Programs Graduate Program Water Resources

Graduate Program in Water Resources

The graduate program in Water Resources (WR) at Pitt emphasizes studies of the fundamental processes that govern the movement of water in the natural environment and eco-systems. This includes studies of the surface and subsurface water flows, soil-vegetation-land-atmosphere interactions, management of water resource systems, climate change and variability and their impacts on water and energy cycles and on water resources, and the interactions of these and other topics. Students are encouraged to develop a broad set of problem-solving skills through courses and research in related fields and through interdisciplinary research.

The study for a Ph.D. in the WR program must include a minimum of 30 credits of study in the major and two minor fields. The major must consist of a minimum of 12 units of graduate course work. The typical 4-5 courses in the major field of the WR program are listed below. Each minor field must contain a minimum of 6 units. The 2 minor¹ fields (see the list below as examples) are chosen according to student interest and faculty advisor recommendations. The remaining 6 credits needed for the 30-credit requirement can be satisfied by taking additional graduate-level courses in the major field or in the minor fields.

For the Masters program, no specific minor is required, but we strongly recommend electives from the list of minors listed below. The minimum number of course credits for Masters program is 24 credits with a thesis/project worth of 6 credits or 30 credits with course work. The undergraduate fluid mechanics (the equivalent of our CEE 1402) and hydrology (the equivalent of our CEE 1412) are prerequisites to the WR graduate program (both Ph.D. and Masters). Preparation in basic differential equations, statistics and computer skills are recommended before entering the WR program.

Note: ¹Each minor must consist of a cohesive set of courses, but it does not need to be from a single department. At least one minor must be outside the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department. A minor that contains courses in the School of Engineering must include at least three units of graduate course(s). A minor that contains no courses from the School of Engineering may consist entirely of the senior level undergraduate courses.

Major Courses

CEE 2401 Open Channel Hydraulics
CEE 2405 Groundwater Hydrology
CEE 2410 Water Resources Engineering
CEE 2414 Advanced Hydrology
CEE 2420 Hydrological Modeling
CEE 2408 Advanced Environmental Fluid Mechanics (Not offered at present)
CEE 2504 Modeling of Natural Water Systems

Examples of Minors

Mathematical Analysis

ECE 2646 Linear System Theory
ECE 3374 Applications of Wavelet Transforms
ECE 3648 Nonlinear Systems Theory
MATH 2900 Partial Differential Equations, etc.

Statistics

STAT 2310 Applied Multivariate Analysis
STAT 2221 Advanced Applied Multivariate Analysis
STAT 2321 Advanced Applied Time Series
STAT 2521 Time Series 1
STAT 2522 Time Series 2
STAT 2391 Advances in Applied Statistics I
STAT 2401 Methods in Mathematical Statistics
STAT 2691 Nonparametric Theory
STAT 2711 Probability Theory I
BIOST 2065 Analysis of Incomplete Data
BIOST 3023 GIS and Spatial Data Analysis
ECE 3557 Statistical Signal Processing
ECE 3647 Optimal Stochastic Systems, etc.

Numerical Methods

MATH 2071 Numerical Methods in Scientific Computing 2
MATH 2601 Advanced Scientific Computing
MATH 3071 Numerical Solution of Partial Differential Equations
MATH 3072 The Finite Element Method, etc.

Masters and Professional Masters Programs

The education goal of the WR program is to provide the training needed to address current and future hydrological, environmental, and water resources issues. Through rigorous requirements on course work and research projects, the WR program expects students to develop advanced technical skills and basic research capabilities required to work as a hydrologist and water resources engineer.

The core competencies of the WR program include:

Demonstrated proficiency in fundamental and advanced theories and processes of hydrology and water resources engineering, and their applications to hydrological, environmental, and water resources engineering.
Demonstrated ability to think critically.
Demonstrated ability to work independently and in teams to solve practical/real world problems.

These competencies are in addition to the objectives of an ABET-accredited undergraduate program.

Masters students who are supported by either a RA or TA or any other forms of fellowship and scholarship must write a thesis. Masters students who write a thesis must demonstrate a mastery of a particular topic and/or field. While new knowledge or contribution to a field is not required in a MS thesis, it is expected (not required) that an MS thesis would result in a conference or journal article.

Students who are admitted directly to the Ph.D. program from their bachelor's degrees can obtain a MSCE degree if they pass the Qualifying Examination and fulfill the requirements of the Masters Program (either the course work option or the thesis option).

Doctoral Programs

In addition to the course work requirement described above, students who pursue Ph.D. must pass three examinations (i.e., a Qualifying Examination, General Examination, and Dissertation Defense) over the course of the Ph.D. study.

Qualifying Examination

The Qualifying Examination is to test students’ abilities to master and apply core knowledge in the major area of research activity. Qualifying Examination includes both written and oral parts, based upon graduate coursework. The examination is open book and covers three different subjects appropriate to the areas represented by the Qualifying Examination Committee which consists of three faculty members, and involves two-three days of work. Students should take this Qualifying Examination, in general, after two semesters of entering in the WR program.

General Examination

Students should take a General Examination, normally one to two years (but no more than two years) after the Qualifying Examination, to show their competence and initial research results to undertake research work in the area of their proposed dissertation. The General Examination consists of an oral presentation of a research prospectus by the student. Prior to the examination, the student must submit a written research prospectus (10-15 pages) to the Examination Committee which constitutes of four faculty members and at least 1 of them is from an outside Department. Students who pass the General Examination will become Ph.D. candidates.

Dissertation Defense

A final dissertation defense in a form of a public oral examination is required. The student should pass the final dissertation defense. Also, the final dissertation should be approved by the dissertation committee, consisting of four faculty members with at least 1 of them from an outside Department, to complete requirements for the Ph.D. degree.

For each of the three examinations described above towards the degrees of Ph.D. study, each committee will make a pass/fail recommendation to the faculty of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering who will then inform the student. If a student fails an examination, he or she will be granted one more chance, in each case, to be re-examined on all or part of the examination material. The scheduling of the re-examination will be set by the relevant Committee. The faculty's decision will be communicated to the student following the Departmental review.

In addition to the objectives and competencies of the WR graduate program, and the course and examination requirements, Ph.D. graduates should have demonstrated, through their dissertation, an advanced ability to formulate and execute a research plan resulting in new knowledge and/or a significant unique contribution in their field. Furthermore, Ph.D. students must have at least one peer-reviewed journal article in press (fully accepted) or in print prior to graduation.

Requirements described above are subject to changes over time.