Master of Science in Computer Science
The Department of Computer Science 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.
AdmissionIndividuals may be admitted to the M.S. degree program if they meet the admission requirements of The Graduate School as stated in the Graduate Catalog.
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.
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, and
550 as well as at least three additional courses (9 hours) 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, are 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 -which may be found on pages 17-24.
General requirements for the degree are outlined as follows:
| Computer Science Core Courses CPSC 510, 526, 532, 533, 550 |
15 |
| Computer Science Electives (see the Graduate Catalog - pg 44) |
9 |
| Unrestricted Electives Courses related to student’s degree objectives may be selected from an area(s) other than computer science in consultation with the adviser and Graduate Coordinator. |
3-9 |
| Research CPSC 599r – Thesis (6) or CPSC 590 – Project (3) |
6-3 |
| Total hours | 33-36 |
