Where can I find a detailed
description of the new MS program in Computer Science?
A printed
descriptive brochure will soon be available from the Graduate School. Click here
for a full description of the program on the departmental website.
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How does the new program fit in
with currently existing programs in the Computer Science Department?
The department
currently offers the following graduate programs: MS in Computer Science, the
new program; MS in Information Technology; and MS in Management of Information
Technology (MIT), offered jointly with the Department of Economics and
Management.
The current
Computer Science Concentration within the MSCIS degree will be supported only
for currently enrolled students, including students who entered in the fall of
2004. This concentration will be phased out when they graduate. New students
wishing to do a technical computer science master’s program must enroll in the
new degree program.
In the longer
term, the department is developing a new MS program in Information Technology
to eventually replace the Information Technology Concentration within the MSCIS
degree. In the meantime, current students and new students wishing to do a
master’s program in information technology will continue with the Information
Technology Concentration within the current MSCIS degree.
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When will the new program be
available?
The new
program was recently approved by the Maryland Higher Education Commission and
is available right now. The department has already started phasing in some of
the new courses needed for the program, and others will be phased in over the
next several semesters.
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As a currently enrolled student,
can I switch to the new program?
You can switch
into the new program if you meet the entrance requirements for the program, are
willing to do some extra course work, and get approval from the program
director. The new program has undergraduate courses, or their equivalent, in
differential and integral calculus as an entrance requirement. Also, the new
program requires 33 credits beyond prerequisite courses. CSCI 519 Advanced Data
Structures cannot be counted toward the 33 credits; in the new program it is a
prerequisite course.
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If I switch to the new program
can I switch back to my current program?
If you have
not yet filed a Degree Candidacy Form (DCF), you may, if approved, switch to
the new program but will not have the option of switching back.
If you have
already filed the DCF and you are approved to switch to the new program, you
will need to file a new DCF in consultation with your advisor. You will have
the choice of switching back to the MSCIS degree.
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After I fulfill the requirements
for the new degree, will I also receive the old degree?
Although it
appears that if you fulfill the requirements for the new degree you will have
fulfilled the requirements for the old degree, practically you won’t be able to
get both. That would be equivalent to doing a second Hood degree program, and
you can only apply 6 credits from one degree program to a second degree.
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What if I have further questions
and wish to discuss in more detail the possibility of my switching?
Consult with
your academic advisor (or any academic advisor if you have not been assigned a
specific one) about the possibility of switching and then talk to the program
director.
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