(Adopted August 1, 2000) (Revised December 21, 2000)

• General
• Admissions
• Course Requirements
• Admission to Candidacy
• Removal from the Program
• Other Requirements

GENERAL

The Plan 2 Master of Science (P2-M.S.) in Computer Science is one of the graduate degree programs of the University of Houston. It is a terminal degree intended for those working professionals who wish to advance their careers in computer and information technologies. Students in this program must comply with all the rules and satisfy all the requirements set by the University of Houston and the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics. In addition, the Department of Computer Science has the following rules and regulations.

1. ADMISSIONS

A student must be admitted to the Plan 2 Master of Science degree program by the Department of Computer Science. 1.1 The admission standard takes both the score for the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) and the Grade Point Average (GPA) over the last 60 credit hours into consideration. Students whose native language is not English must obtain a TOEFL score not less than 650 (280 for computer-based test). An applicant's background in Mathematics and Computer Science is also a deciding factor.

In addition the applicant must submit at least three letters of recommendation.

2. COURSE REQUIREMENTS

2.1 A student must complete a minimum of 36 credit hours subject to the following restrictions. There is no thesis requirement.

2.1.1 No less than 24 credit hours of Computer Science courses of 6000 level or above, excluding special problems (6x98), special topics (6397), colloquia (6110), preparatory courses (6301, 6302, 6303, 6304, 4310, 4330) and thesis hours.

2.1.2 No more than 6 hours outside computer science in related fields of science, engineering and business may be counted. All these courses have to be with specific approval of the Director of Graduate Studies. Undergraduate courses for graduate credit will be allowed only in rare, well-justified cases.

2.2 Upon admittance to the department and prior to registration for any subsequent semester, every graduate student must consult the Director of Graduate Studies to set up a tentative program for course work and obtain approval for registration.

3. ADMISSION TO CANDIDACY

3.1 A student who has demonstrated an appropriate level of proficiency will be admitted to candidacy for the Plan 2 Master of Science degree by approval of the Graduate Committee of Computer Science.

3.1.1 Proficiency will usually be defined as a recognized BS or BA degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering or related computational degrees. An appropriate level of proficiency is also defined to be either completion with a grade of "B-" or better of, or obtaining advanced placement in, every one of the following eight categories as a undergraduate or post baccalaureate student:

1. Math 1431 (Calculus I), 1432 (Calculus II), and Math 2431 (Linear Algebra)
2. COSC 4305 (Grad Pre-requisite).
3. COSC 4306 (Data Structures).
4. COSC 4307 (Computer Organization & Programming).
5. COSC 4308 (Computer Architecture).
6. COSC 4309 (Intro to Automata & Computability).
7. COSC 4310 (Fundamentals of Operating Systems).
8. COSC 4311 (Software Engineering).

All 4000 level courses are grad pre-requisites which are combined with undergrad courses

NOTE: Any course in the above categories in which a grade of "B-" or better is not made must be repeated the very next semester after having attempted the course originally.

3.1.2 Advanced placement may be obtained by passing an examination administered by the instructor of that course. The result of the placement tests will be included in the student's academic file.

3.1.3 A student can make a request to take advanced placement test(s) during the first four weeks of his/her first semester of graduate study. If approved by the Director of Graduate Studies, the test must be completed within his/her first semester. The instructor shall report the result to the Director of Graduate Studies.

3.1.4 The courses in 3.1.1 must be completed before a student will be allowed to register as a graduate student and in other courses which are to be counted towards his/her degree, except that a student will be allowed to register for other courses in the semester in which he/she will complete all courses in 3.1.1.

4. REMOVAL FROM THE PROGRAM

4.1 Students must complete their degree within 5 years of their initial enrollment in the program. (See time limitation in the graduate school catalog).

4.2 A student will be removed from the program if he has earned a grade of "C+" or lower in 4 courses while he is enrolled as a graduate student at the University of Houston. All other scholastic regulations as specified in the Graduate School catalog must be satisfied.

5. OTHER REQUIREMENTS

A student, at his/her own option, must satisfy either (a) all the requirements of the department at the time he/she enrolled as a graduate student in the department, or (b) all the present requirements of the department subject to the exclusions stated in Section 2.1. No mixed petitions will be considered.