Master of Science Official Degree Requirements - August 2004

August 2004

This document lists the combined requirements of the Graduate School and of the Department of Computer Science (COMP) and supersedes all previous issues. Reference is occasionally made for further details to the Graduate School Handbook (GSH). Page references are to the 2004 edition. Apparent errors in the present document should be called to the attention of the Director of Graduate Studies.

Advising
Advisers provide advice, of course, but they are also contact points for advising bulletins, registration PINs, and alerting the student to academic progress milestones. During the faculty's review of student progress, the adviser is called upon to describe the student's progress and discuss any problems or delays in that progress.

When a student enrolls in the department, a faculty member is appointed to serve as the student's initial program adviser. While the department administration tries to match student and adviser interests in the assignment of initial program advisers, these assignments are based on incomplete information and are not binding. Students should change the faculty adviser as appropriate as the student's plans and interests change.

To request a change of adviser, the student should send the request by e-mail to the Student Services Manager with copies to the Director of Graduate Studies and the involved faculty (old and new advisers). Such requests are usually approved without comment, but factors such as faculty load sometimes intervene. Consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies is recommended in advance of a change of adviser for any reason other than designation of the research director as the program adviser. (Changes of adviser for that reason are completely normal and almost automatically approved.) If a student elects to write a thesis for the M.S. degree, the thesis adviser should be designated the official program adviser and chair of the student's guidance committee.

The Director of Graduate Studies serves as the backup adviser for routine signatures in case the program adviser is not available.

Administration
The Graduate Studies Committee (a standing committee of the department faculty, chaired by the Director of Graduate Studies) interprets degree requirements, approves plans of study, and acts on petitions from students to the department and to the Graduate School.

A full-time Graduate Student Services Manager maintains student records, answers student queries, and directs student requests to the Graduate Studies Committee and to the Graduate School. All student requests should be made through the Student Services Manager, usually on forms obtainable online or from the Manager, whose office is 135 Sitterson Hall. The Manager will handle the forms or forward them to the appropriate office.

Courses
Thirty (30) semester hours of courses numbered 100 or higher must be taken, of which at least 18 hours must be in Computer Science (designated COMP in the catalog) of which up to 6 hours may be COMP 393: Master's Thesis Research. The choice of courses is subject to approval by the Graduate Studies Committee in the mandatory review of the M.S. Program of Study (Form CS-3). Registrations for COMP 390 for research team meetings (denoted by section numbers > 100) do not count toward the credit hours requirement; other COMP 390 registrations do count.

Each student is responsible for mastering the content of the following distribution areas by taking four courses from those listed below, including at least one course from each area. The student's mastery of content will be determined by the course grade in any four courses satisfying the distribution requirement: a P- or better must be obtained in each course, and a Calingaert score of -3 or higher must be obtained on the four courses combined.

Formal

• COMP 202 (3 hours) Algorithm Analysis
• COMP 250 (3 hours) Scientific Computing (previously COMP 205)
• COMP 244 (3 hours) Advanced Programming Languages
• COMP 247 (3 Hours) Concurrent and Distributed Algorithms
• COMP 281 (3 hours) Computational Geometry

Systems

• COMP 204 (3 hours) Software Implementation and Design
• COMP 234 (3 hours) Computer Networks
• COMP 240 (3 hours) Compilers
• COMP 242 (3 hours) Operating Systems
• COMP 243 (3 hours) Distributed Systems

Diverse

• COMP 203 (3 hours) Parallel and Distributed Computing
• COMP 206 (3 hours) Computer Architecture and Implementation
• COMP 235 (3 hours) Graphics, Images, Vision
• COMP 261 (3 hours) Elements of Hardware Systems

The Calingaert Score is a weighted average of course grades, where the weights are chosen so that a score of 0 reflects an average letter grade between a P+ and an H-. The weights for the letter grades are as follows:

For example, the Calingaert Score for three courses with letter grades P+, H-, and H would be (-1 + 1 + 3)/3 = +1.0 (assuming the three courses carry the same number of credit hours). The name recognizes Dr. Peter Calingaert, professor emeritus, who devised the measure when he was Director of Graduate Studies.

In addition, each student must demonstrate mastery of the subjects considered to be essential or required preparation for our graduate program. The following UNC courses define the required preparation for our program (for a more detailed description of course contents, consult the UNC course catalog).

Computer Science

• COMP 120 Computer Organization
• COMP 121 Data Structures
• COMP 122 Algorithms and Analysis
• Any two of the following
  1. COMP 130 Files and Databases
  2. COMP 140 Compilers
  3. COMP 142 Operating Systems
• COMP 144 Programming Language Concepts
• COMP 181 Models of Languages and Computation

Mathematics, Statistics, and Physics

• MATH 33 Calculus of Functions of Several Variables
• MATH 81 Discrete Mathematics
• MATH 147 Linear Algebra for Applications
• MATH 191 Introduction to Numerical Analysis (Scientific Computing I)
• PHYS 102 Electronics II
• STAT 126 Introduction to Probability

Typically most of this material will have been part of the student's undergraduate education, but it is entirely normal to include one or more courses in the M.S. Program of Study to satisfy this requirement. Each student must detail their Background Preparation (Form CS-1) showing when and where the material above was mastered. In case of uncertainty about the material required in a particular course, consult an instructor of the course or the instructor(s) of courses that include the material as a prerequisite. The program adviser and the Graduate Studies Committee review background preparation.

Up to six semester hours of graduate credit may be transferred from another accredited institution, or from courses taken at UNC-CH before admission to the Graduate School, or for courses taken in a different graduate program at UNC-CH, in partial fulfillment of the 30-hour total credits requirement (GSH 2.15).

Course transfers should be indicated on the Program of Study form and must be approved by the Graduate Studies Committee and by the Graduate School. The Graduate School may require the student to pass an examination on the course content before approving the transfer. The transfer of courses to meet the distribution requirement will generally require an examination.

Courses taken at Duke University, N.C. Central University, N.C. State University, UNC-Charlotte, and UNC-Greensboro count as home courses requiring no formal transfer (GSH 2.29).

Before completing the first 18 hours of courses, the student shall submit to the Graduate Studies Committee their background preparation (on form CS-1, approved by the program adivser), and a proposed plan of study (on form CS-3) chosen after consultation with the program adviser. The student may submit a plan early to find out what will be acceptable, and may specify choices such as "Course x or Course y", retaining the right to make the choice later if it is approved.

Each student is strongly encouraged to elect at least three hours taught by a department other than COMP, unless the student has an unusually broad background.

The courses COMP 220-227 are a device called "module courses" that permit a student to take part of a course for part of the credit. Thus a student who is familiar with the content of part of a course, but not the whole course, is not forced to choose between omitting the course and taking all of it. This helps a student with better than minimum preparation to make room for more advanced courses in the student's area of interest.

The decision to create a module of a course belongs to the instructor of the full course. The student should begin by contacting the instructor to negotiate what the module(s) should cover. The instructor should communicate the decision to the Associate Chairman for Academic Affairs. Creation of a module and registration are performed on a case-by-case basis by the Associate Chairman for Academic Affairs and the Registration Coordinator.

The election of a minor field is optional and infrequent. If a minor is elected, it must include at least 9 hours of courses that are taught by departments other than COMP (and not merely cross-listings of COMP courses). The minor must also meet all the requirements described in GSH 2.5.

In the event that one COMP graduate student takes a course taught by another COMP graduate student, the Director of Graduate Studies should be consulted to determine whether credit can be granted.

Program Product Requirement
Each student is required to have programmed and documented a product-quality program product. This means that the student must demonstrate experience in the design, development, and documentation of a software product of significant size and complexity, preferably as part of a team.

The requirement can be satisfied by taking COMP 145: Software Engineering Laboratory or by submitting for review a qualifying product produced in prior employment or academic work. The student must file Form CS-13 to document completion of the requirement.

Technical Writing Requirement
Each student must demonstrate the ability to write a professional-quality technical document. There are three options available for satisfying this requirement, as follows:

Writing Course Option
The most common method of satisfying the Technical Writing Requirement is to take the course COMP 291: Professional Writing in Computer Science. The course includes (a) study of writing techniques and (b) the writing of an English-language paper of approximately 5,000 words on an approved topic in computer science. The paper may be either an academic paper or an instance of some other type of writing typically produced by an M.S. computer scientist in the course of professional work. Approval of the topic is at the discretion of the COMP 291 instructor. The topic and content of the paper may be chosen to satisfy the Integrative Paper requirement.

The paper is reviewed by two readers and revised by the student as necessary. One reader is the COMP 291 instructor; the other is a person--usually, but not necessarily, also a member of the Graduate Faculty--approved by the COMP 291 instructor. A requirement for passing COMP 291 is that both readers judge an academic paper to be of M.S. thesis quality with respect to both substance and presentation, or a nonacademic paper to be of comparable professional quality with respect to both substance and presentation. This option must be reported on Form CS-8.

Thesis Option
A written thesis is based either on research or on the solution and documentation of a substantial problem in application or system programming. The subject is chosen jointly by the student and the thesis adviser. The student selects a guidance committee of at least three members of the Graduate Faculty. The student must submit a brief written thesis proposal to the committee members during the early stages of thesis work.

The thesis must meet normal standards of scholarly writing and prescribed standards of form (GSH 2.34 and the Graduate School document A Guide to the Preparation and Submission of Theses and Dissertations).

The student must register for at least three hours, but not more than six hours, of COMP 393: Masters Thesis. Registration for COMP 393 can reduce to 24 the number of hours of non-research courses that the student must take (GSH 2.31).

A student who elects to write a thesis must make an oral presentation of the thesis to the guidance committee. Before this presentation can take place, the adviser and at least one other member of the student's committee must agree that the thesis is in substantially finished form. The student may elect that the presentation be public. In that event the student gives a 50-minute presentation of the thesis, followed by questions from the committee and then from the audience. If the committee wishes, it may continue to question the student in private. If the student elects a private presentation, it will be of such form and duration as are prescribed by the committee. Public presentations are encouraged as a means of keeping faculty and students informed of current research and development activities, and to give the student experience in public speaking (GSH 2.18).

The thesis presentation is technically a Final Oral examination. The student may elect to combine it with the M.S. Oral Comprehensive examination on course work into a single examination, provided that the scheduling requirements for both have been met. This election is independent of whether to present the thesis publicly.

The student must be registered during the semester(s) in which the M.S. thesis presentation is held. Provided that no use of University faculty time and/or facilities is required, a student need not be registered in the semester in which the degree is to awarded, unless the thesis is defended and submitted to the Graduate School during the same semester (GSH 2.31).

Outside Review Option
A student who has written certain technical material in academic or nonacademic work may use this material to satisfy the writing requirement. The student should apply to the Graduate Studies Committee on Form CS-4. The relevant documentation should be attached; it will be returned.

Members of the Committee are normally willing to sign a non-disclosure agreement and read proprietary documents in confidence. Approval requires a two-thirds vote of the Graduate Studies Committee.

Documents may be accepted as satisfying this option only when all the following conditions have been met:

• The document is written in the English language.
• The student is the principal author of the document. If there are co-authors, each will be asked to acknowledge that the student did the bulk of the writing.
• The document has technical content and is approximately 5,000 words long (or longer).
• The document has been reviewed, evaluated, and approved for both style and content by each of at least two readers.
• The review process was such that the result of a negative review would have been rejection of the document.
• The review process was unrelated to this writing requirement.

Documents that satisfy this policy include: (1) Ph.D. dissertations and M.S. theses with technical content; and (2) most articles (of sufficient length and appropriate content) published in refereed journals or conference proceedings.

Documents that do not satisfy this policy include: (1) term papers and project reports for UNC-CH COMP courses, and (2) papers written primarily to satisfy this option.

Integrative Paper
The integrative paper (IP) is a survey of three or more technical papers that span three sub-fields of computer science and have a common thread. The integrative paper satisfies the comprehensive exam requirement and (when written as part of the Technical Writing course) can be used to satisfy the writing requirement.

The paper is written in one semester following the schedule below and is organized as an issue-based survey, approximately 5,000 words long, emphasizing the integration of concepts found in the subject papers. Faculty members can suggest suitable collections of papers, but students may propose a collection of subject papers as well. In the latter case, the student is responsible for finding a faculty member willing to certify the collection (and act as "proposer" in what follows).

Two members of the graduate faculty, at least one of whom is a member of the Computer Science department, must agree to read the IP for style and content. These two faculty members (one of whom acts as the proposer of the collection of papers) must approve the selection of papers, taking into consideration the general area of the student's research and the courses proposed by the student to satisfy the distribution requirement.

In an initial meeting that includes the student and both faculty members, the student should review the papers and discuss the issues to be addressed in the IP. The faculty should clarify expectations and agree on the scope of the IP.

A detailed outline of the IP that is acceptable to both the faculty and the student serves as a contract to write the IP. This agreement is recorded on form CS-09 (part I) and must be filed within the first five weeks of the semester in which the IP is to be written. Progress of the paper is tracked on this form by the student and the committee.

The Graduate Studies Committee reviews the papers and sub-fields cited on form CS-09 for compliance with the IP rules.

The writing of an IP is an individual effort, bound by the honor code, and should follow the rules of academic research. For example, sources must be properly cited.

It is expected that the survey may undergo up to two rounds of revision to satisfy both readers. The IP requirement will be considered satisfied when both faculty members have accepted the paper. If the paper has not been accepted before the Graduate School deadline for reporting exam grades (generally week 14), the student is considered to have failed the IP exam. The student may take the examination a second time in a subsequent semester. In this case, the student must start all over again with a fresh set of papers.

It is encouraged to use the integrative paper in combination with the Writing Course Option to satisfy the Technical Writing Requirement.

Comprehensive Examination
At the end of the M.S. program of study, students must pass a comprehensive examination (this is a Graduate School requirement). The M.S. Comprehensive Examination tests the student's mastery of graduate-level computer science material and supporting undergraduate content. The student may elect to take either a written or an oral comprehensive exam.

In the Department of Computer Science, the Integrative Paper serves as the written form of the M.S. Comprehensive Examination. If passed, the Written M.S. Comprehensive Examination can also satisfy the Doctoral Written Examination, should the student choose to continue toward the Ph.D. degree.

The student may opt to take an Oral M.S. Comprehensive Examination. Passing an Oral M.S. Comprehensive Examination cannot satisfy the Ph.D. Written Examination requirement. The Oral M.S. Comprehensive Examination is a topical exam, covering the courses listed in the M.S. program of study.

A student must be registered during the semester in which the M.S. Comprehensive Exam is taken (GSH 2.31).

If the student passes the exam, that fact is reported to the Graduate School by the department.

If the student fails the exam, the Comprehensive examination may be retaken, only once (except by petition), after a lapse of at least three months. The student may elect an oral or a written form for the second examination independently of the form of the first (GSH 2.18).

If the failure resulted primarily from weakness in a narrow area, the second examination may be designated to cover only that area of weakness. For an oral examination, the examining committee will notify the student, in writing, of the scope of the second examination. For a written examination, the departmental Committee on Examinations will so notify the student.

Foreign Language
There is no foreign language requirement for the M.S. or for the Ph.D. The faculty believes, however, that competence in a modern foreign language is an important asset for a computer scientist. Therefore it recommends language study to prospective students. Moreover, assistantship awards and fellowship recommendations are made taking language study here into account, so as not to penalize students for any prolongation of program resulting from language study.

Other Requirements
Residency
Two semesters of residence credit must be earned (GSH 2.5). This is achieved by the completion of 9 or more hours of course work in each of two semesters or by part time registration over a larger number of semesters. Transferred credit will not be included in the residence credit calculation. Applications for admission to candidacy and for award of the degree must be filed as stated in GSH 2.6.

Time Limit
All degree requirements must be completed within five calendar years from the date of the student's first registration in the Graduate School, whether in COMP or in another graduate program (GSH 2.35). As much as two years of time spent in active military service, the Peace Corps, or VISTA will not be counted, provided that the department and the Graduate School approve. Also, the student may request a leave of absence for a definite, stated time, not to exceed one year. If the department and Graduate School approve, the duration of the leave is not counted against the time limit (GSH 2.36). Full-time master's students who are funded by the department normally do not receive funding beyond their fourth semester.

If degree requirements change during a student's stay in the department, he or she has the option of continuing under the old rules or switching and satisfying all the new rules.

An exception to any rule may be requested for cause by petition. Decisions made by individual faculty members or by committees may be appealed to the department faculty as a whole.

The student must apply by the deadline to the Graduate School for award of the degree (GSH 2.6).

Summary and Required Forms
The following schedule represents typical progress toward the MS degree. The forms referenced can be obtained online or from the Student Services Manager, 135 Sitterson.

By the end of semester 2

• Complete 18 credit hours
• Submit Proposed Program of Study (CS-3) and Background Preparation (CS-1) indicating how each of the M.S. requirements has been or will be met.

Anytime

• Satisfy the program product requirement by review of a product you have developed (Form CS-13) or by passing COMP 145 (note: offered in Spring only)
• Satisfy the writing requirement:
  • Option 1: Pass COMP 291 and have the associated paper accepted by two approved readers (Form CS-8).
  • Option 2: Appoint an M.S. thesis committee (CS-5), submit an approved M.S. thesis, and pass the Final Oral Examination (thesis presentation).
  • Option 3: Submit an approved thesis substitute document (CS-4).

By the end of semester 4

• Complete coursework (at least 30 hours in approved Program of Study)
• Take the oral comprehensive examination or write an integrative paper
• Submit Application for Admission to Candidacy and Degree Card (the deadline for these forms is about one month after the beginning of the semester)

Just before you leave . . .

• Turn in office keys and access card to receptionist.
• Submit "Change of Address" forms to the Registrar's Office and the Payroll Office