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Introduction to CSE Grad Programs and Admissions. Prof. Gagan Agrawal Grad Studies Chair. Department Personnel. 34 tenure-track faculty 2 hires this past year recruiting for addt’l faculty (both junior and senior level) 6 full-time teaching faculty 11 technical staff (IICF)
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Introduction to CSE Grad Programs and Admissions Prof. Gagan Agrawal Grad Studies Chair
Department Personnel • 34 tenure-track faculty • 2 hires this past year • recruiting for addt’l faculty (both junior and senior level) • 6 full-time teaching faculty • 11 technical staff (IICF) • 10 administrative staff
Degree Program Profile • M.S. and Ph.D. • ~260 grad students • 30-50 MS degrees/yr • 15-25 PhD degrees/yr
Admissions in 2008 • We received more than 700 applications for Autumn 2008 • We admitted about 45 as funded (PhD) students • Another 250 admitted as unfunded (masters) students • Yield: 21 PhD students and nearly 50 MS students
Admissions Requirements for PhD • GPA of at least 3.5 • Average of GRE verbal and quantitative needs to be at least 75th percentile • Analytical at least 4.0 • Strong letters • Prior research experience is helpful • Good fit with department research programs • Strong commitment for PhD should be stated in application
Funding for PhD students • Grad school fellowships • Teaching assistantships • Research Assistantship • Combination of TA and RA
Admissions Requirements for MS • GPA of at least 3.0 (preferably 3.2 – 3.3) • High quantitative GRE – reasonable verbal and analytical scores • Self-funded in most cases • Many jobs may be available on campus
Degree Programs • Masters non-thesis / coursework • Masters thesis / research • Ph.D
Admitted Groups • Masters non-thesis / unspecified • Research Masters • Direct Ph.D track
Type Conversions • Masters non-thesis students can switch to thesis option by finding an advisor for masters thesis • Masters students become Ph.D students if they take and pass Ph.D qualifying examination • Research masters students cannot switch to non-thesis option • petition to grad studies in truly exceptional circumstances • Ph.D students cannot switch to masters program • petition to grad studies in truly exceptional circumstances
The Graduate (Foundational) Core • 5 classes form the graduate core • 725 (Theory of Computation) • 755 (Programming Languages) • 760 (Advanced Operating Systems) • 775 (Computer Architecture) • 780 (Algorithms) • 3 credits each, each offered twice a year • Corresponding undergrad core classes (625, 655, 660, 675, and 680) are prereqs – take if you don’t have the background
``Core’’ Requirements • Masters program (thesis and non-thesis) • Pass three of the five core classes • 780 required, at least one of 760 and 775 required • In the other two areas, should have equivalent class to pre-core, or pass the pre-core • Masters non-thesis: • Take comprehensive exam in three of the five areas • Ph.D program requires passing a written qualifying examination based upon these 5 (most students take classes for credit) • Acceleration Option: all classes for credit and 3.6 average (detailed later)
Types of Classes (Ph.D students) • Core Classes • Pre-core Classes – 625, 655, 660, 675, and 680 – can’t count for any of the requirements • Other 600 / 700 / 800 level graded classes • Includes 788 • Graded A, A-, B+, … • Research Credits • 793, 888, 999 • Graded S/U only • CIS 885 • 1 credit, S/U, offered only in Fall and required for all grad students
Types of Classes (MS Students) • Primarily Undergrad Classes • 616, 625, 630, 655, 660, 670, 675, 677, 680 • Can count at most 3 for credit • (Foundational) Core classes • Applied Core Classes • Other letter-graded CSE classes • Research Credits (793, 888, 999) • Classes from other related departments • Limit of 9 credits • Need advisor permissions (need to be closely related to CSE)
Applied Core • Six classes currently listed • 621 – High Performance Computing (Fall only) • 678 - Internetworking (Winter only) • 681 - Graphics (Fall, Winter) • 730 - AI (Fall only) • 756 - Compilers (Spring only) • 770 - Databases (alternate winter quarters) • MS Thesis option students need to take at least 2 • MS Non-thesis need at least 3
Course Requirements • Masters non-thesis • 45 credits of graded classes • Including foundational core and applied core classes • Limit on number of primarily undergrad classes • 885 is required • A total of 50 credits • Masters thesis • 30 credits of graded classes • Including foundational core and applied core classes • Limit on the number of primarily undergrad classes • 885 is required • 15 research credits are required • A total of 45 credits
Other Requirements for Masters • Non-thesis option • A comprehensive examination • Offered twice a year (Sept. and March) • 3 1.5 hr exams over two days, based on choice of 3 among the 5 core classes • 780 required, at least one of 760 and 775 required • Thesis Option • An oral examination of the thesis • A committee with at least 2 faculty members, including your advisor
Ph.D program Requirements • Qualifying examination • Offered twice a year, September and March • 5 1.5 hr exams based upon the 5 core areas • A max of two attempts are allowed • Direct Ph.D track students are normally expected to take it after the first year • Must pass within your second year to be eligible for support later • Acceleration Option • Take each of the 5 core classes for credit within first three quarters • Have a 3.6 average in these classes • Qualify for conditional pass – need to show research progress by second spring to remove the condition • Recommend that everyone tries this • Unless you have several core classes and can take quals in 2 quarters
Ph.D Coursework Requirements • One major and two minors • Major: • 15 graded credits, not including core • Minor: • 9 credits in each, not including core • A total of 3 credits across 2 minors could be non-graded: 793/888
Normal Support Policies • Initial support for 2 years • Requires satisfactory GPA • Requires good performance on TA/RA duties • International students must pass the spoken English test to be eligible for year 2 support • Third and Fourth Years • Must have passed the Ph.D qualifying examination • Satisfactory research progress, as judged by grad studies committee • In most cases, as RA only
Normal Support Policies • Years 5 and 6 • Must have passed Ph.D candidacy examination • Satisfactory or better research progress • In most cases, as RA only • Limit on TA support • 6 academic year quarters over the length of your stay • Exception: 1 per advisor allowed as exception at anytime • All of the above entering the department guaranteed support • If you are entering w/o support, case-by-case after passing quals