Updated 20 August 2002 4:45 p.m. * UAF has reorganized their CS page. Their main page for CS is located at http://www.cs.uaf.edu/.
Course offerings for this program are currently limited. Contact the Mathematical Sciences Dept. Chair for more information.
Anchorage area students may pursue a Master's of Science degree in Computer Science through a cooperative program offered by UAA and UAF. The degree will be awarded by UAF, but all courses may be taken on-site at UAA. The program is primarily aimed at Anchorage area computer science practitioners who wish to earn an MS while working full-time. It should be possible to complete the degree in 2 to 3 years of part-time study.
Students planning to relocate to Alaska to engage in full-time graduate studies in computer science should contact UAF about enrolling in their regular MS/CS program located at Fairbanks.
Two different tracks are available for the MSCS degree: the technical track which is a traditional computer science master's program, and the software engineering track which is centered around the management of the software development process. The current demand has been for the software engineering track, and the course offerings better support it; as the demand for the technical track grows, more courses supporting it will be offered.
Courses are offered in the late afternoons or evenings to accommodate working students. Courses may be offered by UAA faculty, by interactive televideo conferencing from UAF, distance/independent study, or team taught by both campuses.
Required Background and Admission
Anyone with a Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science should have the required background to succeed in the program. People with a Bachelor's degree that is not in CS could be successful if they have adequate (> 2 years) experience as a computer science professional; since experiences can be widely different, you should meet with an advisor to determine how well your experience has prepared you for the program. If your experience has left you with some minor deficiencies, these can be made up by taking one or more courses from the undergraduate curriculum.
You do not need to be formally admitted to the program to start taking courses, though you should check with the instructor on or before the first class to ensure that you are properly prepared for the course (course registration procedures are discussed below). Students pursuing the MSCS degree must consult with a CS advisor as soon as possible to go over admissions requirements and plan out a course of study; there are a number of possible pitfalls that this consultation can help you to avoid. One potential pitfall is a policy of the UAF graduate school that only allows it to accept six credits taken prior to being formally admitted to the program. This pitfall can be avoided by applying for admission in your first semester; the admissions form and instructions are available from fygrads@aurora.alaska.edu.
Degree Requirements for the S/W Engineering and Technical Tracks
Your first stop should be the UAF Requirements Page. The MS CS information doesn't specifically refer to the cooperative UAA/UAF program, but it's the same degree and same rules. Essentially, UAF is relaxing their credit transfer rules (within the UA system) to make this program work. Still, you are supposed to take half of your classes from UAF, which isn't hard to do given the CS670 and the two Master's Project classes, leaving only two others to complete that requirement.
Software Engineering Track Requirements
To earn the MSCS Software Engineering Track, the candidate must complete 30 units of approved coursework (see below), including a 6 unit master's project, and pass a comprehensive exam over the core courses. Six units of approved upper division CS courses may be included in the 30 unit total. Courses available to support this program should allow the student to take from one to three courses per semester during the regular school year (summer courses are not offered).
Required Core Courses (12 units)
- CS 670 Computer Science for Software Engineers (3 units) this course can be waived for students holding a bachelor's degree in computer science allowing another course to be substituted. This course is also available as a year or semester long independent study course from UAF.
- CS 671 Advanced Software Engineering (3 units)
- ESM 608 Legal Principles for Engineering Management (3 units)
- ESM 609 Project Management (3 units)
Required Master's Project and Seminar (6 units)
Approved Electives (12 units)
Technical Track Requirements
To earn the MSCS Technical Track, the candidate must complete 30 units of approved coursework (see below), including a 6 unit master's project, and pass a comprehensive exam over the core courses. Six units of approved upper division CS courses may be included in the 30 unit total. Since the students currently in the program are not pursuing this track, you should talk with an advisor to determine if the planned course offerings will make it possible for you to complete the degree in a timely (though part-time) manner.
Core Courses (12 units)
- CS631 Programming Language Implementation
- CS611 Complexity of Algorithms
- CS641 Advanced System Architecture or CS448 Computer Architecture
- CS651 Theory of Computation
Master's Project and Seminar (6 units)
Approved Electives (12 units)
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