Environmental Engineering MSEnvE Program Handbook
department faculty (one to serve as chair). Off-campus experts, joint faculty members, adjunct faculty,
and other university faculty members may serve as the third person in the committee.
•
In unusual cases, with approval from the department chair, two professors may chair the committee
jointly. For additional information, please visit
ucf.catalog.acalog.com/content.php?catoid=4&navoid=204.
•
All members vote on acceptance or rejection of the thesis proposal and the final thesis. The final
thesis must be approved by a majority of the advisory committee.
Graduate Research
Research is a vital part of graduate education. The development of research skills and the practice of good
research ethics begin with graduate study. Faculty serve a crucial role and are the primary source for teaching
research skills and modeling research ethics.
•
In the CECE department, much of our research is carried out as a part of Contracted Sponsored
Research. Faculty obtain sponsored research from many different government agencies, and/or
industry, and thus commit the university to doing certain research tasks. Students are typically hired
to help the faculty conduct the research, and as such are contractually obligated to give their “best
efforts” to accomplishing the research tasks. In most cases, students who are supported on contracts
may use the results of their work as the basis for their thesis.
•
Faculty research interests include drinking water treatment, wastewater treatment, storm water quality
control, air pollution control and modeling, solid waste engineering, and community noise control and
modeling.
•
It is important to be honest and ethical in conducting research as well as in taking classes. Report all
data factually and completely. Please see Thesis and Dissertation Requirements at
ucf.catalog.acalog.com/content.php?catoid=4&navoid=204.
•
Patents and inventions may arise from the faculty and graduate student research. UCF has clear
guidelines and a Patent and Invention Policy in the Graduate Catalog. Please see
ucf.catalog.acalog.com/content.php?catoid=4&navoid=201.
•
Students should be aware that in our department, we require that theses be written in a journal article
format. The university conducts workshops on thesis and dissertation formatting, library research, and
writing essentials. Students, when beginning to write their thesis, should always see the College of
Graduate Studies Thesis and Dissertation website graduate.ucf.edu/thesis-and-dissertation/.
It is
highly recommended that each student coordinate with his or her faculty adviser as to the preferred
journal format, prior to beginning to write the thesis.
•
There are specific Laboratory Safety Procedures that must be followed by each student working in a
lab in the CECE Department. It is department policy that each student is responsible for knowing and
following the safety procedures. Please see the laboratories manager and/or your faculty adviser to
get a copy of the safety procedures for the appropriate lab.
Financial Support
Financial support is a major concern for graduate students, especially since many rely on financial support from
the university to pursue graduate study. In combination, the college, the university, and the department provide
financial assistance to graduate students in several ways: (1) fellowships and scholarships are available to
academically outstanding students, (2) Graduate Teaching Assistantships – GTAs (for grading or for lab teaching)
are available in limited numbers, (3) Graduate Research Assistantships – GRAs (for helping faculty with research)
are more widely available depending on the funding levels of the faculty.
•
The thesis option is the only option for students who are receiving a fellowship or assistantship (GTA
or GRA) from the department.
•
Students with assistantship agreements are expected to work 10 to 20 hours per week on their
assigned tasks (whether it be grading, lab teaching, or research), while they are maintaining
satisfactory progress in completing their academic courses.
•
To maintain financial support, students must meet their obligations by making satisfactory progress
towards their degree, enrolling full time, maintaining a 3.0 GPA in their Plan of Study, and doing
acceptable research or grading or teaching work as defined by their supervisor.
•
The duration of financial support may vary from one semester to another.