This page provides detailed information regarding the Ph.D. Qualifier Exams at Stony Brook University's Computer Science Department. The documents here are intended to be read in conjunction with the GraduateHandbook.

In September 2007, the faculty of the Computer Science Department unanimously voted to change the Ph.D. qualifying system and several related aspects of the graduate program. The main reasons for the changes were to ensure better breadth and depth preparation, and allow students to get involved with research earlier.

This page only summarizes the changes, which affect all graduate students entering in the Fall 2007 semester. A revised Graduate Handbook is being prepared with more details.

Instead of written exams, Ph.D. students will take graduate courses in the following three areas:

• Theory:
• CSE 548: Algorithms
• CSE 540: Theory of Computation
• CSE 541: Logic
• CSE 547: Discrete Math
• Software:
• CSE 504: Compilers
• CSE 526: Programming Languages
• CSE 532: Databases
• CSE 537: Artificial Intelligence
• Systems:
• CSE 502: Architecture
• CSE 506: operating Systems
• CSE 534: Networking
• CSE 528: Graphics

Students have to take at least one course in each of the three areas, and a total of at least five courses (it is therefore allowed to take three courses in one of the areas). Minimum passing grade is A-. A student who fails to secure a passing grade will have to take another course not taken before, in the following semester. All qual courses must be completed within the first three semesters. We recommend students take at least two courses per semester, because most graduate courses are offered only once a year. No course substitutions, exchanges, or pleas for better grades will be accepted.

To further ensure the breadth preparation of Ph.D. students, Ph.D. students must satisfy the same seven proficiency requirements as MS students do.

CSE-537, Artificial Intelligence, is now accepted as a proficiency course, in seventh proficiency area (together with Networking and Graphics).

If you plan to get your proficiency forms signed based on courses you've taken in another institution, you should first consult the Graduate Program Director (GPD) and find out which specific faculty member can sign your specific proficiency form. A faculty member reviewing your proficiency request may ask for supporting documentation such as CV, transcripts, papers, etc. and may also interview you in person to certify your knowledge in the subject matter. The review process for signing a student's proficiency may take as much as two weeks or more.

Note: if you take a course here for proficiency, you must get a C grade or better for the course to count as your proficiency.

All Ph.D. students who have not yet passed their RPE, or have not yet passed their quals, or do not have an adviser, will be reviewed each semester, in a comprehensive meeting known as Black Friday. This review is conducted by the entire faculty, who votes on the future status of each student. This review is comprehensive, and includes at least the following items (in no particular order):

• Qual courses taken and passed with A- or better.
• All other courses taken, grades received, and GPAs.
• Proficiency requirements progress.
• TA performance.
• Research productivity: papers, talks, software, etc.
• Faculty input, especially from advisers.
• Student input.
• Cumulative history of the student's progress.

The outcome of the Black Friday review meeting will be a formal letter given to the student and placed in the student's folder. A student can be placed in one of two categories:

• In Good Standing: The student has performed well in the previous semester and may continue in the Ph.D. program for one more semester.
• Not in Good Standing: The student had not performed sufficiently well in the previous semester. The reasons for this vary, but they are typically related to poor grades, insufficient progress towards one's quals/proficiencies, poor TA performance, poor research productivity, lack of adviser, etc. The student may be placed under probation for one more semester, may lose RA/GA/TA funding, may lose an adviser, or may even be dismissed from the program immediately. Being under probation for two consecutive semesters will almost always lead to dismissal.

In addition to the outcome, the Black Friday letter may also make specific recommendations to the student, or even warnings, as to what will be expected of the student in the following semester (e.g., pass 2 more quals, pass the RPE, improve one's GPA, etc.).

Ph.D. students must find a research adviser by their second semester in the program; and a funding research adviser by their their first summer. This adviser is expected to provide feedback on the student's progress for Black Friday. Until Ph.D. students have a research adviser, they are expected to find (or be assigned) an Academic Adviser in the very first semester; this Academic Adviser is also expected to provide feedback on the student's progress during Black Friday.

MS students who wish to get into the Ph.D. program may take the same qual courses as Ph.D. students take, and are expected to get a qual passing grade of A- or better in those. MS students are also expected to secure an adviser who will fund them if they get admitted into the Ph.D. program.

However, admission to the Ph.D. program is no longer automatic: MS students must apply formally through the graduate school. The Graduate Admissions Committee will endeavor to process such special MS-to-PhD requests very quickly. Generally speaking, MS students who passed their Ph.D. qualifying courses and have a strong letter from a funding adviser, will get good chances of getting admitted into the Ph.D. program.