The Materials Science Ph.D. program offers advanced coursework and research opportunities in materials science, preparing you for a career in academia or industry. With experienced faculty and access to state-of-the-art facilities, you'll be equipped with the skills needed to make an impact in the field.
Materials Science - Ph.D.
Contact Us
- Antal Jakli | MSGPdirector@kent.edu |
330-672-3899
- Connect with an Admissions Counselor: U.S. Student | International Student
Program Information for Materials Science - Ph.D.
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Program Description
Full Description
The Ph.D. degree in Materials Science provides students with extensive scientific training, cutting-edge research opportunities and engineering skills necessary for a variety of careers in academy and industry. Program faculty and students conduct research through Kent State's participating departments and the Advanced Materials and Liquid Crystal Institute. Such research includes liquid crystal synthesis and molecular design; properties of liquid crystals and related advanced materials; lyotropic liquid crystals and bio-related materials, opto-electronics; and nanoscience and nanotechnologies. These important research foci are inherently interdisciplinary.
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Admissions
for Materials Science - Ph.D.
For more information about graduate admissions, visit the graduate admission website. For more information on international admissions, visit the international admission website.
Admission Requirements
- Bachelor's degree or higher from an accredited college or university
- Minimum 2.750 GPA on a 4.000-point scale
- Official transcript(s)
- Goal statement
- Résumé or curriculum vitae
- Two letters of recommendation
- English language proficiency - all international students must provide proof of English language proficiency (unless they meet specific exceptions to waive) by earning one of the following:1
- Minimum 71 TOEFL iBT score
- Minimum 6.0 IELTS score
- Minimum 50 PTE score
- Minimum 100 DET score
GRE scores (general and subject test in physics or chemistry) are not required, but strongly recommended. Admission will be granted by examination of the student's background on an individual basis. Students from a variety of undergraduate majors—such as physics, chemistry, engineering and materials science—are invited to apply.
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International applicants who do not meet the above test scores may be considered for conditional admission.
Application Deadlines
- Fall Semester
- Priority deadline: January 15
Applications submitted by this deadline will receive the strongest consideration for admission.
- Priority deadline: January 15
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Learning Outcomes
Program Learning Outcomes
Graduates of this program will be able to:
- Develop an advanced understanding of the fundamental science of liquid crystals and related advanced materials and ability to apply acquired knowledge of physical and chemical properties of soft materials and devices such as liquid crystals, polymers, colloids and active matter.
- Gain experience in presenting scientific data in research publications, articles, posters and oral presentations.
- Apply acquired knowledge to the discovery of new advanced materials and development of advanced materials-based devices and applications.
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Coursework
On This Page
Program Requirements
Major Requirements
Course List Code Title Credit Hours Major Requirements MTSC 72242 CHARACTERIZATION OF SOFT MATTER 3 MTSC 73000 PHYSICS OF SOFT MATTER 3 MTSC 73015 CHEMISTRY OF SOFT MATTER 3 MTSC 73020 APPLICATIONS OF SOFT MATTER 3 Approved Electives, choose from the following: 18-48 BSCI 70158MOLECULAR BIOLOGY BSCI 70220BIOINFORMATICS BSCI 71120BIOLOGICAL LIGHT MICROSCOPY CHEM 70254BIOMEMBRANES CHEM 70352INORGANIC MATERIALS CHEMISTRY CHEM 70451ORGANIC MATERIALS CHEMISTRY CHEM 70559NANOMATERIALS CHEM 70571SURFACE CHEMISTRY MTSC 72241STATISTICAL MECHANICS OF SOFT MATTER MTSC 72249LABVIEW FOR DATA ACQUISITION AND INSTRUMENT CONTROL MTSC 72335ADVANCED LIQUID CRYSTALLINE AND POLYMERIC MATERIALS MTSC 72450LIQUID CRYSTAL OPTICS I: THEORY MTSC 72452LIQUID CRYSTAL OPTICS II: OPTICAL SYSTEMS MTSC 72460LIQUID CRYSTAL MATERIALS SCIENCE MTSC 72462LIQUID CRYSTAL SCIENCE: PHYSICAL PROPERTIES MTSC 72640LIQUID CRYSTAL, POLYMER AND COLLOID COMPOSITES MTSC 72643ELECTRO-OPTICS OF LIQUID CRYSTALS: MODELING AND DEVICE DESIGN MTSC 72647STRUCTURED FLUIDS MTSC 72650COMPUTATIONAL MATERIALS SCIENCE MTSC 72651NANOBIOTECHNOLOGY MTSC 73010LYOTROPIC LIQUID CRYSTALS MTSC 73025ACTIVE MATTER MTSC 73100EMERGING DISPLAY TECHNOLOGIES MTSC 74491SEMINAR: LIQUID CRYSTALS MTSC 74495SPECIAL TOPICS IN CHEMICAL PHYSICS MTSC 75006LIQUID CRYSTAL DEVICE PROTOTYPING MTSC 75008LIQUID CRYSTAL DEVICE CONSTRUCTION MTSC 75032SCIENTIFIC COMMUNICATION MTSC 80498RESEARCH PHY 76403ADVANCED CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS PHY 78401LIQUID CRYSTAL PHYSICS Additional courses with advisor approvalCulminating Requirement MTSC 80199 DISSERTATION I 1 30 Minimum Total Credit Hours for Post-Baccalaureate Students 90 Minimum Total Credit Hours for Post-Master's Students 60 - 1
Each doctoral candidate, upon admission to candidacy, must register for MTSC 80199 for a total of 30 credit hours. It is expected that a doctoral candidate will continuously register for Dissertation I, and thereafter MTSC 80299, each semester, until all requirements for the degree have been met. A prospectus of the dissertation research project is required for all Ph.D. candidates. The prospectus is prepared jointly with the student’s dissertation advisor. The prospectus must be approved by the members of the student’s dissertation committee. A dissertation presenting and interpreting results of original research is required for the Ph.D. degree. Following acceptance of the dissertation by the dissertation committee, the final degree requirement is the satisfactory completion of the final oral exam (defense of dissertation) in front of a committee of graduate materials science faculty and representatives from other departments in the College of Arts and Sciences.
Graduation Requirements
Graduation Requirements Summary Minimum Major GPA Minimum Overall GPA - 3.000 Candidacy Requirement
In addition to satisfying the course work, students must pass the materials science candidacy examination. The examination is divided into two parts, a written exam and an oral exam.
The written exam is scheduled first, followed by the oral exam. The exams will cover the core courses of the materials science program taken during the first year. Students who do not pass the candidacy exam the first time may take it a second time. The first attempt at candidacy usually will take place in August, during the week before the start of the fall semester of the student's second year of study. The second attempt usually will take place in January, during the week before the start of the spring semester of the student’s second year of study. A request for exception will be considered for medical reasons or for other unpredictable circumstances. Requests must be submitted in writing with supporting documentation prior to the test date and must be approved by the candidacy exam committee and by the director of the materials science program.
Students who fail the second attempt cannot continue towards the doctoral degree, but may complete the requirements for the Master of Science degree.
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Program Delivery
- Delivery:
- In person
- Location:
- Kent Campus
- Delivery:
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Admission Timeline for Fall Admission
- Applications begin to be accepted in August.
- Application deadline is January 15th. We will continue to accept applications past the deadline, they simply have a decreasing chance, the later they arrive, for consideration for admission.
- Applications reviewed at the end of January. Applications must be complete at time of review for admission consideration.
- Top applicants interviewed February-March.
- Begin to send offers mid February.
- Our application process remains formally open until our entire class is full.
- Rejection notices are not usually sent until June.
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Graduate Assistantships
Admissions into our PhD program is competitive; thus we do not offer "conditional" admission. These programs are full-time so graduate assistantships are awarded to all admitted PhD students in the form of teaching or research assistantships. Applicants do NOT need to apply separately for an assistantship. Our MS program is a self-supporting program, that does not come with an assistantship.
Teaching/research assistantships include:
- A full tuition waiver
- Annual stipend
- Partial health insurance
Additional financial support includes:
- Travel money to conferences
- Graduate Student Senate research awards
- Opportunities to apply for additional graduate student awards/endowments/fellowships
- Other Resources
Examples of Possible Careers and Salaries for Materials Science - Ph.D.
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Computer and information research scientists
15.4%
much faster than the average
32,700
number of jobs
$126,830
potential earnings
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Physical scientists, all other
-3.0%
decline
22,800
number of jobs
$107,210
potential earnings
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Physicists
7.3%
faster than the average
18,200
number of jobs
$129,850
potential earnings
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Biochemists and biophysicists
4.0%
about as fast as the average
34,600
number of jobs
$94,270
potential earnings
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Biological scientists, all other
2.2%
slower than the average
44,700
number of jobs
$85,290
potential earnings
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Chemists
4.7%
about as fast as the average
86,700
number of jobs
$79,300
potential earnings
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Chemical engineers
4.4%
about as fast as the average
32,600
number of jobs
$108,540
potential earnings
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Notice: Career Information Source
* Source of occupation titles and labor data comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Outlook Handbook. Data comprises projected percent change in employment over the next 10 years; nation-wide employment numbers; and the yearly median wage at which half of the workers in the occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less.