PhD Admission Requirements

Applicants may apply through one of the following two tracks:

1. Full Scholarship Admission Requirements
2. General Admission Requirements

Below are the specific admission requirements and selection criteria for each track.

Full Scholarship in PhD programs for
Saudi and International students

Admission in PhD Program Criteria for full time scholarship:

1. Bachelor degree in the required field with a minimum GPA of 3.25/4 or equivalent.
2. Master degree in the required field with a minimum GPA of 3.7/4 or equivalent
3. English Proficiency test (7 IELTS, 95 TOEFL IBT) (IELTS writing of 6.5 or TOEFL writing of 22).
4. GRE (Min Quantitative 156, and Writing ≥3.5).
5. Two Reference Letters from credible researchers or industry experts.
6. Research Statement that shows the research track of the applicant.
7. Curriculum Vitae (CV) that shows the Education record, experience, and previous publications of the applicant
8. Pass a personal interview
9. The scholarship is limited to only 8 semesters.

Benefits for Students:

1. Monthly Stipend (Up to 7,000 SR).
2. Travelling tickets from and to home country.
3. Paid vacation every two years (Maximum of 45 days).
4. Accommodation in University Housing or housing allowance. (One room for each student in a shared apartment).
5. Transportation to/from University and Student Housing or Transportation allowance.
6. Health Insurance.
7. For Saudi Students, the students will be added to the Social Security pension as a researcher.
8. Personal Computer and space for each student.

Tasks for Students (Obligations):

1. Has to be a full-time student and work for at least 40 hours/week.
2. Support faculty members in tutorial classes.
3. Support faculty members in grading HomeWorks.
4. Support faculty members in conducting labs.
5. Conduct research in his/her line of research.
6. The academic Department will arrange teaching load hours for PhD Students, teaching load should not be below 10CR per semester.
7. Any other tasks related to TA/RA (Teaching assistant/Research Assistant)
8. The Student should maintain a GPA of 3.5 to keep the scholarship. If student fail below the minimum GPA, he will be given a chance to raise the GPA. If he/she did not raise the GPA to required value, then the student record will be terminated.

Graduation requirement:

1. Students are required to work in research toward a PhD degree and expected to publish at least two journal publications along with his/her supervisor in ISI / Scopus Q1 and Q2.
2. Supervisors will be selected by the program and based on the interest of both the student and faculty area of expertise.

General Admission Requirements for
PhD Programs at PSU (non-scholarship)

Admission in PhD Program Criteria:

1. Bachelor degree in the required field with a minimum GPA of very good.
2. Master degree in the required field with a minimum GPA of 3.25/4 or equivalent
3. English Proficiency test (6.5 IELTS, 90 TOEFL IBT) (IELTS writing of 5.0 or TOEFL writing of 20).
4. Two Reference Letters from credible researchers or industry experts.
5. Research Statement that shows the research track of the applicant.
6. Curriculum Vitae (CV) that shows the Education record, experience, and previous publications of the applicant
7. Pass a personal interview

Graduation requirement:

1. Students are required to work in research toward a PhD degree and expected to publish at least two journal publications along with his supervisor in ISI / Scopus Q1 or Q2.
2. Supervisors will be selected by the program and based on the interest of both the student and faculty area of expertise.