PhD in Civil Engineering

Program Overview

The PhD program in Civil Engineering (further in the text: PhD Program) fully taught in English, is designed to provide advanced skills and a fundamental knowledge base at the expert level for individuals planning a career in academic, industry and research settings in any of the subfields of the Civil Engineering discipline. The program focuses on the development of an in-depth understanding of the nature, implementation and evaluation of Civil Engineering principles and applications together with the growth of research skills. The current areas of research interest for the PhD in Civil Engineering encompass a wide spectrum, with specific focus on priority areas for Kazakhstan, such as: energy green growth, urban and regional development, environmental care and equitable management, advanced transportation and sustainable engineering and digitalization.

These areas are also aligned with well-known international research priorities, such as: Leadership in Enabling and Industrial Technologies; Environment, Future and Emerging Technologies; and Health, Demographic Change and Wellbeing.

The PhD Civil Engineering program provides comprehensive technologic and scientific preparation for engineers in 6 (six) key areas of Civil Engineering:

Structural Engineering and Materials;
Geotechnical Engineering;
Environmental Engineering;
Construction Management;
Transportation Engineering and
Water Resources and Management, in perfect alignment with today´s technological challenges.

By the completion of the PhD Program, students will be capable of designing and conducting independent, innovative, original and high-quality research related to a variety of topics in Civil Engineering. In addition, PhD Program graduates will be prepared for working in industrial and academic environments in positions of university faculty members, senior researchers, engineers and product developers.

The PhD Program has been designed in line with the revised Graduate Programs Framework of Nazarbayev University (2019)

Entry requirements

Applicants applying to the Program are expected to have:

1. An undergraduate degree (Bachelor’s degree or equivalent)

2. A Master’s degree or equivalent

During the application period final year students may submit official current transcript for consideration.

3. A competitive CGPA in applicant’s Master’s (or equivalent) degree.

4. High level of English proficiency

The absolute minimum requirement for English language proficiency test reports for admission to the program is:

1) Overall IELTS test score of 6.5 (with sub-scores no less than 6.0) or the equivalent TOEFL score as posted on the ETS website;

2) Applicants, at the discretion of the Admissions Committee, can be exempted from submitting the language proficiency test report if:

- one of their earlier academic degrees was earned in a country with English as the language of official communication, academic instruction and daily life;

- an undergraduate and/or graduate degree was earned in a program which was officially taught in English.

5. Strong reading, analytical, and mathematical skills as demonstrated by GRE test (recommended);

6. High motivation and strong interest in the Program as outlined in a statement of purpose;

7. Relevant research interest and knowledge of research subject as demonstrated in a written research proposal;

8. Resume;

9. Two letters of recommendation (one from academic source).

Application package checklist:

1. Complete Application form;

2. National ID (for the citizens of the Republic of Kazakhstan) and passport (for international applicants);

3. Official document confirming name change (if applicable);

4. Degree diplomas (Bachelor’s and Master’s or equivalents) with transcripts;

During the application period final year students may upload official current transcript for consideration.

5. IELTS or TOEFL certificate valid as of date of online documents submission;

6. Document confirming English as the language of instruction (only for applicants who earned their degree in a program which was taught in English and request an exemption from submitting IELTS or TOEFL).

Applicants should provide a detailed certificate/reference from the university indicating the number and list of subjects completed in English.

7. GRE certificate valid as of date of online documents submission (recommended);

8. Statement of purpose outlining the applicant’s prior educational career, statement of his/her interest in the Program, his/her long-term career goals, and how the program would help him/her to achieve these goals (500 words);

9. Two confidential letters of recommendation written within the last two years (to be provided by referees electronically or in hard copy after receiving an email request);

10. Resume (1 page);

11. Consent for Applicant’s personal data processing (according to the template in applicant’s personal account).

Important:

All required documents indicated above (excluding letters of recommendation) must be uploaded by candidates to the Personal account before the indicated deadline.

All submitted documents shall be in English or with notarized English translation.

Submission of a complete application package does not guarantee admission to the Program.

Applicants recommended for admission must provide hard copies of all documents as requested by the Admissions Department within established period of time.

Applicants who obtained their degree diplomas/certificates from foreign education institutions must request their official transcripts to be sent directly to the University: 010000, Astana, Kabanbay Batyr Ave., 53, Nazarbayev University, Admissions Department.

Standardized test reports shall be sent by the official test administrator directly to the University.

Nazarbayev University Institutional Codes:

• GRE – 6496

• TOEFL – 6762

Aims and Objectives

The main aim of the program is to develop high quality doctoral researchers who are ready and able to make a lasting contribution to addressing scientific, technological, economic, societal and environmental challenges of global significance.

It is closely associated with the aim of Kazakhstan to increase its global competitiveness and join the top 30 most developed countries in the world by 2050.

The program aims to prepare:

Specialists for advanced careers in (national and multinational) industry and academe in Kazakhstan, in neighboring countries and internationally.
Future policy and decision makers for careers in governmental agencies, public service and the social economy, in Kazakhstan, and globally.
Entrepreneurs who will be able to promote advanced and innovative science-rich technologies globally.
A new generation of commercially aware and technologically advanced scientists and technologists to lead future developments in the chosen Civil Engineering sub-discipline.
Future academics and researchers in Civil Engineering sub-disciplines for careers as specialists in universities of Kazakhstan and other parts of the world

Program Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of the program, the students will be able to:

Review, analyse, and evaluate the body of scientific literature in their field of study in Civil Engineering.
Select appropriate research topics in their field of study in Civil Engineering, and generate hypotheses about such topics.
Plan, develop, analyse and communicate research in writing and verbally independently.
Make an original contribution to the knowledge in their area of specialization within Civil Engineering.
Judge technically and ethically and relate their research to the broader field of knowledge in their Civil Engineering sub-discipline.
Develop their academic/scholarly career through presentations, publications, and national and international networking.

Graduate Attributes

Possess an in-depth and sophisticated understanding of their domain of study
Be intellectually agile, curious, creative and open-minded
Be thoughtful decision makers who know how to involve others
Be entrepreneurial, self-propelling and able to create new opportunities
Be fluent and nuanced communicator across languages and cultures
Be cultured and tolerant citizens of the world
Demonstrate high personal integrity
Be prepared to take a leading role in the development of their country

The typical curriculum for the program

Year 1: Fall Semester (1st Semester)
Course		School	ECTS Credits	Workload
Course		School	ECTS Credits	*Class Hours*	*Self-study Hours*
Program Core	DENG-782 Research Methods & Ethics*	SEDS	6	56	94
Dept. Core	DCEE700 Thesis Research	CEE	0	0	30
Dept. Elective	L-8 Graduate Elective Course 1*	All**	8	75	125
	L-8 Graduate Elective Course 2*	All**	8	75	125
	L-8 Graduate Elective Course 3*	All**	8	75	125
SEMESTER SUBTOTAL:			30	281	499

(*) Course may be waived for NU graduates and replaced by a Level-8 course (core or elective) selected by the student’s supervisory committee and approved by the corresponding departmental committee.

(**) All participating schools and departments with Level-8 courses

Year 1: Spring Semester (2nd Semester)
Course		School	ECTS Credits	Workload
Course		School	ECTS Credits	*Class Hours*	*Self-study Hours*
Dept. Core	DCEE700 Thesis Research	CEE	0	0	30
Dept. Core	DCEE701 Current Research Literature	CEE	8	45	155
Dept. Elective	L-8 Graduate Elective Course 4*	All**	8	75	125
	L-8 Graduate Elective Course 5*	All**	8	75	125
	L-8 Graduate Elective Course 6*	All**	8	75	125
SEMESTER SUBTOTAL:			32	270	560

(**) All participating schools and departments with Level-8 courses

Year 1: Summer Term
Course		School	ECTS Credits	Workload
				*Class Hours*	*Self-study Hours*
Program Core	DCEE700 Thesis Research	CEE	0	0	400
SEMESTER SUBTOTAL:			0	0	400

Year 2: Fall (3rd Semester)
Course		School	ECTS Credits	Workload
				*Class Hours*	*Self-study Hours*
Dept. Core	DCEE700 Thesis Research	CEE	0	0	720
SEMESTER SUBTOTAL:			0	0	720

Year 2: Spring (4th Semester)
Course		School	ECTS Credits	Workload
				*Class Hours*	*Self-study Hours*
Dept. Core	DCEE700 Thesis Research	CEE	0	0	720
SEMESTER SUBTOTAL:			0	0	720

Year 2: Summer Term (2nd Summer Term)
Course		School	ECTS Credits	Workload
				*Class Hours*	*Self-study Hours*
Dept. Core	DCEE700 Thesis Research	CEE	0	0	400
SEMESTER SUBTOTAL:			0	0	400

Year 3: Fall (5th Semester)
Course		School	ECTS Credits	Workload
				*Class Hours*	*Self-study Hours*
Dept. Core	DCEE700 Thesis Research	CEE	0	0	720
SEMESTER SUBTOTAL:			0	0	720

Year 3: Spring (6th Semester)
Course		School	ECTS Credits	Workload
				*Class Hours*	*Self-study Hours*
Dept. Core	DCEE700 Thesis Research	CEE	0	0	720
SEMESTER SUBTOTAL:			0	0	720

Year 3: Summer Term (3rd Summer Term)
Course		School	ECTS Credits	Workload
				*Class Hours*	*Self-study Hours*
Dept. Core	DCEE700 Thesis Research	CEE	0	0	400
SEMESTER SUBTOTAL:			0	0	400

Year 4: Fall (7th Semester)
Course		School	ECTS Credits	Workload
				*Class Hours*	*Self-study Hours*
Dept. Core	DCEE700 Thesis Research	CEE	0	0	720
SEMESTER SUBTOTAL:			0	0	720

Year 4: Spring (8th Semester)
Course		School	ECTS Credits	Workload
				*Class Hours*	*Self-study Hours*
Dept. Core	DCEE700 Thesis (DCEE700 Thesis Research#)	CEE	178	0	720
SEMESTER SUBTOTAL:			178	0	720

#If not submitted/defended

Year 4: Summer (4th Summer Term)
Course		School	ECTS Credits	Workload
				*Class Hours*	*Self-study Hours*
Dept. Core	DCEE700 Thesis (DCEE700 Thesis Research#)	CEE	178	0	400
SEMESTER SUBTOTAL:			178	0	400