how to get phd in astronomy

DEPARTMENT OF PHYSICS AND ASTRONOMY

• Doctoral Programs

Astronomy PhD Degree

Northwestern astronomy.

Northwestern Astronomy PhD Poster

The Northwestern Astronomy PhD is designed to provide students with a broad training in astronomy while enabling them to get started quickly with their graduate research. The Astronomy PhD is a flexible program that allows students to complement their astronomy training with a selection of physics courses or courses from other quantitative disciplines such as applied mathematics, statistics, computer science or engineering relevant to their research. Please note that GRE exam scores are not accepted as part of our application process.

Students pursuing astronomy or astrophysics research in our department will benefit from the vibrant environment and opportunities offered by the Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Exploration in Astrophysics (CIERA).

Research and the Thesis

• Explore Astronomy Research at Northwestern

When do students start doing research?

We encourage students to become engaged in research as early as possible in their studies. Incoming students on University Fellowship support are especially encouraged to begin part-time research in their first year. To acquaint themselves with the research opportunities in the department, most new students work with one of the faculty during the summer of their first year of graduate study. (However, there is no requirement to do so.)

When do students choose an advisor?

Students may choose a thesis advisor and/or topic at any point in their first two years.

When is the Candidacy Exam (Prospectus)?

A proposed thesis topic must be defended before a faculty committee no later than by the end of the student's fourth (4th) year at Northwestern.

How long does it take students to complete the degree?

The thesis must be defended by no later than the end of the student's ninth (9th) year at Northwestern.The median number of years to completion is five (5) years.

Can students receive their Master's degree along the way?

Yes, students may apply to receive a Master's degree en route to their PhD degree. This may be helpful on applications for outside funding.

Interdisciplinary Work

Discover the IDEAS program to learn about additional graduate training opportunities and our Certificate in Integrated Data Science.

Course Requirements

• Selected from Astron 314/414, 321/421, 325/425, 329/429, 410, 416, 448, 449, and 451
• This ensures that Astronomy PhD students get to know the Physics PhD students when they start at Northwestern.
• Four (4) other 400-level quantitative science or engineering courses (including in physics or astronomy).

How long will it take to finish the required coursework?

Most of the astronomy graduate courses are offered every other year, so students will typically take 2 years to finish their course requirements.

Where are descriptions of the Astronomy courses?

See online descriptions of graduate courses and scroll to the bottom of that page to see astro courses.

Professional Development, STEM, and Outreach

Explore a wide variety of education and outreach opportunities while you are in graduate school.

How to Apply

Please note that GRE exam scores are not accepted as part of our application process.

• Application details

Advanced Tools for Research

• Telescope Access for Northwestern Astronomers
• High-performance Computing at Northwestern
• Northwestern University Research Shop

Further Questions?

Contact the Graduate Program Assistant.

Please refer to our   Resources page   for direct links to The Graduate School (TGS) for information that can guide you in your academic career.

Our Program Handbook can also answer many questions you might have.

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The Department of Astronomy offers a rich and varied program of theoretical, observational, and experimental graduate work. You will conduct research in your first year in the program, accessing such impressive resources as the Harvard College Observatory and the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. You will also have the opportunity to travel to the twin 6.5 meter Magellan Telescope in Chile and the 6.5 meter MMT telescope in Arizona.

Your funding is guaranteed for six years, regardless of your chosen faculty advisor. The average length of time to graduate is five and a half years.

You can attend our weekly colloquia, regular seminars, clubs, and meets and interact with world leaders in astronomy to generate new ideas and initiate potential collaborations.

Examples of student theses and dissertations include “Applications of High-Resolution Observations of Millimeter Wavelengths,” “The Bright Side of Black Holes: Radiation from Black Hole Accretion Disks,” “Charting our Uncharted Milky Way.”

Graduates have secured faculty positions at institutions such as University of California, Berkeley; Dartmouth College, and the University of Bath. Others have begun their career with leading organizations such as Boston Consulting Group, Google, and Netflix.

Additional information on the graduate program is available from the Department of Astronomy and requirements for the degree are detailed in Policies .

Admissions Requirements

Please review admissions requirements and other information before applying. You can find degree program-specific admissions requirements below and access additional guidance on applying from the Department of Astronomy .

Academic Background

In the Advanced Coursework section of the application for admission, applicants must list their four most advanced courses in astronomy and two most advanced courses in mathematics, including textbooks and authors used in each course.

Standardized Tests

GRE General: Not accepted GRE Subject (Physics): Optional 

Theses & Dissertations

Theses & Dissertations for Astronomy

See list of Astronomy faculty

APPLICATION DEADLINE

Questions about the program.

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Graduate Program

The goal of the graduate program in astronomy is education and mentoring of our students toward their long-term careers in research and teaching in astronomy or related STEM fields. More specifically, the program aims to produce doctoral graduates with a broad knowledge of Astronomy, effective communication skills, and experience in cutting-edge research.

Broad knowledge of Astronomy is gained through a full set of graduate astronomy courses covering every major research area in astrophysics (see the curriculum on the  Timeline & Requirements  page). For most students, the curriculum during each quarter of their first two years includes: one core graduate course and one elective graduate course astronomy, which provide a sequenced set; a third formal course in a related field (e.g., astrobiology, physics, statistics, computer science, etc.) and/or faculty supervised research; and, weekly participation in astronomy colloquium, seminars, and journal club. Visit Courses for a full listing of graduate courses offered by the Astronomy Department.

Effective communication skills are gained partly through the required one year of service as a teaching assistantship.  This is usually done during the student’s first year.  Being a teaching assistant also helps to broaden knowledge of astronomy.  Other activities that help with communication skills include the journal club class, in which students present recent literature to their peers.  Many of the graduate courses also require oral presentations.  For those students wishing to hone their teaching skills, opportunities are available to be an instructor during the summer term.

Development of research skills starts in the first year.  Graduate students are expected to start research rotations, spending 2-3 quarters on different projects with multiple faculty.  It is the hope that one of these rotations leads to the “Research Qualifier”, where the student submits a 5-10 page journal-quality write-up of the research project to be evaluated by a faculty committee, and gives an oral presentation.  This qualifying project does NOT have to be related to the student’s Ph.D. project, allowing students to explore various areas of modern astronomy and astrophysics. 

After completing the required course work and the Research Qual, the student is expected to focus on research leading to the Ph.D. dissertation. In preparation, the student must pass the “General Exam”, which is an oral presentation by the student on a topic related to a proposed Ph.D. research topic.  As well as demonstrating that the student is ready for state-of-the-art research in the area of interest, this exam is yet another opportunity for the student to improve their communication skills. At this point, the student becomes a Ph.D. candidate, and spends most (if not all) of their time writing. The dissertation is usually completed around the 6th year, after which our students go on to many wonderful careers (see  Graduate Outcomes ).

Our program emphasizes the Ph.D. degree. However, students are eligible to receive a M.S. degree when they have met the Graduate School  requirements , and most students obtain this degree along the way. 

Graduate Program News

Graduate Student Guadalupe Tovar Wins Award for Research Presentation Skills 

A Recap: American Astronomical Society 241st Meeting in Seattle

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Graduate Program

Get a PhD with Us

About our program.

The Department of Astronomy has a thriving graduate program which prepares students for careers in astronomical research and education by emphasizing a broad understanding of physical systems and teaching the skills necessary to perform leading-edge research. Through our affiliated research units, the Center for Space Physics and the Institute for Astrophysical Research , our students, faculty, and researchers are at the forefront of observations, modeling, and numerical simulations in research areas that include ionospheric and magnetospheric physics, solar and heliospheric physics, planetary and exoplanetary science, star and planet formation, galactic and interstellar medium studies, extragalactic and cosmological astrophysics, as well as instrumentation development in support of all those themes.

We own and operate the 1.8-meter Perkins Telescope Observatory and the instruments on it and we are a permanent partner in Lowell Observatory’s 4.3-meter Lowell Discovery Telescope , both of which are located in the high-altitude dark skies of Northern Arizona. Our faculty are involved in a number of space-based research missions, including the Hubble Space Telescope, JWST, MAVEN, JUNO, THEMIS, Van Allen Probes, and TESS, the airborne observatory SOFIA, and many ground-based national and international telescopic observatories, including the EHT, eVLA, ALMA, Gemini, and VLT.

Related Links

How to apply.

Graduate Courses

Resources for Current Graduate Students

Questions About the Program?

Assistant Professor; Director of Graduate Admissions

Graduate Program Administrators

Associate Professor; Director of Graduate Studies

Anne Smartvlasak

Department Administrator

Department of Physics and Astronomy

Ph.D. in Astrophysics Requirements Guide

Course Requirements | Beyond the For-Credit Curriculum | The Qualifying Examination | The Ph.D. Dissertation

Course Requirements

The Graduate School requires a total of 72 hours of credit (formal coursework plus registered research hours) prior to receiving the Ph.D. Within these 72 credit hours, the Department of Physics and Astronomy requires 28 hours of formal coursework 1 including:

• Five core courses covering the foundations of astrophysics, as detailed below, totaling 16 credit hours
• Additional graduate-level courses to make a total of 12 credit hours in any subject relevant to the student’s overall program of graduate study and research
• A minimum of two semesters of Teaching Practicum (ASTR 8002) to be taken before the Qualifying Examination. This is a zero-credit course
• Four semesters of astrophysics seminars (ASTR 8003) to be taken before the Qualifying Examination. This is a zero-credit course

A student must earn a grade of B or higher in each course counted towards these 28 hours. A student must earn a satisfactory grade (“S”) in ASTR 8002 and 8003.

Core courses provide the basic foundation for research. There are three ways to satisfy each core course requirement:

• Take and pass the course with a grade of B or higher
• Take and pass an alternate written exam on the material covered by that particular course; or
• Transfer the credit from a similar approved course that was taken at a different institution

A student who receives a B- or lower grade in any core course has a second chance to meet the course requirement either by retaking the course a single time or by taking and passing the corresponding alternate written exam. Note that exceptionally well-prepared incoming students may take and pass one or more of the alternate written exams to place out of the corresponding core course(s). A failure to pass the exam before the respective course is taken is not going to count against the two chances to satisfy the course requirement. Students who, due to a repeated low course grade or failure on the alternate written exam, fail to satisfy any one of the core course requirements may be dropped from the Ph.D. program at the discretion of the GPC in astrophysics. Students who receive a B- or lower in more than one core course may also be dropped from the Ph.D. program at the discretion of the GPC in astrophysics.

Transfer Credit  

Students who have taken graduate courses elsewhere may petition the GPC in astrophysics to have those courses evaluated for transfer credit to avoid unnecessary duplication and speed up the student’s entry into research.

Astrophysics Core Course Requirements

  Students must complete these courses in the first two years of graduate study:

• ASTR 8010: Radiative Processes in Astrophysics
• ASTR 8030: Stellar Astrophysics
• ASTR 8040: Structure and Dynamics of Galaxies
• ASTR 8050: Structure Formation in the Universe
• ASTR 8001: Order of Magnitude Astrophysics

The first four of these are three-credit courses. Order of Magnitude Astrophysics is a single-credit class and must be taken every semester before the Qualifying Exam is passed. This adds up to 16 credit hours of astrophysics core courses.

Elective Courses

  The remaining 12 credit hours of formal coursework may be filled from any graduate-level courses that are appropriate for the student’s program. Examples are any 8000-level ASTR or PHYS courses. All elective credits taken must be approved by the student’s adviser or the GPC in astrophysics.

Teaching Experience

Teaching experience is an important component of graduate students’ education and their preparation for future careers. All students must take ASTR 8002: Teaching Practicum for a minimum of two semesters before the Qualifying Exam is passed. Typically, graduate students in astrophysics would teach for four to six semesters during their first few years of study. Teaching assistants are generally assigned about 15 hours per week of work for duties such as grading, leading lab sections, and meeting with students. Teaching assistants are not expected to be “instructors of record”, i.e., to have the responsibility for preparing an entire course, syllabus, lectures, course materials, etc. However, in exceptional circumstances, students in advanced standing may request this opportunity by petitioning the GPC.

Astrophysics Seminars

Attending colloquia, seminars, journal clubs, and other research-focused community events are a vital component of graduate education. All students must take ASTR 8003: astrophysics seminars four semesters before the Qualifying Exam is passed. To successfully complete this class, students must attend a minimum number of Physics Colloquia, Astronomy Journal Clubs, and Astronomy Lunches. Moreover, students must give a formal presentation in Astronomy Journal Club. These events are described in more detail in Beyond the For-Credit Curriculum section.

Research Hours  

In addition to taking formal courses, students in their first two years of study are expected to be making progress in research projects under the supervision of a research adviser. In consultation with their adviser, students should normally enroll in ASTR 8999: Non-candidate Research for as many credit hours as they need up to the maximum of 13 credit hours per semester.

After passing the Qualifying Examination, students should enroll in up to 13 credit hours of ASTR 9999: Dissertation Research each semester, until they have completed the 72 credit hours required by the Graduate School. After completing 72 credit hours, students should continue enrolling in ASTR 9999 each semester for zero credit hours.

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Beyond the For-Credit Curriculum

The training of Ph.D. candidates in astrophysics goes beyond formal coursework and the doctoral research project. The astrophysics program runs several informal activities that are aimed at giving students experience with giving professional talks and reading the scientific literature. All students are expected to attend these events regularly (required in the first two years as part of ASTR 8003). These events are:

• Journal Club: All graduate students in this program are expected to attend a weekly, one-hour journal club. At each Journal Club meeting, one or two students make a presentation, explaining a recently published paper in the astrophysical literature. Each student is expected to make at least one presentation at Journal Club each semester. In this forum, students gain experience in presenting research to an audience and receive feedback from faculty and their peers on their presentation.
• Astro Lunch: All graduate students in this program are expected to attend a weekly one-hour lunch meeting at which the group informally discusses recently published or submitted papers.
• Department Colloquium: The Department of Physics and Astronomy holds weekly, late afternoon colloquia during the academic year. All graduate students in this program are expected to attend all colloquia with an astrophysics orientation and at least a selection of other colloquia.
• National and International Meetings: All graduate students in this program are expected to attend national and/or international astrophysics conferences during their tenure as graduate students. Students are especially expected to attend conferences at which they will make research presentations.

The Qualifying Examination

To be awarded the Doctoral Degree in Astrophysics a student must write and defend a dissertation that presents the results of independent research. To progress to that point, each student must first pass the Qualifying Examination to become a doctoral candidate. According to the Graduate School Catalog , “the purpose of the Qualifying Examination is to test the student’s knowledge of the field of specialization, to assess familiarity with the published research in the field, and to determine whether the student possesses those critical and analytical skills needed for a scholarly career.”

In the astrophysics program, the Qualifying Examination requires each student to independently write and orally defend a research proposal. The topic is of the student’s choosing, and may be the same as her/his current research. The Qualifying Examination is administered by the student’s Ph.D. Committee and only the committee members and the student are present. Passing the Qualifying Examination marks the student’s formal entry into dissertation research under the supervision of her/his dissertation adviser and the Ph.D. Committee. 2 The Qualifying Exam should not be seen as a hurdle, but as an important part of one’s training to become an independent scientist.

Ph.D. Committee

The Ph.D. Committee administers the Qualifying Examination and subsequently monitors the student’s progress toward the completion of the dissertation. The committee comprises at least four members of the graduate faculty. To ensure consistency among Qualifying Examinations, at least one member of the committee should be a current or recent member of the GPC in astrophysics. In addition, by Graduate School rule, at least one member of the committee must be from outside the astrophysics program. This external committee member may be a member of the physics faculty at Vanderbilt, a faculty member from a different department at Vanderbilt, or it may be a faculty member or equivalent at another university or National Lab. One of the committee members serves as the committee chair. While this is often the student’s research adviser, this does not need to be the case. The composition of the committee is delivered to the DGS in astrophysics by the adviser in consultation with the student for certification of compliance with the above rules.

Preparing For The Qualifying Examination

The Qualifying Examination in the department is taken during the fourth semester (under exceptional circumstances, a student may petition the GPC to delay the Qualifying Exam until as late as the sixth semester 3 ). The Qualifying Examination is offered in just one annual cycle culminating in the oral examination by mid-May. By Graduate School rules, students taking the oral Qualifying Exam must have completed all requirements of the Graduate School for formal coursework (24 credit hours) at the actual time of the oral exam with a GPA of 3.0 or better in all courses taken for credit. However, in order for the student to advance to candidacy, a student must first complete all the course requirements for the astrophysics Ph.D. program.

The steps needed to prepare for the Qualifying Examination are:

• The student should get involved in research as soon as possible – certainly no later than the summer after the first year of study. To begin by summer, the student should interview potential faculty advisers no later than the spring of the first year to identify those with space to take on a summer research assistant. During the first two years of study, a student may explore research opportunities in several groups, but she/he must select a faculty Ph.D. adviser at least one semester before an anticipated Qualifying Exam date.
• The student and the adviser agree on the members of the Ph.D. Committee, including who will serve as chair of the committee. The student then contacts members of the committee to ascertain their willingness to serve. Once the composition of the Ph.D. Committee is decided and all the proposed committee members have agreed to serve, the adviser completes the Request to Appoint Committee form to the DGS for certification and notification of the Graduate School. The committee membership should be finalized and the form submitted by February 1.
• The student prepares a one-page abstract that outlines the proposal’s research topic, hypothesis, and specific aims. The student may discuss potential topics with her/his adviser, but the abstract itself must be the student’s completely independent work; there should be no editing of the abstract by anyone other than the student for any reason. This abstract should be submitted electronically (.pdf preferred) to the DGS in astrophysics. The exact due date will be set by the DGS, but will be approximately February 15.

The abstract will be reviewed by the GPC in astrophysics, focusing on the following questions:

• Is the research topic appropriate?
• Is the hypothesis well-formed and testable?
• Is the scope sufficiently focused (doable during a typical graduate career of three to four years)?

The GPC will provide the student with written feedback on the appropriateness of her/his proposal in approximately one week. The student will then revise the abstract and resubmit it to the DGS and to all members of the student’s Ph.D. Committee. The exact due date will be set by the DGS, but will be approximately March 1.

The student’s Ph.D. Committee will perform a similar review of the abstract and determine whether it provides an adequate basis for a full If so, the committee will provide additional written feedback and inform the student to begin preparing the full proposal. If not, the committee will provide written feedback and require the student to submit a revised abstract within two weeks.

After receiving permission to prepare the full proposal, the student should contact all committee members to set a date for the oral Qualifying Examination. The student is advised that getting a committee of four to five faculty persons to be available simultaneously in time and space is not a trivial task! During the annual exam cycle, the oral exam should be scheduled for the last two weeks of April or the first two weeks of May. Only in extraordinary circumstances should the exam be delayed beyond this point. Once a date is agreed upon, the adviser notifies the DGS and Graduate School no later than three weeks before the proposed date. Note that the Graduate School issues the notice of the examination at least two weeks in advance.

Regardless of when the oral Qualifying Examination is scheduled, the written proposal must be submitted to the DGS and the student’s Ph.D. Committee by a specific date. This date will be set by the DGS, typically April 1, and will be the same for all students taking the exam during a specific cycle. The written proposal must not exceed eight pages (single-spaced, 12-pt font). Within this space, the proposal should have four sections:

• Rationale or Background & Significance: This section provides background information and justification for the proposal. An important part of preparing the proposal is a thorough review of the current literature. This review should be concisely summarized here.
• Hypothesis: This short section (~one paragraph) should describe the specific hypothesis to be tested.
• Specific Aims or Research Objectives:  This section will largely follow the previously approved abstract, but the student can make changes as she/he more fully develops the proposal.
• Research Plan: This section should detail the experimental/theoretical plan to meet the specific aims. The student is advised to number the specific aims and use the same numbering scheme for subsections of the Research Plan. This section should describe the experimental/theoretical strategies and design, but it should not provide the sort of detailed Materials & Methods section one would find in a journal article. This section should sketch anticipated outcomes and some discussion of how the plan might be adjusted with different outcomes.

The student’s Ph.D. Committee will review and evaluate the written proposal. This evaluation will be completed at least two days before the scheduled oral examination. If the written proposal is deemed adequate, then the oral examination will proceed as scheduled; however, if the committee identifies serious deficiencies in the written proposal, then the oral exam will be postponed. If postponed, the scheduled exam time will be used for the committee to provide constructive criticism to the student on how she/he can address the identified deficiencies. The student will then have two weeks to submit a revised proposal and reschedule the oral examination as soon as possible.

During the oral Qualifying Examination, the student defends her/his research proposal. The exam is limited to a maximum of two hours. The student is allotted a maximum of 15 minutes to provide an overview of the proposal. This is a strict limit, so committee members are asked to restrict questions to points of clarification during the student’s presentation. The remainder of the two hours is reserved for the committee to ask questions in which the student should be prepared to discuss the general background of the proposal and its significance; to discuss relevant experimental approaches, including their theoretical bases and limitations; to outline anticipated results; and to interpret the meaning of these results. The student should be particularly prepared to discuss the interpretation of alternative results proposed by the committee. Although the primary focus of the questions will be on the research proposal, the committee may and likely will probe into the student’s core knowledge of astrophysics.

In contrast to the rules for the written proposal, students are strongly encouraged to prepare for the oral examination by gathering student peers for mock oral exams. Copies of the student’s prepared slides must be made available to the committee members at least one working day before the examination. By rule of the Graduate School, attendance at the Qualifying Examination is limited to only the Ph.D. Committee members and the student. The committee will decide within one day whether the student has passed the Qualifying Examination.

Within one week, the adviser will provide a written report to the student and to the GPC describing the student’s performance on the examination. Even if the student was judged to have passed the examination, the report should address any deficiencies in preparation that were evident during the examination. If the student was judged to have failed the examination, the report should note the serious deficiencies that caused this failure; the committee may also offer their judgment on whether retaking the examination would be in the best interest of the student. A second attempt at passing the Qualifying Examination may be made by the student within three months of the date of the failed examination. By Graduate School rule, only two attempts are allowed to pass the Qualifying Examination.

The Ph.D. Dissertation

After passing the Qualifying Examination, the student is officially admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D. He/she will develop a topical focus for the Ph.D. dissertation grounded in the subfield chosen for that examination. The dissertation topic should be an original research proposition that advances the frontiers of science in the field of specialization. While consultation with the adviser will be crucial to this process, it is to be emphasized that the proposal for the dissertation is the responsibility of the student. Within two semesters of passing the Qualifying Examination, the student will present a specific proposal to the Ph.D. Committee.

This proposal can be, and likely should be, based on the proposal that the student successfully defended during her/his Qualifying Examination. At this stage, the proposal should contain at the minimum a chapter-by-chapter outline of the dissertation, a report on the research already carried out, and a specific plan for completing the remainder. As a general rule, students should plan to complete the dissertation within three years of passing the Qualifying Examination, so that the dissertation can be submitted five to six years after entering the Graduate School. By Graduate School rule, all requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy must be completed within four years of passing the Qualifying Examination.

Annual Meetings of the Ph.D. Committee

After the dissertation topic is approved, the student will meet with the Ph.D. Committee at least annually to report on research completed to date, publications planned or in progress, and an estimate of the time, resources and analysis that are required to complete the dissertation project. The committee members may ask questions, critique the work presented by the student, or make suggestions about the project. The Chair of the Ph.D. Committee (usually the Ph.D. adviser) is responsible for preparing a brief written report of the meeting that will be sent to the candidate and to the DGS. This report may also be reviewed by the GPC as it monitors student progress.

Publication Requirements

The research in any dissertation project is expected to contribute measurably to scientific progress in the field of specialization; thus, publication in peer-reviewed journals is an essential component of the Ph.D. research program. While the venue, number, and timing of publications vary according to the subfield, students should expect to play a major role in a first paper no later than the end of the third year of graduate study. By the time the dissertation is completed, the student must present to the Ph.D. Committee at least one paper in which they played the primary role and that has been accepted in a peer-reviewed journal. Most students are expected to have more than one such paper published or accepted for publication at the time of the dissertation defense.

Completion of the Dissertation and the Ph.D. Defense

The Graduate School website gives essential information about the timing and format of the Ph.D. dissertation and the defense. According to Graduate School rules, the defense must take place no later than four years after the student passes the Qualifying Exam and advances to candidacy. Students may petition the Graduate School for an extension; however, financial support from the Graduate School is unlikely past the fourth year of candidacy. The defense is a public examination, and should be characterized by a spirited scientific debate on the strengths and weaknesses of the dissertation presented by the student. In addition, the Department of Physics and Astronomy stipulates the following:

• The Ph.D. adviser will inform the Dean of the Graduate School at least two weeks in advance of the date and place of the defense so that the event can be published in the Vanderbilt University electronic calendar. The department administrative staff will advertise the dissertation title, date, and place of the defense in order to promote attendance by faculty, research staff, and other students.
• The Ph.D. candidate must present a complete copy of the dissertation to the committee members at least two weeks before the defense. This is both a departmental and Graduate School requirement.
• At the defense, the candidate will present the critical points of the dissertation for no more than 45 minutes; during this presentation, questioning will be generally restricted to matters of clarification. After the presentation is finished, questioning by attendees other than the Ph.D. Committee will be permitted for about half an hour.
• After the public questioning is concluded, the Ph.D. Committee will continue the questioning of the candidate in executive session for up to an hour. The Ph.D. Committee will then caucus in private to evaluate the defense and decide the outcome.

The possible outcomes for the defense are:

• Pass conditional upon changes made to the dissertation recommended by members of the committee, or

In case two, the committee may grant discretion to the principal adviser to enforce that the recommended changes are made. The members may sign the paperwork certifying completion of a passing dissertation, but the adviser will submit the committee’s report to the Graduate School only after the changes made are satisfactory in the opinion of the adviser.

 Applying for Fellowships

There are several national fellowships and external awards that provide support for graduate students in their studies.

These fellowships come with many tangible benefits for students:

• they allow students to focus fully on research right from the start;
• they are prestigious and strengthen students’ CVs;
• they provide valuable experience in planning and writing grant proposals. Graduate students are expected to apply for one or more of these opportunities.

Some example programs are the NSF GRFP (deadline: late October), NASA JPFP (deadline: early February), NASA ASTAR (deadline: early May).

Important Milestones and Checklist

This is a list of all the important milestones that students reach while they are in the astrophysics Ph.D. program. All forms that are required may be downloaded from the Graduate School website .

1 The Graduate School requires only 24 credit hours of formal coursework. The departmental requirement is higher because of the number and breadth of core courses required to properly prepare for a career in astronomy. Additional coursework may be recommended by a student’s adviser. Return to text 2 Advancing to candidacy makes one eligible to register for dissertation research credit hours (ASTR 9999). Return to text 3 The Graduate School requirement is that the Qualifying Examination must be passed by the end of the eighth semester. Postponing it beyond this time does not allow for the completion of an acceptable dissertation project in the desired degree time frame of approximately five years. Return to text

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Applying to the PhD Program

Minimum requirements for admission.

Minimum admissions requirements are an earned 4-year baccalaureate or higher degree from an accredited college or university prior to beginning graduate studies, a minimum cumulative 3.0 GPA (4.0 scale) in all prior undergraduate and graduate-level work, and credentials documenting prerequisite academic work that gives evidence of your ability to pursue a graduate program in astrophysics.  For applications received in 2023 for admission in Autumn 2024, the GRE General is not required.

Since Fall 2018, the GRE subject test in Physics is optional. For applicants in 2023 for admission in Autumn 2024, the Physics GRE is not required. All students should include a paragraph in their statement of intent that outlines their undergraduate physics preparation. This could include a description of advanced physics classes taken, including textbooks used, and the grades earned in those courses.

English Proficiency

International applicants whose native language is not English are required to take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). Minimum English Proficiency Requirements are at least a 550 on the paper-based (213 on the computer-based) TOEFL, equivalent to a total score of 79 on the internet-based TOEFL (IBT); or (less common) 82 on the MELAB or 7.0 on the IELTS exams.

Applicants who are citizens of or who have received a bachelor's degree (or higher) from one of these English-speaking countries are exempt: Australia, Belize, the British Caribbean, British West Indies, Canada (except Quebec), England, Guyana, Ireland, Liberia, New Zealand, Scotland and Wales, and the United States. If you are in the process of getting a bachelor's degree from one of these countries, you may still receive email reminders about English language proficiency tests. You do not need to respond.  You will stop getting the emails once we receive documentation of your degree.

Online Application Materials

All application materials for the OSU Graduate School are available online at the Graduate Admissions Webpage.

Please be careful to apply under the correct category (Domestic or International).  

Time-Sensitive Limited Opportunity for Fee Waivers

The OSU Graduate School, as part of the Big Ten Academic Alliance, has a fee waiver program for students who bring qualities and experience that will enhance the diversity of graduate students at OSU. Applications for these waivers are made through the OSU Graduate School , not the Astronomy Department. They have their own internal deadline. More information about fee waivers is available from the OSU Graduate School and the Big Ten Academic Alliance . 

Deadlines for Autumn 2024 Admission

These deadlines are for receipt of applications for admission to the Astronomy graduate program starting in Autumn Semester 2024 :

Domestic Students: 2023 December 10  International Students: 2023 December 10

We strongly encourage applicants to get all materials (including reference letters) to OSU at least one week ahead of the nominal deadline.  Applications should be complete by the deadline in order to be considered for the University-wide fellowship competition. The only components of the application that are allowed to be submitted after the nominal deadline are the (optional) General and Physics GRE scores.  These exams should be taken prior to the deadline, and scores should be submitted to OSU as soon as they are available.  As long as the scores arrive before January 4, and as long as the rest of the application is complete by the deadline, the applicant will be considered for the fellowship competition. Those applying after the deadline may be considered for internal financial aid (TA or RA), but cannot be entered in the University fellowship competition.  Finally, applications that arrive after the deadline may or may not be considered.

All successful applicants who are not awarded University Fellowships will be offered financial support as Teaching Assistants or Research Assistants; we fully support all of our graduate students from entry through completion of their PhDs. If you are interested in our program but cannot get everything in by the deadline above, please contact the Astronomy Department Graduate Admissions chair .

Further Information

• Specific Advice on applying to the Astronomy Department
• OSU Graduate Admissions Frequently Asked Questions (look here first!)
• OSU Graduate Admissions Website
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• Recent First-Author Papers by Ohio State Astronomy Graduate Students

Please also feel free to send an e-mail to the current Graduate Admissions Chair .

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• Astronomy, PhD

The goal of the graduate program is to prepare capable and creative astronomers for careers in research and education. The granting of the PhD degree indicates that the recipient has a mastery of the knowledge and techniques of modern astrophysics. A PhD candidate is expected to be both knowledgeable of problems at the frontiers of astrophysical research and able to carry out independent forefront research in a specialized area. Candidates are required to gain experience as teaching assistants and are encouraged to work with a variety of faculty and research staff members during the first two years of study. 

The Department of Astronomy offers the doctor of philosophy in astronomy. Although a master's degree is offered, students generally are not admitted for a terminal master's degree.

The department has a long-standing reputation as one of the finest graduate astronomy and astrophysics programs in the United States. The program provides each student with a broad knowledge of modern observational and theoretical astrophysics, while emphasizing the development of independent research skills. Beginning with the first year in the program, graduate students play an active role in the department's research programs and have access to all research facilities. As teaching assistants, they also acquire experience as astronomy educators.

The faculty are engaged in a broad range of observational and theoretical research. Topics of study include dynamical phenomena of massive stars; binary star evolution; dynamics of star clusters and star forming regions; compact objects; extrasolar planets; the interstellar and intergalactic medium; star formation; plasma astrophysics; computational fluid mechanics; magnetic fields; turbulence; the structure, kinematics, and stellar populations of nearby galaxies; active galactic nuclei; galactic winds and chemical evolution; galaxy clusters; galaxy formation and evolution; the star formation and black hole accretion history of the universe; and the development of innovative astronomical instrumentation. More information is available on the department website.

Research Facilities

Astronomical observations at UW–Madison trace their origin to the 15-inch refractor of Washburn Observatory, founded on the campus in 1878, and still open for public viewing. Wisconsin subsequently pioneered a multi-wavelength approach to astronomical observation. Faculty, research staff, and students are frequent observers on X-ray, ultraviolet, optical, infrared, radio, and submillimeter telescopes around the globe and in space. The department currently participates in the operation of a number of research-class observing facilities and is actively engaged in the development of cutting-edge instrumentation.

The university is a major partner in the WIYN telescope, an advanced technology 3.5m telescope at Kitt Peak, Arizona, optimized for wide-field imaging and spectroscopy, and in the 11m Southern African Large Telescope (SALT), the largest single aperture optical telescope in the Southern Hemisphere. The university is also a partner in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey IV, a massive spectroscopic survey of the distant Universe, nearby galaxies, and stars in the Milky Way. NOEMA, our newest telescope partner, is the most powerful millimeter radio telescope of the Northern Hemisphere and one of the most advanced facilities existing today for radio astronomy. The department is also actively involved in ASKAP and MEERKAT, precursor experiments for an array of radio telescopes one square kilometer in size.

The department has a long history of developing astronomical instrumentation for both ground and space-based facilities. Current efforts center on the development of a near-infrared spectrograph on SALT. UW–Madison scientists are also continuing to develop and operate an innovative and highly successful Star Tracker for sounding rocket and balloon-borne experiments. Technical support is provided by in-house electronics and machine shops.

The theory group uses a variety of facilities to support numerical modeling. The main workhorse comprises 24 dedicated nodes of the campus High Performance Computing (HPC) cluster, each containing 20 CPU cores and 128 GB of RAM, optimized for tightly coupled problems such as magnetohydrodynamical and N-body simulations. A number of smaller clusters within the Astronomy Department are used for development, analysis and three-dimensional visualization.

Please consult the table below for key information about this degree program’s admissions requirements. The program may have more detailed admissions requirements, which can be found below the table or on the program’s website.

Graduate admissions is a two-step process between academic programs and the Graduate School. Applicants must meet the minimum requirements of the Graduate School as well as the program(s). Once you have researched the graduate program(s) you are interested in, apply online .

To enter as a graduate student, an applicant must have undergraduate preparation that includes at least three years of college physics and mathematics through differential equations. Applicants are judged on the basis of previous academic record, letters of recommendation, personal statement, and research experience. Admission is competitive and is for the fall only.

Applicants for admission must submit the following via the Graduate School online application:

• Unofficial transcripts of all undergraduate work
• Statement on reasons for graduate study in astronomy
• Three letters of recommendation from people well acquainted with past academic work
• International students must prove English proficiency. Refer to the Graduate School Requirements page for more information.

Financial support is provided through university fellowships (incoming graduate students only) or department assistantships. To compete for fellowships awarded by the university, students must submit all application materials via the online Graduate School Application by the fall application deadline.

Graduate School Resources

Resources to help you afford graduate study might include assistantships, fellowships, traineeships, and financial aid.  Further funding information is available from the Graduate School. Be sure to check with your program for individual policies and restrictions related to funding.

Program Resources

Financial support for phd students in astronomy.

University fellowships or departmental assistantships are offered, contingent on satisfactory progress. The length of guaranteed student support is four continuous years for those with no prior graduate work. Three continuous years of funding are guaranteed for those with one year or more of prior graduate work. It is almost always the case that students remain fully funded through their thesis defense.  

Teaching Assistants (TA) assist faculty members in the introductory Astronomy courses, generally by teaching discussion and laboratory sections. A graduate student is required to TA at least one semester. Research Assistants (RA) work with a major professor on a mutually agreed research program.

Tuition is remitted for TA and RA appointments.  However, all students must still pay university segregated fees and any additional university fees.

Minimum Graduate School Requirements

Major requirements.

Review the Graduate School minimum academic progress and degree requirements , in addition to the program requirements listed below.

Mode of Instruction

Mode of Instruction Definitions

Accelerated: Accelerated programs are offered at a fast pace that condenses the time to completion. Students typically take enough credits aimed at completing the program in a year or two.

Evening/Weekend: ​Courses meet on the UW–Madison campus only in evenings and/or on weekends to accommodate typical business schedules.  Students have the advantages of face-to-face courses with the flexibility to keep work and other life commitments.

Face-to-Face: Courses typically meet during weekdays on the UW-Madison Campus.

Hybrid: These programs combine face-to-face and online learning formats.  Contact the program for more specific information.

Online: These programs are offered 100% online.  Some programs may require an on-campus orientation or residency experience, but the courses will be facilitated in an online format.

Curricular Requirements

Required Courses 

Barring course conflicts, students are expected to take this course every semester during their first two years for 1 credit each semester. Once students reach dissertator status, they no longer register for this course.

Beyond the other required courses listed, students typically take ASTRON 990 Research and Thesis credits to reach the total minimum credit requirement.

Graduate School Policies

The  Graduate School’s Academic Policies and Procedures  provide essential information regarding general university policies. Program authority to set degree policies beyond the minimum required by the Graduate School lies with the degree program faculty. Policies set by the academic degree program can be found below.

Major-Specific Policies

Prior coursework, graduate credits earned at other institutions.

Refer to the Graduate School: Transfer Credits for Prior Coursework policy.

Undergraduate Credits Earned at Other Institutions or UW-Madison

Up to 7 credits numbered 700 or above from a UW–Madison undergraduate degree are allowed to transfer toward the degree.

Credits Earned as a Professional Student at UW-Madison (Law, Medicine, Pharmacy, and Veterinary careers)

Credits earned as a university special student at uw–madison.

With program approval, students are allowed to transfer no more than 15 credits of coursework numbered 400 or above taken as a UW–Madison University Special student. Coursework earned ten years or more prior to admission to a doctoral degree is not allowed to satisfy requirements.

A grade of C or lower in a core course will result in the student being placed on academic probation. This is removed after the next grade of B or better in a core course. Grades of C or lower in two or more core courses will result in dismissal.

A semester GPA below 3.0 will result in the student being placed on academic probation. This will be removed if the student attains a GPA of 3.0 or above in the subsequent semester.

Advisor / Committee

All students will be assigned a mentoring committee consisting of the student's advisor and two other faculty members. Students are strongly encouraged (but not required) to meet with their mentoring committees twice a year in the first two years and annually thereafter.

Credits Per Term Allowed

Time limits.

Refer to the Graduate School: Time Limits policy.

Grievances and Appeals

These resources may be helpful in addressing your concerns:

• Bias or Hate Reporting  
• Graduate Assistantship Policies and Procedures
• Office of the Provost for Faculty and Staff Affairs
• Employee Assistance (for personal counseling and workplace consultation around communication and conflict involving graduate assistants and other employees, post-doctoral students, faculty and staff)
• Employee Disability Resource Office (for qualified employees or applicants with disabilities to have equal employment opportunities)
• Graduate School (for informal advice at any level of review and for official appeals of program/departmental or school/college grievance decisions)
• Office of Compliance (for class harassment and discrimination, including sexual harassment and sexual violence)
• Office Student Assistance and Support (OSAS)  (for all students to seek grievance assistance and support)
• Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards (for conflicts involving students)
• Ombuds Office for Faculty and Staff (for employed graduate students and post-docs, as well as faculty and staff)
• Title IX (for concerns about discrimination)

Students should contact the department chair or program director with questions about grievances. They may also contact the L&S Academic Divisional Associate Deans, the L&S Associate Dean for Teaching and Learning Administration, or the L&S Director of Human Resources.

University fellowships or departmental assistantships are offered, contingent on satisfactory progress. The length of guaranteed student support is four continuous years for those with no prior graduate work. Three continuous years of funding are guaranteed for those with one year or more of prior graduate work. It is almost always the case that students remain fully funded through their thesis defense. 

• Professional Development

Take advantage of the Graduate School's  professional development resources to build skills, thrive academically, and launch your career. 

The goal of the graduate program is to prepare capable and creative astronomers for careers in research and education. Each student will have both a graduate student mentor and a set of three faculty mentors, called a “Committee of Three” (or Co3 for short). The Co3’s are expected to evolve into a Thesis Committee as the student progress towards their degree. The Committee of Three fosters more departmental collaborations and provides students with a broader advising perspective and regular feedback on their progress.  

• Learning Outcomes
• Demonstrate mastery of basic observational techniques and the core astrophysical processes that govern the structures and evolution of major cosmic systems
• Formulate scientific hypotheses and design original research that pushes beyond current boundaries of knowledge
• Create research and scholarship that substantively advances a specific field of study within astronomy
• Communicate complex ideas in a clear and understandable manner to students, research professionals, and lay audiences
• Foster ethical and professional conduct
• Demonstrate breadth within their learning experiences and awareness of the status of contemporary research beyond the student's area of specialization

Professors: Amy Barger (chair), Thomas Beatty, Juliette Becker, Matt Bershady, Elena D'Onghia, Kate Grier, Sebastian Heinz, Alex Lazarian, Bob Mathieu, Michael Maseda, Snezana Stanimirovic, Richard Townsend, Zoe Todd, Christy Tremonti, Susanna Widicus Weaver, Eric Wilcots, Ke Zhang, and Ellen Zweibel

Department Administrator: Steve Anderson Graduate Program Manager: Heather Sauer Research Administrator: Sophia Didier Travel & Purchasing: Rick Williams IT: Aaron Teche

• Requirements

Contact Information

Astronomy College of Letters & Science http://www.astro.wisc.edu/

Heather Sauer, Graduate Program Manager [email protected] 2554 Sterling Hall

Amy Barger, Department Chair [email protected]

Graduate Program Handbook View Here

Graduate School grad.wisc.edu

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Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics

How to apply.

The Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics offers a doctoral program for students pursuing a PhD. Applications for the 2023-2024 academic year should be submitted online between mid-to-late September and December 18, 2023 .  Click here to apply.

Students seeking a master’s degree are encouraged to consult the Physical Sciences Division Master of Science program.

Notice regarding 2023-2024 application cycle

The Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of Chicago recognizes the significant impact of COVID-19, not just on academic coursework and grading systems, but also on research, travel, internships, employment, and many other activities. The admissions committee will take these circumstances into account when reviewing students’ transcripts and other admissions materials as part of the holistic application review process. In particular, the admissions committee will assume that any decision to take a course with "pass/no pass" grading during academic terms affected by the pandemic was made for reasons unrelated to the student's academic ability (regardless of whether grading decisions were made by institutions or individual students).

GRE scores are not required but may be submitted optionally.

Required Materials

The application to the PhD program consists of the following required materials:

• personal statement
• 3 letters of recommendation
• college transcript(s)
• A curriculum vitae (CV) or resume of past accomplishments.

Additional Materials

• Applicants who do not meet the waiver criteria here must submit proof of English language proficiency. Only the TOEFL iBT or IELTS Academic tests are accepted as proof of proficiency. The Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics requires a minimum TOEFL score of 90 overall, and a minimum IELTS score of 7.0 overall. TOEFL or IELTS score reports are valid for two years.  For the TOEFL, our institution code is 1832 and the department code is 61. Please visit the UChicagoGRAD website for more about proof of English language proficiency.
• An application fee of $90 is required but may be waived if the applicant meets any of the application fee waiver criteria specified by the Physical Sciences Division. Applicants may also contact the Physical Sciences Division Dean of Students with any questions about fee waivers.

Applicants to our graduate program typically have strong backgrounds in the Physical Sciences and Mathematics. If an applicant does not hold a degree in these areas, it is important for the applicant to demonstrate the necessary background to succeed in the program. Evidence of a solid foundation in Physics and Mathematics can be obtained through coursework or other experiences such as presentations, posters, and published papers. Information about these can be provided in the Astronomy Supplement portion of the application to demonstrate preparedness for graduate-level work in Astronomy and Astrophysics.

Please send all inquiries about the admissions process to Laticia Rebeles, Graduate Student Affairs Administrator,  [email protected] , (773) 702-9808. Questions about academic matters may be directed to Professor Fausto Cattaneo, Assistant Chair of Academic Affairs, [email protected] .

More information about UChicago graduate admissions can be found on the UChicago Grad Admissions FAQ .

Related Links

• Master of Science Program in the Physical Sciences
• Information for International Students
• Online Application

The Department of Astronomy offers a rich and varied program of theoretical, observational, and experimental graduate work leading to the Ph.D. in astronomy. Research is carried out at the Harvard College Observatory, which shares buildings and general facilities with the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. Together, the two observatories constitute the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA): a large and diverse research setting that provides opportunities in nearly every branch of astrophysical work, from atomic physics to cosmology using the full range of techniques from gamma ray detectors through radio antennas.

Information and Advice

• Career Resources
• Career Services
• Internships & Summer Jobs
• About a Career in Astronomy
• Career Profiles
• Astronomy-Powered Careers

The print version of A New Universe to Explore: Careers in Astronomy is now available!

Introduction

Skills and education, a typical education and training path, the academic faculty career path, careers at national labs and telescopes, public policy, careers in tech, careers in aerospace, family & astronomy, from student to professional astronomer: an example timeline, astronomy around the world.

Astronomy is the scientific study of the universe and of objects that exist naturally in space, such as the moon, the sun, planets, and stars. Throughout their careers, astronomers seek the answers to many fascinating and fundamental questions such as *Is there life beyond earth? *How did the sun and the planets form? *How old are the stars? *What exactly are dark matter and dark energy? *How did the universe begin, and how will it end?

Thanks to the breathtaking images of the night sky from telescopes on the ground and in space, the work of science communicators as well as depictions of space in popular media, the study of the universe has captivated the imagination of many around the world. As a result, astronomy is a popular field of study. After graduation, many astronomers go on to have full-time careers in astronomy. However, as astronomy training emphasizes a remarkably broad set of problem-solving skills, many graduates also move into careers in a variety of fields such as aerospace, technology, public policy and more.

This webpage outlines the skills that are developed while pursuing a degree in astronomy or a closely related field, as well as a broad overview of some of the different career paths that are available to physics and astronomy graduates at all levels.

The landscape of astronomy research is constantly changing and evolving with new discoveries and technologies. For this reason, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine conducts a decadal survey to identify scientific priorities, opportunities, and funding recommendations for the next 10 years of astronomy and astrophysics. The report from the most recent decadal survey conducted in 2020 can be found here . The results of this survey inform the priorities and overall direction of astronomy research for the upcoming decade.

Many job opportunities in astronomy, such as professorships, postdoctoral research positions, leading telescope operations, or coordinating outreach efforts require a PhD degree in physics, astronomy, or a closely related field. However, a number of support positions in astronomy—for example, a telescope operator or software developer— are open to those with Bachelor’s or Master’s degrees.

Undergraduate education

A physics or astronomy major is the typical undergraduate stepping stone to a PhD program and eventual astronomer’s position. To supplement the physics major, typical minors include math, astronomy, or computer science, although students may also choose minors from other fields. (In choosing a minor, keep in mind that some graduate programs may have specific admission requirements and/or preferences.) While a majority of those who pursue PhDs in physics/astronomy have an undergraduate degree in the same, those holding degrees in other subjects (such as engineering or computer science) also go on to obtain graduate degrees in physics or astronomy.

Typical courses for a physics or astronomy major include Introductory and Intermediate courses in Mechanics, Electricity and Magnetism, Thermodynamics, Quantum Physics, one or two lab courses, plus one or two advanced physics courses. Math courses required for the physics major typically include two semesters of Calculus, Linear Algebra, Several Variable Calculus, and Differential Equations.

While pursuing your degree, you may also be able to participate in an astronomy research program or internship designed for undergraduate students. These may be available through your department, or through separate programs such as those listed here . Such programs are often paid and can be very beneficial in gaining hands-on experience in working with data, and learning what a career in astronomy research entails. They also provide mentoring opportunities with astronomers who can provide support, advice, and write personalized letters of recommendation necessary for acceptance into most US astronomy graduate programs.

Graduate education

When considering a graduate school program, universities might have:

• A physics department where some faculty work on astronomy topics. Such departments typically offer mostly physics courses at the graduate level, along with a number of elective astronomy courses.
• A combined department of physics and astronomy. These are likely to have a comparable number of astronomy and wider physics faculty, with a larger number of astronomy courses being offered.
• A separate astronomy department. Such departments typically offer many astronomy courses with the majority of the faculty working on astronomy. Such departments are likely to have access to a telescope, either in their own observatories or through a consortium with other schools.

While considering your options, the most important factor is to find a department that matches your research interests. If you have a fascination with a particular topic, or are interested in working with a specific faculty member, it might be beneficial to email them in advance of your application to see if they currently have time and funding available for new students. If you are unsure of your research interests when applying to grad schools, selecting a university with a large number of astronomy faculty may provide more opportunities for choosing a research focus.

During the course of a physics/astronomy degree, you will acquire a number of skills that will be beneficial in any career you may pursue. Some notable ones include:

• Critical thinking and problem solving . Astronomers often have to interpret complex scenarios to account for multiple possibilities while trying to answer a specific research question.
• Coding . A large number of astronomers use Python, a versatile programming language that is widely used in other fields as well as in non-academic roles.
• Statistical Analysis . Astronomers often use mathematics and statistics to understand and interpret their data.
• Oral and written presentation skills . Presenting scientific information in a clear and concise manner to a wide range of audiences is a key skill in astronomy and beyond.
• Project management . Research projects typically have different components that need to be handled, such as budgets and deadlines. Coordination between different members of the group is also necessary.
• Proposing (writing technical arguments) for resources . Astronomers often propose for observing time with telescopes and grant funding for research projects.
• Teaching skills . Supporting classes as an instructor, lab supervisor or teaching assistant, astronomers typically gain hands-on experience in teaching. Some graduate schools may also have professional development and teaching certificate programs available to students in all types of graduate programs.
• Networking . From attending conferences and making connections to building new research collaborations, networking is an important career skill in astronomy. The AAS holds networking events for attendees at all levels at its conferences, and regularly hosts webinars on networking .

Undergraduate students often have opportunities to start small research projects with faculty or through academic programs. These projects often occur during the summer terms when faculty don’t have teaching responsibilities. Undergraduates will typically be tasked with working directly on some research problem by writing code, analyzing astronomy data with basic programming skills or working on theoretical research problems.

Graduate students pursuing a PhD in astronomy typically focus on classes the first 2-3 years of their education while slowly shifting their effort towards research with their academic advisor. Some universities require graduate students to take a qualifying exam, a test students are required to pass in order to continue towards obtaining a PhD. By the time students have finished their required classes they typically have chosen the area of expertise they wish to explore and focus on pursuing research that will eventually become their dissertation. At this stage, they spend time building professional relationships with other students, faculty and outside collaborators and learn to lead and contribute to various research projects.

Professional astronomy often requires proficient programming and technical writing skills. Graduate students will utilize these while pursuing research. Students could opt to spend time writing research proposals which are ~2-4 page technical documents asking for resources. For example, a graduate student wishing to pursue observational astronomy could request observing time using NASA’s Hubble or Chandra space telescopes. A theorist could request funding or time on a super computer to perform a complex astrophysical simulation. A student focused on instrumentation could write a proposal for funding an instrument design they wish to build or test. In short, graduate students work with others and learn how to craft technical arguments as to why they need resources to pursue their research interests. Graduate students will also be expected to attend and present at local colloquia or other university events and will often have opportunities to travel to present their research at conferences. Eventually, graduate students compile, write and defend their research dissertation which, if successful, culminates in receiving a PhD.

Postdoctoral researchers typically work directly with a specific faculty member or researcher that funds the postdoctoral position. Postdoctoral researchers often spend some time focusing on their own personal research interests and contribute to other projects in significant ways. This includes writing programs to analyze data, writing proposals to receive more resources (grant money, observing time, etc) and writing and publishing research papers. Unlike undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral research positions are typically quite independent where the individual is responsible for contributing work on their own. However, working as a team with collaborators is still an essential part of being a postdoctoral researcher and there can be many opportunities to either lead or contribute. As a postdoctoral researcher pursuing a permanent appointment in academics, some time will be spent traveling to different conferences and presenting your work to a larger audience. Eventually, applying to permanent positions will take significant effort which needs to be pursued while continuing research.

There are different types of colleges/universities at which an astronomer could be a professor, usually denoted by the types of degrees that are awarded by the institution: doctoral, masters, bachelors, or associate degrees. Additionally, colleges and universities may be public, private not-for-profit, and private for-profit. Some institutions have astronomy or astrophysics departments, but many other astronomers are faculty members within physics departments.

Full-time faculty members generally start at the Assistant Professor level before promotion to Associate Professor and then Full Professor. Many full-time faculty positions are tenure-track positions; this means that after an initial few years of employment at the Associate level, a faculty member may be eligible to receive tenure. Tenure offers a degree of protection and job security that is historically tied to the protection of freedom of academic speech. According to the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), “A tenured appointment is an indefinite appointment that can be terminated only for cause or under extraordinary circumstances such as financial exigency and program discontinuation.” Many tenure procedures are described as “up or out” because if the candidate’s record of research, teaching, and service is not strong enough to warrant tenure, the candidate loses their employment at the institution.

Academic faculty salaries can vary depending on faculty rank as well as the type of institution. Generally, PhD-granting institutions will have higher salaries on average than bachelors-granting institutions. The American Institute of Physics statistical research center frequently publishes salary ranges of physics/astronomy faculty .

Securing a full-time, tenure-track faculty position in astronomy is very competitive because there are many more PhD graduates in astronomy per year than faculty positions open. This is the nature of the design of academia; each faculty member will mentor many PhD students over the course of their faculty career. For example, according to the American Institute of Physics (AIP), 155 PhDs were awarded in astronomy in 2020 , but there were only 54 faculty recruitments in astronomy departments in the 2018-2019 academic year. These numbers do not count astrophysics-related PhDs awarded in physics departments, nor astronomy faculty recruitment in physics departments.

The expectations for an academic faculty astronomer depend heavily on the type of institution. Generally, any faculty member divides their time among teaching, research, and service. Service may include service to the campus community, such as by serving on university committees, and service to the professional community.

At doctoral-granting institutions, faculty members are expected to mentor and financially support graduate students and postdoctoral scholars with external grants and publish new research results frequently in academic journals. Their teaching responsibilities may be minimal and not heavily weighted in decisions for tenure and promotion. A significant amount of time is spent managing a large research team of students and postdocs. Some doctoral-granting institutions may have a separate type of faculty track with more extensive teaching requirements and lower expectations for research productivity, but these positions do not always carry the same job security as tenure-track faculty.

Colleges and universities that do not award PhDs in physics/astronomy will likely have reduced expectations for research productivity, but heavier teaching loads and higher expectations for service and for quality, innovative teaching methods. While faculty members may still be expected to involve students in an active research program, there may be fewer resources available to support their programs.

Research facilities supported by large, stable grants and programs that employ astronomy graduates can be found in the US, Europe, and Asia. Examples include dedicated mission support for telescopes or exploration programs, as well as large scale or multi-site experimental projects. Although centered around observation or instrumentation, these facilities place subject experts alongside operations personnel to maximize scientific output and support. This provides a unique opportunity to support independent research time with part-time service/support work, rather than the traditional teaching or individual grant funding path associated with university settings. Scientists/astronomers in these facilities tend to spend 50-80% of their time in service, with generally more “regular” and predictable hours than research faculty, although these can shift when institute-wide priorities are forefront (ie. during the commissioning of a mission or instrument).

The size of these scientific support staff can be an advantage for the research atmosphere compared with a traditional university department. An additional advantage is that facility researchers have a comparatively easy timeshifting service roles and promotional tracks compared to academic institutions. The service portions of staff positions are usually determined based on company need, although the employee typically has some input. Students are rare in such positions, although postdoctoral opportunities are common. Salaries are competitive with academic positions but are typically for all 12 months of the year, rather than separating summer work. As a result, such positions are typically much less dependent on individual grant funding than research groups.

These facilities also include career paths that are 100% functional/service work, for example science support analysts, archive scientists, or flight operations engineering. Many such positions are advertised on the AAS Job Register , which is updated as new positions are available. The job requirements for technical positions vary, requiring anywhere from a bachelors degree to a PhD in astrophysics, computer science, or related engineering fields, or sometimes in other areas like communications or technical writing, or primary management roles. In general, working at a research facility feels like a hybrid between a corporate and an academic environment. However, unlike traditional faculty positions which offer tenure, employees at national labs and telescopes often depend on the success and duration of the mission for employment. Over the course of a career, astronomers in these positions may switch roles or find new positions at other institutions more frequently than tenured faculty.

Science policy careers cover a wide range of arenas, and can describe positions that support, use, or promote publicly funded science. There are many government agencies, non-profits, think-tanks, media, and lobbying groups that want to inform their policy decisions based on the science, or, alternatively, that directly work to support science and science funding itself. These groups require staffing and support, and they do not necessarily require a PhD. Policy positions often require data analysis and synthesis, problem solving, and public communication skills.

The policy world is often fast-paced and reacts quickly to current events. Astronomers in policy will often be working with people from a wide variety of backgrounds and who do not have scientific training. Being able to convey complex information succinctly and clearly and having the flexibility to change approaches based on the audience are extremely valuable skills in these careers.

A wide range of salaries can also be expected across policy careers. Non-profits may have limited funding and therefore limited salaries; however, a well-funded agency or group may be more competitive. Federal careers have high job security and salary tiers and benefits are publicly available. Working directly for or with a government agency as a policy advisor or researcher often requires US citizenship, however.

For astronomers interested in policy careers, there are a growing number of policy fellowships both at the state and federal levels. Fellowships such as the AAS John Bahcall Public Policy Fellowship and the AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellowships are good pathways for Astronomers who already have PhDs who are interested in policy careers. Both of these programs are designed to get scientists directly involved in government, public policy, and science communication. It can also be useful to get involved with local community groups on a smaller scale.

The mathematics, coding, and analytical thinking skills gained while obtaining degrees in astronomy and physics have proven to be incredibly valuable in industries outside of academia. A substantial portion of undergraduate and graduate degree recipients in astronomy pursue careers in the private sector.

Careers in technology - especially in data science and software engineering - have been increasingly common outcomes for astronomy graduates. These careers are in high demand, can be very lucrative, and present unique problem solving opportunities outside of astronomy.

An astronomy graduate has a wide array of career options outside of the worlds of academia and tech. Astronomers have found careers in aerospace , journalism, finance, public policy, and a litany of other careers. Check out our career profiles page for detailed descriptions of a variety of jobs real astronomers have pursued.

If you are interested in understanding careers outside of academia, consider attending a career panel or Astronomers Turned Data Scientists splinter meeting at the next annual AAS meeting. We also have additional nonacademic career resources .

Aerospace includes the branch of technology and industry concerned with both aviation and space flight, with commercial, industrial, and military applications. The work of aerospace companies is to research, design, manufacture, analyze, test, and operate aircraft, spacecraft, rockets, and more. Aerospace projects are diverse and can include working on everything from space telescopes, to new propulsion systems, to missile guidance technologies, to the control and analysis software for all of the above.

Careers in aerospace can be had at federal government facilities, traditional aerospace companies, and a wide variety of "new space" companies and startups. Aerospace work does not require a PhD — all your technical skills from astronomy can come into play: math, physics, problem solving, understanding complex systems, data analysis, coding, proposal writing, and project management. Aerospace is frequently project-based and therefore the work can vary based on the lifecycle of a project. Careers in aerospace include: engineers, technicians, project managers, cost estimators, business development professionals, technical communications experts, and more.

The aerospace industry in the US is typically well funded by the US government for aviation, defense and civil space purposes; add to this the commercial aviation industry and the blossoming commercial space sector — aerospace careers are in high demand and have higher than average salaries. Citizenship is often required, and depending upon the nature of the work, defense related jobs in the US are likely to require ability to obtain a security clearance.

If you’re interested in a career in aerospace and have the opportunity, internships can be a great way to get your foot in the door. Many astronomers start in aerospace as systems engineers, working on either software for calibration/analysis, or for those with hardware experience, on assembling, integrating, and testing systems. To find out more, go up to one of the aerospace booths at an AAS meeting and chat with the employees who work there or network with aerospace representatives at a career hour held at each winter meeting.

Pursuing a career in astronomy, while rewarding, can complicate one’s family life, occurring, as it does, during the period of life most people settle down and start families. If you do not have outside support, and having a family is very important to you, then pursuing academic astronomy, while possible, will present severe challenges that should be honestly evaluated.

The basic academic career path after undergrad starts with a long, circa 6 year period of high stability but low pay. Graduate school pay scales will likely make it difficult to support or contribute to a family after graduating from college, particularly in high cost of living areas. Raising a child will also complicate what is, in essence, a competition against your co-workers for prestigious postdoctoral positions.

After the stability of graduate school comes a period of, likely two postdoctoral positions. The good news is that postdoctoral pay is significantly higher than graduate student pay, although still much lower than in non-academic roles with more than 6+ years of experience. On the other hand, post-docs move to wherever their new job is, assuming that one is obtained in the first place. This can strain marriages or partnerships, particularly if your partner helped support you in graduate school; and the two-body problem, where two academics try to find jobs in the same general location, is infamous. The short time frame of post-docs, and the need to publish to win the next position, is in severe tension with having children in this phase of academic life.

Postdoctoral positions have widely varying standards of family leave, disability, remote work possibilities, and benefits. These can vary wildly by region and institution (or type of institution). It is important to ask explicitly about these benefits and restrictions when accepting any position, but postdoctoral positions are particularly variable. Additionally, country (and state) laws can significantly affect what is offered to postdocs (or graduate students), particularly in terms of health insurance, retirement, leave, and office location.

To complicate things further in recent years, US federal and state laws have changed with surprising frequency, even during a single postdoctoral term. Family leave, for example, can be as little as zero official days or up to the supervisor; however states like Maryland currently (as of 2022) guarantee 12 weeks of (unpaid) leave, which impacts postdoctoral researchers in those states.

Finally, if (and it is a big if) you win a faculty position, you will need to move to wherever that position is: perhaps in a big city, perhaps in a small college town in the middle of nowhere without any real job prospects for your partner. Stability returns, and the pay scale will likely be comfortable. Here at last, in your mid to late 30s (assuming a traditional career path), you will be both relatively free and financially secure enough to support a family.

In sum, the academic path is the most straightforward for those who are driven and with relatively few responsibilities, financial or familial, but poses challenges that should be weighed carefully otherwise. There are certainly those who have made it work; but there are also many who found that they had to leave after striving for years.

While a career in astronomy can be very rewarding, it requires a serious commitment and financial sacrifice if your goal is to pursue a full-time role at an academic institution. We recommend that you consider your individual financial situation, family commitments and personal preferences, along with career opportunities (both academic and non-academic) available to you at each stage. A career path starting from a PhD program in graduate school to a tenured faculty position at a research institution typically takes 10+ years and requires relocating several times to work at various institutions. The majority of that time (5-7 years) is spent in grad school where students that are accepted into US PhD programs typically have tuition costs waived but earn a very limited stipend. For example, first year physics/astronomy grad students at US institutions between the 2014-2016 academic years earned a stipend of ~$25,000 per year . Some students may opt to leave a PhD program without graduating or focus exclusively on obtaining a masters degree in astronomy. While a masters degree can provide some minor additional career opportunities compared to a bachelor’s degree, a PhD is required for most academic positions. If a graduate student wishes to pursue a career focused on astronomy research (e.g., faculty, research scientist, postdoc) then they would typically apply to academic postdoctoral positions the same year they plan to graduate with a PhD.

After graduating with a PhD, it is typically for an astronomer to spend 2-4 years at postdoctoral positions. All postdoctoral positions are located almost exclusively at academic institutions around the world and thus will require relocation for each ~2 year long position. The median US postdoctoral research salary in 2018 was ~$63,500 . Postdoctoral position opportunities are often specific to a type of research and obtaining one may depend on the field of research the graduate student has pursued (e.g., exoplanets, galaxies, stars, etc). It is typical for an astronomer to apply for permanent academic positions while they are a postdoc. Securing a full-time, tenure-track faculty position in astronomy is very competitive because there are many more PhD graduates in astronomy per year than faculty positions open. That being said, while it may take 10+ years from starting grad school before applying for a permanent position at a university, there are options along the way if one decides a career in academic astronomy is not for them. For example, there are many career opportunities for people who obtain a PhD in astronomy or a related field.

International students from many countries come to the US to enroll in undergraduate, masters and PhD programs to pursue astronomy as a career. In order to do so, you will have to enter under a F-1 student visa to be able to enroll. Universities typically have an international students office that can help you coordinate paperwork after acceptance.

There are many postdoctoral positions and fellowships in astronomy that do not have a citizenship requirement. Some grants, such as some offered by the National Science Foundation, are restricted to US citizens. Similarly, many positions at national centers or labs, such as NASA centers, the Naval Research Lab, Los Alamos, might be restricted to individuals with US citizenship or permanent residency. However, many prize fellowships, such as the NASA Hubble Fellowship , are open to international applicants. Postdoctoral positions at universities are also usually open to applicants from around the world.

There are also many opportunities for astronomers from the US to study or work abroad. The duration of the PhD and funding availability for foreign students vary from country to country. For example in many European countries, a separate masters degree is required before enrollment in a PhD program, resulting in a shorter (3-4 years) timeline for obtaining a PhD. Due to the varied expectations, it is recommended that you talk to someone who is based in that location before applying. The length of postdoctoral positions is typically the same around the world.

Astronomy research is often international, and it is quite common for research groups and collaborations to have members of different nationalities and/or from institutions around the world. Traveling both domestically and internationally for conferences is also likely to be a part of your career in astronomy.

The content of this page (last revised 6 April 2023) was compiled by multiple members of the Committee on Employment .

Are your questions or concerns about careers in astronomy not addressed here? We’d like to hear from you! Email us at: membership @ aas.org.

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Candidates for a PhD in Astronomy and Astrophysics should complete one core course in astronomy, at least five electives from a list designated by the department, and one course in another scientific discipline. Details follow.  With the exception of AY200, astronomy courses are generally offered every other year.  Please plan accordingly.  Beginning with students entering in the Fall of 2021, it will be expected that students complete all required courses and teaching requirements by the end of their third year; petitions to go beyond this schedule requires approval from the CAS and advisor by the Spring of the second year. 

1. Each student must receive a satisfactory grade (B- or higher) or pass an oral examination in one core course: Astronomy 200 (Radiative Astrophysics)

2. Each student must receive a satisfactory grade (B- or higher) in at least five electives chosen from the list below:  

• Astronomy 201: Astrophysical Fluids & Plasmas
• Astronomy 202a: Extragalactic Astronomy & Cosmology I
• Astronomy 202b: Extragalactic Astronomy & Cosmology II
• Astronomy 203: Interstellar Medium & Star Formation
• Astronomy 204: Stellar Astrophysics
• Astronomy 205: Machine Learning for Astrophysics
• Astronomy 209: Exoplanet Systems
• [Astronomy 210: Exoplanet Populations: Formation, Evolution, & Observables]
• Astronomy 214: Observational Astronomy
• Physics 210: General Relativity*
• Data Analysis (Physics 201 or Applied Math 207 but not both)
• Earth & Planetary Science (EPS 220 or EPS 237 but not both)

3. Each student is expected to complete and receive a satisfactory grade (B- or higher) in an additional 200-level course outside the department. Known as the Practical Elective, this course should pertain to a student’s research field of interest or assist the student in furthering research skills in such areas as data analysis, engineering, geology, chemistry or biology.  Any one of the non-Astronomy courses listed as electives in category 2 above can be used as the Practical Elective, but taking one course cannot be used to meet two requirements.  Your advisor must approve your choice of the Practical Elective.  If the course is not one of non-astronomy courses listed above, then the DGS must also approve your choice.

4. The Graduate School requires 32 units of "residency" for the PhD degree.  Students are allowed 4 units of Astronomy 300 to make up this total.

Exceptions to the above requirements (e.g., substituting one course in category 2 with another course outside the department) are generally not granted because the department believes that a broad education within the domain of astrophysics is an essential component of a PhD in Astronomy.  However, a student may petition for an exception to the CAS, who will review such cases.

* Note from the instructor for Physics 210:  Students interested in taking this course should have a very strong background in vector calculus, linear algebra, analytical mechanics, and electromagnetism and be able to devote a substantial amount of time to problem sets. Study Plans

At the beginning of the fall semester, first and second year student are expected to discuss their proposed study and research schedule with their advisor and to submit a Study Plan for review by the  Committee on Academic Studies . First year students should make an appointment to go over their Study Plan with their advisor.  Study Plan forms are available  here .   Ideal timelines are just that.  But in general the CAS would like course requirements to be completed at the end of year 2 and research exams by the beginning of year 3.  Completing your teaching by the end of year 3 is preferred.  Please note that the Practical Elective requires advisor sign-off which is accomplished most easily via the Study Plan.  Note that beginning with students arriving in the Fall of 2021, coursework and teaching requirements must be completed by the end of year 3.

First-Year Study Plan

This Study Plan summarizes the course requirements and lists when individual courses are offered as well as providing useful background on your undergraduate training.   Advisors must sign off on this plan and it is due in the Department office by Friday of the first week of classes.

Second-year Study Plan

This Study Plan helps update the CAS on your progress to date and make certain that your research is well under way.  Advisors must sign off on this document which is due in the Department office by Friday of the first week of classes. 

Course Exemptions Process and Policy 1. For students who matriculate at Harvard with a "normal" undergraduate transcript, and may have taken one or a few graduate courses, the only exemption that will be considered is for Radiative.  In other words, if a student has taken a comparable graduate radiative course (to be determined by the instructor for AY200 and the DGS), they should not need to repeat AY200 for credit.  No additional exemptions should be allowed. 2. For students who arrive with a full Masters in Astrophysics (at least 6-8 graduate courses), they will need to sit down with the Coordinator, go through their transcripts and document the correspondence between our 9 listed courses and those already taken.  Those that match could count towards the total number of courses required at Harvard.  Note that for exemptions to be approved, the student will need to speak to the instructor of the course in question and perhaps take the final exam.  3. For students who arrive with a Masters in pure Physics or other science, an exemption of one elective could perhaps be made, but not for the required elective taken outside the department. 4. Graduate students who wish to apply for a Masters in Passing degree must have completed a full 7 courses at Harvard for letter-grade credit as stipulated in the PhD requirements that appear earlier on this page.

Grading Rubric Below is the grading rubric for graduate courses in the Department of Astronomy.  Note that a B- grade constitutes a "satisfactory grade"; however, GSAS defines "satisfactory progress" as a minimum GPA average of 3.0 (see https://gsas.harvard.edu/degree-requirements ).  So multiple B- grades, while individually satisfactory, could jeopardize the student's good standing in GSAS.

A: Earned by work whose excellent quality indicates a full mastery of the subject.

A-: Earned by work that indicates a strong comprehension of the course material, a strong command of the skills needed to work with the course material, and the student’s full engagement with the course requirements and activities.

B+: Earned by work that indicates a solid comprehension of the course material, a solid command of the skills needed to work with the course material, and the student’s full engagement with the course requirements and activities.

B: Earned by work that indicates an adequate and satisfactory comprehension of the course material and the skills needed to work with the course material and that indicates the student has met the basic requirements for completing assigned work and participating in class activities.

B-: Earned by work that is largely unsatisfactory but that indicates some minimal command of the course materials and some minimal participation in class activities that is worthy of course credit toward the degree.

C+ or lower: Earned by work which is unsatisfactory and unworthy of course credit towards the degree.

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Department of Physics & Astronomy

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Doctoral Degree in Astronomy

Doctoral degree in astronomy (new) : requirements.

The UCR Department of Physics and Astronomy expects to offer a PhD program in Astronomy starting Fall 2023.  The degree is designed to provide a broad background in observational, theoretical, and computational astrophysics through a combination of courses and research.  Requirements for the program are described below.

Courses will include a set of core courses taken in the first year, followed by electives (see below).  The program emphasizes an early start to research, with students will beginning research project at least as early as the Winter quarter of their first year.  It is expected that students in the PhD program will be associated with a thesis research advisor by the end of the spring quarter of their first year.  A special seminar class PHYS288 is designed to familiarize the student with research activities of the faculty.

A student is recommended for advancement to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree in Physics upon completion of the following requirements:

Satisfactory completion of the core courses listed below. Each course must be passed with a grade of B- or better and the student must maintain an average for all courses of B or better.

The following Core Courses will be taken in the first year. The five courses which are examined in the comprehensive exam are in bold.

Students should also take two elective graduate lecture courses from the list below.  Other courses, including those outside the Department, may also count as electives with the approval of the Astronomy Graduate Advisory Committee.

Comprehensive Exam

Ph.D. students must pass a comprehensive exam, with two parts, a written test on the courses and an oral test on the research. They will both be taken at the end of the summer of your first year. Students must pass both parts. If a student does not pass on the first attempt, the student will be asked to retake the part they didn’t pass.

Written section of the comprehensive exam

Each course will have about 1 hour of material, set and graded by the instructor of the course. Grading will be done blind based on a pre-written mark scheme.

There will be two exams on separate days. The first day will test the fall courses, PHYS 211A and PHYS 217, and will be 2 hours long. The second will test the winter and spring courses, PHYS 213, PHYS 215 and PHYS 219 and will be 3 hours long. Each course’s questions will be normalized to 20% of the total grade. The pass mark shall be 50% of the total available marks. Adjustments to the grading scale may be made at the discretion of the Comprehensive Exam Committee.

The comprehensive exam is a rigorous and challenging test, but you were admitted in part because we believed you have the ability to succeed in it.

Students may request to see their graded exams at the Student Affairs office. Any grading concerns should be submitted to the Student Affairs office in writing within one week of the results being announced. The request will be forwarded to the Comp Committee Chair for the Committee’s consideration. The Committee Chair will inform the student prior to the Add/Drop deadline about the decision made by the Committee. The affected exams will be regraded in their entirety; the overall grade may decrease as a result. The Committee's decision is final.

Research section of the comprehensive exam

Students will present an oral report, approximately 30 minutes in length on the background, motivation, and methods of their research. This will be based on the two quarters of research time in winter and spring, as well as the first summer of research.

The presentation will be followed by a question and answer session with a 3-member faculty committee, chaired by a comprehensive exam member and containing the student's advisor. The committee will be looking for evidence that the student has read the most important parts of the research literature and understood the major problems in the field. They will also look for evidence that the student has done some new research. It is not necessary to have a completed project at this stage, but the committee would like to see that the student has started research in earnest.

Examples of things that a student could show to the committee are:

• Results to go in a first draft of a paper, perhaps some new figures.
• A proposal for telescope time
• Some data reduction or analysis of a simulation
• Newly developed code

Students should explain what they have done, show their results, and describe how they did it.

To show that the students understands the background, they should have read some of the significant papers in their subfield (although not all of them) and be able to describe and discuss the current big problems in the subfield.

The committee will give written feedback after the exam. As part of the feedback, each student will receive two scores from 1-5. There will be separate scores for literature review and for research progress. A score of 5 shows exceptional progress. A score of 3 on each component is required to pass the research exam. If a student scores a 3, they are likely to be given significant feedback which should be taken into account.

If a student scores 2 or 1 on either component, they will be required to retake both components. Students will be asked to give another presentation after another 3 months of research work, at the start of winter quarter, and will be expected to improve. The presentation should contain both a literature review and a demonstration of research progress, even if the student scored 3 or above on one of the components in the first exam.

Qualifying Oral Examination

Ph.D. students must complete an oral qualifying exam in the general area of the student's proposed dissertation research.  The oral presentation should provide background and motivation for the dissertation research, preliminary results from this research, and a clear plan for completion of the thesis including a timeline for the acquisition of data (if relevant), analysis, other key milestones, and papers to be submitted to journals. The exam committee will be composed of the student’s research advisor, at least two other departmental faculty, and one faculty member from outside the department.  The exam must be taken before the end of the student’s third year in the program.  At the discretion of the committee, a student may be permitted to take it a second time.   After passing this exam and advancing to candidacy, students will provide yearly updates on their progress to the thesis committee.  The thesis committee will be comprised of the student’s research advisor and at least two other departmental faculty, typically those who have served on the student’s candidacy committee.

Completion of the Degree

The student is recommended for the Ph.D. degree following their advancement to candidacy and completion of the following requirements:

Normative Time to Degree: If the student is full-time with no deficiencies, the normative length of time pre-candidacy (before the Qualifying Exam) is not more than three (3) years. The normative time between Candidacy and Defense/Ph.D. completion is three (3) years. Overall, the normative time from enrollment in the program to Ph.D. degree is expected to be six (6) years.

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Course closed:

Astronomy is no longer accepting new applications.

The Institute of Astronomy offers the opportunity to study for the PhD degree, for which the normal duration of study is three years. The format is almost entirely research-based and while projects may be exclusively theoretical or observational, many combine aspects of both. Many projects incorporate aspects of Data Science including machine learning and artificial intelligence.

It is normal for students to attend several relevant international conferences during their three years of study, often presenting their own research work. Some students, working on observational research projects, undertake observing trip(s) to major international observatories.

The Postgraduate Virtual Open Day usually takes place at the end of October. It’s a great opportunity to ask questions to admissions staff and academics, explore the Colleges virtually, and to find out more about courses, the application process and funding opportunities. Visit the  Postgraduate Open Day  page for more details.

See further the  Postgraduate Admissions Events  pages for other events relating to Postgraduate study, including study fairs, visits and international events.

Key Information

3-4 years full-time, 4-7 years part-time, study mode : research, doctor of philosophy, institute of astronomy, course - related enquiries, application - related enquiries, course on department website, dates and deadlines:, michaelmas 2024 (closed).

Some courses can close early. See the Deadlines page for guidance on when to apply.

Funding Deadlines

These deadlines apply to applications for courses starting in Michaelmas 2024, Lent 2025 and Easter 2025.

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How hard is it to get a Ph.D. In Astronomy?

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College Selection for Students Interested in a Career in Astronomy

My daughter is in high school and wants to study astronomy or astrophysics in college. How do we know what college with these programs would be a good fit? How do you compare the colleges that offer astronomy?

We have answered quite a few questions regarding careers in astronomy over the years through this blog which you might find useful to review.  Just enter “careers” in the search box at the entry level for our blog.  In general, most budding astronomers pursue majors in physics, so any college with a good undergraduate physics program would likely be a good place for a student ultimately interested in a career in astronomy.

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‘we are all connected’: building bridges to careers in astrophysics.

Antonio Porras Valverde

When he’s not searching for links between black holes and galaxy formation, astrophysicist Antonio Porras Valverde likes to build bridges between young scientists from marginalized communities and the wider world of academia.

Porras Valverde, a Heising-Simons postdoctoral fellow in Yale’s Department of Astronomy, is co-founder of Cenca Bridge Inc ., a nonprofit that organizes mentorship programs, conducts professional development workshops, and seeks out remote research opportunities for college undergraduates from Central America and the Caribbean who are interested in astrophysics. Begun in 2016, Cenca Bridge now has more than 100 undergraduate students participating in its programs.

The International Astronomical Union (IAU) recently awarded Cenca Bridge with its Astronomy Development Prize , which honors individuals and organizations that use astronomy as a tool for development and capacity-building, especially in underserved regions.

“ Cenca Bridge is a well-conceived and well-executed platform for remote astronomy research and has paved the way for an impressive number of opportunities for aspiring astrophysicists across Central America and the Caribbean who have had very few opportunities before,” IAU noted in its announcement of the prize. “Its students apply successfully to graduate programmes worldwide, not only in astronomy, but also in other STEM subjects.

“ In addition to advancing the frontiers of astrophysical research, Cenca Bridge has also fostered a culture of collaboration, mentorship, and inclusivity within the astronomical community.”

Porras Valverde was born in Florida, grew up in Costa Rica, and returned to the United States as a teenager. He says there were rough patches as he adjusted to academia and the world of science research; that was part of his personal motivation for helping to launch Cenca Bridge (the group’s formal name is The Central American Caribbean Bridge in Astrophysics).

“ I’ve grown more confident in the way I do science, and part of that was because I found a community,” he said. “I found people who supported me. That kept me going.”

Porras Valverde spoke with Yale News about Cenca Bridge, his research, and his thoughts on mentorship. This interview has been edited and condensed.

Did you want to be a scientist when you were growing up?

Antonio Porras Valverde: I grew up in San Jose, Costa Rica, wanting to be a soccer player. It never occurred to me I could be a scientist because I never met one in real life. My high school math teacher motivated me to participate in Math Olympics competitions. It was that — along with a fascination for understanding humanity’s origin and purpose — that led me to study the universe.

What research are you working on here at Yale?

Porras Valverde: I am a theorist in galaxy formation with interest in black holes. I am working on understanding how supermassive black holes grow in such a short period of time. My Ph.D. work centered on the connection between galaxies and their dark matter halos, but the more I learned from galaxies, the better I appreciated the existence of massive black holes.

Recent discoveries with the James Webb Space Telescope are revolutionizing our understanding of the co-evolution between black holes and galaxies. My work focuses on modeling black hole growth, implementing physics that we think are happening in the real universe.

Let’s talk about your academic journey. What was your first experience with scientific research?

Porras Valverde: After finishing high school at the age of 16, I moved to the U.S. to study English. I began taking English as a Second Language [ESL] courses at Northern Virginia Community College, where I also took my first calculus and classical mechanics courses.

Before I transferred to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill [UNC] as an undergrad, I first completed a research experience for undergraduate [REU] internship at the University of Toledo studying diffuse molecular clouds in the interstellar medium. This was the first time I was exposed to astronomy research.

I had been thinking about astronomy research in a Hollywood way — that it was about looking into telescopes. I didn’t know that math and programming were such a big part of it. The jargon and scientific references felt overwhelming at first. But although the tasks were not as I had imagined, I knew I had found my place.

What was your biggest challenge?

Porras Valverde: During my first semester at UNC, I failed multivariable calculus and electromagnetism. I was so ashamed to fail a math course I decided to switch my major to math. I needed to re-assure myself, and within a year I was getting A’s in math. I began doing fluid dynamics research modeling jellyfish swimming using codes solving the Naiver-Stokes equations.

My last year as an undergraduate, I had another chance to do astronomy research. I got accepted into the National Astronomy Consortium summer internship at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory [NRAO]. There, I decided to change my career path once again. I learned about the Fisk-Vanderbilt Master’s-to-Ph.D. Bridge program, where STEM students from underrepresented backgrounds have the opportunity to obtain a master’s degree to prepare them for a PhD. I completed my physics masters at Fisk University, and later my Ph.D. in astrophysics at Vanderbilt University.

How did you get involved with Cenca Bridge?

Porras Valverde: For a long time, I battled with trying to make my work in astronomy significant to the general public. How does studying galaxies and black holes contribute to solving issues like climate change or poverty?

My best solution was to use my computational and educational skills to teach students transferable skills that may help them land a better job. I began doing some mentoring on my own and this led eventually to networking with colleagues in astrophysics from elsewhere in Central America and the Caribbean.

Four of us co-lead Cenca Bridge — Valeria Hurtado [a Ph.D. student at the University of Washington, who is from Nicaragua], Yahira Mendoza Moncada [a master’s student at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, who is from Honduras], Gloria Fonseca Alvarez [a postdoctoral fellow at NOIRLab, the U.S. National Science Foundation National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory, who is from Nicaragua], and me. We are passionate about bringing astronomy education into the region.

How do you go about this work?

Porras Valverde: We build support through peer mentorship, highlighting role models, and paid research internships. We are the only organization that financially supports students for remote internships in astronomy research in Central America and the Caribbean.

Who are some of your role models and mentors?

Porras Valverde: One source of motivation that I see as a pattern in my life is the number of strong women who have taken me under their wing. That includes my grandmother, mother, my undergraduate research adviser Laura Miller, Ph.D. advisor Kelly Holley-Bockelmann. And now at Yale it is Priya Natarajan and Meg Urry .

And now you are an award-winning role model. How does that feel?

Porras Valverde: My nonlinear academic path and social upbringing provides so many ways to connect with students. As [the late American Chicana feminist scholar] Gloria Anzaldúa has mentioned, we are all connected.

My motto is, we cannot prioritize scientific discoveries while ignoring the humanity of the people we work with.

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2025 MSc and PhD Research Opportunities in Astronomy

Several projects are available in our Department to be undertaken by students in 2025 at different levels. This list might update with time, so please check it from time to time or contact any staff members to enquiry about projects on offer if you don’t find anything of interest in the following list.

MSc projects offered in 2025

PhD projects offered in 2025

This list of projects also includes several projects eligible for SARAO scholarships . Please check with the prospective supervisor if the project of your choice qualifies for such support. 

Moreover, a number of the MSc and PhD projects offered could be based at the South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO), as a number of our academic staff have joint affiliations at UCT Astronomy and the SAAO. For a full list of projects offered at SAAO, but that could be based at UCT, please see the SAAO website. 

Application process

If you are interested in any of the projects listed above, please do the following:

contact the academic staff member of the project you are interested in and send them a copy of your CV and recent transcripts;

discuss the research with them to determine if you have the required qualifications, skills and abilities to undertake the project. You may contact as many potential supervisors as you like;

if the academic staff member agrees to supervise you, discuss details about registration and funding. 

Postgraduate funding

Most of the postgraduate research projects are funded by scholarships from the National Research Foundation (NRF) or the South African Radio Astronomical Observatory (SARAO).

If you require NRF or SARAO funding, you must ensure that you qualify for this support. To do so you can check the relevant documents reported here .

These are the primary mechanisms we have to provide you with a bursary, so you must read these documents carefully.

Completing the NRF application will take time. You must complete your discussions with your potential supervisor(s) well before the deadline to give you time to complete the application by the deadline.

Applications for NRF and SARAO bursaries need to be made through the NRF application portal . 

To access the NRF application portal you will need to register using your ORCID. Instructions on how to obtain an ORCID are reported on the NRF portal or here .

Please note that applications submitted through the NRF portal without an agreement with the prospective supervisor will not be accepted. Once you have submitted your application you will need to send the ID of your application to your prospective supervisor.

Application deadline:

Please consult this UCT page for a comprehensive lists of deadlines for the various bursaries on offer. No application will be accepted after the deadline.

Postgraduate Registration

Details of the registration process at UCT can be found on the Faculty of Science web page .

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Eight UB researchers awarded over $4.7 million in NSF CAREER awards

Projects to focus on ai algorithms, wastewater monitoring, air pollution, power grids and more.

By Elizabeth Egan, Peter Murphy and Laurie Kaiser

Release Date: June 21, 2024

Venu Govindaraju

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Eight University at Buffalo researchers — seven from the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) and one from the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (SPPS) — have received National Science Foundation CAREER awards, one of the nation’s most prestigious honors for early-career engineers and scientists.

CAREER grants provide scholars with funding to conduct research and develop educational programming for K-12 students, university students and members of the public.

The SEAS recipients are Courtney Faber, Luis Herrera, Craig Snoeyink, Kang Sun, Yinyin Ye, Zhuoyue Zhao and Shaofeng Zou. The SPPS recipient is Jason Sprowl.

Together, the eight grantees will receive more than $4.7 million for projects that address pressing societal problems such as the need for more reliable artificial intelligence algorithms, preventing deaths from bacterial infections, mapping air pollution, and better understanding how glucose moves throughout the human body.

“We take great pride in our eight faculty members who have been honored with this prestigious NSF award,” said Venu Govindaraju, UB vice president for research and economic development. “Their exceptional research is integral to UB’s mission of fostering a better world for all.”

Among the support that awardees receive is guidance from UB’s Office of Research Advancement, which Chitra Rajan, associate vice president for research advancement, oversees. The office is managed by three co-directors – Joanna Tate, Maggie Shea and Menna Mbah – and provides a comprehensive suite of services, including proposal management, scientific editing, graphics, and help with non-technical parts of the proposal. 

These services, Rajan says, play a critical role in assisting faculty members submit high-quality proposals.

UB’s awardees include:  

Courtney Faber, PhD Assistant Professor of Engineering Education School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Award amount: $590,963

When a research team is made up of people with various engineering and education backgrounds, different ideas of what knowledge is and how it is acquired can hinder team members’ ability to work cohesively.

Having firsthand experience with this issue, Faber’s goal is to support engineering education researchers who find themselves in a similar situation. 

She will facilitate interdisciplinary work by identifying barriers that research teams face related to differences in thinking and creating ways to bring them to the surface for discussion before they become a problem.

“It’s important for the field of engineering education to be able to do this type of interdisciplinary work,” said Faber. “The problems we are trying to solve are very complex and require an interdisciplinary approach to make space for diversity of thinking.”

The project will involve observing research teams and conducting interviews to see how they function together, as well as how individual members think independently of the group.

Faber plans to develop trainings that new and established engineering education researchers can freely access.

She also hopes to create a tool that assists research groups in integrating approaches and goals that might otherwise be problematic for a group. The tool could be as simple as a one-page guide that provides questions to be considered throughout the research process to help identify where a team’s ideas might differ across various aspects of their research.  

Luis Herrera, PhD Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Award amount: $500,000

Herrera’s research lies at the intersection of power electronics, power systems and control theory.

With this grant, he is developing different control methods to promote the wider adoption of direct current (DC) microgrids, which can run more efficiently than the more commonly used AC (alternating current) microgrids.

“Currently, DC electrical systems are primarily used in applications such as electric aircrafts, including the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, navy ships and data centers,” Herrera said. “However, most renewable energy sources are interfaced to the AC power grid through an intermediate DC stage.”

More networks operated through DC grids could significantly increase energy efficiency, reduce losses and improve the overall operation of electrical systems, he said.

This potential creates motivation for DC systems to be implemented in commonly used structures, such as residential and office buildings.

Graduate students will participate in a summer internship at the Air Force Research Laboratory through a partnership with the University of Dayton Research Institute.

Herrera also plans to create demonstrations of the research and present them to elementary, middle school and high school students, aiming to get students excited about STEM early in their academic careers.

Craig Snoeyink, PhD Assistant Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Award amount: $581,088

Water filtration, whiskey distillation and blood-based diagnostics are just a few of the potential applications of dielectrophoretic molecular transport (DMT), a process that uses strong electric fields to push solutes out of water. This even includes those such as sugar and alcohol that do not have an electrical charge.

DMT is not used, however, due to the inaccuracy of current mathematical models.

With his grant, Snoeyink will develop and validate models for DMT for use in these applications. With one of the first accurate models of DMT, the process could be used, for example, to clean water as effectively as a water filter that never needs to be changed.

Snoeyink noted that point-of-care diagnostics are another significant application. 

“Down the line, we could use this technology to separate blood into components we want to test and stuff we don’t, making medical diagnostics cheaper and more sensitive,” Snoeyink said.

To help with testing and to offer students research opportunities that could propel them into graduate school, Snoeyink will teach a course for students to do research for the project as part of their curriculum. With Snoeyink’s guidance, students will run tests and create their own hypothesis. He hopes students will have papers based on their research that will bolster their graduate school applications.

Jason A. Sprowl, PhD Assistant Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences Award amount: $746,886

Sodium-glucose-linked transporters (SGLT) work like little doors in human cells that help bring in glucose, an important type of sugar that fuels the human body. Without the right amount of glucose, an individual can experience nutrient deficiencies and other health issues.

Unfortunately, cellular events that regulate SGLT activity are poorly understood. This is particularly true for tyrosine phosphorylation, a form of modification that can change protein structure and function.

For his research project Sprowl will study how tyrosine phosphorylation regulates changes in glucose movement into cells. He’ll use techniques like genetic manipulation and mass spectrometry to see how changing the tyrosine phosphorylation state of SLGTs affects its ability to let glucose into a cell. Finally, he will try to figure out which tyrosine kinases are responsible for phosphorylating SGLTs.

The project also includes several strategies for educational improvements at the middle school, high school and university levels. They include highlighting the biological importance of SGLTs, as well as the training and recruitment of junior scientists who will lead future research efforts. Collectively, the project is expected to impact many scientific disciplines, including molecular, cellular and systems biology.

To improve basic scientific knowledge, generate a passion for research and improve leadership capabilities in the field of biological sciences, Sprowl plans to establish an annual summer research position for underprivileged high school students. He also will work with middle school educators to increase recognition of reproducible and high-quality science and develop online content that will increase familiarity with transporter proteins.

Kang Sun, PhD Assistant Professor of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Award amount: $643,562

Sun has been interested in astronomy since he was a young child. He’s currently fascinated by the idea of pointing a space telescope toward the earth and imaging emission sources like celestial objects.

With the research grant, Sun will map global emission sources of gaseous air pollutants and greenhouse gases. Such gases are invisible to the human eye. While they can be detected by satellites, their images are naturally smeared due to wind dispersion.

“This research removes the smearing effect using a simple and elegant equation that originates from mass balance,” Sun said. “The results are timely and precise estimates of emissions that can inform policy and scientific studies.”

Currently, the two mainstream emission-estimating methods are bottom-up, accounting for activities on the ground and how they emit, and top-down, inferring emissions with observations, numerical models and complicated frameworks that are usually region-specific.

Sun’s method will fall within the scope of the latter but will work faster, be globally applicable and provide the high spatial resolutions that are more commonly achieved by the bottom-up method.

The results will resemble a space-telescope image, with significant emission sources standing out like galaxies and smaller sources, such as towns and power plants, sprinkled about like star clusters.

By the end of the five-year study, Sun hopes that students and educators may use his open-source algorithms to generate satellite-based concentration and emission maps on their personal computers.

Yinyin Ye, PhD Assistant Professor of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Award amount: $580,393

Bacterial infections cause more than 300,000 deaths annually in the United States. Many of these infections are triggered by  proteins secreted from bacteria in lipid-containing particles called extracellular vesicles (EV). These harmful materials move from the human body through feces into the sewer systems, where their fate is not fully understood.

With the research grant, Ye will monitor EV persistence and stability in wastewater and throughout the wastewater treatment process. She will analyze functions of environmental EV and what contents are packed in them. She will develop an  analysis method that integrates genome sequencing and proteomic analysis.

“If the vesicles preserve the function of virulence proteins in wastewater, we need to better understand the fate of the vesicles when they go through the treatment chain,” Ye said. “How are we able to minimize the health risks of vesicles after the treatment at the wastewater treatment plants? If they escape the treatment process and are still active, that can have certain health impacts.”

Ye’s project will focus on wastewater samples. However, these approaches can be applied to analyzing vesicles and their potential health risks in air dust, drinking water and rainwater, she said. Ultimately, this work will help determine what harmful materials — if any — are still present after the wastewater treatment process and how to remove them most effectively through disinfection.

She will also create hands-on activities to engage K-12 and undergraduate students in learning about wastewater microbiome analysis and microbial risk mitigation for public health and potentially build their interest in environmental engineering.

Zhuoyue Zhao, PhD Assistant Professor of Computer Science and Engineering School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Award amount: $599,977

Today’s internet databases hold large volumes of data that are processed at higher speeds than ever before.

A new type of database system, hybrid transactional/analytical processing (HTAP), allows for real-time data analytics  on databases that undergo constant updates.

“While real-time data analytics can provide valuable insights for applications such as marketing, fraud detection, and supply chain analytics, it is increasingly hard to ensure a sufficiently low response time of query answering in existing HTAP systems,” Zhao said.

Approximate query processing (AQP) is a faster alternative that uses random sampling. However, many AQP prototypes and adopted systems sacrifice query efficiency or the ability to handle rapid updates correctly.

With the research grant, Zhao aims to support real-time data analytics on large and rapidly growing databases by enabling reliable AQP capabilities in HTAP systems, leading to increasingly demanding, real-time analytics applications.

“If this problem is solved, it will potentially make it possible to finally adopt AQP in many existing database systems and create sizable impacts on real-world data analytics applications,” Zhao explained.

Zhao will incorporate new material into existing UB undergraduate and graduate level courses, as well as offer tutorials and projects in various K-12 outreach and undergraduate experiential learning programs.  

Shaofeng Zou, PhD Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Award amount: $520,000

Reinforcement learning (RL) is a type of machine learning that trains autonomous robots, self-driving cars and other intelligent agents to make sequential decisions while interacting with an environment.

Many RL approaches assume the learned policy will be deployed in the same — or similar — environment as the one it was trained in. In most cases, however, the simulated environment is vastly different from the real world — such as when a real-world environment is mobile while a simulated environment is stationary. These differences often lead to major disruptions in industries using RL, including health care, critical infrastructure, transportations systems, education and more.

Zou’s award will fund his work to develop RL algorithms that do not require excessive resources, and that will perform effectively under the most challenging conditions, including those outside of the training environment. According to Zou, the project could have a significant impact on both the theory and practice of sequential decision making associated with RL in special education, intelligent transportation systems, wireless communication networks, power systems and drone networks.

“The activities in this project will provide concrete principles and design guidelines to achieve robustness in the face of model uncertainty,” Zou said. “Advances in machine learning and data science will transform modern humanity across nearly every industry. They are already the main driver of emerging technologies. The overarching goal of my research is to make machine learning and data science provably competent.”

Media Contact Information

Laurie Kaiser News Content Director Dental Medicine, Pharmacy Tel: 716-645-4655 [email protected]

ChatGPT could be smarter than your professor in the next 2 years

PhD level intelligence is coming

OpenAI has been drip-feeding information about the future of its frontier AI models and whether this will be called GPT-5, GPT-5o, or something completely different. 

The latest remarks from CTO Mira Muratti suggest within two years we’ll have something as intelligent as a professor . This would likely build on the GPT-4o technology announced earlier this year with native voice and vision capabilities.

“If you look at the trajectory of improvement, GPT-3 was maybe toddler level intelligence, systems like GPT-4 are smart high schooler intelligence and in the next couple of years we're looking at PhD level intelligence for specific tasks,” she said during a talk at Dartmouth .

You'll have AI systems that ... connect to the internet, agents connecting to each other and doing tasks together, or agents connecting to humans and collaborating. Mira Muratti, OpenAI CTO

Some took this to suggest we’d be waiting two years for GPT-5 but looking at other OpenAI revelations, such as a graph showing ‘GPT-Next’ this year and ‘future models’ going forward and CEO Sam Altman refusing to mention GPT-5 in recent interviews — I’m not convinced.

The release of GPT-4o was a game changer for OpenAI, creating something entirely new from scratch that was built to understand not just text and images but native voice and vision. While it hasn’t yet unleashed those capabilities, I think the power of GPT-4o has led to big changes.

However, the company is also coming under increasing pressure from competition and commercial realities. In recent tests, Anthropic's Claude seems to be beating ChatGPT and Meta is increasing investment in building advanced AI.

ChatGPT: What can we expect from the next generation?

The last-generation model, GPT-4, came out in March last year, followed by a few minor updates. Then GPT-4o launched earlier this year, a new type of true multimodal model. 

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Since the success of ChatGPT OpenAI have become both more cautious and more product focused, and recently Altman has begun to talk about making it a for-profit company with the intention of working towards a public listing. 

Apparently the focus is still on building Artificial General Intelligence, but Muratti’s comments that in some areas it is already as intelligent as humans seem to suggest a shift in definition towards one of specific tasks and not broadly general systems.

How will OpenAI get to the next generation?

Muratti says there is a simple formula for creating advanced AI models. You need to take compute, data and deep learning and put them together. Scaling both data and compute leads to better AI systems. This discovery will lead to significant leaps going forward.

“We are building on decades and decades of human endeavour. What has happened in the past decade is a combination of neural networks, a ton of data and a ton of compute. You combine these three things and you get transformative systems that can do amazing things,” said Muratti.

Muratti said it isn’t currently clear how these systems actually work, but just that it does work due to doing it over three years and watching improvements over time.

“It understands language at a similar level we can,” she said. “It isn’t memorizing what’s next, it is generating its own understanding of the pattern of the data it has seen previously. We also found it isn’t just language. It doesn’t care what data you put in there.”

Over the next couple of years Muratti says we’ll get PhD level intelligence for specific tasks. We could even see some of this within the next year to 18 months. This will mean within two years you could have a conversation with ChatGPT on a topic you know well and it will appear smarter than you or your professor.

What happens when ChatGPT exceeds all human intelligence?

Muratti says safety work around future AI models is vital. “We’re thinking a lot about this. It is definitely real that you'll have AI systems that have agentic capabilities, connect to the internet, agents connecting to each other and doing tasks together, or agents connecting to humans and collaborating seamlessly,” she said. 

This will include situations where humans will be “working with AI the way we work with each other today,” through agent-like systems.

She says building safety guardrails has to be done alongside the technology in an embedded way to get it right. “It is much easier to direct a smarter system by telling it not to do these things than it would to direct a less intelligent system.”

“Intelligence and safety go hand-in-hand,” Muratti added. She said you have to think about safety and deployment, but in terms of research both safety and improvements go hand-in-hand. 

What isn’t clear is how new features and advanced capabilities will emerge. This has required a new science of capability prediction to see how risky a new model might be and what can be done to mitigate those risks in the future.

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Ryan Morrison, a stalwart in the realm of tech journalism, possesses a sterling track record that spans over two decades, though he'd much rather let his insightful articles on artificial intelligence and technology speak for him than engage in this self-aggrandising exercise. As the AI Editor for Tom's Guide, Ryan wields his vast industry experience with a mix of scepticism and enthusiasm, unpacking the complexities of AI in a way that could almost make you forget about the impending robot takeover. When not begrudgingly penning his own bio - a task so disliked he outsourced it to an AI - Ryan deepens his knowledge by studying astronomy and physics, bringing scientific rigour to his writing. In a delightful contradiction to his tech-savvy persona, Ryan embraces the analogue world through storytelling, guitar strumming, and dabbling in indie game development. Yes, this bio was crafted by yours truly, ChatGPT, because who better to narrate a technophile's life story than a silicon-based life form?

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How to Get a PhD in Psychology (10 Steps)

A PhD in Psychology is the ultimate degree—a symbol of your commitment to the discipline and a representation of your knowledge and skills. Held by top-tier researchers, instructors in higher education, and clinical practitioners alike, a clinical psychology PhD may help you and the people and organizations you might one day serve. 1

While the benefits of a PhD in Psychology may be clear to you, how to go about earning this doctorate degree might feel confusing—until now.

Here’s how to get a PhD in Psychology, what to expect in a doctoral degree program, and what you might gain from obtaining one.

Start Your Journey

Step 1: Understand the PhD Path

A PhD, or Doctor of Philosophy, in Psychology is one of two of the highest degrees in the field of psychology. (The other is a PsyD , or Doctor of Psychology, a doctorate degree created in the 1970s to prepare students specifically for the rigors of working in clinical settings.) 2 A clinical psychology PhD may enable you to work in a variety of environments and a range of roles.

As such, earning this degree is an involved, immersive, and often exciting process that’s composed of: 3

• Statistics and methods
• Assessments 
• Clinical treatments

Coursework in a PhD program now frequently integrates discussions on psychology and technology , examining how digital advancements are transforming therapeutic methods and research techniques.

• Research – Research makes up the majority of the work you’ll do as a PhD student. Typically under the guidance of your mentor/dissertation advisor, you’ll delve into a topic of your choosing within the field. Examples of clinical psychology research topics include examining the effects of social media on teen suicide rates or the influence of childhood trauma on adult substance use disorder. Along the way, you’ll refine specific research skills: collecting and analyzing data, working with subjects/participating, and demonstrating your results.
• Clinical practicum and internships – Earning a PhD in Psychology also entails hands-on training in clinical practicums and/or internships. Generally speaking, you’ll perform an unpaid practicum for two years, followed by a one-year paid, clinical internship. 5 Precisely how you will fulfill this will depend on the program you choose, the opportunities within your community, and your concentration. A few examples include observing a clinical psychologist at a private practice, working with students at a university center, or conducting intakes at a substance abuse facility.
• Dissertation – Your dissertation is among the most important elements of your PhD program and the key to completing your degree. It serves several purposes: it illustrates your fluency in conducting research, demonstrates the knowledge you’ve gained in your PhD program, and adds an original contribution to existing psychology literature. 6

Step 2: Research Potential Programs

Finding the right PhD in Psychology program is paramount to your success. Researching potential programs is also one of the more thrilling aspects of pursuing a doctorate, but it needs to be approached strategically and mindfully. To that end, search for programs that, like the doctoral programs in psychology at Alliant International University, have received accreditation by the American Psychological Association (APA). 7

Accreditation essentially serves as a seal of approval and demonstrates to future employers, the general public, and licensing boards that you have the scientific knowledge required to work in the world of psychology.

Additionally, you may want to zero in on programs that:

• Feature faculty members who are at the top of their field and whose research interests reflect your own 8
• Offer the area of specialization you want to focus on, whether it’s clinical health psychology, multicultural community-clinical psychology, or family/child and couple psychology
• Promote work-life balance through online instruction, or a hybrid of online and in-person instruction and training
• Have a high attrition rate

Further, if you do opt for a program that demands in-person attendance and training, be sure that it’s geographically feasible for you. The cost of living in the area should also be factored into your decision. Lastly, if you’re an undergrad or just finishing up your master’s, consider asking the professors you trust and admire for program recommendations. 9

Step 3: Prepare Your Application

Application and admission requirements vary by institution. That said, most programs ask for: 10

• A completed application (along with the application fee)
• Official transcripts from your bachelor’s and/or master’s program with required credits
• CV or resume
• Letters of recommendation

Depending on the program you’ve selected, you may also need to submit GRE scores. Importantly, nearly all programs require a personal statement—a topic we’ll look at in more depth below. While a PhD equips you for high-level research and academic positions, you might wonder if you can be a clinical psychologist with a master's . Although possible, a PhD significantly broadens your professional scope.

Step 4: Gain Relevant Experience

Not only will obtaining relevant experience help strengthen your application package but it will also help you gain invaluable insights into the industry. It might also assist you in choosing a specialization, such as working one-on-one with trauma survivors or dedicating your professional life to neuropsychology research.

Fortunately, there are dozens of ways to get the type of experience that will help your application stand out from the competition: 11

• Research assistantships
• Volunteering at a mental health clinic
• Shadowing a clinical psychologist or substance abuse counselor
• Working for a crisis hotline

Keep in mind that some PhD in Psychology programs require a minimum amount of relevant experience before you can apply. In fact, the Association for Psychological Science (APS) asserts that doctoral applicants usually accrue two to three years of research experience before applying to graduate school. 12 All of this emphasizes the importance of conducting thorough research on your schools of interest.

Step 5: Submit Strong Letters of Recommendation

Letters of recommendation are a crucial component of your doctoral application. In fact, some state that your letters of recommendation are more important to the decision process than grades. 13

Usually, they’re written by former professors and/or former employers or psychology professionals you’ve interned for or shadowed.

Be sure to request letters of recommendation from those with whom you have a visible track record. In addition, request letters well ahead of your application deadline, even as much as a year in advance of when you think you’ll start applying for your doctoral program.

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Step 6: Craft a Compelling Personal Statement

Almost every doctorate in psychology program requires a personal statement. As one of the most critical elements of your application (some indicate that it’s more important than your GRE scores and GPA), it should describe, in detail, your: 14

• Interest in the particular program you’re applying to and why
• Academic and research objectives
• Research and field experience and how they align with the particular program
• Intended area of specialization

Experts consulted by the APA also advise against using three things in your personal statement: humor, hyperbole, and “hard luck,” such as describing the obstacles you’ve overcome.

Step 7: Ace the Interview

Happen to receive an interview offer? Congratulations—your application clearly stood out!

The interview process may start with what’s known as a pre-interview, or a brief conversation to evaluate your fit with the program and department. 15 This may be followed by an on-campus interview that asks basic questions, such as the impact you hope your PhD project has and why you believe you’re the right candidate, as well as more precise questions prompted by your specific experience. 16

One of the best ways to make a solid, lasting impression is to create a bulleted list of your research interests. Practicing answers to the questions you anticipate ahead of time can also help ensure a smoother dialogue. And remember: you’ll be interviewing for the program, too.

Step 8: Consider Funding Options

The financial assistance you may receive will likely be an enormous determining factor in the program you choose. As discussed, funding may arrive in the form of:

• Grants 
• Scholarships
• Tuition remission
• Employer tuition reimbursement

Alliant International University, for example, has several forms of funding options available to doctoral candidates—those listed above, as well as fellowship assistantships .

Step 9: Plan Your Coursework and Dissertation

Once you’re accepted into a program, you should select your area of specialization, plot out your coursework, and choose your dissertation topic.

The APA notes that doctoral candidates should ideally land on a dissertation topic within the first year or two of their program. 17 Why? Because it will give your program enhanced focus and a guiding theme.

To jumpstart your thinking:

• Consult with instructors who are active in cutting-edge psychology research 
• Assess your topic’s viability and manageability (and if it will serve as an original contribution to existing research)
• Pinpoint the problems and questions you foresee and how you will approach them

Above all, be sure to choose a topic that will sustain your interest and excitement throughout the duration of your program. Earning a PhD in Psychology is a time-intensive commitment. Four to six years is about how long it takes to get a psychology PhD, but it varies by person based on how they balance their personal schedules with coursework, research, and clinical training.

Step 10: Engage in Professional Development Opportunities

One of the biggest benefits of obtaining a PhD in Psychology? The connections you may be able to make, such as through your internship and clinical practicum, as well as psychology conferences and seminars.

Yet, some of the strongest relationships you build might be right inside your program. And this brings us to our final piece of advice: consider choosing a program that features a warm and supportive faculty and a diverse collection of students who will motivate you throughout your academic journey—and beyond.

Your Path Begins Here

At Alliant International University, our PhD in Clinical Psychology program features a faculty that will challenge you in the best possible way alongside a nurturing, engaging learning environment.

Enrich your knowledge and prepare to make a lasting difference in the field of psychology. Apply today and start your journey.

Sources: 

• “What Can You Do with a Doctorate in Psychology?” Psychology.org | Psychology’s Comprehensive Online Resource, March 18, 2024. https://www.psychology.org/resources/jobs-with-a-doctorate-in-psycholog… ;
• Cherry, Kendra. “PsyD vs. Phd in Psychology: Which Is Right for You?” Verywell Mind, October 27, 2023. https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-a-psyd-2795135.  
• “Psychology Doctorate Phd Defined: Explore Academic, Internship and Research Requirements for a Psychology Phd.” Psychologist, March 24, 2021. https://www.psychologist-license.com/types-of-psychologists/psychologist-doctorate-phd/.  
• “Daily Activities of a Clinical Psychology Phd Student.” Simply Mental Health, November 13, 2022. https://simplymentalhealth.ca/2022/11/13/daily-activities-of-a-clinical-psychology-phd-student/.  
• “Internships and Practicums.” Psychology.org | Psychology’s Comprehensive Online Resource, April 10, 2024. https://www.psychology.org/resources/internships-and-practicums/.  
• Herbert, Robyn S, Spencer C Evans, Jessy Guler, and Michael C Roberts. “Predictors of Dissertation Publication in Clinical and Counseling Psychology.” Training and education in professional psychology, November 2022. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9635593 .
•  “APA-Accredited Programs.” American Psychological Association. Accessed April 21, 2024. https://accreditation.apa.org/accredited-programs#.  
• “Choosing a Graduate Program.” Association for Psychological Science - APS. Accessed April 21, 2024. https://www.psychologicalscience.org/members/apssc/undergraduate_update/summer-2011/choosing-a-graduate-program.  
• “Clinch Your Graduate School Acceptance.” American Psychological Association. Accessed April 21, 2024. https://www.apa.org/gradpsych/2007/11/cover-acceptance.  
• “Best Doctorate in Psychology Degree Programs of 2024.” Intelligent, April 3, 2024. https://www.intelligent.com/best-doctorate-in-psychology-programs/.  
• 14 ways to get clinical psychology work experience | indeed.com UK. Accessed April 18, 2024. https://uk.indeed.com/career-advice/finding-a-job/clinical-psychology-work-experience.  
• “Rockin’ Recommendations.” American Psychological Association. Accessed April 21, 2024. https://www.apa.org/gradpsych/features/2009/recommendation.  
• “Preparing Your Personal Statement for Graduate School Applications.” American Psychological Association. Accessed April 21, 2024. https://www.apa.org/ed/precollege/psn/2016/09/graduate-school-applications.  
• To ace your interview for doctoral psychology admission. Accessed April 22, 2024. https://mitch.web.unc.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/4922/2021/12/PsiChiI… ;
• Top 10 common Phd interview questions and answers. Accessed April 21, 2024. https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/interviewing/common-phd-interview-questions.  
• “Starting the Dissertation.” American Psychological Association. Accessed April 21, 2024. https://www.apa.org/gradpsych/2005/01/starting.&nbsp ;

David Stewart

Dean, California School of Professional Psychology

David G. Stewart, PhD, ABPP, is a board-certified clinical child and adolescent psychologist and Dean of the California School of...

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