The thesis-based Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Mechanical Engineering is an advanced research-based degree. The program offers students an opportunity to work at the highest level of research, under the supervision of a faculty member. Students complete their candidacy examination within 18 months and complete their doctoral dissertation research within three to four years. It is normal department practice to initially register students in the M.A.Sc. program, and to transfer them to the Ph.D. program upon completion of the M.A.Sc. (or earlier if recommended by the supervising faculty member).
Students taking their Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering can select one of the below research areas:
With eight Research Chairs and almost every research faculty member holding a least one NSERC grant, we have one of the most active research programs in Canada and consistently produce industry and academic leaders.
UBC is ranked in the World’s Top 40 Universities by the Shanghai Jiao Tong University Institute of Higher Education and our Mechanical Engineering professors are recognized nationally and internationally as leaders in their fields.
We offer affordable, competitive tuition fees and extend a number of scholarships, awards, top-ups to external awards, entrance fellowships, Research Assistantships (RA's) and Teaching Assistantships (TA's) to our students.
The Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies establishes the minimum admission requirements common to all applicants, usually a minimum overall average in the B+ range (76% at UBC). The graduate program that you are applying to may have additional requirements. Please review the specific requirements for applicants with credentials from institutions in:
Each program may set higher academic minimum requirements. Please review the program website carefully to understand the program requirements. Meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee admission as it is a competitive process.
Applicants from a university outside Canada in which English is not the primary language of instruction must provide results of an English language proficiency examination as part of their application. Tests must have been taken within the last 24 months at the time of submission of your application.
Minimum requirements for the two most common English language proficiency tests to apply to this program are listed below:
Overall score requirement: 93
Reading
22
Writing
21
Speaking
21
Listening
22
Overall score requirement: 6.5
Reading
6.0
Writing
6.0
Speaking
6.0
Listening
6.0
Some programs require additional test scores such as the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or the Graduate Management Test (GMAT). The requirements for this program are:
The GRE is optional.
All applicants have to submit transcripts from all past post-secondary study. Document submission requirements depend on whether your institution of study is within Canada or outside of Canada.
A minimum of three references are required for application to graduate programs at UBC. References should be requested from individuals who are prepared to provide a report on your academic ability and qualifications.
Many programs require a statement of interest, sometimes called a "statement of intent", "description of research interests" or something similar.
Students in research-based programs usually require a faculty member to function as their thesis supervisor. Please follow the instructions provided by each program whether applicants should contact faculty members.
Permanent Residents of Canada must provide a clear photocopy of both sides of the Permanent Resident card.
All applicants must complete an online application form and pay the application fee to be considered for admission to UBC.
| Fees | Canadian Citizen / Permanent Resident / Refugee / Diplomat | International |
|---|---|---|
| Application Fee | $112.00 | $168.25 |
| Tuition * | ||
| Installments per year | 3 | 3 |
| Tuition per installment | $1,802.52 | $3,166.73 |
| Tuition per year (plus annual increase, usually 2%-5%) | $5,407.56 | $9,500.19 |
| Int. Tuition Award (ITA) per year (if eligible) | $3,200.00 (-) | |
| Other Fees and Costs | ||
| Student Fees (yearly) | $1,081.64 (approx.) | |
| Costs of living (yearly) | starting at $18,517.90 (check cost calculator) | |
Applicants to UBC have access to a variety of funding options, including merit-based (i.e. based on your academic performance) and need-based (i.e. based on your financial situation) opportunities.
All full-time students who begin a UBC-Vancouver PhD program in September 2021 or later will be provided with a funding package of at least $22,000 for each of the first four years of their PhD. The funding package may consist of any combination of internal or external awards, teaching-related work, research assistantships, and graduate academic assistantships. Please note that many graduate programs provide funding packages that are substantially greater than $22,000 per year. Please check with your prospective graduate program for specific details of the funding provided to its PhD students.
All applicants are encouraged to review the awards listing to identify potential opportunities to fund their graduate education. The database lists merit-based scholarships and awards and allows for filtering by various criteria, such as domestic vs. international or degree level.
Many professors are able to provide Research Assistantships (GRA) from their research grants to support full-time graduate students studying under their supervision. The duties constitute part of the student's graduate degree requirements. A Graduate Research Assistantship is considered a form of fellowship for a period of graduate study and is therefore not covered by a collective agreement. Stipends vary widely, and are dependent on the field of study and the type of research grant from which the assistantship is being funded.
Graduate programs may have Teaching Assistantships available for registered full-time graduate students. Full teaching assistantships involve 12 hours work per week in preparation, lecturing, or laboratory instruction although many graduate programs offer partial TA appointments at less than 12 hours per week. Teaching assistantship rates are set by collective bargaining between the University and the Teaching Assistants' Union.
Academic Assistantships are employment opportunities to perform work that is relevant to the university or to an individual faculty member, but not to support the student’s graduate research and thesis. Wages are considered regular earnings and when paid monthly, include vacation pay.
Canadian and US applicants may qualify for governmental loans to finance their studies. Please review eligibility and types of loans.
All students may be able to access private sector or bank loans.
Many foreign governments provide support to their citizens in pursuing education abroad. International applicants should check the various governmental resources in their home country, such as the Department of Education, for available scholarships.
The possibility to pursue work to supplement income may depend on the demands the program has on students. It should be carefully weighed if work leads to prolonged program durations or whether work placements can be meaningfully embedded into a program.
International students enrolled as full-time students with a valid study permit can work on campus for unlimited hours and work off-campus for no more than 20 hours a week.
A good starting point to explore student jobs is the UBC Work Learn program or a Co-Op placement.
Students with taxable income in Canada may be able to claim federal or provincial tax credits.
Canadian residents with RRSP accounts may be able to use the Lifelong Learning Plan (LLP) which allows students to withdraw amounts from their registered retirement savings plan (RRSPs) to finance full-time training or education for themselves or their partner.
Please review Filing taxes in Canada on the student services website for more information.
Applicants have access to the cost calculator to develop a financial plan that takes into account various income sources and expenses.
87 students graduated between 2005 and 2013. Of these, career information was obtained for 78 alumni (based on research conducted between Feb-May 2016):
These statistics show data for the Doctor of Philosophy in Mechanical Engineering (PhD). Data are separated for each degree program combination. You may view data for other degree options in the respective program profile.
| 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Applications | 109 | 89 | 112 | 104 | 114 |
| Offers | 22 | 18 | 28 | 23 | 24 |
| New registrations | 13 | 13 | 17 | 18 | 18 |
| Total enrolment | 91 | 89 | 83 | 77 | 77 |
Students in research-based programs usually require a faculty member to function as their thesis supervisor. Please follow the instructions provided by each program whether applicants should contact faculty members.
These videos contain some general advice from faculty across UBC on finding and reaching out to a supervisor. They are not program specific.
This list shows faculty members with full supervisory privileges who are affiliated with this program. It is not a comprehensive list of all potential supervisors as faculty from other programs or faculty members without full supervisory privileges can request approvals to supervise graduate students in this program.
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| 2022 | Dr. Sarraf Shirazi proposed a 3-layer model for two-phase solid-liquid flow covering wide ranges of regimes, flow and geometrical parameters. He developed a fluid mechanics framework to explain the gravel packing operation. He also developed a machine learning pipeline to predict the slurry flow outcome based on the flow regime and behavior. |
| 2022 | Dr. Renteria used various experimental and computational methods to gain insights on the fluid mechanics involved in primary cementing of horizontal and irregular wellbores. Her research aims to prevent hydrocarbons from leaking, either to surface or into the water table. |
| 2022 | Dr. Liu studied machine tools used in the machining of metal. He developed both physics-based, and data-driven methods to identify the vibration behavior of such machines, which affects the quality of the manufactured parts. His work benefits the manufacturing industry in the planning and production of high-quality precision parts. |
| 2022 | Dr. Zhang developed a sensor fusion system in a human-prosthesis-environment loop to recognize the environments, predict the motion intent of different users, and control the motion of prosthesis. The proposed methods increase the intelligence of wearable robots, improve the human-robot interaction, and help amputees walk in complex environments. |
| 2022 | Dr. Rahmani experimentally and mathematically examined the complex fluid flows in the railroad industry. His research resulted in a greatly improved understanding of the industrial process, along with suggestions to further improve the product formulation and application in the railroad industry. |
| 2021 | Dr. Wang developed non-equilibrium and non-equilibrium multilayer models to evaluate the thermal performance of liquefied natural gas storage tanks under dynamic conditions with minimum computation time. Also, the models successfully predict the thermal stratification and rollover phenomena in the cryogenic liquid storage tanks. |
| 2021 | Dr. Naresh Maroju studied the fundamental mechanics of machining amorphous metal alloys known as bulk metallic glasses (BMG). He developed physical models to predict chip formation, stress and temperature in the machining processes. The research results can guide the process planning in order to enhance the machining performance for BMG materials. |
| 2021 | Dr. Malakoutian examined biomechanical properties of paraspinal muscles in spinal deformity patients. He found large variations in those properties with dramatic influences on spinal loading predicted by a musculoskeletal model. His research shed more light on potential causes of spinal diseases and can help in development of better treatments |
| 2021 | Dr. Rochussen studied direct-injection gaseous fuel combustion in heavy-duty engines using high-speed imaging inside the combustion chamber. He identified how in-cylinder phenomena impact efficiency and pollutant emissions. This work guides the development of future high-efficiency and low-pollutant engine technology using renewable gaseous fuels. |
| 2021 | Dr. Karpinski-Leydier designed and developed a rapid machine learning modeling method for studying new automotive energy technologies. These techniques allow for new more environmentally friendly energy conversion technologies to be developed and released to the public more quickly and at a reduced cost. |
Fields of research in Mechanical Engineering include: acoustics; aerodynamics and fluid mechanics; automatic controls; robotics and industrial automation; energy conversion, combustion, thermodynamics and heat transfer; vibrations and space dynamics; solid mechanics; bioengineering and biomechanics; design and manufacturing processes; industrial engineering, fuel cells, micro-electromechanical systems, mechatronics, and CAD; and naval architecture.
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