If you are reading this handbook, you are probably pursuing a Master of Engineering (M.Eng.), Master of Science (M.S.), or Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree. The M.Eng. is a professional degree, which means it is designed for those who expect to find jobs in industry; the other two are generally considered more academic. This has been changing in recent years, though, as engineering practice requires ever more specialized knowledge.
The M.Eng. degree requires 30 credits of technical classes, including four to eight credits of work on a Master of Engineering project. This typically takes one academic year and sometimes extends into the following summer. Cornell undergraduates frequently get a head start on an M.Eng. degree during the last semester of their senior year; for them in particular, the M.Eng. degree is like a fifth year of undergraduate work. Unlike many undergraduate programs, however, the M.Eng. degree incorporates intense classwork with a large independent or group project. An M.Eng. student has an advisor, who must be picked promptly if one wishes to begin the project the first semester. This can be worthwhile because serious work on an M.Eng. project can be a valuable asset come job interview time in February and March, but starting so soon doesn't permit much time to adapt to Cornell.
The M.S. and Ph.D. degrees are far more flexible; in many of the graduate fields, these degrees have no written requirements whatsoever. The M.S. degree is usually a stepping-stone on the way to the Ph.D. Many departments do not usually admit students to an M.S. program that expect to stop after the Master's. Some departments expect Ph.D. students to get a full Master's along the way, others are content with a ``Special Master's," and others don't expect any at all. The differences between these are described briefly here, but check with your advisor, or other students in your field, to find out what will be expected of you.
Students pursuing a Master's degree have two committee members: an advisor and one minor committee member. The student usually picks a collection of courses to take, but consult your advisor to see if there are courses he or she feels particularly strongly about. The total time to earn the degree varies, but about two years is typical. The first couple of semesters consist largely of coursework, choosing an advisor, becoming familiar with the research lab, and picking a research project. During the remaining semesters, the emphasis is reversed: you might take a couple of courses, but most of the time is spent on research and writing the Master's thesis. In many ways, the thesis is practice for the Ph.D. dissertation. Often you can see what is expected by watching more advanced students; otherwise, look at theses in the Engineering Library written by previous students in the same research group. The degree ends with a Master's defense: an oral exam where you present your thesis work in a talk, and answer questions asked by the committee members.
Some fields and some advisors feel that writing a Master's thesis requires time that is better spent in other ways and eliminate that step of the process for a Ph.D. They may preserve the Master's defense, in which case one earns a Special Master's; others do away with the Master's entirely and students work directly for the Ph.D.
For a Ph.D., at least one to two years of research are expected beyond a Master's degree. That means that after a Bachelor's degree, the Ph.D. takes about five years. Some students finish in as few as three, though for others the Ph.D. program can drag on indefinitely. Those who enter Cornell with a Master's from another school may need to take some additional coursework, and thus may still need three and a half to four years for the Ph.D. degree alone.
There are three exams on the way to the Ph.D., known as the Qualifying or Q exam, Admission to Candidacy or A exam, and the Final or B exam. The Q exam certifies that one is ready to begin Ph.D. work. Policies on Q examinations vary widely between departments, however. You should check with your DGS to find out how things are done in your department. The A exam certifies that one has finished with coursework, and usually serves as a proposal of the Ph.D. research project. Both the Q and A exams involve a certain amount of ``grilling" by the committee members to verify familiarity with coursework. If they find a significant deficiency, they may recommend taking an appropriate course. At the end of the road is the B exam, which is the dissertation defense. It is a presentation of the dissertation results; if the dissertation work is solid, there is generally nothing to worry about. After a few dissertation corrections, which the committee will invariably require, it's cap and gown time!