Master of Science

MSCS Degree

(Sponsored by: CSUCI Division of Extended Education)

Table of content

Overview
Admission Process
Transfer of Credits
Good Standing Requirement
Master Thesis Process
Candidacy
Defense
Thesis Publication
Graduation Requirements
Graduation Process
Commencement
Program Director
Program Administration
Financial Aid
Educational Leave of Absence
Job Opportunities in Teaching

Overview

The Master of Science in Computer Science degree at Channel Islands offers the latest, cutting edge education for a variety of industrial and applied fields. The program prepares students for careers in high-tech, computer and Internet-driven industries, businesses, education systems, military, and local and federal government where interdisciplinary, dynamic and innovative professionals trained in latest technologies are increasingly sought. Students are given a strong background in computer theory, software and hardware, as well as skills to conduct independent applied research and develop an industrial project. The program stresses interdisciplinary applications with emphasis on breadth of knowledge in computer science to prepare students for a wide range of possible industry, academic, and research positions.

CSUCI Masters of Science in Mathematics is our sister program.

Admission Process

Students seeking admission are expected to have an undergraduate degree in Computer Science or an undergraduate degree in Mathematics with an emphasis in computer science. Students with undergraduate degrees in closely related areas, such as Engineering and the Sciences, will be considered on a case-by-case basis and may be provisionally accepted. The applicant is expected to have a 2.7 or higher cumulative undergraduate grade point average (GPA). If an applicant has a GPA of at least 3.0, then no GRE is necessary. For GPAs falling below 3.0, a GRE report is needed with a score of minimum 575 in all sections (4.5 for the new analytical writing). Some applicants with lower scores in verbal reasoning and analytical writing might still be admitted to the program if English is their second language and they have strong support expressed in reference letters. Usually, three letters of reference are required. The letter need to be sent directly to the program office.

The admission process is handled by the Office of Admission and Recruitment. The candidates have to use the CSU Mentor system to apply for enrollment into the program.

Please note that the Office of Admission and Recruitment does not forward applications to the program until it receives all transcripts and supporting documentation. The program director is not able to evaluate an application before receiving the file from the admission office. Here is a link to a flowchart explaining the admission process. The students, who take graduate courses, but are not in the program follow a different process explained on a different flowchart.

Transfer of Credits

The program director may grant up to 9 credits for graduate Computer Science courses taken at CSUCI outside of the MSCS program or from another university if:

the university is accredited,
the student scored B or better,
the course was taken in the last five years, and
the student provides an official transcript.

The actual number of credits assigned by the director of the program is determined by comparing the courses taken elsewhere to equivalent courses offered by CSUCI.

Good Standing Requirement

Students must remain in good academic standings with at least a B grade in all their graduate work.

Master Thesis Process

A document called a thesis is the culmination of your graduate research. You will include the findings of your research in the thesis and defend them before a panel of three professionals with doctorate degrees. Usually, they will be university professors, but in some cases one of the members of the committee might be from outside of the academic environment. You will select a research supervisor that will be acting as a chair of the committee. The supervisor guides you throughout your research, advises on writing and decides when you are ready for the defense. Theses defenses consist of a presentation of the results of your research that is open to the public. The second part of the defense is restricted to the members of your committee.

In a nutshell, you will need to:

select a research topic - as soon as possible,
select a research supervisor, who will become the chair of the committee,
write a proposal for the thesis and submit it to the chair,
invite two other members for the committee: one internal and one at large (internal or external).

Your research proposal needs to be accepted by the chair of the committee before you are eligible for the candidacy status.

Candidacy

Upon the approval of the research proposal by your thesis supervisor, you may be granted a status of a candidate. To be granted the status, you will need to submit to the administration office a formal Candidacy Form that has to be signed by the thesis supervisor and by the program director. As a candidate, you will be allowed to register in the Master Thesis course (COMP597).

It is expected that you will have taken all other required courses before you enroll in the Master Thesis class, so you can focus on the research.

Thesis Defense

After enrolling into COMP597 Master Thesis, you will work with your supervisor until the supervisor decides that your research and the thesis document are ready for a defense before your thesis committee. You will go through numerous revisions of your work, as not only the core research, but also the presentation of the results is important. It is expected that your work will be publishable, so your supervisor may ask you to write a summary of the work in a form of a conference or journal paper. A paper is not a required element of your thesis, however.

After your supervisor instructs you to go ahead with the distribution of the thesis, you need to distribute the drafts to all members of the committee. At this time, your supervisor should schedule the defense giving the committee approximately one month to read and analyze your thesis.

For defense, you will have to prepare roughly 1 hour presentation that will be open to public. It should consist of the following segment as applicable:

intro
demo if possible
analysis of the results
conclusions
future
Q&A

After the presentation, in a session closed to public, the committee will ask some questions relevant to your thesis. Next, you will be asked to leave the room, so the committee can confer behind the closed door the overall quality of your thesis. After that relatively short meeting you will be asked to come back and the outome will be communicated to you by the chair of the committee. The possible outcomes of the defense are:

accept with no changes
accept with minor changes
accept with major changes
reject

If your work is accepted with no changes or with minor changes, and all other requirements for the graduation have been met, then you are granted the title of Master of Science in Computer Science. A request for minor changes will be handled between you and your supervisor. If you are asked to make major changes to your work, then you will have to re-submit a revised copy of the thesis to the committee for another review. In such case, your degree will have to wait until the committee accepts the changes. If the committee rejects the thesis, you will have to take 6 units of COMP597 again, select a new research topic and a supervisor, and repeat the whole process.

Any recommend changes will have to be incorporated before your work is archived in an electronic format (PDF) in a repository at the CSUCI library. You do not need to print final copies.

Thesis Publication

Master of Science in Computer Science theses are normally published by the CSUCI Library. The publication process is descibed on the Library page: Thesis Process.

Graduation Requirements

To obtain the degree, an MS Computer Science student must:

complete 32 units of graduate coursework including:
- 24 units of graduate coursework with at least 18 units designated as “COMP”; the remaining 6 units may be “COMP” or another graduate designation; e.g., “MATH” or “PHYS”; at least 15 units must be taken while matriculated at CSUCI,
- 2 units of COMP599,
- 6 units of COMP597,
complete each course with a minimum grade of B,
defend a thesis with a passing grade (“ACCEPT”) as evidenced by a formal report (the first three pages of the thesis) from the examination committee.

Graduation Process

Upon completion of all course requirements with good standings and a successful defense of the thesis, you will be granted a degree of Master of Science in Computer Science.
Any additional requirement for remedial work that had been assigned to you when you were admitted to the program has to be completed as well.

You will need to follow the following process to formally graduate from the university:

Complete the Application for Degree and Diploma Form and submit it to the Extended Education office along with a payment of a $45 fee.
Once the office receives the application, it will print out an advising sheet, complete the graduate check list, and forward the sheet to the Director for review.
The Director will verify the check list and add any work in progress with expected completion dates. These items will be rechecked by the Registrar Office when they are due.
The work in progress will usually include the thesis, but may also include courses.
If you had been granted any credits towards the degree when you were admitted to the program, the Program Director will decide which CSUCI courses will be credited.
The Extended Education office will turn in both forms to the Registrar's Office.
Registrar's Office will do a degree check and will send an official report on progress to you.
If qualified, the student becomes eligible for graduation that officially happens during the commencement.

Deadlines for Graduation Paperwork:

Spring Graduation	October 15
Summer Graduation	December 15
Fall Graduation	March 15

If you need to defer your graduation (due to delay in thesis defense, incomplete coursework, etc.), you need to formally request that by submitting the Request for Change of Graduation Term and pay a $15 fee.

Commencement

If you graduate by the Summer term, you can walk in the Spring commencement ceremony for that year; otherwise, you will walk in the Spring commencement ceremony in the following year.

Starting in Spring 2008, graduate students that defend their theses with distinction will be invited to celebrate their achievement during the Honors convocation. The thesis has to be defended prior to that event.

Educational Leave

A student has to register in at least one course in every second regular semester (Fall/Spring) to maintain matriculation. If a student does not register in any courses during two consecutive semesters (Fall/Spring), she or he looses the matriculation status and has to re-apply for admission to the program. If there are valid reasons for extended leave of absence time, then the student has to apply officially for one using the Academic Leave Form available from the Office of Admissions and Records.

To accommodate student who fulfilled the requirement of 32 units necessary to graduate, but who still work on their theses, registration in COMP597 (Master Thesis) will be expanded beyond the required 6 units. The extension will require continuous registration in 1 unit of COMP597 per semester and will incur additional fees.