21 PhD programmes offered by the university

The Civil and Environmental Engineering - Mechanics, Materials, and Structures program at Northwestern University provides a strong background in the theory and practice of modern civil and environmental engineering through formal course and research requirements. 

The Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences program at Northwestern University produces researchers who combine strength in core methodologies of operations research (e.g., optimization, stochastic modeling and simulation, statistics, and data analytics) with the ability to apply them to yield practical benefits in solving problems that are important in the real world. 

The Learning Sciences program at Northwestern University prepares researchers, developers, and practitioners to advance the scientific understanding and practice of teaching and learning.

In the Biomedical Engineering - Biomechanics program at Northwestern University, rigid body biomechanics research aims to better understand the neural control of movement, to improve rehabilitation interventions, and to develop medical devices such as exoskeletons, prosthetics, and orthotics.

The Biomedical Engineering program at Northwestern University centers on engineering methods for studying biological and physiological processes and the application of concepts to medical problems.

The Civil and Environmental Engineering - Environmental Engineering and Science program at Northwestern University is organized to provide a common core for all environmental engineers, and to allow individual students to tailor the program to their interests. 

In the Biomedical Engineering - Imaging and Biophotonics program at Northwestern University, research in imaging and biophotonics includes new technology development, image-based biophysical modeling of disease processes, the application of these techniques to address crucial problems in fundamental biology and human physiology, and translation into clinical applications and patient studies.

The Civil and Environmental Engineering - Geotechnical Engineering program at Northwestern University provides a strong background in the theory and practice of modern civil and environmental engineering through formal course and research requirements. 

The Materials Science and Engineering program at Northwestern University was the first in the world and is internationally renowned for the excellence of its graduates.

Graduates of the Chemical and Biological Engineering program at Northwestern University develop mastery of modern chemical and biological engineering theory and practice through a core curriculum. 

The Biomedical Engineering - Neural Engineering program at Northwestern University extends and applies basic knowledge of the nervous system, from the molecular to the systems level, to develop useful technology for medical and other applications. 

The Biomedical Engineering - Medical Devices and Instrumentation program at Northwestern University focus of research in medical devices and instrumentation is to conceptualize, design, fabricate, and validate novel therapeutic and diagnostic tools. 

The Electrical Engineering program at Northwestern University provides students with the opportunity to work with leading, world-renowned faculty members in research areas such as solid-state devices, photonics, image and video processing, and wireless communications.

The Physical Therapy and Engineering program at Northwestern University focuses on the pathophysiology of movement disorders and how the resulting impairments and handicaps impact the design of therapeutic devices, rehabilitation strategies, and patients' quality of life.

The Theoretical and Applied Mechanics program at Northwestern University combines many disciplines in the McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science including civil and environmental engineering, mechanical engineering, biomedical engineering, and materials science.

The Civil and Environmental Engineering - Transportation Systems Analysis and Planning program at Northwestern University provides a strong background in the theory and practice of modern civil and environmental engineering through formal course and research requirements. 

The Mechanical Engineering program at Northwestern University prepares graduates for careers in industry, research, and academia. 

The Civil and Environmental Engineering program at Northwestern University provides a strong background in the theory and practice of modern civil and environmental engineering through formal course and research requirements. 

The Biomedical Engineering - Biomaterials and Regenerative Engineering program at Northwestern University aims to develop self-assembled, bio-integrated electronic, synthetic, and nanoscale materials for biomedical applications. 

The Biomedical Engineering - Cell and Molecular Engineering program at Northwestern University develops new experimental and computational approaches to understand molecular networks in cells and to program cells to perform new functions, including the assembly of biological parts to build new molecular devices, drugs, high value chemicals and to perform bio sensing and drug delivery.