Typically, the Ph.D. program at the SME will have two years of intense coursework followed by thesis work. As a dynamic and young institution, Shiv Nadar University and SME adapt to the changing needs in real time. Accordingly, the Ph.D. course work will be announced in due course, as it is undergoing extant review. Usually, the candidate will start working on identifying the precise research topic and the potential thesis supervisor from the first day of her/his joining the Institute for Ph.D. The current Shiv Nadar University regulations require the candidates to finalize the thesis supervisor and thesis committee by the end of the second semester of the program. By the end of second year (i.e. at the end of fourth semester) a comprehensive viva and thesis proposal seminar will have to be completed.

Coursework credits and grade requirements
The candidate has to undergo a mix of PG and Ph.D. level course work during the first two years. Barring a few compulsory courses, candidates can choose to complete  the rest of the course requirements by undergoing a variety of electives offered at graduate level based on her/his research interest and on the suggestions of the thesis supervisory committee. A Ph.D. candidate will forfeit her/his right to continue the program on the occurrence of any one of the following during the coursework period of two years from the date of joining:

1. Failing to earn a minimum of 7 CGPA
2. Earning one ‘F’ or two ‘D’ grades

In such cases, full-time students would be deregistered from the program and the fellowship will stop immediately. On joining the School, each Ph.D. candidate will be assigned to a “Program advisor’ who would act as a mentor till a regular thesis supervisory committee is formed. The program advisor will take the candidate through the period of course work, committee formation, and related academic and administrative matters.

Thesis supervisor and doctoral committee
Ideally, the process of identifying the potential Research Supervisor and formation of a Doctoral Committee (DC) would start from day-1 of the program. SME expects this process to be completed by the end of the second semester (i.e., by the end of Spring 2023 for those who are admitted in Monsoon 2022). The first doctoral committee meeting and the Comprehensive Viva Voce (CVV) will be scheduled before the end of the following semester.

At the CVV, the candidate is expected to present her/his broad theme and direction of the intended research project. In addition, an oral examination will test the proficiency of the candidate in the subjects of study during the previous two semesters. The CVV committee will consist of members of the DC and another Shiv Nadar University faculty outside of SME, who is related to and well familiar with the proposed field of research of the candidate.

A maximum of two attempts are given to the candidate to clear the CVV. The CVV will be conducted during the first halves of July and December every year. For candidates who are unsuccessful in clearing the CVV in their first attempt, another opportunity will be given during the month of August. A failure to clear the CVV in these two attempts will result in complete elimination of the candidate from the program. The candidate will be considered eligible for candidacy to Ph.D. only if s/he clears the CVV.

Post-candidacy progress meetings
Post-candidacy, the candidate’s progress will be reviewed by the DC before the end of each semester, until the final submission of the thesis report in the specified format. Assuming a normal progress of thesis work, a candidate will be submitting her/his final thesis report within the following six semesters after the completion of coursework. Each such review seminar with DC is named as Doctoral Thesis (Code: DTD 899) with 12 credits of course equivalence. An ‘S’ grade will be awarded in DTD 899 for the semester if the scholar’s progress in research is satisfactory; ‘U’ grade will be awarded in DTD 899 if the scholar’s progress in research is unsatisfactory.

Primary area of research
It’s the Academic Department at SME to which the candidate has applied for and admitted to. This department will have the primary administrative responsibility towards the candidate and will coordinate with related departments of SME or other Departments/Schools of the University in cases of interdisciplinary theses. Usually, the Thesis Supervisor will also be appointed by this “Primary” department. However, given the changed preferences and nature of the proposed work, the candidate will be allowed to change her/his primary area of affiliation with the consent of the respective departments and the research advisor(s).