The PhD Qualifying Examination (QEP) is given every year during August, approximately one week prior to the start of Fall semester. This exam is given only once per year. A student taking the QEP for the first time must attempt both parts of the exam: Theory and Data Analysis. A student is allowed up to two attempts to pass both parts of the QEP. A student whose QEP data analysis score is recognized as a QEM pass is eligible for an MS degree in Statistics, pending the completion of the appropriate coursework. See the previous chapter for more details. An incoming PhD student with credentials supporting mastery of the First-Year PhD core course materials may request permission from the Director of Graduate Studies to take the PhD Qualifying Examination (QEP) before beginning his/her first year in the PhD program. The Director of Graduate Studies will review the student’s credentials before granting permission to take the QEP. This attempt will be considered as the student’s first attempt, and the student must take both parts of the QEP. If the student passes the QEP, then he/she skips the first-year core coursework. Parts, Scope and Time Allowed The QEP tests material covered during the first-year core of the PhD program. However, the exam does not have separate sections for each course’s material, but rather it tests this core material in a comprehensive way that will require students to synthesize material from all first-year core courses. Students taking the QEP at the end of their first year must complete all first-year core courses before attempting the QEP. A student who is on academic probation cannot take the QEP until s/he removes herself/himself from academic probation. The exam will have two separate parts: Statistical Theory. This is an “in-class” exam which the students have 4.5 hours to complete. During that time, examinees may refer to books and notes but will not have access to a computer or the Internet. Data Analysis. This is a “take-home” format assessment requiring a written report focusing on the analysis of a data set or another applied statistical problem. Typically, students are given 4 days to complete this component of the QEP. Questions will be open-ended, requiring the examinee to analyze the data in an appropriate way and draw conclusions about the scientific questions of interest. Each examinee will hand in a written report describing the analysis, results, conclusions, etc. Exams will be evaluated on the quality of the analyses and the written report. English language usage is not a grading criterion per se, but effective communication is essential. Grading The QEP consists of two parts: a Theory portion and a Data Analysis portion; the grading for these two parts is handled separately by two distinct faculty committees. A composite score (which is the average of the two separate scores) is then calculated, and a pass/fail recommendation based on this score is presented to the Graduate Program Faculty of the Department, who vote to determine the results. Although the exam grading is done blindly to the examinees’ identities, the exam committees and Graduate Program Faculty will consider each student’s academic record in the PhD program in formulating and voting on a pass/fail recommendation. Rules for Taking and Re-Taking For your initial attempt, you must take both parts of the QEP. If you do not pass both parts on your initial attempt, you may retake either the entire exam or only the part of the exam most in need of improvement the following August. In the case when only one exam component is retaken on the second attempt, then its score will be used together with that of the other component from the first attempt to calculate the composite score. More than two attempts at the exam will not be allowed. Rules Appeal Dismissal from the Phd Program after second Unsuccessful Attempt at QEP A graduate student may appeal dismissal from the PhD program after an unsuccessful second attempt at QEP exam if he or she is not under departmental or Graduate School academic warning status or probation at the time of taking the exam. To appeal dismissal, the student must submit a letter within two weeks of the announced initial pass/fail decision to the department’s Graduate Program Faculty, by care of the Director of Graduate Studies II, expressing compelling reasons for allowing him/her to continue in the program. At that time, the student may present any evidence which s/he thinks may be relevant, including, but not limited to: performance in classes, performance on parts of the exam, other teaching or research accomplishments. The appeal to continue in the program must be accompanied by a letter of support from at least one member of the Graduate Program Faculty. The appeal will be considered and voted upon by the Graduate Program Faculty. An appeal receiving less than two-thirds of support from the Graduate Faculty will be considered unsuccessful. A successful appeal will require the student to address his/her weakness revealed in the qualifying exam by suitable remediation. Such remediation will be chosen and supervised by the advisor who plans to supervise the PhD research of the student in consultation with the student’s advisory committee. Faculty Responsibilities Two faculty committees, one for each part of the exam (stat theory and applied stats/data analysis), have responsibility for setting the exam and administering it. The committees are responsible for ensuring that the exam is appropriate and reasonably consistent from year to year. They also have the responsibility for grading the exams and making pass/fail recommendations to the entire Graduate Program Faculty of the Department, who then vote on the results.
