Doctoral Studies in Engineering at Villanova University
Villanova’s College of Engineering offers a distinctive PhD program leading to a Doctorate of Philosophy. It is designed to prepare scholars, teachers and leaders for academia and industry in contemporary and emerging engineering fields.
The program is designed to encourage intellectual depth within an area or discipline of study, while also providing enough flexibility to allow for breadth across disciplinary lines when useful for multidisciplinary research topics.
Our PhD program is one of the few in the country that will allow the degree to be pursued on a part-time basis by working professionals, with many of the relevant courses available through our state-of-the-art on-line distance education program.
Professional Development
The College is unique in its professional development program for doctoral students, which reflects Villanova’s commitment to high quality teaching and close attention to the student, as well as development of the whole person. Based on your area of professional interest, two tracks are available: Academic Scholars and Industry Scholars. Each offers the option to pursue a corresponding certificate.
Students in our doctoral program can pursue their studies in any of the following disciplines:
- Biochemical Engineering
- Chemical Engineering
- Civil Engineering
- Computer Engineering
- Cybersecurity Engineering
- Electrical Engineering
- Mechanical Engineering
- Sustainable Engineering
- Water Resources and Environmental Engineering
Flexible Options
Classes are conveniently held in the evenings to allow you to successfully balance work and family while earning your degree. You can participate in class on campus, in real-time (synchronously) via our E-Learning program, or on your own schedule through recorded materials and lectures. Our graduate programs are unique in that you can combine online and on campus options, attending class or participating remotely depending upon your availability and preference. You can also complete your engineering doctoral degree entirely online.
One graduate says..
"My Villanova University graduate education was life-changing and dramatically improved my critical thinking skills and scientific creativity. I conducted cutting-edge experimental and computational research and obtained skills that I use daily as a postdoc.”
Kamran Makarian, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Dept. of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Drexel University