Computer science major requirements (50 credits)

The course requirements for a B.A. in Computer Science are the following.

• MATH 118 (Essential calculus) or MATH 119 (Calculus I) or MATH 120 (Calculus II)
• CSCI 161 (Introduction to Problem-Solving and Programming)
• CSCI 162 (Problem-Solving, Programming, and Data Representation)
• CSCI 230 (Software Development)
• CSCI 239 (Discrete Computational Structures)
• CSCI 310 (Computer Organization)
• CSCI 338 (Algorithm Design and Analysis)
• CSCI 339 (Theoretical Foundations of Computer Science)
• CSCI 369 (Ethical Issues in Computing) 
• CSCI 373 (Senior Research in Computer Science), or CSCI 398 (Honors Senior Essay, Research, or Creative Project)
• Twelve additional upper division credits in computer science, or eight additional upper division credits in computer science and one of the following four credit courses: MATH 315 (Operations Research), MATH 322 (Combinatorics and Graph Theory), MATH 338 (Numerical Analysis)

Students who complete MATH 120 may substitute MATH 239 for CSCI 239.

Students must be previously admitted to the major, and they must meet all CSB|SJU requirements for graduation. CSB|SJU requires a 2.00 GPA in CSCI courses to graduate with a computer science degree.

Typical degree plan

Following is an example degree plan, assuming a student plans to study abroad for a semester in the junior year. While the following would be a reasonable plan, common curriculum college requirements and course schedules make individual planning much more complicated. CSB|SJU students discuss their plans with a faculty advisor each semester to ensure that they are on track to graduate within four years.

                               sample Four-Year Course Schedule

This schedule is for a typical student beginning a computer science major in the fall of the first year with no previous foreign language work.

 

 

Admission requirements

At CSB|SJU, each student must be admitted into a major before registering as a junior. In our programs, this process is not competitive; it certifies only that we feel that the student is making reasonable progress. For admission to the computer science major, the student must complete the following requirements as evidence of reasonable progress toward the major. A student who is close to completing these requirements may receive "conditional admission", giving the student an additional semester to meet the requirements.

Students will be accepted into the Computer Science major if: 

• They have completed the required mathematics course, CSCI 161, 162, and 239, and at least one of 230, 310, or 339
• No more than one of the above courses has a grade below a C, and
• The GPA in the above courses is 2.5 or better.

Students will be conditionally accepted into the Computer Science major if:

• They have not yet completed all the courses needed for unconditional acceptance into the major, but are currently enrolled in the courses which are lacking and
• They meet the other two criteria for acceptance on the courses completed thus far.

Students not accepted to the major must consult with Academic Advising. In exceptional circumstances, a student may be allowed to continue working toward a Computer Science major, subject to constraints determined by the Chair of the department in consultation with Academic Advising.