At the end of the first year of study, MS&E Ph.D. students take the qualifying exam, or Q Exam, which covers the core elements of Materials Science and Engineering: Materials Chemistry, Mechanical Properties, Thermodynamics, Kinetics, Electronic Properties, and Structure. The Q exam requires knowledge of Materials Science and Engineering at the level of the Cornell undergraduate curriculum. It ensures that students from all academic backgrounds are fluent in a common language incorporating the concepts with which we describe structure, process, and property relations in materials.
Completion of an MS&E Graduate Level (600 level) course(s) in any of the core topics is deemed sufficient evidence of competence and the corresponding section(s) of the Q exam is waived.