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The admission requirements spelled out below apply to the
MS,
ME and the
PhD
programs. Applicants should be aware that admission is very competitive,
and that meeting the requirements does not guarantee admission.
Admission to the PhD program is especially competitive and successful
applicants will in general have records considerably stronger in breadth or
quality than these minimum standards suggest. Candidates for PhD admission
should be sure that the Special Field entry in Part I of the application, and
the plans for graduate study (Part II, number 6) include a clear indication of
his or her area or areas of research interest. If unsure of the area of
specialization the applicant should indicate probable areas. PhD applicants
with a very strong background in areas other than computer science are
encouraged to apply. (Students wishing to get both MS and PhD degrees can
apply to the PhD program and get the MS degree while enrolled in the PhD
program. Alternatively students may apply to the MS program, and later on
apply to the PhD program.)
Applicants for graduate study in computer science must hold at least a
bachelor's degree or its equivalent from an institution comparable to the
University of Colorado. They should have considerable programming experience,
a number of computer science courses, and sufficient mathematical maturity to
understand pure mathematics courses at the upper division (junior/senior) level.
The applicant's academic background should include at least three semesters of
mathematics at the level of sophistication of calculus or above, courses such
as calculus, differential equations, linear algebra, probability, statistics,
and abstract algebra. The courses should indicate that the applicant has
achieved the mathematical maturity expected of an upper-level mathematics
undergraduate.
At least five one-semester courses in Computer Science that are beyond the
introductory level are required. These are intended to demonstrate the
applicant's breadth of basic Computer Science knowledge in the areas of
computer hardware, software, and theory. The courses should include the
equivalent of the following University of Colorado offerings:
Hardware Requirement:
ECEN 2120
(Computers as Components).
Software Requirement:
Any one of
CSCI 3155 (Principles of Programming Languages) or
CSCI 3753 (Operating Systems).
Theory Requirement:
CSCI 2270 (Computer Science 2: Data Structures) and either
CSCI 3104 (Algorithms) or
CSCI 3434 (Theory of Computation).
Other Area Requirement:
One upper division course (i.e., one at the junior/senior, 3000/4000 level) in
another area of Computer Science. These areas include artificial intelligence,
databases, numerical computation, parallel processing and software engineering.
More advanced versions of all courses are acceptable. Courses classified in the
Other Area Requirement may occasionally be substituted for courses classified
in the Hardware, Software or Theory Requirement. However, the courses in the
Hardware, Software and Theory Requirements are prerequisites to many of the
graduate-level offerings and applicants who are admitted lacking their
equivalent will usually be required to make them up.
Applicants should have a grade point average of at least 3.0 (on a scale of
4.0). Applicants having the listed qualifications will, if accepted, be
classified as regular degree students. However, admission to the graduate
programs is competitive, and a grade point average at this level will not
ensure admission. Applicants with an average below 3.0 and above 2.75 and
applicants lacking certain of the admission requirements listed above, if
accepted, can only be accepted as provisional degree students.
PhD applicants are required to submit scores from the general GRE (scores are
only valid for 5 years). GRE scores for MS applicants are optional, in
general; they are encouraged if the work is at an institution lacking a strong
national reputation; they are required if the undergraduate grade point average
is below 3.0 and above 2.75.
Applicants for admission to the graduate programs in Computer Science
at the University of Colorado at Boulder should do the following to apply:
Questions should be directed to CS Grad Info.
Application deadlines differ depending on whether the applicant is a "U.S.
Applicant" or an "International Applicant", and also whether the application
is for the ME/MS programs or for the PhD program.
Applications for the MS and ME programs must be received by February 28
for Fall admission and by October 15 for Spring admission. Normally, fewer
students are admitted for the Spring semester than for Fall. PhD
applications must be received by January 2 for Fall and October 1 for Spring.
| Deadlines for U.S. Applicants |
| |
Fall |
Spring |
| MS or ME |
February 28 |
October 15 |
| Doctoral |
January 2 |
October 1 |
Applications from international students must be received in time to be copied
and forwarded to the Foreign Admissions office. For applying to the Computer
Science graduate program, the term "International Applicant" means "A person
who is not a U.S. citizen or a permanent resident/green card holder."
For both the MS/ME and PhD programs the deadline for Fall admission is
December 1, while the deadline for Spring admission is September 1.
| Deadlines for International Applicants |
| |
Fall |
Spring |
| MS or ME |
December 1 |
September 1 |
| Doctoral |
December 1 |
September 1 |
Notification dates, i.e., the dates the decision letters will be
mailed, for each of the various categories are as follows:
| Notification Dates |
| |
Fall |
Spring |
| ME or MS |
April 30 |
December 1 |
| Doctoral |
March 30 |
November 1 |
Please do not contact the department seeking decision information before these
dates and please allow time for the mail to arrive at the destination. To check
on status (date application received and what we have received or are missing)
please send email to CS Grad Info.
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