EITEL LAURIA, Ph.D., Graduate Director, Department of Computing Technology

In addition to its undergraduate major in Computer Science, the Department of Computing Technology also offers a Master of Computer Science/Software Development degree. The Department recognizes that for some outstanding undergraduate students, certain of their undergraduate work might well be reflective of both the content and quality of that typically expected at the graduate level. The Department thus recognizes that these students could participate successfully in graduate classes. For these reasons the Department offers a dual degree program in Computer Science, at the end of which the student will earn both B.S. and M.S. degrees.

This program offers an accelerated way of obtaining a Master’s Degree. Instead of remaining three additional semesters as full-time students to gain the MS at 151 credits (120 + 31), those CS undergraduate students who are admitted to this program will be required to take only 143 credits, or 23 additional credits that can be completed in two semesters, normally the fall and spring following their undergraduate studies.

The dual degree program is not appropriate for all students. Qualification occurs in the sixth semester. A cumulative GPA of 3.0, as well as a GPA of 3.0 in the major, is required for acceptance into and continuation in the program. Students interested in entering the dual degree program should speak to any CS faculty member early in their studies at Marist, but no later than the beginning of their sixth semester. A faculty recommendation is required for admittance into the program.

DUAL DEGREE PROGRAM

The dual degree program allows undergraduates to earn a B.S. and an M.S. degree in five years. In the current program, students apply in second semester junior year and if accepted, begin the dual degree program in the first semester of what would have been their senior year. Students in the current program earn 143 credits.

The dual degree program in the revised MSCS/SD program is modeled on the current program. The differences are only in the courses the students take and the number of credits in the revised program, which are 144 credits.

The table below gives the full dual degree program, starting with freshman year. Starting in the fall of the senior year, students take Software Design & Dev instead of CS Project I.

In the spring of senior year, students take Database Mgt Sys and Track course 1 instead of CS Project II and the undergraduate Elective/Internship.
In the fall of the fifth year, students take Security Protocols, Networks, and Track course 2.
In the spring of the fifth year, students take Project and two graduate electives.
These details are in the table below. Note indicates the replacement graduate course for the undergraduate course and credits.