The Tickle College of Engineering offers a Master of Science in Computer Science to qualified applicants. Candidates for the MS program are expected to possess a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science or related field.
Concentrations (Optional) and Options Available
Computational Imaging — Thesis, Project, Course Only without Comprehensive Exams
Computer-Human Interaction — Thesis, Project, Course Only without Comprehensive Exams
Cybersecurity — Thesis, Project, Course Only without Comprehensive Exams
Cyberinfrastructure — Thesis, Project, Course Only without Comprehensive Exams
Data Analytics — Thesis, Project, Course Only without Comprehensive Exams
Data Mining — Thesis, Project, Course Only without Comprehensive Exams
Data Visualization — Thesis, Project, Course Only without Comprehensive Exams
Discrete Optimization — Thesis, Project, Course Only without Comprehensive Exams
High Performance Computing — Thesis, Project, Course Only without Comprehensive Exams
Intelligent Systems and Machine Learning — Thesis, Project, Course Only without Comprehensive Exams
Life Science Applications — Thesis, Project, Course Only without Comprehensive Exams
Software Systems — Thesis, Project, Course Only without Comprehensive Exams
Campus Code
Knoxville Campus
Admissions Standards/Procedure
- Applicants for admission to the MS program for computer science are expected to have completed a bachelor’s degree with an average of at least 3.00 out of 4.00, both overall and in the senior year.
- Two semesters of calculus plus two additional semesters of college mathematics (e.g. linear algebra, differential equations, probability) and a course in formal languages, as well as in systems programming, are required for admission.
- Applicants are required to submit scores from the general Graduate Record Examination (GRE) within the past three years and to have these scores sent to the Office of Graduate Admissions.
- A TOEFL score of 550 on the written exam or 80 on the Internet-based Test is required for non-native speakers of English, including those who have earned degrees at U.S. institutions.
- The score must be no more than two years old from the requested date of entry.
- Applicants who have received a degree from an accredited U.S. institution within the past two years are exempt from the TOEFL requirement.
- Applicants who hold the bachelor’s degree in fields other than computer science will be required to take selected undergraduate courses as determined by the applicant’s prior education and experience.
- The student will be admitted under non-degree status until the required undergraduate courses are successfully completed with a 3.00 average.
- An international student may not enroll as a non-degree student.
Academic Standards
- All students must file a Master’s Program Plan with the departmental graduate committee specifying
- which option they have selected,
- a semester-by-semester schedule of the courses they intend to take, and
- the members of the student’s master’s committee
- Students may change between options one time by filing an amended Master’s Program Plan and with approval of the departmental graduate committee.
Credit Hours Required
30 graduate credit hours
Required Courses
- Option Specific Courses:
- Thesis Option: COSC 500 (6 credit hours)
- Project Option: COSC 501 (3 credit hours), a minimum grade of B. This course will be administered by the student’s master’s committee.
- 24 (thesis option) or 27 (project option) or 30 (course only without comprehensive exam) credit hours of graduate coursework.
- Complete COSC 530 , COSC 560 , and either COSC 580 or COSC 581
- At least two-thirds of the total credit hours must be at the 500-level or above.
- A maximum of 6 credit hours of courses outside the department chosen in consultation with major advisor and/or committee may be applied toward the degree.
Non-Course Requirements
- In consultation with their advisor, students may select one of the following concentrations. Concentrations reflect research focus area and do not include specific course requirements:
- Computational Imaging
- Computer-Human Interaction
- Cybersecurity
- Cyberinfrastructure
- Data Analytics
- Data Mining
- Data Visualization
- Discrete Optimization
- High Performance Computing
- Intelligent Systems and Machine Learning
- Life Science Applications
- Software Systems
- Thesis Option: A final oral exam covering the thesis research.
- Project Option: A written final report or oral presentation may be required as determined by the advisor.
Five-Year BS-MS Program Computer Science Major, MS
The department offers a 5 year BS-MS program for qualified students. The primary component of the program is that qualified students may take up to 6 credit hours of approved graduate courses for their senior undergraduate electives and have them count toward both their bachelor’s and master’s degrees at UT. This program is designed for students attending UT for their Master of Science degree because other universities may not accept these courses for graduate credit since they were used to satisfy requirements for the Bachelor of Science degree.
Significant components of the program are:
- Students must have an overall GPA of at least 3.40 to be admitted to the program. Conditional admission may be granted after completing 64 credit hours of required course work while full admission is granted after completing 96 credit hours of required course work with a minimum overall GPA of 3.40 in required coursework.
- Students must at least have conditional admission before taking graduate courses for both their bachelor’s and master’s degrees. All courses taken for graduate credit must be approved by the departmental chair of the program. Students admitted to the program must request permission from the Graduate School to take approved courses for graduate credit.
- Students admitted to the program must also follow the normal procedure for admission to the Graduate School.
- Admission of students into this program must be approved by the department and the Graduate School.
- Students will not be eligible for graduate assistantships until they are enrolled as graduate-level students in the Graduate School.
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