Master of Science in Computer Science
This program offers a student the opportunity to pursue advanced studies in various areas of computer science. The program is designed for students with bachelor’s degrees in computer science and provides a solid preparation for those who may pursue a doctorate. Master’s students are encouraged to concentrate their studies in research areas of interest to faculty in the department.
Admission Requirements
Applicants must have taken courses in differential and integral calculus, discrete mathematics, statistics and data structures and algorithms, as well as at least 12 semester credit hours of advanced course work in undergraduate computer science. Admission may be granted with the stipulation that deficiencies are made up by taking the necessary extra courses. GRE scores (General Test only) are required.
Degree Requirements
The Master of Science in Computer Science requires a minimum of 30 credit hours of approved graduate study. Students are encouraged to complete and successfully defend a thesis. Students who decide not to write a thesis must pass a final program examination.
To ensure students are exposed to a variety of areas in computer science, they must pass one course in each of three categories: applications, foundations, and software and systems, as listed below:
| Applications | |
| CSE 5260 | Database Systems |
| CSE 5280 | Computer Graphics |
| CSE 5290 | Artificial Intelligence |
| Foundations | |
| CSE 5210 | Formal Languages and Automata Theory |
| CSE 5211 | Analysis of Algorithms |
| Software and Systems | |
| CSE 5231 | Computer Networks |
| CSE 5251 | Compiler Theory and Design |
| SWE 5001 | Software Engineering 1 |
Students are exempted from this breadth requirement only if they can show evidence that they have passed courses equivalent to all of those on the category lists. A listed course can be replaced by another appropriate course only with permission of the student’s adviser and department head.
The other course requirements are:
| CREDITS | ||
| CSE 5500 | Computer Science Seminar* or CSE 5501 Computer Sciences Internship* | 0 |
| CSE 5999 | Thesis in Computer Science or Advanced Electives (CSE 5600 or higher) | 6 |
| Electives (at least 6 credit hours must be in Computer Science, numbered CSE 5600 or higher) | 12 | |
| MTH 5051 | Applied Discrete Mathematics | 3 |
* All students are required to register for Computer Science Seminar (CSE 5500) or Computer Sciences Internship (CSE 5501) twice during the degree program. The internship is completed with an information technology firm or industrial organization and is provided for students with no prior experience in a practical information technology setting.
All electives that apply to the program must be approved by the student’s adviser. The computer science office maintains an approved set of courses, including courses in other disciplines, from which electives can be selected. At most, six approved elective credits can be from other disciplines.
The department excels in several specializations of computer science, for example, computer security, computational intelligence and software testing. Students are encouraged to concentrate in a specialization by careful selection of elective courses.