Manufacturing DEng Curriculum

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Manufacturing Doctor of Engineering Program Curriculum and Format

Enrollment will include qualifying coursework, electives, research coursework (MFG 990 pre-candidate research and then MFG 995 candidate research) and additional courses approved by the adviser. Pre-candidate coursework emphasizes qualifying coursework that provides students with essential foundations and analytical skills for conducting doctoral research. During the student’s first month in the program, the student will work with the adviser to prepare a plan of study following the DEng in Manufacturing curriculum. The student’s adviser will approve the student’s plan of study.

The major milestones that all DEng in Manufacturing students must meet

Manufacturing DEng Curriculum

There are three student profiles in the DEng in Manufacturing program:

The differences in the three tracks toward the DEng in Manufacturing vary at the coursework level. Please be mindful of the requirements listed below. A student should always discuss academic plans with his/her academic adviser.

1. Students admitted directly to the DEng in Manufacturing without a relevant master’s degree must complete the Master of Engineering in Manufacturing (MEng in Manufacturing) requirements through an “Embedded Master of Engineering in Manufacturing” along the way of his/her DEng in Manufacturing. 

  • Fulfill the Master of Engineering in Manufacturing (MEng in Manufacturing) 30 credits requirement among which up to 18 of the MEng in Manufacturing letter-graded A-E credits will be approved to also count toward the DEng in Manufacturing 18 letter-graded A-E credit requirement. (If fewer than 18 U-M letter-graded A-E credits from the MEng in Manufacturing are approved to count toward the DEng in Manufacturing, the student will need to take additional credits to meet the DEng in Manufacturing 18 letter-graded credit requirement.)
  • At least 6 credits of the DEng in Manufacturing 18 letter-graded A-E credits must be registered under “Graduate Engineering” enrollment rather than under “Rackham Enrollment” or others. 
  • Students who have completed the MEng in Manufacturing 30-credit requirements while meeting the DEng in Manufacturing requirements have the option to receive the MEng in Manufacturing degree.
  • A student meeting the MEng in Manufacturing requirements along the way of completing the DEng in Manufacturing has the option to request to discontinue from the DEng in Manufacturing and only complete the MEng in Manufacturing 30 credits to receive the MEng in Manufacturing degree.
  • Please note the transfer of credit requirements for the MEng in Manufacturing and DEng in Manufacturing differs. For any questions, meet with your Graduate Coordinator.

2. Apply to the Doctor of Engineering in Manufacturing with a master’s degree in the same field or a relevant field from another institution – not a University of Michigan degree.

The student will fulfill 18 UM letter-graded credits (A-E) requirements and 6 additional U-M credits toward the DEng in Manufacturing.  

3. Students admitted to the DEng in Manufacturing with a relevant or same field master’s degree from the University of Michigan (i.e., U-M change of program students) 

  • The student will fulfill the DEng in Manufacturing 18 letter-graded credits (A-E) requirement
  • At least 6 credits of the DEng in Manufacturing 18 letter-graded A-E credits must be registered under “Graduate Engineering” enrollment (not “Rackham” Enrollment or other.).
  • A maximum of 6 credits (2 courses) from the student’s U-M master may be approved to count toward the DEng in Manufacturing 18 letter-graded credits (A-E).
  • The DEng in Manufacturing adviser and Program Director will analyze and decide which of the letter-graded credits (A-E) from the student’s relevant master’s may be counted toward the DEng in Manufacturing 18 letter-graded credits (A-E) requirement.

Residency 

For the first year in the program (first Fall and Winter terms), the student must be enrolled as a full-time, on-campus student in Ann Arbor. (Courses that will not count toward the DEng in Manufacturing residency enrollment are MFG 503, MFG 990, MFG 995, MFG 590, ELI courses, and courses elected for “visitor” status.) 

Minimum of 18 letter-graded (A-E) Credit hours

By the completion of the first two semesters of enrollment, each student must successfully complete a minimum of 18 letter-graded (A-E) credits with a cumulative GPA of at least 3.3/4 and must obtain at least a 3.5/4 GPA for the Qualifying Coursework. (Courses that will not count toward the DEng in Manufacturing 18 letter-graded (A-E) credits are MFG 503, MFG 990, MFG 995, MFG 590, ELI courses, and courses elected for “visitor” status.) 

400 and above level courses 

At least 12 of the required 18 letter-graded (A-E) credits must be at the 500-level or above, thus at most 6 credits can be at the 400-level. To be applied toward the 18-credit hour requirement, those 400-level courses must be accepted for graduate credits by the department or unit that offers the courses.  

Transfer of Credit  

While credits earned at another institution cannot be transferred to a doctoral program, students may seek approval from their program to count up to 6 credits earned elsewhere (non U-M credits) to satisfy certain degree requirements. These credits do not appear on the U-M transcript. Though the student is meeting the degree requirements with the (non U-M credits), the credits will not count toward the overall 18 letter-graded (A-E credits). The student will need to take additional credits to meet the DEng in Manufacturing 18 letter-graded A-E credits.  

Continuous Enrollment and 18 U-M letter-graded (A-E) credits

Continuous Enrollment is required in the Fall and Winter semesters from matriculation to degree completion. At least 18 U-M letter-graded (A-E) credits (not pass/fail) are required beyond the student’s master degree. Students must maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.3/4 (B+) and must obtain at least a 3.5/4 GPA average toward the Qualifying Coursework requirement. The DEng in Manufacturing program can be completed in 4-5 years

Qualifying Coursework (12 Letter-Graded A-E credits):

  • Complete at least 12 letter-graded credits (4 courses)
    • At least 9 credits in Engineering Core (3 Courses) – Gain solid in-depth engineering foundations. Courses may be selected from the Manufacturing Career-Pathways or Program Core courses listed in the MEng in Manufacturing curriculum or from the student’s relevant engineering department core courses that are considered as qualifying coursework
    • At least 3 credits in (1 course) Minor Engineering Course

Electives (6 Letter-Graded A-E Credits):

  • Gain breadth across engineering disciplines. Some options may be the courses come from Integrative Science courses that are listed in the MEng in Manufacturing curriculum. This will help students gain breadth across multiple disciplines.
  • 6 letter-graded A-E elective credits

Qualifying Coursework Evaluation

The grades students receive in the Qualifying Coursework will be averaged to determine Qualifying Coursework GPA (QC-GPA):

≥3.5 – Pass
≥3.3 – <3.5 – Conditional Pass
<3.3 Fail 

Conditional Pass

If Qualifying Coursework Evaluation is ≥3.3 – <3.5, the student’s adviser will provide a detailed report evaluating the student’s research performance with a recommendation to “Pass” or “Fail”. Then, the D Eng in Manufacturing Program Committee will make a vote for the final decision.

Fail

If Qualifying Coursework Evaluation is <3.3 by the end of first two semesters (first Fall and Winter semesters), the student will be allowed to request to add one more qualifying course to increase this QC-GPA by the end of third semester.

Research 

Regardless of whether or not the student has a Master’s prior to attending U-M or not, all students should take at least 6 credits of MFG 990 pre-candidate research in the first two to three terms of the DEng in Manufacturing program. Students at the pre-candidacy and candidacy stages will work with their dissertation adviser to determine the number of MFG 990 pre-candidate or MFG 995 Candidate research credits to enroll in during the Fall and Winter semesters. At least 6 MFG 990 pre-candidate credits must be completed before moving to candidacy. All DEng students are required to attend Manufacturing Seminars.

Research involves active, student-directed inquiry into an engineering topic. Conducting research requires combining knowledge gained in the classroom with the ability to read the scientific literature, identify critical knowledge gaps, structure complex problems, formulate and test hypotheses, analyze and interpret data, and present and discuss technical results. Engineering research also requires significant experimental, computational, and analytical skills. A student learns these core skills as s/he pursues the research topic.

Many of these skills cannot be learned in the classroom setting, but instead must be developed in the laboratory, library, and conference room as the student actively interacts with faculty, other students, and researchers around the world. Independent, non-classroom based learning and problem solving is a core aspect of the DEng in Manufacturing degree. Upon completion of the dissertation the student should be an international expert in a technical area. Dissemination of new knowledge at technical conferences and in peer-reviewed archival publications is an important part of research.

Students at the pre-candidacy and candidacy stages will work with their DEng in Manufacturing adviser to determine the number of MFG 990 pre-candidate or MFG 995 Candidate research credits to enroll in during the Fall and Winter semesters. At least 6 MFG 990 pre-candidate research credits must be completed before moving to candidacy.

Responsible Conduct of Research and Scholarship Training (RCRS)

All DEng in Manufacturing students are required to complete training in the responsible conduct of research and scholarship before advancing to candidacy – ideally in the first year of the DEng in Manufacturing program. Find the RCRS program overview and description of the four required workshops at this link.  Find the RCRS workshop schedules at this link

Preliminary Examination

After passing the Qualifying Coursework requirement, students are encouraged to complete the Preliminary Exam by the end of the second year in the graduate program. 

  • A student will work with his/her dissertation adviser to form his/her prelim exam committee that can be either the same or different from the defense committee, prepare a bio-sketch, dissertation research proposal, PowerPoint presentation. List of Qualifying Exam Coursework and a brief report explaining how the Qualifying Exam coursework matches the research proposal topic and future research plans.  
  • Once the Preliminary Exam Committee (at least four members) is approved and the required documents are approved by the DEng in Manufacturing adviser, the student will work with his/her adviser to schedule the Preliminary Exam and will inform the Program’s Graduate Coordinator of the scheduled exam.  
  • In attendance at the exam will be the student and Preliminary Exam Committee. The student will present a 40-50 minute oral presentation regarding the proposed dissertation topic, methodologies and expected contributions, preliminary research results, work plan, and timeline followed by a 30-minute questions and answers.  
  • All of the following areas will be considered by the Preliminary Exam Committee when determining the outcome of pass/fail (proposed topic and its significance, methodological soundness, preliminary research and progress and the applications, future research plans, communication).
  • If the exam is not passed, the student may petition the committee to take one more preliminary exam within one year; however the intention is decisions be final and second chances should be rare. Once the student passes the preliminary exam, the College of Engineering Registrar will submit a request to the College of Engineering for the student to advance to Candidacy.

Dissertation Committee and Defense

A manufacturing relevant, engineering-practice oriented dissertation is a requirement of the degree, and is supervised by a dissertation committee.

Constitution of the Committee

Function of the Committee: The dissertation committee is charged with the supervision of a student’s dissertation activities, including the Preliminary Examination and the dissertation defense. It is also expected this committee will meet regularly with the student to monitor progress toward completion of the dissertation. All members of the committee must read the dissertation and submit their written evaluations to the College of Engineering Registrar.

Constitution of the Dissertation Committee: 
  • “Graduate Faculty” are tenure or tenure-track instructional faculty holding an “unmodified” (i.e., not visiting, adjunct, etc.) appointment at the University of Michigan as Professor, Associate Professor, or Assistant Professor with an earned Doctoral degree from an accredited institution.  
  • Dissertation Committees must have at least four members, three of whom are members of Graduate Faculty and up to two of whom are relevant to the doctoral candidate’s home program.
Furthermore, each committee:
  • Must have a sole chair or two co-chairs
  • Must have a cognate member who is familiar with the standards for doctoral research from a program other than the student’s home relevant department/program
  • May include a University Faculty member who is not Graduate Faculty, a University staff member, or a qualified individual outside the University to provide expertise in the candidate’s discipline

Students will meet with the Manufacturing Graduate Coordinator to discuss detailed requirements for the Dissertation Committee requirements and approval process.

The Dissertation Defense

The student must defend his/her work at an oral examination that is open to the public. The examination consists of an oral presentation of the dissertation followed by an oral examination led by the dissertation committee. At least four of the committee members must be present at the dissertation defense. The student must give the dissertation to the committee at least two weeks before the dissertation defense.