(//engineering.tamu.

edu/petroleum)

Menu
(/search)
HOME (/)

PETROLEUM ENGINEERING (/PETROLEUM)

ADVISING (/PETROLEUM/ACADEMICS/ADVISORS)

ACADEMICS (/PETROLEUM/ACADEMICS)

GRADUATE (/PETROLEUM/ACADEMICS/ADVISORS/GRADUATE)

PHD QUALIFYING EXAM

PhD Qualifying Exam

The Ph.D. qualifying examination in petroleum engineering is scheduled for May 18-19, 2015 and
January 11-12, 2016. If you are required to take the qualifying examination, you will be excused from
all classes on those days.

Purpose
The purpose of the Ph.D qualifying examination is to ensure that doctoral candidates in petroleum
engineering can demonstrate prociency in the primary areas of petroleum engineering (drilling,
production, and reservoir) and that these candidates have the potential to perform innovative and
high-quality research, consistent with the standards of Texas A&M University. As per policy, all
doctoral students admitted to the Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering are required
to take the Ph.D. qualifying examination at the conclusion of their rst semester.

Format of the Examination and Timing

The Ph.D. qualifying examination will consist of three written exams, each in the areas of reservoir
engineering, production engineering, and drilling engineering. The exam will be oered twice a
year, in May and January (see dates at top of page). A Ph.D. student who has been admitted in a fall
semester will take the exam in January, and a student admitted in a spring semester will take the
exam in May

Written Examination
The written examination consist of three subjects (reservoir engineering, production engineering,
and drilling engineering) in addition to a comprehensive one page essay on any topic relevant to
petroleum engineering. The suggested books to study to prepare for the examination are:
Fundamentals of Reservoir Engineeringby L.P. Dake, Elsevier Scientic Pub. Co. Developments in
Petroleum Science 8;

Petroleum Production Systemsby M.J. Economides, A.D. Hill, C. Ehlig-Economides, and D. Zhu, 2nd
edition, Prentice Hall publication;
Fundamentals of Drilling Engineering, edited by Robert F. Mitchell and Stefan Z. Miska, SPE Textbook
Series No. 12.
The candidates are encouraged to take courses PETE 661 (drilling engineering), PETE 662 (production
engineering), and PETE 665 (reservoir engineering). However, taking these courses and completing
them successfully are not required for the written examination.
The written examination is closed book (i.e., no materials are permitted in the examination). The
exam will be on two consecutive days for three subjects, and each subject exam is 2 hours (except
the second day, which will be 3 hours to include the additional essay). Based on the score, the
examination committee will determine if the candidates are passed or failed.

Essay
The one page essay will be given on the second day and will comprise a one hour open-ended
question on any one of the three main subject areas of petroleum engineering: drilling, production,
or reservoir engineering. It will involve technical and current issues faced by the petroleum industry.
The purpose of the essay is to assess the candidate's ability to synthesize concepts and
methodology for the solution of a general research problem.
The essay will be graded based on the following three main pillars: (1) the candidate must provide a
thesis statement or the answer for the essay's question, (2) the candidate must provide the
supporting evidence for the concept that proves the essay's statement, (3) the essay must be clear,
coherent and written in a neat format.

Administration of the Examination

All new Ph.D. students are required to sign up for the qualifying examination with the graduate
program coordinator once they have been checked into the department. The student will be given a
registration number for the exam. The candidate will use this registration number throughout the
exam. The candidate should never write his or her name on any exam-related papers.
Please visit the Graduate Programs Oce (Room 401W) and sign up for the exam.
The exam will be administered over two consecutive days (Monday and Tuesday), with the rst day
comprised of two 2-hour exams on subjects selected by the faculty and the second day a 3-hour
exam, which includes a 1-hour portion for the essay. The essay portion will be administered
simultaneously with the rest of the exam and the students will have the freedom to select which
portion to work on.

The exam schedule is set as follows:

Monday: 9:00-11:00 a.m. and 2:00-4:00 p.m.
Tuesday: 9:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

Examination Outcomes
The results of the qualifying examination are reported back from the examination committee to the
graduate advisor and announced at the beginning of the following semester. The candidate's
continuation in the program will be based on the following rulings:
Pass: A student receiving a pass may continue in the doctoral program. If the student is serving as a
GAR or GAT, they may have their stipend increased to the Ph.D. level with approval from their
supervisor.
Conditional Pass: A student receiving a conditional pass must take a course in the subject area and
receive a grade of A or B. Upon successful completion, the student will be issued a pass for that
subject area of the qualifying examination. The course used for the qualifying exam pass may not
be used for graduate degree plan credit. A grade of C or below will be considered a failure of the
exam and the student will be removed from the doctoral program.
Failure: A student failing the qualifying examination will be allowed a second attempt. A student will
retake only the examination in the subject area(s) that he or she failed. If the student fails on the
second attempt, the student will be dismissed from the Ph.D. program. A student must pass ALL
sections of the qualifying examination. If a student fails any subject area twice, then the student has
failed the qualifying examination and will be dismissed.