Dear MS in CS students:

We have recently received some inquiries regarding the MS in CS degree 
requirements that have been re-formulated, effective Fall 2012. In this 
message, we would like to clarify a couple of points.

1. **If you have started your MS in CS studies in Spring 2012 or 
before** these changes do NOT affect you.  This is because, by default, 
you are subject to the degree requirements listed in the catalog of the 
year **when you started the MS in CS program**. We assume you are 
already familiar with the degree requirements you are subject to; but in 
case of any doubt, you can consult the catalog you are subject to and 
double check the MS in CS requirements by visiting the catalog archives 
available at: http://registrar.gmu.edu/catalog/archive.html
(After selecting the catalog year you are subject to, choose the 
"Volgenau School of Engineering" on the left menu, and then the 
"Computer Science" link in the list of "MS degrees")

2. **If you are starting the MS in CS program in Fall 2012**, you are 
subject to the new requirements which can be directly accessed at the 
following page of the 2012-2013 catalog:
http://catalog.gmu.edu/preview_program.php?catoid=19&poid=17727
As you may know, there will be an orientation for NEW graduate students 
on August 22, and if you are a new graduate student, we encourage you to 
attend this orientation as more details and explanations will be given 
during the event about the degree requirements. Please refer to: 
http://cs.gmu.edu/events/index.html#51-VolgenauNe for more information 
about this event.

3. A brief summary of the differences between the new and old set of 
requirements: The courses, as before, are grouped in five areas: 
Artificial Intelligence and Databases, Programming Languages and 
Software Engineering, Systems and Networks, Theoretical Computer 
Science, and Visual Computing. Probably the most important change is 
that in every area some courses have been designated as "core" courses, 
under the new regulations.

Under the new set of requirements (effective Fall 2012), each student 
has to complete three core courses in three different areas. Students 
should receive a grade of B- or better in each of the core courses. In 
addition, one of the core courses should be CS 583 (Analysis of 
Algorithms) from the Theoretical Computer Science area.  There are also 
a few changes in the list of pre-approved courses; so it is always best 
to refer to the list of the pre-approved courses given in the MS in CS 
entry of the catalog you are subject to.
For students starting in Fall 2012, the list of pre-approved courses can 
be found also at: 
http://catalog.gmu.edu/preview_program.php?catoid=19&poid=17727

Once again: these changes do not affect you if you started the MS in CS 
program in Spring 2012 or before.

We wish you a very successful academic year.

Dr. Hakan Aydin
Associate Professor
Director of MS in CS Program