Computer Science, M.S.
The Department of Computer Science and Engineering offers a Master of Science degree with a major in computer science. This program is intended to prepare individuals for work in industry and government or further graduate study. Requirements for the M.S. degree include a minimum of 33 hours of credit earned in graduate course work including a thesis or 36 hours including a project. The M.S. degree offers two concentrations: Computer Science and Information Security and Assurance.
Admission Procedures
An applicant for admission to The Graduate School must: (1) hold a baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited college or university or foreign equivalent and (2) have a minimum grade point average of 2.5 (based on a 4.0 scale) on all undergraduate work taken prior to receiving the baccalaureate degree or a 3.0 in the senior year. [Note: the Graduate Council has approved an increase in the required GPA to 2.7, to be effective with admissions for Fall 2010.] Students who do not meet this admission requirement should contact the staff of the Graduate School office to discuss alternative requirements. Applicants who are seeking admission to a degree program must submit scores on the appropriate standardized test as required by the proposed major department.
An applicant who graduated from an unaccredited institution may be considered for admission with a 3.0 cumulative average. Scores must be submitted from the appropriate admissions test if the applicant is seeking admission to a degree program. To ensure adequate consideration, the applicant should submit the completed application and supporting credentials to the Graduate School office at least one month prior to the beginning of the semester or summer term for which admission is desired. In addition, some departments and programs have established application deadlines. Please refer to the appropriate college or department for this information. Those filing applications after the established submission dates cannot be assured their credentials will be processed in sufficient time to secure admission for that term. Financial aid may also be delayed. An applicant for admission must furnish the following materials to the Graduate School office:
- A completed application form available on the Web site at www.utc.edu/graduateschool.
- Payment of the $30 nonrefundable application fee for domestic applicants or $35 for international applicants.
- An official transcript from each college or university previously attended. These transcripts must be sent directly from the institution to the Graduate School office.
- An official report of the applicant’s score on the prescribed test(s) for admission. Note that in addition to any general and/or subject test(s) that may be required for a particular program, the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) is required of all applicants whose native language is not English. (Refer to page 9 for a description of circumstances that may allow applicants to apply for an exemption to the TOEFL/IELTS requirement.)
- Supplemental application materials as required by program.
This program is designed for students with the foundations provided by the baccalaureate degree in computer science. However, students with degrees in other disciplines may be admitted. Students whose academic training is considered inadequate in certain areas will be required to complete additional undergraduate and/or graduate foundation courses as determined by the department. These courses may, depending on the preparation of the student, include Computer Science 150, 160, 251, 261, 305, 306, 312, 351, and Mathematics 151/152, 161/162, 212, 303, and 307. Credit may be earned by special examination and awarded in accordance with the general regulations of The Graduate School.
International Students
The University wishes to encourage qualified graduate applicants from other countries. Accordingly, The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga will accept as equivalent in level, structure, scope, and intent the new European degrees, adopted under the Bologna Process.
The University will also consider three-year bachelor’s degrees earned in Division I and II institutions in India and accredited by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) as comparable to four-year U.S. bachelor’s degrees. UTC will consider other three-year degrees on a case by case basis.
The foreign applicant must submit the following materials to the Graduate School office:
- An application for admission on the form provided by the University.
- A draft drawn on a U.S. bank or money order for the $35 U.S. nonrefundable application fee.
- Copies of authorized school or university records with certified translations if the records are in a language other than English. Translations must include descriptive titles of courses studied and grades gained in final examinations.
- Official scores on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). An official TOEFL score of 550 or above is required. (A score of 213 or above on the computer based test, or a score of 79 or above on the Internet-based test, is considered equivalent to a score of 550 or above on the paper-based test.) IELTS scores must be 6.0 or higher. Individual programs may have additional English proficiency requirements and/or may require higher scores on the TOEFL/IELTS.
- Official scores on the admission test required by the major department. International students seeking admission to the M.B.A. program must submit minimum scores of 450 on the GMAT.
- Evidence of financial resources sufficient to provide adequate support (as determined by the University) during the applicant’s period of residence as a student.
- International students may be required to take an English proficiency examination after arriving at the University and must successfully complete all English courses recommended as a result of his/her score on this test or the TOEFL/IELTS.
- All international students are required to purchase health insurance through UTC.
Candidacy Programs for Master of Science Degree in Computer Science
Each student in the M.S. Computer Science degree program must obtain approval of his/her proposed program of study by preparing and submitting the Application for Admission to Candidacy for the Degree form. This form, with directions for completing it, is available from the Graduate School on the web page for graduate forms at: www.utc.edu/Administration/GraduateSchool/CurrentStudentForms.php
The proper time to submit the candidacy application is after the student has completed at least 9 semester credit hours in the program, but before the completion of 18 credit hours. (Candidacy applications submitted after the completion of 18 hours are considered late and require a petition in order to be considered; see the web page above for the petition form.) The student must list on the form all courses already taken (along with the grades earned), in progress, and proposed to be taken to count toward the requirements for the degree. (Note that courses with a grade below C cannot be used to fulfill degree requirements.) The M.S. degree in Computer Science requires at least 36 graduate credit hours if the project option is chosen, and 33 hours if the thesis option is chosen. The presentation of the graduate project or the defense of the master’s thesis serves as the student’s culminating experience; therefore, a comprehensive examination is not required. Note that if it becomes necessary or desirable to change the program of study after the original candidacy application is approved (e.g. if a course listed on the form is not offered in a timely fashion) the student may submit an Application for Revision to Candidacy form.
Approved candidacy forms are assigned an expiration date by the Graduate School. This expiration date is six years from the start of the first course applied to the degree. (For example, if the first course listed on the candidacy application was taken in the Fall semester of 2008, the candidacy expiration date would be August of 2014.) All degree requirements must be completed by the candidacy expiration date for the student to receive his/her degree. Students with extenuating circumstances may petition the Graduate Council for an extension of the candidacy time frame; however there is no guarantee that such petitions will be granted and courses outside the 6-year window will have to be repeated if the petition is denied.
The M.S. degree with a major in Computer Science is offered with either a general (Computer Science) concentration or a concentration in Information Security and Assurance (ISA). Degree requirements are outlined in the tables below. Students in either concentration may choose to complete a graduate project (CPSC 5900, 3 credit hours, one semester) or a thesis (CPSC 5990r, at least 6 credit hours taken over two or more semesters).
A project typically has well-defined requirements; it is expected to be of graduate quality but is of such a nature that it can be completed within a single semester, given diligent effort on the student’s part. Requirements are established by the faculty member who is instructor of record for CPSC 5900 and generally include interim status reports, a final written report, and a presentation/demonstration of the finished project. Project topics may be suggested by the student, a faculty member, or an external client (e.g. a company or non-profit organization) and must be approved by the CPSC 5900 instructor.
A thesis generally involves the pursuit of a more open-ended research objective, and results in the writing, oral defense, and publication of a paper of substantial length and scholarly quality. The research and writing of the thesis always requires at least two semesters, and may take longer depending on a variety of factors. A total of at least 6 credit hours in CPSC 5990r must be successfully completed; no more than 4 may be earned in any one semester. The credits may be distributed over two or more semesters 3/3, 2/4, 4/2, 2/2/2, etc. with the proviso that the student must be enrolled for at least two semester hours of thesis during the semester that the thesis is completed and submitted to the Graduate School. Before registering for CPSC 5990r thesis credits, the student must establish a thesis committee consisting of a chairperson and at least two other persons, all of whom must be members of the UTC graduate faculty. (See the Graduate School web site for the thesis committee appointment form and the list of graduate faculty members.) The committee must approve the student’s proposed thesis topic, the completed thesis, and the thesis defense in order for the student to receive his/her degree. Once a student enrolls in thesis credits, he/she must continuously enroll in CPSC 5990r each Fall and Spring semester until the thesis is completed. It is not necessary for the student to take CPSC 5990r during Summer terms unless the student plans to complete the thesis and graduate in August.
The following tables summarize the degree requirements for both the general Computer Science and ISA concentrations using both the project and thesis options. Every effort has been made to ensure correctness; however, the student should be aware that the Graduate Catalog (available on the Graduate School web site) in effect at the time of admission to candidacy is the controlling document.
Course Requirements
All students admitted to the M.S. program must complete a minimum of 24 hours of course work in computer science at UTC. This will include the core courses CPSC 510, 526, 532, 533, 550, and additional courses from Computer Science (see below). The program also includes 6 hours of thesis. An additional 3 hours of coursework related to the student’s objectives may be selected from an area within or outside of computer science, in consultation with the major adviser and Graduate Coordinator. A minimum total of 33 hours of graduate credit, including the thesis, is required for the M.S. degree. Students may elect to undertake a project in lieu of a thesis. In this case, 6 additional hours of elective coursework, for a minimum total of 36 hours of graduate credit, are required. The courses used for these additional six hours are subject to the approval of the major adviser and the Graduate Coordinator of Computer Science. With either the thesis or project option, a minimum of 21 hours of credit must be from UTC computer science courses at the 500 level. Students must maintain a minimum 3.0 grade point average and are subject to all general regulations of The Graduate School, such as those regulating admission to candidacy, transfer of credits, time limitations, thesis, and degree conferral.
Program of Study for M.S. in Computer Science (Project Option)
| Course Number | Course Name | Credit Hours |
| CPSC 5100 (510)* | Computer Programming Languages | 3 |
| CPSC 5550 (526)* | Client-Server Systems | 3 |
| CPSC 5800 (532)* | Advanced Topics in Systems Software | 3 |
| CPSC 5700 (533)* | Advanced Computer Architecture | 3 |
| CPSC 5210 (550)* | Design and Analysis of Computer Algorithms | 3 |
| Computer Science Electives | (see list below) | 9 |
| Unrestricted Electives | (may be taken outside of CPSC with advisor approval | 9 |
| CPSC 5900 (590)* | Project | 3 |
| Total | 36 |
Program of Study for M.S. in Computer Science (Thesis Option)
| Course Number | Course Name | Credit Hours |
| CPSC 5100 (510)* | Computer Programming Languages | 3 |
| CPSC 5550 (526)* | Client-Server Systems | 3 |
| CPSC 5800 (532)* | Advanced Topics in Systems Software | 3 |
| CPSC 5700 (533)* | Advanced Computer Architecture | 3 |
| CPSC 5210 (550)* | Design and Analysis of Computer Algorithms | 3 |
| Computer Science Electives | (see list below) | 9 |
| Unrestricted Electives | (may be taken outside of CPSC with advisor approval | 3 |
| CPSC 5990r (590)* | Thesis | 6 |
| Total | 33 |
* denotes core courses in Computer Science master's degree program
Computer Science Elective Courses may be chosen from:
CPSC 5600, 5500, 5400, 5610, 5220, 5200, 5660, 5670, 5640, 5220, 5120, 5850, 5710, 5560, 5570, 5720, 5140, 5150, 5160, 5620, 5170, 5680, 5510, 5410, 5440, 5450, 5910r, 5920r, 5970r
Program of Study in ISA Concentration for M.S. in Computer Science (Project Option)
| Course Number | Course Name | Credit Hours |
| CPSC 5100 (510)* | Computer Programming Languages | 3 |
| CPSC 5550 (526)*+ | Client-Server Systems | 3 |
| CPSC 5800 (532)* | Advanced Topics in Systems Software | 3 |
| CPSC 5700 (544)+ | Computer Network Security | 3 |
| CPSC 5680 (548)+ | Computer Forensics | 3 |
| CPSC 5210 (550)* | Design and Analysis of Computer Algorithms | 3 |
| Electives 5000 level ISA courses+ | (see list below) | 6 |
| Unrestricted Electives (may be in ISA or another area) | (may be taken outside of CPSC with advisor approval | 6 |
| CPSC 5900 | Project | 3 |
| Total | 36 |
Program of Study in ISA Concentration for M.S. in Computer Science (Thesis Option)
| Course Number | Course Name | Credit Hours |
| CPSC 5100 (510)* | Computer Programming Languages | 3 |
| CPSC 5550 (526)*+ | Client-Server Systems | 3 |
| CPSC 5800 (532)* | Advanced Topics in Systems Software | 3 |
| CPSC 5700 (544)+ | Computer Network Security | 3 |
| CPSC 5680 (548)+ | Computer Forensics | 3 |
| CPSC 5210 (550)* | Design and Analysis of Computer Algorithms | 3 |
| Electives 5000 level ISA courses+ | (see list below) | 3 |
| Unrestricted Electives (may be in ISA or another area) | (may be taken outside of CPSC with advisor approval | 3 |
| CPSC 5990r | Thesis | 6 |
| Total | 33 |
* denotes core courses in Computer Science master's degree program
+ denotes Information Security and Assurance (ISA) courses
Elective 5000 ISA courses include CPSC 5600, 5610, 5660, 5670, 5640, and 5140.
| Course Number | Course Name | Credit Hours |
| CPSC 5600 | Biometrics and Cryptography | 3 |
| CPSC 5610 | Information Security Management | 3 |
| CPSC 5660 | System Vulnerability Analysis and Auditing | 3 |
| CPSC 5670 | Database Security and Auditing | 3 |
| CPSC 5640 | Internet Security protocols | 3 |
| CPSC 5140 | Design of Distributed Systems | 3 |
