The Ph.D. degree is a certification of critical aptitude in scholarship, imagination, knowledge in the discipline, enterprise in research, and proficiency and style in communication. A candidate obtaining a Ph.D. degree must display a thorough understanding in the major areas of computer science and engineering and must master the necessary tools and techniques so as to be able to make original contributions to the field of computer science and engineering. An equally important aspect is that of proficiency in oral and written communication skills. The requirements of the Ph.D. program are: successful completion of preliminary examinations and courses, satisfactory performance in written comprehensive and oral examinations, admission to Ph.D. candidacy, successful completion and defense of original work documented as a dissertation, and the satisfaction of additional requirements such as teaching and seminars. The formal degree to be offered is the Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Science and Engineering. After completing the course requirements, a Ph.D. student requests a faculty member to supervise her/his dissertation. After a dissertation topic is selected and a problem is defined, the dissertation advisor recommends the formation of a Dissertation committee for the student. It is the Ph.D. Program Coordinator who authorizes and recommends the formation of the dissertation committee. A Dissertation committee consists of at least four graduate engineering faculty members. Other industry prominent figures can serve as committee members. The committee monitors the progress of the student in her/his dissertation work, as well as conducts the final dissertation defense. Research Areas Available for Ph.D. Students Computer architecture and VLSI and FPGA Design, modeling and simulation of embedded and integrated systems Electromechanical systems prototyping and optimization Robotics, automation, machine perception and sensing Software engineering, Web development and computational sciences Systems and computer security and biometrics Wireless and mobile computing and networking

The graduate from the Ph.D. program in Computer Science and Engineering program will: use advanced mathematical proof methodologies in computer science and engineering. demonstrate a strong and in depth background in hardware and software issues in computer science. posses a strong background in implementing software systems and/or hardware systems. posses a strong background in designing diverse and integrated software/ hardware systems solutions. critically analyze problems and thoroughly evaluate potential benefits of alternative solution in designing software and/or hardware systems.