The Department of Physics offers programs leading to the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees, and both thesis and non-thesis M.S. tracks are available. However, preference in admission will be given to students seeking a Ph.D. degree. Usually, a Ph.D. student devotes the first year mostly to basic courses. The first-year courses may alternatively be completed by examination. Satisfactory completion of the core courses constitutes passing the first part of the PhD comprehensive exam. Students should become involved with a research project early on, as they are required to complete the second part of the PhD comprehensive---the oral examination---by their fourth semester. During this examination, the student presents the beginnings of a research project to a committee. The topic of this presentation will normally turn into a dissertation, but the student is still allowed to switch to another project or even another area of research later. Typically 5-10 candidates are admitted to the PhD program every year and are offered financial support.
