Nuclear Engineering, Ph.D.
Admissions Requirements
The admission process for the Ph.D. program in Nuclear Engineering is highly competitive. Admission decisions are based on the quality of the applicant's previous university-level academic work as reflected by grade point average or GPA, letters of recommendations, GRE scores, and other evidence of past accomplishments. GRE General Test scores must be submitted by all applicants seeking assistantships and/or tuition support.
International applicants must also submit TOEFL or the IELTS Intl. Academic Course Type 2 exam scores. The minimum required TOEFL and IELTS scores are set by the graduate school and can be found here: https://sc.edu/study/colleges_schools/graduate_school/apply/international_applicants/
Target Minimum Admission Standards
The entire application file is considered when reviewing for admission; that said, the following target minimum standards are used during the admission decision process.
- Undergraduate Engineering GPA ≥ 3.0/4.0
- GRE Verbal ≥ 150
- GRE Quantitative ≥ 155
- TOEFL ≥ 80 (for tests before January 21, 2026) or 4.0 (for tests taken after January 21, 2026)
- IELTS ≥ 6.5
An applicant whose native language is not English is required to submit a satisfactory score on TOEFL or IELTS.
Degree Requirements (60 Post-Baccalaureate Hours)
For doctoral degrees in nuclear engineering: A Ph.D. student must complete 12 hours of dissertation credit leading to a dissertation. A student with a master’s degree in nuclear engineering or a closely related field must take at least 18 hours of graded graduate courses. A student without a master’s degree must take at least 48 hours of graduate courses, of which 42 or more hours must be graded graduate courses. The remaining hours can be in dissertation preparation. The graded graduate courses for a student without a master’s degree in nuclear engineering must include the core courses required of all nuclear engineering master’s degree students.
Postbaccalaureate Degree Requirements
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Core Courses | ||
| EMCH 552 | Introduction to Nuclear Engineering | 3 |
| EMCH 553 | Nuclear Fuel Cycles | 3 |
| EMCH 757 | Radiation Shielding | 3 |
| or EMCH 557 | Introduction to Radiation Shielding and Sources | |
| EMCH 758 | Nuclear Reactor Systems | 3 |
| or EMCH 558 | Introduction to Nuclear Reactor Systems | |
| Nuclear Engineering Electives approved by a student’s advisor, including the following: | 27 | |
| Introduction to Nuclear Safeguards | ||
| Instrumentation for Nuclear Engineering | ||
| Introduction to Nuclear Materials | ||
| Thermal Hydraulic Design of Nuclear Reactors | ||
| Advanced Nuclear Engineering | ||
| Safety Analysis for Energy Systems | ||
| Waste Management in the Nuclear Industry | ||
| Predictive Modeling: Combining Experiments with Computations | ||
| Nuclear Materials | ||
| Radiation Damage | ||
| Engineering electives approved by a student’s advisor, including the following: any Nuclear Engineering Elective (from above), any Engineering course at 500 level or higher, or other courses as approved by the student’s advisor and graduate director | 3 | |
| Thesis | 6 | |
| Thesis Preparation | ||
| Dissertation | 12 | |
| Dissertation Preparation | ||
| Total Credit Hours | 60 | |
Post-Master's Degree Requirements (30 Hours)
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Nuclear Engineering Electives approved by a student’s advisor, including the following: | 18 | |
| Introduction to Nuclear Safeguards | ||
| Instrumentation for Nuclear Engineering | ||
| Introduction to Nuclear Materials | ||
| Thermal Hydraulic Design of Nuclear Reactors | ||
| Advanced Nuclear Engineering | ||
| Safety Analysis for Energy Systems | ||
| Waste Management in the Nuclear Industry | ||
| Predictive Modeling: Combining Experiments with Computations | ||
| Nuclear Materials | ||
| Radiation Damage | ||
Or other courses as approved by the student’s advisor and graduate director | ||
| Dissertation | 12 | |
| Dissertation Preparation | ||
| Total Credit Hours | 30 | |
M.S. Degree Requirements Enroute or In Lieu of the Ph.D.
Students may earn the master's enroute to the Ph.D. by completing at least 30 credits, including the 12 credit hours of required course coursework and thesis preparation courses. The Oral Comprehensive Exam satisfies the Graduate School requirement for a Comprehensive Assessment of Candidates for the M.S. degree. A thesis is required to obtain an M.S. degree. A master’s can be conferred in lieu of the Ph.D. provided that the 30 credit hours above have been completed.