Are there any particular problems international students face?
We welcome international students. Several are in the program or have graduated from it, and we are eager to work with more. There are a few cautions that should be noted. Most important is the need for a good working knowledge of English. Though there are technical and mathematical courses in our curriculum, many of the courses all doctoral students will take require the ability to reason carefully in English and actively participate in classroom discussion. Secondly, international students need to be aware of the difference between doctoral programs in this country and doctoral programs based on a European model. In the United States, doctoral students typically spend the first year or two taking coursework before beginning their own dissertation research. It is not expected that students applying will have already identified a thesis project.
