Students in Type II pass all the required courses and obtain a GPA of no less than 3.00.

The student must have an English Proficiency Examination score according to the requirement of the Faculty of Graduate Studies. Specifically, the student must satisfy one of the following conditions:

• TOEFL paper-based score ≥ 500
• TOEFL computer-based score ≥ 173
• TOEFL internet-based score ≥ 61
• IELTS score ≥ 5.5

All students must pass a qualifying examination at least 3 subject in 4 areas of specialty.

Students who meet the requirements on qualifying examination, English language proficiency and coursework (Type II only) will become PhD candidates. PhD candidates will then need to produce a piece of original research and write a dissertation in a form approved by the graduate school. Students will also need to pass an oral examination on the defense of their dissertation after the submission thereof.

The dissertation or a part of the dissertation must be published or accepted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal or an academic printed matter or presented in an academic conference with peer-reviewed proceedings.

Students should avoid publishing in predatory journals and attending questionable conferences. Please see more details in the following links:

• Beall’s list
• Questionable conferences