Research at SCiM
Opportunities for undergraduate students
Undergraduate students in junior and senior years are welcome to propose and get involved in research projects at SCiM within the Independent Study/Research framework (CE 199) of the Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) department. For more information, reach out to Prof. Zunino directly.
Admissions to both the Master of Science and PhD programs are centralized and follow unified deadlines and procedures established by CEE. For more information, please visit the admissions page.
Master of Science (MS)
The Structural Engineering, Mechanics and Materials (SEMM) Master of Science (MS) program stresses application of fundamental principles of science and engineering to the formulation and solution of complex engineering problems. SEMM Master students are welcome to consider thesis projects (Plan I) or semester research projects (CE 299) at SCiM. For more information, reach out to Prof. Zunino directly.
Master of Science: Plan I
- thesis required
- 20 units with 8 units in graduate courses in SEMM and the remaining 12 units from approved graduate or advanced undergraduate courses. Up to 2 units of the 8 graduate SEMM units and up to 2 units of the remaining 12 units (a total of 4 units) may be taken in the form of Individual Study or Research (CE 299). Units in CE 298 do not count toward the minimum unit requirement
Master of Science: Plan II
- 24 units with 14 units in SEMM graduate courses and the remaining 10 units from approved graduate or advanced undergraduate courses. Up to 2 units of the graduate SEMM 14 units and up to 2 units of the remaining 10 units (a total of 4 units) may be taken in the form of Individual Study or Research (CE 299). Units in CE 298 do not count toward the minimum unit requirement.
- Comprehensive Examination of either:
- Passing a written closed-book diagnostic examination modeled upon the PE exam; or
- Presenting a written report based on at least 2 units of CE 299 and approved by a committee of at least 2 faculty members. The written report can be based on independent study or as an extension of a project in a graduate course with agreement of the instructor.
For more information, see the official CEE website.
PhD in Structural Materials
PhD students at SCiM follow in general the Structural Materials program from the Structural Engineering, Mechanics and Materials (SEMM) group at the Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) department of UC Berkeley.
The PhD program in Structural Materials is a highly research-oriented program with an initial course load structured in a major and two minors. The major has no minimum requirement on the amount of credits from a CEE standpoint, so the requirement of the College of Engineering applies (min 9 credits).
The minors are commonly 6 to 9 credits each, but in general each minor contains 3 courses. One of the minors has to be taken outside CEE, the other may be within CEE or outside. Courses within the minors should be, in general, graduate (200 level), although approval for essential upper division undergraduate courses (100 level) can be requested.
- In case of students without a master’s degree, the requirements to obtain the SEMM Master of Science degree should be met first (likely Plan II), which increases the amount of courses to be followed.
- For students that already hold a master’s degree from Berkeley or elsewhere, it is usual practice to consider 2 or 3 courses from your master’s to partially fulfill the course requirements of the PhD program (decision made on a case by case basis).
Students will register CE 299 credits (reflecting research workload) to complete 12 credits per semester, depending on their coursework schedule. Both the preliminary and qualification examination are related to the PhD research project.
For more information, see the official CEE website.
Visiting PhD students and Researchers
The SCiM group hosts regularly scholars and students from all around the world. Opportunities are generally dependent on funding and project availability. For more information, reach out directly to Prof. Zunino.