirements for students starting the PhD program in Fall 2004 or later.

Below are the courses by area (Note 400 level courses will not count as a qual course, but may be used as an elective. See course requirements for details.)

Artificial Intelligence

• CMSC 620 Problem Solving Methods in Artificial Intelligence
• CMSC 720 Logic for Problem Solving
• CMSC 721 Non-Monotonic Reasoning
• CMSC 722 Artificial Intelligence Planning
• CMSC 723 Computational Linguistics I (Formerly: Natural Language Processing)
• CMSC 726 Machine Learning
• CMSC 727 Neural Modeling
• CMSC 773 Computational Linguistics II

• CMSC 411 Computer Systems Architecture(Not a valid qualifying course for MS or Phd after Fall 99)
• CMSC 412 Operating Systems
• CMSC 414 Computer Security
• CMSC 415 Systems Programming
• CMSC 417 Computer Networks (Upper-level Fall 99 and prior)
• CMCS 615 Advanced Computer Architecture
• CMSC 710 Performance Evaluation of Computer Systems
• CMSC 711 Computer Networks
• CMSC 712 Distributed Algorithms and Verification
• CMSC 713 Real-time Systems
• CMSC 714 High Performance Computing

• CMSC 420 Data Structures
• CMSC 423 Bioinformatic Algorithms, Databases and Tools
• CMSC 424 Database Design
• CMSC 624 Database Systems Implementation (Inactive Course)
• CMSC 724 Database Management Systems
• CMSC 725 Geographic Information Systems and Spatial Databases

• CMSC 430 Theory of Language Translation
• CMSC 433 Programming Language Technologies and Paradigms
• CMSC 630 Theory of Programing Languages
• CMSC 631 Program Analysis and Understanding
• CMSC 731 Programming Language Implementation
• CMSC 737 Fundamentals of Software Testing

• CMSC 434 Introduction to Human-Computer Interaction
• CMSC 435 Software Engineering
• CMSC 632 Software Product Assurance
• CMSC 634 Empirical Research Methods for Computer Science
• CMSC 732 Compiling for Vector and Parallel Architecture
• CMSC 735 Quantitative Approach to Software Management and Engineering
• CMSC 736 Software Engineering Environments
• CMSC 737 Fundamentals of Software Testing

• CMSC 450 Elementary Logic and Algorithms(Not a valid qualifying course for MS or Phd after Fall 01)
• CMSC 451 Design and Analysis of Computer Algorithms
• CMSC 452 Elementary Theory of Computation
• CMSC 456 Cryptology
• CMSC 475 Combinatorics and Graph Theory
• CMSC 477 Optimization
• CMSC 650 Theory of Computing
• CMSC 651 Analysis of Algorithms
• CMSC 652 Complexity Theory
• CMSC 750 Advanced Theory of Computation(Inactive Course)
• CMSC 751 Parallel Algorithms
• CMSC 752 Concrete Complexity
• CMSC 753 Mathematical Linguistics
• CMSC 754 Computational Geometry

• CMSC 420 Data Structures
• CMSC 426 Image Processing
• CMSC 427 Computer Graphics (MS only. Cannot get graduate credit for both CMSC 427 and CMSC 740)
• CMSC 725 Geographic Information Systems and Spatial Databases
• CMSC 740 Advanced Computer Graphics
• CMSC 741 Geometric and Solid Modeling
• CMSC 733 Computer Processing of Pictorial Information
• CMSC 754 Computational Geometry

Students must pass written examinations in microeconomic and macroeconomic theory at the doctoral level. Each exam may be attempted twice. If a student passes one exam but fails the other, then the student needs to re-take only the failed exam. If a student fails both, then the student must re-take both at the same time. Students who fail one or both exams twice will be asked to leave the program.

While no courses are required, normal preparation includes

• ECON 601 - Macroeconomic Analysis I
• ECON 602 - Macroeconomic Analysis II
• ECON 603 - Microeconomic Analysis I
• ECON 604 - Microeconomic Analysis II

These examinations are given in August two weeks before the beginning of the Fall semester and in January one week before the beginning of the Spring semester. Students preparing to take comprehensive exams must sign up with the Graduate Secretary.

Department of Electrical Engineering

Students in AMSC interested in taking physics qualifying exams should contact the Graduate Chair of the Physics program to discuss their study advisory plan.

The written examination consists of two parts:

Classical Physics & Special Relativity

• PHYS 601 Theoretical Dynamics
• PHYS 603 Methods of Statistical Physics

• PHYS 606 Electrodynamics
• PHYS 622 Quantum Mechanics I
• PHYS 623 Quantum Mechanics II

Each part consists of five problems and students are required to answer four out of five. The problems are generally at the level of the core graduate courses. Both parts are offered twice a year - once in late August, once in late January - and both parts must be passed, with the following stipulations:

• A student may take one or both parts at any offering. The student will pass or fail each part attempted separately.
• A student is allowed to sit for only three offerings of the written examination, irrespective of how many parts are attempted at each offering.
• Students are required to make their first attempt at the written examination one year after matriculation in the Ph.D. program (August of their second year for students matriculating in August, January of their second year for students matriculating in January) and are required to complete all attempts within one year (two additional offerings) of their first attempt (see below for exceptions).
• If a students performance on the written examination is marginal (one or both parts) he/she may be granted an oral examination. Oral exams will only be offered in cases where the student is positioned to pass the entire written examination, i.e., both parts. In particular, students who have not yet passed one part of the written examination will not be given an oral examination for marginal performance on the other part. The Oral Exam Committee will determine pass or fail for the entire Qualifying Examination and will consider the students overall record in making this judgment.
• If a student has failed at all allowed attempts at the written examination he/she may petition the Graduate Committee for an appeal oral examination within two weeks of receiving his/her scores. The Committee will only grant an appeal oral in cases where it believes the students overall record (including the performance on the written examination) warrants obtaining the additional information the oral examination will provide. If an appeal oral is granted the Graduate Committee will make the final decision on pass or fail evaluating input from the Oral Exam Committee and the students overall record.