Transcript Prelims

All About the PhD Preliminary Exam
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Typical PhD progression
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Take courses
Pass PhD preliminary exam (written)
Find thesis topic
Pass PhD proposal exam (oral)
Complete thesis
Pass PhD defense (oral)
What is the Preliminary Exam?
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What is the PhD Preliminary Exam?
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a 6 hour closed book exam, given over 3 days in late January
tests breadth of knowledge in core computer science
must be passed to earn a PhD; proposal exam cannot be taken
until the preliminary exam has been passed
Information sources on the prelims found in:
http://www.cis.udel.edu/graduate/
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PhD Preliminary Exam Format
PhD Preliminary Exam Reading List
Previous Preliminary Exam Questions (1997 thru 2007)
PhD Preliminary Exam Format
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Area 1: Systems (Day 1)
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Area 2: Software (Day 2)
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Subarea Computer Architecture: Relevant Courses CISC 662
Subarea Operating Systems: Relevant Courses CISC 663
Subarea Networks: Relevant Course CISC 650
Subarea Computer Graphics: Relevant Course CISC 640
Subarea Compilers: Relevant Courses CISC 672
Subarea Artificial Intelligence: Relevant Course CISC 681
Area 3: Theory (Day 3)
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Subarea Design and Analysis of Algorithms: Relevant Courses CISC 621
Subarea Theory of Computation: Relevant Course CISC 601
Subarea Logic in Computer Science: Relevant Course CISC 604
PhD Preliminary Exam Format cont’d
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Area 1: Systems (Day 1)
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Subarea Computer Architecture: Relevant Courses CISC 662
Subarea Operating Systems: Relevant Courses CISC 663
Subarea Networks: Relevant Course CISC 650
Subareas may change from year to year, but rarely do.
Each subarea exam contains four problems.
Students answer 2 questions from each of 2 preselected subareas.
Each problem is intended to take about 1/2 hour.
Codes are used to make answers anonymous to the faculty graders
Each problem is graded by 2 faculty
Conditional passes are not uncommon (e.g. retake & pass Area 3 next year)
A student may attempt the prelims at most 2 times
How to Apply for the “Prelims”
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Email from the CIS Graduate Committee inviting applications
Due roughly in early December
Application contains:
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The 2 subareas you select in each Area
Describe:
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research experiences (+ publications)
dissertation area(s) of interest
potential research advisor(s) -- go talk with them beforehand!
Questions to CIS Graduate Committee: [email protected]
Prelims Panelists
James Atlas
Dan Blanchard
Emily Gibson
Peng Wu