Graduate and International Admissions Center
The University of Texas at Austin
 Office of Admissions / GIAC
P.O. Box 7608
 Austin, TX 78713-7608
 http://www.utexas.edu/student/admissions/gradus/usgradhowto.html

Letters of recommendation are to be sent submitted online by your recommenders. In addition, your resume and a photocopy of your transcript should be submitted to:

 Dr. Howard M. Liljestrand, Graduate Advisor
 University of Texas
 Department of Civil Engineering
 1 University Station C1700
 Austin, TX 78712-0273
 U.S.A.
 Telephone: (512) 471-4604
 Fax: (512) 471-5870
 Email: liljestrand@mail.utexas.edu

Where and When to Submit Applications and Supporting Materials: Admission to the Graduate School generally requires a grade point average of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) for upper-division (junior and senior) courses and competitive GRE Scores. Students are admitted in the fall, spring, and summer semesters. The priority deadline for application for fall is January 15 for all students, however an application will still be considered if completed by July 1 for fall and May 1 for summer. Final deadline for spring is October 1. Applicants are expected to apply online by the stated deadline. The admission application, official transcripts, GRE scores and any other required materials are to be submitted to the Graduate & International Admissions Office. Three letters of recommendation, preferably from academic sources, are required. When you complete the references portion of the online application for admission, you will give the names and email addresses of those you have asked to recommend you. Be sure that the email addresses are current and accurate. You will be asked to inform us if you are going to waive your right to view the letters after they are submitted. Please indicate this by answering the associated question on the application for admission. The Graduate and International Admissions Center (GIAC) will send an email message to the addresses you provide and ask your recommenders to visit a website where they can complete a questionnaire. Your recommenders will be informed if you have not waived your right to view their letters of recommendation. If you make a mistake on an email address or if you need to replace one recommender with another, please contact Marla Boye at marla.boye@austin.utexas.edu. All applicants are automatically considered for any available aid. Letters for financial aid offers are typically sent out no later than March 15.

Living Accommodations: Graduate students may live wherever they wish. The University maintains no list of approved housing. The University operates a graduate student unit within Jester Center, a residential/academic complex on campus. For married students, the University offers apartments, furnished or unfurnished, off campus with shuttle bus service available. For further information, go to their website at http://www.utexas.edu/student/housing/, or write to:

 Division of Housing and Food Service
 The University of Texas at Austin
P.O. Box 7666
 Austin, Texas 78713-7666

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The CEPM M.S. degree plan includes four CEPM courses in order to ensure that the student has an adequate management and technical background prior to graduating. Each student must take a minimum of one course within any two of the following technology-related course categories (as listed earlier in this brochure): P (Automation), R (Information) and T (Technology). Each student must also take a minimum of one course within any two of the following management-related categories: Q(Controls), S (Organization/People) and U (Business).

The program leading to the degree of Doctor of Philosophy is guided by a Supervising Committee appointed by the Graduate Dean for each student. A student seeking this degree is expected to have well-developed goals. To a large extent, the Ph.D. program is adjusted to meet the student's needs, consistent with the general requirements of The University. General requirements for the Ph.D. degree include approximately 30 hours of course work beyond the M.S. degree. The student may be required to take additional course work as his/her Supervising Committee deems necessary. The program includes an English proficiency requirement to ensure that all Ph.D. candidates possess the writing skills necessary for effective technical communication before embarking on the dissertation writing process. This proficiency should be demonstrated in one of three ways:

By submitting a GRE analytical writing score of 4.0 or greater at the time of application;
By retaking the GRE and achieving an analytical writing score of 4.0 or greater; or
By passing an approved technical writing course.

Students who cannot demonstrate proficiency on the basis of their GRE analytical writing score must either retake the GRE or enroll in an approved technical writing course in their first semester as a Ph.D. student. CE 397 Advanced Communication Skills for International Students, CE 389C Advanced Engineering Communication, or an acceptable Graduate School (GRS) course are the only technical writing courses approved at this time. The oral examination is administered by a three-person departmental committee approved by the Graduate Advisor which acts as a screening and advisory body to students wishing to pursue a Ph.D. degree. Other requirements include a Comprehensive Examination, which is administered by the Supervising Committee, completion of acceptable research, a dissertation, and a final oral defense of the dissertation.

Detailed requirements for graduate degrees are given in the Graduate Catalog.

Requirements for Students without an Accredited Degree in Engineering: CEPM students without a degree in engineering are usually required to take additional undergraduate courses. Depending on the number of background courses needed, a student may be required to register as an undergraduate student until the time when he/she will begin graduate level work. The courses required for a student without an engineering degree can vary widely, depending on the student's background.

Enrollment Requirements: Graduate students in the Cockrell School of Engineering are required to enroll for a minimum of 9 semester credit hours per regular semester (fall and spring). In 2008-2009, tuition for Texas residents for 9 semester credit hours is $3,870 plus optional fees and $6,889 plus optional fees for nonresidents and international students who were enrolled by spring 2004 or earlier, and $7,352 plus optional fees for nonresidents and international students who were enrolled for the first time after spring 2004 or later. Students employed half-time or more on a graduate assistantship are eligible for the resident tuition rate (their spouses are also eligible for the same rate). Assistantships typically include payment of tuition and required fees.

CEPM Student Body: There are typically 50 to 60 Construction Engineering and Project Management graduate students, from approximately 20 different countries, one-half of whom are PhD candidates. The backgrounds of the student body range from recent graduates to engineers with many years of experience, which provides a diverse forum for exchange of ideas, cultures, interests, and friendships. Several students are sponsored by government agencies and are on leave from active duty in the armed forces.

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Construction and design are integral parts of a continuous process and the education of a well-rounded civil or architectural engineer should include appropriate portions of both. The UT Austin program builds on the historical strengths of the department’s design and analysis courses and complements them with construction-oriented offerings.

It is normally expected that incoming graduate students will have undergraduate preparation in engineering that is more or less equivalent to Bachelor of Science degrees in Civil Engineering or Architectural Engineering offered at The University of Texas at Austin. Graduate students who wish to supplement their undergraduate backgrounds may take a limited number of undergraduate courses as part of their graduate programs.

There usually are five or six courses offered each semester, as well as one or two in the summer term.

In order to provide guidance for our students, we have put together model study curricula based on student backgrounds and interests. Note that you may want to take all or some of these classes to give you background in areas of your choice.

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This program allows a student to obtain a Master of Public Affairs degree in the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs within two full years. To achieve this goal, the student will have three types of educational experiences:

(a) development of specific technical competence through graduate education within the traditional engineering disciplines and specialties;

(b) acquisition of skills related to policy analysis and program management through course work in political economy, statistics, systems analysis, management of human and financial resources, and the policy process in legislative, executive, and judicial branches; and

(c) experience in a "real world" context through summer internships, group projects, and independent research with public sector clients.

Although the requirements for the two degrees can be met in a program of two academic years plus one summer session, it is expected that some students will require two academic years and two summer sessions to complete the work. Each school retains the option to waive specific course requirements and allow for substitution of other courses. Each student is required to serve in a paid summer internship with a public agency. The work performed during the internship is evaluated by the LBJ School faculty, as well as by the agency with which the intern serves. The LBJ School Office of Internships and Placement arranges the internships. The Dual Degree Program requires one independent research effort (or thesis) for six credit hours, of sufficient quality and scope to satisfy the degree standards in both the LBJ School and the Cockrell School of Engineering. To ensure performance of research which meets these standards the student's supervising committee for the thesis will consist of one faculty representative from each school.

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Professionals and leaders in every area of society spend substantial amounts of time managing interpersonal and inter-organizational conflict. Dispute Resolution professionals practice in a wide range of settings. A family therapist may act as a mediator in a divorce or child custody dispute. A human resource director may be responsible for the design and administration of an employee dispute system for his/her company, or may represent the company in a mediation before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. A lawyer may represent a party in an arbitration proceeding, or may act as an arbitrator or mediator. An urban planning professional may act as a facilitator of a land use and planning process where a city attempts to find a consensus-based approach between developers and neighbors for a large scale development proposal, or the siting of a solid waste facility. A senior manager of a state or federal environmental agency may elect to use negotiated rulemaking and convene a negotiating committee composed of citizen and industrial representatives for the purpose of drafting a consensus rule on water quality standards. The CEO of a major chemical manufacturer may be appointed by the environmental agency to the negotiating committee to represent the chemical manufacturing trade association and all of its members in the negotiated rulemaking on water quality standards. At the international level, a mediator from a neutral country may intervene to assist warring nations negotiate a peace treaty. In each instance, Dispute Resolution professionals are at work.

As an academic area, Dispute Resolution is multi-disciplinary. Relevant courses may involve law, urban planning, communication theory, organizational development, decision theory, cognitive science, game theory, family systems and many other disciplines. In recognition of this fact, the Graduate Portfolio Program in Dispute Resolution creates an interdisciplinary approach to the study and research of conflict and dispute resolution by integrating existing resources throughout the University into a single program. The program synthesizes theory with practical application.

Students who are pursuing a graduate degree in a participating school or college are eligible to apply for admission. Currently, the participating academic units are: the College of Communication, the School of Architecture, the Cockrell School of Engineering, the School of Law, the LBJ School of Public Affairs, the School of Social Work, and the School of Nursing.

Additional training and preparation for new Consortia members comes from graduate coursework in Total Quality Management (TQM) and Business Process Improvement. New members also get early, on-the-job exposure to the student/company relationship through an apprenticeship program with an experienced Consortia member. Additionally, the corporate mentors and fellow Consortia members are a constant source of ideas and support. Seven CEPM students have completed the program in recent years.

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