Master of Science
The Master of Science (M.S.) in Computer Science is the initial graduate degree in the field, and can take one and a half years of full-time study to complete. The master's program is designed to prepare students for advanced careers in the computing industry, to create a research environment in computer science, and to prepare students for graduate work at the Ph.D. level. Students entering the program must have a bachelor's degree and/or adequate background in computer science.
The master's program requires the completion of an approved program of 45 credits, with a thesis option. Coursework includes core courses in theory and programming practice, plus a 9-credit concentration in one specialization area.
For detailed information about the M.S. degree, please consult the Graduate Handbook .
Core Requirements (6)
Students are encouraged to take these courses as early as possible in your graduate program.
One Theory course from:
- CS 581 Theory of Computation (3)
- CS 584 Algorithm Design & Analysis (3)
- CS 578 Programming Language Semantics (3)
One Programming Practice course from:
- CS 558 Programming Languages (3)
- Any 500-level course designated by the department as programming-intensive (3)
Track Requirements (9)
All students in the CS Master's program must take three courses from a single track of the following:
- Databases
- Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning
- Languages & Programming
- Security
- Software Engineering
- Systems & Networking
- Theory
- Visual Computing
The list of required courses and approved electives for each track are listed in the Graduate Handbook .
Elective Requirements (30)
Students must take enough electives to complete 45 total credits for the MS degree. Electives can be any 500-level CS course (with some restrictions on courses numbered CS 501-509). A limited number of credits taken outside Computer Science can count towards the elective requirements, with advisor approval.
Thesis Option
The thesis option requires the completion of 45 credits including 6-9 credits of CS 503 (Thesis) and an oral thesis defense.
Advising
MS students are advised by the CS Graduate Advisor .