Degree Requirements
Professional Master’s (Non-thesis) Degree
The non-research master's requires the completion of at least 30 semester hours of course work approved by the department. Specific courses to be taken depend upon each student's field of study. Students must discuss their individual degree plans and programs of study with their advisors.
Project Courses: To meet the needs and schedules of full-time and part-time students who are in a career development track, see the “project courses” page.
Residency: The minimum residence requirement for the Professional Master’s degree is one semester of enrollment at Rice.
Master of Science (MS) Degree
The MS degree requires successful completion of at least 30 semester hours of study (including six hours of thesis), of which 24 hours must have been at Rice. The minimum semester hours of course work (a one-semester course is usually 3 semester hours credit) required for the MS degree are tabulated as a function of the degree held upon entrance into the program.
Degree at entrance
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5-year
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4-year B.S.
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4-year B.A.
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Minimum graduate level semester hours required (course work)
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12
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24
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30
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See the General Announcements For Total Semester Hours Required By Rice University.
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Research and thesis hours do not count towards these course requirements. In all cases, a student's specific course of study is formulated in consultation with the departmental advisor (thesis director) and must be approved by the department.
Thesis Defense: Upon completion of the thesis, students are required to take a public oral examination.
Residency: The minimum residence requirement for the MS degree is one semester of full-time study at Rice.
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Degree
The PhD degree requires successful completion of 48 semester hours of study or the number of semester hours tabulated as a function of the degree held upon entrance into the program.
Degree at entrance
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M.S.
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5-year
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B.S.
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B.A.
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Minimum graduate level semester hours required (course work)
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24
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30
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48
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54
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See the General Announcements for Total Semester Hours Required by Rice University.
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PhD Oral Qualifying Examination: By the end of the third year (6th semester), the student must pass an oral qualifying examination to determine whether or not he/she is qualified to conduct independent research at the technical level required for the PhD thesis.
Thesis Defense: Students are required to defend the dissertation for their PhD in a public oral examination.
Residency: The minimum residence requirement for the PhD degree is four semesters of full-time study at Rice.
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