From artificial hips, to LED screens, to wind turbines, to high-density computer memory, to lithium ion batteries, materials are foundational to all of today’s technological systems. Modern materials science and engineering (MSE) draws equally from scientific disciplines, such as chemistry, physics, molecular biology, and geosciences, and from application-focused engineering disciplines such as mechanical, chemical, electrical and civil, to synthesize its own identity and focus. PMI was established in 1990 with this interdisciplinary spirit, with founding members spanning science and engineering departments across campus. PMI now hosts nearly 100 associated faculty members from more than a dozen disciplines. Princeton’s national strength in materials research was recognized in 1994 with the award of a Materials Research Science and Engineering Center from the National Science Foundation, which has continued to this day as the Princeton Center for Complex Materials (PCCM), housed within PMI. 

The Ph.D. in MSE program at the Princeton Materials Institute builds on Princeton’s position as a leader in the study and design of advanced materials. This five-year program offers a doctoral degree to students with undergraduate training in materials and/or wish to be principally identified as materials scientists and engineers. The program leverages the wide array of PMI faculty members at the leading edge of many important research areas addressing innovations and solutions for today’s complex problems. Key features of the Ph.D. program include an interdisciplinary community, a collaborative environment, access to state-of-the-art material synthesis, characterization and simulation tools at PMI's Imaging & Analysis Center and Micro/Nanofabrication Center, access to Princeton Research Computing and weekly PMI/PCCM seminars.

Learn about coursework and other program requirements.

Director of Graduate Studies: Mikko Haataja, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering

Graduate Program Administrator: Sandra Lam, academic program administrator

Applications for the 2026-27 cohort will open in Fall 2025. To learn about the next application cycle, please contact Sandra Lam.