The graduate school is organised within the Department of Mechanics and Maritime Sciences.
Director of graduate studies: Ida-Maja Hassellöv
Administrator for graduate studies: Lotta Sjögren.
Syllabus
Revised 13 February 2012.
2009-03-17 dnr C 2009-249
2005-10-24 dnr C 2005-1199
1. Description and goals of the programme
The department of Shipping and Marine Technology comprises scientific
areas related to shipping and ship technology on and below the water.
The doctoral programme has three tracks: Naval Architecture, Shipping
Technology and the Marine Environment. In a common part basic knowledge
is provided in other areas required to enable a systematic approach to
shipping and marine technology.
Special tracks
The student will choose one of the three tracks. The track may be indicated in the Licentiate or Doctoral certificate.
- Naval Architecture
The track may be specialized either
towards ship structures or hydrodynamics. Ship structures comprises
project planning in ship design, strength properties of marine
structures, fatigue, lightweight construction and risk assessment with
an application, for instance, to ship safety. Hydrodynamics comprises
the hydrodynamic properties and design of the ship with respect to
resistance, propulsion, maneuvering and sea keeping. Simulation methods
are developed in both areas.
- Shipping Technology
The track comprises ship handling and ship
management, including Human Factors, work environment, information
requirements and nautical subjects. Other research topics are ship
operation, chartering, cargo handling and organizational issues, like
manning and education. Within all areas studies, assessments and
measurements are made, and guidelines and proposals are developed for
organizations concerned.
- Marine Environment
This track comprises the environmental impact
of seaborne transport in the form of emissions to air and water.
Cleaning techniques and other solutions to reduce the environmental
impact are studied as well. Other areas are the development and
application of methodology for the assessment of the environmental
impact and resource utilization from a systems engineering perspective.
Goals
The aim of the doctoral programme is to educate researchers with good
knowledge in scientific research methodology and teaching, with good
presentation skills and with the ability to carry out independent
scientific research of an international standard. For a more detailed
description see the Goals for the Graduate Course Programmes at Chalmers.
2. Entrance requirements
To qualify for admission the applicant shall have a university
degree, relevant to the considered research field, of at least 240
credits (c). Applicants who have acquired an equivalent education can be
admitted after an individual evaluation.
- For the Naval Architecture track a technical education within
Naval Architecture, Mechanical Engineering, Civil Engineering,
Engineering Physics or the equivalent is required.
- Shipping Technology and Marine Environment are very wide areas and
the requirements are determined depending on the considered project. A
suitable background for Shipping Technology is a ship officer’s
education.
- Applicants who do not have English or a Nordic language as their
mother tongue also have to pass an English language test (e.g. Test of
English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) 550, ‘‘paper based’’ or TOEFL 213,
‘‘computer based’’) for admission.
The admission to the doctoral programme is decided by the department head based on recommendations by the examiner.
3. Structure of the doctoral programme
The education comprises research work, courses, participation in
scientific seminars and development of pedagogical competence. In the
course of the education the doctoral student is expected to present
his/her current work at academic conferences and in scientific journals.
The doctoral student is assigned an examiner, a main supervisor and
at least one assistant supervisor. The examiner could be the supervisor.
The main supervisor must be at least associate professor and the
assistant supervisor shall have a doctoral degree.
In the beginning of the education the main supervisor and the
doctoral student prepare an individual study plan. This plan shall be
approved by the examiner and the director of studies for the track. A
description of courses and a plan of the research work, mainly covering
the work leading to the Licentiate degree, shall be included. The study
plan shall be updated at least once a year in connection with the annual
follow-up meeting with the student, the examiner, the supervisor and
the director of studies.
4. Courses
For the Licentiate degree a minimum of 45 c of courses are required. For the PhD degree an additional 15 c are required.
Mandatory courses at Chalmers
Doctoral students admitted after September 1, 2012, are required to
take 15 credit points from the area of Generic and Transferable Skills
during their graduate studies. Generic and Transferable skills (GTS)
aims to give doctoral students at Chalmers professional and individual
development, and is a program of activities/courses not directly linked
to the respective areas of research. Of these, 9 credit points are
mandatory for the licentiate degree, and another 6 credit points for the
PhD degree.
In addition to the courses within Generic and Transferable Skills,
the student is also required to participate in the introduction day for
doctoral students (before the licentiate examination, at latest).
Further requirements are an oral popular science presentation to be
performed prior to the PhD thesis defence and a written popular science
presentation to be published on the back of the PhD thesis.
Elective courses
Contingent on the approval by the examiner the student may choose suitable courses given at Chalmers.
There are also national and international courses of relevance for the
doctoral programme. Shorter and more specific courses in the form of
literature studies with supervision and examination trough a short essay
and seminars with discussion may be arranged when needed.
Credit transfer
Relevant courses taken before admission to the doctoral programme can
give a credit of at most 30 c. This applies to students with at least
270 c from their previous education. No credits will be transferred for
students admitted with 240 c, while there is a gradual transition in the
span between 240 c and 270 c. Within these limits the examiner decides
about the number of credits that may be transferred.
Students at
Chalmers International Master’s Programmes, arriving at Chalmers with
four years of University studies (BSc), fulfil the requirements for 30 c
credit transfer.
5. Dissertation
Detailed information about the Licentiate and Doctoral theses, the licentiate seminar and the doctoral defence is found in the Study handbook.
Licentiate thesis
The Licentiate thesis may be a monograph of such a quality that it
can be accepted for publication in at least one international magazine
of high standard. Alternatively, it may be a compilation of a number
(normally 1-2) of reports with a summary. The thesis shall be written in
English. It is recommended to appoint an expert within the field to act
as a moderator at the public Licentiate seminar.
Doctoral thesis
The doctoral thesis may be a compilation of a number (normally 4-5)
of reports. The quality of the reports shall be such that they can be
accepted for publication in international magazines of high standard.
Alternatively, the thesis may be a monograph with the corresponding
quality requirements. The thesis shall be written in English.
6. Examination requirements
The requirements for the Licentiate degree is at least 45 c acquired
from courses and at least 60 c acquired from the Licentiate thesis. The
total achievement shall be 120 c.
The requirements for the Doctoral degree is at least 60 c acquired
from courses and at least 165 c acquired from the Doctoral thesis. The
total achievement shall be 240 c. Note that the credits given for the
Doctoral degree includes the credits from the Licentiate degree.
7. Miscellaneous
For more information see: Rules of procedure – Doctoral programmes and the Study handbook.