The graduate school is organised within the Department of Physics.
Director of Graduate Studies: Christophe Demazière
Administrator: Anna Lindqvist
Syllabus
Established by the Vice President on 2010-05-10, reference number C2010/457.
Last revised on 2021-06-23, reference number F2021-0112.
This syllabus applies to doctoral students admitted as of 2021-08-01.
Regarding older syllabus, please contact the first vice/vice head of department.
Transitional regulations:
A doctoral student admitted to an older syllabus may earn a degree in accordance with this, provided that the current Appointment regulation for doctoral programmes and current Local Qualifications Framework – third cycle qualifications are followed.
Doctoral students admitted to an older syllabus of graduate school Nuclear Engineering can, however, change to the current syllabus by an application to the Deputy/Vice Head of Department. The change must be documented in the individual study plan.
The graduate school is regulated by the Appointment regulation for doctoral programmes and the Local Qualifications Framework for Chalmers University of Technology – third cycle qualifications and is described in the syllabus for the graduate school. In the event of any conflict between the documents, the Appointment regulation for doctoral programmes and the Local Qualifications Framework for Chalmers University of Technology – third cycle qualifications are governing. For the most recent version of all regulatory documents referenced in this syllabus, see Chalmers’s internal website.
1. Subject description
Description of subject
The research in Nuclear Engineering spans over several disciplines and usually includes:
- Reactor physics and dynamics
- Multi-physics and multi-scale modelling of nuclear systems
- Deterministic safety analyses
- Fusion plasma physics
- Radiation protection
- Nuclear techniques
- Particle and heavy ion Monte Carlo simulations
Nuclear Safeguards
Other closely related research topics might also include:
- Severe nuclear accidents
- Degradation of nuclear materials
- Non-destructive testing
- Nuclear fuel integrity management
- Novel nuclear fuel production
- Separation/transmutation
- Final repository research
The graduate school in Nuclear Engineering is aimed at providing knowledge of the basis of operation in nuclear energy producing systems. The doctoral programme is based on research with high relevance for both industry and academia.
2. Objectives of the doctoral program
Objectives
The national objectives for third cycle degrees (licentiate and doctoral degree) and local requirements are stated in the Local Qualifications Framework for Chalmers University of Technology – third cycle qualifications.
3. Entry requirements
General entry requirements
To be qualified for admission in Nuclear Engineering the student must have earned a degree at the second-cycle level. The orientation of the student’s degree shall also have a sufficiently close connection to the subject of the doctoral programme. Equivalent requirements apply to individuals who have taken their first degree in a country other than Sweden. The examiner, in consultation with the principal supervisor, shall assess whether the applicant has the requisite capacity to successfully complete the doctoral programme. Other requirements for general entry are regulated in Appointment regulation for doctoral programmes.
Specific entry requirements
A basic education in nuclear engineering is required in order to be admitted to the graduate school in Nuclear Engineering. Students who do not fulfil this condition may be admitted if a basic course package is elaborated by the principal supervisor and approved by the examiner and the director of studies at the graduate school. When the courses have been successfully passed, the examiner will decide on transfer of credits. The transferred credits might not necessarily correspond to the course credits
Admission
Regulations regarding admission are stated in Appointment regulation for doctoral programmes.
4. Curriculum
The study programme towards a doctoral degree encompasses 240 higher education credits. The study programme towards a licentiate degree encompasses 120 higher education credits. One year of full-time studies equals 60 credits.
For the licentiate degree programme the credits are distributed between courses and thesis work as follows: courses 30 credits and thesis 90 credits.
For the doctoral degree programme the credits are distributed between course work and thesis work as follows: courses 60 credits and thesis 180 credits.
Courses
Courses within the graduate school include general courses that cover all doctoral programmes at Chalmers as well as courses specific for the graduate school.
General courses in Chalmers’s doctoral programmes
The general course requirements for doctoral programmes at Chalmers are regulated in Local Qualifications Framework for Chalmers University of Technology – third cycle qualifications.
Licentiate thesis
A licentiate thesis shall be written in English. In exceptional cases it can be written in Swedish; in such cases it shall contain a summary in English.
The purpose of the licentiate thesis is to account for the relevant scientific results that have been attained during the thesis work and describe these in a way that is accessible outside of the scientific inner circle of researchers. A licentiate thesis can either be written as a compilation thesis or as a monograph. If the licentiate thesis is a compilation thesis it should begin with an introduction, a summarizing text, followed by the included scientific articles. The purpose of the summarizing text is to put the studies in context, and to present relevant results that for various reasons are not described within the articles.
The preferred format is a compilation thesis. The presentation of the thesis shall take place in the presence of an external reviewer and the examiner.
Other regulations concerning the licentiate thesis are stated in Appointment regulation for doctoral programmes.
Doctoral thesis
A doctoral thesis shall be written in English. In exceptional cases it can be written in Swedish; in such cases it shall contain a summary in English.
The purpose of the doctoral thesis is to account for the relevant scientific results that have been attained during the thesis work and describe these in a way that is accessible outside of the scientific inner circle of researchers. A doctoral thesis can either be written as a compilation thesis or as a monograph. If the doctoral thesis is a compilation thesis it should begin with an introduction, a summarizing text, followed by the included scientific articles. The purpose of the summarizing text is to put the studies in context, and to present relevant results that for various reasons are not described within the articles.
The preferred format is a compilation thesis.
Other regulations concerning the doctoral thesis are stated in Appointment regulation for doctoral programmes.
Supervision
The Appointment regulation for doctoral programmes states that for each doctoral student at least two supervisors shall be appointed. One of them shall be appointed principal supervisor. The doctoral student has the right to supervision during the studies unless the Head of Department decides otherwise.
Other regulations concerning supervision are stated in Appointment regulation for doctoral programmes.
5. Examination
After completion of a doctoral programme a doctoral degree is awarded. A licentiate degree can be an intermediate stage in a doctoral degree. If a licentiate degree is not a part of the individual study plan, a midway seminar shall be held to denote that licentiate level has been reached.
Examination, licentiate degree
For a licentiate degree to be awarded, the doctoral student must have received a grade of pass for the licentiate thesis and its presentation and must also have received a grade of pass for the other elements that are included in the programme.
Examination, doctoral degree
For a doctoral degree to be awarded, the doctoral student must have had a doctoral thesis and its defence approved and must also have passed the other elements that are included in the programme.
Other regulations regarding examination are stated in:
- Appointment regulation for doctoral programmes
- Local Qualifications Framework for Chalmers University of Technology – third cycle qualifications
6. Title of degree
The title of qualification is Teknologie doktorsexamen i Nukleär Teknik or Filosofie doktorsexamen i Nukleär Teknik. The English translation of the title of the qualification is Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Nuclear Engineering.
For a licentiate degree the title of the qualification is Teknologie licentiatexamen i Nukleär Teknik or Filosofie licentiatexamen i Nukleär Teknik. The English translation of the title of qualification is Degree of Licentiate of Engineering in Nuclear Engineering or Degree of Licentiate of Philosophy in Nuclear Engineering.
The degree is given a title corresponding to the name of the faculty within which the undergraduate degree was earned. The title is determined by the Head of Department in connection with admission.
Any decision regarding exemption from use of the defined title is made by the Head of Department. In some individual cases, it is possible to use a title that does not correspond to the name of the faculty within which the undergraduate degree was earned.