Master of Science Degree

Oklahoma State University

The guidelines stated here are those of the Computer Science Department. Certain other regulations are imposed by the Oklahoma State University Graduate School and are described in the Oklahoma State University Catalog. It is the student's responsibility to satisfy all requirements of the Computer Science Department and the Graduate College.

Graduate students are expected to participate in the professional activities of the department. This includes attending seminars and colloquia, and suggesting improvements in curriculum and teaching.

Requirements for Admission

1. a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university;
2. either a "B" average or better during the last two years of studies or a substantial demonstration of mature performance in an industrial environment;
3. a TOEFL score of 550 or better for international students;
4. Successful completion of an 8-hour calculus sequence;
5. an undergraduate major in computer science or significant course work or work experience in computer science.

A student well prepared for M.S. study should have a good background in mainstream computer science. This includes experience with procedural programming languages (e.g., Ada, C, C++, Java,  Pascal, or Smalltalk), and non-procedural languages (e.g., Lisp, Prolog, or ML); background in computer architecture or assembly language, data structures, operating systems, software engineering, and related mathematics (e.g.,  mathematical logic, discrete mathematics, and calculus). A student who lacks experience in some of these areas may be admitted with deficiencies listed. 

Deadlines for application to CS graduate study are March 15  for fall semester, August 15 for spring semester and January 15 for summer semester. 

The application cannot be considered until all of these materials are received by the department. Send all application materials to the Graduate College.

M.S. Degree Requirements

1. The M.S. degree requires a minimum of 30 credit hours of graduate-level course work. The course work must include:
   • core courses - 12 credit hours - 5113, 5313, 5323, and 5413;
   • elective courses - 12 credit hours; and
   • M.S. thesis research courses - 6 credit hours.
2. The student must receive a grade of  "B" or better for each course used to satisfy the above requirements. However, up to a maximum of two "C" grades will be accepted, if they are offset by "A" grades in other courses. Only one "C" is accepted in a core course, and it must be offset by an "A" in a core course. All grades in prerequisite courses must be "B" or better. 
3. Restrictions on courses that can be included in the Computer Science Plan of Study are: 
   • CS 3363, 3613,  3423, 4323, 4343, and 4154 cannot be put on any plan of study of a Computer Science graduate student.  This means that required prerequisites and certain other courses can no longer be counted as electives toward a graduate degree in Computer Science at OSU. This may mean that it will take longer for a student for whom prerequisite courses are required to complete a graduate degree than it has taken in the past.
   • For a course from any OSU department other than Computer Science to be included on a plan of study for a Computer Science graduate student, the course must carry graduate credit and be numbered 5000 or higher.
   • New graduate students should not assume that any required prerequisite course will be waived just because they have passed a course with a similar name.  The specification of required prerequisites is entirely at the discretion of this department, and specified prerequisites will be waived only in rare circumstances.  
4. Prior to enrolling in the 17th hour of course work, a student must select a graduate faculty member from within the department to serve as the student's principal advisor. The principal advisor helps the student formulate an advisory committee. The advisory committee is a group of three graduate faculty members (including the principal advisor); the committee may include up to one faculty member from outside the department. The committee members approve the student's Plan of Study and give final approval for the student's degree. The advisory committee must approve the student's performance on the Oral Qualifying Exam and the Final Oral Exam. The advisory committee can be changed by the student by submitting a new plan of study before the Oral Qualifying Exam. After the exam, any changes in the committee must be approved by the Graduate Committee.
   • Oral Qualifying Exam: The oral qualifying examination is not an examination in the true sense of the word, but a proposal for the work to be completed for the M.S. thesis. The student provides a written proposal and presents it orally to the committee. The written proposal should be delivered to all committee members at least one week prior to the presentation. It is the student's responsibility to schedule a public presentation at a mutually agreeable time and to reserve a room. The advisory committee determines whether the scope of the proposed research is appropriate for a thesis. A majority of the committee members must approve the proposed research. Committee members signify their approval by signing the M.S. Thesis Approval Form which can be obtained from the department. The committee chairman outlines suggested changes on the form. A copy of the M.S. Thesis Approval Form becomes part of the student's departmental file.
   • Final Oral Exam: A final oral examination is given by the student's advisory committee. The student presents the thesis and answers questions regarding the work. The written thesis must be delivered to all committee members at least one week prior to the presentation. The presentation must be at least sixty days after the Oral Qualifying Exam. It is the student's responsibility to schedule a public presentation at a mutually agreeable time and to reserve a room. Only the presentation portion is open to the public. The public may ask questions on the presentation. After the presentation, committee members may ask additional questions over material covered in both core courses and in all courses listed on the Plan of Study and in all prerequisites for these courses. If the student fails, a second attempt cannot be retaken in less than one month after the failed examination, nor more than twelve months after the failed examination. A third attempt is not allowed. The examination form, obtained from the Graduate College, must be signed and returned to the Graduate College, and a copy must be filed in the department.

Unresolved Issues

For more information, try:

• Computer Science Faculty
• Departmental Computing Facilities
• Course Descriptions for Computer Science
• Financial Aid for Graduate Students
• List of Employers Hiring Computer Science Students

09/18/2003

For information about the status of applications, applicants should send e-mail to the Graduate College at grad-i@okstate.edu or telephone 405-744-6368.

Computer Science Department