The Doctoral Program

The doctoral degree program in operations research enables PhD candidates to contribute to advanced research and state-of-the-art knowledge in a selected field. The program provides both a thorough background in the theory of OR as well as in developing and applying OR methods in practice.

Many graduates of the doctoral degree program assume academic positions in the US and abroad; others work usually as researchers or consultants in business and industry.

The emphasis of the doctoral program is on dissertation research. The formal course work and other requirements provide a foundation for the student to undertake original and creative research in a topic area selected in consultation with a thesis advisor. A student may wish to focus solely on the theory and methodology of operations research or, alternatively, on the application of OR methods and models in a particular area.

Course Requirements

• Students must take at least eight graduate level classes. Students need to have their classes approved by the ORC co-directors.
  
  
• At least two of these subjects must be taken in optimization from the list below, at least two in applied probability, at least one in statistics and at least one in OR modeling.
  
  
• These subjects must be taken by the end of the student's 6th semester and students must maintain a GPA of 4.5 or better.

Optimization Subjects:

• 6.251J/15.081J Introduction to Mathematical Programming
• 6.252J/15.084J Nonlinear Programming
• 6.855J/15.082J Network Optimization
• 6.859J/15.083J Integer Programming and Combinatorial Optimization Applied

Probability Subjects:

• 6.262 Discrete Stochastic Processes
• 6.264J/15.072J Queues: Theory and Application
• 6.436/15.085J Fundamentals of Probability
• 15.070 Advanced Stochastic Processes

Statistics Subjects:

• 6.437 Inference and Information
• 6.867 Machine Learning
• 9.520 Statistical Learning Theory and Applications
• 15.077 Statistical Learning and Data Mining

OR Modeling Subjects:

• 1.203J/15.073J, etc. Logistical and Transportation Planning Methods
• 1.206 Airline Schedule Planning
• 15.764 Theory of Operations Management

In addition, doctoral degree student must satisfy a Hands-on-Experience and a Computer Literacy requirement. PhD students must also submit an approved thesis based on their independent research. The Institute sets no specific minimum number of credits for the award of the doctoral degree.

These and additional subjects in operations research and closely related fields are listed under Subject Offerings; that section also includes some of the electives that a student may select in structuring a program.

Qualifying Examinations

Doctoral degree candidates must pass the Qualifying Examination, taken at the beginning of their second year of study at MIT. The Qualifying Examination is based on material covered in the subjects:

• 6.251J/15.081J Introduction to Mathematical Programming
• 6.975 Fundamentals of Probability

The Qualifying Examination consists of two written parts, offered one week apart. The exam is usually administered before Registration Day.

General Examination

Once PhD students have passed the Qualifying Examination, they must pass the General Examination (usually taken at the end of the second year of graduate study). The General Exam is composed of the subject requirements, a research-oriented (RO) paper, and an extensive oral examination.