Department of Computer Science

Master of Science

PSU students at Urban Plaza

The Master of Science (M.S.) in Computer Science is the initial graduate degree in the field, and can take one and a half years of full-time study to complete. The master's program is designed to prepare students for advanced careers in the computing industry, to create a research environment in computer science, and to prepare students for graduate work at the Ph.D. level. Students entering the program must have a bachelor's degree and/or adequate background in computer science. 

The master's program requires the completion of an approved program of 45 credits, with a thesis option. Coursework includes core courses in theory and programming practice, plus a 9-credit concentration in one specialization area.

For detailed information about the M.S. degree, please consult the Graduate Handbook.

Core Requirements (6)

Students are encouraged to take these courses as early as possible in your graduate program.

One Theory course from:

  • CS 581 Theory of Computation (3)
  • CS 584 Algorithm Design & Analysis (3)
  • CS 578 Programming Language Semantics (3)

One Programming Practice course from:

Track Requirements (9)

All students in the CS Master's program must take three courses from a single track of the following: 

  • Databases
  • Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning
  • Languages & Programming
  • Security
  • Software Engineering
  • Systems & Networking
  • Theory
  • Visual Computing

The list of required courses and approved electives for each track are listed in the Graduate Handbook. 

Elective Requirements (30)

Students must take enough electives to complete 45 total credits for the MS degree. Electives can be any 500-level CS course (with some restrictions on courses numbered  CS 501-509). A limited number of credits taken outside Computer Science can count towards the elective requirements, with advisor approval. 

Thesis Option

The thesis option requires the completion of 45 credits including 6-9 credits of CS 503 (Thesis) and an oral thesis defense. 

Advising

MS students are advised by the CS Graduate Advisor.