Ming Chi University of Technology

Regulation for Study Method of “International Ph.D. Program in Innovative Technology of Biomedical Engineering and Medical Devices” 👈📑 download

Approved by the Program Affairs Conference on July 02, 2020
Approved by the College Affairs Conference on July 28, 2020
Approved by the Academic Affairs Conference on June 28, 2023

Article 1, Objective

These Regulations are specifically established to provide a reference for study of students enrolling on the International Ph.D. Program in Innovative Technology of Biomedical Engineering and Medical Devices (hereinafter called the “Ph.D. Program”).

Article 2, Admission Requirements

Potential students include general students and in-service students

1. General Ph.D. students shall meet any one of the two following requirements and pass the entrance examination:
   (1) Graduation with a master’s degree from the graduate institute of a legally registered public or private university or overseas university recognized by the Ministry of Education (MOE).
   (2) Application for admissions with equivalent qualifications.
2. In-service Ph.D. students: In-service students must fulfill the examination requirements for general students and are currently at work.
 

Article 3, Expected Length for Graduation

1. General doctoral students are allowed a study period of two to seven years. In-service doctoral students are allowed a study period of two to eight years. Students may apply for a leave of absence with documentation due to pregnancy, childbirth, or the need to care for infants. The study period for direct entry doctoral students begins from the start of their doctoral studies.
2. Students who are unable to complete the required courses, graduate credits, or degree thesis due to unforeseen circumstances may apply for a one-semester, one-year, or two-year leave of absence before the semester examination. The cumulative maximum duration of leave is two academic years. If students are unable to resume studies after the expiration of their leave due to circumstances, they may apply for an extension, subject to review and approval. The period of leave of absence is not counted towards the study period.

Article 4, Dissertation Advisor

1. Doctoral students must select their advisor (with a preference for program faculty and supporting academic staff) and engage in thesis research within the first year of enrollment. In cases where, due to special reasons, a student chooses an external expert or scholar for individual supervision, a written application must be submitted and approved by the program director. The selection of the doctoral thesis topic should align with the program's professional field, and after obtaining the advisor's consent, it is finalized by the program director. Doctoral students are required to complete the "Professional Degree Review Form for Thesis Topics" (Form No.: A1GP020501) and submit it for review by the program affairs committee by the end of the fourth semester of study.
2. In the event that a doctoral candidate needs to change their advisor during the thesis process, they must complete the "Application for Approval of Advisor Change" form (Form No.: A1GP020601) and submit it to the doctoral program. The change requires the consent of both the current and new advisors, and final approval is granted by the program director. Changing the thesis advisor is allowed only once, and when applying, the student must propose a new research direction for the thesis.

Article 5, Program and Credit Requirements

1. The required and elective courses of the Program shall be subject to the curriculum planning for Ph.D. programs in the year of admission.
2. The graduation credit requirement for a Ph.D. is 42 credits (covering 12 credits for the dissertation), including six (6) credits for four (4) common required courses and 24 credits for eight (8) elective courses. The latter shall include 15 credits of professional electives (including electives of other divisions), and the rest can be electives of other areas (not more than nine (9) credits).
3. Common required courses: Seminar (0 credits) for two semesters, Academic Writing (0 credits) for two semesters, Introduction to Medical Engineering (3 credits), Introduction to Biotechnology (3 credits), and Dissertation (12 credits).
4. Electives shall be approved by the dissertation advisor. If the dissertation advisor has not been selected, they shall be approved by the program director.
5. Score standard: The pass score of each course shall be 70 marks (B-).

Article 6, Regulations for Qualifying Examination

1. Examination time
Ph.D. students may apply for the qualifying examination after program enrollment. Ph.D. students must pass the qualification examination before they can apply for the dissertation proposal defense.
2. The qualifying examination is held once in each September and February. Each course shall be retaken one time only. Ph.D. students wishing the resit another course can only take it once.
3. The qualification examination is a written examination. Ph.D. students must file an application by the deadline of each semester. Additionally, Ph.D. students must pass the qualification examination by the third year of study so as to get the Ph.D. candidacy. The pass score of each examination course is 70 marks (B-).
4. The deadlines of qualification examination shall be August 31 (examination in September) and January 31 (examination in February). Application for examination withdrawal is closed two weeks before the date of examination.
5. Courses and scope of examination
(1) Examination Subjects:
The qualification examination subjects are divided into four areas based on students' research backgrounds and course directions: Medical Engineering, Biotechnology, Biomedical Materials and Testing Techniques, and Biomedical Informatics. The core courses recommended for each area are as indicated in Note 1. Students chooseone of these areas as the subject of their qualification examination, and the program director appoints convenors for each area responsible for planning and preparing examination questions.
(2) Examination Scope:
The examination scope can be referenced from the examination outlines established for each area, which are announced at the beginning of August each year.
6. The assessment of the qualification examination will be reviewed by the program affairs committee, and the examination results will be publicly announced.
Note1: For the Medical Engineering area: Introduction to Medical Engineering, Introduction to Biotechnology, Biomedical Engineering Technology. For the Biotechnology area: Cellular Engineering Technology, Tissue Engineering, Special Topics in Precision Medicine. For the Biomedical Materials and Testing Techniques area: Principles and Applications of Functional Materials, Biomedical Materials and Nanobiotechnology, Special Topics in Electrochemistry. For the Biomedical Informatics area: Digital Image Processing Techniques, Biomedical Signal Processing, Pattern Recognition.

Article 7, Dissertation Proposal Defense

1. Before applying for the dissertation proposal defense, Ph.D. students must have published at least one paper in (or accepted by) an SCI-level international journal. This paper must be completed during the Ph.D. study of students and published in the name of MCUT.
2. Before applying for the dissertation proposal defense, Ph.D. studentsmust complete at least six (6) hours of the Research Ethics Education Course offered by the Center for Taiwan Academic Research Ethics, pass the final test and obtain the certificate of course enrollment.
3. The doctoral thesis proposal defense must be submitted after passing the qualification examination. If the first defense is unsuccessful, a second defense may be requested in writing within one year of the unsuccessful attempt. Failure to pass the second defense will result in dismissal from the program.

Article 8, Graduation Requirements and Degree Examination

Ph.D. students of this Ph.D. program meeting all the following requirements may apply for the degree examination:
(1) Completing six (6) credits of program common required courses and 24 credits of elective courses (please refer to Article 5 for details).
(2) Passing the Ph.D. qualifying (candidacy) examination.
(3) Passing the dissertation proposal defense.
(4) Meeting the graduation requirements for research outcomes (please refer to Article 10 for details).
(5) Meeting the English proficiency test requirements (please refer to Article 11 for details).
(6) Obtaining the approval of the dissertation advisor.

Article 9, Procedures of Application for Degree Examination

1. Doctoral students who meet the graduation requirements may complete the "Application for Qualification Examination Review" form (Form No.: A1GP020103) to apply for the degree examination.
2. Degree Examination Application Procedure: Doctoral students are required to complete the "Self-Assessment and Confirmation Form for Graduation Requirements of the Doctoral Program" (Form No.:A1GP020203), "Degree Examination Application Form" (Form No.: A1GP020303), and "Degree Examination Record Form" (Form No.: A1GP020403) two weeks prior to the scheduled oral examination date. After review by the program affairs committee and approval by the program director, the examination can proceed.

Article 10, Graduation Standards for Research Outcomes

1. At least one SCI journal paper must be published at the time of graduation, and the graduation thesis score must be at least 8 points or above.
2. Calculation method for graduation thesis score:
   (1) SCI journal papers: Each paper is worth a maximum of 4 points. (Q2 and above: 4 points, Q3: 3 points, Q4: 2 points)
The advisor who publishes the paper is excluded from scoring. The first author receives 100% of the points; the second author receives 50% of the points; the third author receives 25% of the points; authors ranked fourth or lower do not receive any points.
   (2) Domestic and international patents: Invention patents: 4 points; Utility model patents: 2 points; Design patents: 1 point.
The total points for patents in the graduation score are capped at 4 points.
   (3) Conference papers: International conference papers (limited to English): 1 point; Domestic conference papers (limited to English): 0.5 points.
The advisor who publishes the paper is excluded from scoring. The first author receives 100% of the points; the second author receives 50% of the points; authors ranked third or higher do not receive any points. Conference papers presented orally are preferred. If presented in poster format, 50% of the points will be awarded. The total points for conference papers are capped at 2 points.

Article 11, Standards for English Proficiency Tests

1. English proficiency requirements:
Ph.D. students shall meet any one of the following English proficiency requirements before graduation:
   (1) iBT TOEFL 69 or higher or equivalent level of previous TOEFL tests (CBT TOEFL 193 or higher or PBT TOEFL 500 or higher).
   (2) TOEIC 650 or higher.
   (3) Ph.D. students failing the above tests for two or more times may apply for the English Remedial Course offered by MCUT and submit the English proficiency test registration and results to the Program Council Meeting for evaluation with the approval of the dissertation advisor.
   (4) Ph.D. students can substitute the English proficiency test score with 80 or higher marks in the English Remedial Course.
2. English proficiency evaluation
Ph.D. students shall meet the standard for English proficiency tests before graduation. The dissertation advisor and program director shall evaluate the results. Ph.D. students who do not meet the English proficiency

Article 12, Qualifications of Examination Committee Members for Dissertation Proposal Defense and Degree Examination

1. The members of the thesis proposal defense committee and the degree examination committee are appointed by the president based on recommendations from the program, with one member designated as the convener by the program director. The advisor serves as an ex officio member.
2. The thesis proposal defense committee and the degree examination committee are composed of five to nine members (including the advisor) appointed by the advisor, with at least two-thirds being external members.
3. Members of the doctoral thesis proposal defense committee and the degree examination committee should have specialized research in the doctoral candidate's proposed thesis subject and meet one of the following qualifications:
   (1) Current or former professor or associate professor.
   (2) Current or former academicians, researchers, or associate researchers of the Academia Sinica.
   (3) Holders of a doctoral degree with significant achievements in a specialized academic field.
   (4) Achievements in practical or specialized fields.
4. To maintain the fairness of the degree examination, graduate students, advisors, and members of the degree examination committee should avoid the following relationships:
   (1) Spouses, former spouses, blood relatives within the fourth degree, or relatives by marriage within the third degree.
   (2) Advisor and external members of the degree examination committee have a direct superior-subordinate relationship within the past three years.
   (3) Advisor and external members of the degree examination committee have a thesis supervision relationship within the past five years.
   (4) External members of the degree examination committee are currently receiving funding or commission from the advisor.
   (5) Advisor and external members of the degree examination committee have jointly published academic papers, patents, or undertaken projects within the past three years.
If circumstances prevent avoidance, a special explanation must be submitted for school approval.

Article 13, Regulations for Handling Dissertation Plagiarism

1. Upon receiving a complaint regarding discrepancies between a student's thesis and their specialization, according to the "Procedures for Handling Academic Ethics Violations by Students," it shall be referred to the Academic Affairs Office for processing. A college-level academic ethics review committee (excluding the advisor) shall be formed to investigate, and the student may be asked to provide an explanation.
2. Doctoral theses must undergo plagiarism detection, with similarity below 30%. If necessary, the advisor shall guide the doctoral student in revisions based on the comparison report. After revisions are completed, the doctoral degree examination application may be submitted. If the thesis still contains plagiarism after revisions, the student is solely responsible. The comparison report will be provided for reference during the oral examination.
3. The content of a doctoral thesis should align with the professional field. During the thesis examination, all members of the examination committee shall verify this alignment. The verification results shall be submitted for review by the program affairs committee. If the content does not align with the professional field, the thesis examination for that session shall be canceled, and the advisor shall not guide doctoral students in the program for three years.
4. If plagiarism or cheating is confirmed in a thesis, it shall be deemed as failing. If a degree has already been conferred, the degree qualification shall be revoked, and the degree certificate shall be reclaimed.
5. If a thesis involves confidential, patent-related matters, or is legally prohibited from disclosure, a request for delayed publication must be submitted along with supporting documents. Upon approval by the program affairs committee, the thesis may not be provided or may be withheld for a specified period.