Computer Science
MS

Master's degree in computer science

The Computer Science MS program gives graduates a broad and deep knowledge of computer science by offering a strong core program with a wide selection of elective courses.

The program maintains a balance between theory, systems, and applications—with an emphasis on software development.

You'll gain the ability and confidence to use your knowledge by working on realistic-scale, graduate-level projects. Your experience will include:

working as a member of a team
situations where you will be responsible for the entire project, from problem specification to solution
independent research
presentation of research results in oral and written forms

You will graduate with the knowledge and skills required to develop and design high-quality computer systems and application software—and the ability to follow the rapid changes in the field of computer science.

As a highly-qualified professional, you will be ready to compete for responsible positions in the computer industry, research institutions, government, or to continue your education in a PhD program.

Student success

Computer Science major Alexander Moulton

Alexander Moulton '21, '22

Alexander Moulton earned his BS and MS in computer science from UMass Dartmouth. His capstone project led to continued opportunities after graduation.

The work he did on his capstone project was used to create the Machine Learning Ship-Recognition Buoy Prototype at Rite Solutions, a software development, systems engineering, information technology and learning development firm based in Middletown, RI.

Mean starting salary for computer science MS graduates:
$$115,814

NACE AY 2023 Data Collection Graduate Alumni

The MS in Computer Science prepares graduates to:

succeed as leaders at project and enterprise levels
pursue PhD studies
contribute to the development of computer industry
use computer science knowledge to contribute to the advancement of other industries

Learn more: program goals & outcomes

You will arrange an individual graduate program with your advisor during the first semester, subject to approval by your Graduate Committee.

All students complete 3 required computer science courses and a master’s project or thesis course. Combined thesis and project credits cannot exceed 6. Elective courses round out the student’s program.

Learn more: degree requirements

A number of graduate teaching and research assistantships are awarded to qualified students who have been accepted for admission to a degree program and have requested financial assistance.

The research interests of faculty in the Computer & Information Science (CIS) Department are wide-ranging, and include:

artificial intelligence
autonomous systems
bioinformatics
computational biology
decision support systems
distributed computing
human-computer interaction
internet security
mobile robotics
machine learning

Learn more: faculty areas of interest

International (F-1) students who receive science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) degrees may be eligible to apply for a 24-month extension of their post-completion optional practical training (OPT). To learn about the eligibility criteria and detailed steps to apply, please review the International Student & Scholar Center (ISSC) OPT page and USCIS resources. F-1 students must consult with the ISSC to apply for STEM OPT.

Graduate admissions requirements

University requirements for graduate admissions

Submit an application via the online portal. Be sure to provide your full legal name and to capitalize the first letter of all proper nouns.
Pay non-refundable $60 application fee (American Express, Discover, MasterCard or Visa) via the online portal. For Nursing applicants, the non-refundable application fee is $75.
Statement of Purpose, minimum 300 words. Unless otherwise indicated in the program requirement details, indicate your graduate study objectives, research interests and experience, and business or industry experience if applicable. If you are applying for a teaching or research assistantship, include any special skills or experience that would assist us in making assistantship decisions.
Resume
Transcripts for all post-secondary institutions attended (regardless of whether a credential is earned or not). Unofficial transcripts are accepted for admissions application review, once enrolled a final official transcript is required. International students applying with an transcript evaluation, please submit that document with your unofficial transcripts. International applicants for Data Science must submit semester-by-semester transcripts as well as consolidated transcripts.
Many programs have specific recommendations/requirements, please see the additional program-specific requirements for more information.
International students: official TOEFL iBT, IELTS, Pearson PTE or Duolingo (if accepted by program) score. Unofficial scores are accepted for admissions application review, once enrolled official scores are required and must be sent by the testing agency (copies/scans not accepted). This is required of any applicant who did not earn a bachelor’s degree or higher degree from an accredited academic institution in the U.S. or accepted English-speaking country, see exemptions for more details. We require an overall/total minimum score of 72 on the TOEFL iBT or BAND 6.0 on the IELTS or a 52 on the Pearsons PTE Academic for entrance to any program and a minimum score of 79 on the TOEFL iBT or BAND 6.5 on the IELTS for consideration for a teaching assistantship. Some programs require higher minimum scores (see program-specific requirements). Most programs also accept the Duolingo with a minimum score of 95. The following programs do not accept the Duolingo: Art Education, Biology/Marine Biology, Nursing (MS, DNP, PhD), Psychology: Clinical, and Public Policy.
All official documents are required for enrollment, please have documents (ie. test scores) sent prior to the expiration.

Program-specific requirements

Candidates must submit the required application materials, university requirements and program-specific requirements, for consideration.

Students must demonstrate

ability to write programs in a high-level programming language (such as C, C++, Java)
knowledge of computer architecture and operating systems
knowledge of software engineering
knowledge of mathematical analysis and elements of theoretical foundations of computer science and analysis of algorithms

Requirements

GRE is strongly recommended.
2 letters of recommendation: from a person in the field of your academic major at the institution most recently attended or from a supervisor familiar with your recent job performance. Applicants will be required to provide the recommenders name and email address so we can contact the recommender for the letter of recommendation.

Program deadlines