Computer Science and Engineering

Ohio State’s Department of Computer Science and Engineering has excelled in both research and education since 1968. Ranked among the top public computer science departments at public institutions in the United States by the National Research Council and by U.S. News & World Report, the department provides an outstanding educational experience to 1,200 undergraduate and 170 graduate students from across the globe.

The mission of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering Graduate Program is to develop researchers, educators and practicing professionals with advanced skills in computing. Students can pursue a master’s degree, a doctoral degree or both.

Opportunities for Students

Applicants to the CSE graduate program are expected to have completed an undergraduate degree in computer science or to have taken a prescribed set of undergraduate computer science courses. Exceptional students with strong backgrounds in other scientific or engineering fields are encouraged to apply.

The master’s degree program is divided into two tracks, one a research track requiring a master’s thesis on some original research, and the other a coursework track with a larger coursework requirement and a written master’s comprehensive examination. The objective of the research track is to provide students with advanced level knowledge in computing while developing their ability to do independent, creative research. The coursework track’s objective is to provide advanced level knowledge and skills that will be valuable for practicing professionals. Both tracks give students a solid background in the theory and foundations of computing and expose them to the latest technology and ideas in computer science.

The goal of the doctoral degree program is to prepare students to become leading researchers and educators both in academia and in industry. Doctoral candidates take a set of courses in one major and two minor areas of concentration as well as completing a set of core courses. The minor areas can be from areas outside the department, such as psychology or mathematics. Under the guidance of a faculty member, doctoral candidates must produce significant, innovative research in some area of computer science and write and defend a dissertation.

Additional opportunities for graduate students include the Graduate Interdisciplinary Specialization/Minor in Applied Software Engineering, a program administered by the Department of Computer Science and Engineering and the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering to educate graduate students in state-of-the-practice software technologies that will help complete their primary graduate work when that work entails the development of significant technical software systems. It leads to a transcript designation that can and should be advertised to prospective employers who prefer candidates with not only discipline-specific knowledge but also the knowledge and skill to develop sophisticated technical software systems in their discipline. Also, students may pursue a second graduate degree in computer science and engineering in addition to their degree in their home department. Guidelines are available at http://www.cse.ohio-state.edu/grad/joint.shtml.

Research

The sponsored research at the Department of Computer Science and Engineering exceeds $5 million annually. The citation impact of the department’s research results has been highly rated by Science Watch and the National Research Council. Our faculty includes IEEE and ACM Fellows, and many are active on the boards of computer science journals and conferences. The external funding generated by computer science and engineering faculty recently doubled over a four-year period.

Students at all levels in their education are encouraged to work on research, in areas as diverse as artificial intelligence, computer graphics, computer networks, database systems, distributed and parallel computing, programming languages and software engineering. Computer science and engineering graduates can be found working at the most innovative corporations and research laboratories, as well as continuing their research and teaching at leading academic institutions.

Research areas, groups and laboratories within the Department of Computer Science and Engineering include:

Artificial Intelligence

Laboratory for Artificial Intelligence Research
Speech and Language Technologies Laboratory
Perception and Neurodynamics Laboratory
Computer Vision Laboratory
Data Mining Research Lab

Computer Graphics

Computer Graphics Research
Animation Research Group
Geometric Modeling
Time-Varying Data Visualization
Volume Graphics Research Groups

Computer Networking

Networking Research Laboratory
Dependable Distributed and Networked Systems

Software Engineering

Collaborative for Enterprise Transformation and Innovation
Software Engineering Research Group
Reusable Software Research Group
Program Analyses and Software Tools Research Group

Systems

Network-Based Computing Laboratory
Data Mining Research Lab
Database Research Lab
Data Grid Technologies Lab
Parallelizing Computers Lab
Large Scale Distributed Computing Group
Hypertext Processing, Braille Production

About the Department

Computer science and engineering offers multiple degree programs that empower students to gain the education that meets their career goals. Graduate programs afford our students opportunities that will enable them to be computer science’s next leaders and industry shapers. Special outreach and diversity related programs ensure that all students are provided the opportunities to succeed.

The department offers students an excellent environment for graduate study, including a first-class computational environment that includes a distributed network of high-performance workstations, parallel and cluster machines, performance analysis equipment, and other experimental hardware. Our building includes state-of-the-art facilities for faculty and graduate students, including classrooms, research laboratories, conference rooms, and offices.

Graduate Applications

Applications to Ohio State University must be submitted online. Please visit the Ohio State University Office of Graduate Admissions Web site to apply online with a credit card. Also, the computer science and engineering department’s provides links to the university admissions Internet site.