about cse

requirements

departments

COMPUTER SCIENCE

Computer Science students pursuing an emphasis in CSE must complete the following:

  • Numerical Methods: Computer Science 211A-B-C-D (students must take at least three).
  • Parallel Computing: Computer Science 240A-B (students must take at least one).
  • Applied Mathematics: Students must take one of the Math 214A-B, Math 215A-B sequences (run concurrently with Math119A-B and Math124A-B, respectively.), or Chemical Engineering 230A-B.
  • Credit will not be given for more than one of these sequences. Advanced courses may be substituted, with approval, as follows: Math 243 instead of Math 214, and Math 246 instead of Math 215.

CSE master's and Ph.D. graduates are expected to have a solid grounding in CSE core subjects discussed above. A CSE thesis or dissertation should involve the solution of a real-world problem, using and/or developing tools to advance the CSE discipline. Some examples of such problems include, but are not limited to, data mining, computational chemistry, parallel computing tools for scientific computation, computational fluid dynamics, computational engineering and materials, and problem solving environments.

The specific requirements for the M.S. in Computer Science (thesis option only) with the CSE emphasis are as follows:

  • 42 units in upper division or graduate courses (excluding the 190 level)
  • 20 graduate course units from 3 areas: Theory, Systems, Applications (The Computer Science courses in the CSE core are considered to be part of the Applications track for the M.S. degree in Computer Science.) These units must include:
    • four Computer Science graduate courses from the CSE core.
    • at least one course in the theory or systems area.
  • 8 units of applied mathematics from Math 214A-B, 215A-B, or 243/246 to complete the CSE core.
  • 2 units of Computer Science 595 (seminar).
  • 12 units of thesis preparation (596, 598).
  • A master's thesis in CSE.
  • The thesis must be written under the supervision of a Computer Science CSE ladder faculty member. The thesis committee must include a minimum of three permanent ladder faculty members, at least two from Computer Science and one from CSE (may be CSE faculty member from another department).

Students pursuing a Ph.D. with an emphasis in CSE must:

  • Pass 10 of 12 Ph.D. screening examinations. The two additional screening exams that are offered as options to CSE students in Computer Science are Scientific Computing (Computer Science 110A) and Parallel Computing (Computer Science 110B).
  • Complete 8 graduate courses with a grade of B or better in each course:
  • 4 CSE core courses as discussed above
  • 4 graduate courses from Computer Science or related CSE area, endorsed by the advisor.
  • Complete 8 units of applied mathematics (Math 214AB, 215AB, or 243/246) as part of the CSE core.
  • Pass a major area examination in CSE, and write and defend a dissertation in CSE.
  • The student's dissertation must be written under the supervision of a Computer Science CSE ladder faculty member. The doctoral examination committee must include at least one CSE ladder faculty member and at least one ladder faculty member from another department.