The PhD program in Infrastructure and Environmental Systems offers interdisciplinary study into the interaction of the natural world and the built environment. PhD candidates develop the analytical and conceptual skills necessary to manage that complex interface. The PhD program in Infrastructure and Environmental Systems emphasizes the application of an understanding of the underlying environmental science to the design and management of infrastructure. In the PhD program in INES, students take core courses, focus area elective courses, directed studies and dissertation credits.

INES Core Courses (15 credits minimum)

All students will be required to take courses in the core of the program  for a minimum of 15 credits(2 required courses,1 of 3 prescribed courses,1 case study course and a seminar course). The INES core will focus on basic and advanced level understanding of the engineering principles of infrastructure and scientific principles of environmental analysis, as well as development and management issues.  Courses in this core will emphasize analysis and assessment of environmental effects on infrastructure as well as the development and management of infrastructure and its impact on the environment. Throughout the core, students will study the configuration, dynamics and operational issues relevant to the management of a variety of earth, civil, and industrial systems.

INES Ph.D. students will participate in interdisciplinary activities throughout their program of study.   Students will begin with a set of interdisciplinary core courses that teaches them about fundamental aspects of the infrastructure and the environmental systems present in all applications of INES. Then, at midpoint, students will participate in an interdisciplinary case-study course. Finally, throughout the program, students will participate in interdisciplinary seminar courses.

Specialized (Focus Area) Elective Courses (15 credits minimum)

Beyond the core requirements, a student needs to support doctoral research with enrollment in particular courses related to his/her research. For this reason, 15 credit hours have been reserved for specialized electives. The objective of these specialized electives is to provide an opportunity for students, their advisers, and the doctoral program committee to select a complementary set of specialized courses intended to focus the student’s area of interest and research. A student may also take all directed studies as focus area courses, thereby raising the focus area credits to 39. These specialized elective courses can be organized into three focus areas:

• Focus Area 1: Infrastructure and Environmental Systems Design (INESD). The design of infrastructure and environmental systems requires expertise in subject matter areas related to design methodologies including plan formulation, dimensioning of systems that could be structural and/or control systems, selection of material properties, and configuration of monitoring methodologies and approaches. Also, some basic knowledge of the functional requirements of the facilities concerned needs to be provided to the student. It is anticipated that this area will be of interest primarily to civil and environmental engineering students.

• Focus Area 2: Infrastructure and Environmental Systems Science (INESS). Successful development and operation of infrastructure, including methods and approaches to managing the associated environmental and socio-economic impacts require baseline spatial and temporal information on the nature of the ambient environment . This implies that the INES student who has been exposed to critical issues and techniques in the central core and is interested in environmental systems and their response to and impact upon the operation of infrastructure needs to deepen his/her knowledge in the methods of geological, hydrological, physical, chemical and biological  characterization of processes, materials and life support systems within the context of environmental systems. This focus area is expected to draw the interest of students with science backgrounds.

• Focus Area 3: Infrastructure and Environmental Systems Management (INESM). To be able to efficiently and effectively plan and manage infrastructure systems or environmental system operations, INES students need to obtain, integrate, and utilize the knowledge in operations efficiency, effective policy development and deployment, legal issues and government regulations, intelligent support systems for decision making, effective environmental and/or socio-economic impact control measures, efficient systems project management, comprehensive evaluation of system performance, and smart systems implementation and management that includes the consideration of facility, people, policy, technology, economics, and procedures.  The students who choose to focus in this area of INES will obtain the expertise in effective systems management and implementation in infrastructure system and/or environmental system areas and will work as senior managers and/or researchers in the above areas.  This focus area will interest students from all academic backgrounds.

Directed Studies (24 credits minimum):

In recognition of varying backgrounds, preparation, interests, and goals, each student may complete additional credits through directed studies (courses, research, or individual study), with the consent of his/her adviser and doctoral committee.  As a part of directed studies, at any time during the INES program, and with approval by the student’s doctoral program committee, a student may enroll in an independent study to pursue topics of interest to the student and the faculty. The number of independent study credit hours taken each semester must be approved by the student’s doctoral program committee, and the total number of independent study hours taken during the Ph.D. program cannot exceed 9 credit hours.

Dissertation (18 credits minimum):

The INES doctoral program includes a minimum of 18 hours of dissertation credit. Each student must complete and defend a dissertation based on a research program approved by the student’s doctoral adviser with concurrence of the student's PhD committee. The dissertation must be of high quality and represent an original piece of research that advances the body of knowledge in infrastructure and environmental systems.